Voyagers World June'18

Vol XV

Issue VIII

Pages 40

June 2018

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une and July are the times, when the monsoon rediscovers India, the off-season permeates to an exciting phase of unbridled destination marketing during the rains. Though, not a major highlight of any destination worth it's name, the lure of moist earth beneath one's feet and the lurking of dripping rain-water is a delight for some seeking nirvana!

City hotels in India, have long wished for enhanced occupancies during weekends and have been successful in not creating any marketing program whatsoever to create a market and find consumers for their perishable inventory. Voyager's World tries to highlight on this aspect of hotel-marketing in this issue.

Happy Reading!

Warm Regards

Rohit Hangal

rohit@voyagersworld.in

Managing Editor

Rohit Hangal rohit@voyagersworld.in

Irene Susan Eapen irene@voyagersworld.in

Content Writer

Jeelani MN jeelani@voyagersworld.in

Creative Head

EDIT

Shyam Vishnot shyam@iitmindia.com

ORIA

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Advertising & Marketing

Industry Buzz

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ADVERTISING CIRCU & LATIO N

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Assistant Editor

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Incredible India ITDC

Surinder Hakhu sanjay@voyagersworld.in & Rohit Hangal rohit@voyagersworld.in

Mice Point Exploding Room Inventory

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Festivals of the World

India Outbound Oman Visa

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Voyager’s World > June 2018

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Industry Buzz Turkey witnessed an increase of 95% in the Indian Tourist arrival for first four months in 2018

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he number of international tourist visiting Turkey in the first quarter of 2018 experienced an increase of 32% compared to the same period of 2017. Turkey is preparing to host 40 million international tourists by the end of 2018. While 19803 Indians visited Turkey from January to April last year, this figure increased to 38471 in the same period this year, the Indian Tourist arrival noticed an increase of 95% in the first quarter of 2018 in comparison to the same period of 2017. By the end of 2018, 200000 Indian tourists are expected to visit Turkey.

Turkish Embassy New Delhi appoints new Culture & Tourism Counsellor

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. Deniz Ersoz joins as the new Culture & Tourism Counsellor based in Turkish Embassy New Delhi India. He has been working with the Turkish Culture & Tourism Ministry since 2008, and also worked as a coordinator, responsible for bilateral relations with Europe CIS and ASEAN countries.

6>> Zimbabwe Tourism for India appoints VFS Global

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he Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) recently appointed VFS Global to promote Zimbabwe as a preferred tourism destination in both India and GCC region. Mainly to showcase Zimbabwe as a potential tourist destination by educating and spreading awareness to tour operators, travel agents, MICE planners and the general traveller based in India or GCC region.

Dr Karikoga Kaseke, Chief Executive of the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority, said “We are looking forward to increase awareness of Zimbabwe and establish destination presence and visibility.

We anticipate a rise in arrivals from GCC region to 13500 by 2021 as VFS Global embarks on aggressively marketing the country.” Zimbabwe has recently targeted India as a primary market due to its potential resulting from the rapid growing disposable incomes in India. India is a huge market for Zimbabwe and are targeting at least 16000 Indian travellers by 2021 through sustainable destination marketing that will be done by VFS Global."

Lemon Tree Hotel opens in Himachal Pradesh

L Ginger signs a new hotel in Jhansi

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inger recently announced the signing of a new hotel in Jhansi, Uttar Pradesh which will be the Ginger’s first hotel in Jhansi. The Ginger portfolio has 45 operating hotels and 8 hotels in the pipeline.

Deepika Rao, Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer, Ginger said, “We are happy to partner with Khard Hotels Pvt Ltd for the new Ginger hotel.”

emon Tree Hotels announced the opening of its new property Lemon Tree Hotel, Baddi, Himachal Pradesh. On the occasion of the launch, Rattan Keswani, Rattan Keswani, Deputy Managing Director – Lemon Tree Hotels said, “This property enhanced our portfolio and helped us in entering the lucrative industrial town of Baddi, which is home to over 2000 medium and large industries besides being a convenient transit location for guests travelling to popular leisure destinations in the hills.”

Ashok Kukreja, Managing Partner, M/s Royal Park stated, “We are glad to partner with Lemon Tree Hotels and are sure to develop this new hotel into the most preferred destination amongst business and leisure travelers visiting this industrial town.”

Anaya Beacon Hotel opens in Jamnagar

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he Fern Hotels & Resorts launched Anaya Beacon Hotel in Jamnagar which is the ninth hotel managed by the company under the Beacon Hotels brand. Anaya Beacon Hotel is offering 40 rooms.

The COO of the group, Suhail Kannampilly said, “We have further consolidated our position in Gujarat. We already have nine operational properties in Gujarat.”

Reunion Island Tourism Board appoints Representation World LLP as its India representative

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eunion Island has registered a substantial growth of 175.5% from the Indian market in the first quarter of 2017 as compared to the same period last year, according to the official statistics shared by Airport Roland Garros, Reunion Island.

India is ranked top among all 10 other countries in visitor arrivals in during the first quarter of 2017 in the country. Reunion Island Tourism Board has appointed again Representation World LLP as its India representative consecutively for 4th year in a row. “India is a promising market and there is a huge opportunity for Reunion Island to tap this growing market. We will also be introducing new marketing strategies and few innovative campaigns, exclusively for India market that will further strengthen India and Reunion Island travel, relationships” says William Techer – Head of Promotion & Marketing India, Reunion Island Tourism Board.

Voyager’s World > June 2018

Industry Buzz

8>> Tamara Leisure Experiences opens in Kodaikanal

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amara Leisure Expereinces opened its second property The Tamara Kodai. The Tamara Kodai is offering 53 suites of French provincial design. Shruti Shibulal, Promoter and Director - Strategy and Development, Tamara Leisure Experiences says, "The second luxury resort becomes an important milestone in our journey.

The Tamara Kodai is all set to establish a new benchmark in the hospitality industry in India as one of its premiere luxury heritage resorts.”

Kerala Tourism attracts domestic travellers with a promotional campaign

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he Department of Tourism, Government of Kerala gets ready to start their five month long promotional campaign in all the potential domestic markets. Kerala tourism is planning to organize 15 B2B meets across the domestic markets so that this initiative can increase the number of domestic travellers visiting the various destinations of Kerala. Kadakampally Surendran, Minister for Cooperation, Tourism and Devaswoms, Government of Kerala, stated, “With the promotional campaign, the Tourism Department aims to promote the state’s tourism across potential domestic markets. Through domestic B2B meets, we hope showcase the rich cultural heritage of the state across the country.”

Kerala Tourism also plans to promote its tourism potential in Maharashtra through conducting partnership meets in Nagpur (October 3), TTF Mumbai from October 5-7 along with partnership meets in Pune (October 9) and Mumbai (October 12).

The first phase of the domestic B2B meets would culminate with IITM Hyderabad (November 23-25), tapping the Telangana market..

IndiGo launches 3 daily non-stop flights from Chennai and Tuticorin and 2nd daily non-stop flight between Chennai and Calicut

FHRAI appoints new Assistant Secretary General

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aison Chacko is appointed as the Assistant Secretary General of The Federation of Hotels & Restaurants Association of India. He brings with him an experience of 20 years in leadership roles in diverse sectors including industry associations, corporate and development sector organizations. He has also played a great role in partnership building and networking Central and State Government, PSUs, Corporates and enabled a considerable growth in the business portfolio of the organization.

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ndiGo with its 10th ATR aircraft will operate three daily non-stop flights between Chennai and Tuticorin and will also operate a second daily non-stop flights between Chennai and Calicut effective from July 26th 2018. Sanjay Kumar, Chief Commercial Officer, IndiGo said, “With the rising business and tourism stemming from the southern cities, we are providing affordable fares on these new routes for 6E travellers.”

11th Convention India Conclave 29-31 Aug 2018

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ndia Convention Promotion Bureau (ICPB), a body sponsored by Ministry of Tourism, Govt. of India is pleased to announce our Flagship Event “Conventions India Conclave” in Kolkata from 29 – 31 August 2018 at Biswa Bangla Convention Centre.

Announcing the theme of the event is “Scaling New Height – Building for the Future”, the focus area during the Conclave will be on how ICPB can enhance their activities and compete in the International Market. We are already moving in this direction – as you are aware of our first ever International Road Show being held in Europe at the end of June 2018.-

Voyager’s World > June 2018

Ethiopia Launched e-visa Service for all International Visitors

Regenta Central Hestia opens in Dahej, Gujarat

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he Ethiopian Immigration and Nationality Affairs Main Department in association with Ethiopian Airlines launched an e-visa service for all international visitors to Ethiopia effective from June 2018.

The e- visa is processed and issued online on a single webpage where applicants apply, pay and secure their entry visa online. Once the application is approved, applicants will receive an email authorizing them to travel to Ethiopia and they will get their passport stamped with the visa upon arrival in Addis Ababa. Regarding the newly revamped service, Group CEO Ethiopian Airlines, Tewolde GebreMariam remarked, "This project is part of a new national initiative to transform the tourism sector in the country.”

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oyal Orchid Hotels opened the new property Regenta Central Hestia in Dahej, Gujarat and continues to grow its presence in Gujarat. Regenta Central Hestia by Royal Orchid Hotels offers 69 wellappointed rooms.

Chander K. Baljee, Managing Director, Royal Orchid Hotels, said, “We have already added 15 new properties in India with focus on the Tier II and III cities. This new property in Dahej will add value to the business travellers.”

Online Travel

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EASEMYTRIP expands travel portfolio in india JEELANI MN

Nishant Pitti, CEO & Co-Founder, Easy Trip Planners Pvt. Ltd. (EaseMyTrip.com) says that “All online travel agencies offer similar products but EaseMyTrip stands apart by generating a lot of information". gives them chance to invent unique vacations and indulge into complete satisfaction. We also provide the customers full support in editing, reorganizing and recreating their travel plan.

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aseMyTrip stands apart from them due to not only focusing on selling travel products/solutions but also creating incredible memories for its customers. EaseMyTrip also encourages its customers to interact with the highly efficient travel executives of the company and gives them sufficient time to think best about their holidays. EaseMyTrip.com

Unique features of EaseMyTrip There are various features that make EaseMyTrip unique. Some of which are: • It doesn’t charge convenience fee on flight booking • The company has its own call centre.

• It is the only self-funded company that is in consistent profit so far • The company has its branch offices in Thailand, Dubai, Maldives and Singapore, where travellers can receive services of our local branches.

Which market is currently thriving,

leisure or corporate?

Both the markets are seeing boom.

For corporate, business with pleasure has become a catch phrase while holiday trips have turned into a necessity for all. So, both of these sectors are booming. At present, travel for both business and leisure is on rise.

EaseMyTrip Mobile App Our mobile app is having a very unique feature that is airplane chat mode.

One can use this feature to chat with co-passengers without using internet.

This chat feature uses Bluetooth connectivity of mobile phones and allows the users chatting with their copassengers even on airplane mode.

Security Feature We tied up with more than 450 NRIs

across the world to help the tourists in cases of emergencies, including medical, robbery and immigration.

Through this feature, we can offer all possible medical aids to our customers and may also help them in custom formalities. This is an important initiative that we could only manage to take because of our extensive network around the globe.

Latest Developments New developments are happening continuously and we are getting the benefit of these. We are going to launch handy travel boxes of holiday itineraries that travellers can buy and book. We are soon going to open branch offices in UK and US. Like last year, we are also participating in IIFA and will keep engaging into entertainment business.

royal orchid hosts mrs india karnataka VW BUREAU

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rs India Karnataka, the premium pageant for married women of Karnataka is a pathway to the forefront with growth to national and international pageants.

The inaugural edition of the pageant was put forward in 2016 by Pratibha Saunshimath who herself is Mrs Asia International, Mrs Photogenic and Mrs India 2015. Since then, Mrs India Karnataka has grown tremendously popular in our state.

The 2018 finale was by far the grandest and most elegant event conducted since the inaugural edition. Under the extensive support of Mr. Sachin Mudappa, DirectorSales, Royal Orchid Hotels, which was conducted a three day finale at Royal Orchid resort and convention center, Yelahanka Bengaluru.

The grand state finale of Mrs India Karnataka took place on the 24th of

Voyager’s World > June 2018

March. The fabricated 40*50 stage with 24feet ramp was very well set up on the lawn with specialized seating for VIP guests and visitors.

