Category: News

Kerala tourism has organized a roadshow in Bhubaneswar to attract domestic travellers from the state. Kerala is expecting at least 10 per cent domestic tourists from Odisha this year. Around 7-8 per cent tourists from Odisha visited Kerala last year. Kerala tourism eyes to increase it up to 10 per cent this year. The roadshow showcased the presentation of a short 30-minute cultural programme, a visual storytelling that showcased the various art forms of Kerala. Tagged ‘ComeOutandPlay’, the campaign is aimed at domestic travellers who have been seeing Kerala as an antidote to urban experiences and as the antithesis of routine. The campaign ... Read more

Following the announcement of National Water Ways by the Union Ministry, the West Bengal government has initiated a project to enhance its river transport and tourism potential with a $151 million (Rs 1,021 crore) World Bank assistance. Rs 5,369 crore worth Ganga Jal Marg project of the Union Ministry will facilitate cargo movement along the National Waterway-I from Varanasi to Haldia. Accordingly, the state government aims at optimizing the potential of river transport both for cargo and human movements. Ro-Ro service (Roll-on/roll-off) is one of the popular means of transport in Kolkota for shipping wheeled cargo, such as cars, trucks, ... Read more

High Commission of Malaysia, H. E. Dato’ Hidayat Abdul Hamid at the National Tourism Conclave Department of Tourism and Rajasthan Tourism Development Corporation, Government of Rajasthan, along with Elets Technomedia Pvt Ltd, has organized National Tourism Conclave in the pink city of Jaipur. The conclave, kick-started today, acted as a platform for interaction between Government and Industry and other stakeholders on innovative practices for Tourism development and promotion. Jagdish Chopra, Chairman, Haryana Tourism Development Corporation Ltd; Vijai Vardhan, Additional Chief Secretary, Haryana Tourism, Government of Haryana; K B Singh, IPS, Chairman & MD, Orissa State Road Transport Corporation; S K Agarwal, Additional Chief Secretary Transport Department, Government ... Read more

Munnar Hills In an interactive session organized at Fortune Murali Park on Thursday, Kerala Tourism department invited Andhra Pradesh to visit the tourism destination of Kerala and experience its rich cultural heritage. The event was held as part of its tourism promotion campaign, and, the Kerala Tourism Department has showcased what God’s own country can offer. People of Andhra Pradesh are mainly interested in pilgrimage and cultural spots in Kerala. They visit hill stations, beaches, wildlife sanctuaries and backwaters and constitute around 15 per cent of the state’s domestic tourists. “The number of devotees from Andhra Pradesh to Sabarimala is ... Read more

The tourism department of Dehradun has decided to hold a mini conclave on tourism and wellness industry in Tehri on August 7, ahead of its investors meet. The two-day Investor Summit will be held in October. It was decided that four mini conclaves would be organised by the State Government in Tehri, Udham Singh Nagar, Nainital and Haridwar. In Tehri – Wellness and Tourism Conclave; in Udham Singh Nagar – Food Processing and Auto Conclave; in Nainital – Film Shooting and Tourism Conclave and in Haridwar – Ayurveda, Herbal, Aromatic and AYUSH Conclave would be organised. The department has also ... Read more

The FIFA World Cup has helped “destroy stereotypes” about Russia and is expected to boost foreign tourism by 15 per cent as fans head home and spread the word that they had a great time, said Deputy Prime Minister Olga Golodets. “We expect a serious increase in the international influx (of tourists). We hope that this influx will increase next year by no less than 15 per cent, thanks to the policy of openness and the recognition of Russia that occurred during the World Cup,” Golodets, who was appointed to oversee sport and culture in May, told Reuters in an ... Read more

Sikkim Tourism has bagged an award for “Best Eco-Tourism Destination” from the North-East together with the Tourism Department of Meghalaya at the recently concluded Travel & Tourism Fair (TTF). The three days long TTF, India’s largest travel trade show, took place in Netaji Indoor Stadium, Kolkata (West Bengal). The award was received by the Special Secretary, Namrata Thapa and Joint Director, M K Pradhan from the hands of the Chairman-cum-CEO, Fairfest Media Pvt. Ltd., Sanjiv Agarwal, Director for Tourism, Government of Bangladesh and Director of Nepal Tourism Board. Renowned music composer A R Rahman has been appointed as the Brand Ambassador of the ... Read more

