Asian Traveller August 2009 by Asian Traveller

CONTENTS Vol. 2 | No. 11 | AUGUST 2009

Woman of the Month

Indian Tourism Sector Registers Positive Growth in July 2009

There has been an improvement in the growth rate of foreign tourist arrivals (FTA) in July 2009 (0.6 per cent) as compared to June 2009 (0.2 per cent) FTAs during July 2009 were 4.32 lakh as compared to FTAs of 4.29 lakh during the same month last year.

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States Told to Implement of Mega Tourism Projects on Time

Union Secretary of Tourism Sujit Banerjee has urged the States and Union Territories for speedy implementation and monitoring of the projects sanctioned by the Ministry of Tourism.

10 Questions

India, Hong Kong, Korea Shine at PATA Awards

The Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) has announced the winners of the 2009 PATA Gold Awards. For 2009 there are 23 PATA Gold Awards to be presented.

Beaches of Tamil Nadu Page

First Person

CAPT. NAIR GETS CNBC LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

INDIA TO PROMOTE MICE AND HELI TOURISM

KERALA TOURISM WINS PATA GOLD, CNBC TRAVEL AWARDS

AS I TRAVEL

Home Ground

V Duraikkannan

WHERE ALL THE FLOWERS HAVE GONE

Md. Sabir Nishat Cover Photo : Florian Mayer

AUGUST 2009 ASIAN TRAVELLER

Publication

Managing Editor Group Editor Vice President & CEO Executive Editor Consultant Editor Photo Editor Art Editor Editorial Team

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Director (Marketing) Director (Finance) Legal Advisor Financial Advisor G.M-North Sr.Mgr. Tamilnadu AUSTRALIA

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BULGARIA

KSA

LONDON

UAE

KUWAIT

NEW DELHI

MUMBAI

BANGALORE

CHENNAI

HYDERABAD

DEHRADUN

MADURAI

ERNAKULAM

KOLKATA

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM

Administration

G. Biju Krishnan G. Gopakumar* M. P. Sreekumar Lerbin T. K. Dr. Madhav Manoj Retheesh Kariyam Amal Prasad R. Parameswaran Smitha R. Vinu V. Nair K. Harikrishnan Adv. G.S. Prakash B. Prasad Wg. Cdr. V. K. Gangal P. Deenadayalu Bandana K. Prasad 0061-892757447 Vladimir Harizanov 00359-36186565 Sam Mathew 00966-505150513 Abdul Najeeb 0044-7769940391 Sanjeev S. L. 00971 508914709 Mariam Titus 00965 6638670 V. K. Gangal 09871180498 Mahesh Nair 022 32499989 Rohil Kumar A. B. 09844001625 Nisha J. 09841008588 K.S. Johnson 09441236010 P. Mohandas 09719055472 P. Deenadayalu 09843129535 M. P. Sreekumar 09447118694 Anurag Sinha 09830015667 Vinu V. Nair 09745444177 Jaya Rajeshwari Soniya S. Vidhu Krishna Nujum

All communications to: Media Steps India, TC-27/1741, PERA-66, Vanchiyoor PO, Thiruvananthapuram–695 035, Kerala State, South India. Tel: +91-471-6540888, 2574411, 09447 555 222 info@mediastepsindia.com, www.mediastepsindia.com Regd. Office: Media Steps India, TC-27/1915, MBRRA 70, Mathrubhoomi Rd., Thiruvananthapuram–695 001, Kerala State, South India. Mumbai Office: Media Steps India, Unit 9 & 10, Sardar Pratap Singh Industrial Estate No. 2, LBS Marg, Bhandup West, Mumbai-400078, India Tel.: +91 22 32499989 Hyderabad Office: Media Steps India, # B-305 & 309, Vasudha Apartments, Quthbullapur Road, New Jeedimetla, Hyderabad-500 055, Andhra Pradesh, India Tel.: +91 40 23080750, +91 40 23176966, +91 40 23176996, Fax: +91 40 27535260 Chennai Office: Media Steps India, 6/4, Sangeetha Gardens, 19th Street Ext, Jai Nagar, Arumbakkam, Chennai - 600 106. Tel: +91 44 42640531 EDITED, PRINTED & PUBLISHED BY G. Biju Krishnan and Printed at M/s. Safire Offset Printers, Sivakasi, Tamil Nadu for Cristal Printers, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala State, South India. Reg No.: KERENG 01910/11/1/2006-TC EDITOR: G. Biju Krishnan The news items and Advertisements published herein have been collected from various source, which are considered to be reliable. Readers are however requested to verify the facts before making business decisions using the same. No part of this magazine may be reproduced without the written permission from the Publisher. All rights reserved. Copyright © 2008

*Responsible for selection of news under the PRB Act

EDITORâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S NOTE

t is an accepted fact that Tourism has a very significant role to play in the revival of the world economy. But it is not getting the attention it deserves in the current scheme of things, feels many. That is why United Nations World Tourism Organisation is working towards raising the profile of the sector as a key strategic element of global resilience and recovery to show how tourism can play a leading role in the development of a sustainable global economy. Climate change and the global recession are the two issues at the top of the international political agenda at the moment and both politicians and businesses are increasingly drawn towards the idea of a global green economy. The Gothenburg Symposium, which will take place in Gothenburg, Sweden in September, will address the issue and the role of Tourism. But it is for the governments of the respected countries to take the initiatives in giving the sector the attention and priority it deserves. Somehow that is not happening. For example when India, where the income from tourism sector plays a significant role in the revenue of the country, announced its budget for the current financial year there were no new plans or projects for the tourism sector. As tourism industry has been going through some bad phases and expected a little more support from the government but was disappointed. But the Indian Tourism has a few things to feel happy too. There has been an improvement in the growth rate of foreign tourist arrivals to the country in last month compared to the previous month. Positive growth, though nominal, has been witnessed for the second time this year. Another happy news comes from UNWTO. According to the predictions of the UNWTO India will supply about 50 Million Outbound Tourists by 2020. As per the statistics India is one of the fastest-growing outbound travel markets in the world. But to sustain these trends and take advantage of the situation the government has to take some immediate steps. Let us hope the authorities are listening.

G. Biju Krishnan Editor & Publisher

Below Edit

Verbatim

Sports to the Rescue of Tourism espite poor figures from the United Nations World Tourism Organisation this year, the 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2012 London Olympics are being heralded as beacons for the recovery in the travel and tourism sector. The United Nations World Tourism Organization Secretary-General Taleb Rifai has insisted these sporting events

can act as catalysts to revive the ailing global travel and tourism industry. With the UNWTO reporting an eight per cent drop in global tourism in the year up to April, Rifai said in London: "We are facing a very serious drop in demand. Going back to the good old days is

probably unrealistic. Governments have to understand we require policies and actions that do not hinder travel." Major sports events therefore are, as Rifai asserted, essential in underpinning any future global tourism recovery. Sion Rapson, Global Business Director of World Sport Destination Expo, which will be held in Johannesburg in July 2010, explained: "The sports tourism industry is a USD 600 billion-ayear market and it has become obvious to all involved that there is a need for people within that industry to be able to meet in a business-centric environment to discuss the best way forward". World Sport Destination Expo will for the very first time showcase the interlinked importance of sport, sporting events and travel and tourism, at the heart of one of the biggest and most important events that the world will ever stage.

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I think the tourism industry may come back before other industries. There will be pent-up demand. There is no doubt

about it. It is a resilient industry. You only need to look at the past to see how quickly tourism will bounce back.

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Rob Franklin European Travel Commission Brussels

ASIAN TRAVELLER AUGUST 2009

OVERVIEW

Indian Tourism Sector Registers Positive Growth in July 2009 here has been an improve ment in the growth rate of foreign tourist arrivals (FTA) to India in July 2009 (0.6 per cent) as compared to June 2009 (0.2 per cent) FTAs during July 2009 were 4.32 lakh as compared to FTAs of 4.29 lakh during the same month last year and 4.0 lakh in July 2007. The improvement in the growth rate of FTAs in July 2009 has been 0.6 per cent as compared to June 2009 which was 0.2 per cent. Positive growth in the monthly FTAs, though nominal, has been witnessed for the second time

during the year 2009, the Tourism Ministry said. FTAs during JanuaryJuly 2009 stood at 28.99 lakh as compared to 31.49 lakh in January-July 2008. Foreign exchange earnings (FEE) from tourism during July 2009 were Rs.49.83bn compared to Rs 38.7bn in July 2008. An improvement was observed in the growth rate of FEE (in Rupee terms) in July 2009 (28.8 per cent) compared to June 2009 (11.5 per cent), May 2009 (8.7 per cent) and

April 2009 (7.6 per cent). FEE during January-July 2009 were Rs 296.76 bn compared to Rs 296.95 bn in January-July 2008. FEE in USD terms during the month of July 2009 were USD 1028mn as compared to USD 904mnin July 2008. FEE during January-July 2009 were USD 6035mn as compared to USD 7289mn during January-July 2008.

Union Tourism Ministry Asks States for Timely Implementation of Mega Tourism Projects nion Secretary of Tourism Sujit Banerjee has urged the States and Union Territories for speedy implementation and monitoring of the projects sanctioned by the Ministry of Tourism. He was talking at a conference of tourism secretaries from state and Union Sujit Banerjee Territories. Secretary He said India Tourism several mega projects have been sanctioned during the last two years. This is our flagship programme for holistic development of destinations and circuits. We therefore, need to monitor the progress of these projects on a regular basis to ensure their timely implementation,

AUGUST 2009 ASIAN TRAVELLER

Banerjee added. The objective of the Conference was to interact with the States and Union Territories and share the experiences on innovative projects, initiatives and best practices adopted by the States for development and promotion of tourism. Experience of innovative projects and new initiatives were shared by some of the States. The upgradation of dhabas, restaurants, and introduction of a unique mobile guide facility in Madhya Pradesh, introduction of Hop on - Hop off tour and tourism friendly auto rickshaws with trained drivers in Chennai, Farm House tourism with village culture and cuisine as its main components in Punjab and constitution of Amer Development Authority for development and conservation

of Amer in Jaipur were the key features of the presentations made during the conference. Thereafter, there were discussions among the States on these new initiatives. To meet the demand of skilled manpower in the tourism industry, discussions on broad basing of hospitality education, training and skill development and certification were held. The initiatives taken by the Ministry on broad basing of hospitality education, 6-8 weeks skill training programmes for youth who have passed standard-8 for those employed in the sector and skill certification programme were highlighted. The States/UTs were urged to make use of such initiatives and central financial assistance for creating quality hospitality training infrastructure as per the needs of the sector.

