Vol XIV
Issue IV
Pages 52
February 2017
Rs 60
KOCHI 19, 20, 21 JANUARY 2017
KOLKATA 03, 04, 05 MARCH 2017
CHENNAI 15, 16, 17 JULY 2017
BANGALORE 21, 22, 23 JULY 2017
DELHI 15, 16, 17 SEPTEMBER 2017
MUMBAI 22, 23, 24 SEPTEMBER 2017
PUNE 24, 25, 26 NOVEMBER 2017
HYDERABAD 01, 02, 03 DECEMBER 2017
ADVENTURE TOURisM
IN INDIA! GAME ON... Voyager’s World
@VoyagersWorld
EXPERIENCE THE BEST OF
SOUTH AFRICA
If it’s something different you’re looking for – a place with a rich serving of diverse cultures, intriguing traditional cuisine, the buzzing city life that will have your feet tapping to its rhythmic beats, as well as remarkable outdoor and wildlife experiences, then come see the best of South Africa’s tourism products. Four days featuring trade professionals from up to 60 exciting South African products, who will teach you more about successfully packaging and selling #wowSouthAfrica. Join us and experience a country like no other at the 2017 South African Tourism Roadshow.
We look forward to seeing you there! Date
Day
City
Time
Venue
30-Jan
Monday
Chennai
10:00hrs - 14:00hrs
Taj Coromandel
31-Jan
Tuesday
Bangalore
10:00hrs - 14:00hrs
ITC Gardenia
01-Feb
Wednesday
Delhi
10:00hrs - 16:00hrs
Le Meridien
03-Feb
Friday
Mumbai
10:00hrs - 16:00hrs
St. Regis
RSVP: Indiaroadshow@southafrica.net or call 022 40144070 for more information
4>> Budget 2017 for tourism...judicious but not frugal!
T
he demonetization move in November last year was a sweeping economic move, the effects of which created harbour waves of reactions across spheres in the first few weeks of its implementation, followed by various speculations before things began to get stable. Even as the reactions have now reduced to ripples, the Union Budget's announcements for the tourism industry have led to a receptive response from the stakeholders. The allocation for the development of tourism infrastructure and creation of five special tourism zones, as well as the reduction of direct taxes and no change in GST across various platforms augur well for the industry. Proposals to withdraw service charges on the booking of rail tickets, safer and cleaner rail travel and rural tourism development have been especially encouraging. In this issue, we have featured insights into the impact of budget on tourism this year, the Biennale event in Kerala, increasing dependence on technology in tourism and interviews with industry players. We have new trends in adventure tourism as the cover story. As the year progresses, let us wait and watch the development graph of the industry. Happy Reading... Warm Regards
PRIYAMVADHA BALARAM
priyamvadha@voyagersworld.in
Managing Editor
Associate Editor
Associate Editor
Priyamvadha Balaram priyamvadha@voyagersworld.in
Anju Anna Alex Irene Susan Eapen anju.alex@voyagersworld.in irene@voyagersworld.in
Chief Designer
Senior Designer
Web Developer
Rohit Hangal rohit@voyagersworld.in
EDIT
ORIA
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Assistant Editor
Rohith Pinto Shyam Vishnot Dinesh Kotian shyam@voyagersworld.in dinesh@spheretravelmedia.com info@voyagersworld.in
Operations Executive Published By
Advertising & Marketing
Selvaraj Ramaswamy operations@voyagersworld.in Mobile +91-9844092150 advertising@voyagersworld.in
ADVERTISING & CIRCU LATIO N
06 10
Industry Buzz
14
Incredible India Motorcycle tourism, Senior Travel
Surinder Hakhu sanjay@voyagersworld.in & Rohit Hangal rohit@voyagersworld.in
India Outbound
Destination branding through Bollywood
18
25
Cover Story Adventure tourism trends
Mice Point Sicily, HICC, BIEC interviews
49
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Enterprising Travel Agents Association-ETAA’s
ETAA's 2nd Domestic Convention March 3rd to 5th 2017 Hospitality Partner
Features of the Event 250 +++ Travel agents / Tour operators on pan India basis Exhibitors Tables in the convention area for visiting delegates to promote and display their products & services. 02 Nights of networking dinner with Cocktails to break the ice with delegates.
Why should you Partner in the ETAA Domestic Convention 2017? ETAA is India’s Oldest and Largest Trade Representative body for Non-IATA Retail Travel Agents who form the largest segment of Travel Trade in India today. We represent all sections of the travel trade including large, medium and small boutique travel agencies which are often owner driven giving them a voice and platform to highlight their achievements as well as grievances. Our strength lies in our strong member base of over 700 members across the country giving us a pan India presence with our various Regional Chapters in North, West, East and South India.
Who Should Partner? Hotel chains
Bag Manufacturer’s
Tourism Boards
Banks
Telephone card Companies
Car Manufacturing Companies
DMC
Online Portals
Adventure Sports Companies
Wholesalers
B2B - Travel agents
Tour operators
Coach Coach Tours
Visa specialist
Hotel
Tourism
Cruise Liners
Car Rental companies
Travel Software companies
Representatives Companies
Destination Specialist (Domestic or International)
INTERN ATION AL CONVENTION - DUBAI
DOMESTIC CONVENTION - MUMBAI
Register Now President National General Secretary National Joint Secretary Treasurer Western India Chapter Chairman Nouth India India Chapter Chapter Chairman Chairman Nouth South India Chapter Chairman Chairman Emeritus
: JAGAT MEHTA : ABHIJIT KHADILKAR : DIPTI THAKOOR : DHARMESH ADVANI : SHRIPAD DESHPANDE :: PANKAJ NAGPAL : MP JOY : CARL DANTAS
natsecetaa@gmail.com etaajtsec@gmail.com dipti@etaaindia.com treasureretaa@gmail.com shripad@etaaindia.com pankaj@etaaindia.com chairmanetaasouth@gmail.com karlvdantas@gmail.com
09821064854 09820092837 09833040077 09920620619 09822014671 09810226656 09663323747
Industry Buzz
6>>
ETAA organized its first-ever 'Travel Agents Meet'
Turkish Airlines enhanced their in-flight entertainment system
T
urkish Airlines enhanced its in-flight entertainment system with a re-designed and improved user interface that makes the entertainment content and information services more enjoyable for the travellers. The redesigned in-flight services include a variety of features such as category filtering for movies or ratings of TV shows and movies from the renowned database IMDb (Internet Movie Database), plus a new search function that allows passengers to access content more easily and quickly by searching all across movies, TV shows, music and games.While the improved 3D map provides more interactive and informative data as well as impressions about the current flight, including cockpit, right and left window views, virtual imagery with realistic 3D animations and descriptions of distance, altitude and geographical features.
T
he Enterprising Travel Agents Association (ETTA) organized its first Travel Agents Meet, in Hyderabad, on 10 February 2017 at Hotel Royalton. Notable dignitaries like Carl Dantas, Chaiman Emeritus- ETAA; Jagat Mehta, President – ETAA; Abhijit Khadilkar, National General Secretary – ETAA; Dipti Thakoor, National Jt. Secretary; Dharmesh Advani, Treasurer – ETAA & M P Joy, South India Chapter Chairman etc. graced the occasion. The event was a resounding success thanks to the participation of over 70 travel agents as well as prominent members of the travel industry, from Hyderabad and other cities. There was a brief knowledge session by TrawelTag initiated by DevKarvat and conducted by renowned Trainer, AmanKoushik.
New appointment in Singapore Tourism Board
A
drian Kong joins Singapore Tourism Board as Area Director, South Asia and will be responsible to oversee STB’s tourism promotion in South & West India and Sri Lanka. Prior to this, he worked as the Area Director for STB’s Philippines office. He has also worked in India earlier as the Manager with the Singapore Tourism Board in Mumbai.
WTTC Global Summit in Bangkok
T New Taj app uses map-based functionality
T
aj Hotels Resorts and Palaces recently launched a mobile application that offers guests with a seamless booking experience and access to offers. The new app is now available for download on iOS and Android. Guests can search through booking options for about 100 hotels by a map-based search functionality. The users can also access the TajInnerCircle sign-in to manage their membership accounts, or to sign- up for the loyalty programme.
he WTTC Global Summit in Bangkok, Thailand 26-27 April 2017 will bring together global leaders from the Travel & Tourism private and public sectors to explore the theme of ‘Transforming our World'.The Rt Hon David Cameron, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016, will address the WTTC Global Summit in 2017. The 2017 Summit will focus on a range of issues, including the future of travel and tourism, the impact of security threats and climate change on the right and ability of people to travel, the constraints to increased connectivity and infrastructure development in the ASEAN region, and the innovations which will enable travel and tourism growth over the coming decades. The WTTC 2017 Global Summit will be hosted by the Thai Ministry of Tourism and Sports and Tourism Authority Thailand (TAT) and endorsed by the Royal Thai Government.
Gypsy Travel Festival hosted by High Street Phoenix
T
he Gypsy Travel Festival was hosted by High Street Phoenix, Mumbai on 28 and 29 January with partners like Fiji Tourism, Israel Tourism and Malaysia Tourism and travel companies like Trafalgar, White Collar Hippie, Blueberry Trails, The Wanderers, Lacadives, and Kipepe. Culinary delights from Israel, Fiji and Malaysia were showcased at the event which also had traditional and cultural performances by Tourism Fiji. Israel highlighted an interesting Culinary Masterclass in Israeli cooking session with Chef Mosheshek.
Indiva Marketing to represent FrankFurt Tourism
F
rankfurt Tourism (TCF) appointed Indiva Marketing as the destination representative company for the City of Frankfurt am Main and Rhein-Main region. Indiva Marketing will also be responsible for all communications, media relations, sales and marketing activities to enhance visibility and to boost tourism from India. Beate Mauder Kakkar, Managing Director, Indiva Marketing, said, “Frankfurt is a city of great diversity, the medieval towns and UNESCO world heritage sites, forests and rivers in the region are attractive for FIT travellers and MICE movements. We look forward in enhancing business and increasing visitations to Frankfurt from India.”
Voyager’s World > February 2017
IT&CM China 2017 unveils exciting networking line-up by sponsors Aiming to bring Chinese and international MICE exhibitors in one marketplace, IT&CM China 2017 lists its 2017 networking plans. VW BUREAU The 2017 edition of IT&CM China will take place from 21 – 23 March at the Shanghai Convention & Exhibition Centre of International Sourcing. Bringing together Chinese and International MICE exhibitors and buyers in one dynamic marketplace, IT&CM China is the platform for international and leading Chinese players in the MICE industry to explore business opportunities on all fronts – inbound, outbound and domestic. Delegates to the three-day event receive the best return on their investment in business, education and networking through structured business appointments, exhibition showcase, seminar
sessions, official networking functions and tours. Co-located with CTW China, IT&CM China is part of the IT&CM Events series organised by TTG Events, a business group of TTG Asia Media. This event is co-organised by CITS International M.I.C.E, a wholly-owned subsidiary of CITS (China International Travel Service) and MP International. CTW China is co-organised by Carlson Wagonlit Travel, China. CTW China is dedicated to raising the sophistication of Chinese professionals who manage the wide and varying scope of corporate travel related needs for their organisations. CTW China is the market’s answer to the proliferation of corporate travel management activities, including business travel & entertainment (T&E) as well as Meetings & Events (M&E), for Chinese-grown
companies and based in China.
multi-national
corporations
Established in 2015, this market-driven event is thus dedicated to raising the sophistication of Chinese professionals who manage the wide and varying scope of corporate travel related needs for their organisations. By localising best global practices and cultivating a sustainable expert and peer-sharing knowledge support network, CTW China is at the helm of enabling local influencers, planners and decision makers of corporate travel functions to get the most of their corporate travel management decisions.
Indulge in the sights and sounds of Shanghai with Pacific World
With 2 pre-show, half-day city tours for selected buyers and media. Discover the city, and perhaps choose Shanghai for your next MICE destination. 20 March: Puxi, Xintiandi, French Concession, Networking Cocktails by Accor 21 March: Zhujiajiao Water Village, Hosted Brunch
Feast at the Opening Ceremony and Welcome Reception at Shanghai Marriott Parkview
21 March: Returning as 3rd year sponsors, the venue will showcase its world-class gourmet menu, excellent hospitality, and facilities. Enjoy local and international performances, and rub shoulders with the movers and shakers of the MICE and Corporate Travel industry.
Lunch with Fiji, Argentina, and Fukuoka
22& 23 March: Get to know these host destinations and connect with major industry stakeholders. Preview the venues and capabilities, products and services of what these first-time exhibitors to IT&CM China can offer for your next incentive trip or major event.
Wind down at JW Marriott Changfeng Park with an evening of cocktails
22 March: Clink glasses and exchange contacts with fellow industry practitioners. You’re guaranteed a casual, captive night of networking with only the most influential decision-makers in the field.
Round off IT&CM China with a 2D/2N post-show FAM trip to Hangzhou
23 – 25 March: Come explore this picturesque city – the second in Asia to host the 11th G20 Summit in 2016. International buyers and media will visit the Hangzhou Olympic and International Expo Center, try their hand at seal engraving, experience silk culture at the largest silk museum in the World, and more.Courtesy of Hangzhou Tourism Commission.
Industry Buzz
8>> Outbound Marketing to represent Meydan Hotels & Hospitality in India
Travel trade attends training session on New Zealand
T
A
ir New Zealand, Singapore Airlines and Tourism New Zealand organized a trade training session in Mumbai recently to highlight the promotional initiatives and resources designed to assist the agents in becoming New Zealand specialists. The event was attended by more than 130 agents. Air New Zealand introduced its new Multistop fare to provide a convenient and flexible journey to customers who are travelling on the Air New Zealand-Singapore Airline alliance to New Zealand. The fare also allows for one free stopover in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch as the international port of arrival or departure. Tourism New Zealand introduced its travel trade website and highlighted self-drive tours and webinars available for agents.
Oberoi Group opens STEP programme
T
he Oberoi Group started its online applications for selection of students for its ‘Systematic Training and Education Programme’ or “STEP”Admission to the STEP programme which is open until 15 April, 2017. The programme will commence in August 2017.The three year programme is designed for students completing high school that combines with practical job training along with study towards a Bachelor of Tourism Studies Degree from the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU).
he Meydan Hotels & Hospitality appointed Outbound Marketing India as its representative in India. The Meydan Hotels & Hospitality’ luxury portfolio includes The Meydan Hotel, Dubai’s only hotel overlooking The Meydan Racecourse and the award winning Bab Al Shams Desert Resort & Spa. Vasudha Sondhi, Managing Director, Outbound Marketing said “We are happy to add these two unique hotels to our portfolio.We believe that our hotels offer Indian travellers a special experience that can’t be found anywhere else in Dubai, whether our hotels are chosen for a leisure stay, a destination wedding or to participate in a conference or event. ”
Yatra signs MoU with Andhra Pradesh to promote homestays
Sarovar Hotels signs new hotel in Delhi
S
arovar Hotels signed an agreement for a new hotel, KST Sarovar Portico, a 48-key hotel located in Chattarpur. The hotel is an ideal spot for weddings, conferences and events.
Y
atra.com signed a MoU with Andhra Pradesh to promote homestays. The MoU was signed during the Partnership Summit at Vishakhapatnam in the presence of the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh N Chandrababu. Yatra will promote all the state tourism approved homestays, wherein guests can rent a room in the home of a local family or the entire house. This partnership will give the tourists a chance to experience the hospitality of various families throughout Andhra Pradesh and enjoy home cooked food. Yatra will list over 200 properties on its website and encourage the growth of homestays in Andhra Pradesh.
Ajay K. Bakaya, Managing Director, Sarovar Hotels, says, “Chattarpur is the prominent wedding destination in the city and this hotel is an ideal option for all social gatherings or even for a staycation for city dwellers.”
Oman Air expands weekly frequencies in India
ixigo trains app becomes multilingual
Le Reserve Corbett opens in Corbett National Park
O
man Air is now increasing its weekly frequencies from 126 to 161 flights per week between Oman and its11 destinations in India. The growth in capacity follows by the recently signed agreement between the Governments of Oman and India. The weekly flights from Mumbai, Delhi, Calicut and Hyderabad will be operated with 21 weekly flights each and Lucknow with 14 weekly flights which will be effective from February. The CEO of Oman Air, Paul Gregorowitsch, commented, “India is a key destination for Oman Air and we are delighted to be offering thousands more guests the opportunity to travel between Oman and India.”
Voyager’s World > February 2017
T
he ixigo App is now be available in seven Indian languages - English, Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati, Bengali, Tamil & Kannada, the multilingual option was officially launched on 26 January; the app will cover over 80% of the digital user base in India. The ixigo trains app also launched many other new features. The app picks up your upcoming train trips automatically and prompts you right in time to book a taxi ride to the railway station. If a train ticket is wait-listed even at the last moment, one can book a confirmed bus ticket via redBus on the ixigo trains app. One can also compare the flights from across 100+ travel sites including MakeMyTrip, Yatra, Cleartrip, Musafir, Jet Airways, Spicejet, etc. and book directly from inside the trains app.
T
he Jim Corbett National Park launched its first resort Le Reserve Corbett offering 18 cottages with a unique feel of a rustic ambience. During the launch, Karan Tewari, Founder & Director, Le Reserve Corbett, says, “Le Reserve Corbett is a place where nature meets luxury. Our cottages provide luxury stay along with some unique experiences ensuring guests a ‘reserved’ getaway in a unique way.”
Industry Buzz
9>>
IndiGo launches FitToFly gym in Jaipur
Dubai welcomes 1.8 million overnight Indian visitors in 2016 The Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) released its annual visitor figures showing Dubai attracted 14.9 million overnight visitors in 2016, recording a healthy 5% increase over 2015 and an impressive 4-year CAGR of 8% (2012-2016) since His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of UAE and Ruler of Dubai, launched the 2020 tourism strategy. India brought in 1.8 million overnight tourists with 12% growth over 2015. Overall the South Asian markets across the Indian sub-continent continued to deliver impressive volumes of both first time and repeat traffic demonstrating the ability of Dubai to retain its appeal through a diverse range of destination offerings.
I
n a bid to promote fitness, IndiGo launched its first #FitToFly gym under its initiative #FitToFly programme at Sanganer police station near the Jaipur International Airport. The airline plans to set-up gyms at police station near airport in several other cities on 6E network. The gym is focused in providing and inspiring people to pursue their fitness goals. The gym was inaugurated by Sanjay Aggarwal, Commissioner of Police, Jaipur in the presence of Kumar Rastradeep, Deputy Commissioner of Police; Summi Sharma, Vice President, ifly IndiGo; and Ajay Jasra, Director, Corporate Communications, IndiGo along with J S Balhara, Airport Director Jaipur; CISF Commandant RK Singh and members of IndiGo team. Dubai welcomes 1.8 million overnight Indian visitors in 2016
100% ACCOMMODATION 100% B2B
IntelliStay Hotels opens i-Stay Hotels in Raipur
We do nothing else but rooms. Since we only specialize in offering global hotels to travel agents, we have no o p t i o n b u t to d o t h i n g s m o re e f ďŹ c i e n t l y. D e e p e r a n d w i d e r inventory along with sharp pricing keeps us ahead of the pack. As simple as that.
