1. travel

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A DDP PUBLICATION
Pages:84 (Excluding covers) + 20 Pages Supplement
TravTalkIndia.com
ddppl.com
Vol. XXVI Issue 21; November 1st fortnight issue 2014
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TRAVTALK
1
ddppl.com
TravTalkIndia.com
NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
Thumbs up to VoA for US travellers
Mayaram is the
new Tourism
Secretary
The travel and tourism stakeholders in India are visibly upbeat and energised after hearing the
PM on US soil. The announcement that Person of Indian Origin (PIO) card-holders will get
lifetime visas and American tourists to India will soon get Visas-on-Arrival is of great significance.
M E G H A P AU L
s Prime Minister
Narendra Modi got a
rousing welcome from
some 20,000 cheering NRIs
when he addressed them from
a 360-degree rotating platform
at the iconic Madison Square
Garden, the people back home
also raised a toast to his
tourism-friendly policy back
home. The travel and tourism
stakeholders in India are visibly
upbeat and energised after
hearing the PM on the US
soil. The announcement that
A
Dipak Deva
Vikram Madhok
CEO- Destination Management
India & South Asia
Kuoni Destination Management
Managing Director
Abercrombie & Kent
Person of Indian Origin (PIO)
card-holders will get lifetime
visas and American tourists to
India will soon get visas on
arrival is of great significance.
The US citizens are one
of the higher spenders in the
world with per capita spending
at $1,350 in 2012. The US is
also the largest source of foreign tourists to India, accounting for a share of 15.8 per cent
or about one million tourists.
Dipak Deva, CEODestination Management, India
& South Asia, Kuoni Destination
Management pointed out that
this has been a promising
announcement. “The Visa-onArrival proposal was already
declared in the Union Budget
Contd. on page 5 VoA up by
28.9%
See full story on Page 5 Coming soon: A safe and clean India
Privatisation
of marketing
abroad
16%
Others
32%
14%
10%
NTB
formation
Tourist Safety
28%
Clean India
recently conducted a poll asking the industry, “In addition
to ETA / VOA, which other steps will push tourism into
India?” Foreseeing a similarity in replies, the following
options were given, including, tourist safety, Clean
India, formation of a National Tourism Board (NTB)
and the privatisation of Brand India marketing abroad.
Nearly 60 per cent of the replies focused on tourist safety and
a clean India. The good news is that the recent government initiatives such as
tourist police and the Clean India campaign are working towards making India a
safe and clean destination for tourists.
Contd. on page 4 The Appointments Committee
of the Cabinet has approved
the appointment of Arvind
Mayaram, (IAS), currently
Finance Secretary and
Secretary, Department of
Economic Affairs as the
Secretary, Ministry of Tourism
(MOT). Mayaram has
replaced Parvez Dewan,
IAS, on his retirement on
October 31, 2014. Mayaram
is a Rajasthan cadre (Indian
Administrative Service) officer
of the 1978 batch.
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BULLETIN
Maya at India Travel Awards
East India welcomed India Travel Awards – East 2014 to celebrate the Best
in the travel and tourism industry.
gets the details.
PEDEN DOMA BHUTIA
fter its tryst in South and
West India, Maya travelled
Eastwards as the India Travel
Awards – East celebrated the
A
nessed major players of the
travel, tourism and hospitality
industry in attendance. Bratya
Basu, Minister of Tourism and
Culture, West Bengal, was the
Chief Guest at the event while
and tour operators in the East
to help them further the cause
of tourism.
Some of the big ticket
winners were Jitendra Kumar
SanJeet, Director, DDP
Group, said, “Nominations
were received in 95 different
categories, nine new categories were created by
the travel industry them-
The winners of the India Travel Awards - East strike a pose with their trophies, along with SanJeet, Director, DDP Group, at the Novotel Kolkata Hotel & Residences.
achievements of those behind
the travel and tourism industry
in that part of the country.
The swanky Novotel
Kolkata Hotel & Residences
hosted the event which wit-
Umapada Chatterjee, Director,
West Bengal Tourism, and
Amita Motwani, Mrs India
International were also present
as honoured guests. Basu
talked about the awards being
an encouragement for the travel
Mohanty, who got the Wall of
Legends Award, JT Ramnani
was the DDP Game Changer,
Apurva Salarpuria received
the DDP Trailblazer award,
while Debjit Dutta was named
the Face of the Future.
selves. When voting was
finally opened, over 5,58,480
votes were received from
all over the world. The total
number of votes received
were from 45 cou tries and
320 cities.”
FINAL FILE-November-1st-2014:TT Layout 10/31/2014 12:52 PM Page 4
READERS TALK
Accolades for
VIEWPOINT
We received appreciation from our readers for the innovative work we have been
doing for the industry... We share with you some of our readers’ comments that
brought cheer to the team, and motivates us to strive harder in our new endeavours.
Tourism pride
ndian tourism takes pride of place in Prime
Minister Narendra Modi’s agenda. The PM has
spoken on tourism at every public forum and he
has made sure that everybody sits up and takes
note of India’s tourism potential. While launching
the Make In India initiative, he also talked at
length how tourism bringsabout development
and growth-oriented employment. It was a
welcome change to hear the Prime Minister
speak about something as basic as a system of
developing tourist guides in villages.
The industry is very upbeat about the recent
announcement of Electronic Travel Authorisation
(ETA) for Visa-on-Arrival for US citizens, now all
that everyone is waiting for is its implementation.
Buoyed by the Centre’s support, states are
also taking a lot of initiatives to promote
themselves. Besides marketing initiatives within
the country, they are also participating at various
international marts like WTM. This is a great way
to familiarise themselves with the international
crowd and understand the demands of the
international market.
Development of circuits, developing
infrastructure, strengthening road, rail and air
connectivity are some of the current priorities for
Indian states.
With a majority of the inbound traffic being
driven by ASEAN countries, the Buddhist circuit
is the prime focus for tourism right now. To
expand the focus of Buddhist tourism from
Southeast Asia, Europe and America,
International Buddhist Conclave was concluded
recently in Bodhgaya.
In a bid to promote tourism in the North east,
Sikkim and Darjeeling areas, MOT has started the
International Tourism Mart and the third edition
took place in Shillong last month which witnessed
the presence of Shripad Naik, Union Minister of
State for Tourism and Culture.
With a new Tourism Secretary, Arvind
Mayaram, now at the helm of affairs, we are all
looking forward to see how he takes the cause
of tourism forward. His predecessor Parvez
Dewan had helped Indian tourism scale new
heights, and we are sure that he will further
strengthen this.
However, travel and tourism associations
should definitely put their act together and stop
infighting. Only if they resolve their issues and
stand as a united front can they benefit from the
government’s support.
We are all waiting to see Indian tourism take
a new turn, it is only a matter of time!
Your
TV weekly
news bulletin gets better by
the week …Well Done !
Ladies & Gentlemen
…when I stuck my neck
out for our Corporate
Campaign …I was initially
worried that I may draw
flak for investing in 6
bulletins …but now I think
it is well worth it .
I
Cheers!
Pradeep Kalra
Senior Vice President
Sarovar Hotels
IndiaThink
The IndiaThink series is indeed
a timely and meaningful initiative taken
by DDP Publication towards the development of incoming tourism in India.
This gives an opportunity to the industry leaders from different tourism verticals to collectively focus
on the grey areas in Indian tourism and give recommendations
for the development of the weaker segments. More importantly, it is what the government needs to act on. I’m waiting
for the next instalment of the IndiaThink series.
Debjit Dutta
Director & CEO
Impression Tourism Services (India) Pvt. Ltd
(India Travel Award Winner)
Greetings from Ambassador Pallava !!!
We, at Hotel Ambassador Pallava, have been receiving your magazine on a regular basis and we find it
very informative, interesting and useful to know about the hotel & travel industry around us. This magazine
keeps us informed on the interesting facts happening in the travel industry.