The government of Gujarat is planning to promote Ayurvedic tourism, learnt from the success story of Kerala in the sector. A campaign launched by the Tourism Ministry promoted by Bollywood super star Amitabh Bachan, in this line was very promising. The government will start 10 wellness centers this year with a cost of Rs 5 crores. The centers will offer both preventive and curative treatments to the tourists. “We will be holding meetings with the forest and tourism departments shortly and will start the project on a PPP (Public private partnership) basis. We will be targeting popular eco-tourism destinations and ... Read more

Derek Moore, Chairman, AITO; H.E. Akel Biltaji, Chairman, Abdali Development & Investment Company; Dr. Mario Hardy, CEO, PATA; Preston Motes, Chief of Party, USAID The Resilience Through Tourism Summit (RTTS), an international conference that took place in Amman earlier this week, has announced the winners of the world’s first International Peace Through Tourism Awards which have been launched to highlight global tourism’s contribution to prosperity and peace. The new awards act as a benchmark to celebrate how far countries and communities have come since the Amman Declaration on Peace Through Tourism was confirmed in 2000 at the IIPT’s previous Global Summit. ... Read more

“LDF Government will generate 5 lakhs job opportunities in the tourism sector during its tenure,” said Tourism Minister Kadakampalli Surendran. He was speaking at the inauguration of the new career portal of tourism, developed by Kerala Institute of Tourism and Travel Studies (KITTS), at Trivandrum on 12th July. “Kerala Tourism is in the path of development. The government’s vision is to make the entire stretch of Kerala to be tourism destinations, other than Kovalam and Kumarakam. The stagnation in the tourism sector has been changing and it is moving forward under the governess of the LDF. Innovative steps has been ... Read more

Six wetlands in five districts in the Konkan region of Maharashtra to be declared ecotourism destinations. It is with the intention to highlight the ecologically important areas and to increase awareness to conserve them. Conserving wetlands becomes very crucial these days as thousands of acres of wetlands have been disappeared from our country due to human activities. Wetlands are important parts of our nature as they help take out carbon dioxide from the air, act as an important buffer between land and sea and are home to several species of marine animals.

The programmes to go along with the much awaited International Ayush Conclave (IAC 2018), which is scheduled to conduct from 7th to 11th September 2018, has just been finalsed. And, Ayush Health Travel Bazar is already holding great hopes. The Bazar will have representations from different Ayurvedic Treatment Centers in Kerala, international tour operators in the wellness industry and media persons working in the sector etc. Ayush Health Travel Bazar will discuss how to develop the infrastructure for Ayush-based health tourism and the accumulation of resources for the same. The interaction between tour operators and the service providers is expected to ... Read more

With an aim to attract nature lovers to state, Odisha has laid focus on development of eco-tourism and sustainable practices in nature-based tourism. At a time when the state has introduced an eco-tourism policy, Forest Department has been declared as the nodal agency for development of eco-tourism in the State. “An eco-tourism scheme has been approved with the financial implication of Rs 56 crore for five years for its sustainable development and promotions,” said Tourism Secretary Vishal Kumar Dev. He was speaking at a workshop on ‘Sustainable Eco-tourism’ jointly organised by Department of Tourism and Forest and Environment in collaboration with Ecotourism Society ... Read more

Hyatt hotels announced its plan to eliminate single-use plastic straws and drink picks. After Sept. 1, 2018, straws and picks will be available on request only, and eco-friendly alternatives will be provided where available. “At Hyatt, we care for people so they can be their best, and this care extends to our communities and to preserving resources for future generations. Eliminating plastic straws and drink picks builds on the environmental sustainability programs we have in place and further drives our global efforts to reduce environmental impact. This is a meaningful step, and our commitment doesn’t stop with straws and drink ... Read more

Qatar Airways said its award-winning Business Class experience, Qsuite, is now available on flights to and from Mumbai and Bengaluru. Patented by Qatar Airways, Qsuite features the industry’s first-ever double bed available in Business Class, as well as private cabins for up to four people with privacy panels. The privacy panels can stow away thereby allowing passengers in adjoining seats to create their own private room, a first of its kind in the industry. Adjustable panels and movable TV monitors on the centre four seats allow colleagues, friends or families travelling together to transform their space into a private suite, allowing them ... Read more