Voyager's World October 2016 by Editor

Vol XIII

Issue XII

Pages 52

October 2016

Rs 60

Vol XIII

Issue XII

Pages 52

October 2016

PUNE HYDERABAD

25, 26, 27 NOVEMBER 2016 02, 03, 04 DECEMBER 2016

KOCHI KOLKATA

19, 20, 21 JANUARY 2017 24, 25, 26 FEBRUARY 2017

Rs 60

‘Down-to-earth’... Event venues get prudent!

6>> Knocking opportunities! Around 86 Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) were exchanged amongst Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Karnataka, Rajasthan and Uttarakhand at the recent Tourism Investment Summit organized by the Ministry of Tourism along with the Confederation of Indian Industry and the Tourism Finance Corporation of India in New Delhi. The MoUs aggregated close to Rs 15,000 crores. Just what makes this particular sector so lucrative? While a lot has been talked about already about the economic impact and empowerment of the locals, it is needless to say that other industries too come forward to spend on tourism development, such as hotels, recreation amenities, transport and banks to create tourism-related solutions in a win-win approach. In this issue, we have featured trends in technology, particularly the events and MICE industry, virtual tourism and interviews with leading hoteliers and NTO representatives among others. Happy Reading... Warm Regards

PRIYAMVADHA BALARAM

priyamvadha@voyagersworld.in

Managing Editor

Associate Editor

Rohit Hangal rohit@voyagersworld.in

Priyamvadha Balaram priyamvadha@voyagersworld.in

Chief Designer EDIT

Web Developer

Shyam Vishnot shyam@voyagersworld.in

ORIA

Advertising & Marketing

Assistant Editor

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Operations Executive

Mobile +91-9844092150 advertising@voyagersworld.in

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ADVERTISING & CIRCU LATIO N

08 12

Industry Buzz

India Outbound Interviews with NTOs, Virtual Experiences

Online Travel Reservation Systems, thematic experiences, apps

Hospitality New players in the hotel industry

Published By

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

27 49

MICE POINT New trends in the MICE segment for hotels

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Industry Buzz

8>> Scoot takes off to Jaipur

ibis Styles opens in Goa Calangute

coot, launched its inaugural flight from Singapore to Jaipur as the third city to experience the Scootitude. Scoot’s services between Singapore and Jaipur will start with flights thrice a week, with the frequency going up to four times a week from 30 October, 2016. The event was inaugurated by Krishnendra Kaur, Honorable Civil Aviation Minister and Minister of Tourism, Rajasthan and His Excellency Lim Thuan Kuan, High Commissioner of The Republic of Singapore to India, in the presence of Bharath Mahadevan, Country Head - India, Scoot.

he first ibis Styles Goa Calangute was launched in India with 197 rooms built around Portuguese architecture. The hotel also has stylish conference and banquet facilities that can accommodate up to 180 guests for business events.

Vasundhara Raje, Honorable Chief Minister, Rajasthan said, “We are excited to welcome an international airline like Scoot as it opens new avenues for the public in Jaipur to fly to popular destinations. This will go a long way in boosting trade and tourism for the city making it more prominent on the world map.”

Jean-Michel Cassé, Senior Vice President, Operations, AccorHotels India, said, “We are excited to bring our eclectic ibis Styles brand to India. Goa is one of the most popular beach holiday destinations for domestic and international travellers. The opening of the first ibis Styles in Goa gives us an opportunity to showcase the contemporary design of the hotel that offers guests an experience of the local culture in Goa and feel its conviviality.”

Northern Regional Office of MoT celebrates World Tourism Day

he Northern Regional Office of the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India celebrated this year’s World Tourism Day by organizing sightseeing tour of Delhi for children with special bilities. This unique tour was flagged off by the Tourism Minister Dr. Mahesh Sharma at Janpath, New Delhi,Secretary Tourism Vinod Zutshi, Additional Secretary Tourism Uday Pratap Singh, Additional Director General Tourism, Meenakshi Sharma, members from tourism trade, senior officers from the Ministry.

Star Cruises pioneers flexibility concept for passengers

S Belmond tri-city roadshow in India

elmond hospitality group recently completed their second annual roadshow in Delhi, Bengaluru and Mumbai. The delegation had representatives from Cape Town, Brazil, Asia, Russia and Italy. Maria Kuhn, Belmond’s Corporate Director of Communications said, “Our strategic plan is focused on driving top-line growth and bottom-line results, continuing to build brand awareness and expanding our global footprint. The strategic plan projects that we will double in size by 2020.”

tar Cruises introduced ‘Total Freedom’, a cruise concept that allows passengers the flexibility to customize their ideal holiday at sea. Commencing from 13 November 2016, passengers of SuperStar Virgo, departing from Shenzhen Tai Zi Bay homeport and Hong Kong for weekend cruises as well as destination cruises to Ho Chi Minh City, Nha Trang, Danang and Halong Bay, can design their very own preferred cruise journey, from food and beverage, entertainment, retail, beauty and spa treatments and shore excursions and many more. ‘Total Freedom’ converts inclusive meals arrangement tradition to complimentary onboard credits applicable to enjoy pampering onboard facilities.

SA Forest Adventures appoints The Strategy Store as its India Representative

A Forest Adventures appointed the Strategy Store as its India representative. It offers a range of adventure activities for travellers in and around Cape Town including white-water rafting, ziplining, quad biking, river tubing and sand boarding. Clinton Lerm, owner, SA Forest Adventures,said, “We will focus on our promotional and marketing activities as well as sales for India. Looking at the growing number of visitors from India to South Africa year on year, we believe that this market has a vast potential. This initiative will help us position ourselves, in our key growth market, India.”

STB organizes roadshows in India and Sri Lanka

ingapore Tourism Board (STB)recently organized a roadshow themed ‘Extending Hands in Partnership’ in six cities of India and in Colombo, Sri Lanka. The delegation comprised representatives from hotels, cruise liners, attractions, airlines and DMCs. GB Srithar, Regional Director for South Asia, Middle East and Africa (SAMEA), STB said, “We are moving into the next exciting phase of promoting Singapore to wider audiences in tier 2 cities, we look to fostering closer strategic and tactical partnerships with the travel trade to entrench the positioning of Singapore as one of the must-see destinations for the Indian audiences.”

Voyager’s World > October 2016

Industry Buzz

9>> Seven Stars Luxury Hospitality and Lifestyle Awards concludes in gaiety

he world of Luxury Hospitality and lifestyle was set ablaze on the night of October 15th at the Villa Padierna Palace Hotel by the 4th annual Seven Stars Luxury Hospitality and Lifestyle Awards! An unrivalled list of attendees was in attendance in order to collect the highest most exclusive award in the industry, the Signum Virtutis, the seal of excellence.

that were presented were the Seven Star Hospitality Network to Hospitality Leaders, Seven Star Development to Tala Bay. The Seven Star 1st Class Lounge to Qatar Airways Al Safwa 1st Class Lounge at Hamad International Airport, the Seven Star Boutique Hotel Award to Hanging Gardens of Bali, The Seven Stars Yacht Charter to

Luxury Panel Members in attendance were: His Serene Highness Prince Massimiliano della Torre e Tasso, Her Serene Highness Princess Costanza della Torre e Tasso, Her Royal Highness Nathalie Princess of Hohenzollern, Princess Bhargavi Kumari Mewar, Kenelm Jenour, Jean Christophe Rousseau, Thanos Liontos, Andreas Lindner, Bernie Hawkins, Alexander Jovanovic. After a cocktail reception filled with media and photographers, which also featured the Ribbon Cutting Ceremony of the World’s first International Hospitality Hall of Fame by Princess Bhargavi Kumari Mewar and Mr Frank M Pfaller-President/Founder of the International Hospitality Hall of Fame and Honorary Chairman of the Seven Stars Luxury Hospitality and Lifestyle Awards, guests were ushered to the stunning Amphitheatre to begin the winners presentations.

Seven Stars Luxury Hospitality

and Lifestyle Awards would like to thank its media partners: FTN News, I-Marbella, Essential Magazine, Ogee Design Magazine, Horizon & Beyond, The Top Tier, E global Travel Media, Home & Lifestyle Magazine, Marbella Rocks, Eye of Riyadh, Eye of Dubai, Voyagers World, Carmen’s Luxury Travel, Highend-Traveller, Maldives Hotels, On TV Channel, Luxepitality and Ifiniti Style.

When do customers hate their travel agent?

Or will really like them?

When needing a hotel, your customers look up to you - their Travel Agent. That adds to your responsibility of ensuring your hotel suggestion is good. Obviously, you would recommend only those hotels which you are familiar with. So far, so good.

The incredible Arina Domski opened the Ceremony with a fantastic performance of “Nessun dorma” which ended in a roaring applause. The Presentations saw legendary and exclusive properties such as Byblos St Tropez, The Peninsula Paris, Castadiva Resort & Spa, Grand Resort Bad Ragaz, Tschuggen Bergoase and many more receive the Signum Virtutis the sea of excellence

What if it's a new destination? What if your customer is looking for a change of hotel? No worries. At roomsXML, the feature called ‘Preferred by Agents’ removes all the guesswork whilst selecting a hotel. The logic is really simple. Only those properties would become 'Preferred' if a minimum of 10 travel agents nominate that property. The ranking of the property goes up as more and more unique agents prefer that property. Since the agent can only nominate a property where his customer has stayed recently, the feedback is authentic.

16 010/quiksel.com

Special Awards on the night were presented to some very special individuals such as the Lifetime achievement Award for the legendary Sol Kerzner, Seven Stars Woman of the Year for Ms Regine Sixt and the Seven Star CEO of the Year to Valentine Ozigbo. Other special Awards

Sovereign Seas Hermes , Seven Star Villa was snatched up by Villa Alegria in Mykonos and the always popular Despina Miraraki received the Seven Star Carpet Gallery Award. Other Special Awards included Seven Star Real Estate Services for Ideal Mykonos and the Seven Stars Luxury Lifestyle Spa Brand to Ligne St Barth.

Consider this like getting a reference from fellow agents; certainly more dependable than ratings by public at large. roomsXML - the travel agent's good side.

www.voyagersworld.in

Industry Buzz

10>> Grover Zampa Vineyards launches INSIGNIA

Next Big Heritage Destination contest

olidayIQ and the Indian National Trust for Arts and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) provides the Indian travellers a chance to select the ‘Next Big Heritage Destination’. The voting procedure starts on October 1, 2016 and will continue for a period of two months. “India is known for its heritage destinations and attractions, which brings out the richness of culture, wealth, tradition and skill of the country. Our association with INTACH is aimed towards encouraging the people of India to re-discover forgotten heritage destinations.” said Hari Nair – CEO and Founder, HolidayIQ.

rover Zampa Vineyards unveiled its signature limited edition wine, Insignia wherein connoisseurs and guests can get a first-hand experience of the winemaking tradition, followed by a guided tour of the vineyards. Summed Singh Mandala, CEO, Grover Zama Vineyards said, “With this launch we have raised the bar of Indian wines and paved the way for them to be listed among the most premium wines in the world. Insignia will showcase our passion for quality and our commitment to enrich our legacy in Indian and International markets.”

Hong Kong Travel Mission in India

he Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) concluded its India Travel Mission in Bengaluru, Mumbai, Kolkata and New Delhi recently with a participation of more than 30 delegates representing Hong Kong’s top land operators, hoteliers and popular attractions such as the Hong Kong Disneyland, Ngong Ping 360 Limited, Ocean Park Corporation, the sky100 Hong Kong Observation Deck, the Trickeye Museum Global Co. Ltd. among others.

TripAdvisor, Viator announce enhanced attractions content solution

Air India initiative boosts women’s career inaviation

ir India, along with Women in Aviation, conducted a ‘Girls in Aviation Day’ at its Regional Training Centre in Mumbai to showcase the aviation and aerospace domains to girls in the age group of 13 to 18 years. The event included three sessions on airline, engineering and airport-related career options followed by a presentation by a team of women aviation professionals from across the various departments.

Goa Tourism organises vintage motor fest

oa Tourism, along with Goa Tourism Development Corporation (GTDC), recently organised the first edition of the vintage bike and car festival with a record participation of 83 vintage cars and 40 vintage bikes. Goa’s Tourism Minister Dilip Parulekar flagged off the rally at Paryatan Bhavan in the presence of Nilesh Cabral, Chairman of GTDC and other dignitaries and officials. During the day the Vintage bikes and cars were on display at the INOX Courtyard where thousands of tourists and locals viewed some of the oldest and grandest automobiles dated from 1921 to 1970. Cameras and videos rolled all day as the classic models were a sight to behold.

Voyager’s World > October 2016

ripAdvisor and Viator launched an enhanced attractions content solution for travel partners and hospitality providers, newly combining TripAdvisor’s attractions content with booking options powered by Viator, offering travellers the ability to discover and explore local things to do directly within the partner’s online and mobile channels, as well as book tours and activities through the integration with Viator. “Travelers search for experiences on the go, with 67 percent looking for things to do on their mobile device. Our enhanced content solution helps partners surprise and engage travelers by providing them with inspiring attractions content and, going one step further, helping them to seamlessly book selected activities,” said Minesh Shah, senior hotel partnerships director, TripAdvisor.

Skyscanner launches flight booking provider quality ratings

kyscanner recently launched partner quality ratings for providers that will help customers differentiate between airlines and OTAs on more than simply price. The new feature provides a useful additional benchmark by which partners can measure their ongoing efforts to improve the quality of their service and our tangible consumer data is a unique offering which provides key benefits and insight to all suppliers regardless of their size. .

IndiGo expands servce grid this October

ndiGo is introducing 47 new flights on its existing route network during October 2016. With this and the induction of five new Airbus A320 aircraft and additionally, to extend connectivity, 6E will operate more flights connecting Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, Bhubaneswar, Lucknow, Guwahati and Patna. With maiden flights connecting Port Blair to Delhi and Kolkata from 28 September and Hyderabad and Chennai effective 30 September, IndiGo is all set to introduce its first daily return flights connecting Bengaluru to Patna, Varanasi and Imphal.

2 Nights Hong Kong & 2 Nights Macao Stay period: 25 October to 30 November 2016

Holiday Inn Macao Cotai Central @ USD 345 The Venetian Macao

@ USD 410

Conrad Macao, Cotai Central

@ USD 460

The Parisian Macao

@ USD 370

Diwali Package – The Venetian® Macao, Holiday Inn® Macao Cotai Central and Conrad® Macao, Cotai Central

The Parisian Macao Grand Opening Package

• 2 nights stay • Daily breakfast OR lunch at the designated outlets at Sands Resorts

• • • • •

for two guests for ﬁrst night stay • Booking during October 25 – November 13, 2016: Daily breakfast OR lunch at the designated outlets at Sands Resorts AND “Thriller Live” B Reserve Show Tickets for two guests for second night stay • Booking during November 13 – 30, 2016: Daily breakfast OR lunch OR dinner at the designated outlets at Sands Resorts for two guests for second night stay • One-way Cotai Water Jet Cotai Class ticket for two guests from Macao to Hong Kong; OR Gondola Ride for two Guests; OR entry to Qube / Qube 2 for two Guest

2 nights stay Daily breakfast or lunch Eiffel Tower 7th ﬂoor observation deck admission tickets or Thriller Live C Reserve Tickets The Parisian Macao limited edition opening souvenir One-way Macao to Hong Kong Cotai Water Jet tickets / Qube Kingdom Kid’s Play Zone / MOP200 Shopping and Dining Dollars

Hong Kong Inclusions • • • •

SIC coach transfer (Airport - Hotel - Pier) 2 nights accommodation at Regal Oriental in Hong Kong Daily breakfast at hotel in Hong Kong SIC Hong Kong city tour (Peak Tram to Victoria Peak, Aberdeen Fishing Village, Stanley Market, Jewellery Factory) • Ferry tickets (Hong Kong - Macau)

Macao Inclusions • SIC Macao city tour with Lunch (Ruin's St. Paul's Church, Na-Tcha Temple, Mount Fortress, A-Ma Temple, Lunch) • Ferry tickets (Macau-Hong Kong airport) redeem by hotel package

Terms and Conditions Apply Condition: Rate are subject to change without prior notice. Package is subject to availability. Supplement will apply for weekend & peak day arrival. Blackout dates apply.

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AKQUASUN HONG KONG HOLIDAYS

CONTACT: it@akquasun.com

India Outbound

12>>

TURKEY SCORES BIG WITH FITs FROM INDIA IN Q1 Ozgur Ayturk, Coordinator, Ministry of Culture & Tourism, Turkey, is optimistic to welcome a considerable number of Free and Independent Travellers (FITs) from India this year. IRENE SUSAN EAPEN travellers mainly from FITs and leisure segments. We are expecting to close the year with the same number as per last year.”

“I

ndia is a growing market for Turkey; although the numbers were still small in 2015, we have had more than 36 million visitors from all around the world. We received 131,000 visitors from India in 2015. We believe that the Indian market is not about quantity but quality. In 2016 during the first quarter, we noticed 52,000 Indian

Marketing Plans In 2016, Turkey Tourism participated in major tourism exhibitions. It also plans to have cultural events like a Sufi music performance organized by the National Center for Performing Arts in Mumbai and the International Arts Festival in Delhi in November 2016. In October, it will organise the MAMI International Film Festival in Mumbai in which a big delegation from Turkey will participate along with producers and actors. In 2017, it will have a joint promotional activity with private sectors apart from participating in

exhibitions and roadshows. As for the digital platform, Turkey seems to be faring quite well, ranking second in the number of followers in social media; it has, therefore, steadily embarked on social media campaigns on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Segments Some of the segments that the Turkey is focusing on are FITs, MICE, leisure groups, culture and heritage, shopping, weddings and honeymoons. FITs account for 50% of Turkey’s visitors. MICE accounts for 35% and leisure visitors are about 15% and a little bit of solo travellers also add to the visitor figures. Indians generally stay for a week or 10 days by combining three

cities on a trip. FITs spend more than leisure groups. Besides the popular cities of Istanbul, Cappadocia and Antalya, Turkey has also been promoting destinations like Bodrum and Çeşme by the Aegean Sea, which is known for its beautiful architecture, landscapes and yachting. Turkey also has a number of international hotel chains we have noticed a huge capacity of families coming over. Availability of VISA One can apply for a Turkey visa from any VFS office in India which will take seven working days to be processed. People who have valid US, SCHEGEN, UK visa can apply for an e-VISA within 10 minutes.

