July2015

Corporate

July 2015 • VOLUME 4 • ISSUE 7 • `. 50

Spain

A FIRST-RATE BUSINESS DESTINATION

FUNtastic Fiestas

Kashmir July 2015 | Corporate Outbound 1

Contents

Other Stories

Managing Editor: Mr. Anurag Gupta Editor: Ms. Meenakshi Gupta Correspondent: Haarika Creative: Raj Toppo Marketing: Don Jose Printed, Published & Owned by Mr. Anurag Gupta @ 348, Amarjyoti Layout, Domlur Bangalore- 560 071 Ph: +91 80 41224331 Email: corporateoutbound@gmail.com Printed at Cosmos Printers & Publishers, Wilson Garden, Bangalore- 560 027

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ETAA South India Chapter - Celebration of 3rd Year Anniversary & Travel Agent Engagement Program

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FUNtastic Fiestas

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Railway News

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Kashmir

“Agar firdous baroye zameen ast, hami asto, hami asto hami ast�

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Buzz Aviation

Now, SpiceJet Mobile App with improved features

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piceJet has unveiled its all-new SpiceJet mobile Application.

With this App, customers on-the-go will find it more convenient to make and manage bookings, check flight status, and receive exclusive offers on their mobile devices with just a few taps on the screen. To make the payment procedure more convenient, customer information ones filled is stored for future bookings. The payment gateway of the App offers a variety of options like Quick pay, credit card, debit card and Internet banking.

The Quick pay option ensures instant booking with just a single click.

The App also allows customers to book or add exciting SpiceJet add-on products such as seats, meals, SpiceMAX, and Spice Assurance. Customers can also pre book excess baggage at discounted rates through this app, with just a few taps on the screen. Flight changes, cancellations, and refunds can also be easily handled through the App. The App is now available for download on Android and Apple iOS smartphones

Vistara connects Mumbai to Goa

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eisure travellers on the Mumbai-Goa route can now look forward to more joyful weekend getaways with Vistara announcing the launch of weekend flights on the route..

The flights will operate daily from September 14, 2015. Travellers can now book these flights through the Vistara website and travel partners. With the addition of the Mumbai-Goa flights, Vistara now operates 243 weekly frequencies connecting ten destinations, including Delhi, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Bagdogra, Guwahati, Goa, Hyderabad, Lucknow, Mumbai and Pune.

SriLankan Airlines, Mihin Lanka code-share to boost tourism from Kolkata

JetPrivilege & Air Serbia’s joint frequent-flyer programme

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riLankan Airlines, the national carrier of Sri Lanka has announced a code-share agreement with Mihin Lanka for operations of flights between Kolkata and Colombo. With the commencement of the new code-share with Mihin Lanka, SriLankan Airlines continues to build seamless connectivity from their hub in Colombo across various regions in India, expanding on its code-share and direct operations to and from 11 cities in India, creating new travel options for the business traveller and holidaymakers from Kolkata to access Sri Lanka delivering a boost for local tourism. The two state owned airlines of Sri Lanka namely the national carrier SriLankan Airlines and Mihin Lanka’s latest code-share agreement complements existing code-shares to other Indian routes such as Madurai, Varanasi and Gaya. The flights from Kolkata will be operated thrice weekly by Mihin Lanka every Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

etPrivilege, the frequent-flyer programme of Jet Airways has entered into a frequent-flyer programme partnership with Air Serbia, the flag carrier of the Republic of Serbia.

Air Serbia, an Etihad Airways Partner airline becomes the 27th frequent-flyer programme partner for JetPrivilege. The partnership between the two carriers will result in seamless travel for JetPrivilege members on flights operated and marketed by Air Serbia, including popular and new destinations in Europe such as Athens, Amsterdam, Budapest, Bucharest, Copenhagen, Dusseldorf, Larnaca, Malta, Munich, Madrid, Vienna, Paris, Rome, Sofia, and Zagreb.

