Category Archives: Agents

The Ministry of Culture & Sports of the Republic of Kazakhstan & Kazakh Tourism Board has appointed Rohit Shorey, Founder, Kazin DMC as their M!CE Tourism Ambassador For Kazakhstan in India. Kairat Sadvakassov, Deputy Chairman of Kazakh tourism board said that Shorey, has made a significant contribution to the overall development of tourism to the country from India region, especially M!CE. In a reception held at the Marriot hotel in Nur Sultan on the 27th November 2021, the board presented Shorey with a certificate of Ambassadorship. The reception was attended by Vishal Jain, Director, Kazin International, who signed the MoU and collected the award. Rohit & Vishal remains very bullish on Kazakhstan as a destination with vast potential in the field of tourism. owning to its wide diversity of offerings for all verticals of tourism. They feel that India & middle east will become a major source market for tourism to Kazakhstan and this is one the reasons why Kazin Dmc has maintained 100% focus on this destination since 2016. Kazakh Tourism, being the country’s brand manager for tourism and a subsidiary of the Ministry of Culture and Sports, serves the government’s goal of achieving an 8% contribution to GDP from tourism. The government is significantly developing the tourism infrastructure of the country by opening numerous branded hotels to cater the increasing demand of tourists. Almaty airport is going through a multi-million-dollar expansion to accommodate more airlines to serve the country. Air Astana has announced that they will resume direct flights between Almaty & Delhi effective 16 December after a 20-month hiatus. As the world is gearing towards normalcy, this announcement could not have a come at a better time.

Anna Paul, Head MICE North India, Inorbit Tours and Shailesh Patel, Proprietor, Sambhav International Travels are first week’s lucky winners for successfully subscribing to Singapore Tourism Board (STB) India’s WhatsApp Channel. Every week STB India is giving away exciting prizes to its new subscribers. One can easily subscribe to this WhatsApp channel by clicking this link http://bit.ly/stbindia and stand a chance to be the next winner. STB India’s WhatsApp channel provides updates on Destination Singapore in a more direct, swift and timely manner. Win exciting prizes by subscribing to STB India’s WhatsApp Channel: Subscribe to Singapore Tourism Board India’s WhatsApp Channel and stand a chance to win prizes every week. Get real time updates on Destination Singapore and STB’s initiatives. Subscribe by following 3 simple steps: Click this link (http://bit.ly/stbindia) to fill the form Send the prefilled WhatsApp message Save STB India’s contact card or number

As the tourism industry bounces back with all safety protocols, the Enterprising Travel Agents Association (ETAA), South Chapter recently initiated a knowledge session for its members. Many crucial changes in travel agents booking systems which will initiate digitalisation were announced. The session was held at The Paul Hotel Bangalore on 26 November and was all about discussions of TIDS and The Paul John Hotels & Resorts familiarization tour at Domlur, Bengaluru. The Travel Industry Designatory Service (TIDS) is an identity management program designed by IATA, Canada for all non-IATA travel companies made available free of cost globally. On procuring ETAA recommendation letter, the TIDS procedure will be complete. Travel agents and tour operators availing the service will get updated on the IATA agency list. This additional agency listing in turn with benefit airlines and hotel industry globally.

Consulate General of Malaysia and Tourism Malaysia Mumbai organises a Langkawi SOP briefing session to select Travel Trade Associations, Educational and MICE Operators. Taking gradual, calibrated measures to reopen international borders, Malaysia will allow the entry of fully vaccinated foreign tourists in Langkawi without quarantine.  The Malaysian government is implementing a pilot international tourism bubble project which will initially run for 3 months started from 15 November 2021. According to the SOPs issued by the Malaysian government, Malaysia will target fully vaccinated with the Covid-19 vaccine for the bubble projects. Travellers will also have to present a negative RT-PCR test report not older than 72 hours before departure to Langkawi. They will also be required to hold travel insurance of a minimum USD 80,000 with them. It is also necessary for foreign tourists to engage tour operators and guides licensed by the Ministry of Tourism, Arts, and Culture (MOTAC) for the trip.  Tourists must also register on the MySejahtera app before departing or upon arrival in KLIA 1. As a way forward strategy, Tourism Malaysia will be collaborating with its Airlines and product partners for many joint promotion campaigns, which will boost Indian footfalls in Malaysia. More than 97% of Malaysia’s 32 million population are vaccinated, government statistics show.