TASMANIA BECKONS INDIANS TO EXPERIENCE ITS THRIVING DISTILLERIES

Bill Lark, Founder and Global Brand Ambassador, Lark Distillery, was in Mumbai on 7 September as part of a delegation from Tasmania Tourism PRIYAMVADHA BALARAM

ourism Tasmania organised a lunch event at the Taj Lands End Mumbai on 7 September. The Premier of Tasmania, Will Hodgman, along with special guest, former Australian Cricket Captain Ricky Ponting, shared their experiences of Tasmania at the event. At the event, Bill Lark, Founder and Global Brand Ambassador, Lark Distillery, spoke about the growing interest

Voyager’s World > October 2016

in the distillery business in India with many international distillery companies entering the country and future expectations. Tasmania is a world leader in distilleries business. Around 20 new distilleries have been opened in Tasmania alone, with the world class whisky from rich fields of barley. Tasmania prides itself on about 20 new distilleries, with world class whisky from rich fields of barley. “The climatic conditions in Tasmania are extremely conducive for us to develop the distillery business,” said Bill Lark, ina telephonic conversation with Voyager’s World. “There has been a growing interest from the Indian market in our distilleries, which is why we are here to discuss business opportunities,” he added.

Lark built and ran a pub with his wife in Tasmania’s northern ski field with few other families in the year 1985 until he sold it in 2005. In 1992, Lark Distillery commenced operation at Kingston where they started distilling whisky and developing other products; this was to change their lives considerably In 2001 the family concentrated on growing their distillery with Bill’s daughter, Kristy.

When asked if the distilleries are as competent on the tourism front as the malt tours in the Scottish Highlands, Bill concludes in the affirmative saying that the response from the markets, including India, has been indeed encouraging. “There has been a growing number of queries from travellers to tour our distillery and we are as accomplished as our counterparts in other countries including Scotland.”

India Outbound

14>>

VIRTUAL EXPERIENCES...NTOs GET EXPERIMENTAL TO STAY AHEAD

National Tourism Organisations (NTOs) are engaging in innovative virtual experiences to catch the attention of the traveller before you visit a destination.

Belfast City Hall - Tourism Ireland

Shotover aerial autumn scenic - Tourism New Zealand

IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

Kirsty Phillips, General Manager – Marketing, Communications & Customer Experience, Ngai Tahu Tourism-Tourism New Zealand Virtual Reality is becoming more accessible both in terms of content creation and content sharing. It is exciting for the tourism industry due to the immersive and experiential nature of the products and we are using VR to show travel in long distance markets.

irtual tourism is a niche concept evolving on the international tourism front with many National Tourism Organizations (NTOs) developing virtual experiences of various attractions for travellers. NTOs are providing 360° views of destinations where one can get a guided tour of a city before the actual visit. Hanneli Slabber, Country Manager - India, South African Tourism explains, “ Virtual Tourism is gaining popularity and still in its nascent stage. This concept is an interesting tool to promote tourism destinations in ways that were previously restricted to imagination. It can entice potential travelers to visit the destination this will define the success and acceptance of this concept in the tourism industry. The

Voyager’s World > October 2016

tourism industry is open to change now and so, must take advantage of the ‘boom’ in mobile technologies such as apps and other innovative platforms to sustain its growth. Internationally, about 95% of the people looking for travel information now use the Internet to find it,” she added. Beena Menon, Representative India, Tourism Ireland,says, “The travel industry is all about selling an experience to potential travellers which has been accomplished through imagery, stories and visitor accounts.Virtual tourism is now giving travellers the chance to live an experience. With virtual reality now, travellers can take a guided tour of the city before they actually visit and also will change the way the tourism industry markets itself to consumers.”

In the opinion of Kirsty Phillips, General Manager – Marketing, Communications & Customer Experience, Ngāi Tahu TourismTourism New Zealand, “As technology advances, virtual reality is becoming more accessible both in terms of content creation and in terms of content sharing. Clearly there is no substitute for actually being there and doing it for yourself; however, what better way to engage, educate and inspire potential customers that with a virtual taste of an actual tourism experience. The technology provides the means to connect our trade partners, and potential partners with the experiences we offer so that nothing gets lost in translation and they are able to fully understand and relate our experiences to their clients.”

Virtual tours for promoting a destination Hanneli states, “Adventure activities such as abseiling, surfing or more intense activities like game drives, shark cage diving etc. can be promoted in a far more impactful way with the help of Virtual Tourism that captures the way humans hear the surroundings and see the destination as if they are really part of the real experience on ground. It is a great tool to showcase properties such as hotels, historic museums, and entertainment hubs making the destination desirable by the viewer.” Beena said,“We will use virtual tours to adopt a three-pronged strategy to promote Ireland targeting consumers, media and the travel trade, and also as in-market media activities, workshops and training seminars with the travel trade.”

India Outbound

Cliffs of Moher - Tourism Ireland

15>>

Hanneli Slabber, Country Manager - India, South African Tourism

Virtual tourism is a great tool to promote tourism destinations in ways that were previously restricted to imagination. Tourism sector must take advantage of the boom in mobile technologies such as apps and other innovative platforms to sustain its growth.

Beena Menon, Representative India, Tourism Ireland

Virtual tourism gives travellers the chance to live an experience. This concept is set to change how the tourism industry markets itself to consumers and increase the interest amont travel trade and consumers before visiting the destination. Kirsty states, “Our content is created in such a manner to provide a first person experience so that the person viewing the content feels like they are the person doing the actual experience So for Shotover Jet for example, they are sitting right in the middle of the boat as it speeds through the canyons and even does a full 360 degree spin. For Franz Josef Glacier Guides they are right there on the ice, following one of our guides and able to look up the at the sky as they go through and amazing crevasse and then look down right down the valley and up to the mountains as they stand on the surface of the glacier.” Marketing plans Hanneli says, “Virtual tours are included in the promotion phase if it enhances message delivery. You will find that individual product and cities tend to do more virtual

tours as their products lend itself to it quite favourably; with the new software available - even on the new Apple and Android phones, virtual tours has become easy and cost effective. The biggest challenge for the tourism board is to give potential travelers access to these tours.” Tourism Ireland introduced virtual tours in India for the first time at our India Sales Mission in September 2016. It will be using the latest 360° technology to provide visitors with an immersive view of the island of Ireland. It plans to integrate the virtual experiences and 360° views across its marketing activities in India and will also make them available to the Indian travel trade for their own promotional activities. “We are using VR as to show travel sellers in long distance markets our experiences – in India we have shown

many travel product managers all about our Ice Explorer, Shotover Jet and the Dart River Funyaks as well as the Agrodome and Hukafalls Jet. From a consumer perspective we have used the 360° content to supplement our content strategies and reach into other verticals with our brand,” Kirsty added. Growth in marketing with this technology Kristy says, “We are seeing positive growth in the number of Indian visitors at our experiences, and the revenue from Indian visitors up 30% in the last quarter. We expect this to continue with the use of VR content as a key part of our marketing toolkit. The immersive nature of the technology is proving invaluable in terms of educating potential customers about our experiences that would otherwise be foreign to them. “

Tourism Ireland introduced virtual tours for the first time this year for the Wild Atlantic Way and Belfast. The tours give viewers a chance to remote experience 3D tours of the popular touring routes. The Virtual Reality (VR) experiences created for the Wild Atlantic Way, include Cliffs of Moher, Burren Way, Streedagh Beach, Glencolmille. VR experiences for Belfast include Giant’s Causeway, Crumlin Road Gaol, Titanic Studios, Belfast City Hall, Titanic Belfast, Botanic Gardens, St. George’s Market. Hanneli concluded, “Mobile-driven Virtual Tourism will pick up speed as smart phones with faster internet connectivity are now affordable, and everybody uses them everywhere, all the time.360° video with its immersive experience capability has great potential not only in tourism but also in real estate, and training industries.”

www.voyagersworld.in

Incredible India

16>>

Chhattisgarh Tourism: A mine of architectural marvels

Natural landscapes are enhanced by manmade architecture thus making Chhattisgarh a traveller’s delight. Here is a look at some of those marvels. VW BUREAU

GIRODHPURI DHAM Girodhpuri Dham popular as the birthplace of many great men and saints, Chhattisgarh is definitely a pilgrim’s paradise. Among them is the preacher of the Satnami sect, Param Pujaynee Baba Guru Ghasidas. Belonging to Girodhpuri, Raipur district, he preached Satnam to a number of Indians, particularly the people of Chhattisgarh. The nearest airport is Raipur (135 kms) Connected with Mumbai, Delhi, Nagpur, Bhubaneswar, Kolkata, Ranchi, Vishakhapatnam and Chennai. The nearest railway station to Bilaspur and Raipur on Bombay – Howrah main Line.

MADKU DWEEP Madku Dweep is an island of great natural beauty marked by lush verdure and splendid waterfalls. Ruins of temples, epigraphs, coins and pottery from ancient times have been unearthed here. The ancient art found here reveals highly skilled workmanship. Extensive excavations have been carried out at Madku Dweep and beautiful idol art has been unearthed. A total of 19 temples have been excavated of which one faces the west while 18 others face the east. It is believed that flooding of the river resulted in the destruction of this ancient site. CHAMPARANYA Champaranya (earlier known as Champajhar) is a small but famous village as it’s the birthplace of the saint Vallabhacharya, the reformer and founder of the Vallabh Sect. A beautiful temple has been constructed in honor of this great saint, which has enhanced the religious holiness of the place. The temple of Champakeshwara Mahadeva is another attraction at Champaranya, worth visiting on your Champaranya Tour. It is now generally regarded as a Vaishnava peeth (pilgrim site). The temple complex is also referred to as Sudamapuri. The shrine attracts large number of pilgrims, mostly Gujaratis during the Hindu month of Shravan. BASTAR Bastar is a tribal region in Chhattisgarh, blessed with an exceptional scenic beauty that beckons the lovers of nature to explore the forests, waterfalls, wildlife, ancient temples, tribal dances and music. Located at a distance of 264 km from Raipur, Bastar is one of the most significant eco-friendly destinations of the country. It has plenty to offer to its visitors with its valuable tribal art and culture that lie in and around the lush green city of Jagdalpur. One can choose from National Parks, waterfalls, natural caves, palaces, museums and places of religious significance. 75 days Bastar Dussehra Festival is very famous festival. PRAGYAGIRI Pragya Giri is at Dongargarh, Rajnandgaon district, Chhattisgarh, India. It is on a hilltop of 1000 feet. This is a Buddha vihara with a big Buddha statue facing east. It needs 225 steps to reach the mountain. On the top of the hill there is a garden and descriptions on the rock. Dongargarh is on the Mumbai - Howrah main line at 170 km from Nagpur and 100 km from Raipur. The nearest airport is in Raipur. This pilgrimage centre offers a brilliant bird’s eye view of the surrounding areas.

Voyager’s World > October 2016

Incredible India

17>>

Karnataka Tourism leverages on festive fervour and world tourism day Karnataka Tourism is sparing no efforts to celebrate the well-known Mysore Dasara festival on a much grander scale with intense promotional activities for tourists. VW BUREAU

he Department of Tourism, Government of Karnataka undertook a series of campaigns and activities to celebrate World Tourism Day and the Mysore Dasara Festival this year. The Department organised a digital photography competition to mark World Tourism Day, running the same from 20 - 24 September and inviting all photographers from India to post photographs under the categories - Karnataka Heritage and Karnataka Nature. The winners were rewarded on 26 September. A bicycle ride was organised in association with Namma Cycle on 27 September to mark the World Tourism Day along two circuits highlighting the culture of Bangalore. In view of the world renowned Mysore Dasara Festival, the Department launched an exclusive

website - www.mydasara.in - with the ‘Craziest Leave Application’, the winner of which would be awarded a couple Royal Mysore Dasara Golden Chariot tour ticket. Dasara hoardings are placed at airports, highways, BMTC bus stands, bus shelters, metro, etc., besides TV commercials in association with leading celebrities of the state are produced. On the occasion of Dasara, Karnataka Tourism, along with Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation (KSTDC) launched a special package on the Golden Chariot train to showcase the Dasara of Mysore from 1 to 10 October, 2016. Royal Routes like never before To help tourist discover Mysore and

to popularise the other, less famous palaces, a concept titled ‘Royal Routes’ is being unveiled through which tourists and locals can explore the Amba Vilas Palace(Mysore Palace), Lalitha Mahal Palace, Cheluvamba Palace(CFTRI), Karanji Mansion (Postal Institute), Jagan Mohan Palace, Jayalakshmi Vilas Mansion and KRS Palace Hotel at Brindavan Gardens in Mysuru in one day during the forthcoming Dasara.

Expert curators from Mysore Royal Walks shall conduct heritage walks, to enhance the experience and showcase the rich history and culture of the city. In addition to the above, the Department has entrusted Kairali Aviation Pvt Ltd operated ‘Akasha Ambari’, aircraft from Bangalore (HAL Airport) to Mysuru during Dasara.

TrawellTag Cover-More Ties With Yatra The partnership was a result of a shared commitment to create and offer a convenient travel experience to their customers. VW BUREAU for both domestic and overseas travel. The association enables us to provide customised benefits for both leisure and corporate travellers. Yatra.com customers can now secure their travel against all predicted risks and inconveniences including medical emergencies, loss of baggage, passport or driving license, trip delays or cancellations and much more.”

rawellTag Cover-More partnered with Yatra.com, making it a significant step for for the former as it establishes itself in the e-commerce segment, extending the company’s reach into new markets. TrawellTag Cover-More India Founder & CEO, Dev Karvat, said, “We are delighted to partner with Yatra. com to provide our unique travel insurance and global assistance services to their customers opting

Commenting on the association, Dhruv Shringi, Co-founder & CEO, Yatra.com said: “TrawellTag CoverMore was a natural choice as we share a common commitment; creating the most convenient travel experience for our customers. They bring along with them an impressive product range & technical knowhow, more than a decade of domain expertise and a global presence which extends their service offering worldwide.”

Karvat further said, “Our business model for Yatra.com focuses on changing customer needs and forecasted travel risks. The backbone of this model is a oneof-its kind software IMPULSE, an analytics engine that collects a feed of traveller data from the booking platform and crunches this in real time to generate customised offers for the travellers. With ease of integration, this cloud hosted

tool customizes travel protection products with an exceptional speed of customer data processing.” Customers can access Yatra.com in multiple ways - through a userfriendly website, mobile optimised WAP site and applications, a multilingual call centre, a countrywide network of Holiday Lounges and Yatra Travel Express stores.

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Online Travel

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Consolidation and technology remain strong reservation system trends Jaal Shah, Group Managing Director, Travel Designer Group, Founder – RezLive.com, shares his views on new trends in the online reservation system. PRIYAMVADHA BALARAM

Engaging with DMCs in India, Thailand, Dubai, Qatar All our DMCs are getting a favourable response from our travel partners purely on the basis of better service and better rates. We have been able to generate good amount of queries from different markets for India, Thailand, Dubai and Qatar. These queries are being handled very

efficiently by the local teams with complete round the clock support. So, the travel partner who books through any of our DMCs not only get support from the respective DMC but also from the local regional office, with which the travel partner is associated. Also, the number of queries is increasing on regular basis, which has resulted in more manpower and better support services with the ability to handle more pax. Research and development We have an in-house product team headed by experienced technical leaders who keep on looking for newer avenues to get into and at the same time look for ways to make the current processes more advance from travel partners perspective. We work in a very competitive market

and hence innovation is very much required for having a better edge. Emerging trends The systems are getting more robust, providing more inventory to the travel partner and at the same time offering customized services. The systems are getting more and more advance and adopting to better technology framework to stride forward. At the same time there is consolidation happening in the industry and only key players who have a sound base and good business fundamentals are moving ahead. Competition We work in an altogether different segment of the travel industry, wherein, we sell to travel partners

who are in a B2B framework. So, we have a different set of customers to cater to, who always come to us knowing the kind of rates we can provide and the kind of service they can expect round the clock from us as we all work like a family. So, we are there for them and can offer the rate and service which is difficult for other mobile or online B2C reservation system to match. New booking patterns and preferences by customers We are seeing a better trend where we see end users booking there stay for longer period and for newer destinations. The travel partners nowadays make a lot of bookings through credit and debit cards, net banking through our portal to get instant vouchers.

HOME-DINING WITH LOCALS SPURS NEW TRAVEL EXPERIENCES Rinita Vanjre Ravi, CEO & Co-founder, BonAppetour, talks about how the concept of home dining inspired her to craft unique cultural experiences for discerning travellers. IRENE SUSAN EAPEN “Our major markets are the European culinary hubs in Italy, France, Spain, and we have now our presence in the Asian culinary hubs like Japan, Thailand, Singapore and Hong Kong as well,” began Rinita Vanjre Ravi, the CEO & Co-Founder of BonAppeTour.

he BonAppetour concept focuses in providing a unique dining experience with local hosts and an opportunity to learn about their culture, cuisine and lifestyle. With a presence in over 80 cities, especially in the culinary capitals of Europe such as Rome, Paris and Barcelona, BonAppetour has recently expanded to Asia’s culinary hubs like Tokyo, Bangkok and Hong Kong.

Voyager’s World > October 2016

“The other services we offer are cooking classes, authentic cultural experiences and food tours where guests can get a deeper insight into the lifestyle of the locals like Paellamaking workshops in Barcelona or pizza and pasta making classes in Rome for guests.” Travellers are always looking for unique experiences that combine food; so, this concept brings together the largely offline

global culinary travel industry and presents it online.

down traditional recipes from their grandmothers.

