Category: News

Air France has announced that it would be increasing its flight schedule for summer 2020 and gradually building up its destination-offering and flight-frequencies over the next few months, through to October. Thus, by September, it hopes to achieve 50% of its flight schedule, pushing it to 60% in October. Additionally, the airline says that its domestic network will be restored to nearly full capacity flying out of Paris-Charles de Gaulle airport. However, medium and long-haul routes and frequencies will slowly build over the coming weeks and months. Earlier, Air France-KLM had announced plans to cut more than 7,500 jobs at its French ... Read more

American hospitality major Hilton has stopped operating its Hilton Cape Town hotel from Sunday, after nine years of running it. The property at the Buitengracht Street of Cape Town, will be handed back to its owner, Millat Properties. Hilton had recently announced that it would cut 2,100 jobs – more than a fifth of its corporate staff –  in response to the coronavirus crisis, which has decimated the hospitality industry. “Never in Hilton’s 101-year history has our industry faced a global crisis that brings travel to a virtual standstill,” said CEO Christopher J. Nassetta. In South Africa, leisure accommodation is ... Read more

Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, has announced a codeshare agreement with Abu Dhabi’s first low-cost airline, Air Arabia Abu Dhabi. Etihad has placed its ‘EY’ code on Air Arabia Abu Dhabi’s inaugural flight from Abu Dhabi to the Egyptian city of Alexandria July 14, followed by the Nile city of Sohag the next day. The new agreement enables guests to book Etihad flights in conjunction with Air Arabia Abu Dhabi services, connecting its global route network beyond the UAE capital to new airline’s routes. Etihad plans to add further codeshare destinations to the partnership scope ... Read more

Hyatt says all of its hotels in the Asia Pacific region have completed the first phase of its new cleanliness programme, Business Traveller reports. All 149 hotels in the region have hired “hygiene and wellbeing leaders”, a measure that is part of the hotel group’s Global Care and Cleanliness Commitment, which was announced in early May to restore confidence in travel. Other hygiene and safety measures introduced in phase one include providing alcohol wipes at restaurants and as part of in-room amenities, knock-and-go room service, “increased frequency” of cleaning air filters, implementation of a new wellness policy for colleagues, and ... Read more

The Boris Johnson government is under pressure to strip British Airways of valuable landing slots at UK airports amid concern about the airline’s plan to cut 12,000 jobs, according to a report in the Daily Mail. More than 100 British members of parliament from various political parties are asking the prime minister to reconsider British Airways’ right to slots at airports such as Heathrow, the newspaper said. The mounting political pressure comes after British Airways revealed it would cut about 28% of its 42,000 workers as it struggles to survive amid the coronavirus pandemic. The airline holds more than half ... Read more

Air India has withdrawn job offers sent out to around 180 trainee cabin crew members amid the economic slowdown in the aviation sector due to the coronavirus pandemic, news agency PTI has reported. “The airline has taken a decision to withdraw job offers for about 180 trainees who were to join as cabin crew after completing their training as the aviation sector has been hit hard due to the coronavirus pandemic,” said an airline official. In a letter sent to one such trainee cabin crew member on July 6, the airline said, “In view of the current aviation scenario, it ... Read more

Expedia Group Media Solutions, the global digital advertising organization of Expedia Group, has announced further details of its destination relief programme, as part of its $275 million commitment to helping travel par­tners rebound from the impact of COVID-19 and fuel industry-wide recovery efforts. To help re-ignite travel demand to destinations, Media Solutions is making $25 million of advertising relief available, which includes products, programmes and media value add from Expedia Group brands for display campaigns across Expedia Group sites. Several brands within the Media Solutions portfolio – including Expedia, Hotels.com, Orbitz, Travelocity, Hotwire, Wotif, ebookers and CheapTickets – are offering customized brand ... Read more

The Ritz-Carlton, Aruba, has reopened to guests. The relaunch of Aruba’s top luxury resort comes as the destination opens its borders to tourists from the United States, Caribbean Journal reports. The Palm Beach-area property has made some changes, including a newly-crafted menu, the addition of carry-out options at restaurants, and a reopened casino that is now the “premier non-smoking casino in Aruba”. The property has a total of 320 guest rooms and suites, the aforementioned 24-hour casino, a club lounge and a spa with 13 treatment rooms and six eateries. Those eateries include the signature BLT Steak, and Casa Nonna, the ... Read more