India Will Account for 50 Million Outbound Tourists by 2020: UNWTO ccording to the predic tions of the UNWTO India will supply about 50 Million Outbound Tourists by 2020. About 20 per cent of these departures will account for Europe. As per the statistics India is one of the fastestgrowing outbound travel markets in the world with a record growth of 3.7 million in 1997 to 9.8 million in 2007 and international tourism expenditures have increased from USD 1.3 billion in 1997 to USD 8.2 billion in 2008. In the research conducted by the European Travel Commission and the UNWTO on the Indian Outbound market; The Indian outbound travel market with special insight into the image of europe as a destination, covers issues such as travellers' behaviour and patterns - destination choice, purpose of travel, spending, holiday activities, market segmentation, like air transport, the profile and structure of the travel trade, as well as the media or internet use trends. The report also sets out comprehensive recommendations on how to best promote a destination in the Indian market. The pace of growth has accelerated since 2004 at an average annual growth rate of over 16%. International tourism expenditure by Indians has grown from USD 1.3 billion in 1997 to USD 8.2 billion in 2007. The UNWTO predicts that India will account for 50 million outbound tourists by 2020; the 'Kuoni Travel Report India 2007' predicts that total outbound spending will cross the USD 28 billion mark in 2020. According to Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA), 40 per cent of all outbound trips by Indians are for business purposes, while leisure, visiting friends and relatives (VFR) and other reasons each account for 20 per cent of outbound trips from India.

PATA

India, Hong Kong, Korea Shine at PATA Awards he Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) has announced the winners of the 2009 PATA Gold Awards. For 2009 there are 23 PATA Gold Awards to be presented, with multiple awards going to Hong Kong Tourism Board, Korea Tourism Organization and Ministry of Tourism, Government of India. PATA Grand Awards have been awarded in Marketing, Education and Training, Environment and Heritage. This year the Grand Awards go to Visa Worldwide Pte. Limited (Marketing); Bintan Resorts (Education and Training), Spice Village Thekkady, India (Environment) and Temple Tree, Malaysia (Heritage). The winners of PATA Gold Awards 2009 in different categories are Marketing - Primary Government Destination: 2008 Korea, Sparkling Campaign, Korea Tourism Organization Marketing - Secondary Government Destination: DreamSeason in God's Own City, Kerala Marketing - Allied Partner:

VisitBritain & British Airways Partnership Project, British Tourist Authority Marketing - Carrier: Cathay Pacific New Cabin Designs Marketing Campaign, Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd., Hong Kong SAR Marketing - Hospitality: The Taj Mahal Palace & Tower, Mumbai after Attack and Re-launch Campaign, Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces Marketing - Industry: Perfect Moments, Kuoni Travel (India) Pvt. Ltd., India Ecotourism Project: Xizha Ecotourism Community Project Same Ancient Town, Different Wuzhen, China Wuzhen Tourism Development Co., Ltd., China (PRC) Corporate Environmental Programme: Together we can make it, The Jetwing Eternal Earth Project, Jetwing, Sri Lanka Environmental Education Programme: Environmental

Education at Frangipani Langkawi Resort & Spa, Frangipani Langkawi Resort & Spa, Malaysia Heritage: Mamallapuram, Tamil Nadu Tourism Development Corporation, India Education and Training: Singapore Specialist Program, Singapore Tourism Board Marketing Media - Consumer Travel Brochure: Enhancement of the Complete Suite of HKTB, Hong Kong Tourism Board Marketing Media - Travel Advertisement Broadcast Media: Incredible India, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India Marketing Media - Travel Advertisement Print Media: Malaysia Truly Asia -- Truly More with every Visit. It must be Malaysia, TBWA-ISC Malaysia Marketing Media - Travel Poster: Incredible India, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India Marketing Media - Promotional Travel Video: Meetings & Exhibitions Hong Kong (MEHK), Hong Kong Tourism Board Marketing Media - Public Relations Campaign: Enviro.aero -

An Industry United, Air Transport Action Group (ATAG), Switzerland Marketing Media - Web site: Responsible Tourism Guide to the Mekong www.ExploreMekong.org / USAID, ACE Project, Mekong Tourism and OPEN Advertising Marketing Media - E-Newsletter: Creatively Yours, Creative Travel Pvt. Ltd, India Travel Journalism Destination Article: Taipei 2.0 by Jennifer Chen, Travel + Leisure Southeast Asia, September 2008 Travel Journalism - Industry Business Article: DMCs defined: The real knights of creativity, TTGmice, September 2008, TTG Asia Media Pte Ltd, Singapore Travel Journalism - Travel Photograph: Path to the Past, Lester V. Ledesma, Ink Publishing, Singapore Travel Journalism - Travel Guidebook: Korea, Sparkling 365365 Reasons to Visit Korea, Korea Tourism Organization The awards will be given away on September 25th during PATA Travel Mart 2009 in Hangzhou, China (PRC).

PATA Grand Awards 2009 Education & Training Education and Employment Assistance Programme / Bintan Resorts, Singapore With the aim of elevating the standard of education of the local students, the scheme provides scholarships and bursaries to students from the seven selected

dry/wet waste management, efficient microbial composting, food waste composting and use of nonrenewable resources and solar panels. Local community participation is the major focus in the programme. Heritage & Culture Temple Tree - A Resort of Many Cultures / BON TON Snd Bhd., Malaysia Antique buildings of Chinese, Malay, Indian, Eurasian and Arab origin make villages. This is an avenue for up this 14 suite hotel. These in Kerala, India with its great promising youths to continue and/ biological and ethnographic predominantly timber villas range or pursue higher education, to from 70 - 110 years old and were cultural diversity, Spice Village attain better employments opportu- creates an identity that blends in sourced from all over the Malaysian nities and to focus upon the peninsular. They were first dismanwith the ambience of the region, importance of an individual's while being distinctive. The environ- tled and then re-erected piece by contribution to the travel industry. piece on site in Langkawi. Many mentally-friendly practices include As of 2008 more than 4,600 local students from various levels of institutions have benefited directly from the scheme. Environment Spice Village and the Community / Spice Village, Thekkady , India Set in the Periyar forest region,

were derelict when found, but have now been preserved for future generations. These preserved houses are now used as a hotel to promote a truly Malaysian holiday experience. Marketing Visa Travel Happy / Visa Worldwide Visa's new travel-focused advertising campaign in Asia Pacific aimed at capturing a very common love for travel celebrating the multi-cultural, multi-faceted face of travel with the singular card that makes it possible. Launched in Asia Pacific, the commercial recreates the dance made famous by internet celebrity Matt Harding in his self-made quirky video travel diaries.

ASIAN TRAVELLER AUGUST 2009

PERSONALITY

Prameela Devi made her entry into tourism industry with the launch of Hibiscus Court, which provides hospitality service to the travellers. With in a short time she has been able to establish her brand and now look forward to expanding her business to all prominent location in God's Own Country.

PRAMEELA DEVI P.N. CEO THE HIBISCUS COURT THIRUVANANTHAPURAM KERALA, INDIA

How did you become interested in hospitality business? Being an army man's wife I had the opportunity to travel around, meeting beautiful people in different cultures. The hospitality they provided

for us was an extension of selfless emotions. Since I am a very social person, this influenced me a lot. In the mean time I was searching for a platform where I could work comfortably. This guided me into the hospitality business. What is your current role in the company? When I got the right platform, the urge for being independent put me into the homestay business. I have a beautiful home which has a traditional ambience and it was easy for me to start this business. Now, as the proprietor of the Homestay

start more home stays. Ten Years down the road, I would like to see myself successfully representing all the women who needs to be independent and hardworking. By then 'Hibiscus Court' will be one of the best choices among tourist destinations located in the heart of God's own Country. Who or what has been the greatest influence in your professional life? Just one word - My Father What is the secret of your success? I followed my heart! What is the proudest moment in your job? After starting this business, I started living my dreams and all those moments are well counted in the 'proud-moments-list'. Tell us about your family? called "Hibiscus Court", I can I am a mother of three count four successful years to children. I have two daughters my credit. and a son. My husband (an exAs a hospitality industry Army man), now work for professional what is your Vodafone as General Manager ambition? Where would (Kerala) and I have great you like to see yourself ten friends that are also part of the years from now? family. My property "The Hibiscus What are your hobbies? Court" started in 2005, made My hobbies include cooking, me an independent woman gardening, travelling etc. and I am looking forward to www.thehibiscuscourt.com

MoT Sanctions Rs 8742.70 lakh for Rural Tourism he Ministry of Tourism (MoT) has sanctioned Rs 8742.70 lakh so far for 142 projects for development and promotion of Rural Tourism in the country. Kumari Selja, Union Minister for Tourism told the Upper House of Parliament in a written reply recently. Selja added that development and promotion of tourism including Rural Tourism is primarily the responsibility of State Governments and Union Territory Administrations concerned. MoT provides central financial assistance to then for infrastructure development in rural sites having core-competency in art, craft, culture, handlooms, /textiles etc. Community participation and capacity building including skill up gradation in such rural sites are supported through Government of India-United Nations Development Programme Endogenous Tourism Project and Capacity Building for Service Providers Scheme of the Ministry.