The main team headed by Nitish Saunshimath, Executive Director along with a total of 15 volunteers and 15 bouncers were on duty to assist the events smooth running.

The esteemed judges for the finals were Mr.Amit Jaiswal, CFO Royal Orchids Hotels.

Ashok Maanay Designer, Swaroop dermatologist, Amrutha Rao a budding Kannada film actress and Sujatha Satyanarayana well known TV artist.

The event was anchored by Aparna a legend in Karnataka for anchoring, with the support of the organizer Pratibha Saunshimath.

The event which went for a little more than 4 hours saw nearly thousand spectators watching and

encouraging our pageant.

The finale constituted of mainly 3 rounds: - traditional wear, fitness wear and gown round.

The event took off with the Karnataka Naada Geete followed by dance sequence by the “move and groove” dance team. The pageant was venerated by dignitaries attending the show which listed from mid core film artists, producers, directors, police personnel, and retired secretary of our states. In addition

to that, the grand finale also had a special women's achievers awarding ceremony, who were carefully selected by the Vijay Vani and Dighvijay team and awarded by the editor of Digvija Mr.Chennegowda .

The Pageant concluded with the crowning of the winners by our esteemed judge Mr Amit Jaiswal, Special guest Mr.Sachin Mudappa, The National director madam Deepali Phadnis(Mrs India) and our reining queens Swetha Singh, Aruna Singh and Zeeba Latif.

Flight Talk

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AIR INDIA SATS COMPLETE TEN YEARS OF SERVICE VW BUREAU

Captures 56% market share in international flight handling and 54% market share in international cargo handling in its decade long service

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ir India SATS Airport Services Pvt. Ltd. (AISATS), India’s premier airport services company, has completed ten years of providing airport services at the Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru. In the last decade, AISATS has played a significant role in adopting and implementing several technological and digital innovations to its ground and cargo handling operations, thereby bolstering the status of Kempegowda International Airport as the Gateway to South India.

AISATS is the only airport service company at Kempegowda International Airport that provides comprehensive ground and cargo handling services, and serves

seventeen international and five domestic airlines. Since the inception at Bengaluru, AISATS has handled 125,867 flights and 1,094,284 tonnes of cargo.

Apart from providing services to scheduled passenger and cargo airlines, AISATS also specializes in handling charter flights.

In addition to operating the largest Air Freight Terminal at Kempegowda International Airport with a capacity to handle 210,000 tons of cargo per annum, AISATS has also established India’s first integrated on-airport perishable cargo handling centre, the AISATS COOLPORT, with a capacity to handle 40,000 tons of perishable cargo per annum. With in-house

facilities of dedicated X-Ray machines, a Drug-Controller Lab Testing facility, Plant-Quarantine Inspection & Certifications, and a Customs Clearance facility, AISATS COOLPORT offers one-stop solution for perishable cargo handling and also helps in reducing cargo dwell time considerably. Since the inauguration of the AISATS COOLPORT in October 2016, till date, it has handled 28,000 metric tonnes of perishable cargo (export and import).

Speaking on this occasion, Mike Chew, CEO, AISATS said, “AISATS has had a rewarding decade-long association with Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru and we would like to thank the airport

authorities, customer airlines, cargo trade partners, regulatory authorities, government agencies, service providers, passengers and all our stakeholders for their continuous support. In the last 10 years, we have grown leaps and bounds in our operations, and feel proud to have brought numerous technological advancements, ground support equipment, and cargo infrastructure to ensure seamless airport services and a hassle-free airport experience for our customers. We would also like to thank all our employees who have been part of this remarkable growth story. We look forward to continually providing comprehensive ground and cargo handling services, and implementing the industry’s best practices at the airports we operate in.”

wow air target growth via low fares VW BUREAU

airport in Iceland that will connect to multiple destinations in North America and Europe.

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ly to Europe and North America with fares starting from INR 13,499/- including taxes, making WOW the second European airline in the world to deploy the most modern long-haul aircraft, Airbus A330neo for the route from New Delhi.

WOW air, Iceland’s low fare transatlantic airline, announces the launch of its flight operations in India from December 7, 2018 with incredibly low airfares that will enable everyone to fly. The airline will have five direct flights a week between New Delhi and Keflavik

To be offered in 4 exciting fare options: WOW basic, WOW plus, WOW comfy & WOW premium, the airline will introduce never-before seen fares to their transatlantic destinations for Indian travellers.

A one-way ticket to Iceland, US, Canada and London in economy category called WOW basic will start from INR 13,499/- (including taxes) while the business class fares termed as WOW premium will be priced from INR 46,599/- onwards (including taxes). With some of the most competitive international fares, WOW air brings in the best flying option to North America including cities like New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Baltimore and many more destinations. The airline also gives a spectacular, costeffective opportunity to break-up long-haul journeys across the Atlantic and simultaneously enjoy some

breath-taking scenic destinations or outdoor adventures in Iceland.

WOW air will be the second European airline in the world to deploy the most modern long-haul aircraft, Airbus A330neo for the route from New Delhi. Announcing the launch of its India operations, Skúli Mogensen, Chief Executive Officer and founder of WOW air said, “We are thrilled to launch our operations in India, a diverse country with tremendous potential. Our launch is in sync with India’s aviation growth story and we look forward to being part of it with our very affordable fares to North

America and Europe on board brand new Airbus A330neos. It is also a major milestone for WOW air as we are now connecting Asia with our extensive network in North America and Europe, making Iceland a global hub. WOW air also plans to add more flights to India in the future as the country strongly moves ahead to become the world’s third largest tourism economy in the next ten years.”

WOW air looks forward to welcoming its guests on board from December 7 onward this year subject to final completion of regulatory formalities.

www.voyagersworld.in

Cruise & Marketing

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norweigian announces new sailing options to alaska VW BUREAU

Norwegian cruise line’s 16th ship ‘Norwegian bliss’ introduces a new sail to Alaska and the Caribbean beginning June 2018

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orwegian Cruise Line’s sixteenth ship ‘Norwegian Bliss’ has been designed for the ultimate cruising experience and will sail to Alaska and the Caribbean beginning June 2018.

Take a look at the exciting activities available on board offering best of luxurious accommodations, gourmet dinners, live entertainment and much more.

Enjoy the blue sky above and turquoise waters below from the largest competitive race track at sea, a first for any North America-based cruise ship. Put your driving skills to test and experience a thrilling ride on the two-level competitive race track built at the top of deck 19, offering guests amazing views while twisting and turning at a speed of up to 30 miles per hour.

The first-ever open-air laser tag at sea on a North American-based ship. The ship’s Aqua Park includes two multistory thrilling waterslides The not-so adventurous guests can enjoy the ship’s expansive pool, sundeck or six infinity hot tubs.

Norwegian Bliss with the fleet’s largest Guppies playroom. For video game lovers, Video Arcade is the place to be. After glacier trekking in Alaska or discovering hidden caves and sea pools at the Baths of Virgin Gorda in the Caribbean, Norwegian Bliss guests will be able to revive, refresh and recharge at the ship’s Mandara Spa that offers an ultimate pampering experience with its 24 treatment rooms, a full-service salon, barber shop and thermal suite.

Guests will be in sheer awe at the

180-degree indoor Observation Lounge that offers expansive views at sea and features a full-service bar so guests can toast colourful sunsets with their favourite cocktail. More than 3,500 square feet of custom built floor-to-ceiling windows provide spectacular vistas while cruising past snow-capped mountains.

Norwegian Bliss’ custom design offers guests the freedom and

flexibility to ‘imagine Bliss’ and create their ideal experience at sea, with a wide variety of accommodations. The Haven located at the top of the ship is an exclusive enclave with private keycard access to the most luxurious, well-appointed and spacious accommodations. Studio staterooms with virtual ocean views are ideal for solo travellers and new connecting staterooms are best suited for large group or families traveling together.

Discounting is for Dummies Drive More Direct Bookings Without Sacrificing Your Bottom Line I know that if I listened very carefully right now, I would hear many hoteliers angrily protesting: “That’s not true; my hotel has used discounting and it always yields positive results for us. That’s why we keep doing it!”

By Mark Lewis-Brown, CEO & President at Vertical Booking USA For many years, hoteliers have been throwing away potential revenues right-and-left, offering huge discounts to lure bookers back from the OTAs and alternative accommodation options. I’m here today to tell you something that I need you all to hear: discounting is the best way for your hotel to go from profitable with a high cost of acquisition, to a property with high occupancy, a low cost of acquisition, but (and this is a BIG but) one that is barely able to afford to stay in business.

Voyager’s World > June 2018

In response to that, I say: “True, discounting can increase occupancy in the short-term – through both the OTAs or direct channels; however, in the long-term, you will be severely undercutting your ADR and RevPAR. Remember, occupancy isn’t what keeps the lights on and bank accounts full; ADR and RevPAR do.

To those hoteliers who are still grumbling in disbelief, let me share an example of why discounting is never a good strategy - even in the short-term - no matter what type of hotel, flagged or independent, size or its geographical location.

It always starts out well; the revenue manager at your hotel decides to

offer a small discount, but only for a short period of time so that you don’t drastically decrease their ADR or RevPAR, or undercut the property’s brand value proposition.

Sounds good so far, right?

Good news! Your property’s occupancy increases… for a short while.

But then, the competition in your destination catches wind of your successes and discounts their room rate even more. Your revenue manager doesn’t want to lose bookings over a few dollars, so he/ she lowers the room rate one more time, to get back on top. Then, the other hotel goes even lower and…

In many cases, hoteliers and revenue managers repeat these price reductions again and again, until the hotel is full but barely earning the money that they need to cover the cost of doing business.

Could we all have woken up one day

and decided that this was our new modus operandi?

My answer: I am sure of it because discounting is the hotelier’s version of that strategy; but, as I said earlier, it’s not the right way to increase occupancy, direct bookings or profit. Why? This isn’t the ‘Price is Right’; this is the highly competitive and ever-changing hospitality industry. By using the ‘Price is Right’ strategy, your hotel must continue discounting your room rate (whether it’s by $1 or $10 each time) on the already discounted rate to remain competitive, creating an ongoing race-to-the-bottom and a recipe for financial failure over the long-term – not just for your hotel, but for all hotels, industry-wide.

Because, while we’re over here giving away the house (or room, in this case), the OTAs are sitting back, watching as we price ourselves out of business – even further compromising our ability to drive direct bookings, while maintaining profitability.

Incredible India

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North East Region becomes a haven for touristic spots IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

Vaivhav Todi, Director, Green Pastures says, the North East region beckons with inspiring landscapes and fascinating cultures.

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reener Pastures is a niche travel company based in Northeast India that promotes responsible tours and adventures to exotic places in the region.

Indian market We have seen a significant growth from the Indian market in 2017 with domestic arrivals increasing by 20%

compared to 2016. We are expecting the same growth for this year.

You can get to explore Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram or the Manipur valley apart from the touristic trail of Kaziranga, Shillong and Tawang.

We are specialized in sustainable travel in Northeast India offering a wide array of experiences dealing with culture, wildlife, adventures and special interest.We are also promoting fixed departure group tours this year.

Marketing Plans We are planning to launch exciting new experiences this year and follow them up with dedicated social media advertising campaigns. We are also looking to collaborate with influencers in the industry and the region.

Kind of travellers We mostly receive city dwelling conscious travelers from the country along with a good number of Europeans and Americans. We noticed a diversity in age groups with a diversity of experiences and the travelers in their twenties and

thirties prefer to be part of adventure activities. Besides that the cultural immersion experiences are meant for more matured travelers. A trend in travelers is a requirement for more immersive, local and new experiences.

ITDC EXPANDS PORT BASED DUTY FREE SHOPS TO TWELVE JEELANI MN

hospitality sectors over years. ITDC clocked a turnover of 495.14 crore during the financial year 2016-17 as against 465.69 crore in the previous year, with some of the divisions like Hotels & Catering, Events Division, and AITD clocking one of their best performances during the year.

Piyush Tiwari, Director (Commercial & Marketing), ITDC says India is the seventh largest travel and tourism economy in the world. In 2017, the contribution of the sector to the economy was Rs 15.2 trillion (US$234 billion).

