Tag: covid-19 crisis

The Punjab tourism department will provide free training and skill development to the youth in the state who are interested in a career in the tourism and hospitality industry post COVID-19. The tourism and cultural affairs minister of the state, Charanjit Singh Channi, said that more than 2000 students would be trained under the umbrella scheme of ‘Hunar Se Rozgar Tak’. The trained students will also be assisted in job placements. The minister said that a large number of tourism service providers in the unorganized sector require basic training and certification to provide better services standards and consumer satisfaction. Therefore, ... Read more

Jammu & Kashmir is looking to connect Gulmarg with Kargil and Drass in Ladakh, with a 600 km-long highway. The new highway will be constructed touching all the picturesque tourist spots in the Kashmir Valley, each of which will be “another Gulmarg”, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Secretary BVR Subrahmanyam has said. The project cost is estimated at Rs 8,000 crore. “We are planning to construct a 600 km road which will touch tourist attractions like Keran, Gurej and Machhal. The road will connect all unexplored tourist spots and picturesque valleys and help open them for the tourists,” Subrahmanyam told a ... Read more

The Union health ministry has issued a set of revised guidelines for international arrivals, that kicked in from yesterday. As per the new guidelines, five categories of passengers are exempted from the mandatory seven-day institutional quarantine such as pregnant women, children below 10 years of age and passengers who are suffering from serious illnesses. Last month, India formed air travel bubbles with countries like the US, the UAE, France and Germany under which airlines of both the countries are allowed to operate special international flights with certain restrictions. Following are the key guidelines to be followed: 1) All travellers should submit ... Read more

Goa has framed new quarantine rules by which institutional quarantine has been made mandatory for symptomatic passengers till test result is available. The new directives require all passengers landing in Goa to go for 14-day home quarantine or 14 days of paid institutional quarantine. Passengers can skip home quarantine in the following cases: If the passenger furnishes a COVID-19 negative certificate issued by an ICMR-recognized lab. The test should not be older than 48 hours prior to the arrival in Goa. If the passenger chooses to take a swab test upon landing at a cost of INR 2000, and goes ... Read more

Sayaji Hotels has reopened its Indore, Pune, Vadodara, Kolhapur and Raipur properties. The Hotel Group has also put in place a ‘Care beyond compare’ initiative, designed to meet the health and safety challenges presented by COVID-19. Through this programme, the patrons will be informed and updated about the change in services, designs & standards of operations that will be congruent to the norms of social distancing, safety & hygiene of the staff and cleanliness of the hotel. The properties have been opened after a two-day cleanliness inspection conducted by Rakshit Sharma, Head-HR and Dinesh Dahiya, VP Sales, Sayaji Hotels Ltd. Said ... Read more

Munich-based start-up pleycs has announced the launch of its location-based social network platform www.pleycs.com. The free website enables users to network worldwide, with regard to places of interest or places already visited. Travelling to new places, working, or even living abroad involve many uncertainties. It is always great to have a contact on the ground that can help with suggestions and insider’s tips. pleycs makes these connections happen, the company said in a press release. Access to photos and information about places of interest make it fun to explore new destinations. The experiences of the user can also be collected and ... Read more

Thailand’s Tourism Ministry is encouraging hotels to offer fair packages to expatriates, by avoiding price discrimination as the country aims to attract 2 million foreign residents to travel more domestically. Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn, the tourism and sports minister, has urged expatriate associations to travel domestically instead of going abroad, as they may face back-to-back 14-day quarantines when arriving at other destinations and then upon returning to Thailand. The idea has received some positive feedback from expatriates, but points of concern remain regarding local sentiment towards foreigners during the outbreak and overpriced accommodations, Bangkok Post has reported. He said the Tourism Authority ... Read more

Union Tourism Minister Prahlad Singh Patel has inaugurated the ‘Thenzawl Golf Resort’ project implemented under the Swadesh Darshan Scheme of the Ministry of Tourism. The project is expected to give a big boost to India’s golf tourism initiatives. An amount of Rs 92.25 crore has been sanctioned for the golf resort at Thenzawl, which is located 90 km away from Aizawl, Mizoram’s capital. Thenzawl is an important centre for Mizoram’s handloom industry. Mizoram Tourism Minister Robert Romawia Royte and Commissioner and Secretary of the state tourism department Esther Lal Ruatkimi also attended the virtual inauguration.   Golf tourism in India has a ... Read more