Innaiah
Manager – Business Development
The Ambassador Group of Hotels
Global vote for
Poll
takes pride in the fact that readers across the globe are
participating in our polls. To make it more heartening, they are coming
up with constructive suggestions. So, we continue our efforts by
creating the industry’s IndiaThink series to push tourism to new heights.
A few excerpts of the views expressed by our readers...
Contd. from page 1
The Indian embassies, consulates are
unable to give visas to tourists due to
shortage of equipment and manpower.
People go on leave during September
to March, which is peak tourist season.
They are least concerned about the
benefits of increasing tourists. Change
the mindset of government servants
especially those working abroad.
We agree with all suggestions
but please include removal of
touts and brokers from around
hotels, monuments, airports
and other locations where
tourists go. This is important.
Jayant Pal Singh
Team DDP, It's a nice question you
have asked. As per our thoughts,
formation of national tourism
board is a must. After that, tourist
safety and clean India are imperative. If we do this, then we will
have lot of tourists.
Senior Vice President
CIE Group
Kumar Maisheri
People Holidays
Arun
Raga Tours, Kazakhstan
In my opinion, the steps that would help in growing tourism in India are Tourist Safety and Clean India especially area
in and around tourist spots. Good infrastructure like roads and comfortable trains, strict monitoring of quality standard
of food in trains and around tourist spots, recognizing and placing approved travel agents/guides at tourist destinations
for providing quality service will also help us to attain our goals.
India has such a rich and beautiful tourist places and can generate much more than any other industry. But we have
to show quality and standard to boost the image and attract more and more tourists.
Sudheer Katoch
Deputy General Manager, The Energy and Resources Institute
Vikramajit
Chairman
SanJeet
Editor & Publisher
Deepa Sethi
Editor-in-Chief
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COVER STORY
NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
TRAVTALK
5
Visa priority for the stars and stripes
Contd. from page 1
2014, but we are glad as a
fraternity that the US is also
going to be a part of this decision. Apart from the VoA plan,
the PM also talked about the
importance of hygiene and sanitation facilities. This is also of
direct relevance to the travel and
tourism industry,” Deva affirmed.
According to Vikram
Madhok, Managing Director,
Abercrombie & Kent, if tourists
from the US to India get VoA
soon, this will be a game changer for the tourism industry in the
country. “The US is our largest
source market. This has created
quite a buzz in the industry,” he
opined. Regarding a direct
impact on the number of
queries from this market,
Madhok replied, “This directly
has not led to an increase in
queries from the US market.
The Americans are also more
organised than many other markets. So we need to understand
that people will not just simply
travel from the US to India
because there has been a new
announcement. Till the modalities of the visa regime are put in
place, we will not see the
increase and that is why we
need to push the government to
introduce the measure soon.”
As per Prashant
Narayan, COO and Head,
Leisure
Travel-Inbound
Business, Thomas Cook
India, “Such initiatives are vital
for building critical mass
momentum and infusing
much-needed demand into
VoA shoots
up by 28.9%
The government of India
recently extended Visa-on-Arrival
(VoA) Scheme for South Korea
for which Ministry has started
receiving data effective April 15,
2014. During September 2014,
a total of 2,170 VoAs were issued
under this scheme as compared
to 1,683 VoAs during the month
of September 2013, showing an
increase of 28.9 per cent. During
January to September 2014, a
total number of 19,290 VoAs
were issued as compared to
13,859 VoAs during the same
month of 2013 marking an
increase of 39.2 per cent.
The number of VoAs
issued under this scheme during
September 2014 for nationals of
South Korea (530), Japan (496),
Singapore (310), New Zealand
(300), The Philippines (201),
Indonesia (200), Finland (68),
Vietnam (27), Myanmar (27),
Cambodia (6) Laos (3) and
Luxembourg (2). The highest
number of VoAs were issued at
New Delhi airport (9,114) followed by Mumbai (3,636),
Chennai (2,664), Bangalore
(1,324), Kolkata (1,254), Kochi
(614), Hyderabad (490) and
Trivandrum (194).
Homa Mistry
Harmandeep Singh Anand
Prashant Narayan
CEO
Trail Blazer Tours India
Managing Director
Jagsons Travels
COO and Head, leisure travel-inbound
business, Thomas Cook India
the inbound sector. Currently,
the US contributes to about
14 per cent of the inbound
traffic to India. This facility is
certainly expected to add
great impetus to US arrival figures, leading to a remarkable
spurt in inbound traffic.”
The country will see at
least a 20 per cent increase in
inbound from the US when this
is put in practice, Homa Mistry,
CEO, Trail Blazer Tours India
opined. “However, there is a big
disconnect as at the same time,
India has introduced a biometric check in Europe, starting
Setember 1. Thus, the measure
needs to be implemented
soon,” he adhered. Raising a
valid point, Mistry also pointed
out that there might be other
challenges once the initiative is
implemented. “For example—
India started VoA facility for
South Korea this year. South
Korea became the 12th country
to get VoA in India. The aim was
to give a boost to inbound from
this country. However, in reality,
there are a few glitches. We are
only giving single-entry visa
and the travellers from South
Korea, are usually Buddhists
and would like to include
Lumbini in Nepal in their itinerary. Thus, this becomes a roadblock,” he lamented.
“This move will provide a
boost to both the inbound and
domestic tourism business in
India, which will in turn benefit
most service providers in the
tourism chain,” Harmandeep
Singh Anand, Managing
Director, Jagsons Travels
commented.
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6
STATES
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
State tourism marts: More than just biz
As more states jump on the bandwagon to promote themselves through individual marts,
speaks
to different state tourism associations and travel stakeholders to gauge the effect of such state travel
marts in increasing business in the state.
M E G H A PAU L
ith a focus on regional
products and activities,
an ever-increasing number of
states in India are now gearing
up to host their own tourism
marts in the country. Aimed at
showcasing the individual
states, state travel marts bring
about face-to-face interactions
between the travel trade, hote-
W
In Short...
N Among the hosted buyers,
there were 861 domestic
and 241 international ones
N While
UK, Germany,
France, Malaysia and USA
topped in the number of
buyers, newer markets
such as Singapore, Poland,
Romania, Czech Republic
and Brazil also had a
strong representation in
terms of buyers
N 45 countries were present
at KTM 2014
liers and other stakeholders to
promote tourism.
The oldest mart running
successfully is Kerala Tourism’s
biennial travel mart, Kerala
Travel Mart (KTM). Since its
launch in 2000, KTM has been
getting overwhelming response
from both domestic and international players. The eighth edition of KTM that concluded
recently had 245 sellers showcasing the state’s hospitality
and other tourism products to
around
1,300
buyers.
According to Johny Abraham
George, President, KTM
Society, KTM 2014 broke all
past records in terms of arrival
of buyers. “Among the hosted
buyers, there were 861 domestic and 241 international ones.
There were an expected
30,000 buyer-seller appointments lined up for the Mart.
However, the figures crossed
40,000 business sittings
between potential buyers and
sellers,” he informed. While UK,
Germany, France, Malaysia
and USA topped in the number
Johny Abraham George
Riaz Ahmed
President
KTM Society
Managing Director
Abad Hotels and Resorts
Over 30,000
buyer-seller
appointments
were expected,
but the figures
went past
40,000
There is a sense
of uncertainty
among old-timers
caused by
exorbitant airfares
and rising
competition
of buyers, newer markets such
as
Singapore,
Poland,
Romania, Czech Republic and
Brazil also had a strong repre-
sentation in terms of
buyers. Altogether, 45 countries
were present at KTM 2014,”
he added.
Regarding new initiatives
to facilitate meetings in a better
way, George revealed, “Buyers
and sellers in this edition of
KTM were able to schedule
meetings and discuss business opportunities with the
help of a new mobile application. The app sent alerts on
meetings and the programme
schedule. The buyers and sellers were listed on the app and
appointments were being
made online.”