Growth In 2017 & 2018 India Tourism Development Corporation has witnessed the evolution of the tourism and

ITDC expanded the Ashok International Trade Division (AITD) and opened 2 new duty-free shops during the year, taking the total number of port based duty-free shops tally to twelve. Speaking for another legendary wing SEL, ITDC expanded it to Konark Temple, Orissa and a special piece of a creative show at Diu port which is in pipeline.

The Ashok, New Delhi flagship property of ITDC bagged second consecutive National Tourism Award

in the category of ‘Best Hotel Based Meeting Venue’ for the year 201516. Chefs of The Ashok Group won the Golden Hat Award, Kitchen Artist of the Year Award, National Tourism Award 2016-17 for “Best Chef” in 4 Star to 5 Star Deluxe, Heritage Classic & Grand Category.

The chefs of The Ashok Group participated in Indian Food festivals across the globe including Mayanmar, Spain, Lebanon, Netherlands, Congo, Italy, Cambodia, Ghana and earned accolades. ITDC has made extensive marketing strategies and business plans to promote the brand as a onestop solution for all tourism, travel and hospitality needs. We are broadly focusing on our different divisions and have below listed plans in the pipeline for 2018

Marketing Initiatives At present, our main concern for upcoming year lies in the renovation of our majestic hotels ‘The Ashok’ and Samrat to build them into worldclass hospitality pioneers. Alongside we strive to stress on revamping of websites, launching ITDC app, forming tie ups with State Tourism and Private Players to strengthen business verticals thus pushing our limits to achieve excellence.

We have tied up with both online and offline travel agents for various marketing and promotional activities.

We understand that travel agents are the backbone of our tours and travel business and their contribution to strengthening our business is invaluable.

www.voyagersworld.in

Incredible India

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RISING number OF TRAVEL START-UPS TO harness INDIAN TOURISM INDUSTRY IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

The bang in travel start-ups is creating a new scenario in tourism industry and is expected to rise over

@ Videndaa

the years with a multiple boost to the tourism industry

Manheer Singh Sethi , Co-Founder & Director, Travkart.com Today travel industry is contributing around 9% of the GDP which is huge for a single sector and with the kind of pace it is bound to increase by leaps & bounds. The Industry offers a lots of employment through new start-ups as this industry accounts for 2 million jobs across the nation.

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ravel Start-ups are nowadays booming in India with different ideas and concepts over the years and a big market that is growing in the travel industry. The tourism industry is benefiting as well with the number of start-ups and with more people travelling in India and abroad. The expansion of the travel start-ups is likely to increase in India as a potential segment in the tourism industry and this trend will continue to grow in huge numbers in the future.

Manheer Singh Sethi, Co-Founder & Director, Travkart.com explains, "India is currently the biggest market for start-ups and the travel industry now contributes around 9% in the GDP, and employees more than 10 million people, the number of startups are further staggering.

2017 noticed a 30% upsurge in the start-ups and 2018 is set to witness about 45% growth with the given pace.”

Voyager’s World > June 2018

Praveen Kumar, Founder and CEO, TripHobo says, "The travel Industry has been at the forefront of the Indian start-up story and also a home to some of the most innovative and unique start-ups in travel.”

In the opinion of Utkarsh Purohit, COO, Videndaa" India has already became one of the largest tourist economies and will continue to do so for many more coming years.

The industry is still in its initial gears and would probably take years before hitting the top gear till then the culture of new and disruptive ideas and concept will continue to flourish.”

Growth of travel start-ups expanding in India Praveen says, "With the burgeoning of the middle class and increasing demand for travel, leisure and experiences the Indian travel startups have been able to attract attention from customers and investors alike. In particular D.I.Y. trip planning is picking up as travellers

look for personalized experiences.

We believe that this will pave the growth for the online travel start-ups in the coming years."

Sukhmani Singh, Chief Business Officer, Tripshelf observes "2017 was an exciting year in travel, we have seen consolidation, shut downs and new kids on the block Hotels, packages and content with technology as the center point will be the flavour of 2018. The year started off funding announcements in the space, which is a clear indication that travel is getting hotter."

Manheer says, “ Definitely the tourism Industry is getting a boost on the whole through travel startups as it creates a good competition and a good market .”

Praveen explains, “People in India are travelling much more than before and the travel start-ups are helping this by simplifying the process of planning and booking. It is a win-win situation for both- the tourism industry and the travel startups.”

In the opinion of Utkarsh, “Being a country of nearly 1.2 billion people we are among the most eligible market for any kind of industry throughout the world.Even the giants such as Airbnb has stepped into the space and trying to carve out there chunk from this massive market.”

In the opinion of Sukhmani, “The tourism industry both in domestic and outbound is in fact giving a boost to a lot of travel start-ups and travel companies. While it is a chicken and egg equation, the Indian traveller is at a stage where he's been inspired to travel and is now ready to take the plunge to holiday multiple times a year. So it is definitely a boost for all the travel start-ups.”

Tourism industry gets a boost with the number of travel start-ups

Utkarsh adds, “The scenario becomes competitive for new and

Incredible India

@ Videndaa

@ Videndaa

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Praveen Kumar, Founder and CEO, TripHobo India is home to some of the most innovative and unique start-ups in travel.

The ‘Do It Yourself’ trip planning concept is now growing among travellers for more personalized experiences and this will definitely grow for the online travel start-ups in the coming years.

Sukhmani Singh, Chief Business Officer,Tripshelf The tourism industry is giving a boost to a lot of travel start-ups and travel companies. Travel start-ups are focusing on technology for better customer search, booking experience and empowering the end suppliers and tour operators to service the travellers better.

upcoming but also at the same time it is also pushing us to innovate in this field of experiences. The industry of course is getting a boost. With the emerging number of travel start-ups is creating an aura of awareness.

Travel is touching the lives of the people in the most unexpected ways and even approaching some of social issues which long existed in the society.”

Travel start-ups are coming up with different ideas and concepts every year this trend is likely to grow in India over the years and the travel start-ups market is going to boom in the future explain?

Manheer says, “For India travel is already a mine of opportunities yet unexplored to a great level. We introduced features like “Search

by Budget”, Book Activities On The Go” and various others features are more of new concepts coming up on a regular basis. The travel industry is now contributing around 9% of the GDP which is huge for a single sector and with the kind of pace it is bound

to increase by leaps & bounds.”

Praveen explains, “In India, the potential market is still untapped.

We are already seeing the travel story in China, which is phenomenal.

India with its massive aspirational and young work force will be the next driver of the travel growth story. The Indian traveller is well educated and expects the travel experience to be truly unique and memorable.

as well as empowering the end suppliers and tour operators to service the travellers better. We are also using techniques like conversational commerce, chat bots, machine learning and targeted marketing. During SATTE 2018 we launched our Files CRM that provides Tour Operators the latest technology.”

This has opened up a space where personalisation is a key lever to gain and retain customers. As the Indian traveller is increasingly opting for D.I.Y. planning and abandoning the conventional travel agents, the travel start-ups are directing their efforts towards creating this awareness among the people that they can customize their plans, create and book their own vacation packages.”

Utkarsh says, “It is been long for a market as big as India to have conventional travel products and concepts dominating its audience for this long. Every other industry has gone through or going through a disruptive growth phase once or twice in the last few decades. The passion to serve and cater to a niche audience or to meet specific needs of specific audience is what is fuelling the ideas and concepts of the start-ups.”

In the opinion of Sukhmani, “ The travel start-ups are really leveraging technology to better the customer search and booking experience,

Challenges Manheer says, “The Private Public Partnership model is one solution to the problem the other is Government

Support to the sector. The industry is flourishing day and night this will strengthen the roots.”

Praveen explains, “India is a complex environment for any business. This unique structure makes it difficult for any business to cater to the entire spectrum. The increasing connectivity and access to internet along with growth in digital transactions have been a boon to the travel industry like all others. As more and more people come into the digital fold, Indian travel ecosystem and the Indian Start up ecosystem are poised for tremendous growth.”

In the opinion of Sukhmani, “The Indian traveller is highly price conscious this is one of the reason that the tour operators need to face a lot of competition. Some are turning this challenge into an opportunity by innovating and differentiating their offerings.”

Utkarsh

says,

“Some

of

the

www.voyagersworld.in

Incredible India

16>>

Utkarsh Purohit ,COO , Videndaa The Youth consider travel as an important part of their lives and provides one with unexpected experiences. India is now one of the largest tourist economies and will continue to be for many more coming years.

challenges we are facing are lack of awareness among the customers industry, technological assistance in travel is still missing, we are still unable to build products (talking about the 80% which people can come. Book, Go and experience and there is still in-sufficient or I would say in-efficient advisors in this field .We all are in the journey to learn and grow of course but a fewer mistakes can help us all.”

Events in promoting the concept of travel start-ups Manheer says, “We have our own White label & Franchise programme to support the start-ups and work closely together.”

Praveen explains, “We has been very active in the travel and the start-up

ecosystem. We are part of multiple start up and incubator programs including Amadeus Next, Microsoft Ventures etc. We are very active in the numerous travel and start up events across the globe to talk about our story and our role within this ecosystem.”

Sukhmani added ,”We are organizing roadshows pan India for Tour Operators to educate them about Tripshelf and the technology that can help them boost their online business.”

Utkash observes, “By the end of the 2018 we are planning to hit some local as well as international events which are promoting travel and concept of experiences.

Conferences such as "Live-plugin"

happened in Shimla last month which cater for good networking. “ Promotional plans Manheer says, "We have been marketing through Social Media, SEO, Lead Providing portals and campaigns. Currently, we are actively promoting our self on Social media and Summer Holidays Campaign."

In the opinion of Praveen, "Our users discover us through search and word of mouth. We are looking forward to focus on getting better organic reach and increasing our user base. This will require significant investment in growing our content and platform."

Sukhmani explains, “We believe in digital media promotions and the exponential reach it can get. Our current campaigns are highlighting

summer holidays as we have the largest collection of packages from tour operators.We have launched a lot of video content, blog content and also have brand collaborations with Ola, Penguin and a few Tourism Boards.”

Utkarsh concludes, “We are literally using every single handle in our disposal for marketing. The ground campaigns are very effective for creating a brand presence in the local market and the usage of social media too .The major focus of our marketing strategy this year would be to tie-up with other startups like us who can complement us in some way, dealing in the same target audience but not competing with us directly.”

stat cORNER Foreign Tourist Arrivals registers growth of 4.4% Over 7 lakhs Foreign Tourist Arrivals in April 2018, registering a growth of 4.4% over April 2017.

37.2% growth in Foreign Tourist Arrivals on e-Tourist Visa in April 2018 over April 2017.

Foreign Tourist Arrivals (FTAs):

FTAs in April 2018 were 7,49,477 as compared to 7,17,899 in April 2017 registering a growth of 4.4%.

FTAs during the period January-April 2018 were 38,76,021 as compared to 34,98,969 in January-April 2017 registering a growth of 10.8%.

The percentage share of Foreign Tourist Arrivals in India during April 2018 among the top 15 source countries was highest from Bangladesh (24.32%) followed by USA (11.21%), UK (9.14%), Sri Lanka (3.48%), Australia (3.33%), Malaysia (3.06%), China (2.62%), Canada (2.53%), Germany (2.48%), France (2.33%), Japan (2.22%), Russian Federation (2.07%), Thailand (1.70%), Afghanistan (1.65%) and Nepal (1.64%) The percentage share of Foreign Tourist Arrivals in India during April 2018 among the top 15 ports was highest at Delhi Airport (28.75%) followed by Mumbai Airport (14.46%), Haridaspur Land Check Post (11.40%), Chennai Airport (7.44%), Bengaluru Airport (5.81%), Kolkata Airport (5.58%), Cochin Airport (4.21%), Hyderabad Airport (2.64%), Gede Rail Land Check Post (2.63%), Goa Airport (2.30%), Ghojadanga Land Check Post (1.63%), Ahmedabad Airport (1.28%), Trivandrum Airport (1.21%), Amritsar Airport (1.06%) and Chitpur Railway Station (0.99%).

Voyager’s World > June 2018

FTAs on e-Tourist Visa: During the month of April, 2018 a total of 1,57,094 tourist arrived on e-Tourist Visa as compared to 1,14,469 during the month of April, 2017 registering a growth of 37.2%.

