Tag: Karnataka Tourism

Environmental activists have raised their voices against the Karnataka Tourism Department’s plans to launch new helicopter tourism. The government is planning to start heli tourism in Mysore. Last month, Karnataka Tourism Minister C.P. Yogeshwar has made it clear that government will start heli tourism in Mysore. The heli tourism project is taking place in the forest in front of the Lalitha Mahal Palace Hotel in Mysore. For this, more than 150 trees will have to be cut down. Environmental activists have come out against this. These trees are located on 4-acre land in Kurubarahalli. 73,000 people have come out in ... Read more

The Karnataka Tourism Society is inviting membership from travel, tourism and hospitality stakeholders, to revive the industry and create value. The Society is aimed at promoting tourism in the state of Karnataka and to drive the interests of all persons engaged in activities connected with tourism. Tourism contributes 14.8% towards the State’s GDP and supports over 16 million jobs. Karnataka has immense potential to become a world-class destination and the state is trying to support the efforts of the tourism department to globally market it. The Federation of Hotel and Restaurant Association of India (FHRAI), Association of Domestic Tour Operators ... Read more

The Covid-19 pandemic has snatched away the livelihoods of 90% of those employed in the tourism sector, Karnataka Tourism minister CT Ravi said on Thursday. The minister estimated that 28-30 lakh people have lost jobs over the last five months in the industry. They include tourist operators, taxi drivers, hotels, tourist guides and those owning petty shops among others. “These are temporary job losses. Once the industry recovers, they will be able tosecure their jobs back,” he assured. However, the rate of revival in the tourism sector was slow, he observed. “While Jungle Lodges have seen some improvement, KSTDC and ... Read more

The Karnataka government has tweaked its quarantine requirements and has dropped the seven-day institutional quarantine for international travellers. So far, international returnees had to undergo seven days of institutional quarantine, with the exception of those above 60 years of age, children under the age of 10, pregnant women and people with terminal illnesses who were allowed to self-isolate at home. But this rule has now been changed. Asymptomatic international returnees to Karnataka will undergo a 14-day home quarantine instead.  Those who are symptomatic will be sent to COVID-19 centres for testing. Their swabs will be taken, one for the rapid antigen ... Read more

Karnataka Tourism Minister CT Ravi has tested positive for COVID-19. He had given his swab sample for testing twice in this past week. While he tested negative the first time, his second result came back positive. CT Ravi is now the first minister in Karnataka to have tested positive for the novel coronavirus. “Since one test returned negative and one returned positive, I got a third test done today (Sunday). I am waiting for the third umpire’s resolution,” he tweeted. He also went on to add he is asymptomatic and that he did yoga and pranayama on Sunday morning. “I ... Read more

The Karnataka government on Tuesday banned all tourism activities in the Kodagu district with immediate effect till further orders, in view of rising COVID-19 cases. An order issued by the Deputy Commissioner, Anis Kanmani Joy said that all resorts and homestays are to be closed for public and tourists till further orders. The order has asked owners of homestays or resorts not to take any new bookings and ordered to cancel the future bookings and refund the money back. However, it read that if someone is already staying in those resorts they can stay till their booking period is over, ... Read more

A month ago, Karnataka’s tourism department was trying to encourage travellers to visit various destinations in the state in order to revive the sector. But with coronavirus cases rising each day in large numbers, the department has decided to go slow. In fact, Tourism Minister C T Ravi has asked travellers coming in from Bengaluru not to flock to districts like Chikkamagaluru and adjoining hilly districts. Tourists have had to encounter locals who were quite agitated by the tourist movement in the district. There have been clashes too. The tourism industry had gained momentum with package tours and eco-tourism activities, ... Read more

Although Karnataka has cleared its new tourism policy (2020-25), for the district of Chikkamagaluru a separate policy is being formulated, to address the growing concerns of environmentalists and conservationists. The hill district with just a population of 12 lakh receives a tourist footfall of 85 lakhs annually. In the wake of rampant violations — construction of resorts, roads, exploitation of water resources in ecologically fragile areas and spoilage of hills ranges by irresponsible tourists — the need for a separate tourism policy was felt, New Indian Express said in a report. Efforts have begun to frame guidelines so as to make ... Read more