One of the ardent advocates of non-saya dates for weddings, Rajeev Jain, MD, Rashi Entertainment, believes that the Indian wedding industry will witness a significant rise as the pandemic eases. “I believe that international weddings are opening up very fast and by 2022 we will witness many international weddings. The client will spend more on entertainment as new concepts arise. The expenditure on food and clothes will also go up as the number of functions will increase due to being held within India,” he says.  

New research from the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) reveals the recovery of the Asia Pacific Travel & Tourism sector has soared ahead of many regions in the world with a year on year growth of more than 36%. Before the pandemic struck, Asia Pacific’s Travel & Tourism sector’s contribution to GDP represented more than US$ 3 trillion (9.9% of the region’s economy).  

Citing the pandemic as a factor, Rajni Hasija, Tourism & Marketing Director, IRCTC, said that there is a need to move out of the traditional itinerary and adopt new ways of travel amid a change in pattern in the tourism sector. She said, “The travel sector is set to undergo a transition from multi-destination tours to offbeat and slow-paced destinations.”

Department of Culture & Tourism (DCT) Abu Dhabi is organising Reunite #INABUDHABI- Luxury webinar on 26th November at 11:30am IST. Get a chance to learn more about upscale experiences, luxurious stay options, world-class dining and entertainment options. To join the webinar, write to jaspreet.kaur@ddppl.com or call +91 9650196532.

Visit.Brussels together with the Embassy of Belgium in India organized a networking lunch for 35 trade partners at the residence of H.E. François Delhaye, Ambassador of Belgium to India. The event was highly appreciated with warm interactions between the trade partners and representatives from the cultural, economic and visa sections of the Belgian Embassy. In fact, representing Visit.Brussels HQ was its Business Development Leisure – Pieter Callebaut, who was seen interacting with the travel fraternity, while reassuring them about the importance of the Indian market for Brussels’ tourism industry. The highlight of the event was Belgian gastronomy wherein participants were offered a spread of Belgian delights from waffles to beers and fries to Belgian beats. H.E. François Delhaye, while addressing the trade fraternity, said, “During these last two years we have been missing our Indian friends, but now Belgium is open for tourism again and we see the number of visa applications going up. Another good news is that we’ll probably see an increase in the number of flights between India and Europe in the coming weeks. The vaccination level in Belgium is very high and our hope is that this latest wave of Covid will not last long. To our Indian friends I say “Now is the time to start planning your next spring or summer trip to Europe” and there is no better place to start than Brussels, the capital and heart of Europe, a city rich in history and famous for its gastronomy and quality of life.” In 2022, Visit Brussels is planning on continuing to grow awareness and visibility of the European Capital through workshops, sales visits, travel agent destination trainings, consumer programs and much more. Training programmes are in …

MakeMyTrip has joined hands with the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) to promote regional air connectivity through UDAN scheme. Under the partnership, MakeMyTrip will now power UDAN flights on AirSewa portal to provide air connectivity to common man at affordable airfares to underserved destinations. MMT will market UDAN flights on its platform to promote its visibility and product discovery, making the dream of flying a reality for millions of Indians. MMT will also market UDAN flights offline through its large network of franchisee retail stores for offline booking. Jyotiraditya M. Scindia, Union Minister of Civil Aviation, said, “Promoting air connectivity to unserved and underserved regions not only provides impetus to the economy but also contributes to equitable and inclusive growth. As the RCS-UDAN scheme completes four successful years – our enabling policies, incentives and partnerships with leading travel players will only improve air connectivity for common man at affordable airfares on regional and remote routes.” Deep Kalra, Founder & Executive Chairman, MakeMyTrip, added, “UDAN is a first of its kind scheme globally and has immensely contributed to domestic aviation market growth. We are privileged to work closely with the Government to promote regional air connectivity through online and offline travel channels and contribute towards Indian Aviation’s transformation under dynamic and bold leadership of Hon’ble minister.