During January-April 2018, a total of 9,18,792 tourist arrived on e-Tourist Visa as compared to 5,81,783 during January-April 2017, registering a growth of 57.9%.

The percentage shares of top 15 source countries availing e-Tourist Visa facilities during April, 2018 were highest from UK (16.3%) followed

by USA (11.0%), China (5.8%), Australia (5.5%), France (5.3%), Thailand (4.3%), Germany (4.0%), Canada (3.5%), Oman (3.2%), Russian Fed (3.0%), Malaysia (2.2%), Italy (2.1%), South Africa (1.8%), Spain (1.8%) and Republic of Korea (1.7%).

The percentage shares of top 15 ports in tourist arrivals on e-Tourist Visa during April 2018 were highest from New Delhi Airport (46.2%), Mumbai Airport (17.4%), Bengaluru Airport (6.8%), Chennai Airport (6.1%), Dabolim (Goa) Airport (4.5%), Kochi Seaport (4.4%), Kochi Airport (3.4%), Hyderabad Airport (2.5%), Kolkata Airport (2.4%), Amritsar Airport (1.3%), Trivandrum Airport (1.1%), Jaipur Airport (1.0%), Ahmedabad Airport (1.0%), Tirchy Airport (0.5%) and Calicut Airport (0.4%).

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Incredible India Destination

Destination

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EXPLODING ROOM INVENTORY AND DIPPING WEEKEND OCCUPANCIES! ROHIT HANGAL

The global Business Consultancy, Cushman & Wakefield reported that the Indian hospitality sector will add 52,000 new hotel rooms in the next five years. This will lead to a rise of over 65 per cent in total hotel inventory in India.

D

iminishing occupancies, increasing inventory, too much reliance on corporate business has taken the wind out of its sails.

The aggression showed by all and sundry in creating wealth in form of building hotels has resulted in the present glut. The last few years have seen India's City hotels rise out of nowhere and touch record ARRs and occupancy rates and soon the inevitable fall from grace.

Some, who justified the prevailing rates due to 'India Shining' syndrome, have now conveniently disappeared. In an era of higher occupancies due to limited inventory and a growing economy,

Voyager’s World > June 2018

what surprises more, is the utter lack of foresight to plan for the increase in inventory compounded with a slowed economy. Indian City hotels continue to disregard opportunities to create new markets for their properties.

Indian city hotels other than those Delhi have successfully driven the leisure market out, and chased the MICE segment to Bangkok, Colombo and Kuala Lumpur. In comparison to occupancies from Monday to Wednesday, weekend business in hotels fluctuates wildly. I would love to see the hotels provide their ‘variations in occupancies’ figures, as eagerly as

they flaunt their ARRs. The positives from spiraling rates in the early part of the decade have resulted in the mushrooming of alternative accommodation like service apartments, guest-houses and homestays. Some service apartments which offer excellent value for money and have given three-star and four-star properties a run for their money. Companies are also creating their own in– house accommodation options.

And truth be told, hoteliering can be outsourced and learnt, in order to provide the services professionally.

Hoteliers should take a cue from markets such as Bangkok,

Singapore, Dubai and Kuala Lumpur, where it pays to create a larger ‘source market base’ and use sounder yield management techniques. Unlike other industry sectors, like the FMCG, Pharma or the Banking sector, Indian City hotels have been extremely shy of creating and nurturing new market segments, especially targeting MICE! It is surely not rocket science that Indian cities at most times are down by 60 - 70% from Thursday to Sunday, i.e., would be over a minimum of 200,000 unsold room nights! There has been virtually no effort being made by any of the

Destination

19>> major hotel associations to help hotels tie-up with tourism boards, deal with major MICE Networks or even travel companies to help create a transparent room rate mechanism combined with a sound promotional strategy that would help generate business from varied markets such as MICE or leisure.

With the expanding hotel scenario, where in all and sundry see themselves as a hotel owner and the International Hotel brands see an opportunity to fix their brands and get professional management to one of the world's fastest growing hotel construction markets.

In the world changing Hotel ownership dynamics from traditional hotel owners and operators to the new real estate developers, who go by the name of 'Asset Creators'! In a new-found love of creating wealth, hotels are now a big part of the scheme to generate recognition and accrued valuation to raise more funds to expand their real estate ambitions. In such an era where the hotel ownership is myopic towards any long-term

business plan, management is pressurized to cater to the whims of making quick money, without a desire to create a market, which involves a bit of patience and hard work!

Leafing through newspaper articles which announce hotel projects in India (especially the ones announced by real estate biggies), it’s quite surprising that some of them have not even moved from the drawing board stage, for about a year.

The announcement of new hotel projects with leading world hotel brands, adds value to the project’s real estate component and gets the necessary ‘pre-public issue’ attention from media. Word is soon bound to get around and hotel brands will get tired of attaching their brands to projects on the drawing board. As more and more hotel builders go in for multi-use models, creating MICE infrastructure will add immense value to their bottom lines.

The new age city hotels have

created a system of milking the already drained ‘Corporate Cows’ or the homegrown Revenue Manager’s diktats. The Revenue Manager’s role (primarily an imported concept), was introduced into Indian hotel system by the big multinational chains to maximize revenue. The Revenue Manager is accorded with powers to supersede the sales team’s control over evaluating clientele and negotiated rates. Conflicts of interest between the Revenue Manager’s shortterm goals and the end result of creating a long–term sustained business relationship is one of the key factors for hotels to refuse to look for alternate sources.

Apart from the corporate MICE, that are always welcome, Indian Hotels across sectors have a large portion of revenues arising from Food & Beverage and taking into consideration the penchant for your countrymen to use hotels for weddings, anniversaries, birthdays, retirement send-offs, kitty parties and even child-naming ceremonies, the market for MICE will not go out of fashion in a hurry!

Irrespective of the size of the hotel or its star category, it would help if an Event venue is incorporated, especially in India. Some European hotel brands, which do not have MICE as part of the standard design plan are now customizing to take on the Indian desire to celebrate! It does not make so much difference to add an event venue, even if you do not wish to manage it on your own. While doing business in India, there is always ‘Outsourcing’!

Of late, there has been a concerted effort by leading hotel brands such as Marriott, ITC Hotels, Hilton and Taj to create separate marketing teams to reach out to the MICE segment. Marketing MICE requires different skill-sets, not necessary aligns with that of the Revenue Managers. Hotels should create a business model, where Event managers, Associations and Professional Conference Organizers (PCOs) are partnered with and considered as part of their distribution strategy. And Yes. Commissions are important! They work in most international markets and will do good in India as well.

SEYCHELLES CONDUCTS A THREE CITY ROADSHOW!

Seychelles Tourism Board conducts a three city workshop with Trav Starz Global Group to create and reconnect opportunities and build awareness.

VW BUREAU

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ravstarz Global Group, B2B Venture by CTRIP, the leading DMC for Seychelles concluded a 3 City Road Show along with Seychelles Tourism covering Ludhiana, Indore and Baroda.

The well attended show created much interest and enthusiasm for Seychelles in these Tier 2 Cities. Seychelles Tourism was represented by Ms. Aswini Krishna and Ms. Shakambri Soni while Travstarz was represented by Ms. Hema Manghnani, Mr. Ramanpreet Singh and Ms. Vani Singh.

Commenting on this initiative Mrs. Sherin Francis, CEO, Seychelles Tourism Board said, “We are looking at creating more destination awareness among the Tier 2 and 3 cities in India with a

focus on increasing the number of passengers to Seychelles. We realised early on in our journey that high end travellers are no longer limited to the main metros and a testimony to the same is the encouraging response we have got from every smaller city we have done workshops in the past few years. It is purely because of this diversification strategy that India in 2016 broke into the top 10 source markets list for Seychelles and in 2017 became top 7th market. In 2017, 13518 Indians visited Seychelles which was 20% increase than 2016. The arrivals for Q1 2018 is around 31% more than Q1 of 2017.”

We want to showcase the best of Seychelles to the right set of

travel trade in the smaller cities.

Hence, we partnered with Trav Starz for the second year in a row as they are focused to promote and sell Seychelles and have good trade relations in these markets.

We partner with all our key tour operators to help achieve the common objective i.e. significantly increasing tourist arrivals to Seychelles.”

Hema

Manghnani,

Executive

Director, Travstarz Global Group added “Seychelles remains one of our preferred destinations and we are increasingly signing new properties at Seychelles to offer the best experience across all category of hotels. All the 3 cities were very well attended, and it gave us an opportunity to re-connect with our agent partners who have been supporting us for our various destinations and who have assured us support for Seychelles as well.

www.voyagersworld.in

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CALENDAR 2018 August 2018

June 2018 Korea MICE Expo (KME) 14 - 15 Songdo Convensia, Incheaon, Korea

Caribbean Meeting & Incentive Travel Exchange 6 - 9 Quintana Roo - Mexico

The Meeting Show 27 - 28 Olympia - London

IncentiveWorks 14 - 15 Toronto - Canada

July 2018

September 2018

Asia Business Meet 23 - 26 Singapore

IBTM Americas 5 - 6 Mexico City - Mexico

Intl Conference on Marketing Tourism & Hospitality 13 - 15 Zurich - Switzerland

CIBTM – China 12 - 13 Beijing – China

India Outbound

NEW POLICY ON CARRIAGE OF CHILDREN AND MINORS ARRIVING INTO DUBAI VW BUREAU

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olicy on carriage of Children and Minors Arriving into Dubai effective from 1st June 2018. All other UMNR policies & procedures will remain unchanged.

The UAE gives top priority to children's care and minor’s development. Keeping this in mind new policies have been issued due to the ongoing safety issues around the world. Travelling with safety is a top priority as Dubai makes sure that no illegal activities take place or the child or minor has enough safety measures that will safely help travel with confidence.

The airlines will be kept under check due to the measures that have been put in for the safety of children and minors.

Policies: • All unaccompanied minors (18 years and below) would need to

Voyager’s World > June 2018

have an UMNR form filled from their parents with relevant details of their address abroad and DXB and information about who would be receiving them in the DXB. • In case the minor is travelling with another family member, an authorization letter from the parents or the guardians is still required.

• Airlines staff or DNATA can escort the Minors through Immigration provided that the UMNR form is filled and the process to hand them over to the receiving person is dully followed.

• The minor would be deported if Immigration suspect an illegal activity and the information provided are not sufficient to address that.

In which case, the normal INAD process and subsequent fines would be applied.

• This process is applicable for arriving minors only.

Introducing

11 Wonders Of Jharkhand

Jharkhand as a state is an ecological wonder, it boasts of vast deciduous forests and abundant wildlife, which create the main foliage for the state. Jharkhand has many hidden gems that have been discovered in the recent times. It can be called as a wonderland with beautiful scenery, spiritual and historic sites and rich tribal culture. As it’s expansive in its beauty, Jharkhand has been known for its 11 wonders, that makes it a must visit state for any tourist who wants to discover and experience the wonders it has to offer.

The state offers many places for a tourist, but the main wonders are what makes it a special experience. So, enjoy the green expanse of the hilly Patratu Valley, or the tallest stupa at Itkhori.

Jharkhand is known as the spiritual centre and holds the biggest Linga at the Baidhyanath Dham of the 21 Jyotrilingas that are spread across India, with more than 531 religious spaces that portray the three main religions of the state Jainism, Buddhism and Hinduism. The 11 wonders of Jharkhand are hard to miss and these open up a box of what’s more to the state.

Netarhat

Jonha Falls

Itkhori

Rajrappa Temple

Baidayanath Temple

Parasnath

Rajmahal

Chandil Dam

Betla National Park

Rajmahal

Baidhyanath & Betla National Basukinath Temples Park Itkhori Parasnath

Maluti Temples

Patratu Valley Netarhat Rajrappa Falls Jonha Falls Chandil Dam

Patratu Valley

www.jharkhandtourism.gov.in

Maluti Temples

India Outbound

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Israel reduces visa fee to INR 1,100 for Indian travellers VW BUREAU

Indian Travellers can rejoice as Israel reduces visa fee, this move will encourage more Indian travellers to choose Israel as their next destination.

The revised application fee is on the B2 visa category, where a visit to Israel is for purposes including business, meeting or conference or tourism.