The Karnataka government on Wednesday launched caravan tourism, an initiative under which tourists can book a fully-equipped vehicle that will take them places, and also serve as beds for the night. The initiative has been started by the tourism department to revive the sector badly hit by the coronavirus crisis. Each caravan has seats that convert into beds, allowing four people to sleep in one car. The vehicles are equipped with a shower, a modern toilet, a smart television and a music system. They also have a kitchenette that includes a refrigerator, freezer and microwave. The caravan bus has 1,400-watt solar ... Read more

Karnataka has come out with a set of protocols to ensure safety for tourists. Self-declaration by guests and tour operators about their preparedness for various tourist destinations, safety and hygiene status, social distancing requirements and awareness of the pandemic are all part of the new guidelines. “The Covid-19 pandemic has presented unprecedented challenges for the tourism sector across the world. In this aftermath, health and safety of people is of utmost importance for the government. With the tourism industry expected to resume operations over the coming months, it is necessary to have protocols in place that can ensure hygiene and ... Read more

The Karnataka government on Thursday said it has asked for restrictions on the number of flights from five states, namely Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. There is no ban on flights from these states, the government clarified. In a press release late on Thursday evening, the government said, “The state government has requested the Civil Aviation Ministry to reduce the number of flights, emanating from Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan to Karnataka, in view of the high number of Covid-19 cases prevalent there.” The minister for Law and Parliamentary Affairs, J C Madhuswamy, has ... Read more

The Karnataka Tourism Society has submitted a memorandum to Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa demanding that hotels, restaurants and some tourism destinations be opened immediately. Society president K Shama Raju told reporters that although the CM was keen to accord permission, a decision will be taken only after consulting the central government. The Society demanded that hotels and restaurants be given permission to serve food in adherence with physical distance norms. Other demands include an exemption on property tax for April 2020, exemption from paying excise licence fee, and waiver of electricity charges. They also urged the government to give ... Read more

The Ministry of Tourism has identified 17 sites in 12 clusters in the country for developing them as iconic tourist sites, the Minister of State for Culture and Tourism, Prahlad Singh Patel has stated in a written reply in the Lok Sabha on Monday. The 17 sites include the Taj Mahal & Fatehpur Sikri (Uttar Pradesh), Ajanta & Ellora (Maharashtra), Humayun’s Tomb, Red Fort & Qutub Minar (Delhi), Colva (Goa), Amer Fort (Rajasthan), Somnath & Dholavira (Gujarat), Khajuraho (Madhya Pradesh), Hampi (Karnataka), Mahabalipuram (Tamil Nadu), Kaziranga (Assam), Kumarakom (Kerala) and Mahabodhi Temple (Bihar). The Ministry will be developing the above ... Read more

Karnataka to develop coastal tourism to take on Kerala, Goa   Karnataka has great potential to develop its coastal tourism and the state should take steps to emulate the success of Kerala and Goa in this regard, speakers at the annual state conference of journalists stated in Mangalore on Monday. A session on coastal development and tourism organised as part of the final day of the two-day 35th state conference under the aegis of KUWJ said Karnataka has a beautiful 320 km long coastline, which needs to be exploited better. Speakers at the conference said the success that of Kerala ... Read more

With an aim to increase footfall to various tourism destinations and to involve citizens in promoting them, the tourism department of Karnataka has launched a preliminary promotional initiative. A state and district level competition will be held in December and January. “Tourism is nothing without Tourists & their Experiences! Share your pictures with us at tourism@kstdc.co and get a chance to be featured on our page. The best photographer of the month gets a two night couple stay at a KSTDC property,” said Tourism Minister C T Ravi on his twitter handle. The preference will be for lesser known destinations so ... Read more