Travtalk January 1st Issue

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A DDP PUBLICATION

Pages: 48 (Excluding cover)

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Vol. XXVI No. 1; January 1 st fortnight issue 2014

` 50/-

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TRAVTALK

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JANUARY 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014

MOT plans for year ahead...

TAAI President Iqbal Mulla

As we welcome 2014, the Ministry of Tourism (MOT) is readying a slew of initiatives to further the promotion of Indian Tourism. Here are some of the things that the travel fraternity can look forward to in the New Year.

Promotion

Visa on Arrival

MOT had been actively researching markets for their potential to promote tourism to India. While traditional markets like USA & UK are still very productive, new ones like Germany are also key contributors to global tourism and are a ‘must focus’ source market. While China would generate significant traffic, the average traffic and days of stay was at the lower end. Therefore, it is imperative to invest marketing funds in markets which have both high visitor and spend potential. The Incredible India website will also be revamped and the new one will be ready by 2014.

In addition to the present programme, Visa on Arrival (VoA) for crew on chartered flights is also on its way to being implemented. For visitors attending conferences/conventions in India, it would no longer be necessary to verify the bonafides of the convention organisers, as has been the case in the past resulting in limiting of participation in conferences/ conventions.

Tie-up with Lausanne Institute of Hotel Management The MOT has tied up with the world-renowned Laussane Institute of Hotel Management to support a 360 degree upgrade in the curriculum of government-run hotel & tourism management institutes. This will help bring an enhanced skill set to service visitors to India. The joint initiative will not just upgrade the curriculum, but it will also improve teaching methods, and there will also be an exchange programme for the faculty of these institutes.

...And the journey till now 2013 was the year when the MOT promoted a series of campaigns to promote the brand Incredible India. Find What You Seek, Go Beyond and 777 Days of the Indian Himalayas were three major campaigns which helped triggering the inbound growth for the Indian market.

inting at a revival in growth ahead of the peak inbound season, the Foreign Tourists Arrivals (FTAs) clocked an impressive growth of 7.9 per cent in July 2013 over July 2012, said the statistics released by the Ministry of Tourism (MOT). The campaigns launched by MOT here had worked as ‘silent crusaders’ and kept alive interest in Incredible India, which now merits due praise.

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777 Days of the Indian Himalayas Beginning with a major new campaign, the MOT launched a special campaign ‘777 days of Indian Himalayas’ on World Tourism Day. As per K Chiranjeevi, Minister for Contd. on page 5

Iqbal Mulla was declared the TAAI (Travel Agents Association of India) President for a second term. He was entitled to a second and casting vote which reaffirmed his appointment as the Association President.

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NEWS

Gujarat Tourism Mart in March Over 285 registered buyers from over 30 countries will explore business opportunities at the event. The hosted buyers will be invited from Netherlands, Bahrain, Australia, Canada, France, Greece, Israel, Japan, Lithuania, Norway, Poland, South Africa, Sri Lanka, UAE, UK, USA, South Africa, etc.

T T B U R E AU ujarat Tourism announced the fourth and its biggest edition of Gujarat Travel Mart (GTM) in Ahmedabad from March 27–29, 2014.

The venue for the mart will be the Mahatma Mandir Convention & Exhibition Centre, Gandhi Nagar.

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The state of Gujarat, over the years, has contributed towards being a large part of the India’s ever-growing tourism arrival figures, both to within Indian destinations and overseas. The fourth edition of GTM is set on a B2B platform with over 285 registered buyers from over 30 countries exploring business opportunities for discerning travel and tourism products.

The hosted buyers will be invited from Netherlands, Bahrain, Australia, Canada, France, Greece, Israel, Japan, Lithuania, Norway, Poland, South Africa, Sri Lanka, UAE, UK, USA, South Africa, etc.

The event is supported by major travel trade and hospitality associations in India such as Association of Domestic Tour Operators Association of India (ADTOI), Adventure Tour Operators Association of India (ATOAI) and Indian Association of Tour Operators (IATO).

Over 1,000 travel agents are expected to visit the Mart this year, which will have 200 exhibitors from India from over 20 diverse tourism segments.

Gujarat has been one of India’s biggest tourist attractions with its wide arena of attractions. The exclusive pavilion of Gujarat shall showcase the different facets such as festivals of Gujarat, its beaches, Mahatma Gandhi oriented tours, heritage hotels, Buddhist trails in Gujarat, wildlife resorts

and national parks, medical tourism, destination management companies, travel agents and tour operators, religious tourism, handicrafts, cultural vistas, etc.

The Buyer Programme at the last year’s edition of Gujarat

Travel Mart had for the first time in the country a refundable caution deposit system for all buyers to enhance the seriousness of the event. The amount will be refundable on the successful completion of the mandatory seller appointments.

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STATISTICS

Satellite phones for operators?

VIEWPOINT

Wake up! It’s 2014 re we forgetting the real agenda of associations in the tug-of-war of politics?

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There are many issues plaguing the travel & tourism industry at this time, issues that need to be taken up seriously by associations with relevant officials on behalf of distressed members. Associations need to position travel and tourism as a strategic sector in employment growth and economic betterment. Just talking about it is not sufficient. The steps taken towards our goals have to be convincing for policy makers (read government) and this can only happen if the industry stands together and appreciates the causes of one another…

The tables seemed to be turned in our industry. The government seems to be doing more than the private sector here. Take for example, Visa-on-Arrival, the Clean India campaign, online initiatives like WoNoBo and the Incredible India website that generates 2,000 queries per day, 777 Days of the Himalayas, continuous roadshows and participation at innumerable international travel shows. The International Tourism Mart (ITM) is a pet project of the Ministry of Tourism (MOT), for which they have invited almost 100 buyers to grow inbound traffic to the North East sector. Is the industry matching them step for step?

Despite the platform laid out by MOT, has the industry done enough to redirect the traffic that should have come to us as a result of the problems faced by Thailand, Egypt, Japan, Philippines, Turkey? Did we get the desired result from the rupee depreciation?

Frankly, has inbound traffic actually grown manifold?

Budget allocation is another sore point.

Travel and Tourism was left out last year once again from the priority list of the Central Government. Are we readying ourselves for it this year? The time is fast approaching…

It’s not too late to wake up and take the initiatives since we have a supportive Ministry to see us through… All is still not lost!

Vikramajit Chairman SanJeet Editor & Publisher Deepa Sethi Editor-in-Chief

Editorial Ratan Kr Paul Vivek Sethi Megha Paul Devika Jeet Anita Jain News-Editor Peden Doma Bhutia Desk-Editor Archana Sharma Sr. Sub-Editor Hritvick Sen

Advertising Gunjan Sabikhi Asst. Vice President Aarti Nagrath General Manager Karishma Khanna Sr. Manager Marketing Udit Pandey Sr. Manager Marketing Geetika Pathak Manager Advertising Amit Sarkar Asst. Manager Marketing Photographers Simran Kaur-Delhi Bharat Dangiya-Mumbai

The adventure operators in India have been pushing for the use of satellite phones in remote locations, and things definitely seem to be looking up for the industry. talks to some of the industry experts to find out how this can be a gamechanger….

PEDEN DOMA BHUTIA fter assuming the role of the ATOAI President earlier this year, Akshay Kumar while talking about the roadblocks in the development of adventure tourism in India, had said in an interview to :

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“The ban on use of satellite phones by private operators in India is limiting our capability to provide effective evacuation and rescue service in the wilderness. Many foreign agents do not feature India for wilderness travel

Akshay Kumar President, ATOAI The ministry has been very proactive for the past six months.

Private operators are not allowed to use satellite phones in mountainous regions or areas where connectivity is an issue. We have

Sanjay Basu Vice President, ATOAI The importance of satellite phones for adventure tourism in remote regions of the country is paramount to the industry. Without satellite phones, it is a life and death situation. Even though all precautions are taken during an expedition, it’s adventure sports, so, there is a risk of physical danger. When accidents take place, the most important thing that one needs at that time is to establish communication, that is where satellite phones come

Tejbir Singh Anand Immediate Past President, ATOAI If there is an unpleasant incident or an accident enroute one of the expeditions, then the most effective way to communicate is through satellite phones. If we have the phones at our disposal, it

as their insurance requires the use of Sat phones. The rules are such that they do not even allow fixed satellite communication systems if they are fixed on moving platforms like cruise ships, etc.”

However, things definitely seem to be looking up for the industry and they are on the verge of a breakthrough on satellite phones.

We talked to some of the representatives of the adventure tourism industry for their take on the issue:

been waiting for a solution to come in place. We wanted private operators who are members of ATOAI or government-recognised private operators to get access to these satellite phones. The Uttarakhand disaster has served as a wake-up call. The home ministry has now accepted that a system should be put in place and the home ministry and the Ministry of Tourism have been working towards it.

in. Foreign insurance companies need satellite phones as a prerequisite for insuring a person so as a result many people avoid India as an adventure tourism destination. While China, Nepal and Bhutan allow the use of satellite phones for adventure tourism, India does not. If we want to bring economic development in remote regions and provide employment to porters and grassroots service providers, we can do this through adventure tourism. If satellite phones do become a reality, the world will start recognising India as an adventure travel destination.

also helps build the confidence of our clients – the travellers. The fact that satellite phones are banned for use by private operators in India sends a negative sentiment around the world. If satellite phones do come into play, then this will send a very positive message to travellers around the world and we will see a surge of bookings.

Contd. on page 5

LETTER TO THE EDITOR Beware during travel Rajiv and I landed in Mumbai on Oct 3 at 2:40 am.

We were taken aback at the extremely long lines and complete chaos in the green channel lines, but putting it down to Indian business as usual, we calmly assumed our spot in the line till finally Rajiv loaded our luggage for the X-ray screening in the green channel line. They wanted us to open our hand luggage to examine Rajiv's laptop and

Advertising (Mumbai) Suchita Saran Branch Manager Harshal Ashar Deputy Genral Manager Priyanshu Wankhade Asst. Manager Advertising Rishika Karra Sales Coordinator Advertisement Designers Vikas Mandotia / Nitin Kumar Aarushi Agrawal Design: Nityanand Misra Sudhir Mudgal Production: Anil Kharbanda Circulation: Ashok Rana

camera and my hand bag to look at the jewellery I was bringing to wear at our niece’s wedding.

They casually asked, "Are you carrying any rupees?" Rajiv and I both travel to India several times a year (this was Rajiv's 5th trip this year) and have our Indian wallets which have the rupees left over from the last trip. We leafed through our wallets, and said "We think we have

TRAVTALK is a publication of DDP Publications Private Limited. All information in TRAVTALK is derived from sources, which we consider reliable and a sincere effort is made to report accurate information. It is passed on to our readers without any responsibility on our part. The publisher regret that he cannot accept liability for errors and omissions contained in this publication, however caused. Similarly, opinions/views expressed by third parties in abstract and/or in interviews are not necessarily shared by TRAVTALK. However, we wish to advice our readers that one or more recognised authorities may hold different views than those reported. Material used in this publication is intended for information purpose only. Readers are advised to seek specific

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about ` 30,000- 40,000 between both of us.”

So customs duty officer along with his supervisor AK Singh said we had to turn in the rupees we had. We asked for a receipt. When we dumped out our wallets on their counter 5 feet away and which they counted, there was only ` 18,500 in there.

