ITA Airways continues to enhance its intercontinental network to better meet the needs of travellers and will be opening its new direct flight from Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi to Leonardo da Vinci Airport in Rome Fiumicino on December 4. The new route will be operated with an Airbus A330, three times a week, departing from New Delhi, every Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday at 03:50 am and landing in Rome Fiumicino at 08:10 am. Return flights from Rome Fiumicino will depart every Monday, Wednesday and Saturday at 2:10 pm and will arrive in New Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport at 02:00 am, local time. With the new intercontinental connection, ITA Airways is further expanding into the Asian market, while it continues to strengthen the ability to attract connecting customers, tapping into the flows between India and North America, Germany, Spain and France. To support the new intercontinental flight from New Delhi to Rome and to enhance local awareness of the new Italian flagship carrier, ITA Airways is launching a multi-channel advertising campaign, which will highlight the New Delhi-Rome connection as well as the beauty of Italy and its most iconic destinations. The “It’s A” campaign will be live until December 13. It is developed on digital billboards in the most renowned shopping centers of the city, train stations and in all the main business and commercial areas throughout Delhi. The billboards will be also supported by a radio campaign, both in English and Hindu, on the 3 most important radio stations of the country, Mirchi, Radio One, City FM. This combination will allow ITA Airways to reach a wide range of the population mainly concentrated in urban areas, …

Rakesh Verma, Additional Secretary, Tourism, has shared that the National Tourism Board of India (NTBI) will have a separate M!CE Vertical plus dedicated M!CE promotion for India. “A dedicated funding of ₹50 crore has been proposed for M!CE vertical, which should go into incentivising organisations and associations for getting events in India,” he said.

Sarmad Hafeez, Secretary, Tourism, J&K, has said that they are celebrating different occasions and festivals, like spring festival and early almond blossom festival. “In spring, i.e. March and April we have tulip festival. There are many summer festivals, winter carnivals and we have a houseboat festival. Such events help us convey a message that things are happening in J&K,” he added.

India’s aviation sector is expected to grow at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 6 percent in the next 20 years, revealed Andrew Matters, Head of Policy Analysis, International Air Transport Association (IATA). “We at IATA expect Indian aviation to cater to 430 million additional air passenger journeys to and from and within India in 2040 compared to 2019,” he said.

Khalid Mohamed Said Al Arzi, Director of Tourism Trends Department, Sultanate of Oman, has said that they are working on incentives for wedding planners. “We are working with the stakeholders, with the ROP,and the board itself. There will be promising incentives on offer for the key wedding planners,” he said.

Inmarsat latest Passenger Experience Survey, has highlighted that 92% of Indian passengers would rebook an airline based on quality inflight Wi-Fi experiences. It revealed  83% of APAC passengers would rebook an airline based on quality inflight Wi-Fi.

Arun Kumar, Market Vice President- North India, Nepal and Bhutan, Marriott, has said that the boom of business in India and the average rate growth has helped them to get profitability back in place. “This has helped us to spend and reopen all the facilities, areas much quicker than we thought,” he added.

FAITH has unanimously elected board Members to Office Bearer positions for the term 2022 to 2024. Nakul Anand is the Chairman, while Tejbir Singh Anand and Jyoti Mayal are Vice-Chairman. Rajiv Mehra is the new General Secretary and P P Khanna is the Treasurer.

ATOAI organised its 26th Virtual Members Meet recently, where they introduced ATOAI Member Advantage Card. The card will empower its members in their marketing, sourcing, contracting and lowest possible B2B purchases enhancing their profitability.

To promote the Amazing Golf Experience, Tourism Authority of Thailand, New Delhi office held a Golf Roadshow at the Qutab Golf Course and The Delhi Golf Club. The event was attended by more than 100 golf travel specialists from India. Her Excellency Ms. Pattarat Hongthong, Ambassador of Thailand to India graced the occasion. She said “We thank all Indian partners who have been working closely us for many years and supporting Amazing Thailand. Thailand is fully opened and ready to welcome guests from India returning to Thailand once again.” Thailand also has Amazing Golf facilities. The country has more than 250 golf courses throughout the country—Golf courses by the sea, by the mountains, by the lakes, inside the cities even besides the airports. Top quality courses, reasonable green fees, friendly caddies. From the beach resorts in the south such as Phuket to the mountainous surroundings in the Chiang Mai, north of Thailand or the bustling cities of Bangkok and Pattaya, there are golf courses to suit every preference.