JetPrivilege members will now enjoy JPMiles earnings, greater redemption options and a host of benefits and privileges such as excess baggage allowance, dedicated airport check-in counters, access to eligible lounges and priority boarding available to elite JetPrivilege members.

BIAL introduces ‘Interactive Voice Response System’ at Bengauluru Airport Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL) has installed a custom-developed voice portal and Interactive Voice Response System (IVRS) at Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru (KIAB). All airport and flight-related information of airlines operating at KIAB can be received from this system. Passengers can get current information through IVRS assistance by dialing the toll free number 1800 425 4425.

The IVRS is an automated telephonic system that interacts with callers, gathers information and transfers calls to the appropriate recipients. The IVRS has been interfaced with the airport's interface systems to automatically get flight data and information, which will be relayed to callers in English, Hindi and Kannada languages. This is in addition to the WhatsApp service +91 888 499 8888 already available to the passengers and real time flight information on the airport website www. bengaluruairport.com.

TripAdvisor launches page for info on hotels, restaurants & attractions in transit areas of airports TripAdvisor now features dedicated airport pages, that will enable travellers around the world to get information about what to do, where to eat and where to stay at 200 major airports around the world. When travellers search for an airport on the site, they will be directed to a dedicated airport page with reviews, ratings, and other information about hotels nearby as well as restaurants and attractions in both public and transit areas. Amenities, including duty-free stores, boutiques, and airport lounges will also be listed on the page. Singapore Changi Airport is the first airport in the world with hundreds of its amenities listed on TripAdvisor. Other major airports, including John F Kennedy International Airport and London Heathrow Airport, will be launched soon.

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Buzz Hospitality

Holiday Inn debuts in Chandigarh with 127 keys

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nterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) has opened its first Holiday Inn in Chandigarh Panchkula. It is the tenth Holiday Inn hotel in India. Located on the Kalka Shimla Highway, the hotel provides easy access to a number of tourist attractions as well as commercial hubs, making it a great choice for both business and leisure travellers.

The 127-room hotel is set at the foot of the Morni Hills, an area well-known for its views of the Himalayas, and next to the Panchkula Golf Course. The hotel has easy access to tourist attractions such as Sukhna Lake, Rock Garden, Cactus Garden and Sector 17 market which is ideal for shopping and dining. For guests travelling for business, the hotel is located near the business districts of IT Park, Mohali, Baddi and Zirakpur. Chandigarh Airport and Railway Station are both within a short drive from the hotel.

With eight meeting rooms and event spaces, the property is a great choice for business meetings as well as large scale events, for up to 500 people. A well-equipped fitness centre, spa and an outdoor swimming pool completes the experience for guests.

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Lords Inn Jodhpur aims to attract mid-segment business events

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he premier mid-hotel chain - Lords Hotels and Resorts recently unveiled its third property in Rajasthan.

With 50 well-appointed rooms and facilities such as the roof top swimming pool, Lords Inn Jodhpur is well equipped to cater to the pre and post wedding functions and other events.

Jodhpur being connected with multiple flights, trains and other means of transportation makes it an apt platform for booming MICE business as well.Lords Hotels and Resorts intends to aggressively expand to 49 hotels by 2017.

Mango Hotels to open 55-keys property in Hubballi, Karnataka

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ntellistay Hotels Pvt. Ltd. that owns the Mango.Hotels brand of boutique independent hotels will launch its newest hotel in Hubballi. This will be the fifth hotel for Mango.Hotels in Karnataka. The Group already has three operational properties in Bengaluru, one in Mysuru and Mango.Hotels in Mangalore under development.The 55 keys property is located in a prime location along the Hubli-Dharwad corridor in Vidyanagar, opposite KLE Society’s College of Education. It will come fully equipped with a 24 hour restaurant, a bar, fast & free Wi-Fi, a Gym, meeting and conference rooms and banqueting facilities.