Promoting culture “The concept of home-dining has been there since forever and some of the best travel stories that we hear are from people who were invited into the homes of locals when they travelled and how they made friends and built relationships with the locals there.”

“We have been achieving more than 40% month-on-month growth and has caught the attention of financial heavyweights who are also investing in the service. We are focusing on the development and launch of our new mobile app. We have witnessed this to be a sign of huge growth and expect to surpass these figures by a great extent in the coming months.”

BonAppetour is working through traditional offline as well as online channels by reaching out to potential customers. It makes sure that the menus and hosts are verified as most of the menus reflect new ways of cooking food, and a lot of its hosts are people who have also passed

Marketing plans Marketing BonAppetour digitally and through content marketing and PR, she signs off saying that Indian fare, known for its extravagant use of herbs and spices, will not lose its charm despite accepting international cuisine.

x i r P d Gran

r o a c embe a v 3rd M C E i n N o

PLA e k ta

The Macao Grand Prix to be held this November 17-20, 2016 has lined up some unique experiences this year. VW BUREAU

acao has all the ingredients for a perfect holiday. Travel to Macao is easy as visa is on arrival, making it a convenient destination for travellers, especially those who love taking short spontaneous trips. Macao has the perfect combination of rich culture and festivities to soak in, which makes this country an ideal destination for adventure seekers. This year Macao has some truly unique and enthralling experiences to offer with the Macau Grand Prix being held 17 - 20 November, 2016. Recognized as the most internationally prestigious event on the local calendar, the legendary Macao Grand Prix is a motor-racing event held annually in Macao. It is known for being the only street circuit racing event, in which both car and motorcycle races are held. The event, now edging into its sixth decade, places the best motorcycles, WTCC and Formula 3 racers in the world head to head for a punching ride. The high-pitched whine of racing engines, the roar of the crowd, and the adrenalin-charged atmosphere make for four colorful days of non-stop, head-turning excitement. The Macao Grand Prix is famously known as one of the most demanding circuits in the world. Built in 1954 the Guia circuit was originally made as a route for treasure hunts around the streets of the city. However, along the narrow, twisting Guia street circuit of Macao city, it was suggested that the track could host an amateur racing event for local motor enthusiasts. Ever since then the track has become a venue for both motorcycle and car racing events! The legendary Guia street circuit will be a visual spectacle with some of the best racers in the world pitting against each other for the cup - Advertorial

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COMMUNITY FOR ADVENTURE LOVERS SEEKS TO CONNECT LIKE-MINDED PEERS Oli Russell-Cowan, Director, Rad Season, aims to create a community where people have access to information on adventure events and festivals and connect with like-minded people. IRENE SUSAN EAPEN are currently focusing on growing the Indian market to include more adventure and action sports events in India,” says Oli Russell-Cowan, Director of Rad Season.

he Rad Season platform was launched on 24 August this year with the objective of catering to adventure enthusiasts between the ages of 18-45 years. “We do showcase festivals in India and the neighbouring countries such as Nepal. The response has been really good since launching the site. We

Number of countries using this concept We aim to provide a comprehensive platform of all the adventure events and festivals from around the world, while any country can use Rad Season. At present, we have events in 65 countries and we are looking to increase this to 100 countries by the end of the year. The response has been really good since launching the site. We are currently focusing on growing the Indian market to include more adventure and action sports events in India.

Adventure Tourism Tourists will be looking to discover and explore more unique lesser known destinations as well as tick things off their bucket list and push their goals and boundaries and go out of their comfort zone. Millennials always want an experience that they can connect with and adventure festivals and events are increasing in number to fulfill this demand. Adventure Tourism is increasing rapidly due to the fact that people are searching for more unique experiences rather than more traditional tourism. Rad Season is creating a community where people have access to information on adventure events and can connect with like mind people who share their love of adventure and discovering new festivals.

Growth and promotional plans For the remainder of 2016, we are focusing on expanding our audience reach and building our network of industry partners. We are planning on partnering with action sports and adventure companies as well as travel companies worldwide.

India’s online gross booking in travel to hit 46% by 2017 Heena Akhtar, Founder, TripXOXO.com, is encouraged by the growing number of visits to the portal that promises thematic experiences, is working more closely with industry partners. IRENE SUSAN EAPEN The growth in both inbound and outbound sector is overwhelming and we are increasing our footprints with industry partners.

ore than 25,000 trip ideas and 100 travel categories of thematic tours make up the strong point of the portal TripXOXO that seeks to offer an array of support to travellers from tours, activities, tickets to attractions to transfer services at over 2000 airports, hassle-free ticket bookings for amusements around the globe.

Voyager’s World > October 2016

“The travel Industry in India is a billion-dollar business. The travel and tourism Industry, which comprises both, domestic and international inbound and outbound travel, is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 12% to USD 28 billion in 2017,” says Heena Akhtar, the portal’s Founder. “The online travel industry has grown significantly in the past few years. The online gross booking now constitutes 41% of the overall Indian travel market and expected to grow to 46% in 2017.” Travelling is not restricted to just visiting different places and sightseeing; it has evolved as a mean of

exploring and experiencing varied forms of lifestyles and cultures. Both inbound and outbound travellers look forward to more than just visiting places. Further, there is a rising trend of Indians travelling more often to newer destinations. While the online segment is growing, major portion of Indian customers prefer to research online and book with travel agencies offline. Heena notes that the growth in the inbound and outbound sector is overwhelming, thus prodding the portal to increase its footprint with industry partners. Promotional plans TripXOXO is looking at partnerships with banks, payment wallets and joint promotions with tourism

boards. It has adopted the multifold approach with digital, print and outdoor campaign. “We are also planning to have customer-centric contests and trade reach programs over the next quarter.” With TripXOXO being a start-up company, the growth expected is be very high. “We aim to establish ourselves as the go-to destination for travel experiences and solutions. We have noticed over 4000 plus unique visits to the portal on a daily basis and the number of visits is expected to grow. We are looking at multiple distribution partnerships to reach a wider trade audience. We are looking forward for a launch in UAE in 2017,” she signs off.

ASSOCIATION

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FAITH proposes classification of tourism and hospitality businesses for GST In its recent recommendations, FAITH has proposed to classify tourism and hospitality businesses in less than 10% GST slab or half the standard GST rate. VW BUREAU

fter the presidential approval, the GST council was set up headed by the Union Ministry of Finance. The Federation of Associations in Indian Tourism and Hospitality (FAITH) has engaged in three intensive and successive rounds of communication with all members of the GST council. In the latest communication, FAITH has proposed to Classify Tourism & Hospitality businesses (hotels & resorts, tour operators, travel agents, tourism transport operators, convention centres, destination/ amusement/tourist entertainment infrastructure creation companies) in less than 10% GST slab or at half the standard GST rate whichever is lower. FAITH identified that most of the nations recognise that tourism is a

critical economic driver. They have kept the consumption tax on tourism lower to encourage investments inflow into job creation and for overall economic development. Thus for labour and capital intensive sectors such as tourism (hotels, restaurants, airlines sites, tour operations, entertainment activities) GST rates (TR) were rated to be lower than 50% of the standard rate (SR) on other sectors in most of the developed markets. Even with India’s Asian competitors such as Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, their net indirect tax incidence on tourism is estimated to be between 6-9%. Thailand gets around 20 million tourists and earns USD 30 billion in tourism forex, Malaysia gets around 25 million tourists and earns USD 21

billion tourism forex and Singapore gets 11 million tourists and earns around USD 20 billion tourism forex. Contrast this to India where tourism indirect tax rates are among 18% to 25%, incoming tourists are just about 8 million and our tourism foreign exchange is USD 21 billion. FAITH firmly believes that GST rating of less than 10% will more than double both foreign travel coming to India to 20 million tourists, foreign exchange earnings to USD 35 billion and domestic travel within India to 2.5 billion Indian tourist visits. This will have the potential to double tourism impacted employment to 9 crores, increase India’s total GDP economic impact to INR 10 lakh crores+ thus increasing India’s total share of GDP to more than 10% from 5.5%

currently. The global average is already at 14% while China is at 9%. At the recent tourism investors’ summit inauguration, Union finance minister, observed on GST rates to be set up in a manner which do not get subsidised by other sectors. While agreeing with this, FAITH believes that because of tourism’s economic multiple impact, a lower GST rate for tourism is not a subsidy, but will be a strategic tool to increase employment and investments from growth in tourism which will increase manifold from the current levels. Thus any GST tax loss is only notional which will be offset by real gains in both indirect tax, income tax & from additional employment, economic growth & additional foreign exchange.

www.voyagersworld.in

Hospitality

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KEEPING ‘PACE’ WITH BUSINESS HOTELS FOR CORPORATE GUESTS Bhasker Kommu, CEO, Pace Hotels, is keen on capitalizing on the recent growth and occupancy trends to further the group’s expansion plans in the near future. IRENE SUSAN EAPEN that the group plans to sign three properties more by the end of March 2017 in Kakinada, Hyderabad and Visakhapatnam.

recent entrant to the burgeoning hospitality scenario in the country, Pace Hotels has already opened six properties in a span of one year in Chennai-Sriperumbudur, Nellore, Rajole - Amalapuram, Shirdi, Tirupati and Vijayawada. Keen on making the most of its growth last year, Bhasker Kommu, the CEO of Pace Hotels, reveals

Pace Hotels noticed a growth of 35% to 40% in 2015 and 70% occupancy in 2016. “We are expecting to close with 75% occupancy by the year end. In 2017 we are expecting a growth of 30% for all our properties.” Marketing and promotional plans Pace Hotels will participate in travel exhibitions and will also conduct various campaigns in Shirdi and Tirupati for branding of its hotels. Segments Pace Hotels are business hotels in the three-star category. It caters to religious and corporate guests.

“Tirupati, also known as a wedding destination, we have had 30 to 40 weddings from India. Most of our travellers are from India, Malaysia, Singapore, South Africa. We have mainly had travellers for pilgrims and corporates to Tirupati. We have had travellers from business, leisure and corporate segments as we have hotels operating in business and pilgrim destinations.” He anticipates good growth in tourism with encouragement from the government to open more hotels and resorts in the country. “The feasibility study says that budget hotels in the country will have better edge. Premium and luxury hotels will have their own business in all metro destinations.”

Trends “We see more of electronic marketing channels are taking over the industry. They are trying to get control on pricing in quite a few business and leisure destinations. In the past, price wars are among the hotels and now price wars among the online portals. Expansion “We are planning to expand in Hyderabad, Chennai, Mahabalipuram, Kakinada, Chirala by the year end and by end of 2017 our target is to have 10 - 12 leisure and business hotels across South India. We will enter in strategic tie ups with the hotels for management and marketing,” he concluded.

M.I.C.E AND MEDICAL TOURISM DRIVE HUMBLE HOTELS BUSINESS

MICE and weddings have proved to be a steady business segment for Humble Hotels, of late, says Vinay Chaturvedi CHA , General Manager pan-India Operation of the hotel group. IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

umble Hotels, which has been in the industry for 17 years now, is a chain of four-star hotels in places like Amritsar, J&K , Himachal, Punjab and Haryana. Presently it has six operational properties and 20 upcoming properties within the next three years. Occupancy and expansion Vinay Chaturvedi CHA, the General

Voyager’s World > October 2016

Manager, pan-India Operations of the hotel group, informs that there has been an occupancy rate of 17% and 22% in room revenue compared to previous years. “We have seen a growth of 33% till July 2016 and are expecting a growth of 25% for 2017. We are planning to launch four hotels during the first quarter of 2017 in Ludhiana, Sangrur in Punjab, Goa, Jammu and Dharamshala and Khajjiar in Himachal.” Travellers While Humble Hotels has been receiving a mix of guest segments ranging from young travellers, families to MICE in Amritsar, it has also hosted conferences by pharmaceutical companies and seminars with the British council. Its exhibition centre has a capacity of

500; MICE accounts for 25% of its events while weddings form the rest. Punjabi weddings and people from Canada and Norway host weddings in their properties. The hotel group has had travellers from Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Kenya and from all the major cities like Delhi, Gujarat, Hyderabad, Maharashtra and UP. Marketing Plans The hotel group participates in travel trade shows and besides the print and electronic advertisements, it has done a campaign on the theme ‘Around the world in 10 dollars on food’ for two months on Facebook and Twitter. “Amritsar has been categorized as a smart city; so,

we are focusing on segments like medical tourism due to the recent government policy as medical tourism accounts for 32% of our visitors. We have noticed that a lot of people from Canada, Germany, Norway and the UK, come over for medical treatment. Besides, the Golden Temple in Amritsar is being promoted in TV serials and movies, which encourages travellers to explore Amritsar.” Forecasting a boom in the hotel industry in the country with the change in the civil aviation policy and with the tourism boards performing well, Vinay wraps up by informing that Humble Hotels would add 20 hotels across India in Tier2 and 3 cities.

Hospitality

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Domestic tourism growth encourages hotel inventory expansion Naresh Arora, Founder & CEO, Trulyy India Hotels & Resorts, says the group is focusing on the growing domestic inbound market to increase its occupancy. IRENE SUSAN EAPEN Trulyy India Hotels & Resorts, while talking about the group’s expansion plans.

Growth “We have five properties operational like Amargarh- Udaipur, UdaiBagh-Udaipur,KumbhaBaghKumbhalgarh, Kumbhalgarh Safari Camp- Kumbhalgarh,and EleganceChittorgarh. We are planning to launch two more properties Jai Bah- Jaipur and Desert PalaceJaisalmer by October 2016,” says Naresh Arora, Founder & CEO of

Some of the properties marketed by the group are Rann Riders- Dasada, Kutch Wilderness Kamp, KutchBhuj, Merwara Palace- Ajmer. “We are witnessing occupancy on an average of 50 to 55% and expecting occupancy of 70 % by the end of the year. We organize a lot of weddings, MICE events, corporate and leisure events as we have a conference hall in each of our property with a capacity of 500 people in theatre style. Both our properties in Kumkbhalgarh are famous for wildlife and adventure. Our Udaipur property is known for domestic tourism.

Segments “We are focusing on middle class and upper middle class group for promoting cultural tourism, heritage and wildlife. Our main markets are Delhi, Bombay and Ahmedabad. We have a mix of both domestic clients inbound and outbound are France, Germany and Spain. Domestic Tourism has taken a lead, this segment is really picking up and the major boost in domestic tourism is the 1 hour flights.

Travellers The hotel group has had travellers like family groups, bikers, school groups mainly from Delhi, Mumbai and Ahmedabad, bikers from France. Promotional plans “Our promotional activities are mostly advertisement and promotional campaigns on social media like Instagram, Google plus, Facebook, Twitter.

Hotel booking sites: Reservation on everything that’s said!

Peter O’Connor, Professor of Information Systems and Dean of Academic Programs at ESSEC Business School, looks into the current antagonism between hotel brands and OTAs. VW BUREAU

raditionally the hotel industry has been composed of three or four major players. Firstly there is the owner, who owns the real estate. Then comes the company which manages the hotel and its activity. The third traditional player is what we call the ‘brand’, often a franchise which stamps its mark on a multitude of hotel fronts throughout the world. But today we can also identify a fourth player - the online travel agent (OTA)which consolidates traveller demand and delivers bookings to hotels. In many ways these OTAs are in competition with hotel brands in the sense that they work for them by facilitating online bookings but at the same time compete with them in the online environment. And in addition they take a margin on each reservation, a margin that doesn’t

exist if the customer books via the hotel’s own direct online booking platform. Despite the fact that they deliver vast amounts of business for most hotels, brands have been criticizing online booking platforms for quite some time most because they claim they are too expensive. Typical commissions for platforms like Booking.com and Expedia are between 17% and 22% per reservation, although the larger the hotel brand, the lower the commission due to economies of scale in contract negotiations. These hefty fees are in part due to the extremely high costs facing OTA platforms, who to survive are obliged to generate vast amounts of qualified internet traffic.

One of the highest cost items for OTAs is ensuring they rank very prominently on search engine result pages so that they enter into the consumer’s consideration set when they search for a travel solution. Currently, the hotel brands’ strategy to loosen themselves from the hold of booking platforms is focused around the implementation of discounts for customers who subscribe to their loyalty programs. For example, if you join the Hilton Honours Club, you immediately benefit from a 10% price reduction on the nights you spend at the hotel, the goal being to create a difference in price between what is offered on the OTA site and the brand’s own direct website.

A not-so-obvious cost equation Simply putting a brand on a hotel property, between royalty fees, incentive fees, marketing contributions and loyalty club fees can easily account for a hefty 10 to 12% of room revenues. If we add to that the 10% reduction resulting from the discount that brands are currently using to incentivize customers to sign up and book, the cost levels of commissions currently paid to OTA platforms – that is, approximately 20% – are easily attained and even surpassed. In effect, the hotel brands main argument against the OTAs, that they are comparatively more expensive, no longer holds true in this case. Hotel owners need to step back and examine both their distribution and their brand’s real contribution much more deeply.

