Category: News

Flagging off the first helicopter service by Pawan Hans in Uttarakhand under the UDAN-RCS scheme, Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said the launch of the heli-service will support tourism in the region. Commencement of the new heli services will enhance the aerial connectivity between hilly regions in Uttarakhand and bring down the average travel time to 20-25 minutes. This will also assist the Char Dham Yatra pilgrims. Char Dham is a set of four pilgrimage sites in India comprising Badrinath, Dwaraka, Puri and Rameswaram. Pawan Hans Ltd will operate thrice-weekly helicopter services on this route. Viability Gap Funding (VGF) is ... Read more

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) is urging African governments to unblock bottlenecks so that urgently needed financial relief pledged for air transport and tourism reaches the distressed businesses. As a consequence of the pandemic and associated restrictions, African airlines are forecast to lose $2 billion in 2020. Without urgent financial relief, the industry is at risk of collapse, putting about 3.3 million jobs and $33 billion in African GPD in jeopardy. To date, the governments of Sub-Saharan Africa Rwanda, Senegal, Côte D’Ivoire and Burkina Faso have pledged a total of $311 million in direct financial support to air transport. ... Read more

The Ministry of Tourism is facing criticism for allegedly favouring facilitators with minimal qualifications over approved tour guides, who have played the role of cultural ambassadors for years. Syed Imtiyaz Jaleel, Aurangabad’s Member of Parliament, has written to the ministry pointing out that these facilitators chosen by an online process are often just 10+2 qualified. “It seems, it is the policy of the tourism department to promote these facilitators to work as facilitator-cum-guides,” Jaleel wrote in his letter to Minister of Tourism, Prahlad Singh Patel.  The Department of Tourism was established 60 years ago and since then, the department has been ... Read more

he Hotel Association of India (HAI), which represents over 300 hotels across categories, has sought the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) support to tide over the financial crisis. The sector is staring at a ₹90,000 crore revenue loss in 2020, due to the coronavirus pandemic. The current debt levels in the organized hospitality sector, which is barely 10% of the total industry, stands at ₹45,000 crore, the association said. RBI had announced relief on loan moratorium on interest and principal repayment for six months till August. “Unfortunately, an immediate term solution will only defer the crisis as what is needed is ... Read more

Lisbon City Council is taking steps to turn Airbnb-style homes into affordable housing. But with many short-term rental owners holding out for tourism to return, the city’s new program has yet to attract many owners, Bloomberg reports. Under the so-called “Safe Rent” program, Lisbon is offering to pay as much as three years of rent up front to lure property owners—many of whom have seen their rental income evaporate due to coronavirus-related travel restrictions—to switch their short-term rental units into long-term lets for locals. Property owners may earn a maximum of 1,000 euros a month ($1,170) for a four-bedroom apartment in the ... Read more

Italy’s latest stimulus package, aimed at helping the economy overcome the coronavirus pandemic, will offer help to the tourism and auto sectors, Reuters reports. Economy Minister Roberto Gualtieri told a parliamentary committee on Tuesday that such a move was much needed and urgent. The government has said it will present the measures in an emergency decree in early August. A source told Reuters this month that slightly less than 1 billion euros ($1.17 billion) would be put forward to strengthen current incentives to encourage sales of state-of-the-art combustion engine cars as well as electric and hybrid vehicles. Gualtieri did not ... Read more

The Mizoram government is working on a new tourism policy, which will aim at enhancing livelihood of people, North East Now has reported. The new policy will make way for more funding support from the Centre and other stakeholders, the report said quoting an official. A draft of the new policy will be circulated among the various government departments for assessment, and it is expected to be tabled during the next Assembly session after approval from the State Cabinet. “Though the government has an existing tourism policy, we are drafting a new one known as Mizoram Responsible Tourism Policy, 2020, ... Read more