I

n an effort to encourage more Indian travellers to visit Israel, the country has reduced its visa fee to INR 1,100 from its previous INR 1,700 charge for Indian citizens. VFS Global currently offers visa processing services for Israeli visas in the cities of Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru. Centres will soon open in Hyderabad and Kolkata to service the residents in these cities, who will not be required to send their documents to the Consulates in Mumbai and Bengaluru or the Embassy in New Delhi.

Commenting on the initiatives, Mr. Hassan Madah, Director, Israel Ministry of Tourism - India & Philippines said, “We are happy to announce the reduction in visa fees for Indian travellers with immediate effect. I am confident that this move will encourage more people to choose Israel as a holiday destination and boost inbound numbers from India. With the ease in visa norms and Fast Track visa processing incorporated earlier this year, we have seen an increase in travel and I am confident that the revised visa fees will help grow these numbers.

Besides this, we are working towards e-visa processing as well as easing the group visa process.”

He also added, “We have seen tremendous growth in the number of tourists from India in the last three years and 2017 has been the best year so far with close to 60,000 visitors. Our inbound figures have already recorded an increase of 27% (approximately 19,000 travellers) in Indian tourist arrivals from January to April as compared to the same period last year helping us get a step closer to our target of 1 lakh in 2018.”

VFS Global. In December last year,

In February this year, Fast Track visa processing was introduced through

and easier for Indian travellers to

relaxed visa documentation was brought in for applicants who have availed visas of Schengen countries, US, Canada, Australia or Israel and have completed their travel to these countries. In September 2017, the Ministry introduced one-year multiple entry visas for business travellers to Israel. Steps are being taken towards bringing more changes to make the process faster visit Israel.

OMAN'S RAS AL JINZ IN SUR COMMENCES TURTLE SEASON VW BUREAU

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urtle season in Oman has begun, the reserve closely witnesses the process and is a must visit time for travelers who can witness this natural phenomenon.

The period between June to September is the best time to watch turtles nesting in Oman. If you think it is too hot to travel in the summer, then head to Ras Al Jinz in Sur which is a short three hour drive from Muscat city. The temperature is cooler by 15 to 20 degrees and makes the perfect setting for spotting these marvelous reptiles.

The Ras Al Jinz Turtle Reserve in South Ash-Sharqiyah Governorate is popular for its green turtle habitat is significantly located within the region

Voyager’s World > June 2018

surrounded by the Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean. Oman is the only place where visitors can closely witness the process of nesting sea turtles without disturbing their natural surroundings. The best time to witness this natural phenomenon is either late at night or early morning with guided tours of up to 25 people in a group by the seashore. To preserve conservation efforts, Oman’s policy restricts the use of artificial light like mobile phones or torch that could disturb the turtles’ natural environment.

There are turtle rangers at the beach and only once the turtles have begun laying their eggs- 200-300 or more at a time, tourists are allowed to walk towards them. It is an out of

the ordinary activity to witness the mother turtle creating a pit, laying eggs as well as baby turtles running around at the seashore.

Oman is home to four different types of turtles: green, olive ridley, hawksbill and loggerhead. One must also visit the Museum of the Scientific Centre in Ras Al Jinz that is equipped with the latest technology for information about various types of turtles and their life cycle.

According to official statistics, 41,244 tourists visited the turtle nesting site at the Ras Al Jinz turtle reserve in Ras Al Hadd state in Wilayat of Sur in 2017, where the percentage of foreign tourists was 76 per cent.

India Outbound

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EXPLORE UNIQUE EXPERIENCES ABROAD WITH SELF-DRIVE ROAD TRIPS IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

Sujal Patwardhan, Director, Embarq Motorworld says, “The Self Drive road trip market in India is growing rapidly as more and more people are keen to drive abroad.”

Concept of Road Trips In 2015 Medha Joseph and Sujal Patwardhan drove from India all the way to Marrakesh, they drove over 23000 KMS in 57 days crossing 15 countries. During their drive, they received a lot of response, accolades and followers on the social media pages.

We realized people in India want to do these kinds of road trips and they want to drive abroad – but there is a reluctance due to some of the reasons as they do not know much about the paperwork required and the permits that are needed for such trips. There is a fear of what if our vehicles have a break-down and how do we navigate our way and which side to drive on is also one of the many concerns travellers have expressed.

We launched The Embarq Motorworld to turn a normal tourist into a road tripper. We believe that what you can experience on a road trip you

can never witness when you take a flight or a train. Currently, we offer tours to Scotland, The Best of Silk Route – Uzbekistan Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, The Northern Europe – Baltics – Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, New Zealand and Spain. In overland journeys, we offer – India to Spain (20000 KMS – 50 Days), India to Thailand (15 Days – 4000 KMS) We do a very detailed recce of each country we offer and are currently working on going for multiple other offbeat destinations. The bucket list is never ending and we intend to add a lot many “Overland Journeys” in the different parts of the globe.

Popular Road trip destinations

Promotional Plans We have stepped up our marketing efforts this year. Currently, we are working on digital marketing, with a focus on PR and other social media.

We intend to target tier 2 and tier 3 cities and take our offerings to these explorers.

For the overland journeys we noticed a lot of interest for India to Thailand and India to Spain.Scotland, New Zealand and Spain are really popular destinations. Silk Route, on the other hand, is still gaining popularity and China is another destination.

Travellers We have had travellers right from working executives to business travellers. The road trips segment continues to attract more of “seasoned” travellers who are done with the usual – London and

Switzerland holidays and are now looking for unique and special experiences.

Some of the trends we have noticed more and more people are now willing to drive abroad. With the outbound tourism industry growing at almost 30% year on year the overall exposure has increased.

Tourists are better informed these days and with information available so easily – the overall ability to try something different has also increased.

Oman Visa on Arrival simplified VW BUREAU

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man has relaxed its visa rules to attract more tourists by granting visa on arrival (unsponsored tourist visa) for the citizens of India who reside in or who hold an entry visa to one of these countries – United States of America, Canada, Australia, United Kingdom, Japan and Schengen States to enter the Sultanate of Oman. Oman visa on arrival can also be availed by the spouse (husband/wife) and children of the visa holder of any of these 6 mentioned countries as long as they are accompanying him/her, even if they do not hold a visa from these countries.

Terms and conditions to apply for Visa on Arrival in Oman a) The applicant shall hold a passport valid for not less than six

months from the date of expiry b) The applicant shall have a return ticket and a confirmed hotel reservation in order to be granted the visa c) The applicant for the Omani Tourist visa shall be a resident in or holding an entry visa to one of the following countries (Unites States of America, Canada, Australia, Japan, United Kingdom and Schengen States) provided that his/her residence or visa in these countries is valid upon filling the visa document d) The visa shall be granted for a period of one month against a fee amounting to OMR 20 e) The competent authority may prohibit the citizens of these countries who meet the terms and conditions for obtaining a visa from entering the Sultanate if the public

interest so requires f) Any person who avails of such a visa facilitation and breached the regulations will be blacklisted and prohibited from entering the Sultanate of Oman and will be compelled to pay fines in

accordance with the terms and provisions for the Foreigner’s Residence Law and the Executive Regulations thereof travellers must log on to the website and pre apply for the e- visa on https://evisa.rop. gov.om/en/visa-eligibility

www.voyagersworld.in

India Outbound

24>>

SHARJAH EMERGES AS A MOSQUE DESTINATION VW BUREAU

The mosques of Sharjah are distinctive for their eye-catching aesthetic architecture. Tourists and believers alike visit Sharjah for the tranquil and hospitable nature of the cultural hub of the UAE.

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he cultural ethos of Sharjah has made it the emirate for visitors looking for an experiential journey.

Those seeking greater knowledge of and connection to Islam will certainly find it in this emirate graced with over 600 mosques.

The largest house of worship is the King Faisal Mosque. The complex geometric design and the likeness of the massive structure to a multipointed star make it the most recognizable landmark of Sharjah.

The charm of this mosque is that it is very well-suited for worship with admirable acoustics, a very useful audio guide and the captivating voice of the Imam in the vast but quiet space, it all comes together to create a very special atmosphere.

Situated on the banks of the Khalid Lagoon, the Al Noor Mosque has a

dream setting. Construction of the structure was completed in the year 2005. Visitors can take inspiration from architectural trademarks such as the minarets, domes and arches, which are reminiscent of traditional Ottoman architecture. This is because the mosque is modelled after the ‘Blue Mosque’ or the Sultan Ahmed Mosque in Turkey.

Private tour bookings are possible, or one may opt for the regular free tours that are held every Monday at 10:00am. In order to promote a cross-cultural understanding, an excellent briefing program covering basic principles of Islam is provided for visitors, along with an opportunity to try on the ‘abaya’ and scarves that the local women of Sharjah generally wear.

The Al Noor Mosque is known for

its guided tours and hospitable treatment to guests, however, it is also of great religious significance to the locals and outsiders who follow the faith. On Ramadan evenings, the mosque becomes unusually busy due to the large number of worshippers. The

interlaced decorative interiors and architecture, in addition to the cooling effect of the use of gypsum (traditional building material made of coral) in building the mosque, creates a relaxing Islamic cultural ambience where peace and contentment permeate.

CINNAMON HOTELS & RESORTS FOCUSES ON AUTHENTIC SRILANKAN EXPERIENCES JEELANI MN

Dileep Mudadeniya, Head of Brand Marketing, Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts says that “uniqueness is in implementing the local flavors and culture to each of our properties providing a contemporary Sri Lanka experience”

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innamon Hotels & Resorts are a leading chain of diverse getaways with 10 uniquely themed properties located across Sri Lanka.

Creating inspiring moments and events planned on its properties in the capital and across the island.

large. We are also amidst planning the Cinnamon Music Festival, the biggest music event to take place in Colombo with the likes of artists like Big Mountain, Diana King and a few surprise headliners which will be revealed shortly.

What are the upcoming events and activities planned for the holiday season?

This June we plan to host popular cook and TV host - Nigella Lawson, followed by the 3rd edition of the Cinnamon Travel Bloggers’ Conference; the biggest influencer conference in South Asia that includes a conference on creating transformational content for travel.

This is one of our thought-leadership initiatives carried out for the benefit of the travel and tourism industry at

What parallel activities does the brand provide to its guests along with accommodation?

Gastronomy is paramount to the Cinnamon experience with specialty restaurants across our 10 properties; Known for the signature excursions curated by our sister concern Nature Trails; one can drive through the national parks, hike through tangled jungles, set out for a whale watching mission or hop onto to a cruise experience on the longest river in Sri Lanka during

Voyager’s World > June 2018

a stay at the Cinnamon properties while our well versed naturalists will paint a canvass of fun facts that will awe you.

What are the USPs/ themes of your resort brand, what is one thing that makes it different and exclusive?

We are diverse in offering unique experiences in each of our hotels adapting to the distinct surroundings of a beach, jungle, riverside to a city area. Our uniqueness is in implementing the local flavors and culture to each of our properties providing a contemporary Sri Lanka experience.

India Outbound

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YOUTH TOURISM TO RISE exponentially IN NUMBERS BY 2018 IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

Saurabh Sabharwal, Founder & CEO, Go Discover Abroad states people of the age group ranging from 18 to 30 years are the ones who do sensible travels, rather than a regular vacation. and early graduates from the USA, Canada, and West European Countries showing eagerness to travel to Latin America, Africa, and Southeast Asia, focusing on longterm backpacking journeys. We witnessed a good response from the Indian youth, especially people between the ages of 25 to 30 years.

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outh tourism is focused in engaging with youth travellers who would generally prefer to go for a budget accommodation, meet the like minded travellers and go for tours through flexible travel schedule and you could spend a longer time at a particular destination.

Our travellers have been students

We have had clients from abroad but we do cater to the Indian market as well. Presently, we have about 8 tours in India, 2 of them connecting India to Nepal and Sri Lanka respectively. Apart from that, we also have tours across 40 countries in the world.

Promotional Plans We have been focusing in promoting

tours on social media like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram as it is the platform mostly used by the youth. Besides that we have plans for content marketing like guest blogging and contacting influencers who can help us to reach out to a much wider network of travelers.

Responsible tourism It is necessary to focus in responsible tourism and sustainable development these days as more and more millennials are travelling and tend to spend time living with the local communities and get to adapt their way of life, and contribute towards the underprivileged societies in their own ways. We also have tours where you can get engaged in conserving the forests, looking after turtles

at the beaches, or diving deep to protect the marine life.

