According to CAPA India, the combination of India’s outbound potential, supplemented by other South Asian countries as extension markets and the opportunity to capture intercontinental transfer traffic via Indian hubs, makes this arguably one of the most exciting long-haul markets in the world. Indian carriers currently only have around 65 widebodies (of which some are not operational). In contrast, the ME carriers have close to 500 widebodies, of which more than 250 are with Emirates alone. As a result, 6th freedom carriers accounted for the dominant share of long-haul traffic (64%) and ultra-long-haul traffic (80%) to/from India prior to the pandemic.

Speaking about the latest update from Vistara, Jay Bhatia, TAAI VP, says, “The airline has said that the agents can use the credit cards on the list they have circulated to the travel agents as a payment option on the GDS. However, other cards were not listed. Therefore, TAAI had taken this issue up with them and now the airline has added multiple cards on this list that agents can use to book.”

Highlighting the inability of hotels in utilizing the increased Floor Area Ratio, Pradeep Shetty, FHRAI president, says, “It is contributing to a gap between the increasing demand fuelled by the escalating influx of airline passengers. However, hotel infrastructure is not growing in Delhi. Addressing these issues would lead to sustainable growth. The current challenges faced by hotels in Delhi regarding the utilization of additional FAR are hindering the sector’s ability to keep pace with the dynamic demands.”

With close to 50 hotels in the pipeline, IHG® Hotels & Resorts, one of the world’s leading hotel companies, will double its operating portfolio in India in next 5 years.  The company recorded strong signing performance in 2023 with 13 deals closed across its brands in luxury, premium and essentials categories, strengthening its footprint in cities such as Gurgaon, Jim Corbett, Mumbai, Amritsar and Goa. Close to 70% of the signings were in midscale and upper midscale segments, which continues to be a growth driver for the company in India, followed by premium and luxury. IHG’s ambitious development pipeline including worldclass brands such as InterContinental Hotels and Resorts, Crowne Plaza, voco, Holiday Inn, Holiday Inn Express and Staybridge Suites underscores the company’s strategic focus on capturing the growing demand for branded accommodations across India and offer diverse hospitality experiences to travellers with different needs. Beyond established destinations, IHG is targeting high-growth secondary markets like  Amritsar, Lucknow, Zirakpur, Kasauli and Katra, while reinvigorating its footing in popular tourist destinations. The past year, IHG also announced the debut of its premium conversion brand, voco in India with a signing in Gurgaon. Powered by the strength and scale of the IHG system, voco offers owners the chance to access the upscale segment quickly. Since the launch, the brand has seen phenomenal success in the country with 4 additional signings in 2023 across key leisure & business destinations such as Jim Corbett, Mumbai, Amritsar and Goa, allowing IHG to further diversify its portfolio to meet evolving guest preferences across the country. Haitham Mattar, Managing Director, India, Middle East and Africa, IHG Hotels & Resorts commented: “We have a long-standing history in India, and we …

A survey by Marriott Bonvoy has found that a majority of Gen Zs and Millennials in Asia Pacific excluding China (APEC) prefer the simplicity of belonging to one comprehensive loyalty travel programme. While 60% of them are actively subscribed to loyalty programs, the challenge of juggling several loyalty programs has led most (57%) to seek out one program that meets all their travel needs.