Throwing light on the
impact of KTM 2014 for travel
trade stakeholders in tourism
in Kerala, Riaz Ahmed,
Managing Director, Abad
Hotels and Resorts pointed
out, “This time, the mood at
KTM was mixed. Just as there
is optimism among new players, there is a sense of uncertainty among old-timers
caused by exorbitant airfares
and rising competition, which
is making the destination unviable. “Kerala’s USP of the small
and local has undergone a shift
and is fast becoming too main-
stream. The state’s culinary
aspect remains untapped and
this could also possibly be a
sell-out.”
Organised by Gujarat
Tourism, Gujarat Travel Mart
(GTM) has carved a place as a
major event in the exhibition
space in India, and the third edition of the Mart in 2013 witnessed over 250 hosted buyers,
including 100 international buyers from more than 30 countries. “Last year, hosted buyers
were invited from the
Netherlands, Bahrain, Australia,
Canada, France, Greece,
Israel, Japan, Lithuania,
Norway, Poland, South Africa,
Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, UAE,
UK, USA, South Africa and
Ukraine. Amongst the hosted
buyers, the main focus internationally was on Europe and
domestically the focus was on
metros and Tier-II cities,”
Sanjay Kaul, Managing
Director, Tourism Corporation
of Gujarat (TCGL) remarked.
Contd. on page 36 FINAL FILE-November-1st-2014:TT Layout 10/31/2014 12:52 PM Page 7
EXHIBITIONS
NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
TRAVTALK
7
Spanish outbound taking centrestage
FITUR will be presenting the latest trends and technologies in tourism, and
the growing role of Spain as a source of outbound visitors to other countries.
T T B U R E AU
he 35th staging of FITUR,
organised by IFEMA from
January 28 to February 1,
2015 at FERIA DE MADRID,
will be presenting the latest
trends and technologies in
tourism, at a time when Spain
is playing an increasing role as
an outbound source of visitors
to other countries around the
world. The Spanish outbound
tourism expenditure rose by
some 15.4% during the first
four months of 2014, to a level
of 2.172 billion euros.
T
FITUR will once again be
playing host to the global
tourism industry, with the most
comprehensive presentation of
proposals and destinations by
companies, organisations and
institutions from all round the
world. The trade show is one of
the largest anywhere in the
world and the leading event for
Latin American outbound and
inbound markets.
FITUR 2015 will also be
featuring such major new additions as the FITUR HEALTH
and FITUR SHOPPING sections. The last, organised in collaboration with Madrid
Shopping Tour, will be helping
those companies signing up for
this section to achieve the maximum return on their investment. According to the Director
of Madrid Shopping Tour,
Mar Sardá, “With FITUR
SHOPPING, the trade show is
furthering its specialisation,
and offering companies a magnificent business opportunity in
this emerging sector.”
Meanwhile, among the
regular sections at FITUR, the
trade show will be presenting
within the context of
FITURTECH the impact of
technology on tourism, and
there will be a special showroom dedicated to the tourism
of the future. FITURGREEN
will, for its part, be addressing
Hola India!
N Around 60,000 Spanish
tourists travel to India
each year
N Spanish outbound tourism
expenditure rose by some
15.4% during the first four
months of 2014, to a level
of 2.172 billion euros
N The 35th staging of FITUR
organised from January 28
- February 1, 2015 at
FERIA DE MADRID, will
feature such major new
additions as FITUR
HEALTH and FITUR
SHOPPING
innovation and sustainability in
the tourism sector to promote
the competitiveness both of
companies and of destinations.
Tourism spend by
Spaniards abroad
According to the Spanish
Tourism Institute, the total
Spanish outbound tourism
spend amounted to 2.172 billion euros in the first four
months of 2014, an increase of
15.4% compared with the
same period in 2013. Between
January and April this year, the
average spend per traveller
outside the country was 598
euros, with an average daily
outlay of 76 euros.
According to Turespaña
(Familitur survey), over the
last nine years, Spain’s
outbound tourism has seen a
doubling in the number of
trips, reaching a level of 12.1
million in 2012.
FINAL FILE-November-1st-2014:TT Layout 10/31/2014 12:53 PM Page 8
8
ASSOCIATIONS
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
Business Travel in India
India is the 10 largest market: GBTA
th
The country is one of the major drivers of business travel growth in the Asia-Pacific region, which accounts
for $38 of every $100 spent globally towards such travel, says Welf J Ebeling, Vice President, OperationsAsia Pacific, Global Business Travel.
M E G H A PAU L
ndia is one of the major drivers of business travel growth
in the Asia-Pacific region. It
accounts for $38 of every $100
spent globally towards such
travel. This was revealed
by Welf J Ebeling, Vice
President, Operations- Asia
I
Pacific, Global Business
Travel Association (GBTA).
“With weakening exports,
India’s international outbound
business travel has been
volatile in recent years and is
expected to gain only 1.1 per
cent in 2014. However, an
improved positive sentiment
among India’s major trading
“About 90 per cent of its business travel
spend is domestic, propelled by the growth
of the middle class and the
profusion of business centres
in the country. If people are
buying, businessmen have
to travel to sell
Welf J Ebeling
Vice President,
Operations- Asia Pacific,
Global Business Travel
Association
partners, especially China,
Europe and the US, might
send it soaring to seven per
cent (to $2.6 billion) in 2015,”
he said. Ebeling was in
Delhi to attend the India
Travel Symposium, where
GBTA hosted senior travel
managers, buyers and other
decision makers.
According to him, the
domestic business travel market is the driving factor for business travel in India. “About 90
per cent of its business travel
spend is domestic, propelled
by the growth of the middle
class and the profusion of business centres in the country. If
people are buying, businessmen have to travel to sell,”
Ebeling added. Believing that
the pitfalls of slow outbound
travel can be overcome by
focussing on domestic infrastructure, he opined, “The
moment exports and international outbound were down in
China, they focussed on internal growth. Think about the
high-speed rail projects they
undertook at that time. This is
where India should learn from.”
According to the GBTA,
corporate travel spend is
expected to grow at 2.1 per
cent to $24.9 billion in 2014
(against 10.4 per cent in 2013),
representing India’s weakest
business travel performance
since the economic downturn
of 2008. This contradicts the
2013 forecast, which had predicted that the market would
grow at 13 per cent till 2017.
However, the GBTA is now
expecting things to look up in
2015 as there has been an
improved outlook for the economy, since the Narendra Modiled BJP government came to
power in May. The renewed
optimism for pro-business
reforms and accelerated infrastructure investment is likely to
bring travel spend back on
track with an estimated
7.6 per cent growth to $28.8
billion, he affirmed.
GBTA Foundation, the
education and research
arm of GBTA also recently
organised
the
Global
Travel Professional (GTP)
Certification in India this year.
The certification programme
enables the travel executives to
get a globally
recognised
certification. The
GTP
Certification
is designed to
raise industry
standards,
enhance
work performance,
and recognise individuals who demon-
strate core competencies
essential to the business
travel management discipline,
he added.
GBTA’s semi-annual
BTI Outlook-India
N 7 per cent growth to $2.6
billion in 2015 predicted
N India accounts
for $38 of every $100
spent globally
currently
N The onus of
this whopping
figure for 2015 lies
with new
government
N Domestic
business travel
spending
comprises 90 per
cent of total
business travel
spends in India
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QUICKBYTES
All eyes on ETA and VoA
The entire travel trade is eagerly awaiting the launch of the electronic travel
authorisation (ETA) scheme which is expected to boost the inbound tourism.
contacted the Who’s Who of the industry to know their opinion. A few excerpts...
The introduction of ETA will
be a major step. The airports
where this will be facilitated
will become gateways to
India. Thus, the infrastructure
in these cities should be
enhanced, along with
increasing the carrying
capacity of the airports. We
do not need new products, but a relook at the
existing products.
ETA can help boost demand
towards the currently
under-leveraged inbound
sector of India. The increase
in demand of travel facilities
will thereby increase
employment opportunities for
those in and associated
with the travel industry.
