On Wednesday evening, South Africa’s government made the decision to drop all of the country’s remaining pandemic-era restrictions, after the Presidential Coordinating Council and Cabinet determined that they’d served their purpose and were no longer needed, reports Travel Pulse. For travellers, the primary change is the removal of vaccination and testing requirements for entry into South Africa, but other revisions include the lifting of the nation’s indoor mask mandates and the limits on gathering sizes, and the elimination of COVID-19 border checks. “Today is a very historic day as we have reached a turning point since the outbreak of Covid-19…
Author: Disha Ghosh
Dubai city welcomed 6.17 million international overnight visitors from January to May 2022, a 197 per cent year-on-year (YoY) increase from the same five-month period in 2021, which saw the destination attracting just over two million international travellers. The latest tourism data was revealed by Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism (DET) at its first ‘City Briefing’ for 2022, a bi-annual event that provides an in-depth industry outlook to stakeholders and partners, and discusses future strategies to further reinforce the city’s position as a global hub for business, investment, talent and tourism. The event was attended by more than 1,200…
Graduates from across 50 non-UK top-ranking universities can come to the United Kingdom (UK) through a new visa scheme called the High Potential Individual (HPI) route visa. However, since no Indian institution figures among the top 50 universities, not even IITs or IIMs, Indians will not be eligible to apply under this scheme, reports Yeshi Seli in The New Indian Express. The closest India has in the QS ranking 2022 announced last week is Indian Institute of Science at 155. Eligible universities must appear in the top 50 rankings of at least two of the following — Times Higher Education…
VFS Global has signed a contract with the Bahrain Tourism & Exhibitions Authority to serve as their Market Based Representatives in India. In this role, VFS Global will be responsible for building trade relations with regional stakeholders, and promoting the destination through online and offline marketing, including social media, as well as public relations. The contract was signed by Dr. Nasser Ali Qaedi, CEO, BTEA and Arzan Khambatta, Head – Tourism Services, VFS Global. Arzan Khambatta, Head – Tourism Services, VFS Global, said, “We thank Bahrain Tourism & Exhibitions Authority for their faith in VFS Global, and look forward to…
Malaysia Airlines and Japan Airlines (JAL) have expanded their codeshare operations following Malaysia Airlines’ recent announcement to launch new direct flights from Kuala Lumpur to Tokyo, Haneda beginning on August 14, 2022. This significant move reaffirmed the strategic Joint Business partnership entered into by both oneworld Alliance members in July 2020, to better serve the customers and facilitate trade between Malaysia and Japan. Starting August 14, 2022, the codeshare will be expanded to Kuala Lumpur – Haneda route with the introduction of JAL codeshare on the flights operated by Malaysia Airlines. Customers from Malaysia, ASEAN, Australasia, and South Asia flying…
Air Canada will resume its daily seasonal service from Mumbai to Toronto, now operating via London Heathrow, starting October 31, 2022 until March 26, 2023. Mumbai is the airline’s second destination in the strategic Indian market. The new route is subject to receiving final government approvals. “We are extremely pleased to announce the return of our service between Mumbai and Toronto via London Heathrow,” said Virgilio Russi, Vice President International Sales, Air Canada. “Our flights will not only provide our customers from India with access to Toronto, but also a direct link to London Heathrow, enabling convenient one-stop connections to…
With travel restrictions being eased, Spain is witnessing an increased interest in travel from leisure and MICE travellers from India. Elisa Robles Fraga, Director, National Tourism Office of Spain, Mumbai & Tourism Counsellor, Embassy of Spain, India, talks to Disha Shah Ghosh about their trade activities in India and the steady interest for film shooting in Spain. Q. Spain Tourism has had an active presence in the Indian market for some years now. Where does India rank in pecking order of important international source markets for Spain Tourism? Historically speaking, countries like the UK, France, Germany, among others, have registered…
Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), which recently extended its contract to operate India’s passport services, expects to roll out chip-based e-passports by the end of the year, The Economic Times reports. TCS is also setting up a new command and control centre with the Ministry of External Affairs and a new data centre to support the backend requirements of the project, Tej Bhatla, the head of TCS’s Public Sector Business Unit, said. This is part of the second phase of the passport project the company bagged from the government recently. “The Ministry is looking at a launch timeline within this year…
After the outbreak of Covid, Lahaul and Spiti has witnessed a shortfall in the arrival of foreign tourists as compared to previous years, reports The Tribune. Data procured from the Tourism Department shows that in 2021, Lahaul and Spiti had witnessed only 420 foreign tourists, while in 2020, the number was only 155. The data shows that before the pandemic, Lahaul and Spiti was the favourite tourist destination. In 2019, the district had witnessed 14,948 foreigners, while in 2018, the number was 13,764. However, after the opening of Atal Tunnel, Lahaul and Spiti has witnessed a considerable increase in the…
Flying all the way from Seattle in the United States, India’s newest airline Akasa Air’s first Boeing 737 MAX aircraft touched down at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi on Tuesday. According to the Rakesh Jhunjhunwala-backed airline, the arrival of the aircraft brings it closer to obtaining its air operator’s permit (AOP), which is required for launching commercial operations in the country. “The arrival of our first aircraft is a very happy moment for all of us & marks an important milestone, bringing us closer to our vision of building India’s greenest, most dependable, and most affordable airline,” said…