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Hospitality

24>>

Hotels embrace sustainable practices for operational efficacy There is enormous opportunity for the hotels to capitalize on ecologically sustainable practices for operations and the highly dynamic digital platform for marketing. PRIYAMVADHA BALARAM

he hospitality industry has become increasingly aware of the importance of ecological concerns since the World Travel and Tourism Council first began certifying green travel and tourism businesses in the 1990s. New hotels often incorporate eco-friendly concepts at the design stage, but older structures can also become more eco-friendly by researching ways to reduce waste and reuse or recycle items. For instance, some hotels ask guests to use towels more than once to cut down on waste-water and energy expenditure. Green Hospitality The Internet has enabled trade organizations and individual consumers to research a hotel’s environmental sustainability policies before deciding whether to stay there, providing a clear competitive advantage to hotels that can appeal to this type of customer. For instance,

Voyager’s World > October 2016

the Association of Corporate Travel Executives favors environmentally friendly hotels when booking events. Although any hotel can advertise its eco-friendly policies on its own website, this type of statement won’t necessarily reach consumers searching for a list of recognized green hotels from which to choose. Certification as an eco-friendly hotel can help ensure that customers are aware of a hotel’s commitment to environmental principles. Hotels built according to green principles can receive Leadership in Environmental Energy and Design certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. Existing hotels can earn LEED certification by fulfilling the standards of the USGBC. This can include taking steps to cut down on the use of fossil fuels, adding a renewable energy source such as solar or wind power or instituting a program to power down

non-essential electrical devices in unoccupied rooms. The Energy Star Award Program is another certification available to hotels with eco-friendly energy policies. Certification by ECOTEL as an environmentally sensitive hotel requires a comprehensive program including energy and water conservation practices, solid waste management practices, education of employees and a public commitment to environmentally friendly hospitality. To earn a high score under the ECOTEL standards a hotel would have to have a system in place to train all employees in all aspects of the hotel’s environmental policies. ECOTEL certification is very difficult to achieve, but the ECOTEL guidelines can help any hotel improve its environmental policies. Travelers are recognizing the importance of environmental

conservation and are increasingly seeking accommodation that supports environmentally friendly and sustainable tourism. Acknowledging this, hotels around the world are developing awardwinning environmental, economic and socio-cultural programs that preserve both the culture and support the local economy. Here at HotelsCombined we know that responsible tourism practices are beneficial to both hoteliers and guests. There is a growing interest in environmental conservation and understanding the impact of tourism on a destination. With the help of hoteliers, it is possible for tourists to experience and appreciate natural spaces and cultures, while conserving and minimizing their effect on the environment.

Hospitality

25>> Keeping this in mind, we recently examined our database of 800,000 properties to bring you 10 exceptional “green” hotels from across the world offering guests an eco-friendly and world-class holiday experience: As more hoteliers get on board the sustainable operations movement, their efforts are improving the environment and cutting costs. But do customers really care? Do green programs actually affect hotel selection or the price a guest is willing to pay? New questions added to the Market Metrix Hospitality Index survey asked the importance of green initiatives to hotel guests and which brands, according to guests, have the best green programs. USGBC released its LEED in Motion: Hospitality report in March this year, which showcases tremendous industry growth in green building and defines the scale-up opportunities for the hospitality sector. Nearly 134 million square feet of hotel space is currently LEED-certified, and the report highlights some of the most impressive LEED-certified hotels throughout the world. “Across industries we are seeing an increase in consumer demand toward sustainability practices, and no industry is better poised to meet these demands than hospitality. This growing sector is rapidly adopting green buildings because owners and developers want to enhance their triple bottom line—people, planet and profit,” said Rick Fedrizzi, CEO and founding chair, USGBC. “LEED is a transformative tool that positively impacts the quality of our built space by creating a healthier, more sustainable environment that saves money and resources.” Hotels consume natural resources at an extraordinarily high rate, as they are occupied 24 hours a day, seven days a week. With more than five billion square feet of space in the United States alone, there is an enormous opportunity for the industry to transform the impact of the built environment. LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), the world’s most widely used green building rating program, has a growing presence in the hospitality industry—and the number of LEEDcertified buildings is expected to continue at a strong pace. Currently, there are more than 2,070 hotels

participating in LEED, representing 1.1 billion square feet. Of that, there are nearly 400 LEED-certified hotels comprising nearly 134 million square feet of space. According to a recent study by McGraw Hill Construction, green construction in the hospitality sector has increased by 50 percent from 2011-2013 and now represents 25 percent of all new construction in the sector today. USGBC’s recentGreen Building Economic Impact Study also found that across industries, green construction is outpacing that of traditional construction and is poised to create more than 3.3 million U.S. jobs and $190.3 billion in labor earnings by 2018. The LEED in Motion: Hospitality report highlights how LEED practices and strategies are flexible, easy to implement, generate impressive results and can be integrated into the hospitality industry throughout the building’s life cycle, leading to high-performance in human and environmental health. Incorporating LEED includes sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection and indoor environmental quality. The report also features LEEDcertified projects from internationally recognized brands from around the world. These projects include: • Marriott Marquis, Washington, D.C.: LEED Gold • ITC Windsor, Bengaluru, India: LEED Platinum • Virgin Hotel Chicago, Chicago, Ill.: LEED Gold • The Nines, Pebblebrook Hotel Trust/Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Portland, Ore.: LEED Silver • MGM City Center, Las Vegas, Nev.— Aria Hotel: LEED Gold; Vdara Hotel: LEED Gold; Mandarin Oriental: LEED Gold • Tambo del Inka Hotel, Urubamba, Peru: LEED-certified • Heritance Kandalama Hotel, Dambulla, Sri Lanka: LEED-certified • Clark & Grand Hotels Complex (Hyatt Place, Fairfield Inn & Suites and Aloft Hotel), Chicago, Ill.: LEED Platinum • OXO 69/Sustainable Properties Fund, Bogotá, Colombia: LEED Platinum LEED is a simple and effective program for navigating complex, often competing building and environmental issues affecting humans worldwide. Every day, more than 1.85 million square feet of space is LEED certified in more

than 155 countries and territories. More than 74,500 commercial projects are currently participating in LEED, comprising more than 14.4 billion square feet of construction space. With specific achievement paths built in, LEED is designed for use in various building types in a variety of climates and localities, often synching with local laws and requirements. “Eco-friendly” or “green” initiatives are most compelling to luxury hotel guests, with 20 percent of these travelers claiming these programs are “very important” when selecting a hotel. Least affected by these programs are guests in the midscale-without-food-andbeverage segment. Therefore, it appears that customers who can afford to care about green are more willing to change their behavior. Across all hotel segments, 12 percent of guests rate these programs “very important.” This level of general market acceptance signals an opportunity for brand differentiation, especially among lower-priced hotels. In addition to measuring the importance of green initiatives to their choice of hotel, guests also were asked to rate the hotel’s green initiatives. Green programs were rated highest for luxury hotel brands (74.7) and lowest for economy brands (69.6). Among hotel brands, Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants was the clear winner (89.7). Its EarthCare program includes ecofriendly cleaning products. recycling coat hangers and paperless checkins/outs. Overall, guests who rank a hotel’s green program highly are willing to pay at least 7 percent more for their room compared to other guests. These same guests also stay longer, are happier with their stay and are more likely to consider the loyalty program as “very important” in selecting a hotel. Hotels with highly ranked green programs also experience half as many guestreported problems. There were some surprises. Some lower-priced hotels were evaluated favorably for their green initiatives, demonstrating cost does not have to be a barrier to guest-friendly green programs. Conversely, despite the importance luxury guests place on eco-friendly programs, several higher-priced hotels received low ratings. Among the large hotel chains, green programs were rated near the industry average (73), meeting guest expectations. Establishing eco-friendly programs can be a cost-effective marketing

tool, and simply raising awareness of environmentally friendly programs will help many properties. Other industry trends An attempt to liaise with people the world over on sociable lines has now turned out to be an indispensable part of the global network, both social and business alike. It is now commonplace to find that people increasingly prefer social networking websites such as Facebook, Twitter, Flickr and Google Plus for the latest updates on people, events, places and organisations. The booming hotel industry is no exception when it comes to capitalising on social media in order to engage with its clients. However, such means, aimed at a long-term relationship with its customers, require genuineness and proactive synchronism on part of the hotels. The majority of hotels employed social networking sites to showcase promotional and marketing related information to a large number of people at a time. It is used to increase visibility, build trust, take feedback, service recovery, improve community relations and facilitate online bookings and reviews. The top reason, however, for their presence in the social network is for generating feedback from clients. All the hotels that were surveyed agreed that the more informed the people stay, the more popular will be the hotel. The blending of online and offline worlds is guaranteed by active engagement in the online world which translates to more informed and satisfied guests when they stay at our hotels and meet us in persons. Marketing strategies- The key to a successful social media marketing strategy is in keeping patrons updated regularly on the hotel’s promotional activities, maintaining an online logbook where people can give feedback and recommendations, protecting brand integrity; gauging the website’s immediate impact on business, interaction with past and future guests. These sites prove to be most effective in terms of customer loyalty, promotions, saving time, updating news, consumer profiling and immediacy in responding to complaints. Quick Response (QR) Time by the service provider is particularly appreciated.

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Hospitality

The Marriott Group of Hotels, for example, offers the Marriott Booking Widget which allows users to book rooms directly from Facebook. It had also initiated Marriott Rewards Loyalty programme a few years back. The Marriott Rewards Facebook presence gives us an opportunity to both share travel conversations and deepen their engagement with all of their fans, building upon their existing relationships with Marriott Rewards members. The hotels unanimously anticipate an upward trend in this segment; only there would be newer apps and marketing strategies used such as Smart phone apps, QR code, Youtube videos of virtual tours of the hotels and mobile friendly websites to name a few. QR codes acts as the ideal medium for ‘Scan and Win’ mCoupon to trigger the call-to-action for participants. Interested consumers simply point their camera at the QR code and - through their mobile internet connection - retrieve a Mobile Coupon, which they can save on their phones. Likewise, the Txt4Coupon is a 2-way SMS

Voyager’s World > October 2016

26>>

service that allows the hotel to share discounts, offers, or special available with the broad public by making it available through the channel of SMS. Time is of the essence when it comes to marketing via social networking websites. However, it is imperative that hotels exercise caution while posting any article. They must post only copyright free material and respond immediately. It is important that the hotels do not resort to tailor-made and clichéd responses. They must really listen to the guests and keep the conversation going. It is better to focus on only one or two such websites rather than being there on every other site. Some of the reasons due to which hotels have come to use social networking websites areReview of Hotels-Today, a customer does not rely on the website of a particular hotel alone while booking reservations. Everyone is a reviewer today and negative and positive reviews can be posted in real time. Hence, ratings and comments given by third party travel sites, guests

who have previously used the hotel’s services, first-hand experiences by friends and colleagues play a key role in shaping one’s decision. Reviews posted on sites like Trip Advisor, Expedia, Cruise Critic and Yahoo Travel Planner are very popular in terms of credibility of information. They offer hotel deals, star ratings, travellers’ photos from all over the world, slide shows, package rates and travel guides. It is also imperative that the hotels regularly check what people are commenting about its services. Travel Blogs – An increasing number of travel enthusiasts have taken to maintaining a blog on their travel stories and post travel photos and even have threads on comments and discussions. There are innumerable user-friendly travel blog sites. TravelPod, for example, is one such travel blog hosting system in which one can create one’s own blogs for free, post photos, videos, read other public travel blogs and meet people. When a person wishing to travel hits the destination’s name in the search engine, travel blog references invariably form a part of the search

results. All that the traveller needs to do is to click on the blogger’s site and read his reviews, check out photos and recommendations. This information may give him a brief idea of the dos and don’ts while going to a particular place. Authenticity Factor- Media content posted by users on social media websites is perceived to be more genuine and reliable because it is created by neutral third parties. Therefore apart from posting photos, videos and offering virtual tours of their hotels on their websites, featuring their presence on social media sites does have its share of influence in the sense that the website is perceived to be authentic and reliable. Today, strategies to build customer relationship may seem to culminate in social networking websites and smartphone apps but whether they would continue to rule the network or be surpassed by a new technology remains to be seen. As matters stand, customer is king, no doubt about that. But the customer is also a friend and best friends are forever.

Centre Pompidou, Paris

27>> Incredible India

28>>

Incredible India

Hospitality industry expects MICE segment to boom

The MICE segment in the hospitality industry continues to grow over the years with the advent of more regional cities offering MICE facilities. IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

Shantha de Silva, Head of South West Asia, InterContinental Hotels Group

Outbound corporate travel is growing in India and the demand from Indian businesses for MICE activities abroad is increasing, so also MICE destinations growing beyond major cities like Mumbai and Delhi.

Jayakrishnan Sudhakaran, Director of Sales & Marketing, Novotel Goa Resorts & Spa and Novotel Goa Shrem Hotel

Goa holds the distinction of being the only market in the country that has witnessed a continuous increase in RevPAR over the last few years, exhibiting a healthy 6.9 per cent year-on-year growth.

he MICE industry in the hospitality sector is considered to be one of the fastest growing segments in India especially the number of domestic MICE destinations increasing across the country. Besides the major cities like Mumbai and Delhi there are some of the emerging MICE destinations like Goa, Cochin and Jaipur who organize MICE events. India hosted 132 meetings in 2015 according to the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA), placing India 7th in terms of number of meetings organized in the Asia Pacific and Middle East region. The outlook of business travellers is changing for MICE events with the new age technology as most of the meetings and events are now more tech-savvy. The demand for MICE events in the industry is also growing with Innovative Setups, Large Convention Cities catering volume demands of 10000+ Delegates and Inbuilt Technology savvy Venues.

Social media is a big player as well in planning events and to facilitate real-time networking and the sharing of meeting updates and schedules. The Meeting –dedicated Facebook pages are one of the easiest ways to handle the registration process,

Voyager’s World > October 2016

information on the programs and to get feedbacks. Nowadays offsite seminars or destination meeting locations to leisure cities like Agra and Goa are also on the rise with meeting facilities offered by hotels and resorts. Inbound MICE tourism has also been identified as one of the tourism growth drivers by the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, with the government aiming to increase India’s share of global MICE tourism from the current 0.68 % to 2% by 2025. The MICE segment in the hospitality industry will definitely continue to grow over the years. Growth in MICE segment Shantha de Silva, Head of South West Asia, InterContinental Hotels Group, says, “The MICE industry in India is still in its growing stage. India hosted 132 meetings in 2015 according to the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA), placing India 7th in terms of number of meetings organized in the Asia Pacific and Middle East region. The factors such as a stable government and the government’s travel boosting initiatives like e-Visa are expected to boost MICE tourism further.

“India has IHG’s third largest pipeline of new hotels globally with 41 hotels (7,800 rooms) due to open in the next three to five years, representing an increase of more than 200% and a presence in 11 additional cities. As of June 2016, we currently have 28 hotels open across the country and our expansion plans in the market place us in a good position to take advantage the growing MICE tourism in India,” he said. In the opinion of Jayakrishnan Sudhakaran, Director of Sales & Marketing, Novotel Goa Resorts & Spa and Novotel Goa Shrem Hotel “Goa has maintained a steady growth in terms of occupancy and a MICE spot in spite of emergence of new destinations such as Cochin, Jaipur or popular destinations in Telangana. Goa holds the distinction of being the only market in the country that has witnessed a continuous increase in RevPAR over the last few years, exhibiting a healthy 6.9% year-on-year growth.” “We have targeted marketing and getting on board the right customers have resulted in a stable income flow. While the numbers speak well and current occupancies are in line with market expectations, we anticipate the market to excel further. With a sound proof banqueting hall of more than 6000 square feet at the Novotel

Goa Resorts and Spa as well as an additional ball room at the Novotel Hotel, we are optimistic to clock in 15% ADR growth while maintaining the same occupancies from MICE at the hotel,” he added. Gaurav Agarwal- Director of Catering Sales, Renaissance Mumbai Convention Centre Hotel- Powai explains, “MICE, as a segment has seen 4.1% growth in Mumbai primarily driven from Corporates and Weddings. The hotel has seen a 4% growth in catering business and approx. 6% growth in MICE. Demand is strong and we are seeing new events coming into the city as Mumbai is the commercial capital of the country.” “The quarter growth has been marginal, while the rest of the year substantial growth is expected in the MICE segment,” says, Arun Arora, GM, Radisson Blu Paschim Vihar. “With the overall demand and supply dynamics remained in line with historical trends, what was noticeable was the change in nature of demand and its segmentation. Goa has now become a year-round destination rather than seasonal. This has boosted revenues and positively impacted profitability,” Jayakrishnan added.

29>> MICE Trends in Hospitality industry In the opinion of Shantha, “The outbound corporate travel is growing in India and with the demand from Indian businesses for MICE activities abroad. In India’s domestic hospitality market, the number of MICE destinations is growing beyond the major cities like Mumbai and Delhi and expanding to regional cities.”

IT, automobile, pharmaceutical, and travel and trade sectors. Also, the penetration of these corporate is on a national level and attracts traders, vendors, investors from all parts of the country. Therefore a lot of the hotel today in India provide larger convention spaces and advanced MICE facilities catering to the increasing demand of the customers.”

Jayakrishnan explains, “The new age technology, meetings and events are getting more tech-savvy than ever before. The organizers expect the hotel’s banquet space to be equipped with the latest audio visual technology. The meeting-dedicated Facebook pages are assisting planners with the registration process, informing them of programs and offering an easier method to gather feedback from participants after the events. For large scale MICE and Exhibitions, organizers look forward for iPad corners, LCD projectors, Virtual Reality corners, 3D panels, etc. The MICE and event industries have been totally transformed by technology, video conferencing/web seminars, live workshops/web casting are now becoming common expectations for conference planners and every investment for such technology are always beneficial.”

“While the demand is growing, the price points are pretty much stagnated owing to high supply of room inventory and conference

“The Offsite seminars/ team building holidays/ destination meeting location while Banking and Financials top the charts, Automobile, Pharma and Electronics are also catching up fast in terms of organizing MICE events. The IT sector in Bangalore, online companies and start-ups have gelled well, and as a result of which more and more flights are operating from Bangalore to Goa which is surely a positive trend. Start-up companies are the new opportunity that is mushrooming. The trend of offsite seminars/ team building holidays is on a rise. We also see HNIs from Nagpur, and other tier 2 cities of Gujarat, Maharashtra and similar, visiting our properties in North Goa. Goa is one of the best substitutes for an international holiday if you are a last minute planner,” he added. Gaurav says “The MICE segment in India is the fastest growing segments within the hospitality industry. There is a huge market for the same with the establishment of the various International corporate houses coming to India. The boast in the Indian economy has seen more foreign investments and there have been many new players in the

destinations in Delhi NCR,” Arun added.

in the world at participating IHG hotels.”