GMJ Thampy
CMD
Riya Group Enterprise
EM Najeeb
Chairperson, ATE Group
Going forward, we are optimistic the ETA regime will
have a multiplier effect in
terms of growth for inbound
numbers. We might witness
an increase in business,
MICE and even leisure travel. Where opportunities and
challenges are concerned,
tour operators need to focus on new products and destinations that are available in India.
Jatinder Taneja
Managing Director
Travel Spirit International
Inbound tourism is growing
at a sluggish rate currently.
However, with the ETA implementation, I expect it will
grow by leaps and bounds.
With the efforts of the MOT,
international travel mart and
ad campaigns, destinations
such as Tawang in Arunachal
Pradesh and others in the North East region are being
promoted in a big way.
Subhash Verma
Chairman, Travel Plus
The present system of
obtaining a visa is complicated. However, the eVisa initiative will definitely help. We
hope to see a major jump in
tourism arrivals. It’s a bit premature to predict 100%
growth, but it is definitely
going to help us. However,
infrastructure and connectivity are definitely necessary
to sustain the growth.
We are hearing so much
about the ETA launch. The
inbound segment is on the
upswing and is going to
remain as one of the primary source of income
for the travel trade.
Unfortunately, the segment
is currently plagued with
many problems and the primary one is infrastructure.
Deepak Bhatnagar
MD, aamantran Travel
The eVisa and VoA idea is
excellent. The percentage of
arrival to the country will
increase by 20-30%.What
we need the most is cleanliness, hygiene, good connectivity options and most
importantly honesty. People
should treat tourists as families and when they do this, we will get more numbers.
Sunil Sikka
Head - Marketing & Business Development, WelcomHeritage
We are betting big on the
growth in inbound tourism
with the ETA regime, which
will be introduced soon. The
main thing that we need to
concentrate is on the cleanliness of our country. North
East also should be developed as a tourism circuit.
OP Mendiratta
MD, Global Hotel Representations
Tony Marwah
CEO, India Travel Promotion Co.
We are looking forward to
the ETA implementation .
With tourism expected to
grow leaps and bounds,
even the hospitality industry
is expected to grow further.
Till now, the industry has
been witnessing a sluggish
growth. The ETA will surely
be a brilliant solution. This year we are looking at
promoting MICE in a big way with all the various
conferencing facilities.
Rita Shah
COO, Hans Hotels
The e-visa implementation
is a positive step towards
making India a more touristfriendly country. However,
there are some things that
need to be addressed – like
making it safe for women
travellers, improving our
infrastructure, and further
improve our transport system including the Railways.
Deepak Narula,
MD, Aman Travels
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12
STATISTICS
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
Tourism touches 9% of global GDP
Despite a rough-and-tumble fiscal landscape, tourism globally is still rising slowly and surely. Internationally,
there has been a 9% growth in overall earnings, the number of tourists have grown past a billion, and even
free WiFi has moved from cafes to your favourite airline. Here’s all that happened...
Source: UNWTO
Norwegian, Turkish Airlines and
Hong Kong Airlines are the only
airlines in the world offering free
WiFi onboard.
* According to a study by Rumbo
International Tourism 2013
Inbound tourism by purpose
of visit, 2013*
VFR, health
religion, other
27%
Leisure
recreation
and holidays
52%
Not specified
7%
Business and
professional
14%
International tourist arrivals: 1087 million
International tourism receipts: US$1,159 billion
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14
STATES
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
WB keen to bring in Turkish Airlines
While attending the India Travel Awards - East as the chief guest, Bratya Basu, Minister of Tourism and
Culture, West Bengal, talks about how the state is developing tourism hubs and how they are now keen on
promotions in India and abroad.
PEDEN DOMA BHUTIA
How big a priority is tourism
for the West Bengal government?
Tourism prima facie is the key
point of the state. The West Bengal
Chief Minister is encouraging new
hoteliers, new developers to invest in
the area so that more infrastructure is
created and more tourists get to avail
these facilities. We are also very keen
on increasing the number of tourists
to the state. Every year, the number
of tourists to the state has been
increasing. This year, compared to
2013, we have already got 30 lakh
more tourists. This is a very positive
development. Our Chief Minister has
been working relentlessly for the
development of tourism.
What is West Bengal doing for
the development of tourism?
East India has immense potential for tourism, particularly West
Bengal and we have been stressing
upon it. Our Chief Minister is also
focussing a lot on tourism. She has
created already two big hubs in West
Bengal – Gajal Doba in North Bengal,
a tourism mega hub, and Jharkhali,
near the mangrove area of
Sunderbans. We have already created
twin mega circuits in our state and I
firmly believe that the Central
Government will also assist us to
develop all the circuits and promote
them as well. Our chief minister has a
done a lot for tourism, her new vision
and the new endeavour is evident
throughout the state. I believe that the
initiatives that have been taken have
been done keeping in mind the promotion of tourism. This will definitely
encourage everyone to think in that
direction and will help develop the
state and the country as a whole.
What is the share of international tourists compared to
domestic tourists in West
Bengal? How do you plan to
bridge the gap?
We have a comparison table and
the number of domestic tourists is far
higher than international tourists. From
this year onwards, we are trying to
promote our state through European
channels. We are also promoting West
Bengal tourism in every corner of the
country. We have earlier participated
in tourism fairs in Berlin and
London and next year, we plan to
participate in the tourism fair in Madrid
to popularise the destination among
international tourists.
is plenty of scope for development in
and around the airport and I hope that
the Airport Authority of India thinks in
East India has immense potential
for tourism, particularly West
Bengal and we have been
stressing upon it. Our Chief
Minister is also focussing
a lot on tourism
Bratya Basu
Minister of Tourism and Culture
West Bengal
Connectivity is often a
problem when it comes to
connecting the eastern part of
India with the rest of the
country. How do you plan to
work on this?
I have written a letter to the civil
aviation minister asking if they can
bring Turkish Airlines to Kolkata as
Turkey is the border of Europe and
Asia. If Turkish Airlines comes here,
tourism will have great potential. There
that direction. There is sign of development that can be seen in the airports of the state and I hope people
take this positively.
What are the other initiatives
that the state is developing for
the hospitality sector?
The West Bengal government is
specially emphasising on improvement of infrastructure as well as quality of services rendered by the West
Bengal Tourism Development
Corporation (WBTDCL) guest houses.
We are planning to change the overall
approach and appearance of a few of
our guest houses matching it with the
history and tradition of the place. Our
Bolpur guest house will be the first
such guest house to witness this
change. While we are keen on promoting tourism in the region, we are
also trying our best to promote the
local culture.
Are you planning on developing more such hubs?
There are plenty of places to
focus on in West Bengal like Dooars
Darjeeling Bankura, Birbhum,
Sunderbans and Purulia. So we are
trying to promote them all. We have
already created 12 mega circuit for
development of tourism in West
Bengal. I think this will only grow more
and more. In the macro level while we
have tried to create tourism hubs, in
the micro level, we are looking for
development of infrastructure, protection of tourists, provide more facilities
for tourists so that more and more
people frequent the place. We are also
marketing the state in a big way all
over India and abroad.
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STATES
NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
TRAVTALK
15
Putting tourism on the overdrive mode
Speaking at the FHRAI Annual Convention, RV Deshpande, Karnataka Tourism Minister puts forward thoughtprovoking points, and the steps that state has taken to boost tourism to garner more revenue and employment.
K A N C H A N N AT H
s the Guest of Honour at
the convention, RV
Deshpande, Minister for
Tourism, Government of
Karnataka, said, “In his very
first speech, the PM stressed
on the importance of tourism
for creation of jobs, incomegeneration and he also
stressed on cleanliness. We all
know that these things cannot
happen without budgetary support. The allocation of the
Union Budget for the Tourism
Ministry is just `1,882 crore. In
Karnataka’s budget, our allocation is around `400 crore.
Besides this, we try to get
A
RV Deshpande
Minister for Tourism
Government of Karnataka
Today, countries
like China, Turkey
and Thailand top
tourist arrivals.
India should aim
at reaching 12
million foreign
arrivals
finance from varied sources.