Both of them together yelled at us and told us we

had to produce the rest of the money. When I offered to empty out my handbag to show him there were no additional rupees in there, they threw us out of the office, not wanting to recount or look at our empty wallets and ordered another customs lady to search our luggage. We pointed out that we had not touched our checked-in luggage. Plus their office had Contd. on page 43

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COVER STORY

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The road to higher tourism numbers Contd. from page 1

Tourism; the new campaign publicised the tourism potential of the Indian Himalayas and promoted this tourist product internationally. The aim of this campaign is to promote not only the Himalayan States, but also the gateway cities which will serve them with their international and domestic airports and railway stations.

Ringing in a change Contd. from page 4

Mandeep Singh Soin Founder & Managing Director, Ibex Expeditions We are still waiting to hear good news on this front. We wanted the private operators to have their own sets so that we can send them with our teams.

Also, most of the expeditions, that involve danger like mountain-climbing etc, go through the Indian Mountaineering Foundation, so the IMF can have a bulk of these phones with them and they in turn can rent it out to their approved expeditions. And in remote villages where connectivity is an issue and which are frequented by travellers and climbers, satellite phones can be made operational 24x7.

Ajeet Bajaj Managing Director Snow Leopard If satellite phones are put in place, it will be a game changer for adventure tourism in our country.

We had been fighting for this for a long time. We are very greatful to the minister for having take it up in such a strong manner and for having supported us in the way that they have done.

Find What you Seek and Go Beyond

Group landing permits

The other two major ongoing campaigns, ‘Find What You Seek’ and ‘Go Beyond’ heralded a change in marketing focus of the MOT. The Incredible India campaign, which was launched in 2002, in its second phase was moved away from a product or destination focus to go consumer-specific. The shift was in line with MOT’s objective to promote India as a 365-day destination in the overseas market and deliver to the international visitors exactly the experience they desired. MOT’s international campaign was called ‘Find What You Seek’ highlighting the fact that India offers a wide range of experiences like no other destination; that includes conventional cultural, heritage, history, nature based experience to niche products like adventure, sports, eco, golf, and wellness to name a few. Further, MOT also launched Go Beyond to encourage domestic travellers.

With group landing permits, the Ministry of Tourism gave a larger role to agents. Now, agents should pay back by ensuring better service to travellers. The government has allowed collective landing permits to groups comprising four or more travellers. This move will definitely provide larger benefits to the industry in the long run. Although the Ministry did not predict this policy to make impact in the year 2013, but it expected the scheme to show revolutionary positive changes by 2015-16.

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TRAVTALK JANUARY 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014

EXHIBITIONS

Promote fairs and festivals: Shankar MOT is willing to support states even beyond the ` 50 lakh benchmark to help individual states promote fairs and festivals at various domestic and international platform. reports.

VIVEK SETHI

The Ministry of Tourism supports states to promote its fairs and festivals in as many ways at various domestic and international platforms

t the national seminar organised by CII on National Fairs and Festivals, many thought leaders came together for the inaugural session. Setting the stage up, Sujit Banerjee, Secretary General, WTTC highlighted in

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Fairs and festivals need to be marketed in a systematic and well thought manner. A yearly events calendar can also be prepared Subhash Goyal President, IATO

Girish Shankar, Additional Secretary, MOT

Ayturk, Banerjee, Shankar, Katoch & Tongrut during the lamp-lighting ceremony at the CII National Fair

his welcome address that the Kumbh Mela itself had generated revenue worth ` 12,000 crore and more than 6 lakh jobs. All the Indian festivals and fairs have huge potential for generating revenue and creating jobs. “There is an urgent need to build an annual calendar of events that provides details of all the major fairs and festivals in India,” added Banerjee.

There is an urgent need to build an annual calendar of events that provides details of all the major fairs and festivals in India Sujit Banerjee, Secretary General, WTTC In the keynote address, Girish Shankar, Additional Secretary, MOT, said, “The

Ministry of Tourism supports states to promote its fairs and festivals in as many ways

at various domestic and international platforms. We are even willing to support states even beyond the ` 50 lakh benchmark that we have for respective states on annual basis.”

But, Subhash Goyal, President, IATO pointed out here that fairs and festivals need to be marketed in a systematic and well thought manner. A yearly calendar of events can also be prepared, which are very Indian in nature.

As part of the panel, Ozgur Ayturk, Tourism

Counsellor, Turkish Culture & Tourism; also acknowledged that fairs and festivals have great employment creation potential. Runjaun Tongrut, Director, Tourism Authority of Thailand made another very important observation calling the present era to be Asia-Pacific centric.

Effect of Tourism N All the Indian festivals

and fairs have huge potential for generating revenue and creating jobs Contd. on page 13

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VISA

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Remove visa, aviation hurdles: Rifai There is a need to position tourism and aviation sectors collectively to help stimulate the growth of the overall economy and create opportunities for employment and entrepreneurship.

T T B U R E AU ddressing the Royal Aeronautical Society at the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) headquarters, UNWTO SecretaryGeneral Taleb Rifai called for increased visa facilitation and the liberalisation of air transport.

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Taleb Rifai Secretary-General UNWTO

If we are to achieve the forecast rise in international tourist arrivals from 1 billion in 2012 to 1.8 billion in 2030, we must work as one In his address, Tourism and Aviation: Building Common Policies for Sustainable Growth, he reiterated the need to position both sectors collectively to stimulate the growth of overall economy and create opportunities for employment and entrepreneurship. “If we are to achieve the forecasted rise in international tourist arrivals from 1 billion in 2012 to 1.8 billion in 2030, with all the concomitant economic and social benefits, we must work as one,� Rifai said.

Increased coordination among airlines, tourism destinations and airport authorities at national level, and the joint work of UNWTO and ICAO at the global level, will help position travel and tourism as a strategic sector with air transport at its core, he added.

Rifai emphasised market liberalisation as a key factor for the development of civil aviation and tourism. He cited World Trade Organisation (WTO) estimates showing that

replacing the most restrictive bilateral air agreements by most liberal ones may increase traffic by over 75 per cent. On visa facilitation, Rifai stressed that restrictive visa issuance policies and complicated entry formalities are still stifling travel and tourism

growth, particularly from emerging economies. The latter are some of the fastestgrowing source markets for tourism. Supporting visa facilitation will help stimulate the economy and generate employment - as many as 5.1 million additional jobs in the

G20 economies by 2015, and 2.6 million new jobs in the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation economies by 2016, according to a recent research by UNWTO and the World Travel and Tourism Council. Other key issues addressed were tourist/con-

sumer protection, intelligent taxation and the fight against climate change, issues which he maintained were areas of common concern for both the tourism and aviation sectors to achieve a significant impact in promoting sustainable growth and development.

Points to Ponder N Visa restrictions N Aviation Policy N Intelligent Taxation N Entry Formalities

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VISA

VoA for boosting Indian tourists The country has recently announced that the Visa-onArrival facility has been extended for the Indian market for groups of four pax and more.

T T B U R E AU n a bid to encourage arrivals from India, the Tourism Minister of Egypt recently announced that the Visa-onArrival (VoA) facility will be extended for Indian market for groups of four persons and more in a few weeks’ time. This was revealed by Elhamy ElZayat, Chairman, Egyptian Tourism Federation (ETF) at the TAAI Convention in Bengaluru in December 2013.

At present, visa on arrival facilities are only available for group travel of over 10 people with fixed day departures. The

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Wooing India N The Federation is the apex body of the five industry associations in Egypt

Elhamy ElZayat Chairman, Egyptian Tourism Federation (ETF)

We are also keen on tapping the MICE market in India, especially the incentives segment Federation is the apex body of the five industry associations

in Egypt. “Egypt has been a popular destination in India, and the country is an important and a high-potential market for us. While there has been a dip in the number of visitors due to the political unrest, we have witnessed a major dip in numbers from the Indian market.

The introduction of Visa on Arrival for groups will help increase visitor arrivals from India,” ElZayat said.

Talking about the potential of Egypt in the tourism domain, he added, “Egypt is a fascinating blend of ancient and modern and has destinations and products to cater to the interests of all kinds of tourists. We are also keen on tapping the MICE market in India, especially Incentives segment and can make special arrangements for their visa requirements.”

E-visa to grow inbound by 30% Singapore, Dubai and Turkey had successfully utilised the e-visa facility to attract inbound tourists. India must start this facility soon for all countries sans security hassles, says the IATO President.

T T B U R E AU ubhash Goyal, President, IATO said, “Our association has played an instrumental role in moving the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and Ministry of Tourism (MOT) to lift restrictions on re-entry of a visitor on tourist visa to India within a span of 60 days. The group landing permit at all gateways is another strategic initiative that IATO feels will take inbound growth far once it gets going.”

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“Going forward, the evisa facility will be a major game-changer for inbound segment in India. IATO had represented the side of

We are certain to witness over 25-30% growth in inbound segment with e-visa facility in place Subhash Goyal President, IATO inbound agents at the various meetings held with MHA and MOT. We are hopeful looking at fruitful meetings held with the concerned authorities and expect e-visa facility will be made available in India shortly.

It is likely to be extend-

ed to all countries that pose no security threats. Singapore, Dubai and Turkey had successfully utilised the e-visa facility to attract inbound tourists.

We are certain to witness over 2530% growth in inbound segment with e-visa facility in place,” he added.

Goyal also takes pride in having encouraged his team to participate in the association and work cordially. “Our Mumbai and Kochi conventions were a big success due to the participation of all our members. Today, our silent auction and Run for Responsible Tourism had emerged as independent brand of events,” said Goyal.

“We are in advance stage of bringing together all the regional travel agents and tour operators associations.

We are also toying with the concept of creating a NorthEast Travel Mart like its counterpart in the South that attracts both national and international players to Kerala,” Goyal added.

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STATES

Stakeholders form UTPF Apart from pushing for investments in PPP mode for rebuilding and upgradation, the state’s newly established Uttarakhand Tourism Promotion Forum (UTPF) is a private sector effort to promote sustainable tourism…

M E G H A PAU L n a bid to holistically develop the tourism potential of Uttarakhand and to aggressively promote it, the travel and hospitality stakeholders in the state have come together to be a part of Uttarakhand Tourism Promotion Forum (UTPF). The setting up of UTPF was in the pipeline for a while and has

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private sector to jointly promote sustainable and responsible tourism in Uttarakhand.

As a first step, UTPF will create a dossier of the 50 top tourist destinations in Uttarakhand and share it with the trade. In addition, creating a definitive “places to see” fact sheet for the top 10 tourist destinations (Mussoorie, Nainital,

unparalleled scenic beauty and untouched territories have remained unexplored and hence ‘unmarketed,” Praveen Sharma, Joint Honorary Secretary, HRANI and the leading hotelier from Uttarakhand, said. UTPF will work on creating increased awareness about the state of Uttarakhand and on facts making it so unique, he opined.

Umakant Panwar

Praveen Sharma

Sahil Gulati

Secretary-Tourism Uttarakhand

Joint Honorary Secretary HRANI

Director-Operations EllBee Hotels

As a first step, UTPF will create a dossier of the 50 top tourist destinations in Uttarakhand and share it with the trade

now been set up with the private sector participation, according to Umakant Panwar, Secretary-Tourism, Uttarakhand.