Tours We offer tours that include volunteering trips to internship experiences, safari tours, beach trips and party tours, hiking, trekking, diving, language learning journeys and much more. As we focus on responsible tourism we have tried to incorporate this concept in all our destinations, for example, you can travel to Thailand and spend a few days at an elephant village, living with the mahout community, learning about their daily lives and helping them in the regular chores of looking after the elephants. Or you can travel to Spain and get involved in Marine Conservation for a couple of days.

Welcome to Holiday Expo another exciting brand to take your business to a level of growth and establish an opportunity to create a brand new market. Medium sized Indian cities have emerged as one of the fastest growing markets or quality leisure products and 'Holiday Expo' is just the perfect Travel Exhibition reachout to this very market, thus ensuring your product profits to its optimum potential.

VADODARA NAGPUR VISAKHAPATNAM VARANASI COIMBATORE 17, 18, 19 AUG 2018 12, 13, 14 OCT 2018 26, 27, 28 OCT 2018 14, 15, 16 DEC 2018 01, 02, 03 FEB 2019

Holiday Expo Secretariat: Plot No. 15, H. No.: 3-41-374, 2nd Floor, Devi Temple Street, Lakshmi Nagar Colony, Picket Secunderabad - 500 026 Tel: +91-40-4014 9950 | Mob: +91-97018 66695 | Fax: +91-40-4018 9951 | Email: info@holidayexpo.in | www.holidayexpo.in

Voyager’s World > June 2018

Hospitality

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Apeejay Surrendra Park Hotels to manage 232-year-oldest hotel VW BUREAU

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peejay Surrendra Park Hotels has entered into an agreement with the Government of West Bengal to manage the historic The Denmark Tavern, the oldest hotel in India, in Serampore.

West Bengal to operate this iconic heritage property. The Denmark Tavern will be a wonderful addition to THE Park Collection and will bring alive immersive Anything But Ordinary experiences.”

The restored Denmark Tavern will fall under THE Park Collection brand of THE Park Hotels. The Park Collection is intimate, personalized, and tailored to transmit inimitable guest experiences. The Denmark

Tavern will have THE Park Hotel’s design aesthetics, its impeccable services and will reverberate with Anything But Ordinary experiences.

The hotel will open by September 2018.

The Tavern was established in 1786 in what was then Fredricksnagore.

The two-storeyed structure by the Hooghly is the place where the Danes had kept their flagstaff and cannons. The Tavern was a place to meet and stay for traders, clergy and travellers exploring Bengal.

In 2010 - 11, more than 200 years after the tavern’s heyday, a group of restoration experts studied the building that stood in complete ruins surrounded by debris. It took around two years to restore the Tavern to its former glory as part of the Serampore Initiative, a restoration programme for several Danish heritage structures led by the National Museum of Denmark and funded by Realdania, a private trust in Denmark, in collaboration with West Bengal State Heritage Commission, and Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH).

The refurnished building has a cafe, inspired by the double height central atrium of the Indian Coffee House in Kolkata and six highceilinged spacious rooms.

Priya Paul, Chairperson, Apeejay Surrendra Park Hotels Ltd. said, “We are delighted to manage The Denmark Tavern on behalf of the West Bengal Government. THE Park Hotels will build on the rich legacy of the Tavern and bring it and the area back to life. The hotel will soon be buzzing with guests enjoying a quiet break on the banks of Hooghly and the sights and sounds of old-world Serampore and beyond.”

Vijay Dewan, Managing Director, Apeejay Surrendra Park Hotels Ltd., said, “We are honoured to partner with the Government of

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Hospitality

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AZAYA BEACH RESORT GOA AIMS TO REDEFINE GOAN HOSPITALITY IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

Rajesh Kumar Gupta, General Manager, Azaya Beach Resort Goa says, “The resort provides a youthful, fun-loving vibe, with a relaxed ambience in a contemporary setting especially for the discerning new-age traveller and also the perfect destination for MICE events.

Promotional Plans Our marketing strategy has been very consumer driven, and personalization is the cornerstone of our offerings and services. We continually explore local produce, cooking traditions, as well as ingredients that can be tastefully combined into tailor-made menus that cater to the needs and dietary requirements of multicultural guests.

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zaya Beach Resort Goa a luxury lifestyle resort in South Goa is offering classy accommodation, world-class cuisine, family-friendly amenities, bespoke services and various indulgent experiences.

Growth Azaya Beach Resort Goa started its operations in April 2018 so we are slowly marketing in India.

Segments Our meeting rooms come equipped with 3285 square feet of space, with capacity of 125 guests. Our gardens can also be used for outdoor parties and events with a capacity of 600 guests, the resort is an ideal destination for small meetings and conferences. Travellers from across the globe visit Goa for its beautiful beaches all year around. We have

noticed a very unique and balanced mix of corporates looking for a break from their crazy schedules, families and FITs.

segment. North Goa is considered as the party destination and we are trying to bring the spirit of North Goa to South Goa through this resort.

The Indian hospitality market is growing every year do you think the industry will grow in good numbers in the future Explain?

Goa witnessed the highest number of repeat clients than any other destination in the domestic travel

Indian travellers have started preferring luxury experiences for a get way or a short vacation?

Over the past couple of years, Indian traveller’s choices for travel experiences have evolved vastly.

Dan Hotels foresees positive growth from the Indian market IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

Rafi Baeri, VP Sales and Marketing, Dan Hotels,”We have welcomed an increasing number of Indian tourists over the past couple of years and seen a notable growth rate of traffic from India in the first 5 month of 2018 compared to last year. We see this is a positive trend that will continue to increase.

Panorama Haifa.Most of the business comes from contacts with the Embassy and corporations hosting business partners from India.

Indian market Most of our guests from India are business travelers the majority of whom check into Dan Panorama Jerusalem, Dan Accadia, Dan Panorama Tel Aviv and Dan

Voyager’s World > June 2018

Segments With the close ties of India and Israel and the new aviation option with the entrance of Air India, we hope that in time we will have more interest in Israel for MICE groups and the high level general groups will find Dan hotels suiting their budget. Presently we rely mainly on the Ministry of Tourism’s activities and contacts with DMCs in India and in Israel.

Expansion plans We are planning to expand overseas and India is definitely a potential destination. We will be adding properties in other Indian cities but we have not yet set a quantitative target for this.

Trends in the behaviour of Indian travellers We find several things in common with our Indian guests, namely family values, culture and food.

We recently invited some chefs from India to present workshops in various restaurants and schools around the country to help educate Israeli chefs with authentic Indian

cooking, which was a huge success.

How do you rank India as an important market in terms of the hospitality industry in a span of 5 years?

Israel and India have always enjoyed good relations and the diversity that India has to offer attracts many Israeli’s to visit.

Now that we have our first Den Hotel Bangalore business hotel open and running we expect to see an increase in numbers of business travelers to India in the next few years as the majority of the guests are visiting for business purposes.

Hospitality

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Hilton TO Redefine Sustainable Travel VW BUREAU

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lobal hospitality company to eliminate plastic straws across managed hotels in Asia Pacific by end 2018 a global commitment to cut its environmental footprint in half and double its social impact investment by 2030.

Hilton today announced it will eliminate plastic straws across its managed hotels in Asia Pacific by end 2018, and transition away from plastic bottles from its conference and event spaces. This follows the company’s global commitment to cut its environmental footprint in half and double its social impact investment by 2030.

“As a global hospitality company operating more than 5,300 hotels in over 100 countries and territories, we are committed to have a positive impact on the communities we operate our hotels in,” said Alan Watts, Executive President and President, Asia Pacific, Hilton. “We believe waste is a solvable problem.

By focusing first on plastic straws and plastic bottled water, we take

another step forward in our journey to ensure that the destinations where travelers work, relax, learn and explore are vibrant and resilient for future generations to come.”

Hilton’s new 2030 goals include the following social and environmental targets: • Reduce carbon intensity emissions by 61%, in line with the Paris Climate Agreement and approved by the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi) • Reduce water consumption and produced waste by 50% • The company’s hotels have begun to intensify efforts to reduce single-use plastics in its operations.

Across Greater China & Mongolia, its managed hotels removed plastic water bottles from meetings and events, health clubs and spas since September 2017 – a move that eliminates the use of 13 million plastic bottles annually. In Australia, New Zealand and Fiji, its managed hotels transitioned away from plastic straws and now offer

biodegradable paper straws on demand – eliminating the use of 2.5 million plastic straws annually.

• In support of its industry-leading sustainable seafood goals, the company completed a global rollout of responsible sourcing and sustainable seafood eLearning modules, and partnered Marine Stewardship Council to deliver sustainable seafood workshops for local suppliers and Hilton team members in China and Thailand.

• Expand existing soap recycling program to all hotels and send zero soap to landfill Since 2008, the company has reduced carbon emissions and waste by 30%, energy and water consumption by 20% saving more than $1 billion in operating efficiencies. LightStay, an awardwinning performance measurement system calculates, analyses and reports the environmental impact at each of Hilton’s more than 5,300 hotels. Hilton will use Light Stay to track its goal of reducing

carbon emissions by 61% across its portfolio by 2030.

“The World Tourism Organization commends Hilton’s focus on sustainability, which is in line with our overall commitment as the UN’s agency that is dedicated to promoting sustainable tourism for development worldwide,” said Zurab Pololikashvili, Secretary-General of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO). “Hilton has been our partner in this endeavour, raising awareness among customers with examples of best practices for the hospitality industry.”

“Companies play an integral role in solving our climate crisis,” said Sheila Bonini, Senior Vice President, Private Sector Engagement, World Wildlife Fund. “By committing to significant intensity emissions reductions based on science, Hilton is setting in motion a plan that will have ripple effects across the hospitality industry while providing more sustainable options for travellers.”

HYATT BRINGS HYATT CENTRIC BRAND TO INDIA JEELANI MN

Hyatt Hotels Corporation announced the rebranding of Hyatt Bangalore MG Road to the Hyatt Centric brand, marking the brand’s first hotel in India and twenty-third worldwide.

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ocated in the city known as India’s Silicon Valley, Hyatt Centric MG Road Bangalore is the launch pad that inspires and encourages exploration of Bangalore’s serene parks, inspiring Victorian-era architecture, and vibrant dining scene with ease.

“We are delighted to introduce the Hyatt Centric brand to our savvy guests in India with the opening of Hyatt Centric MG Road Bangalore,” said Sunjae Sharma, Hyatt’s vice president of operations, India.

“Based in the hustle and bustle of Bangalore’s city center, we are confident that Hyatt Centric MG Road Bangalore will serve as a platform for guests to easily explore and share all that is vibrant, and exciting, about the garden city. The

launch of a Hyatt Centric hotel in India strengthens Hyatt’s portfolio in the country and highlights our commitment to offering the authentic experiences guests want.”

Designed by Studio HBA, the hotel boasts a contemporary feel with eclectic touches that capture the city’s cosmopolitan vibe. Its 143 contemporary and playful guestrooms, including four suites with terrace gardens overlooking the aquamarine blue pool, have been stylishly redecorated and infused with local flare. With features like complimentary Wi-Fi and a 48-inch flat-screen TV, each guestroom offers the perfect setting to relax after the day’s adventures.

Two distinct dining options are

available for explorers looking to try something new: The Corner and The Bengaluru Brasserie. While The Corner offers a social atmosphere for coffee and light fare, The Bengaluru Brasserie delivers modern global cuisine with a focus on health and well-being. The hotel also boasts a customizable special events space, making it a perfect

destination for any group event.

Hyatt Centric MG Road Bangalore provides a multitude of other services including a 24-hour fitness centre, a business centre, a locally-inspired spa, room service, multilingual staff as well as laundry and dry cleaning services to fulfil every need.

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Hospitality

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HYATT HOPES TO WOO THE MILLENIAL TRAVELLERS WITH THEIR NEW BRAND JEELANI MN

Mr. Varun Mohan, General Manager, Hyatt Centric MG Road Bangalore says that “we are intending to connect with the local communities and are currently focusing on exploring local partnerships that allow our guests to soak in the local vibe of the Bangalore city”. discovery. The idea is to provide guests an easy access to local excitement while enjoying premium amenities and uncomplicated quality in a simple, inspiring environment that encourages discovery and interaction.