Tourism is one sector which
can generate large employment. It is one sector where,
with an investment of just `2530 lakh, as many as 70-80 jobs
can be created. So with
tourism, employment as well
as revenue for the state can be
generated. Many states are
saturated with other industries,
and tourism can be the way
forward there.”
Tourism’s contribution to
the GDP of this country is just
6.2 per cent. Compare this to a
small country like Cambodia,
where tourism contributes nearly 13-14 per cent to the GDP. In
fact, globally, the contribution of
tourism to the GDP was 9.5 per
cent in 2013. According to
UNWTO, India ranks 41 in
Foreign Tourist Arrivals (FTAs).
“While domestic tourism has
increased to a large extent, we
are yet to reach similar numbers
where FTAs are concerned. The
main problems have been infra-
structure and training the right
human resource. Today, countries like China, Turkey and
Thailand top tourist arrivals.
India should aim at reaching
12 million foreign arrivals,”
he added.
Inviting investors and
entrepreneurs
The Karnataka Tourism
vision group consists of eminent citizens and people.
Recommendations made by
the vision group have been
accepted by the Government
and the Centre is also providing budgetary support to implement the vision group’s recommendations. They are bringing
out a new investor-friendly
tourism policy, with maximum
concessions for private
investors. Deshpande added,
“I take this opportunity to invite
entrepreneurs and investors.
There will be complete transparency. We have relaxed land
laws in an effort to boost
growth. We are also coming up
with the Tourism Facilitation
Act. Under the new Tourism
Act, Karnataka has come up
with 20 tourism products to
support investors. The products are mainly home-stay,
rural tourism, agri-tourism, heritage tourism, golf tourism,
eco-tourism, hotels and
resorts, adventure, sports
tourism, entertainment parks,
yatri niwas, youth hostels, etc.
We will also be providing tax
concessions and reimbursement of land charges.”
Skill development
Deshpande lamented on
the lack of guides in India. He
said in any destination in the
world, guides are fluent in five to
six languages. Here, except for
regional languages, it is very difficult to find competent guides.
The Government has taken the
initiative to train them in foreign
languages. He said, “We have
been stressing on human
resource development in this
sector. We urge the MOT to delegate Hunar Se Rozgar Tak programme to states so that the latter can formulate training programmes based on needs.”
More Karnataka news on Page 27 FINAL FILE-November-1st-2014:TT Layout 10/31/2014 12:53 PM Page 16
16
NEWS
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
When it’s not just about teeing off
With 60 million golfers around the globe and Asia being the fastest growth area, golf tourism is a multi-billion dollar
industry. The first edition of the Golf Tourism Summit organised by FICCI and Indian Golf Tourism Association
(IGTA) witnessed over 40 specialist tour operators from 25 countries of the world.
gets more details.
M E G H A PAU L
The Federation sees tremendous opportunities for business
as well as tourism in this area. The weather conditions in
India make it a perfect destination for golf round the year and
golf courses are available in challenging topographies in the
country. Unique packages can be designed with golf as one
of the elements. India has more than 200 golf courses and
over 30 are signature golf courses. While countries like
Scandinavia, Russia can have only three to four months of
golfing, India is a 365-day destination for Golf Tourism.
We have not been able to leverage the full potential of niche
sports like golf. Around 52 per cent of golfers take more than
two golfing holidays in a year and spend 33 per cent more
than other tourists at a destination. With international tourists
expected to grow in the next few years, it is important that
India has the right product to meet the need of the visitors.
We need to target markets to promote our golf venues. This
would include optimising major golfing events in India by building relationship with sponsors, broadcasters and the travel
industry; improved access to India’s signature golf courses
and working closely with India’s premium golf courses to make
these courses more tourist-friendly
A Didar Singh
Secretary General, FICCI
Girish Shankar
Additional Secretary-Tourism, MOT
Going forward, we will hold
discussion with other associations. IGTA is also in talks
with various state tourism
boards such as Gujarat and
Karnataka. Both the states
have shown keen interest in
promoting golf tourism. The
association is also recommending inbound travellers
to include golf-related activities in their itinerary and
also make separate itinerary for golfers. The foreign
buyers are also being introduced to some of the signature golf courses in the Golden Triangle. IGTA is also
looking at hosting a two-day conclave in Srinagar,
which has some of the most beautiful active golf courses of India.
A golf tourist spends 150 per
cent more than average
tourists in a destination in a
day. There are 60 million golf
travellers around the world.
India should cash in on its
close proximity to many key
source markets of Golf
Tourism such as China,
Japan, Korea and Singapore.
We need clarity in strategies so that a clear message
can be sent out about India as a golf destination
Differentiated products with ‘differentiated tagline’ for
‘different markets’ is the need of the hour. There are
inbound tour operators with knowledge about various
golf products. They must design right strategies for promotion and the government should do the funding.
When we say that India does
not have good golf facilities
for inbound, we often forget
golfers in India are rich and
powerful. If we can provide
them good golf facilities, it
should be good enough for
inbound travellers too. Many
golfers travel for business.
The travel agents should
inform them that they can play golf over the weekend
when there are no meetings lined up. Many schools
are now also keen to send kids for golf seminars. When
we approached schools, we realised parents also travel
with kids. Thus, there is a rippling effect on tourism.
What we need in India is tourism-friendly golf courses.
Rajan Sehgal
President, IGTA
Peter Walton
Chief Executive, International Association of Golf
Tour Operators (IAGTO)
Gaurav Dogra
Founder Member, IGTA
The Sanchaya ties up with Premier Hotels of Asia
Premier Hotels of Asia, a
leading international Hotel
Sales
and
Marketing
Representation company has
been appointed the Global
Sales & Marketing Partner for
The Sanchaya, a luxurious
new beachfront estate in the
Indonesian island of Bintan, a
45 minute ferry ride away
from Singapore.
The Sanchaya’s
concept is
a colonial
estate offering
bespoke
luxury.
Each of its 21 villas and 9
suites represents a different
facet of Southeast Asia, reflecting the rich heritage, art, culture
and design of the region. It is the
first five-star resort to open
in Bintan Island in more
than ten years.
Discussing the company’s
success, Karan Singh, Joint
Managing Director and CoFounder, Premier Hotels of Asia,
says, “Premier hotels of Asia
have helped its clients expand
reach, enhance visibility and win
profitable market share. Over
the years, we have supported
the entry and growth of well-
known international brands
including Mandarin Oriental
Hotel Group; Park Royal Hotels
and Resorts; The Leela Palaces,
Hotels and Resorts; Ananda in
the Himalayas and Samode
Palace. We are confident we will
continue to add more exceptional hotels to our portfolio.”
Karan Singh
Joint Managing Director and
Co-Founder, Premier Hotels of Asia
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18
STATES
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
Business in God’s Own Country
As some regional tour operators move beyond the metros to make their mark in specific regions,
speaks to EM Najeeb, Chairman, Air Travel Enterprise Group about how travel and tourism business
has been evolving in Kerala over the last few years
M E G H A P AU L
shops. The youth segment looks for
weekend holidays, adventure and
eco-tourism and nature rich locations.
Growth in the Kerala market
in the last five years
Initiatives by the company
Inbound, domestic and outbound tourism have been consistently
growing in Kerala. During the last five
years, there has been an average of
10 per cent increase every year in the
inbound tourism to Kerala. Outbound
tourism has been also growing considerably. Keralites unlike before have
started travelling in greater numbers.
They are 100 per cent literate and
majority of the population is well-educated. There is also excellent connectivity from Kerala by air to all major
locations in the world from the three
international airports in Kerala, making it conducive for tourism.
hension among stakeholders that the
new liquor policy would affect tourism
prospects of the country in general
and turn Kerala into the last preferred
destination.
Kerala, a dry state?