Formulated on the lines of an industry think-tank, UTPF will have participants from the hotel industry of the state as well as others attached to the segment - tour operators, travel and logistics providers and other prominent people from Uttarakhand. In an advisory role, UTPF is an effort of the

It is imperative that we focus on all components that make Uttarakhand so special

Ranikhet, Dhanaulti, Chamba, Rishikesh, Haridwar, Lansdowne, Mukteshwar, and Corbett) will be primary focus.

It will come up with effective marketing tools like brochures and websites on tourism potential in Uttarakhand, Panwar added.

“For the holistic development of the tourism potential in the state, it is imperative that we work together to focus on all components that make Uttarakhand so special. The

This will go a long way in promoting the hill state.

The UTPF will also help in buoying the traveller sentiment

As pointed out by Sahil Gulati, Director-Operations, EllBee Hotels, this is a welcome step. “The Ministry of Tourism recently launched ‘777 Days of the Incredible Indian Himalayas’ campaign to centre stage the Incredible Indian Himalayas on the world tourism map. This will go a long way in promoting the hill state of Uttarakhand. In addition to this, the UTPF will also help in buoying the traveller sentiment,” he commented.

SpiceJet, Tigerair sign 3-year agreement Singapore’s Tigerair has formed a new partnership with SpiceJet that will expand air connectivity between Singapore and India. The three-year interline deal kicks off on January 1, 2014, and will offer single-ticket travel

between the Tigerair and SpiceJet networks, connecting at Hyderabad’s Rajiv Gandhi International Airport. Tigerair passengers from Singapore will be able to connect to SpiceJet’s flights from Hyderabad to 14 domestic

destinations – Bhopal, Mumbai, Kolkata, Coimbatore, Delhi, Goa, Indore, Mangalore, Madurai, Pune, Pajahmundry, Tirupati and Visakhapatnum.

Indian passengers from all of these destinations will be able to connect to Tigerair’s flights.

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TRAVTALK JANUARY 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014

FAMILY ALBUM

PATA India Chapter Membership meet The PATA India Chapter Membership’s meeting with the Ministry of Tourism in Delhi was attended by approximately 35 members. The meeting witnessed the presence of Parvez Dewan, Secretary, MOT, Usha Sharma, Additional DG, MOT, AK Gupta, Additional DG (MR), MOT, Vikram Madhok, Vice Chairman, PATA India Chapter, SanJeet, Honorary Secretary, PATA India Chapter as well as Runeep Sangha, Executive Director, PATA India Chapter. Dewan highlighted several initiatives taken by the ministry to further the promotion of tourism in India. The efforts of the MOT were unanimously lauded by the house.

CII seminar on fairs and festivals CII highlighted the need for building a calendar of fairs and festivals at this national seminar, which had Chandresh Kumari Katoch, Minister of Culture as its chief guest. Host of experts from the travel and tourism industry also attended the programme.

Wine soiree for travel partners South African Airways hosted an exclusive wine-tasting session for its travel partners recently at the ITC Grand Central, Parel. The event saw the attendance of Gcobani Mancotywa, Regional General Manager - Asia Pacific Region, South African Airways. Guests were treated to feted wines from the Stellenbosch Kloof region of South Africa.

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EXHIBITIONS

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Highlighting the culture through fairs Contd. from page 6

“Earlier, we used to get majority of foreign tourists

from the developed world.

Today, majority of tourists are

Earlier, we used to get majority of foreign tourists from the developed world. Today, majority of tourists are coming from Asia Pacific Ozgur Ayturk Tourism Counsellor, Turkish Culture & Tourism

Jet Airways announces two daily flights to Dammam Jet Airways has announced the addition of two daily flights to enhance flight connectivity into Saudi Arabia.

Effective January 15, 2014, Jet Airways will introduce two daily flights from Kochi and Chennai to Dammam in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. While the

Chennai flight will be operated via Abu Dhabi to Dammam, the KochiDammam flight will be served by a daily direct flight.

Jet Airways flight 9W 570 will depart Kochi at 0620 hrs and arrive in Dammam at 0920 hrs (local time).

The return flight 9W 569 will depart Dammam at 1020 (LT) and arrive at Chennai at 1720 hrs (LT).

Furthermore, Jet Airways offers its guests from Kochi an evening option to Dammam via Abu Dhabi. 9W 576 Kochi to Abu Dhabi will be rescheduled to depart Kochi at 2040 hrs and arrive into Abu Dhabi at 2330 hrs, which in turn connects to 9W526 Abu Dhabi Dammam. The airlines will now offer six nonstop flights to Saudi Arabia, with more onestop options.

coming from Asia Pacific,” she added. The seminar also had participation from Singapore, and UK. In the inaugural address, Chandresh Kumari Katoch, Minister of Culture, Government of India, said, “The Greatness of India’s Fairs and Festivals do deserve a more importance, as they are celebrated throughout the

Tour operators need to weave not only the major fairs and festivals but many more fairs and festivals of different parts of India in their tour packages to attract both Indian and foreign tourists Chandresh Kumari Katoch Minister of Culture, Government of India year and are truly amazing in their diversity. Tour operators need to weave not only the

major fairs and festivals but many more fairs and festivals of different parts of India in

their tour packages to attract both Indian and foreign tourists.”

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HOTELS

India is among the top 3 markets: IHG With the recent unveiling of their newest property in Chennai, InterContinental Hotels Group has kept a firm eye on the middle-class India market.

R A M YA JS D’R O Z A R I O he growth of the middle class is by far one of the most important contributing factors, said Douglas Martell, Vice President of Operations, South West Asia, IHG.

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“Currently, we have 14 hotels in operation. If we had come in 2-3 years earlier, we would have been in a stronger position than we are at present. But, with the amount of resources and manpower we are bringing in, we should be able to catch up pretty quickly.

We are investing for the future.”

Thus, after US and China, India features in the top 3 markets for the Group.

The hotel giant is optimistic about the hospitality future in India, and is focussing on the emerging middle class market. The brands, Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express are expected to cater to this market specially. In future, 88 per cent

of the growth is expected from these two brands. The Group expects to open the Holiday Inn brand in 25 cities by 2020 and 40 in 2030, and to establish the Holiday Inn Express brand by 2030. There are currently 57 hotels in the pipeline, among which 50 (Holiday Inn

Martell speaks: “We are actively developing strategic partnerships to expand in India and will invest in these partnerships to support our growth. We have recently signed a 10 Holiday Inn Express hotels deal with the Brigade Group of South India. We already have a 20-year management contract with Duet India Hotels Group to develop 19 Holiday Inn Express hotels (3,300 rooms) in the next couple of years.

With the Amrapali Group, we will be opening 7 hotels – 1 Crowne Plaza, 2 Holiday Inn and 4 Holiday Inn Express. We’re also looking at the right partners to grow the InterContinental brand in key locations across India.”

brands) will cater to the mid segment market.

Talking about the recent initiative taken by the Maharashtra Government in decreasing the number of permits and forming a single window clearance system, Martell added, “Red tape, permits and licenses are big hurdles to cross. Such initiatives will attract more companies to build hotels. At the moment, it is not so much the money that must be paid; it’s the time it takes. Thus, the process must become more business-friendly.” Similarly, with respect to the

inclusion of hotels and convention centres in the Harmonised List, Martell feels that the barrier needs to be reduced by at least 35 – 40 per cent.

Travel agents do play an important role for IHG, where the company pays 10-15 per cent commission to them.

However, with an increasing role of the OTAs in the sector, the Group connects to its customers through its website, offering a competitive price to all.

India must focus on more convention centres.

That is where the real money is Douglas Martell Vice President of Operations, South West Asia, IHG

In 2013, the Group launched its Chennai property on December 18, and is gearing up to unveil Holiday Inn Aerocity in Delhi. The first Holiday Inn Express in Hyderabad Gachibowli will be unveiled in the first quarter of 2014. There are a few hotels in the pipeline for the Eastern market as well as in the cities of Kolkata, Siliguri and Jamshedpur. Regarding the

MICE segment, Martell said, “The MICE segment in India is very fragmented. At the moment, we can only attract the small MICE events. In Dubai, Kuala Lumpur, Shanghai, Singapore... the sheer volume of people attending a conference is near 4,000 – 5,000.” He adds, “India must focus on more convention centres. That is where the real money is.”

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EXHIBITIONS

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SE Asian attractions@FITUR-2014 South-East Asia, which headed the growth for foreign tourist arrivals in the Continent in 2012, will promote its main tourist attractions at FITUR 2014. not to mention the different tools and forums proposed

by FITUR.

T T B U R E AU onsolidated as one of the leading events for the tourist industry, the International Tourism Trade Fair, an event organised by IFEMA, will turn FERIA DE MADRID into a world showcase for the industry from 22 to 26 January 2014 next.

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South-East Asia, which headed the growth for foreign tourist arrivals on the Continent in 2012 with an increase of 9%, will present its rich natural heritage and marvellous tourist attractions at FITUR 2014.

Furthermore, at the trade fair, visitors will be able to discover the landscapes and cultures of countries as fascinating as Cambodia, Vietnam and Myanmar. South-East Asia achieved the highest rate of growth with regard to tourist numbers amongst the different regions of Asia in 2012, largely due to the strong and ongoing increase in intra-regional demand, according to the World Tourism Organisation.

In absolute terms, this growth was headed by Thailand, based on an increase of three million foreign tourist arrivals (+16%) compared to 2011.

Cambodia (+24%) and Vietnam (+14%) also enjoyed significant two-digit rates of growth, whilst Myanmar enjoyed the highest rate of relative growth with an impressive figure of 52%. In 2012, Asia and the Pacific together witnessed an increase of 15 million foreign tourist arrivals compared to 2011, in which respect their share of world tourism rose to 23%.

Attractions in Asia Visitors to FITUR 2014 will be able to discover the main natural and cultural attractions of South-East Asia, including the charms of countries such as Cambodia, Vietnam and Myanmar. Here they will come across a number of important temples and archaeological sites, such as those bequeathed by the Khmer Empire.

This trade show, which marks the beginning of the international calendar of events for the industry, will offer

professionals the means to implement their marketing strategies through an extensive exhibition of destinations,

Participants will also be able to learn about the latest technologies to help them boost their operations and face the challenges of a constantlyevolving world market.

Meetings such as Fitur KnowHow & Export, Fiturtech, Fiturgreen, Investour Africa, Fitur B2B, Receptivo Espa単a (Inbound Spain) and Fitur LGBT, not to mention the meetings organised by the World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) and the Exceltur and Cimet Forums, among

others, all help to shape a business event of the first order, one where the leading players within the travel industry can strengthen their relations and gain access to new marketing, management and promotional channels for their tourist products and destinations.

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IITT-2014 to be held in Mumbai from 16-18 January The India International Travel & Tourism Exhibition (IITT) 2014 will be held at the MMRDA Exhibition Centre in Mumbai from January 16-18, 2014. Jointly organised by the Asian Business Exhibition & Conferences Ltd and ITE Group, the exhibition will feature knowledge seminars on key industry issues, expert perspectives and highlight the challenges of the tourism sector. It is expected to offer personalised invitation badges to over 35,000 travel trade visitors, and the HR, administration, marketing and travel desk managers of over 4,000 corporate clients.

The IITT-2014 will witness participation from both domestic and international industry players. Exhibitors at the event will include NTOs, state tourism boards, travel agents, tour operators, car rental companies, convention centres, cruise liners, golf courses, resorts, and hotels.