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yatt Centric is a unique brand with a distinct personality dedicated to the modern and savvy explorers. Created for millennialminded travellers who want to be in the middle of the action, Hyatt Centric hotels are thoughtfully designed to enable exploration and

Hyatt Centric is well suited to this exciting city and we’re confident that Hyatt Centric MG Road Bangalore will soon establish itself as the launchpad for everyone wanting to explore the city.

Marketing plans At Hyatt Centric MG Road Bangalore, we are intending to connect with the local communities and are currently focusing on exploring local

partnerships that allow our guests to soak in the local vibe of the Bangalore city.

Unique features Hyatt Centric hotels are uniquely placed at the center of the destination. From the culture and food to the hidden gems only locals know about, Hyatt Centric guests will always be in the middle of the action.

Thoughtfully crafted, Hyatt Centric hotels are purposely designed to feel simple and welcoming, while still capturing that local spirit that makes each hotel unique. Hyatt Centric hotels offer a winning combination of today’s digital conveniences and Hyatt’s famous hospitality, ensuring that guests feel connected and

personally cared for at all times.

Millennial traveller The Millennial traveller likes to be in the know and in the middle of action. Being at the center of the destination, Hyatt Centric MG Road Bangalore facilitates guest to explore the local neighbourhood.

Each of our associates are trained to handle guest queries as a concierge. A team of colleagues is always available to recommend local hidden gems to launch guests’ discovery of the destination. While World of Hyatt members can save up to 15% at our hotel, we also provide select offers to guests who are staying at the hotel for a longer duration.

JADE HOSPITAINMENT INTRODUCES BESPOKE IN A NEW LIGHT JEELANI MN

Shri Srinivas Subramanyam, Founder & Chief curator of Jade Hospitainment Pvt Ltd says that “Primarily the luxury market is a perception based market that we needed to build on".

Inception We basically term our self as Jade Hospitainment outlet, by definition it means hospitality + entertainment.

Retreat is an output of Jade Hospitainment, being the parent company Jade Retreat is the brand of our company.

Retreat is a format on which we provide luxury experience. Whole

Voyager’s World > June 2018

idea is to provide an experiential platform where they can customise their requirement. The segment we address is a luxury segment, with private transaction as personal celebrations that can be celebrated we classify our output into social and personal such as a couple stay, bridal stay, all are curated according.

We call ourselves as an experiential platform, where people can customise their experience. We have total of 15 properties that we are operating in Bangalore we have converted these farmhouses into retreats. We have multiple segments in each of the retreats across Bangalore.

Growth Primarily the luxury market is a perception based market that we needed to build on. We wanted to

provide something exclusive, and exclusivity can be termed as pricy, to a large context.

What one experiences in large resorts can be concised in a private resort and can be offered in a unique way, where we can have dining inside the pool- submerged dining experience. We started Jade in 2012 and we launched in 2013, we were the first private retreat operators across the country. Jade 735, is our flagship property which has a strong customer base, currently we are establishing across other states, in Goa, Maharashtra, these are all private units farmhouses converted into farm house.

Marketing Strategies Retreats have been perceived as spiritual in nature, and we have

been trying to change this reception we have tried to change this over the years. It’s a maturing market and we have been growing organically where it has been mainly word of mouth now we are making more collaterals and getting head on with campaigns, we have strong references that will help us catapult the retreat in a bigger way which will create high impact. It’s a huge market as it opens multiple dimensions, and its exponentially growing in experience market. There will be a growth in specific number of experiences and retreat’s we launch.

This year people can pick the retreat they want from our multiple properties and customize which will be curated by us. They can chose and have it delivered in multiple properties.

Hospitality

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THE GRAND NEW DELHI TARGETS TO GROW BY 15% IN OCCUPANCIES IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

Rajat Sethi, General Manager, The Grand New Delhi says we hope to continue with the trend of growth in the domestic market and expect to grow by another 15% in domestic market. been very consumer driven. We focus on social media as well for our communication with our target market and our marketing initiatives. We have been very active on Facebook and Twitter, engaging continuously with our customers and updating them on the latest developments. The other tool we engage have become the bible for travellers- TripAdvisor and Zomato.

Growth of Indian market The domestic market has grown by 15% for our hotel year on year (Financial Year 2016 vs 2017).The unequivocal contributor here is domestic MICE segment which has grown substantially year on year.

Marketing Plans Our marketing

strategy

has

Segments We are known for hosting conferences, meetings and upscale events and exhibitions. The hotel is also an ideal place for wedding planners, meeting planners or corporates looking for a seamless experience with state-of-the-art technology, infrastructure, concierge

services and services.

dedicated

event

Expansion Plans India is one of our most important markets in Asia and the growth prospects in the secondary and tertiary markets will continue to be a major focus for Saraf Enterprises

in 2018, leveraging strong demand for its select-service brands and the growing demand for its upper upscale and luxury portfolios. We see a huge opportunity to continue working to open hotels from across our extensive bouquet of brands, especially in the upper midscale, upscale and luxury segments, given India's robust economy.

PALLADIUM HOTEL GROUP ANNOUNCES NEW BRAND - BLESS COLLECTION HOTELS VW BUREAU

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LESS Collection Hotels brand will target contemporary luxury market. First property will open in Madrid in November 2018, followed

by Ibiza in 2019. Madrid hotel to feature restaurant by Michelinstarred chef Martin Berasategui and interiors by Spanish designer Lázaro Rosa-Violan Palladium Hotel Group has revealed plans for a new hotel brand, ‘BLESS Collection Hotels’, targeted at the contemporary luxury market. The group has signed a management contract with investment groups, Grupo Didra and AINA Capital, for the first property in central Madrid due to open in November 2018.

Palladium Hotel Group is a Spanish hotel company with 48 hotels in six different countries. The BLESS

Collection Hotels brand fits into Palladium Hotel Group’s strategy of expanding its contemporary luxury hotel offering around the world, building on both its city centre and beachside hotel portfolio.

The appetite for expansion follows recent successes with the group’s upscale brands and expansion opportunities in target destinations.

With this launch being the first of a series of new hotel openings, which will be announced in the next few months, the group continues to place a big bet on its strategies for international expansion and repositioning.

Abel Matutes, CEO of Palladium Hotel Group says: “We are moving at a pace to rollout the development of new brand

‘BLESS Collection Hotels’ with the first property planned to open in Madrid in November 2018, followed

by Ibiza in Summer 2019.

The new upscale brand will leverage our position in the premium market and draws on our existing experience within the luxury and lifestyle sector.

The concept of ‘contemporary luxury’ is aimed at an ever-growing ‘bleisure’ demographic looking for a combination of business and leisure including convenience, premium services, high tech facilities, strong design credentials and superfast wifi as well as state-of-the-art health and wellbeing services and excellent gastronomy.”

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FESTIVALS OF 12-14 July Bilbao BBK Live, Bilbao, Spain The Bilbao BBK Live is a festival of electronic music and rock, featuring top international artists from 12th-14th July in Bilbao. This festival has been established as one of the most important festivals in the country over the years and for modern and alternative music fans. During the three days, the event is attended by thousands of people camping and enjoying the concerts with live shows in the open air.

July 5-8 Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Madrid, Madrid The Mercedes- Benz Fashion Week Madrid is happening from 5-8 July in Parque Ferial Juan Carlos I, Madrid. The largest event to promote Spanish fashion on the international scene followed by the gathering of international designers in the city of Madrid. The event will run for five days with numerous prestigious brand names being represented and professionals from all over the world come over with their new trends in fashion. The event also offers an opportunity for the upcoming young designers with EGO as a platform for the promotion of new fashion trends.

June 30- July 7 National Cherry Festival, Traverse City, Northern Michigan 29th June to 14th July Montreux Jazz Festival, Switzerland The Montreux Jazz Festival is happening from 29th June to 14th July on the eastern shore of Lake Geneva and considered to be Europe‘s biggest Jazz Festival.The festival is celebrated with some of the world famous face in Jazz and blues. Some of the jazz and blues artists have performed at Montreux Jazz Festival, including Nina Simone, Ella Fitzgerald, Stan Getz, Charlie Mingus and Dexter Gordon. Most of the people will enjoy this festival and something that one should not miss.

The National Cherry Festival will be happening in Traverse City in Northern Michigan and it is also known as the Cherry Capital of the World. This festival is done to enjoy the harvest season of cherries and includes eight days of concerts, road races, parades and an air show featuring the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds. You can sample the locally made wine, pie, pancakes and preserves. You can also enjoy the festival’s arts and crafts fair, parades, air show and fireworks.

THE WORLD July 15 Pattaya Marathon Pattaya, Thailand The Pattaya International Marathon is one of the famous marathons in Thailand that will start from15th July in Central Festival Beach.

The event is attended with participants from all over the world. This event features five races, a full marathon (42.195 kms.), a wheelchair marathon (42.195 kms), a half marathon (21.097 kms), a quarter marathon (10.55 kms), and a student run (5 kms). The race is open to all whether they are professional athletes, amateurs, or people with disabilities.

6-14 July San FermĂ­n Fiestas, Pamplonia, Spain The San Fermin Fiestas is celebrated with the running of the bulls as one of the main attraction during the festival in Pamplonia from 6-14 July which turns the destination as a non-stop fiesta location. The event is attended with thousands of people coming every year to experience the risk and excitement of the popular running of the bulls. For nine days, Pamplonia residents and visitors alike, dressed typically in red and white, get carried away by the continuous festive spirit that invades the streets. The festive programme also includes open-air celebrations, concerts, dance exhibitions and, of course, bullfights.

July 13-29 Singapore Food Festival, Singapore Singapore Food Festival is meant for foodies who love to relish the local food or eat like the local the festival starts from 13th-29th July. The local culture, tradition and contemporary dining are showcased during the festival. You can also look forward to a curation of local favourites, fun lifestyle events and rare collaborations between some of the best local chefs. One can also join the various cooking classes and attend cultural tours and workshops.

June 27- July 01 & July 3- 8, Summerfest in Milwaukee, Wisconsin Summerfest will celebrate its 50th anniversary from June 27- July 01 and July 3- 8 in Milwaukee. This year the festival is on for more than a week and will be organizing a series of events and giveaways for 50 days leading up to the event. You can get to witness acts as big as Steve Aoki, Ziggy Marley, Flume and Third Eye Blind along the shores of beautiful Lake Michigan. The festival visitors can get to enjoy paddle-boating and dockside barbecues.

www.voyagersworld.in

Happenings

Bangalore International Airport Habba

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he Kempegowda International Airport organized BLR Airport Habba at the Haj Terminal of the Airport as part of the 10th anniversary celebrations. The event included music concerts, workshops along with food and beverage stalls, flea market, kids’ zone, gamers’ paradise and a chilling area. Some of the dignitaries present for the event are Indian playback singer Shaan, renowned DJ Jasmeet, alternate rock band Kalpanik Theory, Jambe Collective, leading singer-song writer Loysum, citybased musician Sagar Shastri, top Latin pop band Artesanato Pulso, multigenre Indie band Mannat, rock band Aathma, solo artiste Soundharya .

The Habba also had performances from BIAL employees and workshops of Lahe Lahe, Aero Modelling, Clay pot, Dream Catcher, Decode X&Y and Paper Marbling.

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Clarence Fernandes receives Indo Global Lifetime Achievement Award for promoting investments and tourism into Rwanda.

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larence Fernandes the Chairman of Rwanda Renaissance is awarded with the " Indo Global Lifetime Achievement Award " for his contribution towards promoting investments and tourism into Rwanda at the Kohinoor Continental Hotel, Mumbai. On the occasion, Clarence Fernandes the Chairman of Rwanda Renaissance, added “This award is dedicated to the people of Rwanda and particularly to the Survivors of the 1994 Genocide Against the Tutsi who have worked tirelessly and against all odds to bring the country from where it was immediately after the Genocide, to where it has reached today, after twenty four years."