New hotels to be launched this year are from an active pipeline of Mangalore,Chennai,Coimbatore and Vizag in the South, Lonavala, Daman, Vadodara, Rajkot, Mundra, Surat, Ahmedabad and Udaipur in the West, Delhi, Manesar, Neemrana and Bhiwadi in the North and Bhubaneswar, Raipur and Kolkata in the East. The company has also entered into five hotel contracts with strategic partners in Orissa and Rajasthan. Mango.Hotels basically follows a Hub-Spoke Model along Airports, Railways and Highways.

July 2015 | Corporate Outbound 7

Featured

SPAIN

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A FIRST-RATE BUSINESS DESTINATION Do you know why Spain is the best destination for organising your incentive trip? Just some of the reasons are its excellent yearround climate, the large range of activities available, superb hotels, and the possibility of organising "tailor-made" programmes to include a full range of options, from cuisine and golf to culture and shopping.

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The name Spain comes from the word Ispania, which means the land of rabbits.

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pain offers all the guarantees to ensure your business incentive trip is a resounding success. More and more businesses are planning their incentive trips to this country for one simple reason: it's a sure bet. If you're looking for creativity, uniqueness, different and original proposals, profesional organisation of events. In short, for a great experience for your participants, then choose Spain. You can design a whole range of programmes all year round, with creative leisure and entertainment as the top priorities.

You won't be disappointed when you choose Spain as a MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferencing, Exhibitions) destination. The fact that 50 million tourists visit Spain every year proves that this is an attractive country. If you add the high quality of the conference infrastructures, communications and hotels, and the good weather that enables you to hold events any time of the year, the result is an essential country for business tourism. These are Spain's strong points:

Easy access and transport -There are more than 30

international airports in Spain (which are being extended with new terminals). The capital's airport, Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas, is a great connection between Europe and Latin America, and is the fourth European airport in terms of number of operations and passengers.Spain also has a modern road network to Travel across the country, and the largest high-speed rail network in Europe, to get to important destinations in no time.

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Destinations with something for everyone

–When organising meetings, conferences and so on, there is a choice of large or medium-size cities with a rich historical and cultural heritage. Madrid and Barcelona, for example, have considerable experience in business tourism. In fact, both cities are among the top five on the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA) world ranking. A large number of Spanish cities are equipped with suitable infrastructures to host profesional events.

Modern equipment and services –Spain offers more than 50 conference centres (some of them are veritable examples of avant-garde architecture, like the Donostia-San Sebastián Conference Centre, the one in Valencia designed by Norman Foster, the one in A Coruña, and Ciudad de Oviedo by Santiago Calatrava) to hold business meetings, presentations and seminars.

You'll also find auditoriums, special rooms, multi purpose complexes, exhibition centres and all kinds of versatile facilities with cutting-edge technology and communications. Because Spain is becoming increasingly hightech - visitors can enjoy, for example, free and efficient internet connection in many venues. And some hotels provide their guests with multimedia services and tele communications materials.Spanish companies are used to organising large events efficiently and you'll be able to get in contact with the Convention Bureau professionals in the city you are interested in so they can give you advice.

You'll find profesional conference organisers; communications and advanced audiovisual media companies; hostess, July 2015 | Corporate Outbound 11

translation and interpreting agencies; stands and stage design; transport, and high quality catering.

Wide range of hotels

-There are more than 16,000 hotels in Spain, and their quality is internationally renowned. A good option when choosing accommodation is one of the more than 90 Parador hotels all over the country.

They are unique hotels (castles, monasteries, palaces, etc.) and many of them are equipped to host professional meetings.