Palladium Hotel Group is strengthening its international presence with its arrival in the Middle East. The project announced will be carried out in conjunction with Al Marjan and Almal Real Estate Development, an award-winning ultra-luxury developer based in the region. The ambitious project, which attracts more than $100 million in investment, will consist of 442 hotel rooms and residential units. It represents the first international opening for the iconic Ibiza-born brand, which is now to be known as Ushuaïa Unexpected Hotels & Residences, integrating the concept of branded residences with the existing hotel proposition. The hotel and residential facility will be located on Al Marjan Island in Ras Al Khaimah, one of the region’s premier tourist and investment destinations, and will comprise a sophisticated beach club, exquisite restaurant and captivating infinity pool, all situated adjacent to the Wynn Resort Island and overlooking the picturesque Arabian Gulf. Jesús Sobrino, CEO of Palladium Hotel Group, said: “This is a triple milestone for the company, as we announce our arrival in the Middle East and the growth of an emblematic brand for Palladium Hotel Group, as well as the group’s first foray into the branded residences segment. We are proud to be able to carry out this project hand in hand with two partners with whom we are aligned on the concepts of service and entertainment, and therefore we thank Almal Development and Al Marjan for their trust.” Dmytro Starovoitov, Co-Founder, Almal Development, said: “Our new development embodies Almal’s commitment to delivering unmatched luxury and sophistication in the realm of hospitality and entertainment. As a full-service investment and development company, we are excited to bring the brand Ushuaïa Unexpected Hotels & Residences to …

IHCL announced the opening of a Vivanta hotel in Jamshedpur, Jharkhand. Located in the heart of the city, the hotel is a seamless blend of contemporary elegance and local tribal heritage. Speaking on the occasion, Puneet Chhatwal, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, IHCL said, “We are delighted to unveil Vivanta in Jamshedpur, India’s first planned industrial city. Founded by Jamsetji Tata and named after him, Jamshedpur is also known as Tatanagar due to the presence of multiple Tata companies. This opening will mark the debut of the Vivanta brand and will be IHCL’s second hotel in the city.” With the addition of this hotel, IHCL will have two hotels across Vivanta and Ginger brands in Jharkhand.

As part of the ongoing, continuous endeavor to enhance the customer journey through digitization, IndiGo will trial new entertainment content. Available to its customers inflight, using the IndiGo app, the trial will be conducted for customers travelling between the Delhi-Goa sector from 1st May 2024, for a period of three months.  Committed to enhancing its app to become a valuable tool for its customers, as well as improving the in-flight experience, the airline has upgraded its app to provide options to watch popular blockbuster movies, TV shows, access moving maps, games, as well as tune into a wide range of music genres, while cruising at 30,000ft.

Dr Sagnik Chowdhury, Deputy Director General & Regional Director (West & Central), Ministry of Tourism, Govt of India, along with his team made a detailed presentation to members of TAAI Western India in Mumbai on the merits of being an MoT-accredited travel agent and the approval process. Underlining some tweaks in the categories, his team also fielded some questions and challenges from the members. He said, “We also highlighted our certification programme which will go a long way in empowering their staff towards a more solid career in tourism.”

Which travel apps had the top-of-the-mind recall and how much time did they spend on these apps? Get interesting insights on the global travel app downloads, usage and spending in the latest report by mobile data and analytics platform Data.ai titled ‘State of Mobile 2024’. The findings show a jump in activity for travel brands led by online travel agencies.   OTAs make a huge jump According to the ‘State of Mobile 2024’ report, in 2023 travel app downloads numbered just more than 3 billion – up 13% from 2.7 billion in 2022. Integrated travel service apps – the category Data.ai uses for OTAs such as Booking.com, Expedia, Trip.com, and such – saw the biggest jump in downloads in 2023, up 34%, while airline apps were up 23% and hotel apps 16%. It is clear that the huge demand for travel was not a one-off. Compared to the low in 2020, global downloads more than doubled by 2023 and time spent was up more than 85%.   Marketers take note Globally, consumers are spending more time using their travel apps. In 2023, total time spent worldwide on travel apps was just more than 15.7 billion hours – up from 12.6 billion in 2022. Across all categories of apps and the top 10 markets analysed, Data.ai found time spent on mobile surpassed five hours per day in 2023 – up 6%. And marketers have taken notice – mobile ad spend was up 8% in 2023 to $362 billion.   Transport apps lead the way Transportation apps saw the biggest year-over-year gains. The most common type of travel apps consumers are using are transportation ones such as Uber and Lyft. In the …