New trends in Kerala market
The new liquor policy could have
an impact on the sector, and we want
the government to formulate an ‘industry-friendly’ policy. Sectors such as
MICE Tourism would be largely hit by
the new policy. If Sunday is declared
as ‘dry day’, it will affect the MICE segment as majority of conferences and
meetings are scheduled on weekends
as well. There is also a general appre-
Along with the economic growth
of the country, cities and towns are
developing as happening locations in
terms of economic activities. Next to
the metros, ‘B’ and ‘C’ cities, and LevelI and -II townships have become fertile
markets for tourism. A good section of
the population is depending on online
bookings for tourism products, even
while they buy from traditional holiday
EM Najeeb
Chairman
Air Travel Enterprise Group
Air Travel Enterprises India and
the Great India Tour Company of our
group have been earnestly putting
efforts in developing tours in the
Kerala region. We are promoting
inbound, domestic and outbound
tourism in Kerala. Also we work handin-hand with the Kerala Tourism for
effective destination promotion. Aimed
at the market in the region, we have
various packages including short hol-
iday options for people looking for holidays within the state, other locations
within the country and also destinations abroad. Our network of offices
mobilise the sales of the packages
and reach them to every segments of
the market.
tour operator has to find buyers from
scattered markets. Also it is often
found that principals, be it airlines or
hotels, choose to offer their best deals
to the operators in such cities than to
others. This gives them a great advantage than the other operators.
Challenges faced by regional
tour operator
Advantages of regional tour
operator
Tour operators in metro cities
have an advantage of being in the
midst of a highly buoyant market with
a pool of buyers. Their positioning
within the market will automatically
leverage their growth. The regional
A regional tour operator with a
long-standing in the market has a
very special advantage of knowing
every segment and pocket of the
market. There will be a great
amount of personal relationship and
rapport between the operator and
the buyers. Unlike metros, with floating population, the regional markets
are permanent dwellers. This
helps the long-standing relationship
and trust.
Trends that will drive demand
Going forward to future, the
demand in the market will keep on
increasing in its pace and percentage,
as there is a natural growth taking
place in the economic and social activities. Offer of excellent products suitable for their requirements will multiply
the demand.
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20
HOTELS
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
Making a giant splash in Kolkata
With an inventory of 347 rooms, Novotel Kolkata Hotels and Residences is the largest hotel in the
city and Jai Kishan, the hotel's General Manager, says they are a business hotel during the week and a
leisure hotel on weekends.
PEDEN DOMA BHUTIA
It’s been a little more than a
month now that you have
opened in Calcutta. How has
the response been so far?
We are very happy with the
response that we have received so far.
Right now, we are having the biggest
football event that happens in India
and the players are all staying with us.
So far, we have only heard the positive
side because we have the largest
which give us an upper hand. So it’s
all been positive.
What gives you an upper
hand in the Kolkata hospitality
market and how are you going
to capitalise on it?
The first thing is that we are associated with Accor. So, Accor is a worldwide hospitality chain and as our
tagline goes, ‘Opening new frontiers in
hospitality’. So we have now raised the
flag in Kolkata, plus we come with
We have the largest 347-room
inventory in the city and we need a
mix of both. I think we can be a business hotel through the week, and
serve as a leisure hotel on weekends
Jai Kishan
General Manager
Novotel Kolkata Hotels and Residences
inventory in the city. It is the
biggest Novotel hotel operating in
India as of now, and we have a multitude of other dimensions as well
everything that Accor brings to the table
along with the Novotel brand, which is
both in line with our business travellers
and our leisure guests. We are brand-
new in Kolkata, and this is the first time
that people are experiencing us and
our hospitality like our Le Femme
rooms for our female leisure travellers,
our apartments for long-stay guests
and our frequency in terms of operating
the hotels both in the MICE and the
leisure segment, as well as our restaurants and recreational facilities.
How are you trying to promote
yourselves?
We are trying to get into the market and talk to everybody in the region.
We will be targetting every single
region in the North-East, because
Kolkata is the Gateway to the East.
Our airport will be the hub and we,
being close to it, will make all inroads
to every single corner of the region.
Our Accor brand gives us that leverage. We are well established right
now. First point is acknowledging it
and the second is establishing a relationship. With our relationship established, we can build for a better
stronger business.
What kind of competition are
you looking at in the market?
I wouldn’t say competition; they
are all opportunities for us to build
because we learn from each other. In
that way, it is a win-win situation for all
of us. We are all hoteliers at the end
of the day, and are competing for the
hospitality sector.
What do you see in terms of
positioning of the hotel as
leisure or business?
We will be positioning as both a
business and leisure hotel. We have
the largest 347-room inventory in the
city and we need a mix of both. I think
we can be a business hotel through
the week, and serve as a leisure hotel
on weekends.
East India has always had
great tourism potential but
somehow it isn’t promoted as
much as a Goa or a Kerela.
How do you feel it be taken
care of?
I think the first step is to
acknowledge the potential of the
region, and I think we have already
done that. The India Tourism Award
- East is a great step towards that
direction. I think this kind of recognition paves the way for future generations. I think the glitches, or areas
that require improvement, would be
firstly infrastructure and secondly
promotion or marketing. So, once the
marketing initiatives come in, we
would definitely be up there and in
competition with any other region in
the country.
FINAL FILE-November-1st-2014:TT Layout 10/31/2014 12:53 PM Page 21
STATES
UP Travel Mart next Feb
The fair, the first edition of which will be held in Lucknow
from February 22-27 next year, will be managed through
a website that FICCI will launch soon.
TT B U R E AU
ith an aim to boost the
neglected tourism sector,
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister
Akhilesh
Yadav
has
announced the sector is on the
priority list and the state would
hold travel marts to attract
national and international
tourism investors. The UP gov-
W
the tourism sector in the state
will get a big boost. The chief
minister informed the media
that, as a first measure, the
annual budget for tourism promotion would be substantially
increased as UP still has a very
small budget of Rs 60 crore for
tourism promotion, while other
states bank big on the sector
five-year term of the MoU, the
chamber wants to provide a
platform to the indigenous sellers from the tourism sector of
UP. Our primary focus will be
to promote business of tourism
in Uttar Pradesh and the event
led by FICCI and supported by
the state government will be a
big step towards that.” In the
As a first measure, Uttar Pradesh’s
annual budget for tourism promotion
would be substantially increased
Akhilesh Yadav
Chief Minister, Uttar Pradesh
ernment recently signed a fiveyear-term MoU with Federation
of Indian Chambers of
Commerce and Industry (FICCI)
to hold travel marts in the state.
Beginning next February, the
yearly affair will promote tourism
in the state by inviting
international stakeholders to the region for prescheduled B2B meets
with state stakeholders
from the tourism industry. The fair, the first edition of which will be held
at Lucknow from
February 22-27 next
year, will be managed
through a website that
FICCI will launch in the
coming days.
Yadav said that,
through this initiative,
with budgets ranging between
`300 crore to `400 crore.
Highlighting the importance of the initiative,
Rahul Chakravarty, DirectorTourism, FICCI said, “In the
Rahul Chakravarty
Director-Tourism
FICCI
In the five-year
term of the MoU,
the chamber
wants to provide a
platform to the
indigenous sellers
from the tourism
sector of UP
debut edition of the meet,
FICCI is planning to organise
a FAM for the international
buyers to Lucknow, Varanasi,
Dudhwa and Agra, he
informed.
Borders no barricade for tourism
Kuoni India has won the 2014 Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) Gold Award under two categories, Marketing
– Industry and Marketing Media - Travel Advertisement Broadcast Media for the entry ‘Making Holidays a Priority
for Indians’. This year’s awards attracted 181 entries from 66 organisations and individuals worldwide. Vishal Suri,
CEO, Tour Operating, Kuoni India said, “It is indeed a significant achievement to be honoured with this prestigious
accolade. Being a leader in the holiday’s segment, our natural focus is to grow the segment by addressing holiday
consumption barriers. This award is a recognition of our commitment to create distinct holiday experiences for our
Indian travellers and serves as an inspiration in achieving new heights.”