INTERVIEW

Big spenders come from small cities Amran Abdul Rahman, Director, Tourism Malaysia, says that they are concentrating on the Indian incentive market and increasing Indian arrivals from 650,000 to 780,000. A few extracts from the exclusive interview…

PEDEN DOMA BHUTIA How important is India market for Malaysia?

India figures among the top 10 markets for Malaysia.

We acknowledge the fact that the country is an upcoming economic giant. Indian is an important market for us and we are very serious about increasing arrivals from India to Malaysia. At the moment, we receive about 650,000 tourists from India on an average. The only reason we are maintaining this number is because that we have regular flights between the two countries. Now, if we increase that accessibility and we provide more flight seats, then we can increase the number of Indian arrivals to 780,000.

How differently will you promote Malaysia in India in 2014?

In 2014, we have our Visit Malaysia campaign. For this,

we are introducing special packages. We are also working very closely with tour operators in India and introducing new packages like helicopter tours, luxury tours, special honeymoon and family packages.

The country’s first international theme park - Legoland, Bukit Gambang Resort City and areas like Langkawi are suitable for families. We are also looking into the incentive market. Going by the way in which we receive large incentive

groups from India, it seems that the demand for the incentive market is increasing for Malaysia, so we are going to concentrate on this.

How was 2013 for Tourism Malaysia?

2013 was a little slow and this was obviously due to the shock of the rupee depreciation. In the second half of the year, we saw a decrease of three per cent; however, things started looking up by

October and the number of arrivals increased, so even though the second half may not have been very good, we came to understand that people are gradually adapting to the change.

How are you planning to tie up with Malindo Air? With the launch of Malindo Air in India, we have planned a major campaign with

We are working very closely with tour operators in India and introducing new packages like helicopter tours, luxury tours, special honeymoon and family packages. The country’s first international theme park - Legoland, Bukit Gambang Resort City and areas like Amran Abdul Rahman Langkawi are excellent for families Director Tourism Malaysia

them. Once they start flying in India, from next year, we will be working together in terms of promotions and advertising to create awareness about the new airlines.

We want to make sure that Malindo sustains in India for the long-haul.

Which are the cities where you are promoting Malaysia?

About promotion of Malaysia in India, we are not just concentrating on the metropolitan cities of Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai and Kolkata.

For instance, in North India, we are looking at places like Ludhiana, Chandigarh, Rajasthan and Lucknow. We are also travelling to West Bengal and in the Northeast.

We are working actively with tour operators there because we find that these cities are more lucrative and we get bigger spenders from these cities.

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NTO

CNTO travels to S India CNTO aggressively markets in South India as it organises promotional campaigns from December 14-22 in Kochi and Chennai.

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At the Tourism Fest in Chandigarh, China Southern Airlines and China Eastern Airlines had also presented their flights and services towards the high-end market in North India.

he China National Tourist Office (CNTO) has been concentrating a lot on attracting Indian tourists to the country. This time around, they organised promotional campaigns from December 14- 22 in Kochi and Chennai.

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CNTO conducted promotional activities in Oberon Mall and Lullu Mall in Kochi and City Centre Mall and Ampa Skywalk Mall in Chennai.

“Nowadays, an increasing number of Indian tourists have started showing interest in China as a tourist destination. This tremendous growth in outbound travel from India to China is being seen as great encouragement. From January to October 2013, the Indian arrivals to mainland China were nearly 569700, increasing more than 12.5% over the same period of last year,” said Li Qianguo, Deputy Director, China National Tourist Office.

As part of its Beautiful China campaign, CNTO had also organised promotional

Li Qianguo Deputy Director China National Tourist Office

From January to October 2013, Indian arrivals to mainland China were nearly 569,700; increasing more than 12.5% activities in Chandigarh from December 5-7 during the first edition of the CII Tourism Fest.

Happy with the response at Chandigarh, Qianguo said, “Thousands of visitors from Chandigarh and its nearby regions in North India flocked to the Beautiful China pavilion during the three-day event.”

Hello China N CNTO conducted promotional activities in Oberon Mall and Lullu Mall in Kochi and City Centre Mall and Ampa Skywalk Mall in Chennai N As part of its Beautiful China campaign, CNTO had also organised promotional activities in Chandigarh from December 5-7 during the first edition of the CII Tourism Fest

Sept date for JATA Tourism Expo Two of Japan' s largest travel fairs - JATA TABIHAKU Travel Showcase and Tabi Fair - will merge into one event called the JATA Tourism Expo Japan, to be held from September 25-28, 2014.

The Japan Travel and Tourism Association and the Japan Association of Travel Agents have agreed to integrate Tabi Fair Japan, a domestic tourism exhibition hosted by JTTA, and JATA TABIHAKU Travel Showcase, an international travel exhibition hosted by JATA, to hold the JATA Tourism Expo Japan annually from 2014.

The 2014 event will be held from September 25-28 at Tokyo Big Sight (East Exhibition Hall and Conference Tower).

The year 2013 marked the 18th Tabi Fair Japan. It is one of the largest domestic travel exhibitions in Japan, with exhibitors from 120 regions in Japan participating. The JATA TABIHAKU Travel Showcase is one of the largest comprehensive travel events in Asia. In

2013, the event marked its 24th year. It was composed of an international travel forum, international business talks, exhibitions, awards, and a pre-opening

reception. A total of 730 organisations and companies from 154 countries participated in 2013.

By integrating these two events, the organisers will be able to present Japan as a tourism destination. The combined event will build on their strengths to promote outbound, inbound, and domestic travel.

The JATA Tourism Expo Japan will then become the largest comprehensive travel event in Asia, and will concentrate on the strengths of not just the tourism industry, but of all industries and regions.

The new JATA Tourism EXPO Japan has been recognised by the United Nation’s World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO).

Plus, it is the first travel show in Asia to be recognised by the UNWTO. The expo will be managed by the JATA Tourism Expo Japan Organising Committee.

For the Executive Committee to be placed under the Organising Committee, the chairperson will be JATA’s Chairman Jungo Kikuma, and the vice chairmans will be JATA’s Vice Chairman Hiromi Tagawa and JTTA’s Director Yoichi Minami, with Vice Chairman Tagawa as the acting chairperson. As the central office of the expo, the Tourism Expo Japan Promotion Office will be located within JATA.

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INTERVIEW

2014 to focus on domestic travel Sandeep Dwivedi, the Chief Financial Officer at InterGlobe Technology Quotient (ITQ) says that the company would continue focussing on developing tools for their travel trade partners which would help them absorb new technology, besides inceasing service and support levels through their ISO-certified service centre.

PEDEN DOMA BHUTIA What is Travelport working on lately? How will this benefit the travel trade community?

How important is the travel trade for your business?

The travel trade continues to be our strong partner and we would like to retain our focus

Travelport has always been instrumental in providing innovative products to streamline the work for travel agents.

Recently, Travelport has launched a series of products in the global market and very soon some of these products would be rolled out in Indian market as well.

Travelport has been actively engaged in creating ground breaking technologies and solutions that enable travel agencies to grow their busiSandeep Dwivedi ness.

Chief Financial Officer at InterGlobe Technology Quotient

in developing tools for our partners that would help them absorb technology and use it to enhance their business growth. For our travel partners, we have also upped our service and support levels through our ISO certified service centre.

reliable and cost efficient GDS solutions that bring value to customers.

You've recently renewed your contract with Via.com. Do you have any new plans for the website?

The year 2013 started on a slightly tepid sentiment with the fluctuating airfares and surging fuel prices, and the rupee devaluation. However, we have also witnessed the industry going through an evolution with innovations in mobile technology and how the industry is learning to embrace the internet and related technologies to improve travel experience. Factors such as improving penetration of the internet, increasing smartphone share and the younger population demographics has helped

Via.com has been another strong partner and the contract renewal demonstrates the further deepening of our relationship with Via.com and our ongoing commitment to this strategic partnership.

We are committed at offering cost-effective,

How do you look at 2013 and what are your plans for 2014?

For the A

gents

The p a r t n e travel trade c r o in deve and we wou ntinues to b e ld like loping help th t o r e t a our strong tools fo in our e r m o u r a pa fo d enhanc e their opt technolo r tners that w cus busine g y a nd use ould ss grow it to th.

shape the m-Commerce market in India. This has not only revolutionised the travel sector over a period of time, but would also help create a larger ecosystem in the future that would include hotel bookings, car rentals etc., in short a complete package for customers to plan their travel.

The year 2014 is likely to see an increase in both the business and leisure travel

segment. Domestic tourism will see tremendous focus in the coming year, with more and more service providers offering innovative deals for travel. The industry is also optimistic about the Jet-Etihad and Tata-SIA operations which is believed to give impetus to the travel in the country and the region.

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HOTELS

A Novotel Experience in Goa

Fortune Inn Grazia

With the addition of this new hotel, Novotel Goa Shrem Resort’s brand mission is to create a new and valuable Fortune now has six hotels operational midscale hospitality experience by providing emotionally-involving and in the Delhi NCR. economically-efficient concepts.

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he Novotel Experience comes to North Goa with a truly Goan spirit, embodied in

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a 5-star luxury resort. This is the flagship property of Novotel Resorts in India and is located on the arterial road from Candolim to Calangute. The

Manish Dayya

Rakshit Talwar

General Manager Novotel Goa Shrem Resort

Rakshit Talwar, Director, Sales and Marketing, Novotel Goa Shrem Resort

We want to position Novotel Goa Shrem Resort as a very competitive resort

The brand essence is made of key words: Relaxed, Playful, Imagination and Heartfelt Service

resort offers contemporary design and flexibility, boasting of lots of in-room space.

Besides other leisure activities, the hotel is also ideal for meetings. The board rooms can accommodate 2-12 persons at the business centre and the ballroom with a hall space of 2,800 sq ft; and a pre-function foyer area is ideal for larger conferences and gatherings. For exhibitions and social gettogethers, Accor Beach Lawns with 20,000 sq ft space is an ideal beach-facing lawn that caters to up to 2,000 persons.

“The hotel is truly an idyllic location for a perfect getaway, and is a short drive away from beautiful beaches and popular night-spots. One can switch between calm and an active day in Goa with ease,” says Manish Dayya, General Manager, Novotel Goa Shrem Resort.

Talking about the positioning and branding of the property, Dayya says, “At this

point, we want to position Novotel Goa Shrem Resort as a very competitive resort available in North Goa and which offers value for money.” Besides duplex suites called the junior suites with four categories of rooms, the resort also has an accessible room for differently-abled and aged guests.

Talking about what the brand stands for Rakshit Talwar, Director, Sales and Marketing, Novotel Goa Shrem Resort; he says, “The brand mission is to create a new and valuable midscale hospitality experience by providing emotionally involving and economically efficient concepts. The brand essence is made of key words: Relaxed (Peaceful, balanced, destressed), Playful (fun -loving, high-spirited, light-hearted), Imagination (creativity, positive energy) & Heartfelt Service (attentive, warm, and anticipatory). All this reflects at the Novotel Goa Shrem Resort.”

ortune Park Hotels has further expanded its portfolio of hotels with the opening of the brand’s 41st hotel, ‘Fortune Inn Grazia’ in Ghaziabad. With the addition of this hotel, Fortune now has six hotels operational in Delhi NCR – two hotels each in New Delhi and Gurgaon and one each in Noida and Ghaziabad. Conveniently located in the heart of the Industrial Area, adjacent to the ALT Centre, and in close proximity to premier establishments in Sanjay Nagar like IMT Ghaziabad, Fortune Inn Grazia is perfectly suited to service the business requirements of the city.

