Tag: ATTOI

As a progressive measure to sustain livelihoods of those employed in the tourism sector, the Kerala state government should announce a job retention scheme in the wake of the corona virus pandemic, the Association of Tourism Trade Organisations India (ATTOI) has suggested. ATTOI said the government may pay the salaries of tourism employees in the private sector, so that the industry gets some time to crawl out of the crisis. The tourism sector has been heavily impacted due to booking cancellations, resulting a massive drop in inbound tourism. The sector is likely to lose more than Rs 20,000 crore as ... Read more

With the hospitality sector facing a complete shutdown due to the corona virus pandemic, the Association of Tourism Trade Organisations India (ATTOI) is placing a special emphasis on online refresher courses to keep tourism and hospitality employees productive and engaged. ATTOI is looking at the possibility of every job in the industry having a set protocol to follow and a handbook that will list down the processes that need to be adhered to. ATTOI President Vinod CS says such an initiative will help the employees update themselves during this period of inactivity. “Today everyone has access to smart phones and ... Read more

Kerala has decided to close its borders and enter a lock-down mode, as Covid-19 cases continue to rise. The lock-down will continue till March 31. Essential services will remain open, chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan said. Borders will be closed and the state will intensify monitoring activities. The chief minister announced that all liquor shops in the state will remain closed until further orders. These measures were decided during a high-level meeting chaired by the Chief Minister. Public transport will not be allowed to ply but private vehicles will be allowed. Hospitals and petrol pumps will function. Restaurants will be shut ... Read more

Just a few days ago, Association of Tourism Trade Organisations India (ATTOI) secretary Manu PV received an emergency call from French Embassy, Pondicherry. The caller briefed Manu about a lady sitting somewhere in a restaurant in Thiruvananthapuram. All the hotels in the vicinity had denied her entry and she was distraught. There was no place that she could go to. So, this was clearly a distress call. Manu immediately knew that this was a question of the sector’s reputation. He told the Embassy that the lady can call him for any help. “I was sure I could arrange accommodation for ... Read more

India should introduce hygiene protocol to tackle epidemics The impact created by the corona virus may last up to a year and the tourism sector may face the biggest financial crisis in its history as a result. In an elaborate interview, ATTOI President Vinod CS says this is the time to take initiative and control the situation to reduce the damage, even as he looks for support from the state and central governments. Excerpts: Q: Corona virus has impacted Kerala’s tourism fortunes to a very large extent. Can we attach a value to the loss incurred to Kerala tourism due ... Read more

An increasingly competitive market warrants tourist destinations to constantly update and acquire a unique identity, while creating a story is key to promoting any product as a brand, a global conclave said today. “Innovation is pointless unless it is commercial. We must create an ecosystem conducive for growth by supporting new talents and building start-up incubators,” business information systems expert Brian Marrinan noted at the International Conference on Tourism Technology (ICTT 2019) here. Citing an example from a small city in his native Ireland, he explained how Shannon in the province of Connacht has been a world leader in travel ... Read more

In a novel initiative, close to 200 delegates at a global meet on travel took a 30-minute breather from the proceedings this forenoon to line up under the sun for a human formation that read ‘World Tourism Day’, bringing into sharp focus the significance of September 27. Wearing caps in saffron, white and green in the order of India’s tricolor, 185 participants from various parts of the globe at the International Conference on Tourism Technology (ICTT) here symbolically blurred man-made boundaries of countries, hailing the spirit of universal oneness. Once the delegates and officials at the meadow stood in the ... Read more

China’s emerging class of young, educated and resource-rich travel lovers are passionate about visiting countries, especially in East and South Asia, but India is yet to figure in their list of top eight destinations, an international conclave was told here today. Kerala, as one of India’s leading tourist destinations, must strive to latch on this new trend of graduates from China below 35 years of age touring abroad mostly with families, Beijing-based Richard Matuzevich of the World Tourism Cities Federation told the International Conference on Tourism Technology (ICTT). The third edition of the two-day ICTT, being organised by the Association ... Read more