FINAL FILE-November-1st-2014:TT Layout 10/31/2014 12:53 PM Page 22
FAMILY ALBUM
Seeking out the unexplored
The Canadian Tourism Commission (CTC) conducted a FAM tour for the agents to the province of
Alberta, Canada. The group also made a trip to Whitehorse, Yukon. The trip for trade partners from
India was organised from September 22- October 1, 2014.
FINAL FILE-November-1st-2014:TT Layout 10/31/2014 12:53 PM Page 23
HOTELS
Wyndham’s got big plans
A bumper announcement of 3,500 rooms by Wyndham
Hotel Group means that India will get a taste of the allAmerican hospitality soon. Not just by numbers, the
Indian hospitality market will soon be overwhelmed by
10 new properties under brands that are new to India.
TT B U R E AU
ust over seven years old,
the Wyndham Hotel Group
has grown to become a large
franchiser in the hospitality
J
Group, said, “Ramada enjoys
tremendous brand awareness
here, and we have a lot of
demand for it from developers
and owners. But we ready to
add new brands to our Indian
encing a lot of growth in the midmarket, full-service segment
and mid-market select service
segment. “We have many
brands to offer in these segments. We see growth for Days
portfolio.” The new brands
that will be introduced in India
are: Hawthorne Suites,
Planet Hollywood, Howard
Johnson, Ramada Encore,
brand that we have just signed
two today and two already under
construction. Everything is moving towards mid-market right
now, and so are we,” she said.
The Wyndham Group
industry. With 2,500 rooms
already operational in India, it
has 1,000 more rooms opening now, along with 3,500
rooms in the pipeline.
Such a vast inventory
can only be sustained through
a franchise model that the
Wyndham so effectively uses.
It recently signed up with 10
developers and owners in India
for the upcoming 3,500 rooms
that will be operational by mid2017. These will be under various brands – existing as well
as new to India. The 10 properties which will operate under
the Ramada Encore and
Howard Johnson brands will
be located in Gurgaon,
Darjeeling, Greater Noida,
Jaisalmer, Pali, Lonere,
Dharmapuri,
Bengaluru,
Chennai and Trivandrum.
Geoff Ballotti, President
and CEO of Wyndham Hotel
Wyndham’s strategic partnerships
N JMJ Group for a Planet Hollywood in Goa (2014-end opening)
N Swift Financial Results for one Ramada in Darjeeling (2015 opening)
N Creative Buildwell for one Ramada in Gurgaon (2016 opening)
N Akruti Developers for a Days Hotel & Suites in Bengaluru (2016 opening)
N Expat Projects & Development for three Ramada hotels in Pali, Lonere
and Dharmapuri (2017 opening)
N Vardhman Infra Developers for one Ramada in NCR (2017 opening)
N Expat Leisure & Resorts for one Ramada
N Saras Hotels for a Days Hotel
N Mohyideen Hussain Fisal for a Days Hotel
N Unique Mercantile for a Howard Johnson hotel in Jaisalmer
Wyndham, Wyndham Gardens
and Super 8.
According to Deepika
Arora, its Regional VP, Indian
Ocean, EMEAI, India is experi-
Ballotti added that the
Wyndham rewards program
has been growing quickly
with over 40,000 Indian
members for 28 hotels in just
two years.
Inbound tourism by mode of
transport, 2013*
Road
40%
Air
53%
Source: UNWTO
Water
40%
il
Ra
2%
FINAL FILE-November-1st-2014:TT Layout 10/31/2014 12:53 PM Page 24
24
HOTELS
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
Indians are a global audience now
Ruth Boston, General Manager, Sales & Marketing, Sheraton Macao, says that while they have allocated
funds specifically for online digital marketing in India, travel agents are still important in terms of influencing
key customers and distribution.
PEDEN DOMA BHUTIA
What sets Sheraton Macao apart
from the other hotels?
I think, unlike many of the
hotels in Macau, we are a hospitality
company, so our key revenue
strengths come from our food and
beverage. We work to ensure guest
personalisation and that we do in the
best manner we can in our
service, food and delivery for
customers. That is one of the key
things that set us apart from other
hotels in Macau.
What is the dominant profile of
Indian guests who frequent the
hotel?
We get a mixed crowd. Our
Indian business is up 54% year-onyear, thus the Indian market is definitely growing for us. In terms of
leisure travellers, themes like
Dreamworks are attracting a lot of
families to Macau. It has a lot to offer
to children and adults enjoy it too.
From a meetings perspective, India
produces a lot of big group events as
a lot of corporates are here and
Macau has been a very popular destination for Indians for quite some
time. So for us, MICE is also
important and we’ve seen a lot of
growth in that market as well. Both
MICE and leisure travellers are
equally important and in different
ways and we want to develop in
both markets.
Will you also be focussing on the
smaller Indian cities?
We are still pretty new in this
market. We’ve been open only 2
years. For us, it’s been initially about
cementing the business in the key
cities first and then looking into the
Tier-II cities. I can use China as an
example, when we first opened. We
focussed on Shanghai, Beijing,
Guangzhou and a couple of the other
key cities. This year, we went to 15
cities, so the Tier-II and Tier-III cities
are now becoming more important. In
India, there probably will come a stage
when we feel that we are strong
enough in the key markets to expand
to Tier-II cities.
If you do, do you have any cities
in your radar?
Presently we have none
on our radar, we’d have to research.
A lot of research goes into determin-
Travel agents are still very important and will continue to be
so. I don’t know if Indians will move
away from that model altogether. In
terms of influencing our key customers and distribution, travel
agents are incredibly important as
they are able to reach in to a lot of
secondary cities
Ruth Boston
General Manager, Sales & Marketing
Sheraton Macao
ing which cities are the most appropriate for us.
How has the Indian market and
Indian travellers developed?
I’ve been coming to India
since 2009 and have seen a
huge change. We now have a lot of
FIT travellers. More and more
people are making their own
decisions. A lot more people are
booking online. The online space has
become an important force. We
spent quite a bit of money this
year in online digital marketing here
in India as we know how important
this market is, that’s the key change.
In general, Indians are travelling
more. With the change of the
government and a new prime
Minister at the helm of affairs, there
seems to be a positive vibe from
Indians we are meeting. That’s good
for business too.
So, if online is gaining ground,
how important are travel agents
for you?
Travel agents are still very important and will continue to be so.
I don’t know if Indians will move
away from that model altogether. In
terms of influencing our key customers and distribution, travel
agents are incredibly important as
they are able to reach in to a lot of secondary cities. They reach out to a lot
of market that digital does not reach
out to sometimes.
Do you have any special packages for the Indian market?
The Indian market in many
ways is similar to the other markets
of the world. Globalisation has now
made this possible. We do have
guest personalisation in that, we do
have special things that the Indian
market likes, from a Starwood
perspective we do look to ensure that
we cater to specific requests of
Indian customers, like the snacks etc.
The need to have completely
separate guest packages for the
Indian market is getting less and
less as Indians are now embracing
everything.
FINAL FILE-November-1st-2014:TT Layout 10/31/2014 12:53 PM Page 25
FINAL FILE-November-1st-2014:TT Layout 10/31/2014 12:53 PM Page 26
26
NEWS
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
Luxury Hotels Group seeks ‘right’ hotels
Naresh Chandnani, Regional Director – Asia, Luxury Hotels Group, says the company sees a huge potential in
the Tier-II and Tier-III cities of India. He says based on their understanding of the needs of hotels, they have
come up with customised offers and packages on which their client hotels can see return on investments.
PEDEN DOMA BHUTIA
What prompted Luxury
Hotels Group to come to
India? How different will
your services be from
that of your competitors?
We see a big opportunity
in India, not just in the big markets but also in the Tier-2 and
Tier-3 cities and also in the
leisure market. We bring a lot
of experience. Understanding
the needs of the hotels, we
have come up with customised
offers and packages on which
they'll see return on investments. We don't tie them down
to a long term contract of 1020 years which hotels these
days are sceptical to get into
as there is a fee element
involved and they want to make
sure they see return on investments. Our contracts are very
flexible. We deliver tailor-made
programmes to hotels depending on their requirements,
whether it is corporate business, MICE or leisure. At times,
hotels just need some PR
Naresh Chandnani
Regional Director – Asia
Luxury Hotels Group
exposure; some need representation services in certain
markets. So we deliver tailormade packages for them. We
are very strong on the PR element and building the digital
presence of hotels - whether it
is social media or generating
business from all resources on
digital sites.