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Speaking on the occasion, Suresh Kumar, Chief Executive Officer, Fortune Park Hotels said, “We are delighted to announce the launch of Fortune Inn Grazia in Ghaziabad and to partner with the Group once again, who have yet again reposed their trust in our brand.

The Oberoi celebrates its legacy To celebrate the legacy of iconic The Oberoi, New Delhi, a sit-down hosted dinner was organised for a select 100 guests from travel and trade industry on November 27, 2013.

We expect to bridge the existing gap with our excellent service and hospitality commitment.

We are sure of receiving a good response for our hotel as it is placed strategically to serve the NCR region.”

Fortune Inn Grazia offers 50 well-furnished rooms, consisting of 45 Standard Rooms and five Suites. The hotel provides banquet facilities that can accommodate up to 200 guests. Other offerings at the hotel include business centre facilities, swimming pool, beauty salon and a wellness centre with spa and a well-equipped gymnasium. With the Fortune Inn in Ghaziabad, the total number of Fortune Inn category hotels in the country now stands at eight with hotels in Gandhinagar, Jammu, Manipal, Noida, Hinjewadi, Pune and Visakhapatnam already operational.

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Speed-bumps in North Indian tourism Northern India, especially the Himalayan states, is perhaps the most lucrative destination both for domestic and international tourists. However, perennial issues like hindrance to seamless travel and tax burden on the industry need to be addressed soon to arrest the declining trends with respect to its growth. The recentlyunveiled KPMG Report highlights some critical aspects of the region.

R ATA N K P A U L he KPMG Report, which was released at the ‘CII Tourism Fest’ organised from December 5-7, 2013 in Chandigarh, says that compared to the national average growth rate of 16.3 per cent, the total number of tourist visits in the northern states of India witnessed a growth rate of 10.2 per cent during the period 2008-2012. While the

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total number of tourist visits in India amounted to 1057 million in 2012, those in northern states amounted to 303 million in the same year. The domestic and international tourist visits in northern states witnessed growth rates of 10.4 per cent and 3.2 per cent respectively during 2008-2012 amounting to 296 million domestic tourists and 7 million international tourists in 2012.

The total market share of the

northern states in overall India tourist visits declined from 36 per cent in 2008 to 29 per cent in 2012.

Interestingly, Punjab witnessed the largest increase in market share of 1.7 per cent much of which can be attributed to increase in the domestic market share. Similarly, Delhi witnessed a market share increase of 1.2 per cent during the same period. While

Profile of tourists in northern states In line with the overall tourist profile in India, major proportion of tourist visits in northern states of India comprised domestic tourists in 2012. Punjab witnessed the highest growth rate both in terms of domestic (147 per cent) as well as international tourists (114 per cent) during 20082012. While Delhi witnessed high growth in terms of domestic tourists (72 per cent), it witnessed almost negligible growth (0.1 per cent) in international tourist visits during the same period. Haryana witnessed low growth in terms of increase in domestic tourists as well as in international tourists for the state (28 per cent) and was second

only to Punjab. USA and UK account for the maximum number of foreign tourist visits in the northern states of India. While Haryana and Delhi are majorly commercial and business-related destinations, Himachal Pradesh and Punjab emerge clearly as destinations preferred for leisure activities.

Himachal Pradesh witnessed the longest duration of stay by both domestic and international tourists which is evident because of its preference as a state for leisure and vacationing purposes. Average duration of stay is highest for the month of September for domestic tourists and December for international tourists.

the domestic market share for Delhi witnessed considerable increase in 2012, the international market share suffered a decline. Other northern states such as Rajasthan, Haryana, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh witnessed decline in market shares in overall India tourist visits.

Uttar Pradesh witnessed the largest market share decline of 5.8 per cent followed by Rajasthan, Uttarakhand and Haryana at 2.3 per cent, 1 per cent and 0.4 per cent respectively.

Measures to be taken Though the KPMG Report highlighted some positive initiatives taken by the northern states, it identified some specific areas where they will have to focus on. According to the report, there is a need for enhancing the infrastructure, seamless connectivity and tourism appeal of the states in northern India in order to achieve longer tourist stays. Collective marketing and special strategies for promotion activities should be adopted by the state governments in order to increase the stay duration for tourists.

The report also suggests that education and medical tourism appear as areas that require focussed efforts by state governments for promotion and marketing.

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AVIATION

India contributes 16% growth to Malaysia As Malaysia is gearing up for the Visit Malaysia Year 2014, the country’s official airline, Malaysia Airlines, has witnessed the Indian market growing at a staggering rate of 16 per cent. The Indian aviation industry holds tremendous potential for the airline, providing immense opportunities to expand their operations.

RAMYA JS D’ROZARIO he civil aviation industry continues to feel the pressure of increasing cost and depressing yields with intensified competition, said Azahar

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Hamid, Regional Senior Vice President, South Asia & Middle East, Malaysia Airlines. “On one hand, the price sensitive market kept growing, while on the other side, there is a noticeable increase in luxury travel.

Overall India outbound grew significantly and the trend is expected to continue.”

This year, it has also been noticed that the Indian traveller is more mature now

and is equally conscious of the product & services that they are flying. Hamid added, “At the same time, they are looking at value-for-money deals. They are ready to explore new destinations. The Indian airline

industry holds tremendous potential for us and gives us a chance to expand our operations.”

The E-Commerce acceptance in the market has

Azahar Hamid Regional Sr. VP, South Asia & Middle East, Malaysia Airlines

Indians are looking at value-formoney deals.

They are ready to explore new destinations also shown significant increase, he further added. The key inbound destinations for 2014 are forecast to be – Kerala, Delhi and Mumbai.

In 2014, the Airline plans to concentrate on their six online points- Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai and Kochi. “In line with our strategy, we have been strengthening our India operations over the past few months. We plan to get the double daily operations from all over current online points and explore new online points,” Hamid added.

With Visit Malaysia Year 2014, the airline expects a steep rise in the percentage of the rate of growth. It is focussing on all market segments be it corporate, leisure, MICE, students, etc., which are all important. It is also planning to continue to focus on all segments to create an optimal traffic mix.

New Vision N In 2014, the Airline plans to concentrate on their six online pointsDelhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai and Kochi N With Visit Malaysia Year 2014, the airline expects a steep rise in the percentage of the rate of growth N It is focussing on all market segments be it corporate, leisure, MICE, students, etc.

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ASSOCIATIONS

A collaborative effort at TAAI 2013 The annual TAAI Convention at Bengaluru proved to be an excellent platform for exchanging business strategies and meeting the who’s who of the Indian travel and tourism industry. Overall, it was a perfect mix of business and fun@TAAI-2013.

A N I TA J A I N

FROM

BENGALURU

ith an excellent venue – Vivanta by Taj, Yashwantpur Bangalore; the st 61 annual TAAI Convention was action-packed with business sessions, TAAI Travel Awards, the India Travel & Tourism Expo (ITTE) and the TAAI national elections.

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Apart from this, Karnataka Tourism also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with TAAI to set up a training centre for tourism in Karnataka.

RV Deshpande, Minister of Tourism, Government of Karnataka inaugurated the Convention and the Travel Mart. The convention was well-attended by top-end dig-

from every segment of the Indian tourism sector. During the inauguration, Deshpande said, “Hardly nine per cent of the Indian population is involved in the tourism sector, but the kind of potential it has, is tremendous. The tourism sector attracts large investments, foreign exchange and helps boost the growth of the country’s GDP. It is time that the country’s state governments and travel associations like TAAI should join hands to come together and highlight India on the world’s tourism map. Travel agents have challenges like competition, commission, infrastructure, etc; but all of these will phase out soon.” He added that,

The country’s state governments and travel associations like TAAI should join hands to come together and highlight India on the world’s tourism map RV Deshpande Minister of Tourism, Government of Karnataka nitaries from the Karnataka Tourism department, as well as industry leaders

“Agents should now look at other revenue streams and come forward to promote

domestic tourism. Karnataka tourism will support any initiative taken by TAAI for the betterment of domestic tourism.”

Business sessions like ‘The Future is NOW’ had eminent speakers like Kapil Kaul, CEO, CAPA and Ashwini Kakkar, Past President, TAAI; who handed out innovative business strategies which provided much food for thought to the attendees. Another business session which talked about the agent-airlines relationship ‘Principal Agency Relationship – Way Forward’ was well-attended and wit-

nessed participation from every section of the audience during the debate. Following the debate, a smooth and interesting session on ‘Evolve as We Grow – How Market Relevant Are We?’ received a full hall attendance. Walked by Ajit Kaikini, Director – Corporate Training, Buoyancee and Raja Natesan, President & CEO, Gateway IT & Travel Solutions successfully grabbed the show by bringing some exciting out-of-the-box ideas to the table. Overall, the convention proved to be an excellent platform for delegates to learn new and start anew with the New Year!

A more proactive TAAI is needed One week in office as the new secretary, Harmandeep Singh Anand speaks to about the new initiatives and challenges ahead for Travel Agents Association of India.

M E G H A PAU L

We need to change it into a corporate body, by appointing a CEO to run it for liaisoning with the government, airlines and suppliers

etaining and adding more members is an important objective of TAAI. Thus, Harmandeep Singh Anand, General Secretary, TAAI has spent the first week working on updating the member database.

R

Interestingly, Anand is in favour of seeing TAAI as a more active organisation in the form of a corporate body.

Urging the members to be involved in the association’s working, he said, “Members should wake up and bring a change in their association. We need to change it into a corporate body, by appointing a CEO

be an ideal association, for its members and by its members.”

Harmandeep Singh Anand General Secretary TAAI

to run it for liaisoning with the government, airlines and suppliers. We have a big agenda to help members overcome problems and to get more revenue. I would love TAAI to

Anand said that the travel industry has faced a tough year due to the commission issue in the aviation sector, along with the drop in the value of the Indian rupee. “Service tax and commission are two of the most burning issues for the industry right now. Going forward, TAAI needs to educate

its members and show them new ways to earn revenues, and in particular, promote the airlines and products that are agent-friendly. Airlines that give commissions should be encouraged as preferred partners. Domestic air ticketing has been the bread and butter for majority of our agents. So the travel agent has to innovate and promote domestic tourism as well,” he added.

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FAMILY ALBUM

TAAI: 61 yrs of working for travel agents

The 61st annual TAAI Convention was well-attended by top-end dignitaries from the Karnataka Tourism department, as well as industry leaders from every segment of the Indian tourism sector. The business sessions had eminent speakers who handed out innovative strategies, providing much food for thought to the attendees.

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FAMILY ALBUM

JANUARY 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014

A time for honouring the TAAI stars

TRAVTALK

31

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FAMILY ALBUM

TAAI networking, with a smile

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AVIATION

LATAM workshop for Bengaluru agents LATAM Airlines Group held a workshop for travel agents in Bengaluru on November 15, 2013. The workshop constituted a 2-hour presentation, followed by dinner, and it saw over 70 agents in attendance.