Promotional Plans Shantha says, “The IHG Business Rewards programme is designed specifically for bookers who book accommodation, meetings and events for others. We are growing our share of the MICE business by rewarding members with IHG Rewards Club points for their B2B business in a single global programme which allows all IHG bookers to have a seamless experience when booking anywhere

“The IHG Business Rewards is also rewarding members with 50% extra IHG Rewards Club points on spend up to the value of USD 20,000 (approximately Rs 13,50,000) when booking accommodation, meetings and events for others from 1 September 2016 to 30 November 2016 (for events and stays until 31 August 2017),” he added. Jayakrishnan said, “AccorHotels has one of the best incentivisation

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30>> Gaurav Agarwal- Director of Catering Sales, Renaissance Mumbai Convention Centre Hotel- Powai

The demand for MICE events is strong and new events are coming into the city as Mumbai is the commercial capital of the country and the MICE segment is a fast growing one for the hospitality industry.

Arun Arora, General Manager, Radisson Blu Paschim Vihar

Banquet Hall Ivy at Novotel Goa Resorts & Spa

MICE events is growing and offering opportunities for networking combined with exhibitions and engaging parallel sessions. The business traveller ensures to take extra advantage through networking and PR with every event.

schemes for Meeting Planners, each individual hotel also considers this segment to be crucial. MICE events are generally linked with a large number of residential guests, where by the hotel can maximize its revenue across all verticals. On an average we receive about 20 to 22 events, which include large, medium and small residential events. The MICE segment contributes to almost 50% revenues of Novotel Goa Resorts & Spa and about 35% to Novotel Goa Shrem Hotel. The equation varies between Oct to May and from May to September.

is the core focus for 2016 and Marriott believes that all meetings have a purpose and hence all hotels can customize and personalize both corporate and social events for improving guest satisfaction and garnering new businesses,” Gaurav added.

“We would be featuring special offers on the AccorHotels Apps as well as direct bookings to encourage clients to create more awareness of our new banquet halls. There are many other events planned in and around the various food & beverage and banqueting options including online campaigns which would be rolled out from time to time. We foresee an exciting 2017 with new offerings that will come in the market including our added inventory of rooms and function space.” He added.

Shantha said, “Leisure destinations enable guests to experience the local culture, history and the scenery such as Goa so mixing business with pleasure is termed as “bleisure”.”

Gaurav states “Meetings Imagined

Voyager’s World > October 2016

Business travellers changing their outlook towards MICE events According to industry publication STR Global, leisure destinations such as Agra and Goa are among the preferred MICE and wedding destinations in the country.

In the opinion of Jayakrishnan, “There are different set of events are organised in 2016 like the inaugural tournament of the Premier Futsal, the Futsal league. The 2016 BRICS summit will be held in Panaji, Goa while the Defence Expo already happened in Feb 2016. There has also been a perceptible change of outlook towards MICE events, companies tend to choose

meeting locations based upon their core business values and relative expensiveness. “The leisure cities are nowadays becoming a popular choice for meetings or conventions. Since 2008 there has been a rise in this segment with conglomerates hosting various offsite seminars and team building holidays as it is one of the best ways to motivate, address, ideate and strategize under a common roof. MICE is no longer a seasonal business it has to be planned the entire year,” he added. Gaurav observes, “ The demand for the MICE Industry is growing towards innovative setups, large convention cities catering volume demands of 10000+ delegates and the inbuilt technology savvy venues.” Arun says, “There has been a spurt in the industry focused conventions offering opportunities for networking combined with exhibitions and engaging parallel sessions. The outlook has become crisper, business traveller is ensuring to take extra advantage through networking and PR while attending the event.

New apps promoting MICE events Shantha said, “We were the first to develop apps on all mobile platforms in the hospitality industry. The IHG App is a one stop shop for guests enabling them to read reviews of our hotels, make reservations and access travel related information all in one place. The IHG App is also linked to IHG Rewards Club, making it easier for our guests to redeem points. We continue to focus on our direct channels in order to own the ‘Stay’ experience through onproperty and mobile technology.” “Social media is also playing a bigger role in planning events and during meetings to facilitate realtime networking and the sharing of meeting updates and schedules,” he added. Arun says, “The RPF based new apps are increasing their folds like Meeting Broker, Cvent, etc.” “MeetingsImagined.com is digital platform that houses visual inspiration and expertise is used for ideation, planning collaborating,”Gaurav added.

the our and and

31>>

‘Down-to-earth’..Convention and event venues get prudent! Convention and event venues are becoming increasing sensitive to renewable and serviceable practices that are cost effective and long lasting.

Messe Berlin, GTM 2013

PRIYAMVADHA BALARAM

s the Meetings, Incentives, Conferences & Exhibitions (MICE) industry grows steadily as a bankable segment for the travel trade industry across the globe, the concept of a green or environmentfriendly meeting arrangement is something to reckon with. The Maritim Hotel Bonn with the sustainability certification ‘Green Globe’ by the European Association of Event Centres (EVVC) was excellent. Some popular environment-friendly initiatives adopted by the property include reusable desk pads, FSCcertified ** Meeting blocks and ecologically degradable pens; suitable projector, a screen, a flipchart and a whiteboard; two soft drinks (eg Bionade® 0.33l or 0.5l mineral water); fair trade coffee, tea, smoothies and vegetable sticks with chive cream cheese and seasonal fruits from predominantly regional growers to break in the morning; three-course menu or lunch buffet with primarily regionally oriented natural products, etc. The Green Globe Standard consists of 41 criteria and 337 indicators. Each certified meeting venue is independently audited by a third-

party on-site and it also insists on mandatory annual re-certification. Green Globe Certification provides certification, training & education, and marketing services over 90 countries worldwide. Based in Los Angeles, California and with representations in Mexico, South America, Middle East, the Caribbean, Europe as well as Asia/Pacific, Green Globe Certification provides certification for the sustainable operations and management of travel and tourism companies and their related supplier businesses. Green Globe Certification also maintains a global network of independent auditors who provide third party inspection and validation. Efficient waste management, better ways of recycling resources, transport and other facilities are planned well with practical solutions to reduce the burden on the surrounds. A lot of convention centres in the USA and Europe are now sporting a ‘green’ on their names. The idea of green meetings has gone from emerging trend to industry standard during the past several years. Hotel recycling programmes, water stations and linen re-use

are becoming commonplace mechanisms for making meetings more environmentally-sustainable. San Francisco: These are all welcome changes in San Francisco. After years of commitment to recycling programmes Moscone’s alternative energy initiatives like solar panels and greenhouse gas reduction has reached a point of critical mass. A number of planners holding events at Moscone Center are engaged in sustainability planning for their events. Such efforts are making a big difference for planners’ bottom lines and the environment. Cost Savings: Saving money has been a major incentive for improving sustainability. For example, KPMG’s Climate Change & Sustainability Summit, the 2012 IMEX Green Meetings Award Winner for small/ medium-sized meetings, reported saving $37,000 by finding paperless solutions to invitations and meeting collateral. They saved another $10,000 switching from water bottles to a water station. Small Steps Add Up: As for the post show clean-up, green stickers are for recyclables like unused

print collateral and blue stickers are for re-usable or leftover items (office supplies, furniture, pens, knapsacks) that can be donated to local non-profits. This helps keep nearly two million pounds of materials out of landfills each year. LEED-ership: The Moscone Center achieved LEED Gold Certification in October 2012 (the first West Coast convention center to do so). SFO’s Terminal 2 was the first airport terminal to achieve LEED Gold. And the city is home to dozens of hotels that are LEED or Green Seal certified. Cabs Care: San Francisco is home to the nation’s largest population of eco-friendly taxis. 57 percent of the city’s fleet are either hybrids or powered by compressed natural gas (CNG), a change that’s equivalent to taking 4,700 cars off the road each year. Waste Not: The city’s three-stream waste disposal (trash, recycling and compost) has contributed to a significant waste reduction effort over the past several years. For example, 36 percent of waste at SFO is now being composted rather than ending up in landfills.

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Messe Berlin, GTM 2013

32>>

Solar Power: The solar power installation atop Moscone Center reduces 34,000 tons of carbon dioxide per year (the equivalent of taking 7,000 cars off the road). AT&T Park recently became the first major league baseball stadium to install solar panels. The park’s scoreboard now uses 78 percent less energy than the original. Pennsylvania Convention Center: The Pennsylvania Convention Center (PCC) is an important part of Philadelphia’s commercial and cultural landscape, bringing visitors and convention attendees to the city from all parts of the world for conferences, exhibitions, and other events. It incorporates ambitious green initiatives that address air quality, waste minimization, energy efficiency, water conservation, and procurement. Low Environmental Impact Cleaning Policy: The PCC uses cleaning chemicals that are green seal certified and equipment that helps to contribute to the United States Green Building Council leadership in energy and environmental design program for existing buildings rating system. This policy reduces the exposure of building occupants to potentially hazardous

Voyager’s World > October 2016

chemical, biological, and particulate contaminants. Fewer materials are being used overall, and the equipment designed to remove pollutants uses less chemicals and reduced water usage. Waste Reduction/Recycling: The PCC recycles paper, aluminum, glass bottles and jars, plastic containers, and metal. Cardboard is compacted and recycled from the exhibitions show floor. Containers for recyclables are placed throughout the building. In fiscal year 2007 the PCC recycled 189 tons of waste helping to reduce the impact on the environment. ARAMARK/SFS: The exclusive food and beverage provider at the Pennsylvania Convention Center contributes too. Sustainable Cutlery, Cups, and Plates: ARAMARK uses multiple products that are cost-effective as well as sustainable. Greenwaves, Eco-Products, and EATware provide full product lines of 100% decomposable and biodegradable materials. All lines conform to FDA requirements and are made from 100% Bamboo, corn starch, paper, and other natural fibers.

Culinary Recommendations: Many of ARAMARK’s cooking recipes call for organically grown vegetables and fruits that are purchased from local purveyors. In addition, ARAMARK uses three lists named “Best Choices”, “Good Alternatives” and “Avoid” when recommending fish entrees. In recent years, Las Vegas Conventions and Visitors Authority have focused its efforts on becoming more environmentally conscious. From energy efficiency and water conservation to recycling and implementing greener practices, Las Vegas is doing its part to contribute to the sustainability of the planet. The Las Vegas Conventions & Visitors Authority focuses on initiatives that improve efficiency and conservation directly related to future energy consumption. Targeted tactics include converting to more energyefficient lighting, motion sensors to control lighting levels in unoccupied rooms, and temperature sensors to turn off air conditioning or heating in empty meeting rooms and exhibit halls. In tandem with industry trends, customer expectations, and social responsibility, the Las Vegas

Convention and Visitors Authority has made significant inroads toward improving its role in sustainable operations, environmental impacts, and energy conservation. Las Vegas Convention Centre The Las Vegas Convention Center is a member of the Environmental Protection Agency’s WasteWise Program with a primary objective of diverting recyclable materials away from landfills. The Las Vegas Convention Center currently averages a 65 percent recycling rate for all shows, recovering on average 431 tons of cardboard, 302 tons of plastic, 132 tons of carpet padding, 173 tons of mixed paper, 130 tons of various metals and 205 tons of wood annually. Environmentallyfriendly cleaning products have replaced over 30,000 gallons of traditional chemicals. In 2012, the Las Vegas Convention Center received AIPC Gold Certification from the International Association of Convention Centers for environmental responsibility amongst other parameters. About Las Vegas Convention Centre The Las Vegas Convention Center (LVCC), is one of world’s most modern and functional centers

33>> encompasses approximately 3.2 million square feet with exhibit space of 2 million square feet and meeting space of nearly 250,000 square feet. Operated by the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA), the center is well known for its versatility, size, and amenities. In addition to exhibit and convention space, 144 meeting rooms (more than 241,000 square feet) handle seating capacities ranging from 20 to 2,500. Cashman Centre Cashman Center has recently achieved a 65 percent annual recycling rate and, through a revised landscaping plan of grass reduction, has conserved over six million gallons of water over the past two years. Cashman Center diverted over 22 tons of recyclable materials from the landfill over the past year. Cashman Center consists of two major components: two flexible exhibit halls totaling 98,100 square feet of meeting space with 14 meeting rooms, and a 1,922-seat theater. Each of these facilities can be used independently, or combined to suit your specific requirements. World Market Center Las Vegas

World Market Centre prioritizes environmentally conscious decisions in its business operations. World Market Center is currently in line to become the largest on-site recycling center in Southern Nevada, by recycling more than 70 percent of all refuse generated from the giant home furnishings complex. In one six-week period, World Market Center recycled a total of 136 tons of cardboard alone, 24 tons of Styrofoam and 106 tons of plastic. The idea of green meetings has gone from emerging trend to industry standard during the past several years. Hotel recycling programs, water stations and linen re-use are becoming commonplace mechanisms for making meetings more environmentally sustainable. These are all welcome changes in San Francisco. After years of commitment to recycling programs Moscone’s alternative energy initiatives like solar panels and greenhouse gas reduction has reached a point of critical mass. A number of planners holding events at Moscone Center are engaged in sustainability planning for their events. Such efforts are making a

big difference for planners’ bottom lines and the environment. Cost Savings There’s more than one type of green in play when it comes to best practices for the environment, and saving money has been a major incentive for improving sustainability. For example, KPMG’s Climate Change & Sustainability Summit, the 2012 IMEX Green Meetings Award Winner for small/ medium-sized meetings, reported saving $37,000 by finding paperless solutions to invitations and meeting collateral. They saved another $10,000 switching from water bottles to a water station. Small Steps Add Up An incremental change can create a big impact in making a meeting green. Talk to the recycling staff at Moscone about labels for postshow clean-up: Green stickers are for recyclables like unused print collateral and blue stickers are for re-usable or leftover items (office supplies, furniture, pens, knapsacks) that can be donated to local non-profits. The program helps keep nearly 2 million pounds of materials out of landfills each year.

M.I.C.E SCAN

FCM Travel Solutions launches Corporate Traveller brand in India Australia-headquartered Flight Centre Travel Group (FCTG) launched their global brand – Corporate Traveller in India to meet the demands of the emerging businesses and startups in the country. Corporate Traveller maps the specific needs of these businesses and offers personalized itineraries at best deals with minimal paperwork. Gaurav Luthra as Country Head, Corporate Traveller. Gaurav will spearheading operations and brand expansion.

GBTA Announces Advisory Board Appointments for GBTA India Members for 2016-’17 of the newly formed Advisory Board of Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) are Rakesh Bansal, CEO, Amadeus India; Neerja Bhatia, VP India, Etihad Airways; Rajdev Bhattacharya, GM, WIPRO Travel; Rajeev Goswami, CEO & CoFounder, WWstay; Ashish Kishore, Country Head, dnata International India; Mritunjaya Chandra Mohan, APAC Travel Manager, Adobe Systems; Arif Patel, VP Sales, India, etc.

Hyderabad Convention Visitors Bureau - India to host ICANN57 The 57th annual general meeting of ICANN (hereby referred to as ICANN57) will be hosted in Hyderabad from 3 -9 November 2016. The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) is a global organization responsible for designing and maintaining internet standards and protocol. About 3,000 delegates from over 75 countries are expected to participate in the event.

Cabs Care: San Francisco is home to the nation’s largest population of eco-friendly taxis. 57 percent of the city’s fleet are either hybrids or powered by compressed natural gas (CNG), a change that’s equivalent to taking 4,700 cars off the road each year. Waste Not: The city’s three-stream waste disposal (trash, recycling and compost) has contributed to a significant waste reduction effort over the past several years. For example, 36 percent of waste at SFO is now being composted rather than ending up in landfills.

CALENDAR 2016

Dubai Business Events set to generate AED344m Dubai Business Events secured 15% more events in the first eight months of 2016 than whole of 2015. Events secured this year will be held over the next four years and combined, will bring 65,000 delegates to Dubai from around the world. With each delegate expected to add almost AED 6,000 to the economy, the impact of the events could be about AED344 million.

Going Green has Never Been Easier Thanks to San Francisco’s citywide commitment to environmental stewardship, just booking a meeting in San Francisco makes your event greener. Here’s a few reasons why: LEED-ership: Moscone Center achieved LEED Gold Certification in October 2012 (the first West Coast convention center to do so). SFO’s Terminal 2 was the first airport terminal to achieve LEED Gold. And the city is home to dozens of hotels that are LEED or Green Seal certified.

October 13, 14, 15 MICE Industry, St. Petersburg, Russia

24, 25, 26, 27 Sports & Events Tourism Exchange, Pretoria, South Africa

November 13, 14, 15, 16 ICCA Congress 2016, Kuching, Malaysia 16, 17 Hotel Investment Forum India (HIFI) 2016, Mumbai

December 1, 2, 3 Chengdu International Tourism Expo (CITE) China 5, 6, 7, 8 International Luxury Travel Market Cannes, France

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Travel Events

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INNOVATIVE PLAYERS STEAL THE SHOW AT MICE ASIA AWARDS 2016 Over 80 companies nominated themselves to take part in the 13 awards in 2016 at the event which was held on 21 and 22 September in Singapore. VW BUREAU

The evening commenced with a lively drinks reception provided by Singapore’s own premium drinks supplier Drink Ding’s. Following the drinks reception there some impressive entertainment and lively music before MC Royce Lee hosted the awards. The judges had an immense tasking sifting through all the entries and coming up with only one winner per category. Some of the categories in which awards were announced were the Best Event App 2016; Event Management Solution of the Year; Best Event Tech Startup; Exhibition Venue of the Year; Most Inspiring MICE Venue; Hotel & Event Facilities of the Year; Conference Venue of the Year; Event Management Company of the Year; Event Supplier Contractor of the Year; Asia’s Leading Destination Management Company of 2016; Best Launch Event for 2015/2016; Best Networking Venue and Best Conference for 2016. The winning conference venue has the size and capabilities to handle what different conferences require in a bespoke manner. Their infrastructure also differentiates their venue by giving delegates a memorable experience that they would not forget. Borneo Convention Centre Kuching won the Conference Venue of the Year award. The Shangri-la Singapore won the award for the Hotel & Event Facilities of the Year. The National Gallery

Voyager’s World > October 2016

Singapore won the Most Inspiring MICE Venue award, based on the fantastic location where a broad range of events could be held.

