Category: News

Kerala’s tourism model of Responsible Tourism (RT) has been lauded by international expert, stating that RT can take the state to a high rank in the attainment of the globally accepted Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030. “The most important thing for me is the success of the Responsible Tourism Mission and the way in which local communities have been enabled to earn from tourism as an additional livelihood. Local communities don’t stop what they were doing before but have an additional source of income,” said Harold Goodwin, Founder and Managing Director of the International Center for Responsible Tourism. Professor ... Read more

A new non profit travel society/association, named Kerala Travel’s & Tour’s Consortium (KTTC), is all set to have an official launch on February 16, 2019 at Hotel Palace Inn, Angamaly. “The forming and inaugural ceremony to be held at 4.30 pm in Angamaly, will select the office bearers of the consortium,” said Mebin Roy. The consortium has around 20 members from across Kerala. “We need only 1-3 agents depending upon the city, in the stage 1. Our mission is to make profit through group activities, like tour packages,” he said. KTTC already has fixed departures (both Inbound & Outbound) on every month from ... Read more

Israeli airline Arkia Airlines Ltd. announce to introduce flights to Goa and Cochin in the state of Kerala. Arkia is joining El Al Israel Airlines Ltd., which operates direct flights to Mumbai, and Air India, which flies from Tel Aviv to Delhi on a shorter route passing above Saudi Arabia. The new flights will start operating from September 2019 using recently acquired Airbus 321neoLR airliners. It will take seven hours reach the destinations and will take place all year round, except for the summer in Israel, which is the monsoon season in India. The flight to Goa will take off ... Read more

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is all set to inaugurate the Jewar Noida International Airport (JNIA), also known as the New Greater Delhi Airport redevelopment project between February 23-25, 2019. The Prime Minister will lay the foundation stone for the USD 3.1 billion project, which will be the largest airport in India by surface area. JNIA, scheduled to become operational in 2022, will provide the National Capital Region with a second facility after Indira Gandhi International Airport. The GMR Group holds first right of refusal for any new airport in Delhi and in February 2018, GMR Infrastructure’s director K Narayan Rao ... Read more

As part of the government’s green initiative, the union ministry to encourage electric vehicles on roads. It was announced by Mansukh Mandaviya, Minister of State for Road Transport in a written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha. Electric bus introduced by KSRTC The ministry also plan to grand driving license to children in the age group of 16-18 years, mainly school/ tuition students, to drive gearless E-scooters/ Bikes up to 4.0 KW. A policy on charging infrastructure has been issued by Ministry of Power which clarifies that charging electric vehicles will be a service, not a sale of electricity. ... Read more

Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) in association with Malshej Ghat MTDC Resort, Junnar is organizing a four-day ‘Junnar Grape Festival’ in Galegaon village from February 16 February 2019. Junnar taluka is a taluka (subdivision) of the Pune district in Maharashtra. It is northernmost taluka of the District.The area is well known for two of the Ashtavinayak temples at Lenyadri and Ozar respectively. The taluka is also the home of Shivneri Fort, GMRT (Khodad), and Vikram Sarabhai Earth Station at Arvi. Though famous for its historical places, Junnar is less known as a destination for wine tourism. The festival aims at ... Read more

In light of climate change, mass tourism and other factors impacting destinations around the world, Exo Travel has created a brand new and easy way for agents to choose and book responsible travel experiences and tours through a transparent rating system. You can now make an informed decision on your guests travels that will help leave the lightest footprints and the most positive impacts possible. With its new responsible travel rating system, Exo Travel is providing an important and transparent way for agents to assess, view, filter and select tours and experiences from a responsible travel perspective. When designing holidays ... Read more

Qatar has achieved remarkable improvement in road safety during 2018. It was announced by Director-General of Traffic Major General Mohamed Saad al-Kharji, the National Traffic Safety Committee secretary Brigadier Mohamed Abdullah al-Maliki and Ministry of Interior’s (MoI) Statistical Analysis Office head Brigadier Ibrahim Saad al-Sulaiti in press conference on Sunday. The number of deaths in traffic accidents in Qatar fell to 4.9 per 100,000 people in 2018 from 5.4 in 2017, enabling the country to further improve its global record in terms of a low accident fatality rate. The indicators revealed a 7 per cent decrease in accidents in comparison ... Read more