AUGUST 2009 ASIAN TRAVELLER

Q & A

PETER PAUL EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR THOMAS HOTELS & RESORTS INDIA

AUGUST 2009 ASIAN TRAVELLER

Tell us about your hotel and its USPs? Our resorts are placed in stunningly scenic locations. Our very first beach resort, the Estuary Island is built where a lake and a river meet the Arabian Sea. Similarly our bed and breakfast facility, Tom's Inn, is just a stone's throw from the famous Kovalam beach in Thiruvananthapuram. We are now building a new resort Turtle On The Beach which overlooks the Kovalam beach and is skirted by a veritable forest of coconut palms, thus providing our guests with an exquisite panorama as they look out toward the sea. For those who wish to take a break from the beach and search for the delights of the city, we have a hotel, Magic Days, located in the heart of Thiruvananthapuram city. How do you position your hotels in the market? Thomas Hotels & Resorts is a group that is founded to provide great holiday experiences to travellers to Kerala - famously known to the world as God's Own Country. Unlike other business houses in the industry, Thomas Hotels & Resorts is unique in itself as it provides unique experiences to almost all sections of the travellers as it owns a wide range of Hotels & Resorts. The group hotels range from leisure resorts to business city hotels and to even bed and breakfast facilities. It is probably the only one to have a resort facing an estuary in Kerala. Among its hotels and resorts it gives an opportunity for the visitor to enjoy almost all the facilities that you can never think of. Be it Ayurveda, Yoga, conferencing, banqueting, beach side facilities. Attention to details is one thing that is helping the group to be fast emerging as a major force to reckon with. How important is a Resort in developing a destination? Resort is the most important aspect of a destination; it gives character to a destination which otherwise is just nothing more than a place. The location of a resort must be well chosen considering many aspects such as scenic appeal, approachability, sufficient space, availability of goods and services, etc. It is important to design the resort with meticulous care so as to provide the guests with every possible facility and service so that they do not feel compelled to venture out of the resort for things which they cannot get within. While guests must be given maximum option to choose from a variety of activities and services provided, every resort must also specialize in a particular aspect. How did you come to join the hospitality industry? Elanji is the name of an enchanting village, some fifty kilo metres from Ernakulam as one travels to Palai. I was born and grew up there. After my graduation, I went to Delhi and studied management after which I was selected as a Management Trainee by the Narulas Fast Food

chain in 1983. This was where I began my career in hospitality. Tell us about your experience so far? Leisure is the sine qua non for invention and discovery. Ideas are born when people have leisure to dream their dreams. And great things happen as a result. Even though all this sounds almost romantic, I have had to go through rough patches as well. In the West it is quite usual for people to change jobs. Some executives who can afford it keep skipping into new jobs every now and then. In India most executives try to stick on to their chairs somehow, even if it means enduring insult and frustration. This has not been the case with me. I have done some skipping, and it has been very rewarding in many respects. Above all it made me face new challenges in every new place, and the wide experience I have had in the last 25 years is my greatest asset. What plans - immediate and long term - do you have? Thomas Hotels and Resorts is a comparatively new venture which was launched in 2004. We are now crafting an Ayurveda resort, Sukhshanthi, also at Poovar, to provide our guests with the ultimate in Ayurvedic therapy. To cater to guests who love exclusivity, we are now coming up under the brand, Leisure Villas in two destinations, Poovar and at Kovalam. We do have plans to expand our network and grow into a major chain of resorts in the near future. Where would you like to see yourself, say, 10 years from now? We live in a fast changing world. While it is important to have a futuristic vision, experience teaches us that we need to be ready for surprises that God brings into our lives. His plans are far beyond our imagination, and these are always better than what we can ever dream of. However, looking into the future I hope to see our venture developing beyond to further shores, and I shall be glad to have contributed to its growth. Now tell us about your family. I lost my father six months back. He was 83. An ex-Service man, and a school teacher, he was an inspiration to us. My mother continues to live at Elanji as she loves her independence and the village atmosphere. My wife is not employed, but she has a major share in my every success. I have three wonderful children who are trying to be good students as well. Tell us about your hobbies and other interests? To be honest, I do not have much time for hobbies now. Yet I indulge in some of my old hobbies sometimes: music especially gazals, reading, sightseeing and travelling. Which is your favourite destination? Kerala, undoubtedly. I have travelled to most parts of India and to over 20 countries abroad. And there is no destination like Estuary Island, because it is crafted by God Himself.

For a full version of the interview visit www.mediastepsindia.com/at

COLUMN

t would be quite interesting for a typical office-goer or a salaried employee to stop for a minute and take stock of the kinds of leave he gets in a year of 365 days: - Weekly Offs - 52 or 104 (either Sunday or Saturday & Sunday/ we can take an average of 78 days taking the half-days of Saturday as a rule), Casual Leave 10, Sick Leave - 10, Earned or Privilege Leave - 30, Public Holidays - 15. We are not taking into account the other on-and-off kind of civic unrests and the acts of God like a tsunami and the holidays thereof under the Negotiable Instrument Act plus the Maternity and the Paternity Leaves. Beyond this, we have the phenomenon of coming one hour late or leaving one hour early for the day (nobody for any reason does reverse that order - coming early and going late!). At any rate, easily it is about 150- 180 days or so that he is officially on leave (or eligible for leave) for a year of 365 days. That is half of your career time! In spite of that, whatever period one is available for work also, whether one is really involved or interested in his or her job is questionable. And people do talk about it being a sickening job or a sickening concern. The fact is the other way round - it is they who are! James Autry, a former Fortune 500 executive, author and speaker rightly said: 'Work can provide the opportunity for spiritual and personal growth as well as financial growth. If it doesn't, we're wasting far too much of our lives on it'. How much are we organically growing in our organizations? If the work we are doing is stressful and unfulfilling, then we have got both the wrong job and the wrong attitude. Most people think that when they get the right job their attitude will take care of itself. This is what John Maxwell calls 'working backward'. People claim that they work better once they get the right positions. But the fact is that people will get the right positions

V DURAIKKANNAN

Roxanne Emmerich

AUGUST 2009 ASIAN TRAVELLER

once they start working better. As the saying goes, our attitude decides our altitude. When you are questioned as to who you are, you always say that you are so and so from X, Y, Z Company. 50 per cent of your identity is the company you belong to. Do we in turn render the dues back to our company or organization that lends us that standing? One cannot be a very great manager and a useless father or spouse at home and vice versa. A great person in the office must be a great person at home too. And a great person at home ought to be a great person in the office as well. His profiles at home and at office mutually complement and enrich. What you are in the office depends on two basic things: One is your ability to execute your job well and in time and the other is your capability to get along with people. Come to think of it, the second one is the pre-eminent requisite. That is why Andrew Carnegie said that he would pay anything for someone who would be able to get along with the people in the organization. How many of us are happy and excited about going to our workplace? Statistics say that most of the cardiac arrests happen between 9 am to 10 am on Mon-

H.L.Mencken

days. You know the reason why? Monday is the beginning of your work-week and 9-10 am is the starting time for your office. How sad! When are we going to coo with joy 'TGIM' just as we say 'TGIF'?! Roxanne Emmerich has amply demonstrated in her book 'Thank God It's Monday!' how companies that know how to have fun make more money.

Vince Lombardi

I am also amused by people who place their wives and parents or children above their work to the point of neglecting their work. Of course, nobody dies in the bed wishing that they had another day to spend in their office, as the saying goes. But then how many spouses or parents would indulge you to sit at home on the dole if you do not have a job? If you ask anybody as to why he or she is going to job, the invariable answer is to survive. You work 10 am to 5 pm (half of the time doing clock-watching) in order to survive. When you work on such a survival mode, what you will end up getting is only a survival salary. You need to work extra in order to add that extra to your ordinary career to make it extra-ordinary. That is why the jovial but wise saying: 'When you work hard for eight hours a day as a Manager, you will get promoted as a General Manager and you can work ten hours now!' Mediocrity is the bane of our life. H.L.Mencken wailed that the world was wallowing in mediocrity.

John Maxwell

Always excel at what you are doing constantly and consistently. Kaizen is the Japanese term for the continuous improvement. One final word of caution from the coaching genius Vince Lombardi: 'If you aren't fired with enthusiasm, you will be fired with enthusiasm!' Very apt words to heed to, especially in these days of benching and pink slips!

NEWSLINE

Capt. Nair Gets CNBC Lifetime Achievement Award apt. C.P.Krishnan Nair, Chairman, The Leela Palaces-Hotels-Resorts has been awarded the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award from CNBC Awaaz Travel Awards towards is contribution

emerging into a major travel and tourism player. Incredible India is the flavor of the times. CNBC has rightfully taken upon the mantle of open world, growing and adapting with the change in the market place. With liberalization of Government policies, the Indian hospitality industry is experiencing a boom and most international brands are constantly eyeing entry opportunities in this market". On a more personal note, Capt Nair said that he was both honoured and delighted to win this recognition of lifetime of personal achievements. CNBC Travel Awards is an annual event hosted by CNBC AWAAZ to honor the best in class travel destinations and other ancillary services of the tourism industry. These Awards recognize and honor best in class; Union Tourism Minister Kumari Selja presents the award destinations, organizations and service to Capt. C.P. Krishnan Nair providers based on an objective study to the travel and tourism industry. The award conducted by India's leading research firm, was presented by Kumari Selja, Minister for Synovate. This study is India's most Tourism at a glittering ceremony held at The exhaustive pan- India study conducted across Grand Ballroom of The Leela Palace 12 cities with over thousands of respondents Kempinski Bangalore on July 30. voting for their choice of travel services and In Capt Nair's words, "India is fast destinations.

IATO Reiterates Export Status for Tourism Demand ATO has reiterated its demand for being granted an export status for tourism. "None of our recommendations has got a place in the budget, but we are still optimistic. We will continue our efforts with the guidance from ministry of tourism (MOT)," said Vijay Thakur, president, IATO. IATO's three-point agenda includes export status to tourism and full service tax relief to tour operators duly approved by the MOT on their foreign exchange earnings and to revive 80 HHD for tourism sector. Thakur heaved a sigh of relief as no new tax has been imposed on tourism industry. According to him, the withdrawal of Fringe Benefit Tax and full exemption on customs duty on imports of water sports and ski equipment will help in boosting the trade.

ASIAN TRAVELLER AUGUST 2009

INDIAN PANORAMA

India to Promote MICE and Heli Tourism Special Packages for Durga Puja est Bengal Tourism Development Corporation Limited (WBTDC) has introduced a special package with accommodation in star hotels for Durga Puja festival this year. The Corporation has also reintroduced pandal tour after a gap of five years and has increased the number of buses and launches for this year's Durga Puja. These buses are used for tours to traditional house pujas and pandal hopping packages.

UP Gets 86 crore for Ecotourism In a written reply in the Rajya Sabha recently, Union Minister for Tourism, Kumari Selja has stated that Ministry of Tourism (MoT) has sanctioned Rs 8610.33 lakh for development of tourism destination and circuits in Uttar Pradesh in the last three years. Further, projects for Rs 312.60 lakh in Dudhwa National Park, Disrict Kheri and Rs 105.00 lakh for Katerniaghat Wild Life Sanctuary, Disrict Bahraich have been sanctioned by MoT in the year 2005-06 for development of Ecotourism.

n order to tap the potential of the tourism Administrations. sector through new and innovative The Ministry is also focusing on creating measures, Kumari Selja, Union Minister of infrastructure that will add to experiential Tourism has launched several tourism like adventure sports, initiatives including promotion of trekking etc. Some of the tourist Meetings, Incentives, Conferences destinations in hilly and remote areas and Exhibitions (MICE) and Heli also suffer from lack of connectivity. Tourism. The Ministry will Accordingly, the Ministry has decided henceforth grant Central Financial to grant Central Financial Assistance Assistance for construction of one upto Rs. 75 lakh to States and Union convention centre in each State/ Territories for construction of Union Territory under the scheme of heliports. The proposals for setting up Kumari Selja, Union Minister of Product qnd Infrastructure of heliports will be part of destination Tourism Development of Destinations and development projects. The heliports Circuits for promotion of MICE. The assistance will thus open up several new destinations for will be provided upto Rs.5.00 crore for each tourism and also provide a unique experience project on the basis of proposals received from of Heli Tourism to both foreign and domestic the State Governments/Union Territory tourists.