THE YOUR GATEWAY TO THE OUTBOUND TRAVEL MARKET

he second annual MICE Asia Awards ceremony took place today at the Suntec Exhibition Centre Singapore as part of the MICE Asia Exhibition which is held each year in the city. The event looks to honour those companies playing a defining role in the events and travel industry in the Asia Pacific region. Over 80 companies nominated themselves to take part in the 13 awards in 2016. Hundreds of event and travel professionals turned out to see who had won the awards this year.

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The Pullman Phuket Arcadia Naithon Beach won the Best Event Networking Venue award. The venue was able to show the uniqueness,

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creativity and the best networking platform allowing all attendees to focus simply on mingling with their co-attendees.

ITY

EUROPE EDITION 16 - 24 January 2017

Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi

MIDDLE EAST EDITION 27 February - 1 March 2017 Dubai, Kuwait, Doha

GLOBAL EDITION 20 - 25 March 2017 Delhi, Bangalore, Mumbai

IITM 2016-2017 EVENT'S CALENDAR Pune 25, 26, 27 November 2016

Kochi 19, 20, 21 January 2017

Hyderabad 02, 03, 04 December 2016

Kolkata 24, 25, 26 February 2017

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IT&CMA AND CTW ASIA PACIFIC 2016 REGISTER OVER 10,000 APPOINTMENTS This year, 18 National Tourism Organisations (NTOs), Convention Visitor Bureaus (CVBs), corporates, and various organisations snapped up close to 30 captive engagement sessions. VW BUREAU

he three-day IT&CMA and CTW Asia-Pacific concluded on 29 September in Bangkok with over 10,000 business appointments on the show floor. Deemed to be one of the best shows yet according to attendees, delegates across the board complimented this year’s highlights including the high quality exhibitor showcase, stellar buyer profiles, excellent knowledge opportunities and conducive networking platforms. First-time exhibitor Monaco Government Tourist Bureau (Asia)’s Benoit Badufle, Regional Director, said, “There has been a lot of energy at the show and the selection of

international buyers is amazing. Monaco is happy to stand out as a luxury travel destination and we got to garner valuable contacts and meet buyers we have not met before to propagate the image of Monaco.” Buyer Monika Valleton, Managing Director of ATJ Lingwista from Poland, praised the show’s ability to showcase a wide range of suppliers, “Our company caters to both leisure travellers and MICE, specifically incentive groups, and we have been getting more demand for Asia because of the connectivity and ease of access to the region. The show is a big opportunity for us to focus on the region and to get to know the

destinations that are potentially interesting for our clients.” As the industry continues to evolve and attract a demographic of veterans and new-comers

to the trade, participants at the conference and knowledge sessions acknowledged that the learning experience evidence d the organiser’s pulse on the marketplace.

NATURALISTS ACCLAIMED AT TOFTIGERS WILDLIFE TOURISM AWARDS 2016 The theme of the awards ceremony was ‘Rewildling’ and this was reflected in many of the awards on the evening. VW BUREAU

he TOFTigers Wildlife Tourism Awards 2016, in association with Sanctuary Asia and Outlook Traveller with state partner, Madhya Pradesh Tourism, was held at a gala dinner on 23 September in the gardens of the British High Commissioners residence. In the company of the judging committee including the editor, chaired by renowned film maker, Mike Pandey, 250 guests including tourism business leaders, wildlife conservationists, Forest and Government officers and the media enjoyed the festive atmosphere and came to celebrate the ‘Best of the Best’ in nature tourism, community action, and conservation support. The theme of the evening was ‘Rewildling’ and this was reflected in many of the awards on the evening.

was awarded to Radhika Prasad Omre from Madla, Panna Tiger Reserve; the runner up was Vinod Gulab Uike – Tadoba Tiger Reserve, Maharashtra.

The winners and runners up were Billy Arjan Singh Memorial Award for Wildlife Guide of the Year 2016

The Wildlife and Tourism Initiative of the Year 2016 went to Jabarkhet Nature Reserve in Mussoorie,

Voyager’s World > October 2016

Lodge Naturalist of the Year 2016 was conferred on DhanBahadurTamang, Tiger Tops, Chitwan in Nepal. The joint runners up were Surya Ramachandran, Singinawa Jungle Lodge, Kanha; Mittal Gala – Khem Vilas, Ranthambhore The Dr Chuck McDougal Visitor Friendly Wildlife Destination of the Year 2016 was given to joint winners - ChitwanNational Park in Nepal and Pench Tiger Reserve in Maharashtra and the runner up was Kali Tiger Reserve, Karnataka.

Uttarakhand and the runner up was RaoJodhaDesertRockPark, Jodhpur, Rajasthan. Wildlife Tourism Related Community Initiative 2016 was awarded to Pakke Jungle Camp with Help Tourism in Arunachal Pradesh. The runner up was Flame of the Forest – Women’s health care project in Kanha, MP. Exodus Travel from London, United

Kingdom won the International Tour Operator of the Year 2016. Wildlife Promotion Company of the Year 2016 was given to Abercrombie & Kent India. The Up and Coming Excellence in Nature Award 2016 was bestowed upon MelaKothi, The Chambal Safari Lodge, Chambal, Uttar Pradesh. Red Earth, Kabini, Karnataka was the runner up.

Travel Events

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Digital Influencers lined up for WTM London’s Blogging Programme World Travel Market London 2016 has signed up a stellar list of digital influencers for its comprehensive and always popular blogging programme. VW BUREAU

his year will again see sessions, organised by Traverse, spread over the full three days of the event, including the ever-popular WTM Bloggers’ Speed Networking event, which links 100 of the world’s most influential bloggers with exhibitors and their PR representatives. The first blogging session, Mobile and Live Social Media, on Monday, November 7, will look at the impact of the major players in the ‘live’ social media arena. Experts – including live streamer Tawanna Browne Smith; food and travel blogger Niamh Shields and Kevin Mullaney, Head of Digital at Flagship Consulting – will discuss the merits of Snapchat, Facebook, Periscope and YouTube and the audience will vote on which they think will be the most important going into 2017. Mobile and Live Social Media takes place in the WTM Inspire Theatre, EU475, on Monday, November 7 2016, 12:30 - 13:15. YouTube and the Continuing Rise of Video looks at how bloggers and brands can jump start their own video channel and how brands and marketers can effectively work with YouTubers and video creators. The panel includes Hannah Witton, a 20-something northern girl living in London, who makes weekly YouTube videos about sex education, feminism, travel and life, plus Evan Edinger, an American YouTube creator living in London. YouTube and the Continuing Rise of Video takes place on Monday, November 7 in the WTM Inspire Theatre, EU475, 13:30 - 14:15. On Tuesday, November 8, blogging takes centre stage – the WTM Global Stage to be precise – for two key sessions. Session one: Personalisation for Bloggers and Brands discusses the tricky issue of how brands can build loyalty with a fickle user base

and looks at how bloggers use personalisation to have a one-onone relationship with their followers. Delegates can hear first-hand accounts of how the relationship works, with input from Cheapflights Pleasance Coddington, Global Head of Content, Social Media, Digital Campaigns and Product, among others. Session two: Harnessing the Power of Influencers on the Path to Purchase, explores the impact of using social media, blog and video content in positively influencing the customer journey, with insight from blogger Sarah Lee, UK director of iambassador, who has developed and organised several campaigns. Personalisation for Bloggers and Brands takes place on Tuesday, November 8 at the WTM Global Stage, AS950, from 13:00 - 13:45. Harnessing the Power of Influencers on the Path to Purchase is on the WTM Global Stage, AS950, from 13:45 - 14:30. Wednesday, November 9 is the day that 100 of the world’s leading bloggers meet exhibitors and their PR representatives to discuss ways to increase media exposure. WTM Bloggers’ Speed Networking, in association with Traverse, takes place in Platinum Suite 3 & 4, 10:00 - 11:30. Traverse founder, Michael Ball, said: “Traverse is again delighted to be working with WTM London to produce the WTM Blogging Programme. 2015’s sessions were standing room only affairs and we are expecting this year’s programme to be as popular.” After that, it’s over to the WTM Inspire Theatre to hear the findings of a report by iambassador – the world’s leading travel influencer network. Digital and Influencer Marketing Developments and Trends, presented by iambassador and Toposophy, takes place at the WTM Inspire Theatre, EU475, on Wednesday November 9, 14:45 15:30.

iambassador will present the next session: How Collaborations are Shaping the New World of Digital Marketing in Tourism, along with marketers who have embraced digital opportunities to create innovative ideas and collaborations in tourism marketing. The session takes place at the WTM Inspire Theatre, EU475, on Wednesday November 9, 15:30 - 16:15. For the closing blogging session, the founders of Traverse, iambassador and Travel Perspective will come together for a completely unplanned session discussing digital influencers and their role in the travel industry. Chaired by Jennifer Howze, an award-winning journalist and co-founder of BritMums – the UK’s largest parent blogging network – the session takes place in the WTM Inspire Theatre, EU475, on Wednesday November 9, 16:30 - 17:30. World Travel Market London, Senior Director, Simon Press said: “The digital world is so fast-paced. Blink and you miss a new trend, feature or

tool. Ever since blogging was added to the event programme at WTM London in 2011, our sessions have been incredibly well-attended. “This year’s sessions focus on key elements that make successful digital and social media campaigns, drawing on a variety of case studies, with insight from some of the best digital influencers, bloggers and marketers. And of course, it wouldn’t be ‘social’ media if we didn’t get the audience involved, so there’ll be plenty of time for views and questions from the floor at the end of the sessions.” WTM London is the event where the travel and tourism industry conducts its business deals. Buyers from the WTM Buyers’ Club have a combined purchasing responsibility of $22.6 billion (£15.8bn) and sign deals at the event worth $3.6 billion (£2.5bn). WTM London 2016 will be revamped as a three-day event from Monday 7 – Wednesday 9 November, with opening hours extended from 10am – 7pm for all three days.

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Travel Events

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Tourism Marketing Approach goes on ‘Roaming’ Mode Mobile and digital marketing have come to be the order of the day in today’s travel marketing process. Tourism players are taking increasing interests in embracing the gadgets for selling destinations. PRIYAMVADHA BALARAM

hen marketing author and consultant Philip Kotler defined marketing to distinguish it from selling, he said the two concepts were almost opposites. Quoting his words, marketing is not the art of finding clever ways to dispose of what you make. Marketing is the art of creating genuine customer value. It is the art of helping your customers become better off. The marketer’s watchwords are quality, service, and value. Unquote. These words seem to have become the point of reference, glossary or index, whatever you may want to call it, across various consumer and business spheres. The tourism industry, in particular, seems to have embraced and taken the concept of marketing and selling to a whole new dimension. Citing Kotler, selling starts only when you have a product. Marketing starts before there is a product. Marketing is the homework the company does to figure out what people need and what the company should make. Marketing determines how to launch, price, distribute and promote the product/ service offering in the marketplace. Marketing then monitors the results and improves the offering over time. Marketing also decides when to end the offering. If one were to look at the recent developments and far-reaching changes that the global tourism industry is initiating since the recent past, all the aforesaid explanations seem to hold true for the industry, what with technology and digital media determining the creative efforts of national tourism organisations (NTOs), DMCs, hotels and other stakeholders while planning their marketing campaign. All said, marketing is not a shortterm selling effort but a long-term investment effort. When marketing is done well, it occurs before the company makes any product or enters any market; and it continues long after the sale.

Voyager’s World > October 2016

Mobile and e-marketing have proven more relevant and convenient today. This has essentially been the biggest revolution in the travel and tourism industry thanks to the growing use of mobile phones and the internet. According to the UNWTO, about 90% of all travel decisions are made online. The web is as influential as word-of-mouth in the travel decision process. Hence, it becomes vital for any tourism board to plan and execute an effective digital marketing strategy. NTOs and DMCs are increasingly incorporating e-marketing in their promotional plans and partnerships, so also travel exhibitions and events, more so because online marketing is a much more cost-effective method to gain better visibility of products and services. Another requisite area is engaging in online surveys, contests and Instagram activities. Dubai Tourism launched the #MyDubai initiative last year by His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed Al Maktoumto create the world’s first autobiography of a city. Every day, a selection of images hashtagged #MyDubai on Instagram were chosen to represent life in Dubai as residents and visitors experience it, which can be viewed on @MyDubai.

The intention is to celebrate the everyday lives of the people and communities of the Emirate and show the city that is beneath the landmarks, headlines and superlatives. It also ran an exclusive hotel competition last year, inviting employees of each participating hotel to post images or videos that best defined their #MyDubai experience with one winner selected from each hotel. Last year, Visit Florida had launched the ‘Sunshine Contest’ in India wherein the tourism board invited entries from agents and operators to like the Visit Florida India Facebook page, complete their specialist programme within the contest period and design a 10-day itinerary in Florida on a PPT. The winners were given a trip to Florida. Oman Tourism was also not far behind in starting the Instagram handle last year and plunging into the online advertising and marketing space. It ran a few campaigns targeting internet users and one of them was a tie-up with the blogging community on Indiblogger. Oman Tourism ran a month-long contest to attract bloggers to write about what they would like to experience in the Sultanate, offering lucky winners a trip to the country. With a chunk of urban travellers booking their tickets and

accommodation online, it is imperative that tourism boards, DMCs and tour operators capitalize completely on the electronic, online and mobile media to the fullest to get better conversions. Email marketing like sending mailer blast campaigns to thousands of target customers at one shot and in a personalised manner just makes the reach of the campaign wider. There are cruise companies that regularly send e-newsletters talking about the deals and supersaver offers as well as new cruise itineraries. Chad Harwood-Jones, managing director of search and content marketing business Ad-Rank Media, had recently said that travel brands can use on-site events to trigger dynamic content, reminding customers of their intent to purchase and offering to help them take the next step. The more tailored the content, the better. He cited the example of travel company Haven having generated 2815% ROI by running an abandoned basket campaign consisting of three emails - offering customer service and assistance, suggesting offers related to the abandoned purchase and prompting customers to browse different types

Travel Events

39>> of holiday package that might better fit their requirements. The open rate on these emails was 54% — over double the industry average for travel campaigns. It was only in February that MailChimp started supporting the use of emojis in subject lines, and already the sun and plane emoji are both in the top 10 most used ones — meaning travel brands are already taking advantage of this (and will probably continue to do so until the novelty wears off). Customisation can be as simple as an emoji or as complicated as a bespoke template. Travelbound used a branded template consisting of pre-made content blocks that could be rearranged to reflect the content of each message, and the result reflects their brand identity and ties in visually to their website design. Another approach is to be aware of your user’s location. If you have this data in your email list, you can segment it by region, city and even town. After your campaign is sent, you can check the Google Analytics reports to see click rates, average page visits, page views, etc. With this information, you can tailor deals and send them where they’re most relevant, all for no cost at all. While consumers need to trust a travel brand in order to use them, faith itself isn’t enough to secure loyalty. It’s unlikely that

a customer is subscribed to only one travel brand’s mailing list, and it’s also unlikely that a customer will subscribe to a list if they don’t trust a company. So, assuming a customer receives marketing emails from two travels brands that they trust equally, the deciding factors are likely to be loyalty and price. Rewarding engagement with discount codes works on two levels. Firstly, consumers who engage regularly with a brand are more likely to become loyal. Secondly, a well-timed money-off voucher can be the deciding factor between Brand A and Brand B. When a customer is flooded with so many mass mailers and newsletters in a month, it is necessary to come up with a creative way of mailing so that the mail gets opened when it lands in the inbox and doesn’t immediately go to the trash or gets unsubscribed. First impression is what counts and hence choose the right words in the subject lines for better open rates. The subject line as well as the layout and the content must be drafted in a way so as to cater to an e-audience and must differ from other types of advertising and marketing communication. To avoid the risk of trash mails or unsubscription, the best option in mass e-marketing is to utilize permission-based marketing as it

is direct and personalised. So when you click the option acknowledging that the recipient has given you permission to send him mails, the chances of the recipient deleting your mail before opening it or of being re-directed to the spam folder will be lesser. When one opens the mail, the salutation addressing his name makes a lot of difference and helps in lesser odds of them dismissing the mail before reading it. After paying attention to the subject line, the content and the personalisation of messages, the next thing to do is optimizing emails for mobile devices in a responsive model. A responsive model of campaign is one that is compatible and readable on multiple designs be it your PC or your smartphone. As per statistics released by Litmus – ‘Email Analytics’ in January 2015, more emails are being read on mobile phones as against a personal computer. 48% emails are opened now on a mobile device. The mobile breakdown is as follows: 49.5 percent of email opens were on a smartphone, 16.8 on a tablet. Of the 66 percent of mobile opens, 58 percent happened on an Apple device; 7 percent were on Android devices. (Q4 2014). A good designer will consider the break points between mobiles, tablets and desktops and make a responsive

VIZAG AMRITSAR COIMBATORE

model based on different display specifications. A break point is the width at which the email layout transitions from one layout to another. Another factor that may seem not so important, but is, is the time and day of sending the campaign. Depending on your target clients and the urgency of the campaign, you can work out a suitable day to schedule the campaign. Voyager’s World, for instance, observed that its weekly newsletters find maximum opens and reads on Thursdays in the mornings or on Fridays in the evenings. A mass mail campaign is not what many want to see the first thing in their inbox on a Monday morning or the last thing when they are winding up for the weekend, Hence, the time and day of sending the mailers are crucial. One cannot escape the digital age and while we are ushering in an age of virtual technology across spheres and virtual reality experiences in the tourism industry, tech-savvy marketing is the way ahead. Hence, NTOs and DMCs must have a budget for digital marketing, social media community analysis and mobile marketing as they cannot be ruled out as prospective spaces for business conversion and revenue generation.