Dubai’s medical tourism sector is bouncing back from the effects of Covid-19, with a recent resurgence in numbers of visitors seeking medical treatment as restrictions on travel are gradually lifted. With more countries than ever out of reach to medical tourists in neighbouring nations, many are looking to Dubai for the level of treatment they require, The National has reported. “Dubai is quite an attractive prospect given its ease of access for those from neighbouring countries,” said Christian Schumacher, chief executive of King’s College Hospital London, Dubai. “We are seeing an upturn in the number of visitors from countries with ... Read more

SpiceJet has secured slots at Heathrow Airport in London to operate flights effective September 1. This is presently under the air bubble arrangement between India and UK and effective up to the end of summer schedule i.e. October 23. A slot allows an airline to land and depart at a particular airport, at a designated time. SpiceJet is the first low-cost airline from India to get this facility in Heathrow, one of the busiest airports in the world. This follows the low-cost airline getting the rights to operate flights to the UK. In a statement in July, SpiceJet had said, ... Read more

OYO, the Indian hotel-booking startup backed by Masayoshi Son’s Softbank, is merging its operations in Japan and appointing a new chief executive officer to oversee the combined entity. The reorganisation involves Oyo’s hotel-booking and apartment-rental units coming together into a single company called Oyo Japan, to be led by Ryoma Yamamoto as CEO with Ryota Tanozaki as his deputy. Both of them have been promoted from senior roles in the existing Oyo operations, said a Bloomberg report. Japan has been a focal point for Oyo’s international expansion due to Son’s endorsement and association with the Softbank brand name. The company operated Oyo Hotels and Oyo Life ... Read more

Jalesh Cruises has said that it will commence cruise operations from November 6, following the Indian government’s decision to allow sailing from October 1. As a result, MV Karnika will set sail on that day, the company said in a press release on Tuesday. To offer a safe and secure holiday on the sea, Jalesh Cruises will offer all passengers free rapid Covid-19 testing at the time of embarkation. Passengers will receive their test results in 15 minutes, board the ship without any fears or worries and set sail into the blue. Jurgen Bailom, President and CEO, Jalesh Cruises said, “The announcement ... Read more

Domestic tourists are trickling back to Bali with authorities recording a gradual increase in arrivals at Ngurah Rai International Airport as the island reopens its doors to domestic tourism. In a ceremony to mark the official reopening, 84 passengers flying Garuda Indonesia from Jakarta received garlands from Bali’s Vice-Governor Tjokorda Oka Artha Ardana Sukawati, popularly known as Cok Ace, on Friday morning. They were the first of approximately 4,000 domestic tourists to arrive on the island that day, Coconut.co reports. Airport management firm Angkasa Pura I spokesman Rahmat Adil Indrawan said on Saturday that there was a gradual increase of ... Read more

India’s Ministry of Tourism as part of its Dekho Apna Desh series held a webinar on “Heritage tourism in Gujarat”, presenting the fascinating and diverse heritage of the state of Gujarat ranging from ancient archaeological sites and majestic medieval monuments to modern architectural marvels.    Presented by Ranjit Sinh Parmar, Secretary-Heritage Tourism Association, Gujarat and Anil Mulchandani, author, travel writer and food critic, the webinar showcased the varied tourism products of Gujarat like its beautiful forts, palaces, havelis and other historical properties that have been converted into heritage hotels or opened as homestays. The presenters recounted how being on the West coast of India with approximately 1600 kms of coastline, Gujarat had attracted traders, ... Read more

Brazil has reopened international air travel to foreign tourists, even as the country’s coronavirus outbreak ranks as the world’s second worst, according to a news report by Reuters. Air travel was suspended in March. Tourists from all countries may travel to Brazil as long as they have health insurance for the duration of their trip, the government said in a decree which did not explain the rationale for the decision. Brazil is reopening its air borders faster than other countries in the region with less severe outbreaks, such as Colombia, Argentina, Panama and Peru which remain closed to international commercial ... Read more