Bihar Approves Tourism Policy to Attract Investments ihar Government has approved the much awaited Tourism Policy in a bid to attract investments in the state. The state cabinet chaired by Nitish Kumar, Chief

AUGUST 2009 ASIAN TRAVELLER

Minister, Bihar approved the Tourism Policy under which investors will be entitled to similar benefits which entrepreneurs get for setting up industries in the state

ammu and Kashmir government has recently held a meeting with renowned heli skiing expert, Sylvain Saudan from Switzerland to seek his expertise, in a bid to promote Adventure Tourism. Nawang Rigzin Jora, Tourism Minister, Jammu and Kashmir said, "Heli skiing has great potential. We are seeking help of international experts for in promotion of Adventure Tourism. Jora along with Nasir Aslam Wani, MLA of Amira Kadal held detailed discussion with Saudan on various issues pertaining to promotion of adventure sports at the meeting.

J Nitish Kumar, Chief Minister, Bihar

MP Ropes in Private Players Madhya Pradesh Tourism has decided to invite private individuals, companies and other bodies for building hotels, resorts and entertainment centres in state. For this purpose, the Madhya Pradesh State Tourism Development Coproration (MPSTDC) has made a land bank and has also earmarked some of its own properties for being given on a 90-year lease. Presently, the properties that are being offered through a transparent process include the Laxmipur Palace at Panna, Govindgarh Fort in Rewa, land on Indore-Ujjain Road, land at Pench (tiger reserve) and land at Orchha.

under the Bihar Industrial Policy 2006. Prospective investors in

J&K to Promote Adventure Tourism

the tourism sectors will get rebates in land registration, electricity consumption, Luxury Tax for seven years and other benefits. The cabinet also approved the proposal to constitute a separate tourist police force to be deployed at tourist spots such as Bodh Gaya, Rajgir and Nalanda.

Gujarat to Invest Rs.600 cr in Tourism he Gujarat government has unveiled an ambi tious plan to develop tourism facilities in the state and revamp road infrastructure in its coastal region. The government will invest as much as Rs.600 crore this fiscal to develop "world-class tourism facilities" in many destinations, including Mahatma Gandhi's birthplace Porbandar, Dandi, Narayan Sarovar-Koteshwar and Siddhpur, according to state

tourism department. The government has also decided to develop a highway connecting towns like Junagadh, Somnath, Porbander and Dwarka. The highway will pass through the Arabian sea front, making it attractive for tourists to take longer tours in Gujarat's coastal regions. The government will also develop lesser known beaches at Sarkheshwar in Amreli, Shivrajpur in Jamnagar, Suvali in Surat and Tithal in Valsad.

INDIAN PANORAMA

Kargil to be Promoted as Tourist Place ndian Minister for Tourism, Kumari Selja has told the parliament that Ministry of Tourism has sanctioned infrastructure projects worth Rs 1200 cr for development of tourism in the Kargil region. Development and

promotion of tourism is primarily the responsibility of the State Governments and Union Territory Administrations. However, the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, extends Central Financial Assistance under the scheme of

Product Infrastructure Development for Destinations and Circuits for tourism projects based on the project proposals received from them complete in all respects subject to inter se priority and availability of funds. In a written reply in the Parliament, she said, providing security to the visiting tourists is also the responsibility of the concerned State Government and Union Territory Administration. However, in order to ensure the safety and security of the tourists, Ministry of Tourism has advised all the Governments to deploy tourist police at tourist destinations and also circulated guidelines for formation of tourist security organization(s) comprising ex-servicemen.

Uncork World-Class Wines Along the Niagara Wine Trail n Niagara USA, there's more to experience than just the Falls. In this "all American" destination, history, romance, family attractions and gaming combine to form the ideal vacation, group and meetings destination. Wine in Niagara USA doesn't flow quite as rapidly as the Falls, but the region certainly has no shortage of spirits. From pinot noir to fruity selections to ice wines, Niagara USA's wineries-nestled between the Niagara Escarpment and Lake Ontario-are gaining distinction for their delectable

offerings. Thirteen family-owned wineries comprise the Niagara Wine Trail. Traversing the trail by car, visitors can discover they varying techniques for winemaking, taste the offerings of the vintners and meet the families that run the operations that produce some of Niagara USA's most delicious products. Arrowhead Spring Vineyards Arrowhead, a family-owned and operated boutique winery specializes in dry red wine. Offerings also include Riesling, Chardonnay and Ice wine. The winery's 2005 Vidal

Sikkim Records 35pc Growth ikkim has received around 2.80 lakh tourists in the first five months of 2009, in spite of economic slowdown and limited infrastructure in the hospitality sector. According to figures released by the state tourism department, a staggering 35 per cent growth has been recorded in the arrivals of domestic tourists between January and May this year at 2.73 lakh as against the corresponding tally of

two lakh last year. A large number of people from the Southern and Western states of India visited places like Nathu La this summer. The state has declared the year 2010 as the Year of Tourism and has lined 13 festivals to woo visitors in its drive to develop the tourism industry as its main source of revenue and employment in the long term.

Ice wine was rated 90 by Wine Spectator. Eveningside Vineyards Discover a gravity-driven process for winemaking at Eveningside Vineyards, which specializes in wines produced from gently pressed grapes, giving the wine a semblance of European flair. Freedom Run At this winery, visitors can learn about modern wine production techniques and relax in a scenic tasting room overlooking the Niagara Escarpment. Freedom Run offers vinifera as well as their own hybrid and native grapes from the Niagara Escarpment Region. Honeymoon Trail Winery Located on the historic Honeymoon Trail, known know as Route 104, which leads to the honeymoon capital of the world - Niagara Falls, this winery features wines produced using only New York-

grown ingredients. The gift shop offers an array of gourmet cheeses and fine chocolates. Schulze Vineyards & Winery Located on the Southern shore of Lake Ontario, this estate winery grows a high quality of grapes for award winning still and sparkling wines. Spring Lake at Varallo Vineyards Enjoy the 78-acre Park and lake, with walking trail wine tastings and vineyard tours. The Niagara Wine Trail offers themed wine tours year-round. The Village Wine Tours in Lewiston offers a luxury wine tasting and touring experience. Village Wine Tours (www.villagewinetours.com) provides chauffeured limousine service for five hours, with stops at four wineries, a narrated tour at one winery, lunch at the Vizcarra Vineyard, and a snack and wine basket, for USD64 per person (a minimum of eight people per group is required). The Niagara Tourism and Convention Corporation (NTCC) is Niagara County's official, stateauthorized Tourism Promotion Agency. www.niagarawinetrail.org

ASIAN TRAVELLER AUGUST 2009

HOSPITALITY

Shortfall of Trained Manpower in Tourism Sector Sarovar to Add More Hotels arovar Hotels & Resorts, is all set to add four more hotels at Chandigarh, Ludhiana, Gurgaon and Siliguri to its existing portfolio. Besides, the hotel company is also gradually increasing its international footprints. Sarovar has recently signed management contract for a hotel at Nairobi in Kenya, slated to open its door later this month under Sarovar Premier Brand

Online Market Place for Hotels evelhotel.com, an online market place for hotel development was launched recently. The launch was meant to bring efficiencies to the hospitality industry by eliminating its geographical

barriers. Hoteliers and investors can search for projects or properties and developers can showcase their hotels and resorts in order to find the appropriate business partners. Also, shareholders of hotel companies and real estate groups can reduce the cost of hotel development.

he India Minister for Tourism Kumari Selja has said that there was a shortfall of trained manpower in the tourism sector. In a written reply in the Lok Sabha she said, as per the estimation of the Ministry of Tourism, based on specific study of the year 2003-04, the yearly requirement of trained manpower of the hospitality industry is of about 2 lakh persons. Considering the shortage of skilled manpower in hospitality sector, the

First Holiday Inn to Open in the Maldives he Maldives will see the opening of the first international-class hotel for its capital city, Malé. The 117-room Holiday Inn Malé will open on 1 September 2009. At 15 storeys, Holiday Inn Malé is the city’s newest and tallest hotel in the Maldives and in a 750kilometre radius, commanding an unrivalled view of the harbour and beyond. Just a short, five-minute speedboat ride from the international airport, the hotel will offer world-class meetings and conference facilities, food and beverage outlets, extensive recreation and leading-edge communication facilities. Located on the corner of Ameer Ahmed Magu, Holiday Inn Malé

wosti Plaza, the largest convention hotel in Bhubaneswar, owned and operated by Orissa-based Swosti Group, will now be known as Swosti Premium. The company has also upgraded the facilities and services in the hotel.

AUGUST 2009 ASIAN TRAVELLER

lies near the harbourfront, shops and markets and within a short walking distance to the various historical places of interest like the Old Friday Mosque, Sultan Park and The Presidential Palace. The hotel provides the perfect gateway to holidaymakers heading out to outlying resort islands. “Holiday Inn Malé will offer leisure and corporate guests alike a perfect place to relax in comfort or conduct business with ease,” said Jolyon Bulley, Vice President Operations, South East and South West Asia, IHG Asia Australasia. “As the first IHG (InterContinental

WelcomHeritage Denzong Regency, Gangtok to Open in September elcomHeritage has announce the grand opening of WelcomHeritage Denzong Regency in Gangtok on September 1, 2009. Offering the finest views of the

Swosti Plaza Re-Branded

Government has initiated a programme for skill development for youth in the age group of 18 to 25 years and eighth class pass. The programme will impart training in Food and Beverage Service and Food Production so that the trainees become employable. In addition, the Ministry of Tourism's Scheme of Capacity building for Service Providers enables training of cooks, waiters, drivers and other service providers.

city and the pristine splendour of the undulating hills, specially that of the Kanchenjunga in the background, the hotel is a sprawling century-old wooded heritage property in the fabled land of Sikkim. The hotel

offers 26 rooms inclusive of suites, two restaurants serving a la carte menu and Sikkimese haute cuisine, a pub, a large banquet hall, a three hundred seater conference hall and a health club. Wrapped in mystery laden mists, Gangtok, the capital of Sikkim is one of the popular tourist destinations in India that flaunts a beauty that can only be termed as picture perfect. WelcomHeritage, a joint venture between ITC Ltd and H.H.Jodhpur, today offers over 60 exclusive properties across 19 states.