Incentive programmes –If you want to give incentives to your employees or clients, think Spain. You'll find numerous outdoor training proposals and you'll also be able to organise everything to suit your goals. You can combine sports such as golf and outdoor activities such as city tours by bike or visits to well-known football stadiums like Camp Nou and Santiago Bernabeu, with culture (for example, film routes), shopping and gastronomy. Regions such as the Canary Islands, Region of Valencia and Catalonia offer a great number of suggestions for events and team building. Spain also offers new trends for incentive trips. For example, a chance to attend concerts and musicals, or to organise conferences or incentive programmes on board a cruise ship or smaller vessel such as schooners, VIP yachts or catamarans – perfect for holding product presentations, gala dinners, etc. Spain is also a country with integrated corporate social responsibility strategies, committed to sustainable and eco-friendly tourism. It is possible to find activities in line with this idea such as a route round National Parks in 4x4 vehicles, being a farmer for a day, or a short bird-watching course. Less polluting materials and renewable raw materials are used, and ecologist conferences can be held. And for history lovers, there are original options such as "Meeting in Sefarad". It is an association made up of six cities (Ávila, Cáceres, Cordoba, Girona, Segovia and Toledo) inviting you to hold your conference or company 12 Corporate Outbound | July 2015

event in historical buildings, museums and Conference Centres in these cities, which stand out because of their unique Jewish cultural, monumental and gastronomic heritage.

Original venues - As well as usual venues, in Spain you'll

be able to organise your events in cellars (perfect for private meetings in an exclusive environment), historical caves, vineyards, historical buildings, museums (such as ThyssenBornemisza in Madrid, Picasso Museum in Malaga, Valencia Institute of Modern Art-IVAM in Valencia and Guggenheim Bilbao), theatres, flamenco clubs, football stadiums... The possibilities are endless. Wehave to add Spain's extraordinary nature, culture and gastronomy; quality shops; lively nightlife; and well-known hospitality of the people. Find the proposal that fits in with what you need, and success will be guaranteed.

one of s a w n i n Spa Europea t s r i f the n s to ba e i r t n u o c in smoking ces and workpla bars

Info & Picture Courtesy- Tourism Office of Spain, Mumbai Office

Express Info Tourist Visa: This category of visa caters for people wishing to stay in Spain for a period maximum 3 months and may be applied if the person does not have a guarantor in Spain and buys a tour in a travel agency, or make a booking of tickets and hotel. Applicant will have to provide evidence that he/she falls under this category.

Travel: There are number of flights from Delhi , Mumbai and other cities to Madrid and Barcelona. The average number of hours taken is from 14 to 20 hours depending upon the flight. Etihad , Emirates, Lufthansa, Jet Airways , Qatar flies from these cities with a stop at Abu Dhabi,, Dubai, Frankfurt, Paris, and Doha respectively.

The average fare depending upon the number of days prior to travel date ranges from 65000 to 80000 INR. Currency: 1 Euro = 70 INR( approx.)

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Featured

Kashmir

Jaspreet Singh Bhatia, owner of a renowned travel agency in Raipur is passionate about travelling, photography and reading. Recently visited Kashmir during J&K Travel Mart .

st” a i m a h o t s a i m a h i ast o, m a h , t s a n e e m a oye z “Agar f irdous bar

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ASHMIR!! The name itself brings so many emotions to my mind – Fear, Curiosity, Love and what not. I had dreamt about visiting Kashmir all my life. We keep on hearing about Kashmir almost every day and so I always had so many questions about this dreamland. How beautiful it is really? What is the actual situation on ground in Kashmir? How do the local people live? So, when I got an opportunity to visit Kashmir, I bagged it with both hands.

I was more than excited to actually experience this legendary destination myself.

From the black and white Bollywood songs of Shammi Kapoor to the latest moves of Anushka Sharma , this place had seen it all. Kashmir is a destination which I believe is older than INCREDIBLE INDIA and what it had achieved in yester years in the field of tourism is still difficult to match for most of the new “destinations” that have sprung up in Indian in the last decade or so.

My first glimpse of Srinagar was through the airplane window and I was thrilled to see the valley between the mighty Himalayas laid out like a green carpet of velvet.