T
Since inception, we have worked only for and only with the travel agents. In the good old days, we were warned that the travel agent community will soon cease to exist. But we strongly believed that this won't happen. And sure enough, travel agents have grown. And so have we.
17 001/quiksel.com
he IntelliStay Hotels Pvt. Ltd. (IHPL) recently launched its third brand, i-Stay Hotels, with its first hotel in Raipur, Chhattisgarh. The brand is a youth and transit hotel, the hotel also provides shared accommodation for families and groups. Some of the amenities include Kalpavrixa- an all vegetarian restaurant, complimentary internet access, banquet hall, shared office spaceand a gym. The shared working space is a co-working space operated by IntelliStay Hotels. The i.Qube, i.Quad and i.Share are rooms with shared facilities where two to eight people can sleep. This hotel is offering 33 rooms, which include twenty-four i.Classic rooms, eight i.Comfort rooms and one i.Share with nine beds.
Register on roomsXML.com. It's free! Email: sales@roomsxml.com | Phone: +91 20 6500 4942
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Incredible India
10>>
Motorcycle Tourism gains speed on Indian terrain
Akash Sachdev, Co-Founder- RebelRides, speaks about how the passion for biking led to the launch of the venture after extensive dry runs and tests. IRENE SUSAN EAPEN lakh km under the belt on two wheels where one will be able to explore cities on bikes of one’s choice,” says Akash, before revealing that they had actually suspended that idea about 20 months ago as it called for some investments and distraction from their other startup. Around a year ago, the duo began surveying different kinds of bikes to test the feasibility of the idea.
M
otorcycle tourism is evolving into a niche segment in India with a growing number of bike enthusiasts preferring their bikes to explore places. RebelRides, a luxury bike rental company venture, was launched recently by Akash Sachdev and Harsh Asher. Their passion for biking led to the formation of RebelRides. “We have about 2.5
Referring to the new generation of travellers as millennials seeking new ways of doing the same things, Akash says that motorcycle tourism is very independent in nature. The rider decides where and when to stop and the duration. “The free flow of cross cultural media consumption via social media means that Indians borrow and get influenced by a
lot of western concepts related to experiences such as fine dining, wine fests, music fests, functional training and sports such as golf. Motorcycling tourism is one such experience which has come to the party a little late but will flourish. We have already had solo women travellers and are thinking of more ways of getting them involved, not because it is good for business, but also because motorcycling is genuinely a lot of thrill and fun.”
and will soon extend to Ahmedabad, Jaipur and Amritsar. It offers slab wise rentals in terms of pricing; so one can ride for as less as six hours instead of a whole day.
Bikes and services In the first phase of its launch, RebelRides had as many categories of bikes like Cruisers (Harleys), Offroader (Himalayan) Cafe Racer & Street (Scrambler) and Lower End Cruiser (Classic 500). The venture is currently operational in Mumbai
Marketing Plans RebelRides primarily relies on wordof-mouth marketing. “The novelty factor is driving business as of now and will sustain for quite some time. We will organize ‘Rebels with a cause’ ride to Goa in association with an NGO in March.
Expected growth for 2017 In the first two months after its launch, the venture exceeded its internal targets and Akash expects 2017 to be a great year on account of increased interest and more players in the industry.
Maharashtra Tourism- Added Focus on Growth
Valsa Nair Singh, Principal Secretary, Tourism and Culture, Govt. of Maharashtra, talks about new promotional activities and destinations crafted to increase the number of tourists to the state this year. IRENE SUSAN EAPEN Tourism and Culture, Govt. of Maharashtra, she informed that the state expected a growth of about 12% in terms of domestic tourist arrivals as compared to 9% last year. International markets like USA, UK, Japan, Germany and Canada are expected to fare well and domestically, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Pune, Nagpur and Mumbai markets are likely to bring in the numbers to the state. Growth in state tourism Maharashtra stood at No. 5 in terms of number of domestic tourist visits numbering 103, 403,934 and was also ranked as the second most preferred destination for international travellers with 4408916 tourists visiting the state in 2015. Valsa Nair Singh, Principal Secretary,
Voyager’s World > February 2017
Referring to experiences offered by destinations like Amboli and the Kaas Plateau, Valsa stated that Maharashtra offered place for tourists looking for lesser known and untouched destinations. Amboli is called the ‘Queen of Maharashtra’ due to its natural splendour and the Kaas Plateau is known as the Plateau of a Million Flowers. Kaas
Plateau is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is home to endemic life forms that are found nowhere else in the world. Promotional plans Maharashtra Tourism regularly runs festive offers for its followers on social media and also showcases unexplored and distinct destinations. It had also done a social media campaign, especially for youngsters, on ‘safe selfies’ at beaches, forts, cliffs, deep valleys and other destinations frequented by tourists. In addition, it engages in promotional activities such as roadshows, publicity campaigns, cultural events, Fam tours and participates in national and international exhibitions, uses IT and develops theme-based products to expand the brand equity of the state.
Initiatives for 2017 “2017 being the Year of Sustainable Tourism, we plan to organize workshops for stakeholders and budding entrepreneurs to spread awareness of the opportunities in this campaign. We are also doing a series of tie-ups with different stakeholders which will take us to a win-win position in visibility.” Looking forward to the benefits that India can enjoy as a result of the simplification of visa processes, Valsa concluded by noting that the move would be good for the economy in terms of foreign exchange and employment opportunity, while each state in the country aggressively markets itself with its unique offerings.
Discover the World US$ 371
Million
of new business generated in 2016
700 exhibitors
from accross the world
8,500 attendees
from 50 countries
Travel Partners
Register: wtmlatinamerica.com The World Travel Market logo, WTM, RELX Group and the RE symbol are trade marks of RELX Intellectual Properties SA, used under license.
Incredible India
12>>
'Bharat Parv' 2017 held with grandeur at Red Fort
The event was a spectacular display of the cultural richness of the country with several states showcasing their traditions, art and craft and food. PRESS INFORMATION BUREAU
T
he “Bharat Parv” event was organized by the Government of India at the Red Fort, Delhi from 26 to 31 January 2017, as part of the Republic Day 2017 Celebrations. The prime objective of organizing the event was to generate a patriotic mood, promote the rich cultural diversity of the country, to ensure wider participation of the general public and to popularise the idea of Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat. The Ministry of Tourism had been designated as the nodal Ministry for the event, the highlights of which include display of the Republic Day Parade Tableaux, Performances by the Armed Forces Bands (static and moving), a Multi-Cuisine Food Court, Crafts Mela, Cultural Performances from different regions of the country and a Photo Exhibition by the Ministry
of Information & Broadcasting. The Cultural Performances included choreographed Folk / Tribal Dances and Music from across the country arranged through the North Zonal Cultural Centre as well as performances by cultural troupes from the different States/ UTs of the country. The Food Court had 50 stalls set up by the States / UTs, National Association of Street Vendors of India (NASVI) showcasing food from different regions as well as by the Institutes of Hotel Management and ITDC. The Crafts Mela with 50 stalls showcased the diverse handicrafts of the country, arranged by the State Governments and Ministry of Textiles through the Office of the Development Commissioner of Handicrafts. There were 11 Theme State Pavilions where each State showcased their
achievements and initiatives, tourism products and destinations, etc. The Ministry of Information & Broadcasting also set up a Photo Exhibition on the theme “Mera Desh Badal Raha
Hai, Aage Badh Raha Hai”. The big attraction of the event was the Republic Day Parade Tableaux which was stationed at the venue for the duration of the event.
because it's never too old to travel Rahul Gupta, Co-Founder, Seniorworld.com, talks about how his company strives to make travel a hassle-free experience for the older lot. IRENE SUSAN EAPEN seven-fold from 1.3 million in 2011 to 7.3 million by 2030.
S
enior citizens, aged 55 years and above, are the latest lot to look out for in the travel industry as a whole crop of retired people, having finished their worldly duties, are seeking to explore places while they are still active and agile. A growing number of senior travellers are keen to re-visit their travel dreams. According to recent findings by Frost & Sullivan, the number of outbound senior travellers is expected to increase
Voyager’s World > February 2017
They are more global in their outlook, well-informed, financially independent and are looking for new experiences. Seniorworld.com, a company whose mission is to cater to the needs of senior citizens in India, currently uses digital channels to reach its customers for its promotions. Rahul Gupta, Co-Founder, Seniorworld. com, explains, “Our travellers are tech savvy as a significant percentage uses smartphones and WhatsApp; they want access to Wi-Fi in overseas destinations so that they can post pictures and updates and most of them even pay through gateways like NEFT.” Trends in the behaviour of senior travellers Most of the seniors are net savvy
and are also well informed about packages available in the market and their prices and they ask a lot of questions before making up their minds. Rahul says that comfort and safety are some of the big drivers for seniors as well as their families. “Seniors are looking for new experiences and are game for anything today. We have also had seniors on our trips do zip lining; one of them even swam with a
dolphin in Dubai. Our holidays are not just about the destination but they are also about being with likeminded people, sharing experiences and interests and forging new friendships with other seniors. We have seen people strike and sustain beautiful friendships. For example, two gentlemen - one from North India and one from South Indiabecame friends during one of our tours and are now travelling together on another holiday with us.
13>>
Incredible India
SNEAK PEAK OF IITM KOCHI
GLIMPSES OF HOLIDAY EXPO COIMBATORE
www.voyagersworld.in
India Outbound
14>>
Destination Branding through Bollywood movies
Bollywood’s Love Affair with European Countries and how Bollywood contributes in adding to the brand value of European destinations ANJU ANNA ALEX
Sheetal Munshaw, Director- Atout France India
Outbound figures from India to France are on the rise and our statistics from 2015 indicating that France receives half a million Indians annually to its shores. We are confident that our numbers for 2016 will also register an increase in Indian arrivals with an estimated growth of 10-15% in arrivals.
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tourist always seeks out newer experiences in stranger lands not only to escape from the routine of their everyday lives but also to seek out something which would add meaning to their lives. The projection of the peaceful scenery to the target audience is meant to stimulate their desire to visit the same places psychologically by creating an ideal image of happiness that can only be derived from such tourist locations. Eventually as the audience starts getting engaged in the storyline of the film, they start believing that happiness can be purchased by them with a ticket to their desired location. VisitBritain APMEA Director, Sumathi Ramanathan says, “Films and TV are powerful motivators for travel. With more than a third of all potential visitors to Britain wanting to visit places they have seen in movies or on TV, the links between film and tourism are potent ones.” Though there is much ambivalence regarding the long term repercussions of demonetization, the latest outbound figures from India have a very positive story to tell. Sheetal Munshaw, Director- Atout France
Voyager’s World > February 2017
India, corroborates, “The immediate effect of demonetization was felt on outbound travel in the winter months to outbound destinations, but we believe that there has been a revival in travel since then. We believe that demonetization will encourage more potential travellers to book online rather than with travel agents and this concern will need to be raised by the travel industry as a whole as its effect will impact the entire industry and not just individual destinations”. Huzan Fraser Motivala, Representative India, Tourism Ireland, elucidates, “Bollywood is deep-rooted in the psyche of most Indians and in Indian communities across the world. Movies have a considerable influence on Indian travellers when they are deciding on their holiday destination. We know that film and television are recognised as strong influencers for prospective holidaymakers and Tourism Ireland is confident that Bollywood movies being filmed on the island of Ireland will help increase awareness of the island of Ireland among Indian travellers who are always on the look-out for
new destinations to explore. Film tourism from India is a major focus for Tourism Ireland, stemming from the success of Ek Tha Tiger which was filmed in Dublin. Released in more than 3,000 cinemas across India, 24 countries around the world, including Ireland, and reaching a global audience of more than 100 million people, romantic thriller ‘Ek Tha Tiger’ brought increased knowledge and awareness of Ireland among India movie-goers. Over one third of Ek Tha Tiger’s filming took place in Dublin, and many Indian tourists today choose to follow in the footsteps of Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif from the movie, visiting locations such as Trinity College, Temple Bar, Grafton Street and St Stephen’s Green.” She adds, “In last quarter of 2016, travel was impacted, but in 2017, we are seeing an upsurge in the number of queries for Ireland. We feel that in the long run, outbound travel from India will return to normal”. Bollywood, with a market value of approximately $72 million has not only taken significant strides towards developing the idea of Indian culture.
It also elucidates the brilliant way in which the Bollywood cameramen capture the beauty of the foreign locations boosting the branding of European tourism in India. Bollywood has always been a purveyor in alluring tourists from all over the world to quintessentially magnificent locales from all over the world by capturing it on celluloid; ergo, making it the most coveted medium for the branding of tourist destinations worldwide. Inevitably, Bollywood personalities are much sought after by tourism agencies from around the globe and recently, the young and very dynamic Bollywood icon Ranveer Singh was named as the Indian Ambassador of Switzerland Tourism and will be leading the Switzerland Tourism’s 2017 campaign for promoting tourism- ‘Nature wants you back’. Modern day story tellers like Karan Johar and their likes with their horde of extraordinarily exorbitant movies like ‘Ae Dil Hain Mushkil,’ shot in multiple European destinations like London, Paris, Austria, Vienna etc. have managed to spark the imagination of prospective travelers. Salvatore Ianniello, Representative India – Italian National Tourism
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Ignacio Ducasse Gutierrez, Tourism Counselor, Embassy of Spain in India and Director, Tourism Office of Spain in India
The movie ZNMD catapulted our positioning in the market and helped us grow tremendously with an increase of 80% in number of arrivals in the period of 2011-2012. Board, is of the opinion, “Bollywood is a platform that can contribute in branding of a destination, given the fact the tour operators are well versed with the destination. Else the travellers might fall prey to deception during the process of booking destinations. Also, it is the responsibility of the Visa offices to facilitate the clients with Visas and make the whole process less tedious.” The economic viability of the Bollywood film industry can be gauged from the fact that annually 6 million Hindi film tickets are sold in India alone triggered by the rise of the purchasing power of the middle class population. Approximately 14 million people in average are influenced by the Bollywood movies which continue to attract people due to its vibrant picture frames captured in exotic locations not only in the home base, India but outside as well. Bollywood has played an impressive role with films such as ‘Taal’ shot in Britain, ‘Namastey London’, ‘Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham’ and ‘Cheeni Kum’ in UK and ‘An Evening in Paris’ shot in Switzerland and France.
The increase in business has been so outstanding that Britain even generated a ‘Bollywood Map’ in which was listed the destinations in Britain which were attractive to the Indian audience. However, it would be unfair to proclaim that only foreign tourism reaps the profits from Bollywood but rather it is a symbiotic process where even Bollywood capitalizes on the exotic appeal that these foreign locations hold for the Indian audience and earn money through the filming of romantic song sequences as more people are willing to watch a slice of the world beyond in their cinema halls. Destination Branding through Bollywood VisitBritain APMEA Director, Sumathi Ramanathan says, “Among the amazing experiences on offer is visiting locations from beloved Bollywood films. Many Indian visitors and honeymooners flock to Britain for its romance, made famous by the countless Bollywood movies filmed there including ‘Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge’, ‘Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham’ and ‘Mausum’”. Salvatore says “Italy is an enriching
experience which can cater to all ages, tastes and cultures and is an all year around destination. In short, it is a 365 degrees experience for all your senses.” He adds, “Italy has varied landscape which is exceptional and the weather also plays an important role. Italy is an open air gallery, home to majority of world’s historic and artistic UNESCO sights. The medieval towns and castles feature a rich calendar of events that can give a movie the very fine Italian touch. ‘Bachna Ae Haseeno’, ‘Kambhakt Ishq’, ‘Housefull’ were Bollywood movies that significantly boosted outbound tourism to Italy.” Sheetal explains “France’s diversity of picturesque landscapes and locales enhances its appeal for cinematic initiatives. Paris and all its glorious landmarks have been depicted beautifully in various Bollywood ventures over the years and Paris’s enigmatic beauty continues to enthrall Indian production houses. Cinema is a powerful influencing medium in India with an approximate of 14 million Indians going to cinema theatres
every day. An effective branding tool for outbound destinations such as France, movies create an aspiration in the potential Indian traveller to travel thanks to its enhanced visual presentation of destinations. Yashraj’s latest production, ‘Befikre’ which was the first Bollywood movie shot entirely in France in the regions of Paris, Picardy and Cannes only lends credence to this statement. Atout France played a pivotal role in the showcasing and sourcing of regions alongside our regional tourism boards to the production house for the eventual shooting. ‘Befikre’ was also the first Bollywood movie that had a spectacular trailer launch at the iconic Eiffel Tower in the presence of the Mayor of Paris and the lead couple. The interest in France as a potential destination for future Bollywood projects has peaked after the release of ‘Befikre’ and we hope to see many more movies shot in France.” This was a trend which was to be replicated by the filmmaker Zoya Akhtar in her coming of age film ‘Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara’ which was filmed in Spain. Overnight,
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16>> Huzan Fraser Motivala, Representative India, Tourism Ireland We know that film and television are recognised as strong influencers for prospective holidaymakers and Tourism Ireland is confident that Bollywood movies being filmed on the island of Ireland will help increase awareness of the island of Ireland among Indian travellers who are always on the look-out for new destinations to explore.