Hotels Group) hotel in the Maldives, this represents an important milestone for IHG. It presents not only a strategic

opportunity for the group to contribute to the thriving tourism industry in Maldives, but also play a significant role within the Malé community,” he added.

Oberoi Hotels Ranked Amongst 10 Best in the World wo Oberoi hotels have been ranked amongst the ten best in the world. The Oberoi Vanyavilas, Ranthambhore has been ranked 2nd and The Oberoi Udaivilas, Udaipur 8th in the prestigious Travel + Leisure's 2009 World's Best Awards readers' survey. In the same readers' survey, four Oberoi hotels have been ranked amongst the 10 best resorts in Asia. The Oberoi Vanyavilas, Ranthambhore; The Oberoi Udaivilas, Udaipur; The Oberoi Amarvilas, Agra and The Oberoi Rajvilas, Jaipur have been rated 1st, 3rd, 5th and 10th best resorts in Asia respectively.

PERSONALITY

Behind every successful professional there is a family which stands by him or her. With out an understanding spouse and a supportive family it is difficult to succeed in today's highly competitive professional world which demands a lot of your time energy and attention. But this support seldom comes to the limelight. In this section ASIAN TRAVELLER introduces the families behind successful persons who work in the travel and tourism industry.

issy Unnikrishnan Nair, is married to Unnikrishnan Nair, General Manager, Kadavu Resort which is situated on the banks of River Chaliyar in Calicut, Kerala. A graduate in travel and tourism, Lissy met her future husband at a hotel in Thiruvananthapuram, where both of them were working at that time. They got

Lissy Unnikrishnan Nair

Lissy with husband Unnikrishnan Nair and son Bharath Krishnan >

married in 1993 and have been living in Kerala for the last 15 years. Their only son Bharath Krishnan is 15 years old. She is a home maker and loves cooking, gardening, watching T.V, reading novels and listening to music. Old film songs are her favourite. Talking about her husband she says "He is caring, loving and is punctual in all his activities." The one quality she likes most in her husband is his punctuality. But "he is too busy in his work and has very little time for the family". "But he still catches up some time like a off a week for our entertainment" she adds. She uses her experience in tourism and travel industry to help him in his job front too. What you like about life in Kerala? We like the moderate climate and the natural greenery of the state. But we

are not happy about the religious and caste differences which lead to ugly situations. We also do not like the strikes and the condition of roads in Kerala. The unforgettable moment in your life? My most unforgettable moment is the moment we met each other. Just like her husband, who loves hill stations and cold weather ("Any place bountiful in nature and having a cold climate is my place", says Unnikrishnan Nair), Lissy also like to spend vacations in destinations which are on the colder side. Her favourites are Ootacamund, Munnar and Kodaikkanal, which are famous hill stations in South India. Lissy loves cooking and her favourite items are. Beef Coconut fry and Kerala style sadya.

KTDC Launches New Tourist Complex Cherian Phlip, Chairman KTDC presents a memento to M.A. Altaf, Oman Airways who has been promoted as Country Manager, Bangladesh was given a send-off by the tourism fraternity in Thiruvananthapuram

Dilpreet Singh Bindra, Director, Catering Sales, Taj Palace Hotel, New Delhi who went on the â&#x20AC;&#x153;One India One Taj - a Drive for Peaceâ&#x20AC;? with Surinder Singh, GM, Taj Green Cove Kovalam during his stop over at the Kovalam resort

The Kerala Tourism Development Corporation's (KTDC) new tourist complex called 'Pepper Grove' has been formally launched in Manichira, Wayanad by Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, Minister for Tourism, Kerala. The tourist complex, which will be managed by KTDC, has 20 rooms comprising four premium and 16 deluxe rooms with modern facilities. It has an open courtyard where cultural programmes can be performed and a conference centre which can accommodate 50 people.

ASIAN TRAVELLER AUGUST 2009

TRENDS

Where All the Flowers Have Gone BY MD. SABIR NISHAT

has five war memorials, two of which are in Manipur, one in hen you go home, tell Kohima and two in Assam, which them of us and say for provides ample opportunities for nostalgic tours. In Assam the war your tomorrow we memorials are in Guwahati and in gave our today," reads the epithet at Kohima War Cemetery in Nagaland. But now it is turn of the tour operators to make hay by wooing foreign tourists to the memorials of two world wars in Northeast India. Cemetery pilgrimages and battlefield tours coupled with visits to Digboi - which is famous for its oil the remains of military establishwells. In Manipur the two memoriments are being packaged as als have cemetery and graves of attractions for foreign tourists Indian National Army, Japanese whose great grandfathers had worked here. Northeast as a whole and British soldiers. In Kohima

there are graves and cemeteries of Allied Forces. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission, established by Royal Charter in 1917, is responsible for marking and maintaining the graves of members of the forces of Commonwealth countries who died in the two world wars, for building and maintaining memorials to the dead whose graves are unknown and for providing records and registers of these burials and commemorations, totalling 1.7 million and found in most countries across the globe. Arunachal Pradesh Government has asked the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) to take up with Taiwanese counterpart for development of the war memorial at Jairampur. "Scores of Taiwanese soldiers lost their lives here and we want the MHA to take up and develop it on lines of other war memorials," said sources in Arunachal Pradesh Government. "We are also trying to package a few other things which the British Government built. While moving towards Pangshu Pass in

diseases. Then there is the 'Lake of No Return'. Several American soldiers are Md. Sabir Nishat believed to have lost their lives in this mysterious lake. There is a legend which says that anything flying over it gets submerged in it. During the Second World War several fighter pilots mistook the lake for airstrip and got drowned in it. For such mystery it is equated with the Bermuda triangle", said sources. Nagaland gets at least one lakh tourists every year, out of which nearly 90 per cent visits the Kohima War Memorial. The war memorial which spreads over 10 acres houses 1421 graves. There is heavy rush of visitors during April at the time of special ceremony. Prominent tour operator, Ashish Phukan, who is also the Managing Director of Jungle Travels, said, "British tourists flock to these cemeteries. This segment of tourist

Arunachal, there is a bridge called 'Hell Bridge'. It is called Hell Bridge as the legend has it that after crossing the bridge one would get inflicted with malaria and other

is, however, very niche. Several foreign tourists want to visit Stilwell Road and see the old military establishments to have a feel of how their forefathers used to stay."

HP Plans 'Cemetery Tourism' to Attract Kin of Foreigners imachal Pradesh government is planning to promote' Cemetery Tourism' to attract relatives of foreigners who were buried in the state when Shimla used to be the summer capital of the British Raj. A number of Britishers and other foreigners were buried in different parts of the state during the Raj, including Shimla, Dalhousie, Kasauli and Mcleodganj. Among them was Viceroy Lord Elegan who came to India in 1862 and died in 1863. According to his last wish, he was buried in Mcleodganj, 22 km from Dharamsala. The state tourism department is in the process of documenting cemeteries of Britishers across the state which will be compiled in a book and also put on its website. Manisha Nanda, Tourism Secretary, Himachal Pradesh said that the survey work for documentation is over and compilation exercise is in progress.

AUGUST 2009 ASIAN TRAVELLER

Nishad Menon, General Manager, MIR Tours, MIR Group India

Asian Traveller Media Partner ate and venue for this year's World Luxury Hotel Awards ceremony has been announced.The Gala Ceremony will be held on November 27, 2009 at lebua State Tower Bangkok. Asian Traveller is the media partner for the event for the second term running and the only support media from print division.

Tour Asia Group Formed ith the objective of promot ing each other's business in their own country as well as in the global market and to double the volume of business in the next one year, travel agents from 11 Asian countries have joined hands to form Tour Asia Group (TAG). TAG had its first Launch board meeting at Ramada hotel in Bangkok in June this year with a vision to create Asia's largest Tour Network. TAG Board has formulated plans to increase sales, promotions and sales Sandeep Jain through TAG CEO & Director brochures, TAG online and offline promotions, special FAM trips for media and the travel industry. Specialised tour packages, hotels, car rental, cruise and airline bookings and other tourism products with some exclusive features will be offered and launched in due course. TAG is also launching new concept of country combined packages to the worldwide market for Asia Tours under the umbrella of TAG. Future marketing efforts will be done to setup alliances and increase TAG

uring my early school days at Kendriya Vidyalaya, when almost every one in my class was dreaming of a Medicine or Engineering career, I was quite sure about my hospitality career. After finishing my 12th I got admission at IHMCT Jaipur where I finished my diploma in Hotel Management. Simultaneously, I finished my degree in Bachelor of Tourism Studies from IGNOU. My career took off in 1999 soon after I completed IHMCT from Jaipur, with my first stint at the Taj Jai Mahal Palace and later at SITA Jaipur. It has been 10 years since I stepped into the industry and time has moved on since then. A lot of things have changed in my personal and professional life and I have enjoyed every moment of that. From 2002 onwards, I worked for Hotels across Kerala before I joined Mir Hospitality in 2006. The most interesting part in this job are the two Ps involved in it: Passion and Perfection. It is the best job to be in if you love travelling. Equally interesting is meeting different people from different backgrounds. Moreover, in this industry, we have to take instant decisions in the most judicious manner and it is this presence of mind that makes our profession so different from others in many ways. Being passionate about one's work is an inspiration in itself. When I look around myself and see perfection in each of God's creations, I too get inspired to learn from nature and put my best foot forward at all times. I am free with all the time in the world only when I travel. That's when I catch up with my reading hobby. I also enjoy listening to music. My wife Smitha and daughter Kalyani complete me. My work allows me very little opportunity to spend quality time with my family. But Smitha is very understanding and is very co-operative when I have to go abroad at a moment's notice. I am totally relaxed when I am with my daughter, Kalyani. Kallu turned three this year and ever since she came into my life, she is my good luck charm. Watching her play, teaching her a few tricks and enjoying a simple home-cooked meal with her seated on my lap is more relaxing than any meditation session. With Kallu in my arms and my wife Smitha by my side, a holiday anywhere on earth is truly satisfying. My favourite destination has always been Rome. The rustic beauty and historical value of the place has inspired me a lot. I always carried away into the pages of history and ancient arts when I am in Rome. A truly mystifying destination it is. Someday, I plan to take Smitha and Kallu to Venice to enjoy the Gondola rides. It is both romantic and relaxing. I was an avid football player during my school days. I represented my school and regional team at various schools, inter-regional and national championships. My favourite TV sport though, is Formula

One and for almost two decades I have been an ardent fan. Obviously, Michael Schumacher is my dream sports personality. Maneka Gandhi presenting me with the gold medal and scholarship for best academic perforamance in 1998 is an unforgettable moment in my life and that moment is still alive in my memory. On the professional front, changing myself to make others happy has been the biggest charm for me. This industry has always thrown challenges at me on a daily basis. It is a part and parcel of the job and I have been able to face each challenge as it

comes. But the biggest challenge was deciding to quit from the hotel where I had worked for almost seven years to assume a new role in a tour company. This was an arena that was completely new and I had no idea of how the system worked. Everyday brought home a new challenge and decisions had to be taken at the snap of a finger. Business opportunities were everywhere but one had to have the foresight to reap the potential. Today, I am happy about the decision I took four years back. I have been able to achieve much more than I thought I was capable of. I think these challenges brought out the best in me and the output has helped the company I work for. I am unable to name a particular person in the industry but I get inspired by several talented professionals whom I get to meet on a regular basis. I get inspired by their qualities and try my best to implement that in my life.