T T B U R E AU he idea behind organising this workshop was to educate travel agents in Bengaluru about LAN and TAM products and services to South America; how they can sell from India and how they can use our flexible and attractive

“T

air-passes,” said Nayan Srivastava, Sr. Sales & Marketing Manager, India, Interglobe - GSA India for LATAM Airlines Group.

Held in Bengaluru for the first time, the workshop has been previously held in Delhi and Mumbai for over

a year. “The response from the agents was very encouraging in Delhi and Mumbai. Since the response was so good, we extended this workshop to South India as well. If the response from Bengaluru continues to be good, then we may organise workshops in Chennai and

Hyderabad as well.” In Bengaluru, the target audience was mostly corporate agents, and a few MICE and leisure travel agents too. The airline does not offer any commission to the agents; but for large groups (be it leisure or MICE), the airline offers special prices.

So far, the South American market has not been able to capture the Indian MICE market yet. “The situation is not too good at the moment, but this year we saw two large MICE movements to South America. Such MICE movements visit Rio de Janeiro, Iguasu Falls majorly,

and sometimes they couple it with Argentina as well.”

Srivastava further added, “From India to Europe, you can use our partner airlines, and then from Europe onward, there is a direct flight to South America. The focus was to educate the agents

Nayan Srivastava Sr. Sales & Marketing Manager, India, Interglobe - GSA India for LATAM Airlines Group

If the response from Bengaluru continues to be good, then we may organise workshops in Chennai and Hyderabad as well about the product, how to promote LAN and TAM from India, which is an essential factor since the airline does not fly into India.”

Tourism’s contribution to national employment up to 11.5% As per the Ministry of Tourism, the 2nd Tourism Satellite Account (TSA) of India–2009-10 and subsequent estimation, the contribution of tourism in total employment of the country during 2009-10, 2010-11 and 2011-12 increased from 10.2 per cent, 10.8 per cent and 11.5 per cent, respectively. The Planning Commission has recognised that Tourism sector will be a main contributor to employment creation in the 12th Plan Period.

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AGENTS

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37

Trafalgar offers 20% commission Trafalgar attempts to entice travel agents in India with an offer to earn as much as 20 per cent remuneration on its offerings. They offer over 44 diverse regions with their choice of 104 enhanced itineraries.

T T B U R E AU rafalgar, part of The Travel Corporation, has rolled out special incentives for its travel trade partners in India.

Elaborating on its strategic intent, Nicholas Lim, President, Asia, Trafalgar, said, “We announced additional 10 per cent commission to its

T

Nicholas Lim President Asia, Trafalgar

Trafalgar offers 10 per cent commission to its travel associates and the additional 10 per cent remuneration will be valid till Feb 2014 Indian partners, who would work with them. It’s to tap more outbound business in the present year-end season. Trafalgar offers 10 per cent commission to its travel associates and the additional 10 per cent remuneration will be valid till Feb 2014. We’ve done exhaustive research over the past few years, both on-site and by word-of-mouth, to make sure that we’re offering Europe’s most incredible and authentic

Incredible India logo adopted by five ministries The Incredible India logo, which was originally intended for the Ministry of Tourism, is now being used by five ministries, viz Ministry of Tourism, I&B Ministry, Culture Ministry, Ministry Of Home Affairs and External Affairs Ministry.

travel experiences for our travels partners guests.”

“In our 2014 Europe & Britain programme, we have put on 44 diverse regions with their choice of 104 enhanced itineraries, enabling our travel agent partners sell their guests

the most iconic sites as well as the less travelled places. Our major focus is on tapping high end market with 317 exclusive Insider European experiences, 52 ‘Be My Guest’ dining experiences that are not found in guidebooks. It’s not enough for us to take our guests to the typ-

ical spots around Europe – through our unique Insider experiences, like touring Belfast with a local cabbie and sharing canapés with ballerinas in St.Petersburg, we provide them with the opportunities to weave their own travel stories," he added.

Trafalgar relies most on the strength of B2B distribution and plans to leverage the same route here in India. “99 per cent of our business comes from travel trade partners all over the world, including India.

In fact, we had registered strong growth in the past year

that saw us double our volumes in India. In fact, we are scaling up our presence in India.

On the emerging trends, East Europe, South America has been seeing much higher interests among travellers and growth as well,” said Lim.

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NEWS

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39

Offering agents self-drive business Carzonrent recently launched self-drive brand Myles, offering 10 per cent commission to travel agents in addition to a new business association opportunity. reports…

T T B U R E AU arzonrent has become the first organised Indian player to launch a self-drive brand named Myles that will cater to the requirement of self-drive service across India.

C

Rajiv K Vij Managing Director Carzonrent India

We are keen to use our travel trade network.

We offer 10 per cent commission to the travel agents to act as our extended arms As per Rajiv K Vij, Managing Director, Carzonrent India, “The time has come for

Etihad to operate daily Abu DhabiJaipur service Etihad Airways recently announced its decision to launch a daily service from Abu Dhabi to Jaipur.

The new flights, which will commence from April 1, 2014, brings the total number of Indian cities served by Etihad Airways to 10. The existing routes include Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kochi, Kozhikode, Mumbai, New Delhi and Thiruvananthapuram.

The airways will operate the daily service to Jaipur with Airbus-A320 aircraft in a two-class configuration.

the self drive segment to flourish. We see a strong potential in this segment. Hence, we have launched Myles, our selfdrive brand. It has started in 10 metropolis cities with 100 cars.

We will pump in ` 400 crore over next three years to build a fleet of over 5,000 cars.”

“There are inherent benefits of using a self drive vehicle for domestic tourists.

They get additional privacy, save ` 1000 at least every day on driver and have enhanced freedom to roam around in vehicle of their choice,” he added.

In fact, Myles also has good news for travel agents.

Especially, those travel agents who want to make remuneration out of tourist transport segment. They can now earn handsome commission, or even talk detailed business relationships. “We are keen to

use our travel trade network.

We offer 10 per cent commission to the travel agents to act as our extensions. In the present scenario, travel agencies had been facing stiff pressures on margins and this new avenue will help them steady their top-line,” said Vij.

“We are also keen to enter into a franchise agreement with strategic travel business partners. We would have a more elaborate remuneration structure for such partners that can be used as pick and drop point for our Myles brand at key points,” he added.

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FAMILY ALBUM

10 years of Turkish Airlines in India

Turkish Airlines celebrated the completion of 10 successful years of its operations in India recently in Delhi. The event was attended by prominent people from the travel trade. Standing for ‘Widen Your World’, the airline has been operating in India since 2003 and has achieved major milestones since then.

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NEWS

Strategic focus on India Eyeing Tier-II cities in 2014 The company aims at attracting well-travelled Indian Optimistic about growth in 2014, Iris Reps will tap the tourists. It also plans to work closely with the trade. tourism potential in mini-metros and Tier-II cities.

A N I TA J A I N ndia is an ideal tourism market for us as it gives us business during our low season,” says Antoine Burnet, Marketing and Communications Director, Compagnie du Mont Blanc.

“I

The company, which appointed representation in India in 2011, has recorded excellent response from this market and is aiming at further enhancing the market focus. It is focussing on Indians travelling to France, Switzerland and Europe, who are keen to explore the Alps and the mountaineous region of the conti-

New Vision

nent. It would also add more attractions to the region to improve the overnights from this market and build more repeat travellers’ base. For instance, it has recently unveiled the newest attraction – SKY WALK ‘Pas dans le

Antoine Burnet Marketing and Communications Director Compagnie du Mont Blanc

N Mont Blanc offers more than just mountain experience. It offers spa, wine, adventure and much more.

Vide’. With this, travellers can experience ‘walking’ through the sky at an altitude of 3,842 metres and view the Mont Blanc range.

N It aims to welcome 10,000-12,000 Indians in a few years.

On the new attraction, Burnet said, “With India being

one of our key Asian markets, we are very keen to preannounce the launch of the same, and we certainly hope that this will give Indian travellers yet another reason to come visit us in our beautiful valley of Chamonix.” He said, “By working closely with Indian travel trade, we aim to further enhance their destination knowledge and awareness.”

Currently, Mont Blanc receives close to 6,000 groups and 1,000 FITs from India with an average of one night stay.

With enhanced marketing activities and business strategy for 2014, it is aiming to welcome about 10,000-12,000 Indians in few years and also encourage overnights to three on an average. “As per our latest research in major Indian metros, we are the third most popular destination after Paris and Nice for FIT travellers on travel agent’s itinerary.” It will continue to organise FAMs and offline training programmes for the travel trade.

T T B U R E AU umbai-based Iris Reps is all geared up to enhance its market share and market value of Reunion Island in the Indian market this year.

Currently, the company has a diversified portfolio of resorts, tourism boards and DMCs. To enhance the brand positioning of various brands, the company will be participating in various roadshows, B2B platforms, travel trade fairs and also organise fam trips for agents in 2014.

M

Our expectation is to increase our market share and market value in the Indian market. In general, however the market reacts; we will be focussed to showcase Reunion Island as must-see destinations for Indian traveller.”

Alefiya Singh, Director, Iris Reps, said, “

The year 2014 looks positive, but it still depends largely on the upcoming election results, the Budget, stock market trends and lastly, on the valuation of the Indian rupee.

Alefiya Singh Director Iris Reps

Talking about the plans for this year, she said, “Being branded as highly professional in our field and rendering complete satisfaction to all our partners, we are expanding carefully in the upcoming year. We have opportunity with some

interesting and challenging tourism boards and resort chains. Once these firm up, we will keep the market informed.”

However, with the industry sentiments being positive yet cautious about 2014, Iris Reps is tapping the right opportunities to beat challenges like fluctuating Indian currency and elections right before the Indian peak holiday season.

According to Singh; new airlines, airports, expanding routes of domestic and international airlines in mini metros and Tier II cities are great opportunities.

She said, “With new airlines starting, I see more opportunities and less challenges. The outbound market is growing rapidly and there is enough room for improvement.

Niche destinations are in demand and we need to tap the right segment with proper marketing strategies.”

New Year, New Venue, More Business One of the major consolidators of air tickets in Western India, Blue Star Air Travel Services (I) has opened a new state-of-the-art centralised office in the heart of Mumbai in the upcoming business hub Elphinstone Road. They have added models to their business in the form of B2B-friendly web portal and even franchise distribution which have already started performing well.

Airlines expect 31% rise in passengers The International Air Transport Association (IATA) released the IATA Airline Industry Forecast 20132017, showing that airlines expect to see a 31% increase in passenger numbers between 2012 and 2017. By 2017, total passenger numbers are expected to rise to 3.91 billion—an increase of

930 million passengers over the 2.98 billion carried in 2012.

The IATA Airline Industry Forecast 2013-2017 is a consensus outlook for system-wide passenger growth. Demand is expected to expand by an average of 5.4% CAGR between 2013 and 2017. By comparison,

global passenger growth expanded by 4.3% CAGR between 2008 and 2012, largely reflecting the negative impact of the 2008 global financial crisis and recession. Of the new passengers, approximately 292 million will be carried on international routes and 638 million on domestic routes.

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HOTELS

Betting big on mid-segment Launched in July 2013, Holiday Inn Amritsar has brought a new level of comfort and style to the holy city. digs out details on the property.

