With the successful vaccination drive, Mauritius has further relaxed travel protocols effective from September 1. As per the new norm, vaccinated tourists from September 1 would have to spend only 7 days in a special ‘resort bubble’ hotel before going out to discover Mauritius. Commenting on this, Arvind Bundhun, Director of Mauritius Tourism Promotion Authority, said, “This is a major leap towards the full reopening of its borders on 1st October, when vaccinated international travellers will be welcomed in without restrictions. Visitors who present a negative PCR test taken in the 72 hours prior to embarkation will be able to…
Author: Prasenjit Chakraborty
Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI) on August 25 had a virtual interaction with Dr. Pramod Pandurang Sawant, CM, Goa and raised issues that are hampering the growth of tourism industry in the state. Jyoti Mayal, President, TAAI initiated the discussion and raised the major issues of concern hampering the growth of the tourism sector in the state and the travel agent’s fraternity. Mayal highlighted that most of the travel fraternity members are registered under the Directorate of Tourism, Government of Goa for which the license is renewed every year. Till last year, the fee, specifically to Travel Agents, was…
People across India are taking to the skies after months stuck in their homes during a deadly Covid-19 wave, driving a spike in demand for jet fuel, the oil product hit hardest by the ongoing pandemic. Indians have flocked to tourist spots across the country from the beaches of Goa on the west coast to the mountainous north on planes and in cars after the easing of restrictions. Air travel has climbed sharply, said Subhash Goyal, the chairman of STIC Travel — one of India’s biggest travel agents — estimating that domestic flights this month are around 75% of pre-virus…
With Sri Lankan Government’s announcement to reopen the island nation to fully vaccinated Indian tourists including for those who had administered Covaxin, SriLankan Airlines decided to strengthen its presence in India with more destinations and frequencies. Speaking to TravelBiz Monitor, Dimuthu Tennakoon, SriLankan Airlines’ head of worldwide sales and distribution, said that it’s a huge announcement at the most appropriate time. “ Currently, in India, more than 120 million people have been fully vaccinated which has resulted in the reawakening interest in travel. I strongly believe tourists from Northern, Southern and Western regions of India will visit Sri Lanka soon,”…
The government will sell its shareholding in four privately-run airports (Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, and Bengaluru) and is tentatively valuing its stake at INR 10,000 crore. The stake sale in these four airports, along with monetisation of 25 other Airports Authority of India (AAI)-run airports, including those in Chennai and Kozhikode, is a part of the national asset monetisation pipeline announced by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on August 23. The monetisation value of 25 AAI airports is pegged at INR 10,782 crore, based on estimated capital expenditure at the airports. The monetisation will be completed over the next four years. The…
The Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi) is marking the first anniversary of its Abu Dhabi Specialists E-learning Programme by introducing new modules and markets for the innovative training scheme. The programme, launched as part of DCT Abu Dhabi’s response to Covid-19, saw all forms of physical promotional offers, workshops and training courses shifted onto virtual platforms. Launched in May 2020, the e-learning has been rolled out across the markets in 17 different countries and in seven different languages. According to press release, so far, 13,670 applicants have registered for the course and more than…
Air travel bookings in India have gathered pace ahead of the festive season, offering hopes of a full revival for the sector battered by the pandemic. Airlines, however, remain cautious of a potential third wave of Covid-19, mindful of the severe dent to business during May and June this year when the second wave erased gains made in the months before. Domestic passenger traffic improved to about 4.52 million in the first three weeks of August, up from 3.31 million, 1.91 million and 1.41 million passengers in the same period during July, June and May, respectively, according to data collated…
SriLankan Airlines, the national carrier of Sri Lanka in a bid to promote greater travel opportunities from India to Sri Lanka, announced strengthening its presence in India with more destinations and frequencies offering travellers to enjoy the freedom of travel. Currently, SriLankan Airlines operates four flights a week from Chennai, three flights a week from Mumbai, and once a week from Bangalore to its hub in Colombo. To strengthen ongoing operations SriLankan will be introducing a host of frequency enhancements out of key Indian cities into Colombo effective September 1, 2021. At present, India accounts for over 120 million fully…
AVIAREPS India has won the Integrated sales marketing and Public Relations mandate for Utah Office of Tourism in India for next five years. The aim and objective is to position the tourism offerings of Utah in India, which is considered to be a great outdoor state. Commenting on the appointment, Rachel Bremer, Tourism Global Markets Director, Utah Governor’s Office of Economic Development, said, “We are pleased to announce that AVIAREPS India has been chosen to represent the Utah Office of Tourism in India for the next five years. The Utah Office of Tourism’s mission is to elevate life in Utah…
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has temporarily suspended visa on arrival facility for Indian nationals who have visa or residence permit issued by the United States, the United Kingdom or a European Union member state. This was announced by Etihad Airways on Twitter on August 23. “The UAE authorities have decided to temporarily suspend the Visa-on-arrival facility for passengers who are arriving from or been in India in the past 14 days,” a tweet from Etihad Help said in response to a user’s query. The UAE authorities have decided to temporarily suspend the Visa-on-arrival facility for passengers who are arriving…