Srinagar has two faces. On one side it is a typical Indian city with the problems of traffic, roads, electricity, people frustrated with the civic system and on the other side is the Paradise. The Dal Lake, Boulevard Road, Mughal Gardens, Chashme Shahi, Parimahal, Shankaracharya Temple are such places that when you visit them you feel like that you are in a different world altogether. All these sights are absolutely worth visiting and I found them much more beautiful than I what I expected them to be. It was quite a sight watching the Shikaras and the House Boats floating graciously on the famous Dal Lake. The golden sunlight of the setting Sun in the evenings made the entire view so dramatic with the great Himalayas standing tall in the backdrop of the entire landscape. Well, I must say I was simply awestruck!!

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The legendary shikara in the mesmerizing beauty of the Dal Lake at Srinagar July 2015 | Corporate Outbound 15

Breathtaking views of the Pahalgam Valley

e two stat J&K has rinagar in , S u capitals nd Jamm a s r e m Sum rs. in winte

The drive to Gulmarg is also very scenic except the outskirts of the Srinagar city which is overcrowded and the roads are also not that good. But once you have crossed that patch it is heaven. Although I had a very strange welcome at Gulmarg when suddenly my car was surrounded by 15 – 20 local men all aggressively peeping inside the car trying to convey something and obviously not very politely. My driver quickly informed me that these are the local pony owners asking us to hire them for the pony ride. Now, this can be really discomforting for the tourists especially travelling with families. But , none of these issues were able to distract me for long as I was simply captivated with the sheer beauty of the Gulmarg meadows. I mean, can any thing be more beautiful than this ?? All you can see is lush green hillocks with undulating landscapes and the huge snow capped mountain cliffs in the back . There is a 2 phase ropeway system in GUlmarg through which one can go upto the mountain cliffs and enjoy a host of activities in the snow. The second phase of the ropeway or Gondola as it more commonly known as takes you even higher and the views from there are breathtaking. I wonder whether Switzerland and the famous Mount Titlis would be more beautiful than this ?? I doubt. I feel agonized that this is the problem with us in India, we have tourism products better than any other place in the world but unfortunately we don’t have the necessary infrastructure. But, still, in spite of all the minor issues, Gulmarg is an excellent excellent place. There is a golf course which is set amongst the enchanting meadows.

Gulmarg now also boasts of a number of hotels and resorts catering to different tastes. I returned back to Srinagar the same evening bringing back a host of beautiful memories and a hangover of the beauty of the place.

The Gulmarg Meadows, This is the same temple in the famous Rajesh Khanna starer song "Jai Jai Shiv Shankar"

View from my room, at the scenic Pahalgam View of the Himalayas from the famous Khyber Resort at Gulmarg

The iconic Chashme Shahi Gardens

The next day I drove to Pahalgam with the experiences of Gulmarg still fresh in my mind. I found the drive to Pahalgam as much more scenic and comfortable. On reaching Pahalgam I got the answer to my question which I had asked myself yesterday; Can there be anything more beautiful than 16 Corporate Outbound | July 2015

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Pony ride at Gulmarg

The Kashmir Valley is the most naturally endowed region in the whole of Asia Continent with water resources that can generate thousands of megawatts of power.

Gulmarg ?? Yes, it can be and that too not far off from Gulmarg.

Pahalgam town is situated on the banks of the river in the Valley of the Himalayas and it offers some stunning views. It is lush green and with the river flowing through the valley, one feels full of energy and enthusiasm. I was simply fascinated with the hills, pine trees, tracks of green grass and the misty white water flowing through the river with a huge collection of round stones.

It was just picture perfect. I was so hung over with the natural beauty of the place that I did not even bother to think about the number of activities that one can take part in at Pahalgam. I later realized that there was also an option of white river rafting and other adventure activities as well.

My visit to Kashmir was a great one. I learned so many things about this great place. I realized that the people of Kashmir are just like you and me who are fed up with the system and are facing the daily problems of life just as we are. Another most important thing was about the safety. At no point of time during my stay, travel, sightseeing I felt insecure or unsafe. Yes there is a large amount of security forces in the Valley but I believe that’s why I also felt safe. Hats off to the Indian Army which works tirelessly in the region to not just safeguard our frontiers but also to provide humanitarian aids to the people in times of crises.