the La Tomatina festival of Spain became the place where every middle class Indian aspired to be with a group of friends in tow. Ignacio Ducasse Gutierrez, Tourism Counselor, Embassy of Spain in India and Director, Tourism Office of Spain in India is of the opinion that “Bollywood has been very influential in spreading awareness about our brand, particularly in the year 2011-2012, with the release of the movie ‘Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara’ which was shot entirely in Spain. The Tourism Office of Spain opened its office in India in the year 2009 and back then, Indians did not know much about our destination. The movie ZNMD catapulted our positioning in the market and helped us grow tremendously with an increase of 80% in number of arrivals in the period of 2011-2012. The portrayal of Spain, its culture, festivals, scenery, landscapes and gastronomy through the lens of an Indian filmmaker is a positive tool in building our brand and creating a desire in the mind of the Indian tourist to travel to Spain. We look forward to more fruitful collaborations with the Bollywood fraternity.” Huzan explains, “The island of Ireland offers visitors new places, new stories and new experiences that will last a lifetime. Ireland’s mix of delights is so varied and a delight to experience. Travellers from India love the myths that are present through the Emerald Isle. Fairies flit through the deep glens, causeways are built by giants, and swans are lovers from a never grow old land. Ireland is truly Nature’s showpiece. Every turn holds some natural wonder. The Giant’s Causeway in Northern Ireland is a natural UNESCO World Heritage site. The Cliffs of Moher plunge to the sea in
Voyager’s World > February 2017
a shrill of bird calls and limestone caves. Additionally, the British Irish Visa Scheme, the improved air access to Ireland, its proximity to the UK, the easy availability of Indian food makes Ireland an ideal destination for the Indian traveller.” Outbound figures from India to European destinations According to Salvatore, “The stats have gone up from 280,000 in 2014 to 424,000 in 2015 (almost a 49% growth) which equates to almost 1 million nights. In fact there has been significant growth from 69000 in 2000 to 424000 in 2015. We organised EXPO ITALY (road show) in 2015 but we believe that was not the major contributor to the amount of Indians visiting Italy.” According to Sumathi, “India is one of Britain's most important growth markets for inbound tourism. The latest quarterly figures show that from July to September 2016 there were 139,000 visits from India to the UK, on par with the same period the previous year, with Indian visitors spending £142 million, up 14% on the same period in 2015. This continues a long-term trend which has seen visits from India increase by 55% in the 10 years since 2005, with spending levels almost doubling. With the Indian economy growing at a rapid pace, inbound tourism to the UK from this fast growing market looks set to continue to grow.” Huzan says, “In 2015, 'Tourism Ireland's best estimate is that we received approximately 20,000 to 30,000 visitors from India to the island of Ireland, an increase of 14% over the previous year. For 2016, we estimate an increase of 15-20% in visitor traffic from India. In 2017,
we expect to see a 15-20% growth in visitor numbers from India to Ireland”. Sheetal says “Outbound figures from India to France are on the rise and our statistics from 2015 indicates that France receives half a million Indians annually to its shores. We are confident that our numbers for 2016 will also register an increase in Indian arrivals with an estimated growth of 10-15% in arrivals.” Facilities offered to film makers In the case of Ireland, Huzan says, “Ireland is an excellent co-producing partner with a wide range of financial incentives for film and television as excellent facilities, stunning locations and award-winning cast and crew. Tourism Ireland also works closely with Irish Film Board (IFB), Northern Ireland Screen (NI Screen) and Invest Northern Ireland (Invest NI) for Bollywood opportunities and continues to see Bollywood as a key area of opportunity to raise the awareness among Indian consumers. Ireland's tax incentive for film and television has been enhanced, creating a new tax credit programme with the following features: -The rate of tax relief has been significantly increased and is now worth up to 32% of eligible Irish expenditure. -The payable tax credit is now based on the cost of ALL cast & crew working in Ireland, regardless of nationality. -An application for a certificate entitling the applicant to the tax credit can be submitted at any time prior to the completion of the project.” Salvatore says, “As a tourism board we usually help the film
makers select the location and with the logistic assistance and also collaborate with the region in Italy in order to facilitate the Indian filmmakers so that they could easily get the permissions for shooting in private and public spaces.” Sheetal explains “Film France, a state funded agency, offers a unique incentive known as TRIP (Tax rebate for international production) that supports non-French projects that are completely or partly made in France which needs to pass certain cultural indicators. The amount allocated comprises 30% of the film expenditures incurred in France, and caps at € 30 million per project. The foreign producer needs to contract a French company to handle the shoot in France or/ and the making of the animation/ VFX shots via a production service agreement. Minimum spend is either 250,000 Euros OR 50% of the total budget to be spent in France. The French Embassy and its AudioVisual Department are proactive with visa facilitation and answering shoot queries from Bollywood and Tollywood production houses. Atout France India offers assistance in the form of organizing recces to France and sourcing potential French partners for organization of shoots.” Marketing and Promotional Plans Sheetal says “Our recently launched global strategy lays emphasis on highlighting signature tourism brands in France or ‘Marques Mondiales’. These include regions such as Alsace, Alpes-Mont Blanc, Biarritz Pays Basques, Burgundy, Brittany, Bordeaux, Côte d'Azur, Corsica, Champagne, LanguedocMediterranean, Lyon, Normandy, Provence, Paris, Toulouse-Pyrénées and the Loire Valley. There will be an
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Salvatore Ianniello, Representative India – Italian National Tourism Board Bollywood is a platform that can contribute in branding of a destination, given the fact the tour operators are well versed with the destination. Else the travellers might fall prey to deception during the process of booking destinations. Also, it is the responsibility of the Visa offices to facilitate the clients with Visas and make the whole process less tedious.
Sumathi Ramanathan, VisitBritain APMEA Director India is one of Britain's most important growth markets for inbound tourism. The latest quarterly figures show that from July to September 2016 there were 139,000 visits from India to the UK, on par with the same period the previous year, with Indian visitors spending £142 million, up 14% on the same period in 2015. accent on France's areas of expertise or "poles d'excellence" that includes gastronomy and wine tourism, ecotourism, sports, the French Alps, the French savoir-faire and nightlife. These facets will be consistently interwoven and incorporated across marketing initiatives in a very concerted and focused manner, which will send out key messages to enhance the recall of France as a leading tourism destination. Atout France India will launch our new communication campaign, ‘Made in France’ which succeeds the earlier slogan, ‘Be There! Do That!’ Made in France will showcase authentic and premium experiential holiday experiences in France and will form part of all of Atout France India’s communication, promotion and marketing endeavours. Our major communication activities in the past included a multi-media campaign focused on reinforcing tourism to Paris. This activity included the launch of a supplement showcasing authentic experiences in Paris which was circulated with a renowned travel magazine, an outdoor hoarding campaign in collaboration with Parisian partners such as Disneyland Paris and Galeries Lafayette, and a print campaign and a digital campaign with Google in partnership with a renowned tour operator.” “ Atout France India was instrumental in ‘Befikre’ promotions that included a private cocktail and screening of the movie for members of the trade and press in Mumbai which was enhanced by the presence of artists from the renowned Parisian cabaret, the Lido de Paris which is also showcased in the movie and an exclusive fashion show which was held at the Residence of France in New Delhi in collaboration with the
lifestyle brand Div’ani and Accor Pullman and Air France which had the lead actors of the film in attendance. We will continue to work in tandem with Air France, travel operators and boutique travel agencies and our French suppliers for reinforcing the new communication campaign through a slew of media activities through 2017,” she added. About the marketing plans for Italy for the upcoming year, Salvatore says, “For 2017 we have submitted a proposal and we do hope we would run a campaign this year as the bilateral relationship between India and Italy has improved and looks positive.” According to Sumathi, “In 2015 VisitBritain ran a Bollywood campaign to attract more Indian visitors to the UK by showcasing the different romantic Bollywood locations in Britain including London, Oxford, Cardiff, Manchester and Edinburgh. Tag-lines included ‘Memorable Mohabbatein in Oxford’, ‘Aaj Kal love is all over Tower Bridge’ and ‘Edinburgh mein romance ka Mausam’. As part of the campaign, VisitBritain also ran a competition to win a Bollywood-style romantic trip around Britain. She says, “VisitBritain has very recently launched a ‘#OMGB (Oh My GREAT Britain) Home of Amazing Moments’ marketing campaign in India to inspire more Indians to visit the UK. The campaign showcases the diversity of incredible experiences and amazing moments that can only be had across Britain’s nations and regions. It is part of the UK Government’s global GREAT Britain campaign which highlights the very best of what Britain has to offer as a place to visit, study, invest and do business.” According to Huzan, “We are
currently working with leading travel trade across Mumbai and Delhi on joint co-operative marketing campaigns which are set to roll out to consumers from March onwards. The campaigns will run across a variety of mediums, including print, digital and radio advertising. Additionally, later in the year, we also plan to launch a digital marketing campaign promoting the filming locations of the Game of Thrones series in Northern Ireland. The campaign will bring Ireland to the attention of Game of Thrones fans in India in a fun and innovative way. Through the campaign, we will spike their curiosity about the landscapes and locations featured in the series and inspire them to come and explore them for themselves.” Upcoming events and exhibitions Sheetal says “Atout France will organise its biggest global buyerseller meet, Rendez-vous en France in Rouen, Normandy in March. India will be represented by a delegation of 27 travel professionals that includes travel agencies from key Indian cities and B2B press. This trade showcase will provide the perfect platform for establishing and maintaining commercial synergies between the Indian delegation and French suppliers. Familiarisation trips organised by different regions pre and post the showcase will also help the delegation get an educative experience of what the potential Indian traveller could expect on their next French sojourn.” “In addition to Rendezvous en France, Atout France regularly organises thematic B2B showcases that focus on select domains such as Grand Ski which focuses on presenting France as a winter destination and which takes place every year in January,
France Meeting Hub that focuses on the MICE segment and takes place in September-October. In addition, we also have bi-annual tradeshows such as Destination Vignobles that showcases wine trails in France and also a special workshop on spiritual tourism. In addition, in India, towards the last week of October Atout France India will also organise its annual B2B showcase, Rendezvous en France. Diverting from its usual 3 city format, the showcase will, for the first time, assume the form of an offsite and take place in Goa.” Sheetal adds. Salvatore says, “Last year in November we organised Festa Italiana, a 10 day event to celebrate Italian lifestyle. The event brought together the best Italy can offer to India in terms of food, fashion, design, tourism and entertainment with variety of activities taking place in different locations across the city of Mumbai. This year we plan to conduct a Road show – Primarily for the promotion of the destination in 3 major cities like Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata in the month of November.” Huzan says, “Tourism Ireland plans to hosts its India Sales Mission in September 2016. The mission will be attended by hotels, attractions, DMCs and other products and services from across India and it will be held in Delhi and Mumbai. The sales mission will provide the Irish industry a chance to engage and build relationships with the Indian travel trade. Tourism Ireland will also celebrate Ireland’s St Patrick’s Day with a consumer-led event in Mumbai in March 2017. The event will have Irish music and dance present and is aimed at increasing awareness of the island of Ireland among potential Indian travellers.”
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ADVENTURE TOURisM IN INDIA! game on...
Tejbir Singh Anand, the former President of ATOAI and Mandip Singh Soin, Founder & Managing Director, Ibex Expeditions Pvt. Ltd, India, talk about the latest trends in the adventure tourism industry. ANJU ANNA ALEX
Mandip Singh Soin, Founder & Managing Director, Ibex Expeditions Pvt. Ltd, India As per growth per say, things are looking very positive for the adventure tourism segment with more players entering into the market, more customers open to trying something new and more demand for experiential travel.
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un-of-the-mill adventure activities like trekking, cycling, hiking, camping etc. and has made way for extreme adventure activities including bungee jumping, sky diving, rappelling, paragliding, kayaking etc. With the gradual shift towards a more advanced world in terms of Globalization, consumer activities have experienced a profound transformation. The routine getaway of the everyday tourists has been replaced to a great extent by experiences that are more authentic and moreover unique. As per the reports from 2015, 69% of global travelers aspire to try some novel, something that they are previously unaccustomed to, in 2016. This also indicates that millennials plan to be more adventurous by engaging in more challenging activities. Adventure tourism has therefore been catering
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to the new generation tourists who prefer venturing out into the unknown rather than joining the crowd. In the opinion of Mandip Singh Soin, Founder & Managing Director, Ibex Expeditions Pvt. Ltd, India ,“As per growth per say, things are looking very positive for the adventure tourism segment with more players entering into the market, more customers open to trying something new and more demand for experiential travel. The Achilles Heel though in the adventure tourism segment, is the entry of many uncertified tour operators and agents who sell adventure without adequate expertise or knowledge about safety and environment�. Though the industry is still reeling under the sudden demonetization
move, the demand in the market for adventure tourism is gradually on the rise due to the increasing amount of disposable income and the way adventure tourism can pique the interest of the customers through exciting experiential holidays. The burgeoning Indian middle class can now afford the luxury of a holiday and a greater percentage of them choose transformative adventurous outings. This demand for adventure tourism is affected to a great extent by the varying consumer expectations, improving technological infrastructure and the demographics of the specific region. Another reason behind the increasing demand is the low barrier level for the companies to enter the adventure tourism markets. In the year 2012, arrivals of global
tourism surpassed one billion, which also resulted in the increment of arrivals in adventure tourism. In 2010, the George Washington University, the ATTA and Xola Consulting together, conducted the first study of the market sizing of global adventure tourism and it was observed that the value of adventure tourism globally, was USD 89 billion. In the following two years, the demand surged and it was observed through yet another similar study that 42 percent of the total travelers embarked on adventure trips which resulted in the net worth of the sector becoming close to a staggering USD 263 billion at the end of 2013, an incredible increase of 195 percent in just 2 years. Factors like average expenditure, the number of international departures and the number of travelers who
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Tejbir Singh Anand, the former President of ATOAI Adventure tourism has grown exponentially in terms of market size over the years. All categories of people, ranging from school groups to families to corporate groups, especially between the age group of 12-40, are increasingly coming forward to savour the exhilaration of a plethora of adventure sports in one single trip. choose adventure trips have also increased. Latest Trends The global travel industry is on a trail of growth, led by Asian and US travellers, The number of outbound trips is likely to increase by about 4 – 5% next year. Also, despite 2016 being a year of political unrest, upheavals and terror attacks, the overall volume of foreign trips remained unchanged. Tejbir Singh Anand, the former President of ATOAI says “Adventure tourism has grown exponentially in terms of market size over the years. All categories of people, ranging from school groups to families to corporate groups, especially between the age group of 12-40, are increasingly coming forward to savour the exhilaration
of a plethora of adventure sports in one single trip. Both corporate as well as educational institutions have become more discerning to the importance of sports based activities for holistic health and for nurturing the love for the environment. This would also entail that people are interested to experiment with multiple activities in a single trip. Technological advancements with respect to the internet and mobile phones have been revolutionary for tourism in general and have catapulted adventure tourism to a whole new level by being the much needed thrust to the industry resulting in a growth in the segment.” In other words, technological innovations are making the travelling process more convenient by helping them to dream, plan, book and experience. The noteworthy increase in demand
has resulted in the emergence of new markets in adventure tourism. Referring to the facts, of the total international departures 69 percent of it originates in North or South America and Europe. In the years 2009 and 2010 South America has emerged as potential adventure tourism partaker with an increase from 1.4 percent to a decent 8 percent of all departures consisting of hard adventure enthusiasts while the soft adventure lovers increased by 5 percent. Reports also expose that Chinese travelers have spent the most in adventure tourism markets. Favorable rates of exchange for Chinese and Russian travelers due to inbound tourism will be beneficial for developing economies. On the other hand, reduced power of purchasing of their currency in
the United Kingdom has resulted in increasing levels of tourism. Tejbir explains, “India stands as a relatively new yet growing market for adventure tourism and is gaining popularity amongst young travelers and travel groups. Adventure travel to foreign destinations is still aspirational to Indian outbound tourists though New Zealand, Switzerland and Cape Town have been thriving as favourite adventure spots for Indians. Indians still favour Indian adventure destinations like Rishikesh and Dharmshala as compared to foreign destinations.” Adventure travel provides a multitude of opportunities for India, which offers unique destinations for exploration and adventure. India has a plethora of both soft and hard adventure activities that can be
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carried out by any traveller. Mandip says, “Ladakh, Uttarakhand, Kashmir Valley are hot spots for adventure tourism in India. The State of Uttarakhand has seen a surge in the number of boutique hotels offering relaxed adventure experiences with activities like trekking for the general traveler. On the contrary, we have destinations in the North East for the hardy adventure enthusiasts. The novel concept of Yoga Trek is gaining marketability. Cultural destinations offer a blend of adventure and cultural experience, creating a niche of their own. The same applies to wild life adventure destinations like Madhya Pradesh” In terms of the top adventure activities in India with respect to domestic and foreign tourist estimates, jeep safaris, trekking and camping have emerged as the most popular land-based adventure tourism activities. Water rafting, house boat stays and boat safaris are the most popular water-based adventure activities whereas parasailing, paragliding and hot air ballooning have become the most popular air based adventure tourism activities.