Air India on Sunday announced that it will operate 14 more flights under the Vande Bharat Mission for the evacuation of Indians stranded in the United Kingdom. The flights will be scheduled between July 15 to 24. Bookings will open today from 2 pm on the Air India website. Passengers may also visit the airport or city booking offices, the airlines tweeted. Air India flights to London are scheduled from several cities in India such as Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Ahmedabad, Chennai, Cochin, Hyderabad, Goa, Kolkata, Vijayawada and Amritsar. Anurag Srivastava, an external affairs ministry spokesperson, announced that 637 international flights ... Read more

The Delhi High Court has asked SoftBank-backed Oyo Hotels & Homes to file an affidavit in the court in two weeks on its unencumbered assets. The July 7 order came in a case filed by hospitality company Anam Datsec, which has accused Oyo of non-payment of dues for its Golden Sands property at Calangute in Goa and sought more than Rs 8 crore in damages. Anam Datsec claimed that Oyo had agreed to pay Rs 14 lakh a month as the minimum guaranteed amount when it entered into a management services agreement with the company for the property in 2018. ... Read more

Marriott has expanded its AC Hotels brand to Japan, with the opening of the 296-room AC Hotel by Marriott Tokyo Ginza. Located in Tokyo’s upscale Ginza district, the hotel’s modern glass and stone façade makes it a standout landmark in the heart of the capital’s luxury shopping, culinary and fashion scene. “We are thrilled to be bringing AC Hotels by Marriott to Ginza – one of Tokyo’s most esteemed neighbourhoods,” said Rajeev Menon, President, Asia Pacific (excluding China), Marriott International. “This represents a milestone in the expansion of our European-inspired lifestyle hotel brand in this region, and further compliments Marriott ... Read more

India’s national carrier Air India will connect Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Chennai with Singapore, Canada and Germany. Bookings for the same will open later today. Here are the details: Air India will operate four additional flights from July 19 to July 22 connecting Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Chennai with Singapore. Bookings will open today at 12 noon. Schedule: Bengaluru-Singapore-Bengaluru: July 19Mumbai-Singapore-Mumbai: July 20Chennai-Singapore-Chennai: July 21Delhi-Singapore-Delhi: July 22 India-Germany Air India will operate two additional flights on July 21 and July 23 connecting Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai and Kochi with Frankfurt, Germany. Bookings will open today from 2 pm. Schedule ... Read more

In an effort to aid tourism in the state and revive the sector amid the coronavirus pandemic, the Gujarat government is looking to promote the Statue of Unity and the area surrounding the site as a place for destination weddings. The authorities have decided to map the Statue of Unity Tent City 1 as a wedding venue. Authorities have been quoted by The Indian Express as saying that the picturesque location that also has an open-to-sky setting with Narmada Dam in its backdrop makes Statue of Unity Tent City 1 a compelling location for people looking for destination weddings. The ... Read more

Emirates, the leading Dubai-based carrier, is set to cut as many as 9,000 jobs because of the coronavirus pandemic. Prior to the crisis, Emirates had 60,000 staff members. In a conversation with the BBC, Emirates president Tim Clark said the airline had already cut a tenth of its staff but said: “We will probably have to let go of a few more, probably up to 15%.” The global airline industry has been severely impacted by coronavirus, with activity all but grinding to a halt. Tim told the BBC that the airline was “not as badly off as others”. But its ... Read more

The Supreme Court on Monday ruled that the Travancore royal family has the shebait rights over the  management of Thiruvananthapuram’s iconic Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple. The shebait is like the trustee of a religious endowment, as per the traditions of maintaining and preserving the idol and property. The Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple is one of India’s richest temples, which draws thousands of tourists to Thiruvananthapuram annually. It’s a major fixture in South India’s religious tourism circuit. In its verdict, the apex court said that death will not affect the rights of shebaitship of the family over the deity, and it will continue according ... Read more