Category: News

Photo for representative purpose only In order to provide relief aids to the flood ridden areas of the state, tourism fraternity of Kerala in association with Kerala Tourism Department & Kerala Travel Mart Society has setup a centralized relief collection centre at University Women’s Association Hall, Jawahar Nagar, Trivandrum, near the Lions Club building. Those who wish to participate in this noble cause can send their contributions in the form of food and other daily need items. The goods  can be delivered at the collection center in University Womens Association Hall  between 7am and 10pm.  Those who cannot reach the ... Read more

The Fort-based Horniman Circle garden, built by the British-era, will have a face-lift as informed by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s heritage department. Tenders for the same will be floated within two months. The renovation works will include new lighting and iron-fencing The Horniman Circle garden was built in 1872 and is spread over 12,000 square yards. The area had been known as Bombay Green in the 18th century, while the area around it was called Elphinstone Circle. After Independence, the area was renamed in honour of Benjamin Horniman, editor of The Bombay Chronicle newspaper, to recognize his role in the ... Read more

Emirates has introduced new toys from the Emirates Fly with Me collection and Lonely Planet Kids activity kit bags for children travelling in all classes. The new range of toys will come in the top four favourite characters, as voted by customers and fans in a social media competition held last year. Of the 17 characters Emirates introduced on board in the last three years, the top four characters chosen for the new products are Lewis the Lion, Peek U the Panda, Ernie the Penguin, and Savanna the Elephant. The new collection will be on board all flights and across ... Read more

Singapore Airlines (SIA) said it will be replacing its Boeing B777 with B787-10 on the Delhi-Singapore route by the end of October with an aim to increase seat capacity from India.  The SIA 787-10s are configured with 337 seats compared to the previous aircraft which had 266 seats. With these 71 seats extra, the capacity will increase by 10 [er cent. “To promote Boeing 787-10 services, we are also announcing special premium economy and business class fares to San Francisco and Los Angeles (Rs 88,000 & Rs 188,000, respectively),” said David Lim, Singapore Airlines, General Manager-India. SIA also plans to operate the ... Read more

With an aim to educate the travel trade on Qatar’s tourism offerings, Qatar Tourism Authority has recently conducted their first ever workshop at St Regis in Mumbai. Around 14 companies including DMCs and hotels participated in the half-day event. “India has emerged as a very strong market for us. We are adopting different strategies for the India market and as of now our focus will be Delhi and Mumbai. In near future we will target the Southern region of India,” said Sanal Issac, Sales Manager, Gulf Adventures. “We can meet the expectations of Indian travellers that include food as well. Qatar can ... Read more

In order to enhance inbound foreign tourism, the Odisha tourism department is joining hands with the major state-based hoteliers to tap the franchise business model with leading brands like Hilton Group, Sheraton Hotels and Resorts, Radisson Hotels, Taj Group and Starwood. The tourism ministry hopes, collaboration with renowned hotel brands would help propagate Odisha as a global tourism destination. Recently, the state tourism department had a word with the leading hospitality brands, seeking collaboration for enhancing the tourism industry of the state. Odisha is having a gloomy record in attracting international tourists and hopes the collaborations with the leading local ... Read more

Photo Courtesy: Khaleej Times President of UAE HH Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan has announced the formation of a national emergency committee to provide relief assistance to people affected by devastating rain and floods in Kerala. According to the President’s instructions, the committee will be chaired by the Emirates Red Crescent (ERC) and include representatives from the UAE’s humanitarian organisations. The committee will also seek the help of dignitaries of the Indian resident community. In a series of tweet, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai said that the people of ... Read more

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced Rs. 500 crores interim aid to Kerala. He was talking in the meeting with Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and the other ministers of the state at Kochi.  Kerala Governor P Sadasivam, Union Minister KJ Alphons, Chief secretaries of the state aslo were present in the meeting. The southern state of India has been witnessing the worst flood situation in the history and total damage is estimated to be Rs 20,000 crores. The state has been requesting Rs 2,000 crores as immediate financial aid from the center. Earlier, Modi has arrived at Thiruvananthapuram yesterday, 17th ... Read more

Vistara became the first airline to launch new flights to Trivandrum to evacuate passengers stuck in Kerala due to floods caused by unprecedented rains. “We are operating special flights to TRV (Trivandrum) in view of COK (Kochi) airport closure for the next three days. Flights will operate from DEL and MAA (Chennai). We do not normally operate to TRV, and have made special arrangements,” Vistara’s chief strategy and commercial officer tweeted today. Vistara does not operate to Trivandrum currently and has launched this flight after the airport was shut today due to floods. The operations from Kochi airport, where the airline ... Read more

Jet Airways has announced a ‘Seat Select’ sale that offers the airline’s guests an exclusive opportunity to select their preferred seats by just paying a flat, nominal fee while travelling across the airline’s domestic network of 45 destinations. The offer is also open for international guests looking to enjoy their preferred seating while traveling with Jet Airways for their onward journey in India. As part of the limited period offer, effective 16th August – 31st August, 2018, Economy guests can select any seat of their choice for a flat fee of Rs 200 only regardless of the date of travel. ... Read more

Panama has been building a cruise port to explore the potential of cruise tourism with the help of China. Amador Cruise Port, located at the Pacific entrance to the Panama Canal is expected to boost the tourism industry of Panama. Around 260 cruise ships cross the Panama Canal in a year. Once fully functional the terminal can accommodate the larger vessels in the port and the authorities expect more ships would dock and alight for site seeing or shopping. Jan de Nul of Belgium specializes in the building and maintenance of ports, while a consortium with CHEC of China is ... Read more

In mid-2017, the Department of Home Affairs (HA), formerly the Department of Immigration and Border Protection, extended online lodgement of visitor visa applications to all Indian nationals. The online application process provides a more convenient option for Indians looking to visit Australia, by allowing them to apply for their Australian tourist visa within the comfort of their home, without any biometric requirement or physically submitting their passport to the Department. In an age where travellers are increasingly self-reliant in planning and booking holidays, the e-lodgement facility allows tourists greater independence when planning a trip to Australia and has proved to ... Read more

Penang Convention and Exhibition Bureau (PCEB), the agency entrusted with the marketing and promotions of Malaysian island of Penang, said it will be hosting a mega destination familiarisation (FAM) trip for Indian agents in September. The aim is to make the agents understand the potential of Penang as a MICE destination and help them package it in many different ways to Indian groups. Organised with the support of Global Panorama Showcase (GPS), around 150 travel agents are expected to participate in the familiarisation tour scheduled between September 4 and 8. “One day will be dedicated to B2B meetings with prominent ... Read more

Zimbabwe is trying to boost their tourism sector by making documentaries on the major tourism destinations, to be showcased in Chinese tourism market. During his last visit to China, President Emmerson Mnangagwa signed a number of agreements with his Chinese counterpart, including a deal to film documentaries in Zimbabwe to be displayed in China. As per the agreement Chinese firm Touchroad International will bring Zheing Zhiang TV and Radio into the country, to begin filming and photographing Zimbabwe’s key tourist destinations. Zimbabwe has several world famous tourism destinations including Victoria Falls, Great Zimbabwe and Lake Kariba among others. “The country ... Read more

The Cochin International Airport Ltd (CIAL) has suspended its operations till August 26 owing to heavy rains in the region. All the flights at the airport are being cancelled and has prompted airlines to make special arrangements for the passengers, including alternative flights to nearby airports. Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) said that CIAL will not operate till August 26 due to rains and consequently, the Air Navigation Services wing of Airports Authority of India has issued NOTAM (notice to airmen). MoCA and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) have also announced measures to address the issues that have ... Read more