: 4, 5, 6 November 2016 : 16, 17, 18 December 2016 : 27, 28, 29 January 2017

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FESTIVALS OF 2 October-13 November, 2016

he Taiwan Cycling Festival will take place from 2 October to13 November in Taiwan which is organized by the Taiwan Tourism Bureau, the Taiwan Cyclist Federation, the Taiwan Bicycle Exporters’ Association, and the Sun Moon Lake National Scenic Area Administration. During the festival, cycling groups will travel around the Island and those cycling through Eastern Taiwan will be provided with highlight tours. The event includes the hotel and food industries, local snack bars, joint railway, bike rides for stories and discussions.

Taiwan Cycling Festival, Taiwan

6 Oct- 10 May, 2017

he Abu Dhabi Classics will take place for the third consecutive year from 6 Oct- 10 May at leading venues across the Emirates.The season will kick start with a performance by the West Australian Symphony Orchestra at Emirates Palace Auditorium with a Richard Wagner Gala Night. The Other highlights for the season include the return of the Symphony Orchestra of India; and the Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse in Abu Dhabi city and Al Ain.

Abu Dhabi Classics, Abu Dhabi

27-31 October, 2016

18-25 October, 2016

he Philippines Lanzones Festival is an annual event that takes place from 18-25 October, a four day festival that is meant to celebrate bounty harvests of the Lanzones fruit. The event is marked with street dancing, parades and cultural heritage showcasing the region’s history. The most remarkable things that a tourist will notice about this festival are the houses and street posts are decorated with Lanzones. The visitors can enjoy a bounty harvest as well as a rich cultural heritage.

Philippines Lanzones Festival, Philippines

he Foyle Halloween Carnival is celebrated from 27-31 October across Londonderry’s Banks , the biggest Halloween party in Europe while Dublin will celebrate Bram Stoker Festival from 28th to 31st October, a three-day festival of the undead. The festival is generally celebrated with bonfires lit to guide the spirits, masks are worn to scare evil away and tales of hauntings. The city’s streets and cultural venues will have programmes of food, markets, music, theatre, street animation, costume making, storytelling.

Foyle Halloween Carnival, Ireland

THE WORLD 30 October, 2016

he ASB Auckland Marathon will takes place on 30th October in Auckland, which is also considered one of New Zealand’s premier road races. The event features a full and a half marathon, a 12km traverse, a 5km challenge and a kids marathon. The highlight of the marathon is the run over the Auckland Harbour Bridge that includes a climb of 33 metres to the highest point across the Waitemata Harbour to Auckland city and the only time the Harbour Bridge is open .

ASB Auckland Marathon, Auckland, New Zealand

4-13 November, 2016

he Food and Wine Classic festival happens in Hawkes Bay from 4-13 November, a series of food and wine events for people who love to eat and experience the best wine with over 80 events taking place in 10 days from far and wide.The festival is celebrated twice a year with a great opportunity for visitors to connect with chefs, food producers, winemakers and Stars like Al Brown, Josh Emett, Ray McVinnie and Nadia Lim will be present along with the culinary folk.

Food and Wine Classic – Hawkes Bay, New Zealand

23 November - 31 December, 2016 20 November, 2016

oast Martinborough is celebrated on 20th November with food, wine and entertainment. ‘Toast Martinborough’ takes over nine boutique vineyards towards the North of the capital Wellington. The event offers festival-goers a unique opportunity to taste wines from both current and past vintages. This year 25 anniversary of the festival will include 8 sites, 9 wineries, 9 restaurants and 20 music acts along with special occasions, restaurant-quality food and live performances from the best musicians. The best wine, food and music festival in New Zealand.

he Munich Tollwood Festival takes place from November 23th to December 31st in Munich. The international theatre acts occur right next to Christmas market which consists of more than 200 stalls where the visitors can shop and experience international fair. The market displays handcrafted pottery, cosmetics, ecological wellness, jewellery, body art, piercings, tattoos, and organic food from all over the world.One large tent is dedicated to international vegetarianvegan food and around 70 percent of the shows,the theatre, music and performances to environmental activities.

Tollwood Winter Festival, Munich, Germany Toast Martinborough, Wairarapa, New Zealand

Travel Trends

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Aviation trends in India..On the beam! Being one of the most populated nations in the world, we can aim to claim a bigger share in the air traffic domestically PRIYAMVADHA BALARAM

ertainly, the importance of air transport’s contribution to the national economy is apparent from the way it drives growth through creation of employment and businesses. On a positive note, the country’s civil aviation authorities are working to address the constraints caused by inadequate infrastructure that limits capacity. We have been signing MoUs and air service agreements to boost regional, domestic and international connectivity, in addition to looking at standardizing our air transport services on par with global standards and best practices. While domestically, our airlines have been performing well, with frequent low fare wars to compete and boost passenger capacity, we have notably made efforts to make the best possible use of our resources to achieve efficiency in operations of the fleets. The most important contribution aviation makes to the economy is through its impact on the performance of other industries by enhancing efficiency and competitiveness by offering most efficient and fast transportation

Voyager’s World > October 2016

facility. This sector also contributes substantially to the GDP. Civil Aviation sector epitomizes modern, resurgent and fast developing Indian Economy which is moving to be a super power of the world in the near future. The contribution of Civil Aviation sector in providing employment opportunities directly, indirectly and induced is immense. This sector gives fascinating opportunities to an array of industries such as Airports, Airlines, Cargo, MRO, Ground Handling, ANS, Retail business, Real Estate etc. There are great opportunities and the future is even more exciting. Setting up of world class airport infrastructure facility and offering a most modern and reliable air connectivity together with integrated transportation connectivity holds the key. The Ministry of Civil Aviation, State Government of Maharashtra and Airports Authority of India recently signed a tri-partite Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), thereby kicking off the collaborative process of the three agencies coming together for successful launch of the Regional Connectivity Scheme.

The MOU was signed at Mumbai in the presence of Minister of Civil Aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju and the Chief Minister of Maharashtra Devendra Fadnavis. With that, the State Government of Maharashtra has formally agreed to provide the concessions required from the State Governments in the Regional Connectivity Scheme, thereby becoming the first state in the country to do so. The agreement was signed by Chairman, Airports Authority of India, Principal Secretary Civil Aviation (Maharashtra) and Joint Secretary (Ministry of Civil Aviation).

automatic route and FDI beyond 49% through Government approval. For Non-Resident Indians (NRI’s), 100% FDI will continue to be allowed under automatic route. However, foreign airlines would continue to be allowed to invest in capital of Indian companies operating scheduled and non-scheduled air transport services up to the limit of 49% of their paid up capital and subject to the laid down conditions in the existing policy. Increasing the FDI limit for these aviation services shall not only encourage competition by lowering prices but shall also accord choice to consumers.

With a view to aid in modernization of the existing airports to establish a high standard and help ease the pressure on the existing airports, 100% Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) under automatic route has now been allowed in Brownfield Airport projects. This move would also serve in further developing the domestic aviation infrastructure. Further, FDI limit for Scheduled Air Transport Service, Domestic Scheduled Passenger Airline and regional Air Transport Service has been raised from 49% to 100%, with FDI up to 49% permitted under

Moreover, FDI policy as contained in the ‘Consolidated FDI Policy Circular of 2016’, as amended from time to time, is subject to the conditions of the extant policy on specified sectors and applicable laws/ regulations security and other conditionalities. Accordingly FDI policy on Civil Aviation sector is also subject to sectoral and security conditions. Airports Authority of India (AAI) has entered into a strategic partnership for skill development in the aviation sector . AAI has already imparted skills training to 1000 youth during 2015-16 in partnership with the

Travel Trends

43>> Construction Industry Development Council (CIDC) and released funds to CIDC based on the progress of the project and placement offers to the candidates. AAI has also entered into a tripartite agreement on 08.06.2016 with the National Skills Development Fund (NSDF) and National Skills Development Corporation (NSDC) for imparting skills training to the youth in the country. As per the agreement, financial support for three years at the rate of Rs.125 lakh in 2016-17 and Rs.200 lakh each in 2017-18 and 2018-19 is extended by AAI to NSDF based on the progress of the project. Priority for job opportunity has been given while finalizing the partnership. NSDC, the Implementation organization has been advised to carry out market survey so as to ensure employment opportunity to at least 70% of the trained candidates. The fund disbursement clause incorporated in the memorandum signed between AAI and CIDC for the skills development training is also linked with the placement of at least 70% of the trained candidates. India is the ninth largest civil aviation market and is predicted to become the third largest by the year 2020. This undoubtedly calls for considering investment projects and inviting foreign investors. With these developments on one hand, the Modi Government’s Make In India national programme seeks to facilitate investments and innovations across various sectors including aviation. As far as aviation is concerned, it leverages on the facts like- Total passenger traffic stood at 163.06 Million during 2013. India is one of the least penetrated air markets in the world with 0.04 trips per capita per annum as compared to 0.3 in China and more than 2 in the USA. - Indian carriers plan to increase their fleet size to reach 800 aircrafts by 2020. - The Indian aviation sector is likely to see investments totalling USD 12.1 Billion during 2012-17; USD 9.3 Billion is expected to come from the private sector. Still, one might wonder what keeps international investors from foraying into Indian skies, especially the well performing carriers in the Middle East, with the exception of Etihad Airways. Etihad Airways, had recently entered into a codeshare with Jet Airways and as far as the rest are concerned, there have not been significant outlays from the region for our country in aviation.

The government will exercise enough caution..leading to competition. If the Indians can become financially healthy, they can grow. One should look forward to systematic correction. Only then can they match the Gulf rivals. There should not be fragmented distribution of competition Etihad Airways continues to make significant operational and financial investments in India, which are bringing tangible benefits to the country’s aviation and tourism sectors as well as the Indian economy in general. The Abu Dhabibased airline is supporting this growth through · the investment in Jet Airways which is now on a firm path to recovery; · providing consumers with greater choice, convenience, and connectivity; · carrying greater numbers of air travellers to and from airports right across India; · working with key tourism and commercial bodies to bring air travellers to India; · the employment of thousands of Indian nationals Etihad Airways continues to openup access to primary and regional airports in India and create new employment opportunities through these operations. Since the launch of the partnership between Etihad Airways and Jet Airways in the summer of 2014, the Indian carrier has embarked upon a path to recovery, which is showing strong operational and financial performance, having recently posted its first profit after seven consecutive quarters of losses. The benefits of the partnership to Jet Airways include major cost savings and synergies in areas such as fleet acquisition, maintenance, product development and training, and the results are already showing that it is on target to break-even within the next three years. Etihad Airways is also carrying more air travellers from the Middle East, Africa, Europe and the Americas to cities across India. This is helping drive economic growth throughout the country and not just the major metropolitan areas. Latest data shows an unprecedented increase in the number of passengers booked from these key overseas markets to its growing Indian network, offering consumers better access, connectivity and choice. In

2014

nearly

one

million

passengers, who travelled on Etihad Airways’ India flights, began their journey from outside of the country, representing almost 70 per cent of total passengers who flew to and from India with the Abu Dhabi-based airline. The boost in passengers flying from key network markets to India is set to grow even further during the coming 12 months as Etihad Airways adds more frequencies to its Indian flight network and deploys new widebody aircraft, including the Boeing 787, to destinations in India. In addition to a network, which supports Indian tourism and commerce, Etihad Airways continues to be a major employer of Indian nationals at locations across India and at bases in Abu Dhabi and around the world. Currently 2,860 Indian nationals work at the airline representing 16 per cent of the total workforce. This figure includes 200 members of staff in India, 750 cabin crew, 160 pilots and 1,683 core staff at headquarters. Over-ruling a directive of the headless BCAS to have common security check areas at Delhi airport’s terminal 3, Choubey is learnt to have got a directive issued to IGI Airport to go back to having a separate counter for business and first class passengers -as is the norm at all airports in the developed world. Indian aviation is expected to record 60 Million international passengers by 2017. 85 international airlines will connect over 40 countries. The country is poised to become the third largest aviation market by 2020 and have 800 aircraft by 2020. 100% FDI is permitted for greenfield airport projects under the automatic route. Up to 74% FDI is permitted under government approval route. - Up to 49% FDI is permitted in domestic scheduled passenger airlines under the automatic route. 100% permitted for NRIs. Up to 49% FDI under the automatic route

is permitted in Non-Scheduled Air Transport Service. FDI above 49% and up to 74% is permitted under Government approval route. 100% FDI permitted for NRIs. - Up to 100% FDI is permitted in maintenance and repair organizations; flying training institutes; and technical training institutes under the automatic route. - Investments are subject to relevant regulations, approvals from DGCA and security and other conditions. Foreign airlines are also, henceforth, allowed to invest in the capital of Indian companies, operating scheduled and non-scheduled Air Transport Services - The Airports Authority of India is responsible for developing, financing, operating, and maintaining all public sector airports. Looking at the bright side, there has been a host of progressive measures undertaken by the centre for the creation and maintenance of airport hubs. In July this year, the Union Minister of Civil Aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju reviewed the progress of energy and water conservation measures at AAI airports across the country. The important review meeting was attended by Minister of State Jayant Sinha and Secretary of the Department, besides Chairperson AAI and other senior officers. Airport Directors of 12 important airports also attended the deliberations so that they could be sensitized to implement these initiatives at their respective airports. During the meeting, the Airport Director, Jaipur dwelled at length on the energy conservation measures recently undertaken at the airport. These include maximum use of LED lighting, installation of efficient airconditioning equipment, provision of energy efficient pumps and motors, a roof top solar power plant of 1 MW capacity and a 1.8 MW groundbased solar power plant under implementation. All Airport directors were encouraged to adopt similar initiatives, some of which have a payback period of as low as two years.

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Travel Trends

Union Civil Aviation Minister, Ashok Gajapathi Raju

44>>

AAI has already installed solar power plants at 16 airports with a total capacity of 5.4 MW. So far, 51 lakh energy units have been generated from these plants leading to a reduction of 4,600 metric tonnes in carbon emissions. By December 2016, additional 24.1 MW of solar power plants will become operational at 11 more airports. Infact, the perspective plan of AAI targets augmenting the solar power generation to 116 MW by including 16 more airports. The status and scope of water conservation, water-recycling and sewage treatment plants at the airports was also deliberated upon. AAI is already using re-cycled water for horticulture, fire-fighting and air-conditioning requirements at several airports. The Union Minister directed the Chairman AAI to provide similar infrastructure at all airports under his jurisdiction. It may be recalled that in June 2016, the Ministry of Civil Aviation and the AAI were honored with the National Excellence Awards 2016 by Govt of India in Ministry and PSU category respectively for taking outstanding steps towards use and promotion of solar energy. Raju appreciated the efforts of AAI and conveyed that not only should our airports be self-sufficient in energy and water requirements, but we should now look at feeding power to the national grid as we have sufficient open spaces available. He also directed that an airportwise action plan on both energy and water conservation should be developed by AAI within one month.

Voyager’s World > October 2016

Jayant Sinha also appreciated the efforts at Jaipur airport and advised AAI to go ahead with its ambitious program in a structured. The Government has taken several measures to tackle problems in the sector like persuading state governments to reduce Value Added Tax (VAT) on Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF), allowing direct import of ATF by Indian Carriers as actual users, permitting foreign airlines to participate upto 49 percent in the equity of scheduled air transport undertaking, allowing External Commercial Borrowings (ECB) for working capital requirement of airline industry for a period of one year subject to a total ceiling of US $ 1 billion and tax concession for parts of aircraft and testing equipment for third party maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) of civil aircraft. The Cabinet Committee of Economic Affairs (CCEA) in its meeting held in April, 2012, approved a Turnaround Plan (TAP)/ Financial Restructuring Plan (FRP) for operational and financial turnaround of Air India (AI) subject to achievement of certain laid down milestones by AI. As part of the TAP/FRP, AI has initiated, inter-alia, the following steps in order to cut costs:(i) Rationalization of certain loss making routes. (ii) Induction of brand new aircraft on several domestic and international routes to increase passenger appeal. (iii) Phasing out and grounding of old fleet. (iv) Establishment of Integrated Operations Control Centre (IOCC)

and Hub Control Centre (HCC) in Delhi. (v) Freezing of employment in nonoperational areas. (vi) Operationalization of Subsidiary Companies such as Air India Air Transport Services Limited (AIATSL) and Air India Engineering Services Limited (AIESL) and transfer of manpower and equipment and treating them as Independent Profit Centers and, (vii) Induction of the B787 aircraft on the Medium Capacity Long Haul Routes. New airports are permitted under the Greenfield Airport Policy 2008. Investment in airports is encouraged under the Public Private Partnership Policy of the Government of India. - Regional Air Connectivity Policy offers attractive incentives in the form of exemption of landing, parking and navigation fees to airlines operating at designated airports in non-metro areas. - India is one the fastest growing aviation markets and currently the ninth largest civil aviation market in the world. - India is projected to be the 3rd largest aviation market by 2020. Despite all these projections, some of the disadvantages and problems plaguing our aviation system is the lack of aviation expertise. We need knowledge to lower operational costs and create a conducive sky to make profits. Our country’s air traffic has grown exponentially, for foreign carriers, not for Indians. Foreign carriers have mastered the art of manipulating more seat capacity in the Indian sector. Some of the points to be noted in this regard are -

- 300 business jets, 300 small aircraft and 250 helicopters are expected to be added to the current fleet in the next five years. - Growth in aviation is accentuating demand for MRO facilities. - Greenfield airports under Public Private Partnership at Navi Mumbai and Mopa (Goa). - The development of new airports – the Airports Authority of India aims to bring around 250 airports under operation across the country by 2020. - The North-east region – the Airports Authority of India plans to develop Guwahati as an inter-regional hub and Agartala, Imphal and Dibrugarh as intra-regional hubs. - The Airports Authority of India plans to spend USD 1.3 Billion on nonmetro projects between 2013 and 2017, focusing on the modernisation and upgradation of airports. - Indian airports are emulating the SEZ Aerotropolis model to enhance revenues, focus on revenues from retail, advertising and vehicle parking, security equipment and services. It is hence, crucial for our national civil aviation authorities and bodies to identify the sensitivities related to taxation, standard practices, rules and regulations from a global perspective. When we do so, we can come to enjoy the benefits of economic growth that aviation brings. Being one of the most populated nations in the world, we can aim to claim a bigger share in the air traffic domestically with increased affordability in travel and competitive pricing.