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Commenting about the prevailing Indian outbound scene Mandip says, “The number of outbound travelers is twice as compared to inbound travelers and continues to grow at a fast pace. Ibex caters to travelers or adventure enthusiasts who like to undertake journeys to unique, exotic locations which are less frequented by tourists. Less explored destinations like Peru, Chile, Siberia, Mongolia, Madagascar etc. finds a place on Ibex’s adventure itinerary. However, service tax being levied even from outbound travelers is quite disconcerting and might come in the way of outbound tourism.” Online portal development and the affordability of the Internet have altered the scenario of mass adventure tourism drastically. This impact is however larger in case of the demand side than the supply side. The consumers avail the wide range of valuable information and tools provided to them by the internet which includes the immensely reliable and effected customer generated reviews. For instance, the total number of reviews in TripAdvisor, a popular website for travel reviews reached a staggering
150 million in February 2014 and the annual count of website visitors stands at more than 2 billion. Because of easy Internet access travelers feel more confident about their destination and the journey they are embarking upon. Tejbir explains, “Travellers could thoroughly chalk out a potential plan of the journey, a tentative sketch of the route map and obtain food and lodging facilities beforehand by virtue of all the information gathered from the Internet. They have firsthand access to destination images, videos, reviews, weather reports and even maps and guides. In a word, the Internet has made the adventure tourism sector nonlinear.” He describes, “The internet has led to the death of those agents and intermediaries who have failed to keep up with the pace of technological advancements. Concurrently, it has been an impetus in the sky-rocketing of sales of those agents who were fast to evolve with the rapidly changing trends of the digital realm.” This ‘disintermediation’ is augmented through frequently opted online
systems of booking which allow customers to book services through online access. Statistics developed through recent studies indicate that 71 percent of the adventure travelers of the United States of America prefer to make travelling arrangements entirely on their own. In recent years the trend in adventure tourism has always been towards disintermediation which refers to the removal of the mediator or the middle man. Nowadays with online accessibility of required information and consumer reviews, one can directly connect to the provider without any mediation.” Search Engine Optimization has also been instrumental in developing adventure tourism markets. Surveys show that 58 percent of travelers begin their travel planning process with a general Internet search. The impact on social media on growth of adventure tourism market has also been instrumental nonetheless. Improvement on mobile device technology has also been monumental in affording easy accessibility of information while on vacation. In fact, 42% of travel
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enthusiasts search for info using their mobile devices or tablets Mandip, however, cautions about “….players who enter the market without proper knowledge, adherence to safety standards or respect for nature thanks to the easy access that technology offers”, referring to the unauthorized tour operators who come into the market time and again. Naïve first time adventure travelers fall for the gimmicks of online sellers who fail miserably at living up to the customer expectation. “It is always best to go to reliable travel operators who are certified by the Adventure Tour Operators Association of India (ATOAI). In the best interest of the travelers, The ATOAI strictly maintains that all tour operators must comply with the basic minimum safety standards that they have outlined in terms of personnel, procedures and equipment”, he added. He also warns, “Sometimes there can be too much pressure on certain specific destinations leading to issues like overcrowding by tourists in particular areas which further culminates in social and
environmental issues for that region” Popular adventure activities In Austria, Norway and Switzerland, Skiing and Snowboarding are taken up by 25 percent of the whole population. And, out of those skiers 44 percent visit the Alps and the Eastern European mountains. The general trend shows that in North America skiers tend to stay as close to home as possible while in Europe Skiers prefer crossing borders in order to get adventure. Manali, Auli, Gulmarg, Pahalgam etc. have emerged as the top skiing destinations in India. Recent trends indicate a hike in cycling adventures with adventure investing in both road cycling and mountain cycling markets. About 44 billion Euros annually come into the adventure markets in Europe through cycling trips amounting to 2.3 billion, as per reports of the European Cyclists Federation. The trend is yet to catch up in India. In the United States of America and to a certain extent in Asia, backpacking trends are on the rise. Travelers upon reaching a destination often tend to stay and explore the place for a few days thus having a deeper impact on
the regional economy. 18.1% of North Americans as well as 26.4% of Canadians have undertaken a hike ranging over a day while 7 percent Canadians and 4 percent Americans preferred overnight trips of backpacking. Hostelling International boasts of a mighty 4 million worldwide members, a large chunk of them being backpackers. Non-traditional destinations for tourists such as Liberia, El Salvador and Peru are venturing out with their surfing assets enticing the non-surfing population to invest in their markets. In the ten years’ interval between 2001 and 2011 number of worldwide surfers increased from a paltry 26 million to a considerable 36 million. Unfortunately, it is regarded as a fringe adventure activity. Future of the industry Mandip says, “The safety standards have to be improved, the environment has been cared for and travel operators need to strictly adhere to the rules drawn up by the ATOAI.” Reports of the UNWTO (United Nations Worldwide Tourism Organization) suggests a prediction of 1.8 billion global arrivals by the end of 2030 showing
double pace in the increment of international tourism growth. Having said that, there is a need to make further investments in these markets and develop a fair understanding of the market in the countries where the knowledge is somewhat limited. Underdeveloped countries will benefit immensely from the active increment of the adventure tourism market which requires considerable investments from top class investors. Overall, the prospects of adventure travel companies look bright. In order to tap the maximum potential from the emerging new markets, tour operators need to adjust their marketing strategies by incorporating novelty into their products. Adventure tourism is responsible for adding value to the lives of the travelers as they embark for an experience-based journey and connect with the local people through enriching interactions. Within the purview of the global context, adventure tourism builds within us a sense of respect for the natural and cultural aspects of the earth and incorporates the general values of tourism-wellness and tolerance, within the traveler.
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TOURISM APPS FOR THE SMART TRAVELLER-INFORMATION ON THE GO
Increased usage of smartphones and mobile internet is changing the way NTOs are gaining proximity with travellers so that they do not have to look beyond their phones for information. IRENE SUSAN EAPEN
Lubaina Sheerazi, India Representative, Ministry of Tourism – Oman The Oman tourism app includes self-guided, audio tours narrated by local experts and provide travelers with a firsthand experience of seeing a place through the eyes of locals. The app contains 80+ points of interest with informative audio content across major destinations like Muscat, Al Sharqiyah, Al Dakhliya, Al Batinah, Dhofar and Musandam.
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pplications (commonly called as apps) have become pervasive across various spheres and the travel industry is one of the top industries to capitalize on them. National Tourism Organizations (NTOs) have taken to launching of apps to promote their destinations through tourism apps that can be downloaded for iOS and Android smartphones. Tourism Apps help generate business especially through its special features highlighting the information of tourist attractions, local events, activities, festivals, accommodations, restaurants, panoramic photos, audio guide, augmented reality function and the offline events. The audio guided tours are generally narrated by local experts who describe each attraction in its splendour and local stories.
Voyager’s World > February 2017
One can download these tourism apps for free and can also access the app in English language for other information like travel service centers, police stations and hospitals, parking lots, train/bus stations. The app is also a self-guide or virtual guide that helps travellers find well-known places for shopping, eateries and free availability of Wi-Fi. Although very few NTOs have tourism apps, many of them are not far behind; they are still in the process of launching tourism apps in a span of few years. The NTOs are now observing an increasing number of downloads of the tourism app and expects good growth in the flow of visitors at the sightseeing spots. The apps can also be used to promote other activities of a
destination through campaigns or contests on the app. Growth in the industry Arzan Khambatta, Head of MGTO India, states, "There has been a positive growth after the launch of tourism apps in Macao, not only in terms of expansion in the service area but also in terms of convenience to the public. The app has helped visitors and residents in knowing the diversity, culture and hidden gems of the city, while also diverting the flow of visitors from the most visited spots and fostering community tourism development." Special features on an App in promoting the main attractions. Arzan explains, "Our ‘What’s on Macao’ app helps one to check
out Macao's splendid events offline through its colorful and handy interfaces. The special features of the app is designed with information can be viewed offline once downloaded that includes reminders about the start and end of the event. One can also add their favorite events to "My Events" or on the calendar for easier trip planning and one can automatically search for any nearby activities around the location as in line with the GPS function.” “Step Out, Macao, is another app that has been specially designed for visitors and residents to enjoy easy access to information about the eight walking tour routes. One can experience the memorable moments while staying in Macao,
India Outbound
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Noel Saxena, Country Head, Taiwan Tourism Bureau, India The “Tour Taiwan” app offers the users easy access to information on attractions, accommodations, and transportation.This app provides tourist information including directions, guidance and tour planning with augmented reality on restraints, hotels, scenic spots, businesses and more in Taiwan. We have noticed an increasing number of downloads of the app ever since its launch.
Arzan Khambatta, Head , MGTO India We noticed a positive growth after the launch of tourism apps in Macao, in terms of expansion in the service and in convenience for the public. The app helps the visitors and residents in knowing the diversity, culture and hidden gems of the city. The app also guides and acknowledges everyone about the latest tourist attractions and monthly highlights from local events.
with the app that helps making the trip easy by creating by employing the audio guide and augmented reality function. The features include information of tourist spots, shows and entertainment, accommodations and restaurants, 360-degree panorama photos, Audio guide, Trip planner, offline map, AR (Augmented Reality) function and game,” he added. Lubaina Sheerazi, India Representative, Ministry of Tourism – Oman, says, “The Oman tourism app was developed in partnership with AudioCompass. One of the most unique things we have done with our app is to include self-guided, location awareness with audio tours are narrated by local experts, apart from providing information about popular attractions. The app for Oman contains 80+ points of interest with informative audio content across major destinations including Muscat, Al Sharqiyah, Al Dakhliya, Al Batinah, Dhofar and Musandam."
Noel Saxena, Country Head, Taiwan Tourism Bureau, India, “This app provides tourist information including directions, guidance and tour planning with augmented reality on restraints, hotels, scenic spots, businesses and more in Taiwan. The app offers the following information on over 16,000 location-based services visitor sites, accommodations and dining, travel service centres, police stations, hospitals, parking lots and train/bus stations. The “Tour Taiwan” app is available for free download in English language and gives users easy access to information on attractions, accommodations and transportation.” "The app also has an augmented reality Goldfinger "Direction Guide" to help visitors find the way to nearby attractions, giving them a personal virtual guide. There has been an increasing number of downloads of the app ever since its launch. This virtual guide helps the Indian travellers find Indian food, the best
places to shop and the places to visit in Taiwan with ease. Another thing that has made the use of App even easier is Free and unlimited availability of Wi-Fi for all the tourists throughout Taiwan,” he added. Arzan explains, "Our app is basically to guide and acknowledge everyone about Macao's latest tourist attractions and monthly highlights from local events, activities, festivals, performances to exhibitions. We have noticed a positive change in attitude of people through usage of the app." Lubaina says, "We have created newsletters and shared it with Trade and media to create awareness about the existence of the Oman Tourism App. The app has facilitated the travel of Indian tourists while visiting Oman." Other activities on apps Arzan says, "We do have different contests and campaigns on the app. For instance, we recently had a
contest ‘Show Selfies for Souvenir’, wherein one had to download the ‘Step Out, Macau’ app then click the “Camera” icon, choose a walking route, each route has two selected shooting spots, take selfies with the selected attractions and redeem a souvenir by presenting the selfies to their staff at the Tourist Information of MGTO. It was an interesting engagement activity wherein the announced lucky winners won prizes.” As one witnesses a rapid proliferation of smartphones and the use of internet for travel information, one can expect more destination apps to be launched by NTOs as well as state tourism boards. They will be encouraged to use mobile apps instead of the desktop or laptop and over time, competition will lead to competitive pricing and package offers on these apps to draw people from other modes of travel research and booking.
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India Outbound
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Abu Dhabi records 323,388 Indian arrivals in 2016
Bejan Dinshaw, Country Manager, Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority – India, talks about the growing number of Indian tourists and their stay patterns in the recent past. IRENE SUSAN EAPEN are expecting to surpass our last year’s percentage of Indian tourist visiting our destination,” said Bejan Dinshaw, Country Manager of Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority India.
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bu Dhabi received a record 323,388 Indian guests in its hotels in 2016, thereby making efforts to maximize business from this potential market. Indians registered a longer-than-average stay of 3.05 nights and the overall guest nights stood at 987,738 which made it a 15% year-over-year increase. “India has been and will remain the best overseas source market for Abu Dhabi. In 2017, we
Attractions Al Ain Oasis has been opened as the UAE’s first curated UNESCO World Heritage site for visitor experiences. Spread over 1,200 hectares and containing more than 147,000 date palms of up to 100 different varieties, this impressive oasis is filled with palm plantations, many of which are still working farms. The African Safari at Al Ain Zoo is another great project which is being promoted in the Indian market. The visitors get an opportunity to see more than 250 animals including the Scimitar Oryx, Springbok, eland, blesbok, giraffe, zebra and 38 native and
African plants. Another upcoming location for tourist appeal is Saadiyat Island. Saadiyat Island is undergoing a remarkable transformation into world class leisure, residential, business and cultural hub of global proportions, housing the world's largest single concentration of premier cultural assets. These will include the Zayed National Museum, Louvre Abu Dhabi and Guggenheim Abu Dhabi - all designed by Pritzker prize winners. Films, leisure and MICE Abu Dhabi has huge potential as a MICE destination and is also an upcoming destination for weddings. “Last year we noticed few Indian weddings at our destination and this year, few others are in the pipeline. Some of the well-known Indian movies like Dishooom, Airlift, and Welcome Back were shot in Abu Dhabi.”
Indian travellers “We have had outbound travellers from both Tier 1 and 2 cities of India. Travellers to Abu Dhabi range from adventure seekers, shoppers, food lovers, and families. We have observed that Indians spend at least three nights at the destination. They indulge in adventure sports, shopping, beaches, and gastronomy.” Bejan takes in the fact that Indian travellers are much more informed these days as the internet has opened up the gate for in-depth information about any destination. “Travellers have now started making their own bookings rather than depending on the travel agents. We have a new trend of young generation inclined towards exploring new destinations. Travellers are now more into adventure sports and offbeat travel experiences,” he stated.
South African Tourism Organizes Four-City Roadshow-2017
65-member South African Tourism Trade Delegation visits Chennai, Bangalore, Delhi and Mumbai. Hotels,
attractions, regional tourism offices and quality assurance bodies met travel agents across India to gear up for 2017 ANJU ANNA ALEX
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he four-city initiative hosted by South African Tourism offered a spectacular opportunity for travel agents in Chennai, Bangalore, Delhi and Mumbai to interact with a variety of suppliers from these cities. The event catered to the growing demands of hotel chains, airlines, products, attractions, destination management companies and local tourism offices that were keen on networking and deal-making with Indian agents. The 14th Edition of SA Tourism India has set the pace for growth during the year ahead. Hanneli Slabber, Country Manager, SA Tourism India said, “It helps us get a feel of the market and through B2B exchange acts as a catalyst for conversion to bookings in the coming months.”
Voyager’s World > February 2017
This year’s roadshow was very important because it was the first time that the delegation included the participation of the South African Tourism Services Association (SATSA) and the Tourism Grading Council South Africa (TGCSA). “These bodies can provide a certain quality assurance to travellers and travel agents, which is imperative as the market grows and begins looking at newer locations within the destination. It is also important when return travellers come into the fray as they might want to book direct” Hanneli said. Regional tourism offices that were part of the roadshow included Joburg Tourism, Cape Town Tourism, Durban Tourism, Buffalo City, Oudtshoorn Tourism, Plattenberg Tourism and Gauteng Tourism.
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Incredible India
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Sicily beckons Indian filmmakers and event planners
Daniela Marino, Director of Operations, Sicilia Convention Bureau, says Sicily has it all for Indian filmmakers and event planners looking for new locales. IRENE SUSAN EAPEN partnership with Venture Marketing; our India representative will promote Sicily and its opportunities for MICE, from providers to venues and from entertaining activities to gastronomy.”
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he Sicilia Convention Bureau (SCB) recently appointed Venture Marketing as its India representative to provide one stop MICE information for event planners in India. Daniela Marino, SCB’s Director of Operations, is optimistic about 2017 following its expansion in the Indian market. “In 2017 we expect to contribute to this growth especially with our
Upcoming plans Film tourism is fast growing in Sicily with the destination having a prestigious track record of being the backdrop of famous movies like ‘The Godfather’, ‘Il Gattopardo’ (The Leopard), ‘Cinema Paradiso’, to name a few. Local and regional institutions are increasingly investing in the development of the industry to host new international film productions. SCB supports these plans and is working to build up a network of partners which can favour the improvement of business
from films, MICE, weddings and food.
location for a unique wedding experience all year round.
The SCB is planning to tap new MICE target markets, invest in the improvement of the international quality standards of local providers and increase marketing activities. Daniela informs that the bureau would work very closely with the Indian film industry, besides engaging with corporate and intermediary planners.
Noting trends driven by technology and social engagements for events, Daniela says that clients want to spend more on activities that enable them to experience local life. She also observes that incentive travels maintain a positive trend and that team-building activities are making a comeback.
MICE products Sicily offers several locations for any type of meeting and event and offers.“We have a multipurpose congress centre with 1200 seats and over 100 hotels with meeting facilities that can host from 200 to 900 delegates. Sicily is the ideal
As a result, the SCB also offers activities to entertain clients coming on an incentive trip with options to add value to their events with creative and innovative solutions, such as cooking classes, car racing, vintage tours, golf tournaments, shopping tours, grape harvest by night and fun games.
MICE venues re-inforce Hyderabad as a premium destination
Gorav Arora, Director of Sales & Marketing, Novotel Hyderabad Convention Centre & HICC, shares his views on how the venues have boosted Hyderabad’s image as a MICE destination. IRENE SUSAN EAPEN last year. We forecast the IT, Medical sciences, aerosciences, defence, agriculture, financial services and engineering services to perform strongly. The real estate segment may observe a dip. These trends would be observed due to factors like the push for Make in India campaign and the demonetization move by the government.”
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he Hyderabad International Convention Centre (HICC) and the Novotel Hyderabad Convention Centre (NHCC) have been integral to the growth of the MICE movement in the region, thereby helping catapult Hyderabad to the top four Indian MICE cities based on the number of events conducted. Gorav Arora, the Director of Sales & Marketing, NHCC and HICC, says, “We have seen the growth of MICE over the
Voyager’s World > February 2017
Events in MICE and weddings The HICC is India’s one of South Asia’s most renowned MICE venues and has added another magnificent feather to its metaphorical hat by clinching the prestigious ‘Best Standalone Convention Centre’ National Tourism Award, conferred by the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India. This was the fifth time that the worldclass Convention Centre picked up the coveted award, underlining its significant contribution to the global
and national MICE segment over the years, as well as reinforcing Hyderabad’s status as a premium MICE destination. “A major chunk of our business is international and national MICE; the events done in 2016 include International Conference on Infectious Diseases, Internet Corporation of Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) Global Meeting, Annual Scientific meeting of the Research Society of Study of Diabetes – RSSDI, NASSCOM Gamers and Developers Conference, IBSAF World Snooker Championship- India Open, among others. We have also hosted some of the grandest social events of the city over the last year, including the most spoken weddings of the year.” Proximity to HITEC City, the biggest IT
hub of the region, makes it an ideal destination for business travellers seeking a relaxing stay in a resort-like ambience. The demand for healthy food during MICE events is seeing an upsurge, with discerning delegates having specific dietary requests. To cater to this, hotels are curating and delivering unique food and beverage offerings so as to cater to these demands on a larger scale. He estimates North America, the biggest source market, to perform at around 20 - 25% + , followed by West Europe at around 15- 20% , East Asia ( including Japan &China ) at 20-25% and South Asia at 7-10%. “These markets are expected to continue performing as India forges closer business ties in these regions and continues to remain as the preferred destination for foreign direct investment in emerging markets.”
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BIEC Celebrating the First Steps in a Milestone Journey V.Anbu, CEO, Bangalore International Exhibition Centre, talks about BIEC’s journey over the years leading to the 10th Anniversary Celebrations and how it has carved a prestigious standing for itself. ANJU ANNA ALEX
BIEC's institution and growth over the past 10 years The first 10 years of Bangalore International Exhibition Centre’s (BIEC) journey is just a baby step towards realizing larger goals. Fortyeight years ago, 1969 to be precise, a movement took place on India’s manufacturing horizon which would change its destiny forever. Having witnessed first-hand how large-scale exhibitions propelled economy in Europe and USA, the think-tanks of India’s machine tool industry decided to follow suit. Indian Machine Tool Manufacturers’ Association (IMTMA) began organizing its flagship exhibition IMTEX in Bombay. Europeans and Americans were able to organize exhibitions with elan as they had the necessary infrastructure to host grand-scale shows. This happened to be a deterrent factor for the industry in India since we didn’t have a world-class infrastructure conducive enough to showcase innovations and technologies and develop Indian manufacturing. IMTMA began rolling the wheel for developing one after the shows kept shuttling between Mumbai and New Delhi. Bengaluru was shortlisted for the many advantages it offered for the manufacturing industry. A good number of machine tool manufacturers had their base in South Indian cities such as Bengaluru, Coimbatore and Chennai. The city was also gifted in terms of good infrastructure such as road, rail and airport connectivity. IMTMA created a state-of-the-art facility and named it after Naval Pirojsha Godrej who was instrumental in shaping IMTEX. The exhibition centre was thus named The IMTMA Naoroji Pirojsha Godrej International Exhibition & Conference Complex is popularly known as BIEC.
