Category: News

Photo Courtesy: J&K Tourism The Government of India has sanctioned Rs 7.37 crore tourism projects for the development of tourism infrastructure on Kishtwar- Sinthan Top circuit, in Jammu and Kashmir. “Rs 5.89 crore have been released in the first instance for taking up various components envisaged in the tourism project at Sinthan Top, Dedpath and Mughal Maidan,” said Minister of State for Tourism, Priya Sethi in the Assembly. However, the works on some components were delayed due to litigation and non-issuance of forest clearance. She said the government was vigorously pursuing the court case to get the stay vacated, while tenders ... Read more

The Baadshah of Bollywood, who received a Crystal Award at the World Economic Forum in Davos, re-created a Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge moment amidst the Swiss Alps. Striking his famous signature pose, Shah Rukh captioned it: “Switzerland main aake yeh na kiya toh kya kiya…?” (What will I do after coming to Switzerland, if I am not doing this)! It was in Switzerland that one of SRK’s Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge was filmed. Shah Rukh received the award on Monday for his “leadership in championing children’s and women’s rights in India” with Meer Foundation, an organisation that works extensively towards empowering women subjected to acid ... Read more

Photo Courtesy: Southwest Airlines Seldom do we care about abandoned canines and cats. But, here we have some pretty good news coming up from the Carribean Island Puerto Rico. America’s Southwest Airlines Chief Pilot David Newton flew all the way in his Boeing 737, just to rescue puppies and kittens that were stranded after the hurricane hit Maria in San Juan. David Newton, who has done more hundreds of rescue operations, said this was very special to him. Newton and the special rescue team called ‘lucky rescue’ flew to the city just for giving a second chance of life to the ... Read more

Northern Ireland’s Royal County Down golf course Emiratis can now enjoy visa-free travel to Ireland. Tourism Ireland tweeted sometime back that they are very happy about the order and hopes that the lifting of visa requirement is likely to benefit trade and tourism. The move is effective from January 31 and is a sign of the growing ties between the two countries The Minister for Justice and Equality, Charlie Flanagan T.D., announced the lifting of the visa requirement for citizens of the UAE travelling to Ireland with effect from the 31st January and has signed an order to give effect ... Read more

A record-breaking 29.6 million passengers travelled through Dublin Airport last year, a 6 per cent increase considering the previous year. A significant increase in long-haul traffic and a robust performance from continental European routes were the main elements of the rise. Photo Courtesy: Dublin Airport About 27.8 million passengers started or ended their journey at Dublin last year, while 1.8 million passengers used Dublin Airport as a hub. Dublin Airport has flights to 191 destinations in 42 countries operated by 47 airlines and is now the 11th largest airport within the European Union. Short-haul traffic increased by 4 per cent ... Read more

New York City’s iconic Statue of Liberty reopened at the expense of state funds following a brief closure as a result of the U.S. federal government shutdown. The Statue of Liberty was among the national monuments and parks that closed after the U.S. federal government shutdown last week. The National Park Service is said to have reopened the Statue of Liberty National Monument and Ellis Island through a funding agreement with the State of New York. “The Statue of Liberty Enlightening the World” was a gift of friendship from the people of France to the United States and is recognized ... Read more

Photo Courtesy: youtube.com The number of tourists visiting Netherlands recorded a new high with 17.6 million visits in 2017, a 11 per cent increase from the previous year. According to the statistics published by NBTC Holland Marketing, tourists from Germany, Belgium, and United Kingdom were the highest in number. They altogether spent about 13 billion euros. Predictions also state that there would be an increase in foreign tourist arrival in the coming years also. “If we don’t do anything now, future guests will visit the same places at the same time. We therefore need to work even more firmly on, ... Read more

Kerala Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran launches the state’s first complete and dedicated, travel and tourism news portal, Tourism News Live. “Tourism News Live would be able to resist and fight against the negativities that are spread against the God’s own country,” said Kadakampally Surendran while inaugurating the launch function of Tourism News Live web portal. “The false propaganda of people with vested interests is tarnishing the image of the state, especially that of the tourism sector. It is very important to fight against these issues. It is in this context that the state’s first complete, dedicated travel portal Tourism News ... Read more