Travel Trends

45>>

Travel resellers: how tech savvy must you get? There are thousands of ways in which technology is forcing air travel to become more evolved and futuristic, says Rajeev Kumar, CEO and MD, Mystifly. COURTESY: Tnooz.com

e reached the milestone of having more devices than humans back in 2015 and aviation is deep into the era of digital transformation. We can see its effects everywhere – from digitised airports, to creative seating by airlines, to the development of apps that support the entire customer journey. Air travel and the world at large is moving at a pace that can be hard to keep up with. What does this mean? Put simply, the accessibility to consumers of such enormous power can, literally, make or break an industry. Businesses in every sector are waking up to this shift and ignoring it is no longer an option. Those who are still grappling with legacy and archaic back-end systems are in a more precarious position than most. In the case of travel resellers, the question is not only about keeping up with this hi-fi techno-jumble but also staying relevant within the specific airline ecosystem of carriers, GDSs, fare rules and more. Each component of the ecosystem is getting progressively more transparent and customer-centric, each with its own set of benchmarks and best practice. For example while airlines are attempting to streamline their distribution options to best serve the customer, GDSs are evolving their technologies to best serve the airlines. Simultaneously, innovative business models are emerging across the value chain and having a disruptive influence on the airline sector. In this matrix, what can the travel reseller do to free their businesses from a legacy mindset and transition to a sustainable and futuristic approach that can achieve global scale? How technologically advanced do resellers need to become to survive in the era of digitization?

Is a digital facelift really enough? You build a flashy, mobile-enabled website, maybe even an app. You are active on all social media channels. You share great content, images and videos showing your customers all the fantastic places you can help them travel to, promoting deals which are the best in the market.

complex, travel agencies and tour operators need to be able to finetune revenues at a micro level to maximise margins. Revenue mark-ups and discounts should be mapped around different categories – at a customer level, cabin class, seat type, origin and destination and more.

But what happens when there is a surge in demand and you are still depending on manual processes and on frontline desk agents. Even deeper into the process you might be struggling to manage a multitude of commission contracts, unable to automate delivery of deals across multiple subscriber IDs.

Currently, it is mostly handled through manual or legacy processes that do not allow the business to build differential mark-ups between customer types. Automation of revenue management is critical for the success of airlines.

This illustrates an often overlooked dynamic – digital transformation is about more than a revamped homepage. Real and meaningful digitally driven business transformation goes deeper into the core of an organisation and is the only way to fully reap the benefits of what digitization can offer.

Deals and delivery automation Automation is a pre-requisite for businesses looking to operate at a global scale and for those looking to deliver deals to customers on a

real-time basis. To be able to do this, resellers and agents need to have a single platform which consolidates and aggregates GDS and LCC content This is not a new idea. In 2012, IATA published a report that spoke on the possibility of “intelligent content aggregators” which are XML-based with rules-driven middleware. This is a proven concept in 2016 and travel enablers can secure material advantages with solutions as simple as an API. Act now before it’s too late Travel businesses with a robust technology framework are capable of engaging with the most technically advanced and demanding end-users – the travellers themselves.

One of the smartest ways to go about this is to identify the areas where legacy exists and to apply the right solutions to simplify, automate and optimise these functions. At Mystifly we have identified some key areas which travel resellers need to address in order to take their business to the next level in the current climate. Automating the supplier management system Contracting, storing and managing multiple commission contracts with airlines, GDSs and corporates, among others, is tedious and timeconsuming. This alone can be detrimental to a business’ capacity to deliver at a global scale. Automation of these processes can free up around 40% of time needed using legacy systems and workflows. Revenue management As fare structures get

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Happenings

46>>

Hyatt Regency Delhi hosts gala dinner for Top 100 CEO’S

Embassy of Iceland hosts film tourism conference in Chennai, Hyderabad

he Hyatt Regency Delhi organized ‘The CEO Series 2016’. The India Edition of CEO featured Celebrity Chef & MasterChef Australia Judge Gary Mehigan who, along with Executive Chef Hyatt Regency Delhi, Ivan Chieregatti, curated exclusive seven course menu on the theme of “7 Wonders of the World”. The menu was inspired from the seven wonders of the world such as salmon with flavours of ceviche from Peru, butter roasted cauliflower with Indian spices and Brazilian Moqueca’ crustacean veloute. Aseem Kapoor, GM, Hyatt Regency Delhi , “We are delighted to have Chef Gary Mehigan who has conceptualised such an innovative and scrumptious menu for our esteemed guests.”

he Embassy of Iceland hosted a film tourism conference for the Tamil & Telugu film industries in Chennai and Hyderabad in September conducted by Blue Square Consultants. The event was attended by top producers and cinematographers. Thorir Ibsen, Ambassador of Iceland to India and Kumar Sitaraman, Honorary Consul General of Iceland in Chennai highlighted the scenic locales and the benefits of shooting in Iceland. Thorir said, “The local crews available are well experienced and well trained for producing quality films in tough conditions. Besides these, the incentives for filming in Iceland will be increased from the current 20% to 25% in 2017.”

Turkey Tourism conducts ‘Destination Turkey’ workshop in India

Andhra Pradesh to create employment and better infrastructure

he Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism, along with the Association of Turkish Travel Agents and Turkish Hoteliers Federation, organized an eight city roadshow ‘Destination Turkey Workshop for the travel trade from 26 September to 4 October in Mumbai, Bangalore, Kolkata, Lucknow, Delhi, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad and Chennai, with an attendance of 35 participants from Turkey comprising leading travel agents and hoteliers besides Turkish Airlines. Ozgur Ayturk Coordinator, Ministry of Culture and Tourism Turkey said, “India is a very important market for us. We have seen a good response from India over the years. The eight-city roadshow was conducted to increase destination awareness and highlight the new attractions in Turkey. We hope this event will also add positive impact and further increase the Indian footfall in Turkey.”

Voyager’s World > October 2016

ndhra Pradesh continues to attract visitors from across the globe and registered 1218.3 lakh tourist arrivals in 2015 which is a jump of 30% over 2014 with its unique temples, pristine beaches, stunning caves and hill stations, scenic backwaters, and thrilling wildlife sanctuaries. The Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, Chandrababu Naidu highlighted on developing an ecosystem in India which is favourable for tourism and on the potential of tourism for employment generation and better infrastructure.Speaking on the occasion of the CII Summit, Hon’ble CM urged for more focus on tourism in the next Union Budget. Andhra Pradesh Tourism has put up a stall at Vigyan Bhavan, New Delhi during the ongoing CII Summit.

47>>

Brand USA’s fifth Annual India Mission held

rand USA conducted its fifth annual India Mission for the travel trade that witnessed an excellent response from the Indian travel industry professionals. The U.S. delegation included representatives from 37 U.S. companies including destinations, attractions, hotels, and receptive operators – the largest group to date.

Sheema Vohra, Managing Director, Brand USA in India added, “Brand USA’s robust travel trade outreach coupled with effective consumer marketing, cooperative engagements and PR in India ensures new developments and partnerships in this market, offering a bouquet of travel offering to the discerning Indian visitor. We are thrilled by a great response from the Indian travel trade in all three cities are confident that this trend will continue over the next decade providing an excellent opportunity for our Indian travel partners to cultivate lucrative business opportunities with the USA.” Christopher L. Thompson, President and CEO, Brand USA said, “The number of Indian visitors to the United States continues to grow and the opportunities within India as a source market are numerous. In 2015, more than 1.1 million Indians visited the United States, a 17% increase over 2014. India will surely be a key contributor toward our goal of welcoming 100 million international visitors to the United States by 2021.

Tourism Fiji, Rosie Holidays complete three city roadshow in India

Lakshadweep Tourism announced re-opening of Bangaram Island Resort

Tourism Ireland organizes India Sales Mission in Mumbai & Delhi

ourism Fiji and Rosie Holidays, in partnership with five key resorts & hotels from Fiji Islands as well as Fiji Airways, conducted a three city roadshow in India with Fiji delegation like Ahura Resorts, Matamanoa Island Resort, Namale Resort & Spa, Nanuku Auberge Resort, The Pearl South Pacific, Fiji Airways. Matthew Stoeckel, Chief Executive Officer, Tourism Fiji, said, “India is an important emerging market with a lot of potential. Our priority in this market is to capitalize on the new Fiji Airways Singapore service .“

akshadweep Tourism organized a roadshow on 19 September in Mumbai to announce the reopening of the Bangaram Island Resort. Bangaram offers spectacular coral reefs amid lagoons, beaches and coconut palms. Over the years, the Bangaram Island Resort has become a destination for discerning International visitors, who are looking for a complete remote island experience. Tariq Tomas, IAS Secretary (Tourism), UT of Lakshadweep said, “Bangaram Island Resort is an exclusive offering of the destination and the administration is making every effort to reach out to the travel agent community ”

ourism Ireland’s CEO Niall Gibbons led a delegation of key island of Ireland industry partners to Mumbai and Delhi as part of its 2016 Sales Mission. Niall said, “Our sales mission is a key element of our promotional programme in India. It gave our tourism partners a platform to inform and influence the Indian travel trade about what the island of Ireland has to offer and, importantly, encourage them to include the destination in their brochures and programmes. Tourism Ireland is committed to growing visitor numbers to the island of Ireland from India.”

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Technology

48>>

Relevancy is the currency of today’s successful travel technologies Eric Hallerberg, Sabre’s Country Director UK and Ireland, talks about how customer service still matters in today’s technology driven travel times. Courtesy: Tnooz.com

hile technology of all kinds propels the travel industry forward, the reality is that some things haven’t changed. Customer service still matters most, travelers still want novel experiences, and experts still have a lot to offer that self-service tools don’t.

fingertips. Yet, once information moved at the speed of light, information no longer became a competitive advantage. Today, the competitive advantage comes from analysis. Those who process, analyze and act on information first have the advantage.

The more things change, the more they stay the same. Technology, much like life, is cyclical. Things change rapidly, oftentimes changing beyond recognition. Then at some point, things become familiar: similar challenges, similar opportunities, similar conversations. The realization that the tools have changed but not the objectives.

In pursuit of your slice of relevancy We have established the movement from information as relevancy to analysis as relevancy. Successful travel technologies are able to fuel this analysis. It is in this analysis that lies all truths. In order to stay relevant, this analysis must offer three things -

This brings me to relevancy. Once a currency of yore, relevancy was a corollary for information. Those who had the means had the information. With that information, relevancy was a high-value currency. Imagine the adventurers returning with neverbefore-seen spices and fantastical stories. Or the businessman with the latest news by ship, learned before any of her competition.

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As the internet exploded, information became commonplace. Or “democratized,” as we say. The whole world’s knowledge, at your

- It must be timely. You cannot be relevant using a dated analysis. - It must be accurate. You cannot be relevant using flawed inputs. - It must be flexible. You cannot be relevant if you are overly rigid. The opportunity lies in successfully managing to be timely, accurate and flexible – repeatedly. Springboard into the data lake Whether Big Data or small data, the data is a necessity. There can be no relevance without it! The data is the information, the exhaust of countless transactions, intentions, and behaviors. Yet, this data cannot be the best it can be

without centralization. It may have once been sufficient to silo data, keeping it separated and sorted. Yet with storage costs a non-issue, data can no longer exist only as individual streams. The view should be the data lake. Sure, each individual stream fills up the lake. But the lake offers the greatest opportunity to inform cross-channel initiatives, foster collaboration across business units and surface critical insights into customers. - 95% of data within organizations remains untapped - 39% of marketers believe data is collected too infrequently or not in real-time - 39% of marketers say they cannot turn their data into actionable insights - 26% of organizations do not use real-time, on-site behavior to personalise - 40% of organizations do not target any customer segments - 28% of marketers are unaware of which customers to focus on The stats on data are still surprisingly sparse when it comes to the agile use of real-time inputs. Beyond just real-time, many organizations are not nearly as

competent in data integration as they want to be. Much of this data remains mired in the mud, unable to find its way to the lake. The holistic “one version of the truth” is a critical component of data-driven enterprise, and that view only comes from a centralized source. Without visibility, there can be no relevancy. The revolution to stay relevant This is not just about technology for technology’s sake. Technology is growing so fast that we need to understand how our travelers behave. It’s not just about doing something cool but about doing something that serves the customer. This is why relevancy is the most valuable currency of today’s travel technologies. The refrain of “right offer at the right time to the right person” is a well-worn mantra. Even large organizations like Sabre, which were pioneers in the creation of an entire industry, must remain relevant through listening to customers and delivering the technology that powers tomorrow, today. The revolution lies in this pursuit, as only the relevant not only survive, but thrive!

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Voyager’s World > October 2016

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Top Appointments

49>> Anuj Soin

Sunit Kumar

F&B Manager Courtyard by Marriott Gurgaon

General Manager Hyatt Pune

nuj Soin has been appointed as the Food and Beverage Manager of the Courtyard by Marriott Gurgaon. Prior to this, he worked as the Events Manager – Food & Beverage in the Courtyard by Marriott Gurgaon. He has also worked with The Leela Ambience, The Taj Rambagh Palace, Jaipur and Eros Hotel Delhi.

he Hyatt Hotels Corporation appoints Sumit Kumar as the General Manager of Hyatt Pune.He started his career with Grand Hyatt Dubai, Grand Hyatt Muscat, Hyatt Place Gurgaon, Director of Food & Beverage at the Park Hyatt Goa Resort and Spa and he opened the first Hyatt Place Hotel in Hampi.

Deep Preet Bindra

Deepak Arora

Director of Sales & Marketing Bengaluru Marriott Hotel, Whitefield

Director- India Leading Hotels of the World

he Bengaluru Marriott Hotel, Whitefield appoints Deep Preet Bindra as the Director of Sales and Marketing. Prior to this he has worked at JW Marriott at Aerocity in New Delhi as the Director of Sales.He has also worked with brands like Westin Sohna Resort, The Oberoi Group, Kingfisher Airlines and Thomas Cook India.

eepak Arora has been appointed as the director in India of the Leading Hotels of the World in New Delhi. Prior to this, he worked as the director of sales for North India of the Leading Hotels of the World. He brings in an experience of more than a decade.

Nicholas Dumbell

Gurpreet Singh

General Manager Renaissance Mumbai Convention Centre Hotel-Powai

General Manager Akquasun Hong Kong

urpreet Singh joins Akquasun Hong Kong as the General Manager for the MICE department.He has an experience of over 12 years in handling numerous departments. He started his career as a travel consultant and further managing sales and operations. He also has a significant experience in managing long-term relationships with customers.

icholas Dumbell joins Renaissance Mumbai Convention Centre Hotel & Lakeside Chalet- Mumbai, Marriott Executive Apartments as the General Manager. Prior to this, he worked as the General Manager of Bengaluru Whitefield Marriott. He has also worked with Renaissance Kiev Hotel, Breadsall Priory Marriott Hotel and Country Club.

Philippe Bijaoui

Prateek Kalra

Chief Development Officer- EUROPE, MIDDLE EAST, EURASIA AND AFRICA Wyndham Hotel Group

hilippe Bijaoui is appointed as the Chief Development Officer of Wyndham Hotel Group for Europe, Middle East, Eurasia and Africa (EMEA). Prior to this, he has worked as the Vice President Development Europe for InterContinental Hotel Group. He has worked with Rezidor, Club Med, HVS International, City Hotels S.A. and Groupe Immobilière Hôtelière.

Director of Food & Beverages Taj Coromandel, Chennai

he Taj Coromandel, Chennai appoints Prateek Kalra as the Director of Food & Beverages. Prior to this, he worked with The Westin Mumbai Garden City as the F&B Manager. He started his career at the Taj Palace Hotel, New Delhi, Gateway Hotels, Assistant Food & Beverage Manager -Taj Lands End, Mumbai.

Srijan Vadhera

Rajat Kalia

General Manager Fairmont Jaipur

Food & Beverage Manager Leela Palace New Delhi

he Leela Palace New Delhi appoints Rajat Kalia as the Food and Beverage Manager. He started his career with The Leela Palace Bengaluru as Assistant Restaurant Manager of Citrus. He has worked with hospitality brands like Taj Vivanta, Surajkund, JW Marriott Aerocity, New Delhi, One and Only Reethi Rah, Maldives.

he Fairmont Jaipur appoints Srijan Vadhera as the General Manager. He brings with him an experience of more than 18 years in various positions like Director Sales & Marketing - Zuri Group Global , Director of Sales & Marketing - Sheraton Bangalore and Resident Manager at Shangri-La Hotel Bengaluru.

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NETWORKING ISthe THE networKIng Is Ke KEY Y October 2016

November 2016

October2016

December 2016

January 2017

February 2017

19, 20 Tourism and Events Expo Poland

19, 20, 21 ITB Asia Singapore

24, 25 Czech Travel Market Czech Republic

28, 29, 30, 31 Reisen & Caravan Germany

November 2016 4, 5, 6

December 2016 Nov 29, December 1

Holiday Expo Visakhapatnam

ibtm Spain

7, 8, 9 World Travel Market London

13, 14, 15, 16 ICCA Congress 2016 Malaysia

25, 26, 27 India International Travel Mart Pune

2, 3, 4 India International Travel Mart Hyderabad

2, 3, 4 Chengdu International Tourism Expo Chengdu, China

16, 17, 18 Holiday Expo Amritsar

January 2017

February 2017

18, 19, 20, 21, 22

10, 11, 12

Fitur Spain

Tourest Estonia

19, 20, 21

23, 24, 25

India International Travel Mart Kochi

Guangzhou Intâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;l Travel Fair China

26, 27, 28, 29

24, 25, 26

Emitt Turkey

India International Travel Mart Kolkata

27, 28, 29

24, 25, 26

Holiday Expo Coimbatore

Ferie for Alle Denmark