Facilities and Certifications IMTMA opened BIEC by organizing its flagship exhibition IMTEX in 2007. The following year in 2008, BIEC got LEED certification from the US Green Building Council. Back then India was at the cusp of a green building revolution and many infrastructure projects were opting for green standards. IMTMA too felt that an exhibition centre will be considered world class when it is built as a green building inculcating global best practices without making any adverse impact on environment. LEED certification gave BIEC its own unique position as a venue. It demonstrates the venue’s green aspects such as usage of fly ash bricks in construction, maintaining the topography of the land, waste water management, efficient energy management, CFC free air conditioning, and maintaining 30% of the land under green cover. Exhibition centres need to keep up quality, standards and process to sustain in the market. In that endeavour BIEC felt a need to have a certification which could make it more process driven to manage its quality standards. Six years after it got LEED certified, BIEC obtained IMS certification in 2014. BIEC was accredited with all the 3 critical management systems ISO 9001 (Quality Management System), ISO 14001 (Environmental Management System) and OHSAS 18001 (Occupational Health and Safety Management System). IMS certification affirms BIEC’s commitment to environment and health and safety aspects in the exhibition industry and exhibition infrastructure. In its first year in 2007 when it was newly built, BIEC hosted 8 shows. Today on an average it hosts close to 30 shows in a year. In its first 10 years BIEC has hosted more than 220 shows occupying over 1500 days. The exhibitions organized at BIEC have in many ways positively impacted Indian as well as international exhibition industry. BIEC’s international quality infrastructure and service have attracted organizers from wide spectrum of industries. Leading exhibition organizers from
India such as Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI), Indian Electrical & Electronics Manufacturers’ Association (IEEMA), Tool and Gauge Manufacturers Association (TAGMA), Federation of Indian Mineral Industries (FIMI), Federation of Indian Granite & Stone Industry (FIGSI), Indian Society of Heating Refrigerating and Air Conditioning (ISHRAC), and Electronic Industries Association of India (EIAI) have been organizing their shows here. Leading international organizers such as Hannover Messe, Messe Munich India, Koelnmesse, UBM Asia, Nürnberg Messe, Pacific Asia Travel Association, Taiwan External Development Council, etc. also hold many of their exhibitions at BIEC. Notable Events The Government of India and the Government of Karnataka have patronized BIEC by holding several of their events such as PATA, Mobile One e-Governance, Pravasi Bharatiya Divas, etc. and in the process bringing delegates and participants from a wide range of countries. The Pravasi Bharatiya Divas 2017 organized by the Ministry of External Affairs and the Government of Karnataka was a historic occasion as both the President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee who gave the valedictory address and the Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi who delivered the keynote address and the Chief Minister of Karnataka, Shri Siddaramaiah who also addressed the gathering, came together for an event at BIEC. Accolades BIEC has been taking a lead to promote brand India and Bangalore at a global level. BIEC’s participation
in international forums like UFI Congress, ICCA, IAEE, AFECA, etc. have lifted up India’s image significantly. This has led to several international organizers putting BIEC in their priority list of venues in South East Asia and when it comes to organizing events in India. BIEC has been recognized by the exhibition industry for its work. It got the Excellence in Services award in the Exhibition Excellence Awards 2016. The key factors that contributed to our success included: (a) a quality infrastructure to suit every need of the exhibition organizer; (b) process driven approach; (c) customer friendly skilled service providers and manpower to execute tasks; (d) understanding the customer requirement; (e) providing safety and security to organizers, exhibitors and visitors; (f) experienced and proactive staff to handle the challenges of organizing exhibitions of any scale right from set-up to dismantling. Expansion Plans With the Indian exhibition industry slated to grow by around 12 to 15% annually show organizers were looking for increased space for showcasing their machinery and equipments during exhibitions. Keeping this in view BIEC charted out its expansion plan. It created a new state-of-theart exhibition hall of 17,500 square metres, an add-on to the existing facility the hall is the largest pillarless exhibition hall in India. This hall was recently inaugurated. IMTEX was the first exhibition to be held in this hall. BIEC will be constructing another hall of similar size in future and in the process increase the gross area for exhibitions upto 1,00,000 square metres. Show organizers can look forward for additional exhibit space at BIEC.
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Key variables influence travel behaviour of corporates...
Times are good for the business traveller as the influx of OTAs, corporate travel planners and airlines have become variable determinants of pricing and value-additions for travel bookings. Here is a look at the latest trends and offers that the corporate traveller is inundated with. PRIYAMVADHA BALARAM
Business Travel Trends The ATPI Group recently unveiled the new version of its popular ATPI On The Go mobile app now syncs traveller profiles across all proprietary systems to make its services more efficient for its customers. . The most recent upgrade means that business travellers can update their personal profile information on the move, knowing that their records will be automatically amended, with for example, frequent flyer and loyalty scheme details or passport information across all of ATPI’s systems. To ensure due diligence is paid to travellers’ duty of care, ATPI On The Go includes a travel directory of local emergency contact details around the world, plus easy access to the ATPI offices directory for local assistance when necessary. A useful mobile wallet function is also available where travellers can store photocopies of passports and visas, a facility which can prove vital in the
Voyager’s World > February 2017
case of lost or stolen documents. Essential for busy travellers the app has the ability to push notifications when flights are delayed and to browse all itinerary elements – including flight, rail, hotel and car reservations – all in one place. Kiran Vinchhi, Regional Managing Director, ATPI India, said, “ATPI is committed to providing excellence in every booking interaction as we endeavour to extend forward-looking solutions that will ensure our clients enjoy a smooth world-class service. We are positive that our clients will be pleased with the app's ease of use and its significant practicality.” “We are also confident that our clients will value the ability of managing their travel while on the go – through the mobile app. By developing innovative mobile solutions and applications, we are pleased to be able to give our clients the ability to efficiently contour their booking options.” ATPI On The Go, which customers
of the leading global travel management and events business can download for free, also allows customers to save their flight booking information in Apple Wallet, formerly known as Passbook. The ATPI Group has a network of over 100 offices worldwide and has successful operations in corporate travel, shipping and energy travel, sports and corporate event management. The ATPI Group is at the forefront of travel technology development including online booking, system integration and data analytics. Recent research by Carlson Wagonlit Travel’s (CWT) Solutions Group found that corporations could reduce travel over-spend by up to 15 percent by enforcing existing corporate travel policies. The latest white paper launched in December 2016 focused on the challenges of travel policy compliance and how to influence the behavior of travellers. Encouraging travellers to comply with a company’s travel policy can make a big difference.
The white paper: Behavior Management: a new way to think about an old problem focuses on increasing travel data visibility, and increasing traveller responsibility with the aim to have business travellers stay within the corporate travel policy. Katie Raddatz, head of the CWT’s Solutions Group Americas, said, “Travel departments spend significant time and resources getting the best corporate deals to keep costs down. But often travellers think the policy might not apply to them or they just don’t know the policy. Effectively enforcing compliance is often one of the hardest parts of travel management, but also the area with significant missed savings.” Solutions Group has developed a proven traveller engagement system, Traveller 360 (T360), which looks at the entire compass to find every possible way to reach and educate the traveller to increase policy compliance and recapture
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significant missed savings. This targeted approach provides the tools for non-travel professionals to actively manage traveller behavior. The four stages of T360 include: 1. Analyze - Start with an analysis of the potential savings and the different traveller segments to uncover non-compliance issues. 2. Educate - Traveller scorecards are created to educate stakeholders by using terms and language they use with a format that can be immediately executed. 3. Engage - Traveller scorecards, containing individualized reports, are sent directly to the traveller. The clear information in the reports makes it easier for managers to speak to employees about their booking behavior. 4. Compete – Creating a traveller gamification program promotes positive traveller behavior by introducing motivating, game-like elements that provides incentives to
travellers to stay compliant. As far as the APAC region was concerned, business growth would be driven by China and India and more code sharing and LCCs dominating aviation. Some more Asian carriers are likely to join traditional alliances and long haul low cost carriers will also be emerging trends. Asia Pacific cities have the highest occupancy rates in the world for the upcoming year. The law of supply and demand will create interesting dynamics in India and China. In India, the excess construction of global chains has created too much supply, exceeding the demand, thereby creating opportunities for buyers for negotiations. Challenges With airlines constantly waging fare wars, every other month, it is the flyer who gets to benefit from them. Yet, when they run promotional campaigns opening limited booking offers, most often than not, flyers
find it difficult to get the fare they see or fail to understand how the marketing gimmicks work. While the need to travel is still there. Frequent business travellers ask for access to business lounges, first class travel and hotel arrangements; hence companies have to design their travel budgets in a way as to keep costs at a certain level. While people talk about technology pervading all levels of travel on the one hand, a lot of people still find it difficult to book a LCC flight. There are several issues pertaining to booking the seat, hand luggage, meals onboard, window seats and making reservations in the first 10 rows, for instance. With varying demands on part of the employees and rising airfare and different airline policies, it is quite a challenge for companies to draw up a costeffective, value for money travel and accommodation plan. Corporate Traveller, in partnership with British Airways and GLH Hotels, had recently announced the Office
Hero Campaign to recognise and celebrate unsung office achievers across the country. Aimed specifically at office assistants and managers who keep office operations running smoothly, the Office Hero initiative by Corporate Traveller will offer a journey of a lifetime – an all-expense-paid holiday to the most popular dream destination – London. The campaign intends to recognize employees for their outstanding work: - Business Travellers/Business Owners/ CEO’s across India can nominate their Personal Assistants, Travel Coordinators or Office Managers as Office Heroes for the initiative by logging on to https:// flightcentreindia.co.in/ct/ctheroes. jsp before 31 March, 2017 - The employer has to submit a small write-up as to why s/he thinks his PA/ Office Manager is the Best Office Hero. -Lucky winners will be selected through a random draw of lots announcing them as the Best Office Hero across the country - The winners get an all-expense paid
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trip for two to London, in association with British Airways and GLH Hotels Gaurav Luthra, President, Corporate Traveller, FCM Travel Solutions, says, “The team at Corporate Traveller India firmly believes that office managers are real office champions who make workplaces function seamlessly. In the midst of busy corporative lives, their contribution often goes unrewarded on account of the variety of tasks they undertake (including booking all the office business travel). In fact, many of them go way beyond their job description. Through the ‘Office Hero’ initiative, we want to acknowledge their contribution and celebrate these unsung heroes
across the country. This campaign will surprise and delight the clientele, and provide an opportunity to both us and the employers to build stronger relationships”. Corporate travellers stands by employee recognition and realises that it can be a key part of an overall strategy to promote good company values and help employees feel invested and motivated. Corporate Traveller offers a range of specialised business travel solutions and corporate travel management services to make travel faster, cheaper and greener. Corporates these days are resorting
to a single-window booking system to take care of all the booking aspects. Some of them also engage a separate travel concierge desk in their organizations. This kind of a set up not only eases the process, but also brings about a lot of deals and discounts in hotels and flights for the employees. Besides this, companies can also formulate a meticulous travel policy in order to keep a lid on costs. These policies can be about fixing a ceiling on the accommodation category like star hotels, guest houses or serviced apartments and also go on to limiting budget on first class travel and opting for economy class. Through this, companies will be able to effect a substantial cut in their travel spending. As for those who face disagreement on such conditions, the best alternative would be to re-look at their suppliervendor contracts. Corporate travel planners can reach a deal with longstanding suppliers and bring about contracts that reward loyalty while ensuring a win-win situation for both the parties. They can negotiate with the airlines and the hotels for a certain number of seats and rooms during a certain period and reach an amicable policy while drafting their request for proposals. Other problems encompass increase in the number of new airlines entering the skies, growing passenger numbers, route expansion, need for trained manpower and infrastructure, all required to grow at the same pace. As for price sensitivity, airlines have become cost conscience more than just Passenger Revenue by changing the business models constantly. For instance, carriers generate revenue on sale and lease back (wet lease). Indigo 89 % planes are on lease. Jet Airways is 90%, SpiceJet is 69% and GoAir is 93%. It is expected that the near future
Voyager’s World > February 2017
capacity will increase in the domestic market. As of today, the entire industry in India is 62 million passengers annually; but the market will add 40 million passengers over the next four years. LCCs have paved for a new trend with the industry going for adding capacity in short haul segments that are usually more profitable. On an average, a Mumbai-Delhi flight is sold at INR 8 /Air Mile and in comparison Mumbai-Ahmedabad is sold at INR 12/Air Mile. Airlines in India are following models like Air Asia and Southwest Airlines by charging extra for specific seats like by the window or the aisle seat, reducing baggage allowance and increasing cancellation of ticket and no show charges. Indigo is expected to add nearly 10 aircrafts a year over the next decade or so mostly to operate domestic segments. In so far as fares are concerned, Zero Frill Carriers are found to offer a reasonable alternative to the premier carriers. A successful LCC in India is very clear about what it promises to deliver. If the airline charges a fare without any frills, whilst promising a certain standard of service, with ‘Arriving on Time’ being their USP, then it stands to win hands down in terms of running full or almost full. Meals, water and other such add-ons have to be borne by the passenger. Tiny supplementary costs can go a long way in adding to its overall cost. Corporate travel managers have implemented compound strategies in order to make sure the lowest reasonable fare is offered to the employee at the time of booking. Here is where policies such as a 7-Advance Purchase, corporate fare vs. retail fare, day trips and round trip fares are executed. With so many promotions happening every
31>> few months, these strategies ensure that the corporate does not lose out to the retail purchaser when it comes to negotiating bulk deals. Another hindrance faced by corporates while dealing with travel plans for their executives would be demanding and insistent travellers. With increasing international travel and exposure to world class travel and accommodation standards, today travellers seek the best arrangements. Irrespective of the nature of the travel, work or the company policy, employees anticipate and desire a four or a five star hotel accommodation. Budget accommodation options remain at a secondary level. A corporate booking tool or an OTA usually facilitates the work. However, an inefficient and unproductive booking tool will not serve the process. One requires the complete booking options to find out the best and most ideal travel and hotel choices, that would not only fit in their budget but also be of a certain standard. India still has a very adoption rate for business travel technology in
comparison to western markets. An exhaustive travel solution is the need of the hour to ensure the most effective delivery of travel services, be it a simple individual package or complex group itineraries, domestic or international. With online booking tools offering user friendly booking ideas, people still tend to check with their travel concierge or a travel agent over the phone, simply with a need to understand technology by personal communication. While it was mentioned earlier that a single window booking system could alleviate booking hassles, what organizations look for are a comprehensive technology solution that covers all aspects of bookings. A solution that would be a one-stop site listing all the types of travel and hotel choices quickly, including ground transportation, is likely to be adopted by a corporate. Having said that, today the proliferation of smartphones in our personal and professional lives, have necessitated us, employees to be able to have more access to information. More so, when it comes to dissemination of travel information. While one may have travelled on a particular international airline once, with the booking done by a corporate,
the regular emails and mailers on the flying miles that one accumulates is sent to the end-user by the airline; again a resultant benefit of access to data. When he uses the same flight the next time, he can utilize these regular miles information to seek upgrades. Again the use of smartphones varies from person to person. Not all employees use a smartphone to communicate booking information. Some would much rather prefer the nitty-gritty of travel to be taken care of completely by the company and only the necessary information be communicated to them. Plus, there is the concern of international roaming charges when one is on foreign shores. In such cases, organizations must look out for those solutions that offer customized or personalized itineraries, like an exclusive app for travel to a particular country. This can help the concierge and the management to effectively be in touch with the executive who is travelling, in real time on their smartphones. For this, they require a cost-efficient, low-cost and secure mobile access platform.
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Phocuswright India 2017 to take place in Gurugram
Alternatively, they can review their expenditure and budgeting. Issues surrounding last minute cancellation, refund, meals, combining more meetings in one trip for maximum value for money, and per diem can all be re-worked to amend the total trip cost. One can look at serviced apartments for a change instead of star accommodation. These apartments offer a lot of convenience like more space, fully furnished kitchen and though they may be on par with a luxury hotel, they give a homely ambience during one’s stay. Notwithstanding the volatile ATF (Aviation Turbine Fuel) prices, partnerships between banks and airport lounges, loyalty programmes, tie-ups of hotels and OTAs have made the customer the king and the ultimate beneficiary of these fluctuating changes.
CALENDAR 2017
Akquasun Hong Kong organizes multi-city training for agents
egal Hotels Hong Kong and Akquasun Hong Kong jointly conducted training, networking and cocktail with dinner for agents in Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore. Regal with a variety of hotel chain in Hong Kong provides perfect match for Indian market for FIT, MICE and Leisure group. Regal group is considered as one of the most flexible and Indian friendly hotel in Hong Kong. Akquasun Hong Kong has been their top producer since four years in a row.
The downside of this is that these complications can lead to the organization deciding to go for videoconferencing or tele-conferencing in order to cut down travel. This would mean fewer trips.
March 27, 28 February - 1 March Meetings Africa Johannesburg 21, 22, 23 March IT&CM China Shanghai
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hocuswright announced its speaker lineup for Phocuswright India, the Asia Pacific counterpart to its preeminent United States- and Europe-based conferences. The two-day event, held February 28 – March 2, 2017, takes place once again at The Leela Ambience Gurugram Hotel & Residences, Gurugram. 2017 speakers include Amanpreet Bajaj, Country Manager, India, Airbnb; Albert Pozo, President, Amadeus Asia Pacific, Amadeus IT Group S.A.; Raj Rana, CEO, South Asia, Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group; Geeta Jain, CEO, India, Carlson Wagonlit Travel, among others.
PATA Gold Awards 2017 open for submissions
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ourism industry organisations and individuals making outstanding contributions towards the successful promotion of the travel industry throughout the Asia Pacific region are encouraged to submit entries to the 2017 Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) Gold Awards. The deadline for submissions is April 28, 2017. The Awards presentation will take place during PATA Travel Mart 2017 on September 15 at the Venetian Macao Resort Hotel in Macao SAR.
Thailand announces 2017 campaign for business events Thailand's 2017 promotional campaign for business events aims to organise meetings in a sustainable way and in double cities for a distinctive experience in top MICE cities. There are campaigns for events with at least 200 delegates per group to nearly 2000 delegates per group with a minimum of 3 nights stay, total 4 nights in more than one destination, CSR activity in progamme or hold events at certified Thailand MICE Venue Standard, financial subsidies, etc.
April 12-13 Venue Expo Edinburgh, Scotland 16-18 IMEX Frankfurt, Germany
May 16-18 INDABA Durban 17-19 WTM Connect Asia Penang, Malaysia
www.voyagersworld.in
Hospitality
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Sun Siyam Resorts keen on India’s prospective MICE business
Evgenia Boyankova - Group Director of Business Development, Sun Siyam Resorts, looks at making the most of the teeming Indian wedding and MICE market. IRENE SUSAN EAPEN are looking for five-star properties such as our Sun Aqua Vilu Reef and the Sun Siyam Iru Fushi Maldives. In Asia, India is the second largest source market to the Maldives after China. We have noticed an upward rise in 2016 compared to 2015.”