Kashmir is said to be visited by Jesus Christ and Marco Polo.

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I would definitely like to go back to Kashmir again and spend more time there to experience the crisp fresh air and bright sunlight. I would suggest that everybody should visit Kashmir and experience it beauty. As it is rightly said… “Agar firdous baroye zameen ast, hami asto, hami asto hami ast” which means if there is a heaven on earth it’s here, it’s here, its here.

Express Info How to reach: Srinagar can be reached by Air, train and road .

Srinagar has an International Airport 14 kms from the city and all major airlines operate regular daily flights to here from New Delhi and other major cities in India. By Rail Jammu Tawi, a major railway junction of North India, and Udampur in Jammu province, Srinagar’s nearest railhead (202 kms) receive a large number of trains from most parts of India.

National Highway, 1-A, connecting Srinagar with Jammu (300 kms) is an all-weather road. Jammu in turn is connected to many parts of Northern India, including New Delhi. Buses and all types of Taxis to Srinagar are available from Jammu railway station and city centre. Various Tourist Taxi Strands, in the Srinagar City, have recently upgraded their fleet, and taxis can be hired for touring Srinagar city or various resorts in Kashmir.

Best time to visit: Kashmir has four distinct seasons, each with its own peculiar character and distinctive charm. These are spring, summer, autumn and winter and can be visited round the year.

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Currently Released

iite

EVENT CALENDAR AURANGABAD th th th 14 , 15 , 16 Aug 2015

INDORE th th th 9 , 10 , 11 Oct 2015

MADURAI 11th, 12th, 13th Dec 2015

NAGPUR 22nd, 23rd, 24th Jan 2016

VIJAYAWADA th th 26 , 27 , 28 Feb 2016

RAIPUR 11 , 12 , 13th Mar 2016

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ETAA South India Chapter - Celebration of 3rd Year Anniversary & Travel Agent Engagement Program

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ETAA South India Chapter recently completed its 3 years of un matched performance and celebrated its 3rd year anniversary on 12 June 2015 with its members at Hotel Citrus, Cunningham Road, Bangalore.

ETAA has always supported and empowered its members by conducting professional training programs. The training program of this event was conducted by well known corporate trainer Mr. Aman Kaushik which was sponsored by TRAWELTAG – Cover More . The same program was an eye opener by learning extra selling techniques - up selling, need based selling as well as cross selling. ETAA Agents were trained to promote their products in a better way. The programme was graced by Mr. Jagat Mehta – National President ETAA ,Mr. Abhijeet Khadilkar – National General Secretary , Mr. Ram Kumar – President , KTF ( Karnataka Tourism Forum ) and the trade media .

As part of destination learning program , a presentation was conducted by the second sponsor of the event - Mr. Vijay from Royal Holidays, Srilanka . It was an eye opener for the members as the presentation emphasized on the importance of untouched tourist spots of naturally beautiful Srilanka .

Outgoing committee members from ETAA South India chapter were honored at this occasion for their wonderful contributions to the fraternity led by outgoing chairman Mr. Patrick George.

The new committee was formed and announced during the occasion. The new 5 member committee will be led by the Chairman – Mr. M.P . Joy .

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For Stall Bookings Contact: No.348, Amarjyothi Layout, Domlur, Bangalore - 560 071.

Ph : +91 80 41224331, 25350322, Fax : +91 80 41483066 July 2015 | Corporate Outbound 21 email : iiteindia@gmail.com, admin@iiteindia.com Website : www.iiteindia.com

FUNtastic Fiestas La- Tomatina- Bunol, Valencia, Spain

Teej Festival- Rajasthan, India

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his unusual festival brings together people every year, ready to have a fun time, throwing tomatoes at each other. Participants at this joyful pitched battle have a wonderful time hurling tomatoes at anything that moves. The festival starts by 9 am in the town square, with rolls and pastries provided for breakfast by the Town Hall. Before the tomato battle, a huge pole is erected, which is covered with soap. The most daring one try to climb as high as possible to win the prize. At the same time, buckets of water are poured from balconies, soaking people. A shot is fired by 11 am to announce the start of the fight. The real fun fight starts when the trucks arrive with the tomatoes and unloads them. Within seconds, everything turns red. This year the festival will be held on August 26th.