Travel Agents Association of Kashmir in collaboration with the department of tourism Kashmir is conducting a tourism promotional campaign in Bangkok. The delegation TAAK is led by its President Ashfaq Siddiq Dug who will be holding several meeting with the travel and tour bodies in Bangkok and Suchitra Durai, Republic of India High Commission in Bangkok, President Thai Travel Agents Association (TTAA) Thanapol Cheewarattanaporn and others to apprise them about the tourism potential of the Jammu and Kashmir State. Photo from last years ‘Incredible India’ programme in Bangkok The participating delegation includes office bearers of TAAK, ex officious and general ... Read more

Pioneering hospitality management company, Aleph Hospitality has announced the signing of a franchise agreement with Marriott International for the first Four Points by Sheraton hotel in Liberia. Located in the capital city, Monrovia, the hotel is due to become the first internationally branded hotel in the country upon opening in 2020 and will be managed by Aleph Hospitality under the Four Points by Sheraton brand. The landmark property is ideally situated in the city’s central business district, adjacent to the United Nations mission and in close proximity to a number of government organisations and commercial offices. It will offer 111 stylishly ... Read more

Rendering of The St. Regis Marrakech Resort From the Forum de l’Investissement Hôtelier Africain in Marrakech, Marriott International announced three new deal signings across North and West Africa, reinforcing the company’s commitment to expanding its presence across the continent. The new deal signings highlight the company’s growth in Morocco and Ghana, while marking its debut in Liberia. Organised by Bench Events, Forum de l’Investissement Hôtelier Africain is a gathering that unites North and West African countries in a bid to develop their economies and support hospitality investment. The forum connects business leaders from international and local markets – driving investment into ... Read more

The Telengana government plans to develop the Jogulamba temple in the Jogulamba Gadwal district into a leading heritage tourism hub of the country and is planning to attract tourists and large number of pilgrims. Alampur is the meeting point of the sacred rivers Tungabhadra and Krishna and is referred to as Dakshina Kashi (also Navabrahmeshwara Theertha) and the Western Gateway of Srisailam, the famous Shaivite pilgrim center. The principal deities at the Jogulamba temple are Jogulamba and Balabrahmeshwara. Goddess Jogulamba is considered the 5th Shakti Peeta among 18 shakti peetams in the country. Here Goddess Jogulamba is seen seated on the Corpse with scorpion, frog, and lizard on the head. ... Read more

The Department of Tourism (DOT) is gearing up for two major aviation events in an effort to boost the Philippines’ bid as one of Asia’s aviation hubs. Slated on March 10-12 at the Waterfront Cebu City Hotel and Casino, Routes Asia “brings together top-level speakers from across the sphere of aviation, including airlines, airports, destinations, aircraft manufacturers and more, to discuss the most pressing issues facing aviation now and into the future.” Meanwhile, the CAPA Asia Aviation that will be held in June is expected to gather some 300 aviation executives and decision-makers. “This will be the perfect avenue to converge ... Read more

Etihad Airways was confirmed as the official partner of New York Fashion Week: The Shows Autumn/Winter 2019, taking place until 13 February. The airline also celebrates the second birthday of its successful Runway to Runway loyalty programme. New York Fashion Week is one of four major fashion weeks in the world, collectively known as the “Big 4”, along with those in Paris, London and Milan. By partnering once again with NYFW: The Shows, the central hub of activity during NYFW, in 2019, Etihad Airways will mark its third consecutive year of collaborating with international Fashion Weeks, establishing its role as ... Read more

In order to bring the offbeat destinations of the country to the limelight, the ministry of tourism is seeking association from travel bloggers. It is reported that the ministry has selected 8 bloggers, to write about eight destinations, which will be selected by next week. As per an official from the tourism department, the write-ups will be published in the blogger’s personal blogs, and promoted on other social media platforms like Twitter and Instagram. Later, they will also be published on tourism ministry’s website incredibleindia.com. “We had a meeting with around 17 travel bloggers a few days back. We have ... Read more