TT B U R E AU n line with InterContinental Hotels Group’s (IHG) expansion strategy to capture the growing domestic travellers and widen its reach to new regions, the Holiday Inn Amritsar has been launched.

Holiday Inn Amritsar is Punjab’s first InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) property.

Launched in July 2013, the hotel has brought a new level of comfort and style to the holy city. It is also the only branded hotel in the city centre in its category.

I

Talking about the new property and the scope of midsegment hotels, Kunal Shanker, General Manager, Holiday Inn Amritsar Ranjit Avenue says, “The hotel has been recently opened in July last year. The city has recently experienced a sudden growth in the full service mid-scale hotels. Thus, Amritsar witnesses around 40-50 per cent occupancy throughout the year. We certainly want to make a strong foothold in the market with our strong international brand, genuine service and authentic food and our unique Stay Real service cul-

Kunal Shanker General Manager Holiday Inn Amritsar Ranjit Avenue

Our main target market will be leisure tourists from India and across the world ture. Our objective and focus in the first year of operations is to match the city average occupancies.” Regarding the main target clientele at the property, he adds, “Amritsar is known to be a religious desti-

nation, supported by Jallianwala Bagh and Beating Retreat at the Wagha Border.

Our main target market will be leisure tourists from India (mainly Delhi NCR, Mumbai) and across the world (US, Canada, UK and Eurpoe, etc.).

The other major market segments growing in the city are corporate conferences, weddings and other social groups.”

Giving details of MICE facilities in the hotel, he elaborates, “Our stunning Grand Ballroom has been built to accommodate weddings, corporate events, conferencing and combines contemporary interior design with smart functional technology. The Grand Ballroom, pre-function lobby and banquet lawn together allows us to comfortably accommodate up to 450 guests. Holiday Inn Amritsar has quickly established a reputation for providing the highestquality food and service in the market, helping our guests to create lasting memories.”

JANUARY 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014

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LETTER TO THE EDITOR Contd. from page 4

several CCTV screens covering the area where our luggage was put which proved that we had not tucked any of the rupees away. In any case, they would not listen and one by one they opened our luggage- suitcases and hand luggage. Another Rs 10,000 was found in an envelope, which had been a very generous and kind gift from a dear cousinstill in the envelope that she had given, forgotten in my usual ‘India hand bag’. So now we were up to Rs 28,500. The search left the searcher lady embarrassed, since all she found was chocolates, cheese, cookies, and old clothes.

They would not let us go.

They wanted Rs 40,000. They insisted. They said, do what you want, you have to turn in Rs 40,000. You said you had Rs 40,000. We said we had not counted, we had estimated in front of them with our wallets open, in front of them. But no one would listen. They said we had to produce the total Rs 40000 even if we had to convert our dollars. So Rajiv was escorted to the bank counter by the lady officer and he con-

verted our dollars at the lousy and pathetic airport rate and said OK, here are the rupees, we want an official receipt.

It took an entire slew of Indian customs officers almost 5 hours to find ledgers, get signatures and fill forms to produce a receipt for us. We left the airport around 8 am long after every other passenger who had been detained was gone. Don't know how all other receipts were made so promptly. Don't know how over 1000 passengers who came through in that time did not have any thing that kept them detained in customs for so long as us, but I do know that there was no India Shining moment when we finally emerged.

We follow the rules. We were willing to give whatever rupees we had, since we did not know about the rule that emerged in May 2013. We were not happy about this, but we gave them what we had.

They wanted more. They made us convert dollars to rupees and took that. Then we asked for an official receipt, which took 5 hours. India Shining?

Kenneth Duke

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CALENDAR OF TRAVEL EVENTS 2014 JANUARY

FEBRUARY

NATIONAL

26-Mar 1 Kochi

3-5........... Bengaluru.............

10-12 Chennai 13 Chandigarh 14 Delhi

INTERNATIONAL

Travel & Tourism Fair Travel & Tourism Fair Queensland Tourism’s B2B workshop Queensland Tourism’s B2B workshop 15............ Chennai.................. Queensland Tourism’s B2B workshop 16 Kolkata Queensland Tourism’s B2B workshop 16-18 Mumbai India International Travel & Tourism Exhibition 17 Mumbai Queensland Tourism’s B2B workshop 17-19 Kochi India International Travel Mart Cochin 17-19....... Kochi..................... India International Travel Mart 20 Kolkata South African Tourism’s B2B Roadshow 21 Delhi South African Tourism’s B2B Roadshow 22 Chennai South African Tourism’s B2B Roadshow 23 Mumbai South African Tourism’s B2B Roadshow 24-26....... Kolkata.................. India International Travel Mart 24-26 Nagpur India International Travel Exhibition 27 Delhi Grayline Latin America Roadshow 28 Ahmedabad Grayline Latin America Roadshow 28 Mumbai Visit Britain’s Trade Mission 29-31....... Delhi ...................... SATTE New Delhi 29 Bengaluru Grayline Latin America Roadshow 30-31 Mumbai Grayline Latin America Roadshow

INTERNATIONAL 22-26

Madrid, Spain

FITUR*

31- Feb 2 Istanbul, Turkey

EMITT*

FEBRUARY NATIONAL 3.............. Delhi...................... Fiji Tourism’s Roadshow 3-4 Mumbai SATTE Mumbai West 4 Mumbai Austrian National Tourist Office’s Roadshow 5 Chennai Austrian National Tourist Office’s Roadshow 5.............. Mumbai................. Fiji Tourism’s Roadshow 6 Delhi Austrian National Tourist Office’s Roadshow 7 Bengaluru Fiji Tourism’s Roadshow 7-9........... Mumbai ................ Outbound Travel Mart 10 Bengaluru Tourism Authority of Thailand’s Roadshow 11 Chennai German National Tourist Office’s B2B Event 11 Kolkata Philippines Tourism B2B Workshop 12 Chennai Tourism Authority of Thailand’s Roadshow 13............ Kolkata................... German National Tourist Office’s B2B Event 13-15 Delhi Outbound Travel Mart 14 Mumbai German National Tourist Office’s B2B Event 14 Ahmedabad Tourism Authority of Thailand’s Roadshow 17............ Delhi...................... Tourism Malaysia’s Sales Mission 18 Chennai Tourism Portugal’s Roadshow 19 Bengaluru Tourism Portugal’s Roadshow 19 Mumbai Tourism Malaysia’s Sales Mission 20 Mumbai Tourism Portugal’s Roadshow 21........... Ahmedabad........... Canadian Tourism Commission’s Workshop

NATIONAL 4-6 11-13 18-20 25-27

Melbourne, Australia

Asia Pacific Meetings and Incentive Expo (AIME)

25-26

Johannesburg, South Africa

South Africa Tourism’ Meetings Africa

MARCH NATIONAL Raipur

14-16 21-23 27-29

Chennai Guwahati Ahmedabad

Indian International Travel Exhibition (IITE) India International Tours & Travels Fair Holiday Expo Gujarat Tourism Mart

INTERNATIONAL 5-9

Berlin, Germany

ITB

17-19

Tokyo, Japan

International Luxury Travel Market

19-22

Moscow, Russia

Moscow International Travel and Tourism Exhibition (MITT)*

24-26

Abu Dhabi, UAE

GIBTM*

26-28

Kiev, Ukraine

UITT*

APRIL INTERNATIONAL 3-5

Azerbaijan International Tourism Fair (AITF)* 5-6.......... Ottawa .................. The Travel and Vacation Show 6-8 Marseille Routes Europe 8-11 Singapore Hotel Asia 9-11 Beijing, China China Outbound Travel Tourism Mart (COTTM)* 10-12....... Siberia..................... SITT (TOURSIB)* 15-20 The Hague International Travel & Tourism Market 23-25 Sao Paulo, Brazil World Travel Market Latin America*

Baku, Azerbaijan

23-25....... Almaty,................... Kazakhstan International Tourism Kazakhstan Fair (KITF)* 28-30 Cape Town, International Luxury Travel Market South Africa Africa (ILTM Africa)

MAY

Kolkata Hyderabad Bengaluru Chennai

Travel & Tourism Fair (TTF) Travel & Tourism Fair (TTF) IITM Bangalore IITM Chennai

AUGUST INTERNATIONAL 29-31

Johannesburg

Gauteng Getaway Show

SEPTEMBER NATIONAL 3-5 5-7 12-14

Chennai, India Gurgaon Mumbai

IBTM India International Travel Mart India International Travel Mart

INTERNATIONAL 11-13

Ho Chi Minh City International Travel Expo Vietnam 16-19...... Moscow, Russia..... Meetings Industry & Business Travel RUSSIA 16-19

Moscow, Russia

International Trade Fair For Luxury Travel

17-19

Beijing, China

China Incentive Business Travel Market (CIBTM)*

22-25...... Mexico.................. International Luxury Market Americas 23

Kiev, Ukraine

Luxury Travel Market

23-26

Moscow

Hospitality Industry

24-26

Astana, Kazakhstan Astana Leisure*

25............ Birmingham........... Group Leisure & Travel Trade Show 25-28

Tokyo, Japan

JATA Tourism Expo Japan

30-Oct 2 Bangkok, Thailand Corporate Travel World Asia-Pacific

OCTOBER NATIONAL 3-5

INTERNATIONAL

Nagpur

Holiday Expo

2-3......... Cape Town...........World Travel Market Africa

INTERNATIONAL

5-8

7-9........... Tashkent................. Tashkent International Tourism Fair

Dubai, UAE

Arabian Travel Market (ATM)*

9-11 Shanghai, China World Travel Fair 10-12..... Durban,............... Indaba Expo South Africa 11-13 Stuttgart, German Travel Mart Germany 18-21..... Auckland............. Trenz New Zealand 27-30 Vancouver, Canadian Tourism Canada Commission’s Rendezvous Canada 29-Jun 1 Seoul, S. Korea Korea World Travel Fair

Guwahati

Travel & Tourism Fair Guwahati

INTERNATIONAL 2-5

Shanghai, China

10-12

Chicago, USA

Hong Kong, SAR China Dhaka, Bangladesh Bangladesh International Tourism Fair Zimbabwe Routes Africa Victoria Falls

Bengaluru

Tourism Malaysia’s Sales Mission

24

Chennai

Canadian Tourism Commission’s Workshop

12-15

24

Kochi

Tourism Malaysia’s Sales Mission

19-21 22-24

For more details, contact: ddpexhibitions@ddppl.com

Kiev, Ukraine

Ukraine Travel Market

14-16

Las Vegas

IMEX America

15-17

Ukraine

Tour Expo

22-23

Paris

MAP Pro Le Monde A Paris

24-26....... Montreal, Quebec...International Tourism & Travel Show 29-31

Singapore

ITB Asia

NOVEMBER 3-6

NATIONAL 27-29

1-3

INTERNATIONAL

JUNE

21

February Contd....

Focus Canada – India

18-19

14-15

JULY

International Luxury Travel Market Asia (ILTMA)* Americas Incentive Business Travel & Meetings Exhibitions (AIBTM)* International Travel Expo

London, United Kingdom

World Travel Market* (WTM)

7-10......... Taipei......................Taipei International Travel Fair 8-9 Sydney Work & Travel Expo Sydney 12-14 Shanghai FHC China-Retail & Hospitality 14-16...... Bremen ................. Reiselust 25-27 Barcelona, Spain EIBTM

DECEMBER NATIONAL 1-2 3-5

Delhi Mumbai

Atout France’s B2B Mission Atout France’s B2B Mission

The dates shown on the annual event calendar are subject to change.