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un Siyam Resorts witnessed huge growth from the Indian market, particularly for its four star property Olhuveli Beach & Spa Maldives. Talking about the response from the Indian market, Evgenia Boyankova, Group Director of Business Development of Sun Siyam Resorts, observed that most of their guests checked into Olhuveli Beach & Spa Maldives for short stays. “We have also seen that there is an upward flow for high-end Indian customers who
Marketing Plans This year Sun Siyam Resorts plans to capture as much market share as it can by taking part in major travel shows, workshops, roadshows and by covering major metros and sub metros in India. “Also India is a very dynamic market; each region has a different target audience and is also driven on relationships. So, we will continue working closely with our preferred partners, trade associations and key travel partners for increased growth and conversions. We plan to build and increase our market share in terms of family travel, high-end
MICE, honeymooners, single women groups.” Business from India While the MICE segment is a key focus, the properties are also popular among honeymooners besides being favoured by family travellers. “At Sun Siyam Resorts, we are focusing more on MICE group enquiries for conferences, events as well as weddings; hence a mix of corporate plus leisure. India’s destination wedding concept has been growing over the past few years. We are also catering to corporate travel as we have ideal setups at our resorts.The Sun Siyam Iru Fushi Maldives has a variety of full-fledged meeting rooms which cater to different needs. Our lagoons with crystal clear water and soft sandy beaches are ideal for various motorized and non-motorized water activities.”
On the other hand, Olhuveli Beach & Spa Maldives has the first-of-itskind kite surfing school. Activities for adventure lovers include wake boarding, fly boarding and knee boarding, apart from banana boat riding and jet skiing for families. “Maldives is a popular destination for Bollywood stars like Katrina Kaif, Mandira Bedi among others. With the launching of new flights in Mega Maldives we can expect more volume of Indian travellers.” The destination is welcoming more resorts including big brands like Accor and St. Regis. “The luxury properties continue to increase due to the demand and India has both very affluent travellers and budget conscious travellers.” Evgenia concludes by saying that there is room for all as Maldives boasts of a sustainable hospitality industry.
Automation gains momentum for distinct guest experience
Automation is here to stay and hotels have been quick to realise the sum total of the impact on guest experience as they integrate them into their services. PRIYAMVADHA BALARAM
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he rate at which Indian hospitality industry has taken to automation over the years goes on to prove that the key to enhancing guest experience is through smart integration of technology with the services of a hotel. With the value received from hotel room automation, hotels have been warming up to the systems and the level of adoption has been increasing over the years. Although India is still lagging behind when it comes to technology as compared to other countries, the hotel industry here is not far behind and in fact, it has been one of the early birds to keep itself abreast with the latest trends across the globe. Hotel room automation in India has
Voyager’s World > February 2017
begun to rapidly gain momentum. The system allows hotels to improve their services by making it more prompt and easily available for their guests. By improving their level of service, they can ensure maximum satisfaction on behalf of their guests and maximize customer satisfaction. With the value received from such systems, the adoption is increasing over the years. Automation vs. Manpower Superficially, the concept of hotel room automation may seem to threaten manpower, but it is needless to say that it will not replace the work done by the hotel staff. Any form of service requires a personal touch despite the level of technology adopted. In fact hotels have seen an increase in room service requests after deploying such
systems, which in turn results in more work for the staff. Indian hotels must extensively engage in surveys using guest reviews and other forms of studies to see how the adoption of automation has improved their room service revenue since offering the guest the option of ordering room service on an iPad as compared to taking orders over the phone. They can analyse how the systems make requesting and delivering of services easier and more importantly quicker and if it leads to availing of an increased number of services. This evidently adds to the overall experience of a guest at a hotel. Security and privacy in hotels can be
enhanced if the guests can see and control who comes to their rooms and when. So, when someone knocks the door, one can view the visitor on TV before opening the door or view the person on his/her door on the pad. This goes a long way in making the guests feel secure while staying away from home. Automation can aid by enabling this easily, by smart use of imaging and status control devices. The hotels can go a step further by putting technologies which allows monitoring, tracking and access control of people in and around hotels. Automation not only complements the service of a hotel but can also be used for ascertaining efficiency, room service revenue and effective use of review management systems.
IITM 2017-2018 EVENT'S CALENDAR Kochi: 19, 20, 21 January 2017
Delhi: 15, 16, 17 September 2017
Kolkata: 3, 4, 5 March 2017
Mumbai: 22, 23, 24 September 2017
Chennai: 15, 16, 17 July 2017
Pune: 24, 25, 26 November 2017
Bangalore: 21, 22, 23 July 2017
Hyderabad: 1, 2, 3 December 2017
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Travel Trends
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Muziris Biennale - A counterpoise to the Demonetization Crisis Dr. Venu , Principal Secretary, Kerala Tourism dubs Kochi-Muziris Biennale (KMB) as a “stellar example” of public private partnership and the State Government apportioned budget of 7.5 crore as “money well spent”. ANJU ANNA ALEX
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he Kochi-Muziris Biennale created an uproar right from its inception, with visitors above 4 lakhs in number in the first edition itself. The first two editions earned a lot of accolades, and the third edition titled 'Forming in the pupil of an eye', is a 108 days' program where 97 artists from 31 countries are performing or showcasing their talent from 12th Dec, 2016 in 12 different venues in and around Kochi. This third edition is living up to promises of being better by incorporating innovative and attractive changes, and focuses to have a lot of 'human movement' involved! It will end on 29th March, 2016. Despite the steady investments in the industry including the increase in the number of new properties, the pace of revenue growth from tourism had decelerated considerably in 2015 as compared to the previous four years mainly owing to the unpropitious excise policy. Total Revenue (including direct & indirect) from Tourism during the 2015 was Rs26689.63 Crores, showing an increase of
7.25% from the previous year’s figures as per statistics from the Kerala State Tourism Board. This growth rate is a decline from 7.6% in 2014 also marking a four year low. FTA to Kerala during the year 2015 is 977479 which showed an increase of 5.86% over the previous year’s figure of 923366.
the State Government of Kerala has made. The economic and tourism opportunities of the city Kochi and the state of Kerala have improved and are likely to improve in the coming months, owing to the Biennale. For the year 2017, the state is anticipating a double-digit growth in tourist arrivals.
With the numerous initiatives undertaken by the Kerala Tourism in 2016 including the Biennale, the industry was hopeful in expecting a significant growth of 8% in tourism arrivals when it had to deal with the unexpected demonetization. Consequently, the tourism sector had to face a hard blow post demonetization. However, industry experts are confident that Kochi-Muziris Biennale helped in counterbalancing the ill-effects of the demonetization to a large extent issue although the official stats for 2016 are yet to be published. When people were facing serious cash crunches, money poured into the hands of the common man in Kerala thereby bolstering Kerala Tourism. According to them, this is by far the best investment that
The Kerala State Tourism Industry has benefitted immensely from the art fest and has recorded a considerable increase both in domestic tourist arrivals as well as international tourist arrivals to Kerala in the first month of the Biennale. Subsequently, there has been an increase in Tourist Arrivals as well as an upsurge in hotel bookings. The event receives up to an astounding 20,000 footfalls a day and the organizers expect over an aggregate of a million visitors, both domestic and foreign, by the time the event the concludes in March. This tremendous increase in footfall of foreigners will revitalize the country’s tourism sector."When Kerala tourism had a crisis on its hands due to demonetization policy affecting tourist arrivals,
biennale has singlehandedly created a unique economic zone that supported the tourism sector and brought money into the hands of the common man and the local community," said Dr. Venu V. "From the government's point of view, I can't think of a better investment” explains the Kerala Tourism Principal Secretary anticipating a bigger surge in tourist inflow in the coming months. Former Minister for Culture Shri M.A. Baby acclaims that the Biennale has become a pilgrimage site for art lovers from around the globe only to be validated by Kerala Chief Minister Shri Pinarayi Vijayan, during the inauguration of KMB 2016; who affirms the socioeconomic benefits of the Biennale with millions of cultural enthusiasts from all over the world, trotting to Kochi to witness and experience the spectacular Biennale. This ascertains that both the Central and State Tourism sectors will be benefitted by the Biennale and in turn will redress the ill-effects of demonetization.
Budget 2017- What’s in store for the Indian Tourism Industry The government’s proposal in the Union Budget 2017-18, to establish five special tourism zones as well as the increased focus on rural infrastructural development, is expected to benefit the industry immensely. ANJU ANNA ALEX
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he government has been keen about giving a facelift to the travel and tourism industry; it being one of the major foreign exchange earners for the country, The latest budget proposal to set up five special tourism zones in the country is a welcome move. The government's decision to withdraw service charge on train tickets and the proposal of commissioning
Voyager’s World > February 2017
3,500KM of new rail line will attract more travellers. The railways’ plan to spend Rs.2,000 crore for maintaining cleanliness by fitting clean bio-toilets and for the redevelopment of at least 25 stations into world class infrastructural facilities, may prove to be the much needed boost to the travel and tourism industry. The budget also provisioned sufficient funds to achieve 100%
rural electrification by March 2018. This move will enhance the safety and security of tourists travelling to the remote rural areas. The Finance Minister’s allocation of Rs.2.4 lakh crore for transport sector is a booster dose for the travel industry. To facilitate better connectivity with ports and remote villages, the government is planning to develop 2000 KM of coastal roads which will act as a catalyst to the tourism industry.
Independent Market Strategist, Alex K Mathews says “Overall budget proposal for the travel and tourism industry exceeds expectation and will have positive impact in medium to long term.” The travel and tourism industry anticipated the exemption of service tax on foreign exchange earned by tour operators for inbound travels. The service tax that is currently being levied twice on outbound tours needs to be axed.
Spice Trails
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UNWTO hails Kerala’s Responsible Tourism initiatives Kerala’s award-winning ‘Responsible Tourism’ (RT) initiatives has been recognised by UNWTO describing them as a model for other destinations to replicate. VW BUREAU
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he world’s foremost international tourism organisation also called for the development of closer ties between Kerala Tourism and UNWTO, emphasising the importance of further association to help take the message of sustainable tourism forward. In a recent meeting held at UNWTO headquarters in Madrid, Kerala Tourism Director Shri U.V. Jose presented a report on the RT campaigns – the heart of Kerala’s tourism story for nearly a decade – to Mr Xu Jing, UNWTO Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific. The report contained details of the RT policies and practices implemented in the state and the campaign’s success in giving stakeholdership to local communities and empowering them economically through activities that prioritise cultural and ecological conservation. In addition, the report outlined plans of action undertaken as part of this commitment to sustainability such as the implementation of a new RT Classification system in keeping with the Global Sustainable Tourism Criteria, the Government of Kerala’s ‘Green Carpet’ programme, the creation of destination-level RT units to support local communities and transformative initiatives adopted by trade sector entities like the Kerala Travel Mart’s (KTM) ‘9-point agenda’. Observing that the UNWTO’s International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development 2017 (IYSTD2017) was a good opportunity to focus on local development, Shri Jose said the aim is now to certify small destinations across the state according to the same criteria. Congratulating Kerala for the initiative’s success, Jing said, “The UNWTO is proud of the work done by Kerala Tourism and impressed by the Kerala model of responsible and sustainable tourism. The projects can be included as part of UNWTO’s global programmes and the report can be a case study for other destinations. We are eager to strengthen our relationship and discuss matters of common interest.” The UNWTO also invited Kerala
Tourism to deliver a presentation at the Joint Commission Meeting to be held in Bangladesh in May. The department was also requested to participate in the UNWTO’s
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of the world’s largest tourism and travel fairs. Jose had also attended the launch event of the UNWTO’s International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development.
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MIDDLE EAST EDITION 27 February - 1 March 2017
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Dubai, Kuwait, Doha
INDIA EDITION 2 20 - 25 March 2017 Delhi, Bangalore, Mumbai
INDIA EDITION 1 15 - 23 January 2018
www.voyagersworld.in
Online Travel
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Orange Tourism- Conquering the Online Space, One Click at a Time
Viraat Raj Bhalla, Managing Director, Orange Tourism Solutions, speaks about how technology and more specifically, the internet, has impacted their sales. Anju Anna Alex
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range tourism has been prominent in the B2B segment for over 23 years, since 1994, offering budget friendly solutions to the travel industry. The company is headquartered in Delhi and has offices in Mumbai, Greece and Mauritius. Orange made its debut in the online space in 2010 and has expanded its operations to Mauritius, Maldives, Seychelles and Greece. Orange’s online repertoire features websiteswww.theclickitbookit. travel&www.islandhopper.in Entry into the online business arena I have been in the trade since 1994 and since seen the gradual progression from agents using telex, fax, phones, etc for communication to the uber cool email and Whatsapp tech mode used today between our suppliers / hotels around the world. Our first email id in 1995 was almost a mile long. No one in the office could even remember our own email id. Let alone use it for communication. In any case email wasn't what it is today. Emails then, took their own sweet time to arrive in the inbox- if the sender got your email address right in the first place. Things started changing in 1997-98 when the internet started gathering steam as a new communication tool. However, it was only 12 years later that we decided to utilize the power of the net and put it to some serious use. In 2010 we decided to experiment by developing two sites: www.bookmauritius.in and www. clickitbookit.travel. The simple idea was to put our directly contracted hotel inventory as well as our third party inventory, online. Since "online" had already
Voyager’s World > February 2017
started becoming a rage, it was logical for us to embrace the trend instead of bucking it. BookMauitius had (and still has) our own directly contracted hotel inventory for Mauritius. ClickitBookit had hotel, sightseeing and transfer inventory XML'd from various suppliers. Both came to fruition in 2011. At that point in time we were barely doing 3000 passengers to Mauritius and pretty close to zero in as far as numbers were concerned to worldwide hotels. It was a task getting the travel trade to use Bookmauritius as they were sceptical, unsure as well as a little unhappy to let go of the age old custom of sending emails to their suppliers and waiting for a while, sometimes a day or two for the response. With Bookmauritius they were supposed to put in the search criterion, click search, find the hotel, look at the price and click on BOOKNOW to make the booking. Presto! The booking would be confirmed and the voucher was ready to present to the traveller. As simple as taking candy from a baby. But the travel trade was not ready. And making progress wasn't easy since not many wanted to adopt and adapt to this change in tactic! Some even thought that we should be put into a penitentiary for even contemplating such a move. However, we were certain of one thing. Once the bug caught on, the travel trade would find it difficult to live without an online booking engine. And our belief rang true as barely a year later our numbers grew by 50% in Bookmauritius. The 50% rise in numbers became a trend for the first couple of years. That was reason enough for us to add Maldives and Seychelles to the site- which was also re-christened as IslandHopper.in. Clickitbookit was a slow starter as well. But the growth has been steady and we are quite happy with the progress. We still believe that this is the proverbial tip of the iceberg and we have a long way to go before we realize our true potential. Technological Impact Technology has changed everything.
From the way we wake up in the morning to how we make bookings and payments. To glean information on a new destination or travel product is an absolute cinch. From having witnessed the pre internet era to now, it is our generation that can truly understand, respect and applaud the changes technology has brought in the travel scene. Travel has metamorphosized from a sleepy dinosaur to a versatile Tesla model S P100D. Technology is truly the king. But caveat emptor does come into play as it does have its pitfalls too. Outbound Travel Market The Indian traveller has embraced foreign travel like a duck takes to water. Foreign Travel is extremely aspirational. It is also on top of most people's bucket list. Travel, over the years, has become more affordable as disposable incomes are and have been on the rise for the last 10 years or more. Coupled with this, exotic Bollywood locales entice the Indian bourgeois, elite as well as the super elite to experience such destinations which sometimes can’t even be pronounced with a straight tongue. Expected Growth Outbound tourism is expected to grow at double digits notwithstanding the new service tax regime. Assuming that the GOI figure of 18 million Indians travelling abroad is true, we need to remember that our middle class comprises 350 million peoplethe size of the total population of the USA. Do the math! The flight of hordes of Indians to distant shores is but a matter of time. With the total
growth portended, we are expecting to ride the wave along with the rest of our brethren. We hope to see a sale of close to 500 crore by 2020. Business Model We are a B2B company and stand with the trade, shoulder to shoulder and chin to chin. At the same time 97% of our business is online. We have offices in Delhi and Mumbai and Sales folks doing the rounds in Chennai, Kolkata, Ahmedabad and Bangalore. Our aim and motive is to simply affine ourselves, our products and services with the trade and essentially make life a beautiful seamless dream for our partners. From the outside this looks rosy but the practicality of achieving this has its obstacles. The key is to have a great team. With proper guidance, the team will make the organization achieve this vision. Marketing/Promotions We indulge in partaking with OTR and IITM, email, cashback, familiarizations and a horde of below and above the line promotions. We however have not advertised till date but may even do so in the future. Future Plans The plan is to stick with the plan. We intend to continue to bring products to our travel partners plates so that they can chew without having to hunt, digest without a hiccup, so to speak. We aim to keep it simple, be ethical and honest, accept healthy criticism and strive to become even more professional and better with experience.
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Travel Events
glimpses from the multi-destination outbound travel roadshow Outbound Travel Roadshow opened its 2017 calendar with whopping success VW BUREAU
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Flight Talk
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AirAsia India prepares to take digital leaps in 2017 As India braces itself for a digital revolution, AirAsia India is sparing no efforts to go tech-savvy across all levels of its operations, says Amar Abrol, MD & CEO – AirAsia India. IRENE SUSAN EAPEN infusion. Amar Abrol, MD & CEO – AirAsia India, says that the airline is in a consistent growth phase and rapidly expanding its business.
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016 was an important year for AirAsia India as the airline team crossed the 1000 mark in December last year its overall sales and revenues hit a triple digit figure the same month, breaking all records since its inception. AirAsia India is on track with its plans for 2017, with the required capital
Revealing plans to make the best use of technology in its products and services, he says, “As we progress as a digital company, we will leverage technology to the best of our ability to enhance our service. Be it self-service check-in Kiosks, roving agents or apps to make flying simpler, we will embrace them all in the upcoming years. We added two new destinations, viz. Srinagar and Bagdogra in January this year.” Campaigns The carrier launched its first digital campaign in line with its brand
promise ‘Now Everyone Can Fly’. FlyWithAirAsia as a theme was depicted in a thought provoking film centred on the house-hold game of ‘Chidiya Ud’. The campaign went live on 25 January and was aired across all its social media platforms and has received more than eight million views across platforms. “We launched a digital campaign on the occasion of Republic Day that highlighted the way the idea of flying has changed for Indian families. We have had families or students to frequent flyers who make last minute travel plans.” Indian aviation industry The Indian aviation industry has witnessed tremendous growth over the past years and is the ninthlargest aviation market in the world.