Kerala will focus more on farm tourism, eco, medical, cruise and adventure tourism segments, said Kerala Governor P Sathasivom while addressing the 14th Kerala Assembly today. The government proposes to set up cultural corridors called ‘Natarangu’ in villages and towns where suitable open spaces are available. “There will be amphitheatres where local artistic and cultural performances could be held,” informed the Governor. A new Tourism Regulatory Authority Kerala (TRAK) will be set up to ensure quality services for tourists and curb unhealthy practices in the sector. The governor also commented that the state’s economy is heavily dependent on agriculture, tourism, ... Read more

Kerala tourism to put forward new techniques to market eco-tourism spots leveraging information and communication technology (ICT) tools including micro websites and promotional videos. The government has approved Rs 1.95 crores for the project proposal led by Invis Multimedia, Kerala state Tourism Department’s official web developers. Photo Courtesy:keralatourism.org As the importance of visual marketing is growing rapidly, the website will post 15 new promotional films on eco-adventure, and e-brochures followed by a new format of centralised online booking system for preferred eco-tourism destinations. “Several ecotourism centres have own websites and the activities there are also being promoted by both tourism and ... Read more

In an attempt to help travellers and the travel/tourism business fraternity, Association of Tourism Trade Organisations India (ATTOI), is all set launch Tourism News Live today. Tourism News Live is a 24 hours complete travel and tourism news portal, a one-of-its-kind attempt from Kerala. Hon. Minister for Tourism, Kadakampally Surendran will launch the website. The event is scheduled to be held at 3 PM on January 22, 2018 at Hotel South Park in Thiruvananthapuram. Kerala Tourism Director P Balakiran, KTDC MD R Rahul, CKTI Chairman E Najeeb, Kerala Travel Mart Society President Baby Mathew Somatheeram, Trivandrum Press Club G Rajeev, ... Read more

Prime Minister Narendra Modi to exhibit Indian desi cuisine and yoga as part of the annual meeting of World Economic Forum at Davos in Switzerland. The 48th World Economic Forum will be attended by over 3000 global leaders as well as people in the field of politics, art and academics. Indian delegates will be the largest in number with over 130 representatives present. picture courtasy: DNA@dna The summit themed ‘Creating a Shared Future in a Fractured World’ will be inaugurated by WEF Chairman Klaus Schwab. WEF also represents annual ‘Crystal Awards’, and the winners of this year are superstar Shahrukh ... Read more

According to the Central Bank of Jordan (CBJ), the tourism revenues in 2017 increased by 12.5 per cent, up to $4.6 billion, compared to $4.1 billion in 2016. The report says that the increase was mainly due to an 8.7 per cent rise in the total number of tourists in 2017. In December 2017, the Kingdom’s revenues from tourism went up by 9.1 per cent, reaching $340.9 million, compared to the same month in 2016, as the result of the increase in the total number of tourists by 6.2 per cent compared to the same month in 2016, the statement ... Read more

Sushma Swaraj inaugurating the 60th Post Office Passport Seva Kendra at Karaikal, Puducherry, in a function presided over by Shri V. Narayanaswamy, CM of Puducherry. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Monday said that the ministry had decided to reduce the cost of Passport fee for 10 per cent. “Children and senior citizen would be the main beneficiaries,” she added. “We are committed to simplify the entire process of passport services with a view to processing all applications in a speedy and transparent manner and have taken a series of reforms,” she said after inaugurating a POPSK (Post Office Passport ... Read more

Photo Courtesy: Royal Zambezi Lodge, Lower Zamberi Zambia and Spain signed a Memorandum of Understanding with an aim to boost cooperation in the tourism sector. The MoU was signed on the sidelines of the ongoing International Trade Fair for Tourism in Madrid. Minister for Tourism and Arts, Charles Banda signed on behalf of the southern African nation while his counterpart Matilde Pastora Asian Gonzalez signed on behalf of her country. The agreement was aimed at further cooperation in the areas of wildlife management and combating illegal wildlife hunting, development of meetings, conferences and events, development of sports tourism , cultural ... Read more