ASIAN TRAVELLER AUGUST 2009

TAMIL NADU TRAVELLER

Beaches of Tamil Nadu Dr S BAKTHAVATCHALAM eaches always attract people, even from other continents. Its always one of the best ways to unwind, that is why it has become one among the tourist attractions in different parts of the world. Tamil Nadu one of the Indian states, that has been blessed with a long coastline has a number of renowned beaches. The Bay of Bengal washes the shores in the erst while the Indian Ocean is on the south. The place also gets a warm sunshine most of the days in the year. Marina Beach Marina Beach is the second longest beach in the world and the longest in Asia. The 12-km long

stretch of golden sand attracts a lot of travellers and tourists from different parts of the world. Good surfing opportunity on a clear blue sea is the main highlight of this place. Located on the eastern side of Chennai, the Bay of Bengal caresses the beach. Swimming is not advised here because of the strong undercurrents. Various kinds of entertainment and food stalls dot the beach along with many local vendors selling different artifacts. At the other end of the beach are the new lighthouse and the aquarium, which houses some of the exotic collection of tropical sea fishes and fresh water fishes. Kanyakumari Beach Kanyakumari, also called Cape Comorin, is the most popular beach after the Marina beach. It is

located at the southern most tip of the Indian peninsula. The meeting place of three seas - and hence called Thriveni Sangamam - offers a different energy to the place and the winds also give the place a unique feel of things. The place has a variety of attractions for the travellers. One can watch both the sunrise and sunset from the same place and on full moon days they are even better. Unlike the other beaches, the shore is rocky and is dangerous to go swimming. A few hundred meters off the beach, there are a couple of huge rocks and on one of them is the memorial of Swami Vivekananda and the adjecent rock bears a huge statue of Thiruvalluvar, a legendary Tamil poet. Covelong Beach The Covelong Beach is one of the major attractions of the Marina Beach urban crowd as

Rameswaram Beach

it is just 40 km away from the city of Chennai. Being a fisherman's cove, it provides some fishing activities. This peaceful place mostly serves as a weekend getaway. It was a port taken by the French in the 18th century. Facili-

ties are available for wind surfing and swimming. Mahabalipuram Beach Mahabalipuram or Mamallapuram, 58-km, south of Chennai is one of the biggest Mahabalipuram Beach

heritage attractions. Along with the monuments the beach of Mahabalipuram is also a crowd puller throughout the year. It is an ideal place for bathing, and to unwind. The seventh century shore temples of Mahabalipuram are the main attraction here. Muttukkadu Muttukkadu, located 36 km from Chennai is a small tourist destination known for the backwaters and an estuary. The natural scenic beauty of the place attracts a lot of people. Angling and fishing are the main activities of the place where as boating is more preferred by the people. The rich aquatic life of the sea along with the historicity of the place is very appealing. Rameswaram Beach Rameshwaram, one of the popular Hindu pilgrimage centers of South India, is one of the most tranquil beaches in the state. The sea here is very shallow and calm

which makes it ideal for swimming and sunbathing. It is located at the Palk Strait and the Gulf of Mannar and the sea here is also rich in marine life including rare sea species and coral reefs, starfish, sea cucumber, crabs, sponges and sea cow etc. Another sight is frolic of dolphins. Mandapam is the mainland linking the island of Rameswaram and is also the

Muttukkadu

Gateway to many small islands and is bestowed with a quite beach dominated by sun and surf. The Kurusadai Islands situated off Mandapam is renowned for its natural beauty. Elliots Beach This beach is one of the favoured beaches for people in search of some serene air. Elliot's beach, near Besant Nagar, Chennai also has some other attractions like Velanganni Church and the Ashtalakshmi temple which are located nearby. There are also many small restaurants, shrines helping the evening crowds and the weekend travellers.

Kanyakumari

AUGUST 2009 ASIAN TRAVELLER

TAMIL NADU TRAVELLER

Tourist Arrivals in TN Grow by 23 pc ggressive promotion and marketing coupled with creation and upgradation of basic amenities and infrastructure at tourist spots saw the tourism sector in the Tamil Nadu grow by 23 per centin 2008. This was disclosed by N Suresh Rajan, minister for tourism, Tamil Nadu. The tourist arrivals, both domestic and foreign, increased to 646.58 lakh during 2008 when compared to 524 lakh tourist arrivals in 2007. Compared to the 29 per cent growth rate in 2007, there was a slight drop in the percentage of growth in 2008 (mainly because of the global slump in economy), he said. As the government had approved the franchising of 31 hotels and 10 restaurants, the TTDC had franchised 24 hotels and 7 restaurants. The income thus earned was utilised for upgradation of the remaining hotels and restaurants, Suresh Rajan said.

The state would focus on providing new products like eco-tourism, rural, medical, adventure and responsible tourism to provide a memorable experience for the tourists. The Tamil Nadu Tourism Development Corporation (TTDC) has more

The TTDC leveraged the internet to enable tourists to book and make enquiries about its services and the online revenue also saw a marginal increase last year. The tourism department would spend Rs 1 crore for improving the facilities in

than doubled its net profit in one year. The net profit jumped to Rs 9.50 crore from Rs 4.43 crore in one year registering a growth of 114 per cent.

Valparai, a hill station in Coimbatore district, and spend Rs 75 lakh for more facilities at the Thirukadaiyur Abirami temple in Nagapattinam district, the minister said.

Courtallam to have One More Boat Club

n addition to the boat club at Mela Vennamadaikulam on Main Falls-Five Falls stretch at Courtallam, another boat club is to be established at the sprawling pond behind Hotel Tamil Nadu within a year. The Department of Tourism plans to add more attractions at Vishwanath Rao Park, Main Falls Park, Snake Park and the park near Mela Vennamadaikulam boat club at a cost of Rs. 1.45 crore, illumination, including installation of high-mast lamps between Sri Parasakthi College and Five Falls on an outlay of Rs. 43.45 lakh.

TTDC to Promote Medical and Adventure Tourism he Tamil Nadu Tourism Development Corporation (TTDC) has introduced a number of initiatives to attract tourists to Tamil Nadu including projecting destinations like Vellore with world class medical facilities as part of Medical Tourism. Dr A C Mohandoss, Director of Tourism and Managing Director, TTDC has told a news agency that Tamil Nadu had become a wellness hub with patients around the globe coming to places like Coimbatore, Vellore and Madurai and Chennai to avail medical facilities. "We have established a separate medical desk along with Medi Tour India in Tamil Nadu Tourism complex for the purpose." Mohandoss said that several capacity training programmes had been conducted for hospital staff in Chennai and most of these hospitals have been encouraged to open travel desks in their premises.

Tirumalai Nayakar Palace to be Promoted as Tourist Destination ndian Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) and the Tamil Nadu tourism department will together promote the 17th century Tirumalai Nayakar Palace in Madurai among both domestic and foreign tourists. The Palace built by Nayak King Tirumalai Nayakar (1625-1638) and having 248 giant pillars, has been renovated at a cost of Rs three crore. As a first step, an hour-long computerised sound and light show in Tamil and English on the biography of Tirumalai Nayakar will be played there.

TN to Woo MICE Travellers n an attempt to attract business tourists, Tamil Nadu Tourism has identified four tourist spots Mamallapuram, Ooty, Kodaikanal and Yercaud - as MICE (Meetings, Incentives,

Conferences and Exhibitions). Alreadythe department had started to enhance infrastructure facilities at the four tourist spots to meet the requirement of such travellers in the coming months. ASIAN TRAVELLER AUGUST 2009

AVIATION

SFO Launches New Customer Service Initiative Volunteers to Assist International Arriving Passengers from India customers arriving from international flights. Currently, forty of the Airport’s 200 volunteers are signed up and have been given training by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) staff. These volunteers speak a total of twelve different languages – an Francisco International including Hindi, Urdu, Panjabi and Hindustani – and will be Airport Customer Service volunteers are now staffing the scheduled so that their language skills will be fully Federal Inspection Services utilized. The Airport will (FIS) facility to assist

schedule volunteers during the peak arrival times in the International Terminal. As more volunteers become trained and receive authorization to work in the FIS facility, the Airport will adjust the staffing based upon need. The customer service and translation assistance of this new programme will help support SFO’s 7-daily flights from Dubai on Emirates Airline.

Kingfisher Launches Daily Direct to Bangkok ingfisher Airlines has an nounced the launch of daily direct flights between Kolkata and Bangkok effective August 14, 2009. The launch of this new route will mark the first time that Kingfisher Airlines will be commencing operations from India to South East Asia. The flights between Kolkata and Bangkok will be operated using the A320 family of aircraft featuring Kingfisher Class, the premium economy service.