Please refer to Event Talk in TravTalk to track the changes in dates

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FAMILY ALBUM

Annual Charity Polo Match

The Jaipur Polo Ground played host to the annual Charity Polo Match organised by Cdr. C P Sharma, President of Neptune Foundation, an NGO committed to the cause of the girl child and the aged. The Chief Guest was Admiral DK Joshi, Chief of Naval Staff and the Guest of Honour was Chalit Manityakul, Ambassador of Thailand, accompanied by his wife. The event was also attended by senior defence personnel, bureaucrats, socialites and people from the travel fraternity. Neptune Cup was played between Team Austria and Amazing Thailand.

Celebrating partnership with trade Three hotels from the IHG portfolio – Crowne Plaza Kathmandu-Soaltee, Holiday Inn Cochin, Kochi and Crowne Plaza Kochi organised a get-together for its travel trade friends in Delhi.

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CLIPBOARD

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MOVEMENTS

TRAVTALK JANUARY 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014

PATA

GoAir

The Taj West End, Bangalore

Bangkok

Mumbai

Bengaluru

Mario Hardy has been appointed as the Chief Operating Officer

Girish Nair has been appointed as the Chief Commercial Officer

effective January 15, 2014. Based at PATA HQ in Bangkok, he will support CEO Martin Craigs. Hardy has been Chairman of the PATA Foundation since June 2012 and has been at the forefront of the Foundation’s response to tropical storm Haiyan in the Philippines since November 8. An investor, entrepreneur and senior executive with more than 28 years of combined leadership, corporate development and change management experience, Hardy was Vice President – Asia Pacific of UBM Aviation (OAG) between 1999 and 2013, with postings in Singapore, Beijing and London.

of GoAir. Nair brings experience of 18 years in diverse sectors like media, information technology and aviation. He has been working in the aviation sector from the past 13 years with focus on brand management, marketing strategy & business development. His last assignment was as the Assistant Vice President, Head of Marketing and Aviation Contracts with Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL), where his primary focus was business development and formulating marketing strategy for the airport.

Somnath Mukherjee has recently joined The Taj West End as General Manager. He has been with The Taj Group of Hotels since 1992 and brings with him the expertise and experience in hospitality industry spanning 20 years. Mukherjee’s portfolio includes tenure at Taj Bengal – Kolkata, Umaid Bhavan Palace, Nadesar Palace, The Gateway Hotel Ganges Varanasi and Rambagh Palace. An established professional, Mukherjee grew up in Kolkata and is an alumnus of IHM, Jamshedpur and TMTC, Pune. He is also a part of the emerging leaders at The Tata’s.

Novotel Goa Shrem Resort Goa

Roombookpro.com New Delhi

Rakshit Talwar has been appointed as the Director of Sales and Marketing, Novotel Goa Shrem Resort. He comes with about 11 years of experience in the hospitality industry. Prior to joining Accor India, Rakshit was the Director of Sales at Marriott Resort and Spa in Goa till May 2013.

Rakshit’s understanding of the Goa market is critical to his role as the Director of Sales and Marketing at Novotel Goa Shrem Resort.

Ram Gopal Singh has been appointed as the General Manager - Sales (North India) of Roombookpro.com (online B2B hotel booking engine). He has been a part of the airline/travel industry for over 30 years. In his new role, Singh will be leading the Sales & Operation Teams and will be responsible for Sales & Services of key accounts and develop new business for Roombookpro.com in North India.

Novotel Hyderabad Airport

Shangri-La's - Eros Hotel

The Suryaa

Hyderabad

New Delhi

New Delhi

Javed Parvez has been appointed as the Director of Sales at

Alok Chakravarty has been appointed as the Director of Sales

Novotel Hyderabad Airport with effect from January 1, 2014. He has also been entrusted with the additional responsibility of Marketing Department of the hotel. He has over 13 years experience in sales and marketing.

Prior to this, Parvez was the Associate Director of Sales at the Ista Hotel Hyderabad (Pre-Opening), and the sales & marketing manager at the The Park Hotels’ Regional Sales Office, Hyderabad.

and Marketing at Shangri-La’s - Eros Hotel, New Delhi. With over two decades of rich experience in the hospitality industry, he brings with him knowledge and skills in diverse areas of both corporate and leisure business. In his current role, Chakravarty will conceptualise and implement sales strategies to support the group’s business and financial objectives.

Kuntal Malviya has joined The Suryaa, New Delhi as the Quality Assurance Manager. Malviya comes with a noteworthy experience of 7 years in hospitality brands like Le Meridien and Sheraton. She is also handing PR & Marketing of the hotel. Her prime focus has been on implementation of Best Practices, monitoring and reviewing audit reports and quality analysis of property. She is creating a strategic marketing communications plan to ensure the brand to be promoted as Delhi’s favorite hotel.

Manish Dayya has joined as the General Manager of the newlylaunched Novotel Goa Shrem Resort. Manish comes with 16 years of experience in hospitality industry. Prior to joining Accor in February 2013, Manish was the General Manager at the Raintree Hotel, Chennai. He also spearheaded the opening of The Raintree in Anna Salai with 230 rooms. He was also the Hotel Manager at the Lemon Tree Hotel, Chennai.

Talking People is a special dedicated corner, created as a sounding board for who’s who of the Indian and International travel industry. With Talking People, it is our endeavour to bring you face-to-face with people.Contributed by: Megha Paul, Vivek Sethi & Peden Doma Bhutia

Gopal Rao, Regional VP, Sales & Marketing, South West Asia, IHG, says the New Year is always a time to rest, reflect and retrospect. “That’s exactly what I plan to do, and am looking forward to spending a few quality days with family at home in Toronto. Given how much we travel, sitting in airplanes or sleeping in hotel rooms (no complaints here as it allows me to spend time with our hotel colleagues) its refreshing to stay grounded for a few days! Reading is what I enjoy. Mainly nonfiction, and life-inspirational work…Deepak Chopra, Robin Sharma among my favourites. And after that would have to be exploring all the culinary delights of the Big Smoke (as Toronto is fondly referred to!)”

Aman Aditya Sachdev, Senior Vice President- India, Rotana, Sachdev is a fitness enthusiast. “In my free time, I like to work out a lot.” Biking is passion and he loves to go for a ride whenever possible. Kerala and Goa are his favourite holiday destinations in the country. “I love Goa for the complete chilled out and carefree experience it offers. Kerala with its pristine undulated backwaters also features in my top list,” he chuckles.

Stefan Ionkov, Head of Commercial & Economic Dept, Embassy of the Republic of Bulgaria says he loves to read, watch movies, spend as much as time as possible with his family and friends and travel to new destinations worldwide. “Recently, I became the father of a lovely daughter - Teddy - and nowadays my entire free time is devoted to her.

Otherwise, when I'm in India, I usually like to go out to meet friends and meet new people, go to the shopping malls and restaurants in Delhi and try to practice sport a little in between.” When in Bulgaria, he says he likes to travel a lot as the distances are not too long and there are fascinating things to do.

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Postal Reg. No.: DL(ND)-11/6044/2012-13-14; WPP No.: U(C)-178/2012-14 for posting on 1st-2nd and 15th-16th of the same month at New Delhi P.S.O., RNI No.: 53492/91 Date of Publication:30-12-2013

HIGHLIGHT

Malindo Air in India market Malindo Air recently announced the launch of its first scheduled commercial Delhi-Kuala Lumpur flight from Dec 30, 2013. talks to Chandran Rama Muthy, CEO, Malindo Air to know more about the airline’s plans.

R A M YA JS D ’R O Z A R I O n December 18, Muthy announced the launch of the new flights. “We are providing more options for travellers from India to go to Malaysia and Indonesia, on Malindo Air, with connectivity to destinations like Bali, Penang, Langkawi, Bangkok and Jakarta. And we will also help bring more passengers to India. It is a win-win situation,” said Muthy.

O

The airline started its operations on March 22, 2013, and is a hybrid airline based at Kuala Lumpur International Airport. “As a new airline in the aviation market with nine months of operation record, we have clocked over 70 per cent load factor and 87 per cent On Time Performance (OTP), and have carried over 800,000 passengers. In India, we are aiming at the tourist

market segment, corporate businesses and are attracting families and students,” he added. The airline is a joint venture between National Aerospace and Defence Industries (NADI) of Malaysia

Chandran Rama Muthy CEO, Malindo Air which owns 51 per cent share while the remaining

TopTalk:

I’m very excited about the arrival of Malindo Air in India, we don't have enough airlines for this sector. This will give tourists more opportunity to travel.

As of now, I was told that for their first week of operation, the Malindo Air seats are already fully booked. This shows how important the Indian sector is for us. The Indian sector is very very important and we are also linked very strongly as the 2 countries are connected historically as well as socially.

Malaysia is a known top-spot destination and we hope that the coming of Malindo Air will give us extra seats and hopefully this will boost the number of Indian travellers visiting Malaysia.

We want to attract more people to come to Malaysia and with this in mind, we are looking to create new products specifically to cater to the Indian market. These products will be beyond the usual, things that are not very common and are more niche. For this, we need more airlines to come in to assist people to come to Datuk Naimun Ashakli Mohammad Malaysia High Commissioner, Malaysia

(Inputs from Peden Duma Bhutia)

49 per cent stake is of Lion Air of Indonesia.

encouraging passenger growth from this region.

Regarding travel agents, Muthy revealed, “We have got a good support from travel agents. We also give commissions to all travel agents that sell Malindo Air tickets.

We are starting at 3 per cent commission

With increasing competition gearing up in the Indian aviation market, Muthy said that a good product will beat other offers. “We have brand new aircraft, a range of in-flight entertainment, bigger leg room, excess luggage allowance in business class

We have got good support from travel agents. We also give commissions to all travel agents that sell Malindo Air tickets. We are starting at 3 per cent commission and also provide incentives worth 2-3%; thus, totalling near 6% and are also providing incentives worth 2-3 per cent; thus, totalling near 6 per cent.”

With this year being the ‘Visit Malaysia Year 2014’, both the Airline and the Malay government are expecting to attract more number of Indian arrivals. “We are expecting at least 200,000 – 250,000 Indian passengers to travel to Malaysia next year, using Malindo Air, to support Visit Malaysia Year 2014.”

This inaugural flight will be followed by flights from Trichy to Kuala Lumpur, commencing January 2, 2014; the Ahmedabad-Kuala Lumpur flights will start from January 27, followed by Mumbai-Kuala Lumpur flights from February 15, 2014. Since a large number of Malaysia’s Indian population is from Trichy and surrounding region, the Airline hopes to witness an

worth 20 kg, and you arrive into an international terminal.

I believe the Indian market will love this product,” Muthy stated firmly.

The Airline is offering special introductory rates, and return fares will start from ` 19,900 all-inclusive from Delhi and Mumbai to Kuala Lumpur, and ` 10,000 allinclusive from Trichy to Kuala Lumpur.

New Flights N

The inaugural flight will be followed by flights from Trichy to Kuala Lumpur, commencing January 2, 2014

N

The Ahmedabad-Kuala Lumpur flights will start from January 27, followed by MumbaiKuala Lumpur flights from February 15, 2014