Enterprising Travel Agents Association (ETAA) organised its first travel agent meet in Hyderabad on February 10, 2017, at Hotel Royalton. The event received an overwhelming response from its members and others from the travel trade. The event was attended by Carl Dantas, Chairman Emeritus, ETAA; Jagat Mehta, President, ETAA; Abhijit Khadilkar, National General Secretary, ETAA; Dipti Thakoor, National Jt. Secretary; Dharmesh Advani, Treasurer, ETAA, and M P Joy, South India Chapter Chairman. More than 70 travel agents from various associations attended the event from Hyderabad and other surrounding cities. There was a brief knowledge session by TrawellTag Cover-More conducted by renowned trainer Aman Koushik. The ETAA National Board and Regional Chapters are all gearing up to welcome members to its upcoming ETAA Convention at Leonia Resorts, Hyderabad from March 3-5, 2017.

The Board of Thomas Cook (India) at its meeting on February 14, 2017, announced the elevation of Mahesh Iyer as Chief Executive Officer. Prior to his elevation, Iyer was Chief Operating Officer of the company. He assumes direct responsibility for the company’s P&L, day to day operations, strategic planning, management of key relationships, as well as building a sustainable growth oriented organisation that maximises value for all its stakeholders. Madhavan Menon, Chairman & Managing Director, Thomas Cook (India) said, “I am delighted with Mahesh’s elevation as Chief Executive Officer. A Thomas Cook veteran of 22 years, he will now lead Thomas Cook India. He joins the leaders of the group’s other travel namely Dipak Deva of TCI-Sita, Vishal Suri of SOTC and Maria Ng of Kuoni Hong Kong who will have the freedom in managing their respective companies and will report to me as part of the larger group structure.”

Tourism Australia has commenced a fresh phase of its marketing initiatives across the television, digital and print platforms. At the helm of the campaign is a television commercial (TVC) featuring a glorious montage of stunning locales, scenic coastline and incredible tourism experiences Down Under. The TVC showcases the pristine Great Barrier Reef, Kangaroo Island, Great Ocean Road, Sydney Harbour Bridge and much more with its enchanting visuals highlighting the beauty and natural landscape of Australia. The commercial will be rolled out across 30 television channels including English entertainment, infotainment, lifestyle, news and select Hindi General Entertainment channels. Tourism Australia will also capitalise on the upcoming India – Australia cricket test series through various media initiatives. In addition to television, high impact advertisements will be featured in the print space in collaboration with key distribution partners, including SOTC, Mercury Travels, TUI, Flightshop, D Pauls, Kulin Kumar Holidays, among others. Another major focus of the tactical, offer-driven campaign will be on digital, consisting of regular display ads and content, with aspirational destination imagery and creative renditions, all inviting travel enthusiasts to book a holiday to Australia at unbeatable prices. Nishant Kashikar, Country Manager – India & Gulf, Tourism Australia said, “Our latest campaign showcasing Australia’s aquatic and coastal scenery has truly captured the attention of the Indian traveller, and reaffirmed our research indications that international visitors enjoy our aquatic or coastal environments in some way – from snorkeling to simply going to the beach. In our upcoming marketing activities, we will leverage uniquely Australian experiences to entice more travellers to choose Australia as their next holiday destination.”

Since the last two years, Indonesia recorded a growing number of Indian travellers. Data shows that in 2014 there were 237,990 visits to Indonesia which increased to 336,575 by the end of November 2016. Andriyatna Rubenta, Deputy Director of Sales Mission for Asia Pacific, Ministry of Tourism Republic of Indonesia, said, “The India market is booming and therefore a steady promotional effort is a logical step to keep the trend growing. Thus, it is relevant that the Ministry set a high target for Indian market of 546,000 visits by the end of 2017 or increasing 56 per cent from last year’s target of 350,000.” He was leading a sales mission to India organised jointly by the Ministry of Tourism Republic of Indonesia and the Consulate General of The Republic of Indonesia in Mumbai. “India is currently the sixth source market for foreign tourist arrivals and the numbers have been steadily growing. Especially now with Garuda Indonesia connecting Jakarta and Mumbai, we are optimistic about this year’s progress,” he said. He informed that they are looking at initiating additional air routes to connect more Indian cities since the response to the commencement of the Garuda flight has been strong. The leisure segment was the strongest in 2016, followed by MICE and a strong demand for weddings as well.