The Leela, Lufthansa Tie Up to Provide Indian Cuisine on Board he Leela brings diverse menus on board Lufthansa flights between India and Germany by star chefs Farman Ali of The Leela Palace Kempinski Bangalore and Surender Mohan from The Leela Mumbai First and Business Class passengers on these flights can look forward to a rich variety of Indian cuisine from

July through September 2009. Both are Master Chefs at ‘Jamavar’, the Indian fine dinning restaurant of The Leela. The name ‘Jamavar’ was inspired by the painstaking manner in which several weavers take years to craft one exquisite Jamavar, a hand-woven shawl from Kashmir. The restaurant strives to work seamlessly across The Leela hotels to attain the Chefs Surender Mohan and Farman Ali with age-old, Aishwarya Nair and the Lufthansa Team authentic

Etihad Experiences Record Passenger Numbers tihad Airways has enjoyed its busiest month ever with more than 616,000 passengers flying onboard the Abu Dhabibased airline’s flights during July, a nine per cent increase on passenger numbers for July 2008. The month of July saw Etihad’s 900 weekly flights – a 20 per cent increase on the number of weekly flights operated in July 2008 – fly at an average of 88 per

AUGUST 2009 ASIAN TRAVELLER

cent full across first, business and economy cabins. James Hogan, Etihad Airways’ chief executive, said: “The recordbreaking passenger numbers we have experienced in July demonstrate that, despite the current economic challenges, Etihad continues to attract high volumes of traffic across all three cabins on our global network of more than 50 destinations”.

flavours of royal Indian cuisine. Forbes Magazine US listed the ‘Jamavar’ in the Leela Palace Kempinski Bangalore as one of the world’s top ten ‘power dining’ spots. Farman Ali is a revivalist of age old royal cuisine from the four corners of India and brings with him the aromas of a bygone era. He has captured the essence of India’s diverse regions with cuisine from Hyderabad, Kashmir, Marwar, Awadh, Gujarat and the distinct northwest frontier region. Beyond accolades and passion, his uncompromising commitment to authenticity has made him the favoured chef of Leela guests Vladimir Putin, Bill

Gates and connoisseurs, alike. Surender Mohan’s joi de vivre reflects like a mirror image on his culinary palate. For him India is his teacher and its ancient kitchens are his classrooms. His love affair with Indian cuisine started early in life and the beauty remains that the more he discovers, he realises just how little he knows and that motivates him to delve deeper into the kitchens of India. His eclectic clientele across the globe consider him a true ambassador of India. He is a gold medal winner at the gourmet Expo in China. However, his milestone moment was when Bill Clinton during his stay at The Leela Kempinski Goa told him, “I will come back for more.”

Suryakanthi Organises Artists’ Camp

Suryakanthi Public Charitable Trust has organised an artists' camp at Swagath Holidays Resort Kovalam, as part of its 10th anniversary celebrations. The camp was organised by R. Murugan, MD, Swagath Holidaysand Film Director Adoor Gopalakrishnan inaugurated it. Artists K V Haridasan, Kudalloor Achuthan, T M Aziz, Guru Siddappa and B D Dethan took part in the camp. C L Porinchukkutty (former Vice Chairman, Lalita Kala Academy) and Lizzie Jacob (former Chief Secretary, Kerala Government) also visited the camp.

AVIATION

IBS Inks Deal With Malaysia Airlines

Paramount Airways Honoured with Glory of India Award

alaysia Airlines (MAS) has entered into a long term contract with IBS Software, a leading supplier of IT solutions for the global travel, transportation and logistics industry, for deploying its crew management system, AvientCrew. The deal, set to provide MAS with increased efficiency and reduced cost of operation, was signed in Kuala Lumpur today. The single integrated solution from IBS will replace the two different crew management systems that are currently being used by MAS to manage their Technical Crew and Cabin Crew rosters. While the current system at MAS uses a combination of manual and ITbased systems, the new system from IBS will automate the entire crew management and tracking process facilitating crew pairing, rostering, tracking V.K. Mathews, and manpower planning. IBS’ AvientCrew will Chairman & CEO optimize crew utilization, improve crew productivity, IBS reduce disruption costs and streamline administrative processes and will be fully implemented at MAS in four phases over the next two years. This solution is already being used by six major airlines that include Emirates, Jet Airways and Cathay Pacific among others. “We are delighted that Malaysia Airlines, one of the six airlines granted a 5 star status by Skyrax, has chosen us as a partner in their drive to increase efficiency and reduce operational costs. The operational agility and productivity of the Airline’s crew will, I am sure, be further enhanced with the implementation of AvientCrew” said V.K. Mathews, Chairman & CEO of IBS Group.

aramount Airways has received recognition from the Institute of Economic Studies for its outstanding performance in the current economic slowdown in a ceremony held in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh. His Excellency Former Deputy Prime Minister of Thailand Korn Dabbaransi presided as the Chief Guest at the M. Thiagarajan, award presentation. The Glory of India award was MD, Paramount Airways bestowed upon M. Thiagarajan, Managing Director, Paramount Airways for his exemplary contribution towards the Indian civil aviation industry and the company also received the Gold Medal for coming out victoriously from tough economic challenges.

Jet Launches Service to Riyadh

Saroj K. Datta, Executive Director - Jet Airways cutting the ribbon of the check -in counters for Inaugural flight 9W 524 Mumbai - Riyadh, in Mumbai

ASIAN TRAVELLER AUGUST 2009

THAILAND TRAVELLER

Thailand to Open Offices in Mumbai, Kunming he Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) has come out with a multi-pronged strategic marketing campaign for 2009-10 to build on the country's long-standing strengths such as its geographical location, value for money factor, and excellent range of products and services. As part of the plan two new foreign offices will be opened this year - one in Kunming in China and Mumbai in India in an effort to tap into the potential of two of the world's most populous Chattan Kunjara countries, said Chattan Kunjara Na Na Ayudhya, Ayudhya, India Director of Tourism Director, Authority of Thailand. TAT India

Thai Government Extends Visa Fee Waiving to One Year ontinuing its efforts to expedite the revival of the Thai travel and tourism industry, the Royal Thai Government has agreed to extend the exemption of the visa fee for tourist visa applications until March 4, 2010. The exemption will apply to all applicants for visa on arrival at all international airports

Travel Agents Visits Thailand ourism Authority of Thailand, New Delhi office and Thai Airways International PCL, Kolkata organized an AET trip to Krabi and Bangkok for travel agents from North and East India from 2nd to 7th June 2009. Krabi is one of southern Thailand's most attractive provinces, and is an ideal getaway destination, teeming with natural attractions including white sandy beaches, fascinating coral reefs, numerous large and small islands and verdant forests with caves and waterfalls. It is an ideal destination for the honeymooners.

AUGUST 2009 ASIAN TRAVELLER

in Thailand as well as those applying at Thai embassies and consulates abroad for stays longer than the period for which they are normally eligible. Thailand presently gives a Visa on Arrival for citizens of 20 countries for a stay not exceeding 15 days. Citizens of another 42 countries are allowed a visa-free stay in Thailand not over 30 days.

PROFILE

A Golden Addition to

The Jewel of the East angkok, a place where flocks of tourists touches down for their holidays has developed itself to a paradise with the numerous sights, sounds and other attractions. Known as the, the place is a perfect blend of Oriental architecture, ancient traditions and modern day life with buzzing shopping districts and nightlife. It caters to different kinds of people with a wide range of attractions, facilities and different kinds of accommodation. lebua at State Tower is one of the best providers of accommodation in the capital city of Thailand. Being the second tallest tower in Bangkok and located by the Chao Phraya River, it gives breathtaking views of the city. It houses 358 lavish suites which are the most spacious in their categoryin Bangkok, ranging from 66 to 266 sq.mts. The perfect blend of luxury, Mr. Deepak Ohri, convenience, technology and CEO, Lebua at State Tower stunning views elevate every suite

of lebua at State Tower to an indulgence for your senses. The different accommodations include superior suite balcony, deluxe suite balcony, river view suite balcony, signature suite balcony along with two and three bedroom executive suites. The five star service and amenities and enviable dining options make lebua an ideal luxury

machines, free weights and dumbbells, elegant sauna and steam rooms, massage rooms. The open-air swimming pool winding around the far corner of the floor promises privacy and deep relaxation with jacuzzi jet nozzles around the edges that lightly ease pressure points. The hotel is the perfect venue for all events in Bangkok. With its

hotel in Bangkok to be visited during any of the four seasons. The suites feature Bvlgari amenities, Petrossian delights in minibar, 330 thread count linen and in-suite cooking option by its Conde Nast accredited Chefs which make lebua a truly unique luxury hotel. lebua is also home to some of the best restaurants and bars in the world including Sirocco and Skybar, the world's highest open air restaurant and bar, Mezzaluna, Breeze Distil, Ocean 52 and CafĂŠ Mozu all of which are collectively called the Dome at Lebua. It serves Mediterranean, Italian, Asian, Indian and Lebanese. All restaurants and bars provide an unmatched experience with truly personalized service. The Lobby lounge at lebua also provides delightful snacks, drinks and afternoon tea. lebua at State Tower also provides a range of facilities include fully equipped gymnasium with cardiovascular and resistance

spacious, well appointed ballrooms and state of the art meeting and conference facilities, lebua is the most natural destination for any event in Bangkok, be it a function or conference. Each of our function rooms are designed to leave a lasting impression. Spacious units in imperial European settings present you with conveniences beyond your expectations. lebua also provides a state of the art business centre with a full range of facilities such as broadband internet, personalized secretarial and administrative support, message/mail/postal services and conference rooms of varying sizes. The well informed concierge team of lebua provides easy access to all the attractions in Bangkok including the Grand Palace, Vimanmek Palace, Suan Pakkad Palace, National Museum, Royal Barges Museum, Wat Phra Keaw, Wat Pho and Wat Arun. www.lebua.com ASIAN TRAVELLER AUGUST 2009

KERALA TRAVELLER

Dr. V. Venu IAS Secretary, Kerala Tourism

ast month, God's Own Country took another step closer to the world with the launch of login.kerala, a series of web-based initiatives aimed at the traveller and the tourism trade. The initiative marked the emergence of the Kerala Tourism website as a transaction-based one, with easyto-use user interfaces, databases and payment gateways. For the traveller, the initiative features facilities ranging from a mobile wapsite to an online room

reservation system, while the trade has facilities for e-submission of Cforms, online accreditation etc. This apart, brochures and video clips will also be available for download. Apart from creating more opportunities for Keralaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s tourism products and experiences to be purchased online, login.kerala will open up a new window for smalltime entrepreneurs in the State to reach out and access new markets. Kerala is one of the first State

Tourism Departments to embark on this digital initiative which will ensure that the destination can compete online as a saleable destination. Always in tune with the times, Kerala's innovative marketing initiative - the Dream Season Campaign - aimed at converting the traditional off season in the State into a season of opportunity for the domestic traveller - was honoured by the the Pacific Asia Travel Association with a Gold Award in the State/City Destination category.