BLS International inaugurated Spain Visa Application Center in Russia

Bahrain Tourism & Exhibitions Authority organized a FAM Trip

LS International announced the inauguration of the new Spain Visa Application Centre (VACs) in Moscow, Russia . The event was inaugurated in the presence of the Ambassador of Spain in Russian Federation along with senior officials from BLS International Services Ltd. Ybáñez Ignacio, Ambassador of Spain in Russian Federation says, “ BLS International fulfilled all the conditions of the competition announced by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Spain and added new services, surpassing the expectations of the Ministry”. The event was also attended by EU delegation in Moscow, Turespana Director Luis Boves Martin and Boris Jelovšek - Minister Plenipotentiary for Embassy of Slovenia.

Shikhar Aggarwal, Joint Managing Director, BLS International, said, “ We have witnessed the growing trend of emerging popularity of Schengen areas as a new tourist destination, the centre will cater to the ever-increasing volumes of visa applications for Spain – a preferred destination for Schengen entry.”

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Voyager’s World > June 2018

ahrain Tourism and Exhibitions Authority (BTEA) recently hosted a consolidator’s familiarization trip to Bahrain. The trip focused in promoting Bahrain’s attractions. Bahrain is looking at the growth of about 46% tourists from India for 2018.Some of the places visited during the FAM are Bahrain International Circuit, Historical Forts, cultural sites in the old capital Muharraq, Beaches, The Al Fateh Grand Mosque, The National Museum, Jarada Islands and new hotel Jumeirah Royal Saray Bahrain.

Happenings

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VR Bengaluru inaugurates Season 3 World on a Plate

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R Bengaluru celebrated its 2nd anniversary and also inaugurated Season 3 World on a Plate a food festival event produced by Gold Rush Entertainment from June 8-10 that included Masterchefs George Calombaris, Sarah Todd and Ranveer Brar.Besides that Masterclasses by celebrity and top chefs for Indian and global cuisines including Mexican, Persian, Mediterranean and European.

Kiran Soans, CEO of Gold Rush Entertainment said, "This edition of World on a Plate is bigger in scale and size and guaranteed to be an unparalleled culinary journey for connoisseurs and aspiring chefs."

Jermina Menon, VP Marketing of Virtuous Retail South Asia said, “We are glad to host World on a Plate for the second time in a row. We wanted to create a platform for curated events marked by music, live performances, global cuisines.”

GET CYCLONED World Bicycle Day

Join Me in Jamaica Marketing Campaign

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ofitel Hotels & Resorts @ MMRDA, BKC recently organized GET CYCLONED on World Bicycle Day that highlighted cycling as a solution to the daily commute problems faced by millions of people across all our cities.

Firoza Suresh of Smart Commute Foundation (SCF) said, “The Cycle2Work culture has been growing rapidly in cities across India. The numbers have seen a sharp rise in Mumbai over the last five years.”

Biswajit Chakraborty, General Manager, Sofitel Mumbai BKC said, "The idea of the 'Cycle2Work' initiative is to encourage companies and their employees to choose an alternative to motor vehicles for travelling to work.”

he Jamaica Tourist Board launched its Join Me In Jamaica digital marketing campaign. The campaign includes a series of 90-second videos featuring local Jamaican celebrities and friends of Jamaica sharing unique stories of Jamaica.

Donovan White, Jamaica's Director of Tourism, says,"The Join Me in Jamaica campaign was created with today's savvy traveller in mind as purchasing decisions as to where one will vacation are often made after a series of online searches. These short videos will attract visitors to come experience our destination.”

Maharashtra Tourism andAirbnb introduces Tourism Entrepreneurship Accelerator Programme

M

aharashtra Tourism Development Corporation in partnership with Airbnb launched the Tourism Entrepreneurship Accelerator Programme to promote the tourism aspects. The programme focuses to drive economic growth in local Maharashtra communities by helping micro-entrepreneurs in hospitality sector grow their business through four key pillars of support- Training, Enabling, Access and Promotion.

www.voyagersworld.in

Hospitality

36>>

The Ashok Hotel DELHI teams up with John starrer "Parmanu" VW BUREAU

I

conic hotel ‘The Ashok’ a flagship property of India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) Ltd., set upon the prime

diplomatic location in the capital came onboard with John Abraham Entertainment productions for the shoot of blockbuster film ‘Parmanu:

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The Story of Pokhran’. The John Abraham and Daina Penty starrer is directed by Abhishek Sharma, an Indian Film Director of comedy films like Tere Bin Laden.

The movie is an Indian historical drama based on Pokhran II nuclear test conducted by India in 1998.

The parts of the movie showcasing most decisive moments were shot at The Ashok hotel. The scenes from the movie were shot at the incredibly beautiful spiral ramp, legendary Kalinga Room and other important areas of the hotels. The background of the movie is in sync with historic values that The Ashok imbibes, which directly resulted in bringing more realistic appeal to the scenes.

Speaking on this successful collaboration, Mr. Piyush Tiwari, Director (Commercial and Marketing), ITDC said, “It was a privilege for us to be part of the film which resonates with the history of India. Often referred to as first iconic monument of independent India, The Ashok hotel stands symbolic of the major political movements and decisions which have impacted the nation since more than 60 years.”

The Ashok hotel has been a favourable location for directors as it has a unique identity and depicts India’s grandeur of the bygone era. Legendary films like Gandhi, Chandni and many more have been shot at The Ashok.

ATTA's AdventureNEXT AT MADHYA PRADESH (3-5 DecEMBER)

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or more than a decade, the Adventure Travel Trade Association (ATTA) has offered a forum for adventure industry professionals to learn, create, explore, and grow together.

Our AdventureNEXT events take place around the globe, successfully introducing emerging adventure destinations like the Balkans, Jordan, and Mexico to international buyers and media while incorporating educational workshops and sessions addressing regional topics and opportunities for professionals to connect.

Warmly welcoming all patrons in the field to AdventureNEXT India in Madhya Pradesh and invite all those with a vested interest in India’s potential as an adventure destination — including suppliers, outfitters, travel advisors, and media — to attend the December event.

1 Year, 12 Issues Rs. 800 (Inclusive of Rs. 200 for postage) 2 Year, 24 Issues Rs. 1,600 (Inclusive of Rs. 400 for postage) 3 Year, 36 Issues Rs. 2,400 (Inclusive of Rs. 600 for postage) Name Designation Company Name Address City Pin State Tel. Fax E mail

Voyager’s World > June 2018

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Top Appointments

37>> Ranju Alex

Gaurav Singh

Multi Property VP-Bengaluru & Kochi- Marriott Properties GM-Bengaluru Marriott Hotel Whitefield

R

anju Alex has been appointed as the Multi Property Vice President for all the Marriott properties in Bangalore and Kochi that includes the upcoming properties and as the General Manager of Bengaluru Marriott Hotel Whitefield. Prior to this, she has worked as the General Manager of the JW Marriott Kolkata and Multi Property Vice President for East India, Bhutan and Bangladesh.

General Manager- JW Marriott Kolkata Cluster General Manager- Bangladesh

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aurav Singh is appointed as the General Manager of JW Marriott Kolkata and as the Cluster General Manager of Bangladesh for properties like Westin Dhaka, Four Points by Sheraton Dhaka, Gulshan, Le MĂŠridien Dhaka.

He is also overseeing the upcoming properties like Courtyard by Marriott Siliguri –India and Renaissance Dhaka.

Charmaine Hutt

Vishal Khosla

Marketing & Communication Manager Radisson Blu Atria Bengaluru

General Manager Novotel Goa Dona Sylvia Resort

V

ishal Khosla joins Novotel Goa Dona Sylvia Resort as the General Manager. He brings with him an experience of over two decades in the hospitality industry. He has worked with various hospitality brands in Goa including The Club Mahindra Resort, Varca Beach, The Lalit Golf & Spa Resort, The Kenilworth Resort & Spa, Radisson Blu , Park Regis,UK Radisson SAS Hotel & Holiday Inn Aylesbury

R

adisson Blu Atria Bengaluru appoints Charmaine Hutt as Marketing and Communications Manager, who will be handling internal and external communication. She brings with her an experience of over 9 years. She has worked with many standalone properties in Hyderabad. Prior to this, she had worked with The Park Bangalore in the PR department.

Vikalp Raj

Rajiv Vyas

Director of Sales and Marketing Sheraton Grand Bangalore Hotel at Brigade Gateway

V

ikalp Raj joins as the Director of Sales and Marketing of Sheraton Grand Bangalore Hotel at Brigade Gateway who will be managing sales activities and executing sales strategies . He brings with him an experience of over 12 years in sales and marketing. Prior to this, he has worked with JW Marriott Hotel Bengaluru as the Director of Sales.

Director of Sales The Westin Kolkata Rajarhat

T

he Westin Kolkata Rajarhat appoints Rajiv Vyas as the Director of Sales. He brings with him an experience of over 14 years in the hospitality industry. He started his career with Jindal Saw Pipe Limited, Mumbai, as a Marketing Executive.He has also worked with various hotels like Radisson Edwardian Company-Heathrow, ELLAA Hotels- Hyderabad and Courtyard by Marriott-Raipur.

Rajesh Gopalakrishnan

Tanushree Joshi

General Manager Novotel Visakhapatnam Varun Beach and Varun Bheemli Resort

Sales Manager The Small Maldives Island Co (TSMIC)

T

he Small Maldives Island Co (TSMIC) appoints Tanushree Joshi as the Sales Manager. She brings with her an experience of 13 years with Tourism Boards and luxury hotel chains.Prior to this, she has worked with Sun Siyam Resorts as Regional Sales and Marketing Manager - India and Australia.

R

ajesh Gopalakrishnan is appointed as the General Manager of Novotel Visakhapatnam Varun Beach and Varun Bheemli Resort. He has worked at Novotel Hyderabad Convention Centre (NHCC) and Hyderabad International Convention Centre (HICC), The Leela Mumbai, Grand Hyatt Mumbai and Novotel Hyderabad Airport. Prior to this, he had worked at Grand Mercure as the General Manager.

Nitin Marriya

Saurabh Chowdhury

Complex Director of Sales and Marketing Sheraton Grand Bengaluru Whitefield and Convention Center & Aloft Bengaluru Cessna Business Park

Director of Sales and Marketing The Westin Mumbai Garden City

S

aurabh Chowdhury joins The Westin Mumbai Garden City as the Director of Sales and Marketing. He brings with him an experience over a decade. He has worked at The Renaissance Marriott Mumbai Convention Center Hotel and Marriott Executive Apartments, The Leela Hotels and Resorts and Grand Hyatt Mumbai.

N

itin Marriya is appointed as the Complex Director of Sales and Marketing of Sheraton Grand Bengaluru Whitefield Hotel & Convention Center and Aloft Cessna Park.

He has worked with various hotels like The Westin Hyderabad Mindspace and Sheraton Hyderabad Hotel, Sheraton Grand Bangalore at Brigade Gateway.

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NETWORKING ISThE THE NETWORKING IS KE KEY Y June 2018

July 2018

August 2018

September 2018

October 2018

June 2018 14, 15, 16, 17 KOFTA (Korea World Travel Fair) Seoul – Korea 14, 15, 16, 17 ITE Hong Kong Hong Kong, China 26, 27, 28, 29, 30 Bali & Beyond Travel Fair Indonesia

July 2018

August 2018

12,13,14 Global Travel Marketplace Florida-USA

3, 4, 5 India International Travel Mart Chennai

13,14,15 International Conference on Marketing, Tourism & Hospitality Zurich - Switzerland

17,18,19 Holiday Expo Vadodara

27,28,29 India International Travel Mart Bangalore

31 July, 1 August MICE India Travel Congress Delhi

September 2018

October 2018

21, 22, 23 India International Travel Mart Delhi

1, 2, 3, 4, 5 Outbound Travel Roadshow Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta, Singapore (Optional)

28, 29, 30 India International Travel Mart Mumbai

12, 13, 14 Holiday Expo Nagpur

31 Aug-2 September Philippines Travel Mart Pasay Philippines

26, 27, 28 Holiday Expo Visakhapatnam

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IITM 2018-19 EVENTS CALENDAR BANGALORE: 27, 28, 29, JUL 2018 CHENNAI: 03, 04, 05 AUG 2018 DELHI: 21, 22, 23 SEP 2018 MUMBAI: 28, 29, 30 SEP 2018 HYDERABAD: 23, 24, 25 NOV 2018 PUNE: 30 NOV, 01, 02 DEC 2018 KOCHI: 31 JAN 1, 2 FEB 2019 KOLKATA: 22, 23, 24, FEB 2019

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