David Carollo from Singapore, in a session on ‘Secrets of Search Engine Rankings’, at the International Conference on Tourism Technology, said algorithms continue to evolve, perpetually making thousands of improvements. “Those tasked with creating or optimizing content need to be aware of these modifications and their effect. To stay competitive in search in 2020, you need an optimization approach that reflects a successful search engine result,” he said. The search engine results are generally tracking tools attempting to provide an answer with algorithms that combine lots of factors: search volumes, ranking positions, conversion rate and user intent. “There are over ... Read more

At a session on ‘Impact of Influential Marketing in Tourism’ at ICTT 2019, digital marketing strategist Ellie Shedden spoke of the vitality of a thorough understanding of one’s intended audience and ultimate goals to help understand the entire gamut of the marketing plan. According to the speaker, who is founder of oop.com, more and more travelers of late prefer influencers’ opinion to advertisements. They choose agencies, hotels, airlines and even travel directions based on the advice of influencers, she noted. “Companies offering predefined descriptions of the products get much less traction compared to influencers. Today influencers manage the information themselves,” ... Read more

Traditional travel agencies need to employ Artificial Intelligence (AI) that must filter into medium-level companies as well, a global summit said here today even as it took note of how influencers in tourism manage information using sophisticated and innovative methods to serve the needs of consumers and breathe new vitality in the hospitality industry. Speakers at the International Conference on Tourism Technology (ICTT) 2019 highlighted the ways of using AI to offer personalization of guests in the hospitality industry along the whole travel process, while a couple of other sessions dealt with the importance of successful digital campaigns to attract ... Read more

Tourism trade organisations and travel firms from across India can seek the services of Kerala Startup Mission (KSUM) to strengthen business at a time when technology has an increasing say in the sector, state tourism minister Kadakampally Surendran said today. Inaugurating the 3rd International Conference on Tourism Technology (ICTT) here, he noted that Kerala’s strong startup ecosystem under KSUM has incubated several companies that have excelled in various sectors, including information technology. “I call upon the delegates here to collaborate with the IT facilities we provide so that you can improve your business strongly and steadily,” said the minister, who ... Read more

Shane Dallas started off his session at the ICTT2019 at Le Meridien, Kochi, explaining the three C’s of photography – Composition, Control and Connection. Shane has around 30 plus years of experience in photography. He has travelled across some 100 plus countries with his camera, capturing amazing frames of life. Shane Dallas advises to use a DSLR or advanced mirrorless camera and always carry a tripod, filters and cleaning equipment. He also advises not to shoot in auto mode. The basic principle behind the rule of thirds is to imagine breaking an image down into thirds (both horizontally and vertically) ... Read more

Rani George, Secretary, Kerala Tourism, has congratulated Association of Tourism Trade Organizations, India (ATTOI) for organizing International Conference on Tourism Technology. “ICTT is an excellent and innovative initiative by ATTOI,” she said while speaking at the inauguration ceremony of the  ICTT 2019 held at Le Meridien, Kochi. “I did expect a much bigger turnout for such an innovative event like ICTT. I expect more tourism professionals and entrepreneurs will turn out in the coming sessions,” she said. The Secretary has congratulated ATTOI for the selection of topics for the third edition of ICTT and also said the topics are good ... Read more

International Conference on Tourism Technology (ICTT 2019), organized by Association of Tourism Trade Organisations, India (ATTOI), in association with Department of Tourism, Government of Kerala, kick-started at the Le Meridien in Kochi today. Kadakampally Surendran, Minister for Tourism, Govt of Kerala, will officially inaugurate the International Conference on Tourism Technology (ICTT 2019), at 6 pm today. The Association of Tourism Trade Organisations, India (ATTOI), in association with Department of Tourism, Government of Kerala, is organizing the International Conference on Tourism Technology (ICTT) in Kochi to address the challenges related with technology faced by Indian tourism and hospitality industry. The event started ... Read more