Kerala Tourism Wins

PATA Gold, CNBC Travel Awards erala Tourism is the proud recipient of the 2009 PATA Gold Award in the Marketing State/City Destination category. Kerala's entry 'Dream Season in God's Own Country' was judged 'best in class' from amongst 236 entries worldwide. 'Dream Season in God's Country' was targeted at the growing Indian market. The campaign objective was to convert the traditional off season in Kerala into a season of opportunity for domestic travelers. It positioned the State as an affordable and inviting destination, making God's Own Country an allseason's destination. The 'Dream Season in God's Own Country' campaign was responsible for around 15.2 per cent increase in tourist arrivals in the state during the off season last year. Dr Venu V, Secretary of Kerala Tourism said that the award and recognition was a testament to Kerala Tourism's smart marketing strategies. "Kerala not only gained an added season in the travel calendar, but also recorded the biggest growth in domestic tourist arrivals in the last 15

AUGUST 2009 ASIAN TRAVELLER

years with the Dream Season campaign". Conceptualised and executed by Stark Communications, the campaign logistics included 133 value-for-money packages by 177 industry partners, a dedicated micro-site, and a toll free infoline - all of which

Dr Venu V IAS, Sivasankar M IAS Secretary, Tourism Director, Tourism

were supported by marketing promotions in the print and electronic media themed

'Kerala Within Your Reach' Sivasankar M IAS said that winning the CNBC awards for Best Travel Destination and Best State Tourism Board was testimony that Kerala Tourism is one of the most innovative

and exciting brands in the tourism industry in India. CNBC AWAAZ Travel Kodiyeri Awards Balakrishnan, recognises Minister, Tourism the best in the industry and are based on an extensive survey conducted by Synovate, across 12 cities in India and are grouped into 3 categories namely, Corporate, Trade and General. Along with Kerala Tourism, CGH Earth bagged the 2009 PATA Grand Award for Environment for its entry 'Spice Village and the Community'. According to one of the judges, 'Spice Village has managed to succeed in turning an effective management programme into its own company ethos. This comprehensive and 'honest' environmental initiative has resulted in an extraordinary living and breathing visitor experience'. CGH also picked up the Best Holistic Destination Award for its Ayurveda resort Kalari Kovilakom, at the CNBC Travel Awards.

Dream Season was responsible for around 15.2% increase in tourist arrivals during the off season last year. It played a key role in positioning the State as an affordable, all-season's destination. Kerala Tourism also picked up the National CNBC Awards for the best travel destination and best state tourism board. The awards reaffirm that Kerala is indeed one of the most innovative and powerful global tourism brands.

Kerala Tourism to Organise

'Partnership Meets' erala tourism department will organise 'partnership meets' in a number of European countries and various Indian cities to attract tourists to the state. Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, Minister for Home and Tourism, Kerala in a written reply in the assembly said that the meets would be held in Sweden, Denmark, Spain, Belgium, Switzerland, Holland, France and Italy to attract foreign tourists and 11 cities in India to bring domestic tourists to Kerala. He also said that the 'Kottakkunnu tourism project' in Malappuram District would be completed in another two years. In the next phase, construction of rainwater reservoir and beautification of helipad will be taken up, for which Rs 4.40 crore had been set apart.

KERALA TRAVELLER

Kerala Tourism, KTDC Revamps Websites erala Tourism and KTDC have upgraded their websites with new features to help market their products more effectively. Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, Minister for Tourism launched both the website features in two different functions held recently in Thiruvanathapuram. Login.kerala, the facet installed in www.keralatourism.org provides many facilities including direct online booking of hotel rooms. The major add-ons to the KTDC website include online reservations as well as the 'Feel the Property,' an innovative feature which gives 360° views of different part of the hotel, surroundings and its amenities. The facilities launched under Login·kerala include one for 'mobile campaign', to create a mobile phone users' community interested in programs and activities of Kerala Tourism. Another feature is the facility meant for hotel owners to submit the mandatory C-Forms via online, which contains the

YouTube. "Login.kerala is the first major initiative by Kerala Tourism to transform the website into a comprehensive web portal in the near future itself," said Kodiyeri Balakrishnan. "It is a bouquet of IT-related initiatives that includes the modification of the website of Kerala Tourism. It is part of Tourism

M. Sivasankar IAS, Director Kerala Tourism, Cherian Philip, Chairman, KTDC, Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, Minister for Tourism, Jayan Babu, City Mayor, E.M. Najeeb, K.G. Mohanlal IFS, MD KTDC and G. Sudhiesh Kumar, SKHF at the launch of login.kerala

aggregator to compile the blogs created by various tourists on Kerala; facility to download brochures and make requests for receiving royaltyfree video clips, DVDs on Kerala and online video sharing through Kerala Tourism's branded channel in

service has grown high which made it a profitable organization. We will be striving to get more," said Cheriyan Philip, Chairman KTDC. Summing up the latest set of IT initiatives, the Director for Kerala Tourism, M. Sivasankar IAS said that Kerala Tourism has the rare distinction of introducing many user-friendly online

Dr. Venu V. IAS, Secretary, Kerala Tourism, Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, Minister for Tourism, Cherian Philip, Chairman, KTDC and K.G. Mohanlal IFS, MD KTDC at the launch of KTDC’s new website

Department's Visit Kerala2009 year campaign," said Secretary for Kerala Tourism, Dr. Venu V IAS. "KTDC has been on the path of fast development and improvisations in the last few years. With training sessions coming in the quality of

initiatives in the past. The latest move aimed at providing the best of IT backed facilities to the travel and tour fraternity would go a long way in further popularizing an already acclaimed travel website of Kerala Tourism, he added.

Thomas Holidays Becomes Thomas Hotels and Resorts

AITO to Hold Annual Conference in Kochi

homas Holidays & Resorts which has Estuary Island, Magic Days, Tom's Inn and Turtle On The Beach under it has become Thomas Hotels and Resorts. "It's a very small makeover as far as our verbal and visual branding is concerned but in thoughts it's a great stride forward", said Peter Paul, Executive Director, Thomas Hotels and Resorts. "In the past, we were perceived as a holiday company. But in the future, we want to be perceived as a hotel chain that owns hotels, resorts and Peter Paul villas", he added. Executive Director

details of foreign tourists staying at a particular hotel. Also part of the new online initiatives are the ones for travelers meant for locating hotels in Kerala and online room reservation facility. And for the travel / tour operators, they can submit application via online for accreditation. And for all segments of users, the website features blog

AUGUST 2009 ASIAN TRAVELLER

he Association of Independent Tour Operators (AITO), Britain will hold its 33rd annual conference at the Kochi. The event is scheduled on November 18 to 22, 2010. Derek Moore, Chairman, AITO, said "As operators, we are optimists, so we decided to hold our conference somewhere exotic and different, somewhere exciting and in a place where AITO has not been before. We decided to confound the cautious and go long-haul." "In a year which

has taxed us all - in more senses than one - and tested our nerves, we decided on something exciting," he added. With the help of our friends from Kerala Tourism, I am sure this will be a conference to remember - and a perfect antidote to a difficult year for all of us. Conference sessions and evening events will take place around the bay while delegates attending the conference will stay at Taj Gateway in the city, the Taj Malabar on Willingdon Island and the Bolgatty Palace.

VARIETY

A.G. K. Kumar has taken over charge as Vice President of VIA Group, the leading B2B Travel Technology Company, based in Bangalore, India. He shall be responsible for development of Corporate Travel Solutions, The Travel Business and newly launched Global Buyer-Seller platform www.iviaworld.com for the Airline , Travel & Tourism Industry. Kumar has three decades of experience in India and overseas with the leading airlines, travel, leisure and tourism industry.

Etihad Airways, the National airline of the United Arab Emirates, has appointed Belinda de Rome as its new Senior Vice President to lead its Corporate Communications Team.

Carlson Hotels Worldwide has appointed Mark Bulmer as General Manager of Radisson Suites Bangkok, Bangkok, Thailand.

Saibal Sengupta has been appointed General Manager for the soon-to-belaunched Sarovar Portico in Ludhiana, Punjab, India.

1. Who were Virgin Mary's parents? 2. Which country operates the Sunflower Airlines or Sun Air? 3. What is singultus? 4. NTT DoCoMo is Japan's market leader in the mobile phone sector. What does DoCoMo stand for?

Kofi Annan

Virgin Mary

5. What is a 'webinar'? 6. Jasmine is the National Flower of Philippines. What is it called there? 7. What is Abilympics? 8. Former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan's middle name is Atta. What does Atta mean?

9. What does Abu Dhabi literally mean? 10. What is Google's Headquarters Office called?

Google Headquarters

Compiled by DEEKAY

Send in your answers to info@mediastepsindia.com with TYKC23 in the the subject line. Answers should reach us before the 30th of this month.

Vinod.K.B has joined Panoramic Universal as General Manager Business Development for Southern Region, India.

Astudo Hotel & Resort Group has appointed Chetha Maneerat as Resort Manager for X2 Rayong, Lam Mae Phim beach, Thailand.

Vinu V Nair has joined Media Steps India (the publishers of Asian Traveller magazine) as Director Marketing.

Answers of TYKC - 22 1. Red Hero, 2. It is phishing using the voice-over IP (v + phishing), 3. An event like Valentine's Day where more of Hallmark cards are exchanged than real emotions, 4. Rice cooker, 5. Christian Albin, the American chef at Four Seasons, New York, 6. From the similarity of its fronds flaring like the palm of a hand, 7. Capri Pants or capris, the long kind of shorts, 8. It was the second peak (2) to be measured in the Karakoram Range (K) where it is located, 9. Ralph Vaerst, a Central California entrepreneur, 10. Berlin

TYKC 22 - Winner

AUGUST 2009 TTF OTM, Surat

August 7-9

Punnamada Boat Race, Kerala India Travel Mart, Jaipur

August 8 August 21 - 23

One all-correct entry will get

SEPTEMBER 2009 IITM, Mumbai

Free Stay at Le-Meridien, Kochi September 5-7

PATA Travel Mart, Hangzhou, China

September 22-25

OCTOBER 2009 India Travel Mart, Vadodara

October 2-4

IT&CMA 2009, Bangkok, Thailand

October 06-08

ITB Asia, Singapore

October 21-23

AUGUST 2009 ASIAN TRAVELLER

K.J.DAVIES Ahalia Health Heritage and Knowledge Village, Palakkad, Kerala, India

[ 2 nights and 3 days for two ]* Nestled amongst 25 acres of coconut groves and backwater rivers, Le MĂŠridien Cochin Resort & Convention Centre sits at the heart of one of India's most naturally beautiful cities, Kochi. This prestigious landmark houses 5 floors of luxurious accommodation for international business and leisure travelers. The 151 spacious rooms and suites, most with breathtaking views over the manicured gardens and the backwaters. * Conditions apply

AUGUST 2009 ASIAN TRAVELLER