“According to reports, the number of air passengers in the country is likely to touch 310 million by the financial year 2018-19. We were also one of the fastest-growing domestic markets in 2015 and 2016.” Trends in the industry Amar expects the digital revolution in India to have a large impact on the development of Indian airports. “Few years down the line, complete automation of airports will be the next big development. In the next few years, there will be increased focus on introduction of self-bag drop facility, self-service check-in kiosks, roving agents, apps to minimize human intervention in airports and all that leads to improving customer experience leveraging technology.”
UDAN receives encouraging response, calls for action
The bid by the Centre to lend a fillip to regional air connectivity in India has witnessed an active line of proposals for action. PRESS INFORMATION BUREAU
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irports Authority of India (AAI), the implementing agency for the Regional Connectivity Scheme (UDAN) has received 45 initial proposals from 11 bidders covering more than 200 RCS routes as the deadline for submitting initial proposals came to an end on 16th Jan 2017. These initial proposals cover as many as 65 airports, of which there are 52 un-served and 13 under-served airports as per the provisions of the scheme. Counterbids have now been invited against these initial proposals, the last date of submission for which is 1st Feb. 2017. The routes or networks will be awarded to the bidders who quote the lowest requirement of Viability Gap Funding (VGF) against such routes. To ensure that operations on ground start with minimum timegap after the bidding is completed, parallel action has also been initiated
Voyager’s World > February 2017
by the Ministry of Civil Aviation with AAI, State Governments, DGCA and Bureau of Civil Aviation Security. It may be recalled that with the twin objectives of promoting balanced regional growth and making flying affordable for masses, the Ministry of Civil Aviation had launched the Regional Connectivity Scheme (UDAN) on 21st Oct. 2016. RCS was a key component of the National Civil Aviation Policy which was released by the Ministry on 15th June 2016. The scheme, which would be in operation for a period of 10 years, envisages providing connectivity to un-served and under-served regions of the country through revival of existing air-strips and airports. This would be achieved through a financial stimulus in the form of Central and State government concessions, as well as Viability Gap
Funding to the interested airlines to kick-off operations from such airports, so that the passenger fares are kept affordable. The fare for a one hour journey of approximately 500 km on a fixed wing aircraft or for a 30 minute journey on a helicopter would be capped at Rs. 2,500 under the scheme, with proportionate pricing for routes of different lengths / duration. The Union Minister of Civil Aviation
Sh. P. Ashok Gajapathi Raju, while expressing satisfaction with the response received under the scheme, conveyed that this is a significant step ahead in realizing our Hon’ble Prime Minister’s vision of ‘connecting the un-connected and serving the un-served’. The scheme is likely to give a major boost to tourism activities and employment generation in hinterland and Tier-II and Tier-III cities, he added.
Travel Events
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Expanded eTravel World sets its sights on the future
International pitching event for startups – discussion rounds with experts on chatbots, virtual reality and millennials – the eTravel World is booked up. VW BUREAU
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he eTravel World at ITB Berlin is booked up. For the first time it will occupy two halls, with more than 70 exhibitors displaying their innovative products and services. In Halls 6.1 and 7.1c visitors can find established companies as well as newcomers, which include Aldebaran, Betterspace, Conichi, Dayuse, eNett, Igola, Paymentwall, Traveltripper and Wanup. For the first time startups will be able to take part in an international pitching event powered by Phocuswright. On 10 March at 11.30 a.m. startups from Europe, Asia and the US will present their ideas to a panel of leading experts and can also introduce themselves to an audience of international professionals. The winner can take part in Phocuswright Europe, a leading conference event in Amsterdam.
Hall 6.1 features the new eTravel Showroom, where on Wednesday, 8 and Thursday, 9 March 2017 trade visitors can find out about exhibitors’ latest product innovations at some 20 sessions. Trade visitors in search of innovative ideas and the latest developments in chatbots, virtual reality and digital marketing can find out more at various discussions and lectures. Thus on 8 March at 3 p.m., together with experts from Skyscanner, KAYAK and Icelandair, Timothy O`Neill-Dunne, co-founder of Expedia, Tnooz, Airblackbox, will explore the future of customer communications using chatbots. Afterwards, at the Vacation Rental Panel on the Travel Stage, senior vice president Pete Comeau of Phocuswright and representatives of Rentals United, HomeAway and
Tripping.com will discuss the latest developments in the European vacation rental market. In his keynote speech on 9 March at 10.30 a.m. the entrepreneur Uwe Frers will tell startups “You don’t have a chance, so make the most of it!”. He will explain successful concepts to date, which ideas could succeed in the future and what conditions startups and the travel industry must satisfy in order to be successful. Millennials, a much talked about target group, will be discussed at several events. As conventional marketing and media channels can barely reach this group the tourism industry must employ other methods. On 8 March at theTravel Lab Dr. Irfan Ahmed, managing director and founder of Irhal.com, will explain how
VADODARA NAGPUR VIZAG
to reach the market for halal tourism dominated by millennials, which is worth 140 billion dollars. On 9 March at the eTravel Lab Clement Wong, managing director of BeMyGuest, will present a case study on interdisciplinary influencer marketing in Asia as part of a “conversion funnel“ for tours and activities which specifically targets the millennial tourism market. Arnaud Masson, COO Europe of the rail tour operator Voyages-sncf. com, will explain clever ways of incorporating virtual reality and voice command technology into tourism products. On 10 March at 1 p.m. on the eTravel Stage, under the heading of smart tourism, he will talk about possibilities for predicting consumer demand and behaviour and for recognising trends.
: 18, 19, 20 August 2017 : 06, 07, 08 October 2017 : 03, 04, 05 November 2017
www.voyagersworld.in
Selfie Travel
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Selfie in travel..the face, the place and everything in between Tourism Boards are cashing in on technology and social media influences to encourage travellers to innovatively capture their travel memories, selfies being the latest such trend.
Tourism New Zealand
Tourism New Zealand
IRENE SUSAN EAPEN
Steven Dixon, Regional Manager – South and South East Asia, Tourism New Zealand New Zealand is one of the most picturesque places and a photographer’s dream land, with incredible landscapes and idyllic vistas from one end of the country to the other. We see a huge number of the visitors click selfies and posting on social media channels, these photos are highly influential amongst their friends and family.
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he number of Indians coming online from mobile devices for their travel decisions and experiences is increasing at an incredibly rapid rate with a few million new mobile internet users getting added to the list every month. Smartphones have now become our personal assistants. Countless apps and solutions are being introduced everyday to help people connect and store information that they care about. The Google Photos app, for instance, automatically backs up photos and videos across all your devices. With people around the world uploading millions of photos (including selfies) every day, there are more photos being taken every minute, Google Photo offers unlimited, free storage. As the trend of taking selfies has become an indispensable part of one’s travel memories, National Tourism Organizations (NTOs) are now looking at the concept of selfies
Voyager’s World > February 2017
as a common means of promoting a destination, by encouraging them to take photos on smartphones and with selfie sticks usually against the backdrop of famous sightseeing attractions in a destination. The idea of selfies is evolving into a new tool of promoting various destinations through photographs posted on the social media channels like Facebook, SnapChat, Instagram, etc. as part of marketing activities for destinations. Selfies are also widely used in campaigns by various National Tourism Organizations. Selfies are anticipated to develop into a segment by themselves in the future. NTOs are hoping for an optimistic growth in the number of travellers through this promotional tool in the future. Representatives from the Tourism Authority of Thailand and Tourism New Zealand share their views on the selfie craze in travel and how
they are making the best use of the trend to attract travellers to their destinations. Selfie in the tourism industry Steven Dixon, Regional Manager, South and South East Asia, Tourism New Zealand, explains, "Selfie as a concept is very well established in the tourism industry, with many variations and spin offs." Soraya Homchuen, Director, Tourism Authority of Thailand, MumbaI, says, "Nowadays taking selfies is a common practice for the tourists who travel the world. Selfies make the best profile pictures for the voyagers and since they are often taken against popular attractions, it eventually helps in popularizing the destination. There has definitely been a rise in this regard as today, everyone owns a smart phone and is often seen posting pictures on social media instantly." New tool to promote a destination
In the opinion of Steven," Selfies are not used to lead our own brand campaigns, we have noticed a huge number of the visitors to New Zealand do click selfies and post on social media channels. Many tourism boards are utilizing celebrities as ambassadors for their destinations and the resulting posts on social media including ‘celebrity selfies’ have incredibly high reach and influence." Selfies segment Steven notes that the concept of taking selfies in a destination will boom into a new segment and believes that selfies are here to stay. “They will continue be a part of many people’s holiday photos. We do also see that when someone influential, such as a social media influencer or celebrity, posts a selfie from a certain location many fans want to recreate the shot for themselves when in the destination."
Tourism New Zealand
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Soraya Homchuen, Director, Tourism Authority of Thailand, Mumbai Selfies make the best profile pictures for the voyagers mostly taken against popular attractions and helps in popularizing the destination. There is arise in this trend as everyone owns a smart phone and are often seen posting pictures on social media instantly. Selfies form a crucial part of a traveler as it motivates a lot of tourism boards and hotels chains with various contests and promotional activities. Soraya says, "Selfie will defintely evolve as a new segment however as a Tourism Board we would advise our guests to ensure that they do not go out of their way to take that perfect selfie and avoid snapping in case they foresee any sort of risk or accident. There are always rules and regulations which the travelers are expected to adhere to." Marketing tool for destinations Steven explains, “New Zealand has some of the most picturesque places on earth and a photographer’s dream land, with incredible landscapes and idyllic vistas from one end of the country to the other. Today, people are increasingly targeting trips that offer the greatest social returns and, as a tourism board, we recognise this and help identify the best places in the country to click a picture via content and listicles." He goes on to add that New Zealand is a selfie takers paradise
and lists the top 10 spots to grab the perfect shot, which include Cape Reinga – Northland, Cathedral Cove – Coromandel Peninsula, Hobbiton Movie Set – Waikato, Te Puia – Rotorua, Len Lye Centre – New Plymouth, The Church of the Good Shepherd – Tekapo, ‘#ThatWanakaTree’ – Lake Wanaka, Ben Lomond Summit – Queenstown, Milford Sound – Fiordland, Stirling Point, Bluff – Southland. Soraya states, "Selfies form a crucial part of a traveller as there are a lot of tourism boards and hotels chains that are coming up with various contests and promotional activities to attract the guests. There are a lot of hotels coming up with selfie packages which motivates the guests to snap maximum pictures which eventually adds to the hotel’s publicity. It is a win-win situation for both the parties. "Our last year’s campaign had
focused on women’s travellers and in the TVC with the brand ambassador Anusha Dandekar we have showcased the girly gang exploring the destination by taking selfies. Apart from that we have also done a few contents on social media where the best selfie gets gratification," Soraya added. Tourism New Zealand created an innovative campaign that set social media buzzing for two years reaching a huge audience across Twitter, Facebook and Instagram - making it one of Tourism New Zealand’s most successful social media campaigns. A play on the ‘selfie’ phenomenon, a ‘dronie’ that is using a camera mounted on a flying drone to take videos from the sky became a new trend emerging globally. The drone gave visitors the chance to capture an eight second video of themselves which they could instantly share with their friends
on social media using the hashtag #NZdronie which was launched with the support of regional tourism operators, the activity worked to support our winter campaign 'more magic in every day' which highlighted the variety of unique winter experiences on offer in New Zealand - both on and off the slopes. The campaign aimed to encourage visitors to share their holiday experiences and spread the word about New Zealand to their own social media networks. Technology drives travellers to constantly re-invent the way they make their holidays memorable. The selfie pose is here to stay for a long time and hence, travel industry stakeholders and social media influencers will only continue to prod travellers to get more innovative with their selfie angles, poses and background, to etch the experience and destination deeply in their memory.
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Wildlife Travel
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In the wilds of West Bengal… West Bengal is blessed with plentiful wildlife and lush wilderness, sheltering a remarkable variety of flora and fauna, besides being home to the famous Sunderbans Mangroves. VW BUREAU
Dooars A journey through the rolling hill slopes, mesmerizing lush green tea gardens separated by meandering silvery mountain streams, high Sal forests, quite ethnic villages, vast meadows with a blue outline of the great Himalayan ranges in the horizon, endless sky…. It is Dooars for you! Lying in the Himalayan foothills in North Bengal, Dooars has great natural beauty. The wildlife-rich tropical forests, innumerable hill streams cutting across the green carpet of tea gardens and undulating plains, low hills rising up from the rivers all make it one of the most picturesque destinations. A drive through the Dooars plains, the gateway to Bhutan and the whole of North east India, can be the experience of a lifetime. The Dooars valley (also called Duars), stretching from the river Teesta on the west to the river Sankosh on the east, an area covering roughly 130 km by 40 km, forms a major part of the Jalpaiguri district. The name Dooars is derived from “doors” as the region is the gateway to the whole of North-east India and Bhutan. Dooars is also the gateway to the hill stations of the Darjeeling – Sikkim region. Dooars is famous for its rich biodiversity and forests, the most notable of which are Gorumara
Voyager’s World > February 2017
National Park, Jaldapara Wild Life Sanctuary, and Buxa Tiger Reserve. Jaldapara Wildlife Sanctuary, Gorumara National Park, Champamari Wildlife Sanctuary are habitats of the rare one-horned rhinoceros, the mighty bison, leopard, spotted deer, sambar, hog deer, reptiles, huge wild tuskers, wild boars, and the rarest variety of and birds, including peacocks. Elephant – riding through the Jaldapara forest in search of wild animals, particularly the one-horned rhinos, is specially popular among tourists. Other places of attraction in and around the region include Jayanti, (30 km from Alipurduar) is a beautiful spot encircled by the Jayanti river and the hills around. The leopard Rehabilitation Centre and Nature Park at Khayrabari is 11kms from Madarihat.
Bhutan, is a major gateway to Bhutan. Siliguri is the gateway to the Dooars. Cooch Behar, being the headquarters of the North Bengal State Transport Corporation, is well – connected by long distance bus routes to Siliguri as well as Kolkata, Jalpaiguri, etc. There is a railway service connecting Cooch Behar with Kolkata via New Jalpaiguri. One can also avail the railway service via Alipurduar. The nearest airport is Bagdogra, connecting Kolkata, Delhi and Guwahati.
Bhutanghat (45 km from Alipurduar), famous for scenic beauty, is close to the river Raidak that borders Bhutan. Buxa Fort (30 km from Alipurduar), famous for the ruins of the Detention Camp used by the British Government for detaining freedom fighters of our country. Malbazar (52 km from Siliguri) has tea gardens and scenic spots around. Chalsa (61 km from Siliguri) is famous for scenic beauty. Teesta Barrage (57 km from Siliguri) is emerging and being developed as a tourist attraction.
Sunderbans Mangroves The Sunderbans are a part of the world's largest delta, formed by the mighty rivers Ganga, Brahmaputra and Meghna. Situated on the lower end of Gangetic West Bengal, the Sunderbans is criss-crossed by hundreds of creeks and tributaries. It is one of the most attractive and alluring places remaining on earth, a truly undiscovered paradise. The Sunderbans is the largest single block of tidal, halophytic mangrove forests in the world. The name can be literally translated as beautiful jungle. The name may have been derived from the Sundari trees that are found in the Sunderbans. The Sunderbans is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is spans a vast area covering 4.264 sq. km in India alone. It is the largest Tiger Reserve and National Park in India.
Phuntsholling (161 km from Siliguri via Jaldapara), on the border of
The Sunderbans forest is home to more than 250 tigers. The
Royal Bengal Tigers have adapted themselves very well to the saline and aqua environs and are extremely good swimmers. As you enter the adventurous wild land of the Sunderbans, you will be thrilled to see the chital deer and rhesus monkey. The aqua fauna of Sunderbans include a variety of fish, red fiddler crabs, and hermit crabs. There are crocodiles, which can be often seen along the mud banks. Sunderbans National Park is also noted for its conservation of the Ridley Sea Turtle. An incredible variety of reptiles is also found in Sunderbans – these include king cobra, the rock python and the water monitor. The endangered river terrapin, Batagur baska, is found on the Mechua Beach, while barking deer are found only on Haliday Island in the Sunderbans. The Sunderbans is only accessible by waterways. The nearest railhead is Port Canning, from where organized group trips start. There are several other entry points, but Port Canning is most popular. The other route is through Basanti that is connected by bus service to Kolkata. From here, one can take boats to Sajnekhali. One can also come via Port Canning and Gosaba or from Sonakhali to Sajnekhali. From Kolkata, there are Sunderban trains to Canning and buses to Namkhana, Raidighi, Sonakhali, and Najat, from where motor launch services are available for Sunderbans.
Editors Pick
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ReviewPro propels growth in APAC with key new partnerships
ReviewPro signed over1,800 new hotel clients, partnering with some of the region’s prominent hotel brands VW BUREAU
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eviewPro, provider of guest intelligence solutions for the hotel industry, is expanding rapidly in Asia Pacific. Building on its already large client base, the company has signed a number of key new partnership agreements in the region. Also, it was recently announced that Chinese technology giant Shiji acquired a majority stake in the company. 2016 proved to be a banner year for growth in APAC as ReviewPro signed more than 1,800 new hotel clients, partnering with some of the region’s most prominent hotel brands: Absolute Hotel Services, Minor Hotels, Aryaduta Hotels Group, TCC Land Asset World, Onyx Hospitality Group, Discovery Parks, Spicers Retreats and BIG4 Holiday Parks. In addition, ReviewPro has secured multi-year renewal agreements with existing partners including Furama Hotels International, Dusit International, Chatrium Hotels and Residences and GHM (General Hotel Management Ltd). - Amongst the major new brands that signed with ReviewPro is Bangkok based Minor Hotels. With more than 150 properties worldwide and a passion for delivering perfection to guests, the global brand will use ReviewPro’s Guest Intelligence Suite (consisting of Online Reputation Management and Guest Satisfaction Surveys) as well as Advanced Case Workflows to obtain a deeper understanding of their guests’ needs to create even better guest experiences across their entire portfolio.
The company recently unveiled the latest version of its “Guest Intelligence Suite”. The solution, combining the company’s award-winning Online Reputation Management (ORM), Guest Satisfaction Surveys (GSS)
and Mobile App, offers hoteliers one powerful and customizable platform to access more meaningful performance metrics to identify issues, take action and boost overall guest satisfaction. ReviewPro
enhanced the existing technology to provide users with a centralized tool where analytics can be maximized to deliver outstanding experiences resulting in higher rankings on review sites and OTAs.