As part of its expanding visa services network for the Government of India’s Ministry of External Affairs worldwide, VFS Global will now manage India visa processing services in three additional countries: Spain, Thailand and South Africa. VFS Global has served the Government of India since 2007, and manages visa processing for the client government in a total of 12 countries worldwide. The Embassy of India in Spain and VFS Global have signed a four-year contract to manage India visa processing services in three cities: Madrid, Barcelona and Las Palmas. The new centres in these cities are on schedule to open in April 2017. VFS Global won the contract to offer India visa processing services in Spain in July 2016. However, the launches were delayed due to a petition filed by BLS International against the Government of India in the Delhi High Court, disputing its disqualification from the Spain bid for failing to meet the minimum technical criteria. Spain is the 12th country where VFS Global will begin visa processing operations for the Indian Ministry of External Affairs. VFS Global also signed contracts to manage Indian visas in Thailand (Bangkok and Chiang Mai) and South Africa (Johannesburg, Durban, and Cape Town).

Lufthansa has started commercial services of the A350-900 on its Munich (MUC) to Delhi (DEL) route and the aircraft landed in Delhi on February 11 from Munich. The arrival was greeted with the celebratory water canon salute at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport. The city of Delhi becomes the first destination worldwide to welcome Lufthansa’s most modern and environmentally friendly long haul aircraft, the A350-900. “The launch of Lufthansa A350 services in Delhi marks an important milestone in our growing partnership with India. This game-changing aircraft reflects the values of the new global Indian, and reaffirms our commitment to this important market by introducing the very best and latest in air travel,” said Wolfgang Will, Senior Director South Asia, Lufthansa Passenger Airlines.

Mauritius Tourism Promotion Authority will conduct a five-city roadshow in India from February 27 to March 4, 2017,  covering Chandigarh, Pune, Hyderabad and Kolkata. The roadshow will enable Indian trade partners in each city to interact with Mauritian delegation comprising airlines, resorts, attractions, DMCs, among others. Vivek Anand, Country Manager, MTPA India, said “We are conducting this Roadshow so that the Indian tour operators, MICE companies and wedding planners learn more about the destination and have an opportunity to meet and explore ways to collaborate with the Mauritian suppliers”.

Considering the uptick in domestic tourism, the Department of Tourism, Government of Kerala recently organised B2B roadshows in multiple metros including Mumbai. The delegation from Kerala was led by Shine KS, Tourist Information Officer, Department of Tourism, Govt of Kerala and comprised 63 major players from the state’s tourism industry – the highest so far. Explaining the initiatives for 2017, Shine KS said, “The marketing initiatives for the year 2016-17 were formulated and executed based on the keen understanding of the unique appeal that Kerala holds for visitors. The marketing measures adopted by the government have elevated the state to the top-tier of ‘must visit’ destinations around the world. There has been a remarkable increase in the arrival of tourists within a single year as a result of the various initiatives implemented by the Government. We will continue with our 10-point agenda which was launched in September 2016 under the Green Carpet Initiative which focuses on giving a facelift to select tourist destinations in the state to ensure security, cleanliness, hygiene, and scientific waste management methods, apart from offering unique experiences.”

IndiGo has added 20 new flights to cities with high demand and expanding potential. The airline has added flights to Jammu and Srinagar from Delhi only for February 13 and 14. The airline has unveiled additional to and fro flights connecting Hyderabad and Chandigarh; Chennai and Chandigarh; Chennai and Hyderabad; and Chennai and Kochi, starting February 20. Targeting the business and leisure travellers, the airline will also add a second daily flight on its Chennai-Singapore route beginning March 05 2017. In East India, IndiGo will enhance operations from Delhi and Kolkata to Bagdogra with 4 additional flights to strengthen connectivity between metro cities and remote routes. With a total of 883 flights connecting 41 destinations, these new flights will further consolidate IndiGo’s position as the fastest growing airline in India. It recently launched two new non-stop daily flights to Sharjah and additional flight to Muscat in a bid to consolidate its position in the Middle East market. It now offers a total of 903 flights connecting 41 destinations.

Choice Group of Hotels inaugurated its new property in Jaipur-Hotel Clarion Inn with 90 rooms. The hotel is located in Kukas, Jaipur. Suresh Kumar Gupta, Managing Director, Hotel Clarion Inn, informed that the hotel offers 10 suites, 20 deluxe and 60 superior rooms. There are two banquet halls, multi cuisine restaurant, open lawn to organise parties and weddings. He said, “The hotel is spread in 3000 Sq. Ft. Work is under progress for an international spa and gym which is expected to open soon. With all of this in future we are planning to start Thai food and other facilities like bar and café as well.” Radha Raman Rawat, Chairman, Hotel Clarion Inn, said “We hope that our guests who stay with us will get unique cognition by all the facilities provided to them.”