Kerala’s Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran will undergo self-quarantine after an employee at his official residence tested COVID-19 positive. On Tuesday, all employees at the Minister’s residence and office underwent an antigen test. It is reported that the Minister tested coronavirus negative. However, Kadakampally stated that he decided to enter self-quarantine from Tuesday afternoon as a precaution. The Minister has directed all of his employees, who worked with the COVID positive person, to enter self-quarantine.Kadakampally Surendran, who is in charge of the COVID-19 prevention activities in Thiruvananthapuram, had attended various meetings since Tuesday morning. The district Collector and many other high ranking officials ... Read more

Governments have a duty to put the wellbeing of their citizens first. At the same time, they also have a responsibility to protect livelihoods and businesses, says World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) secretary Zurab Pololikashvili. This goes hand-in-hand with a responsibility to preserve the spirit of international solidarity that has characterized our response to this shared crisis, a response that has included international institutions, the civil society at large and individual citizens. Again and again, the pandemic puts us to the test and proves that we are stronger if we act together and not in isolation. Unilateral actions can cause confusion and produce ... Read more

Dubai-based carrier Emirates has rolled out a new online gateway to serve its travel trade partners around the world. Tailored for each market, and personalised for each partner to cater to their unique business environment and needs, the Emirates Partners Portal is designed as a one-stop shop for travel industry partners to quickly and securely access the full range of information on Emirates’ latest products, services and policies, and obtain technical support. The portal also offers a range of functions including self-service tools and support, and in-built automation of business processes, all aimed at delivering efficiency for travel partners, as ... Read more

The Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) has said that Indian and foreign airlines be allowed to operate, to revive the travel industry. The industry body said the government should allow foreigners to travel to India on a reciprocal basis. While there has been a substantial easing of lockdown conditions in line with phase one and two, phase three remains a crucial decision for the country, it said, according to a report by news agency ANI. FICCI said clear-cut dates should be announced by the states to open tourism, monuments, tourist attractions, hotels, restaurants and bars. All restaurants ... Read more

India’s first full-fledged international cruise terminal is ready for commissioning at the Ernakulam Wharf on Willingdon Island in Kerala. Sagarika, the ₹25-crore cruise terminal spread over 12,000 sq.ft., has facilities to handle up to 5,000 tourists arriving in cruise vessels. The commissioning was scheduled for April, but had to be postponed due the coronavirus crisis. A new date is expected to be announced shortly. The terminal can be an important milestone for Kerala’s tourism sector, as the number of cruise ships visiting Kochi has been increasing every year. But many of these vessels that bring in high-spending tourists to the ... Read more

Effective 1 August, all travellers flying Etihad Airways from around the world to Abu Dhabi, and those transferring via Abu Dhabi onto other flights, will be required to show a negative COVID-19 PCR test result. The tests have to be carried out from a list of approved testing facilities listed on www.etihad.com/destinationguide, alongside their ICA approval if Abu Dhabi is their end destination. The PCR test must be carried out within 96 hours prior to arrival in Abu Dhabi and a negative COVID-19 PCR test result certificate from one of the approved clinics listed must be shown for approval to board. ... Read more

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has said international travel ban cannot stay in place indefinitely, and countries should do more to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus within their borders. A surge of infections had prompted countries to reimpose some travel restrictions in recent days. Only with strict adherence to health measures, from wearing masks to avoiding crowds, would the world manage to beat the COVID-19 pandemic, the World Health Organization’s director-general, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said at a virtual news briefing on Monday. “Where these measures are followed, cases are going down,” he said, praising Canada, China, Germany and South Korea ... Read more

Tourism, hospitality and aviation are among the worst affected sectors due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the latest survey by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has said. About 90% of the respondents said that recovery within the tourism sector appears bleak in the next six months. The aviation sector came a close second, with about 85% categorising the future prospects as extremely bleak. Bankers said aviation is most likely to require support as the sector is highly leveraged, with high fixed costs. The survey findings suggest that the ill-effects of COVID may remain for next 3-5 years and may impact the quality of credit ... Read more