Notting Hill Carnival, London, England

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ondon’s Notting Hill Carnival is one of the largest street festivals in the world, and when you’re dancing in the middle of narrow alleys, it sure feels that way. This celebration of diversity was founded to help overcome racial tensions; throw a massive party for everyone to dance away their differences, and introduce culture through something everyone can enjoy music.

More than 40 years later, Notting Hill has gone from poor to posh, and this carnival is one of the wildest outside of Rio. This year the festival will be held from 30th August to 31st August.

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eej festival holds significant position in the lives of people of Jaipur. One can not only feel the liveliness of people during this festival, but can even witness the rich culture of Rajasthan. The festival falls in the monsoon months of JulyAugust. On this occasion, married women pray to Lord Shiva and Godess Parvati to bless them with happy and long married life. Celebrated in and around Rajasthan, this festival of swings welcomes monsoon. The swings are decked with flowers and hung from trees, women dressed in green clothes make merry and sing songs. This festival that symbolizes growth continues for two days, women observe fasts for the long life of their husbands and men pray for good rain and crop. Fairs are conducted on this festival; processions are taken out from Tripolia gate of the Pink City. Passing through various markets, it ends at Chaugan Stadium. The idol of Goddess Teej (incarnation of Goddess Parvati) is decorated by the royal families of Jaipur, for the fair. Convoy of beautified elephants, horses and camels are made to walk before Goddess Teej's palanquin made of gold and silver. Various folk dances are performed to the tunes of folk songs during this rally.

This year the festival will be held on 17th and 18th August.

Street Parade Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland

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he Street Parade a demonstration for love, peace, freedom and tolerance. The Event is also a festival for electronic music, digital arts and dance. Each summer, hundreds of thousands fans of Electronic Dance Music celebrate this annual mega event in the streets of Zurich. Inspired by Berlin's Love Parade, Zurich has created a day-long moveable feast for those hungry for music, dancing and good vibes. A musical parade with 30 loves mobiles, 600 DJs or acts, and 7 stages for one million people. Electronic music may be a way of expressing a political and lifestyle philosophy, but it’s also a great way of connecting with people; in the course of an hour, you might meet people from a dozen different countries and in some cases, find middleaged parents enjoying the festivities along with their young adult children. This year the festival will be held on 29th August.

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Currently Released

Get SMS alert for cancelled trains

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inistry of Railways has started yet another passenger-friendly measure on pilot basis, under which SMS messages would be sent to passengers informing about train cancellation in case the train in which they have booked their tickets for is cancelled due to unavoidable circumstances. Under this pilot project, the SMS messages are being sent to those passengers who are boarding at originating station. At a later stage, this will be extended to cover enroute station also. This exclusive SMS based service has been commenced on all India basis. The SMS will be sent to their respective mobile numbers entered by them in reservation slips while buying tickets from PRS counters or while purchasing online e-tickets. The cancellation information would be sent quite in advance to the passengers for their convenience so that it may help them plan alternative arrangement in time. To avail this facility, passengers are advised to invariably mention their mobile numbers on the reservation slips.

The software for this service has been developed by Center for Railway information systems (CRIS), the information technological (IT) wing of the Indian Railways.

The Maine Lobster Festival, Maine, United States

IRCTC to open ‘single-window shop’ in Central Delhi

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ach year, as Maine’s short summer weather crosses from July into August, a thousand volunteers come together under a series of red and white striped carnival tents to pay homage to that celebrated crustacean, theHomarus americanus —the Atlantic lobster. Its 66th year, the Main Lobster Festival has all the charms and components of a county fair.

