In-the-Issue

Budget hotels will benefit

Price is the most important factor to 47% of consumers when selecting accommodation, according to a poll by GlobalData. With less budget for travel but a strong desire to escape, many will turn to budget providers. Gus Gardner, Associate Travel and Tourism Analyst at GlobalData, comments, “Budget hotel operators will …

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Korea enthrals Indian buyers

The recently-concluded Korea Travel Expo saw buyers from across India having B2B meetings with over 15 suppliers from South Korea, including DMCs, RTOs and attractions. While many buyers appreciated the positive attitude of exhibitors from Korea, others are planning to travel to Korea as soon as borders open. Pradnya Naik, …

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‘Please start planning’

Urging all corporates to start thinking ahead and planning all their MICE trips, Madhavan Menon, Managing Director, Thomas Cook (India), predicts that we are likely to witness an acute shortage of capacity initially due to sentiments of ‘revenge’ travel. Speaking at the Thomas Cook India ‘Mission Tomorrow’ virtual event dedicated …

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Being future ready is crucial

Rupinder Brar, Additional Director General, Ministry of Tourism (MOT), claims that MOT is pushing for the industry’s demands to be heard, while creating a roadmap for promoting both inbound and domestic tourism. She says that the Ministry is aware of how lockdowns and restrictions significantly impact smaller businesses. The second …

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Phuket Sandbox: A test for travel

  KD Singh, Founder & President, TravelBullz, in a message to travel trade partners, has said that the success of ‘Phuket Sandbox’ is part of a bigger effort to reopen Thailand for international tourists. The Phuket Sandbox initiative allows vaccinated foreign tourists to enter Phuket from July 1. Manas Dwivedi …

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A safer, future-ready ecosystem

Vinay Malhotra, Regional Group COO – South Asia, Middle East & North Africa and Americas, VFS Global, says that in essence, the future of visa processing now rests with how the enablers are able to best integrate the dire need for safety to a new, disrupted journey. Globalisation brought with …

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Digital marketing is key

Having conducted more than 100 virtual sessions with the trade across India so far, Indiatourism has not only been encouraging them to register with MOT but also advocating digital marketing as the means to promote Incredible India – with an MDA of Rs. 50,000. Indiatourism has been doing an ‘incredible’ …

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‘Yoga: Our greatest heritage’

The slew of activities organised by Ministry of Tourism to celebrate the seventh International Day of Yoga aimed to bring to light the importance of the Indian heritage in a COVID-riddled and post-pandemic world. Nisha Verma Ministry of Tourism (MOT) recently concluded a slew of activities that it had organised …

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20,000+ rooms shut down

Hazel Jain India’s monthly occupancy reached a pandemic high in February (53.9%), which looked to be solid progress toward recovery as the monthly level was roughly 73% of 2019. By April, however, occupancy in the country fell to 31%, and more recently, just 21.5% for the week ending 30 May. …

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A hope in vaccines

Vaccinations are getting the popularity vote because they safeguard one’s health and allow for travel. But will it work? Benazir Nazar, CEO, Akbar Holidays We have been receiving a lot of enquiries for both international as well as domestic holidays from travellers who have got both their doses of vaccination. …

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