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- ONYX Hospitality Group, a Thaibased regional hotel company with brands like Amari, OZO and Shama, has also chosen to use the Guest Intelligence Suite to ensure their properties are consistently exceeding guest expectations. RJ Friedlander, CEO of ReviewPro, commented on the company’s latest news, “In 2016 we saw our biggest year–on-year growth ever in APAC and we expect to expand our market share there even further this year. Our recent partnerships with several leading global brands demonstrates our strong positioning in the region and we will continue to leverage this in the coming year to strengthen our presence.”
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FESTIVALS OF 28 October 2016-26 February 2017
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he Singapore Biennale is the major contemporary art events that takes place every two years from 28 October 2016 to 26 February and organized by the Singapore Art Museum. This year’s edition is all about humankind’s exploration. People can share their imaginative and critical perspectives of artists from 19 countries across Asia. The exhibition features site-specific work by 63 artists and art collectives, with contemporary realities, double-edged legacies, the human condition, and an array of ‘big ideas’ through their art.
Singapore Biennale, Singapore
20 January-28 February 2017
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orea Tourism Organization is organizing the Korea Grand Sale a shopping tourism festival for foreign tourists from 20 January to 28 February. The festival highlights include various events, freebies, travel courses and convenient Hands Free Services for shoppers. It is a paradise for shopaholics and tourists who can enjoy shopping, tourism and the Korean Wave, “Hallyu”. This festival will also be held every October under the name of Korea Sale FESTA to provide special benefits to foreign visitors.
Korea Grand Sale, Korea
11 February-13 May 2017 16-19 March 2017
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he St. Patrick’s Festival will take place from 16-19 March that brings together 3,000 artists, musicians, dancers, poets and performers with over 30 events spanning four days and nights. The event will attract 100,000 overseas visitors.The highlights of the four day festival is the Festival Parade that showcases the talents of the artists, designers and performers of all ages in response to the Festival theme.The Festival will include Stephen James Smith, a Dublin poet to write a new poem, entitled 'My Ireland'
St.Patrick’s Festival, Dublin, Ireland
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he Seven Seas Food Festival is happening from 11 February to 13 May at Seaworld in Orlando. The festival features over 60 unique eats and more than 55 local and international craft brews. The festival combines culinary delights with performances on 14 consecutive Saturdays. The guests can enjoy sipping craft beers and sampling international coastal cuisine followed by live performances with everyone dancing, singing and laughing on each Saturday from top country, rock and Latin music artists. The event also showcased a wide array of BBQ and Slow Smoked Ribs. Seven Seas Food Festival, Orlando, USA
THE WORLD 22 February-5 March 2017
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he Carnival Festivities is scheduled to be held from 22 February to 5 March in Santa Cruz deTenerife. People come over to have fun for 15 days; the streets of the city come alive with joie de vivre, freedom and extravagance in this fiesta. This fiesta is one of the most Brazilian of the carnival festivities of Spain.The candidates can parade by wearing the most fantastic costumes. This festival also gives you the opportunity to enjoy music and performances of different carnival groups. Carnival Festivities, Canary Islands, Spain
11-19 March 2017
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he Pennsylvania Horticulture Society (PHS) Philadelphia Flower Show is scheduled to take place from 11-19 March, 2017 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center. The festival is one of the largest and longest-running horticultural events that highlight displays by the world’s premier floral and landscape designers. The Flower Show will celebrate the wonders of Holland right from windmills, wooden shoes and cheese, to bicycles, canals and vibrant tulip and flower fields. The event has been honoured as the best event in the world by the International Festivals & Events Association.
Philadelphia Flower Show, Pennsylvania, USA
6-8 April 2017 15-17 March 2017
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as Fallas will take place in the city of Valencia from 15 to 17 March 2017. The Fallas of Valencia have been already declared as an Intangible Cultural Heritage on 30 November 2016 at the Intergovernmental Convention by UNESCO. It is a unique traditional festival that involves thousands of Valencians . Las Fallas festival converts the city of Valencia into an ephemeral art museum. One can come and take part in this extraordinary bonfire street festival and walk through the beautiful city of Valencia. Las Fallas, Valencia, Spain
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he Madrid Fusion Manila is happening from 6 to 8 April at SM Convention Center, Manila, Philippines. It is a culinary event that includes the world’s top chefs and food enthusiasts. The Department of Tourism (DoT) Philippines is hosting the 3rd event mainly to showcase this country as the center of gastronomy in Asia and to promote tourism. The theme for this year festival is ‘Towards a Sustainable Gastronomic Planet’ and aimed at transforming gastronomy while respecting environmental limits and enhancing cultural traditions. Madrid Fusion Manila, The Philippines
Happenings
Indonesia Sales Travel Mission 2017 in India
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he Ministry of Tourism of the Republic of Indonesia conducted a sales mission in Feb in Mumbai and New Delhi. The increase of growth in Indian tourists to Indonesia over the year, has encouraged the Indonesian government to further step up their promotion of Indonesia in India. India is a growing market with its ever increasing number of overseas travellers over the years. The World Tourism Organization has observed that India’s number of outbound tourists increased from 16.6 million in 2013 to 18.3 million in 2014 and it has predicted that the number will reach 30 million by 2018. This increase is aligned with India’s economic growth of 7.8% during the same period. Data shows that while in 2014 there were 237,990 Indian visitors to Indonesia, the number sprung up to 336,575 by the end of November 2016. In short, the India market is booming and therefore a steadily incremental promotional effort is a logical step to keep up the growing trend.
Govardhan Eco Village launches Govardhan School of Yoga
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ovardhan Eco Village (GEV), an ISKCON project certified by Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) recently received the UNWTO Award for Excellence and Innovation in Tourism, announced the launch of Govardhan School of Yoga. Govardhan Eco Village highlights the importance of spiritual ecology, the 28-day residential program enables you to not only learn and teach yoga, but also to learn healthy eating, taking care of your body, meditation practices from the bhakti tradition and generally making yoga part of your lifestyle. Valsa Nair Singh IAS, Principal Secretary, Tourism & Culture, Government of Maharashtra stated, “Govardhan Eco Village is doing a commendable work by providing sustainable livelihoods and shaping global tourism through innovative initiatives."
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Grand Ski -A "Made in France" Alpine Experience for Travel Agents
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rand Ski Atout France’s annual winter tourism convention showcases France as a premier winter tourism destination. The convention was an interactive platform for Indian delegates as well as travel experts from all over the world to connect and get acquainted with more than 250 French exhibitors specialising in the ski and winter holidays segment. The Indian delegates were given the opportunity to experience the authentic alpine "Made in France" sojourn in the Auvergne-Rhone Alpes region prior to the convention this January. The visiting delegation was also hosted by the ski stations of Val Thorens and Méribel for a familiarisation trip showcasing typical winter activities ranging from skiing, snow-joering , ice skating et al. A magical soiree was held at the outdoor venue -Carré Curial in Chambery provided the perfect touches of an après-ski experience...a la française.
Tokyo Wonderland seminar in India
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he Tokyo Metropolitan Government hosted a seminar for travel agents and Indian media focusing on the main attractions of Tokyo tourism at Le Méridien New Delhi. The event is called “TOKYO WONDERLAND” and highlighted five themes “Unique Culture,” “Excellent Dining,” “Exciting Shopping,” “Delightful Stay” and “Comfortable Nature". The number of Indian tourists to Japan is growing steadily with a growth of 100,000 in 2015.Looking ahead to the 2020 Olympics/Paralympics and beyond, Tokyo, the Gateway to Japan, is playing an increasingly important role in inbound tourism as Japan and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government is actively implementing measures to attract tourists. The Tokyo Metropolitan Government is also working on an initiative to establish a “Tokyo brand” that created Tokyo as a tourist destination under the brand concept.
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CNN Asia Business Forum 2017
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NN Asia Business Forum was back in India for its second year, India being a rare beacon of hope and spot of stability in this very tumultuous phase in history. This year’s forum focused on two key industries, both drivers of growth to the Indian economy- aviation and technology. With the growing disposable
income, it seems destined that both the industries will flourish in the coming years. However, the crucial point of discussion was to address if India can indeed be an aviation super power given the intense competition in the segment, high fuel charges, high taxation rates as well as exorbitant infrastructural costs. The Civil Aviation Minister Government of India, P. Ashok Gajapathi Raju, had an exclusive one-to-one conversation with CNN's international business correspondent Richard Quest following which, Richard Quest and Kristie Lu Stout moderated two high-powered and thought-provoking panels on aviation and technology respectively. The first discussion “India at 30,000 feet”, explored the Indian aviation market with Ajay Singh-Chairman and MD, Spicejet, Phee Teik Yeoh-Chief Executive Officer, Vistara - TATA SIA Airlines Limited and Kanika Tekriwal-CEO and co-founder, JetSetGo.
Andhra Tourism reaches out to Spanish Outbound Market!
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ndhra Pradesh Tourism participated this year at the FITUR exhibition on 19th of January, 2017 as a stand-alone exhibitor . The Dept. of Tourism, Govt. of Andhra Pradesh also organized a roadshow to connect with key tour operators and media representatives from across the world. The event was graced by the newly appointed Indian Ambassador to Spain, Shri D B Venkatesh Varma. Giving his wholehearted support to Dr. Srikant´s outreach program, the Ambassador invited the audience to take full benefit of the business-friendly and development oriented initiatives being spearheaded by the Government in Andhra Pradesh.
Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority organized four city Road Shows in India
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he Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority recently concluded their four-city road shows inLucknow, Kolkata, Mumbai and New Delhi with the presence of 13 stakeholders which included Etihad Airways, Emirates Palace, Lama Tours & Holidays, Rotana Hotels, Dusit Thani (Abu Dhabi), Sheraton Abu Dhabi Hotel & Resort, Telal Resorts, St Regis Saadiyat, Aloft Abu Dhabi, Marriott Downtown, Jannah Hotels & Resorts, Dnata and Yas Island Abu Dhabi in February.
RezLive.com celebrates 10 Years of its online market
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ezLive.com completes 10 years of online presence especially with innovation and expansion in different markets, wherein the key growth drivers were identified as investment in best-in-class technology, cutting edge use of data and analytics, and emphasis on building strong relationships with travel partners. Jaal Shah, Group Managing Director at Travel Designer Group said, “As we celebrate 10 years in the online market. We would also like to make a note that our relationship with travel partners will remain the foundation for such achievements and we look forward to their continued support in the future”.
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Technology
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User experience KPIs for travel brands:Tnooz.com
Duncan Keene, UK managing director of ContentSquare, talks about measuring UX of travel websites, a perennial problem for the marketers that work for these brands. Tnooz.com
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arketing and product development teams are currently testing in the dark, unsure of whether the latest website optimisation they’ve implemented will actually make a difference. They’re testing in the dark because too often they’re guilty of making A/B tests based either on just best practice or their intuition rather than making them based on actual insight into their customer’s behaviours. Any marketer will have a basic idea of what is going on with their website at any given time. Simple metrics like conversion rates, bounce rates, session duration or page views are essential information points in any marketer’s arsenal, and they are generating KPIs that are similarly, important baselines of website performance. However, marketers should not stop there. While these metrics give marketers a good idea of what’s going on on the site, they give far less understanding of how and why users are behaving the way they are online.
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Here are four new KPIs designed with UX in mind which should help you have a deeper understanding of how your customers are shopping for travel. 1. Click repetition Click repetition is the number of
clicks users make in a row on the same page element. It’s common sense really: when users are frustrated at something that’s not working, they’ll click on it repeatedly. There could be several reasons for this repeat clicking: the particular element on the page could be technically malfunctioning, the call to action could be unclear, or there could be some other misconception with the design of the element. For example, as a travel site you might have a large banner image of a popular location that’s generating a large number of repeat clicks. Perhaps those repeat clicks are being made because the image looks like it ought to be clickable, or because the link is broken. This kind of insight is not something that is available using free tools like Google Analytics, and is vital for keeping track of potential annoyances for your visitors. Travel is a highly considered purchase, so travel brands want to minimise all potential points at which visitors might exit the site. 2. Activity rate Many businesses will be measuring time spent on page, and for travel brands this can form a key metric for determining how well each page is inspiring an intent to buy. Activity rate measures the time spent interacting with things within
the page, rather than simply the time spent on the page from entry to exit. It is a less measured gauge of success, but can actually tell you more about how your website is being used. Measuring the time users take to actually complete tasks on a web page is far more useful than simply measuring how long users spend sitting on the page – the user could have opened another tab, or left the computer. 3. Engagement rate Crafting the perfect CTA is very much an art, however, that doesn’t mean that measuring its effectiveness can’t be a science. Engagement rate is the number of visitors that interact with a particular CTA, as a percentage of the number of users that visited that page, and it’s of the utmost importance to keep a close watch on this metric. It’s vital to monitor your CTA engagement rate over time: if you don’t, then you won’t know whether changes to its phrasing or positioning are making a positive or negative change. When you track your CTA engagement rate as a KPI, you’ll find it’s much easier to optimise and reorganise your menus and CTAs.
4. Time before first click The first click: very often, the most important click. The time between landing on a page and clicking on something is a key time for the user. It’s the time when the user is forming an impression of your brand, processing the information they’re being presented with, and deciding what action to take. This all takes time, and this is what marketers really need to focus on. A short time before first-click, combined with messy user journeys, could imply that perhaps a big sale is leading users down the wrong path, or that a hero image is too attention-grabbing. A long time before first-click could mean the opposite: maybe the input forms or calendar selection tools are too complex to use, and driving users away. More marketers are realising that traditional analytics solutions like Google Analytics are no longer enough: we need to think more about why users are behaving in certain ways, and react accordingly. These new KPIs are behaviours that you should be tracking on an ongoing basis. They’ll help you stop making changes to your website “from the gut”, and start making real data-led decisions for your website.
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Voyager’s World > February 2017
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Top Appointments
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Sudeep Jain
Rohit Chopra
Vice President DevelopmentSouth West Asia InterContinental Hotels Group
Regional Director of Sales AccorHotels India
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ccorHotels India appointed Rohit Chopra as the Regional Director of Sales. He will be responsible in developing various global sales offices in India. He brings with him an experience of over two decades and has worked with IHG, Marriott and Hyatt in leadership roles. Prior to this, he had worked as the Executive Assistant Manager, Sales and Marketing at Novotel Pune.
S
udeep Jain joins InterContinental Hotels Group as the Vice President, Development, South West Asia. He brings with him an experience of more than 15 years in the hospitality sector. Prior to this, he has worked with Starwood Hotels & Resorts as the Vice President, Acquisitions & Development for South Asia. He has also worked with Starwood in New York.
Jean-Michel CassĂŠ
Vinita Khar
Chief Operating Officer India and South Asia AccorHotels
J
ean-Michel Casse has been promoted as its Chief Operating Officer - India and South Asia of AccorHotels. Prior to this, he worked as Senior Vice-President of AccorHotels, India. He brings with him an experience of over three decades inthe hospitality industry and has worked across multiple international markets in Europe, Asia, Middle East and Africa.
Director of Sales & Marketing Park Hyatt Goa Resort and Spa
V
inita Khar joins Park Hyatt Goa Resort and Spa as the Director of Sales and Marketing. She has been associated with the hospitality industry for more than a decade. She has been part of the Hyatt family since 2007 as Director of Revenue Management at Grand Hyatt Mumbai and then at Hyatt Regency Pune as Director of Sales and Marketing.
Louise Daley
Faiz Alam Ansari
Deputy Chief Executive OfficerAsia Pacific AccorHotels
A
ccorHotels appoints Louise Daley as the Deputy Chief Executive Officer Asia Pacific. She has worked with AccorHotels for 26 years. Prior to this, she has workedin Australia as Chief Financial Officer for AccorHotels Pacific and as the CEO, Accor Advantage Plus. She will retain her responsibilities as Chief Financial Officer Asia Pacific, AccorHotels and will continue to oversee AccorPlus.
Complex General Manager Sheraton Grand Bengaluru Whitefield & Aloft Bengaluru Cessna Business Park
A
loft Bengaluru Cessna Business Park appointed Faiz Alam Ansari as Complex General Manager for Sheraton Grand Bengaluru Whitefield Hotel & Convention Centre and Aloft Bengaluru Cessna Business Park. He has over 20 years of experience with brands like Raffles Hotel, Singapore, Le Meridien, Kuala Lumpur, Westin Gurgaon, New Delhi and has been associated with Starwood hotels & Resorts.
Rahul Sharma
Vineet Chopra
General Manager Four Points by Sheraton, Jaipur
R
ahul Sharma joins Four Points by Sheraton, Jaipur as the General Manager. He has over 17 years of experience in the Hospitality. Prior to this, he has worked as the Executive Assistant Manager of Le Meridien Kochi. He has also worked with the Starwood Global Sales, Le Meridien Jaipur, Le Meridien Dubai and Nikko Hotel International. He brings valuable experience in Strategic Sales Planning and Revenue Management, Operational Excellence and Decentralized Leadership with focus on Profitability.
General Manager Radisson Blu Atria, Bengaluru
V
ineet joins Radisson Blu Atria, Bengaluru as the General Manager who will be responsible for the overall functioning of the hotel. He brings with him more than 15 years of experience in the hospitality sector. He has worked with star properties within the country and outside for hotels like Trident Hilton, Grand Hyatt Mumbai and Madinat Jumeirah.
www.voyagersworld.in
NETWORKING ISThE THE NETwORKiNG is KE KEY y February 2017
March 2017
April 2017
May 2017
February2017 23, 24, 25 Guangzhou Int’l Travel Fair China
27, 28 Feb 01 March Outbound Travel Roadshow Dubai, Kuwait, Doha
27 Feb, 1 Mar Meetings Africa Johannesburg, South Africa
March 2017 3, 4 International Healthcare Tourism Congress Bangalore
3, 4, 5 India International Travel Mart Kolkata
8, 9, 10, 11,12
April 2017 4, 5, 6 World Travel Market Latin America Brazil
6, 7, 8 Aitf Azerbaijan
19, 20, 21
ITB Berlin Germany
World Travel Market Africa South Africa
20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25 Outbound Travel Roadshow Delhi, Bangalore, Mumbai
24, 25, 26, 27 Arabian Travel Market Dubai
May 2017
June 2017
7, 8, 9
1, 2, 3, 4
GTM Germany Travel Mart Nuremberg, Germany
KOFTA (Korea World Travel Fair) Seoul - Korea
5, 6, 7, 8 16, 17, 18 IMEX Frankfurt/Main, Germany
ILTM (Int'l Luxury Travel Market) Shanghai - China
15, 16, 17, 18 ITE (International Tourism Expo) Hong Kong
16, 17, 18 Indaba Durban, South Africa
23, 24, 25 BITE (Beijing International Tourism Expo) Beijing-China
June 2017