Each year, teenage girls vie for the coveted title of Sea Goddess at the Sea Princess beauty pageant. (The coronated queen then gets to spend the remainder of the festival handing out awards at other competitions, and the rest of the year attending mid-coast Maine’s other festivals, like Boothbay Harbor’s Windjammer Days.) Attendees of the Maine Lobster Festival should spend some time browsing through the arts and crafts tent, where local artists display and sell quality works of art including oil paintings, hand woven baskets, and that quirky coastal favorite, driftwood art. It’s not just fresh lobster. Seafood lovers can also dive into clams, mussels, calamari, rock shrimp, scallops, haddock and crab. If you pace yourself just right, you can eat everything on the Main Eating Tent menu over the course of five days. This year the festival is held from Jul 29 - Aug 2.

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ndian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) plans to commence a unique Tourist Facilitation Centre in Delhi that will act as a ‘single-window shop’ for all tourism products. To be located in Connaught Place, the centre will offer a string of rail, land and air tour packages for domestic and international travellers, taking care of their itinerary — from air ticket to visa facilitation and insurance, from special train packages to customized tours, from food to accommodation, from cab and concierge services to sightseeing.

Henley- On- Todd Regatta- Alice Springs, Australia

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enley-on-Todd is a different version of the prestigious nearly 200-year-old Henley Royal Regatta , held annually in the United Kingdom. Whereas that event is stuffed with royal pomp and circumstance, the Henley-on-Todd is decidedly more democratic and taken far less seriously. In a single day, nearly 20 events are held. Except for the Bring Your Own Boat race, organizers provide all the necessary equipment to compete, making it very easy to participate. You can register on the day or preregister online. The day kicks off with a parade down Todd Mall where BYO Boat teams proudly show off their ships. The festival has the feel of a family-friendly carnival. There are foods and drink stalls, people wear lots of silly costumes, and generally just have a good time in this town practically in the middle of nowhere. This year the festival will be held on 15th August.

This will be the first of its kind initiative anywhere in the country where the entire travel needs are taken care of under one roof. This is also the only brick and mortar office of the IRCTC where people can walk in to buy a train or air travel package and even get a customized trip as per their convenience. The Tourist Facilitation Centre, to be launched shortly, will be unique as it would facilitate a direct public interface. The facilitation centre will handle all special train packages of IRCTC such as Bharat Darshan, pilgrim trains (Tirupati, Shirdi, Buddhist circuit), the north-east, Kerala and Goa. In addition, there are air packages for J&K, Shirdi and Tirupati. Besides these fixed trips, the Facilitation Centre will also customize tours and make tailor-made packages. However, these can be slightly more expensive as the air tickets for such a request are booked at the current rate.

The Facilitation Centre will cater to the travel requirements of ministries, government departments and PSUs, besides clients in the corporate sector. It will also facilitate air tickets, accommodation and sightseeing for foreign delegates or students visiting India on exchange programmes.

IRCTC offers competitive airfare to unconfirmed ticket-holders

I

RCTC has tied up with Go Air and Spicejet airlines for the benefit of its patrons. Courtesy an initiative of IRCTC (Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation), passengers unable to travel in a train because their waitlisted ticket could not get confirmed now have the option to fly to their destination at a competitive fare.

Under the arrangement, IRCTC sends a mail to all waitlisted passengers booked through its website after the reservation chart of a train has been prepared. For availing the facility, the date of ticket booking has to be three days prior to the date of journey. The name of the passenger has to be same while the date of flight booking has to be the same day (date of original train journey or the day after). The passenger may cancel the train ticket and try for air ticket through www.air.irctc.co.in for a sector in which the flight and seats are available. The facility is available on only those train routes that are also served by airlines.

The price of flight ticket is lower than the dynamically priced air fare of the day for the particular airlines. The innovative facility for waitlisted passengers, which was introduced recently, has started getting a good response. Around 100 tickets were sold last month.

July 2015 | Corporate Outbound 25

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