It’s interesting you mention Tier-II and Tier-III
cities; how different is
your approach in these
cities?
Metros are strong on
corporate business and the
leisure side is also more or
less covered. In Tier-II and
Tier-III cities, we have to be a
little innovative on our
approach and we have to
deliver business that is coming to the region - for them the
MICE and leisure business
would be very important. We
are confident that we can
drive a lot of business into the
leisure segment. We are talking to small chain and independent hotels. For them, the
Delhi-NCR region itself presents a big opportunity, their
relatively smaller scale of
operation would not allow
them to set up dedicated
offices in Delhi-NCR, plus
they also need to take care of
monitoring and resources. So,
we give them representation
offices even for the Delhi market so we can drive in business even from within India.
And a lot of them need exposure and we can give that to
them as we are strong on our
PR and digital part.
We decided to set an
office in India as we
see a lot of potential in
the Indian market. We
are currently looking
for flagship properties
in India. Opening in
India allows us to open
our doors to South
East Asia. The India market is very important and
we see a lot of potential in this market. The hotels
here are doing very well and the travellers coming
in to India are growing year on year.
For us, it is important to
have people in the
market who understand
its intricacies and
appreciate that we have
to be very different in
China, as to what we
are doing in India, so it's
offering those bespoke
services that are important. So when it comes to
the full product creation, executing the services,
having teams on the ground and particularly the
IT coverage is extremely important to us.
Bernadetts Koltai
Vice President
Luxury Hotels Group
Sarah Marron
Business Development Director, Middle
East/Asia, Luxury Hotels Group
Having been in the
market now, how has
the response to the
Luxury Hotels Group
been in India?
For us, it is very important
to consolidate our position. We
don't want to rush in; we need
more referral business, we want
to make sure we sign up with
the right hotels. I can't sign up
with hotels where we can't add
value. Now we've established
ourselves and are discussing
with hotels. So we see more
success coming in now. For the
last six months, it's been more
about establishing our brand.
What is a ‘Right hotel’?
We sit down with the
hotels and try and understand
their business; what are the
segments we can deliver;
sometimes they come
with a lot of baggage, maybe
for poor services or shift of
business to other parts. They
have lost out on a lot of
business and we don't have
control over the hotels where
we can monitor their business
everyday.
TBO setting a new trend
It is India’s first travel portal to allow its partners to execute
Auto Reissuance on all major GDS airlines (British
Airways, Air France, Emirates, etc.) on Amadeus.
TT B U R E AU
ravel Boutique Online (TBO)
has become India’s first travel portal to allow its partners to
execute Auto Reissuance on all
major GDS airlines (British
Airways, Air France, Emirates,
etc.) on Amadeus. This new feature automatically calculates the
price difference and any penalty,
enabling you to instantly reissue
a ticket through the portal on
one single screen. Talking about
the new development, Ankush
Nijhawan, Managing Director,
Nijhawan Group of Companies
said, “By enabling this, we
minimise the revenue leakage
from manual pricing errors and
non-collection of penalty fees,
and moreover, we can instantly
reply to the client query. With
such transparent information,
the travel partner can change
their tickets quickly and efficiently. This innovation is one-of-itskind, and our team at TBO is
always seen as a trendsetter.
This will further equip our
travel partners to further serve
their customers seamlessly.”
T
Regarding
another
recent development at the
company, Nijhawan added,
“Accor has signed an agreement with TBO to strengthen
its distribution globally. TBO
will be responsible for
increasing sales of Accor
Accorhotels.com, by reaching
the TBO agency network
through their B2B portals
www.travelboutiqueonline.com
and www.tboholidays.com.
Accor is keen to further develop domestic sales in India to
accompany the development
This innovation is
one-of-its-kind, and our
team at TBO is always seen
as a trendsetter
Ankush Nijhawan
Managing Director
Nijhawan Group of Companies
Hotels across its network of
over 13,000 travel agents
across 300 cities in India and
4,000 agents in Middle East
and Africa.”
This strategic integration
compliments Accor’s own
worldwide booking portal,
target of opening 50 hotels
by 2015 in the country. This
connectivity will integrate
Accor hotels worldwide to
TBO websites, so that the
global Accor network can
benefit from the ever-growing
outbound market of travellers
from India.
FINAL FILE-November-1st-2014:TT Layout 10/31/2014 12:53 PM Page 27
STATES
NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
TRAVTALK
27
Adopt a destination, says Karnataka
Over 50 destinations in the state are open for collaboration with the private sector to make them more
tourist-friendly. Also, two new eco-trails Castle Rock and Kuduremukh have been inaugurated.
TT B U R E AU
elebrating World Tourism
Day under the theme of
‘Tourism and Community
Development’, Karnataka
Tourism launched a first of its
kind scheme to involve the
private sector towards the
upkeep, maintenance and
development of select tourist
attractions in the state. Of the
319 destinations that have
been earmarked for tourism,
nearly 50 are open for
such collaboration with the
aim of making them more
tourist-friendly.
C
Speaking on the occasion, RV Deshpande,
Minister for Tourism and
Higher Education, said,
Nothing can
succeed without
community
participation and
support, and this
is true of
Karnataka
Tourism too
RV Deshpande
Minister for Tourism
and Higher Education
“Nothing can succeed without
community participation and
support, and this is true of
Karnataka Tourism too.”
Moreover, in a bid to promote eco-spots in the state,
the Minister also launched two
Eco Trails ‘Castle Rock’ and
‘Kuduremukh’. It is a joint
venture between Karnataka
Forest
Department,
Karnataka
Ecotourism
Ramping Up
N Of the 319 destinations
that have been earmarked
for tourism, nearly 50
are open for such
collaboration with the aim
of making them more
tourist-friendly.
N Moreover, in a bid to
promote eco-spots in the
state, the Minister also
launched two Eco Trails
‘Castle Rock’ and
‘Kuduremukh’. It is a joint
venture
between
Karnataka
Forest
Department, Karnataka
Ecotourism Development
Board and Jungle Lodges
& Resorts
Development Board and
Jungle Lodges & Resorts,
which involves trekking in
selected eco systems on a
pre-designated route under a
leadership of a trained guide.
“There is great enthusiasm
among youth of the IT capital
to visit eco-spots in
Karnataka, but they have
been doing so in an unorganised
way,”
observed
Deshpande.
The event was also
attended by Arvind
Jadhav, IAS, Additional
Chief Secretary-Tourism,
G Sathyavathi, IAS,
Director –Tourism, Vinay
Luthra, IFS, Principal
Chief Conservator Forests
and members of the
Karnataka Tourism Vision
Group Mohandas Pai
and Kiran MazumdarShaw.
RV Deshpande, Minister for Tourism and Higher Education, lighting the lamp at the event
FINAL FILE-November-1st-2014:TT Layout 10/31/2014 12:53 PM Page 28
28
STATES
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
UK & Ireland ink
MoU for joint
visa scheme
Travellers from outside
the European Union (EU) can
now move freely between UK
and Ireland on a single permit. Tourists from India and
China will be the first beneficiaries of the scheme. The
agreement was signed at the
Irish Embassy in London by
Theresa
May,
Home
Secretary of the UK, and
Frances Fitzgerald, Minister
for Justice and Equality,
Government of Ireland.
“Our aim is to boost
tourism and business travel
to our countries and, together, we are sending a
clear and powerful message
that these islands are open
for business,” Fitzgerald
added.
May said, “This agreement will make it easier and
more attractive for travellers
to visit both Ireland and the
UK, while at the same time
strengthening
Common
Travel Area borders.”
Arlene Foster, the
Northern Ireland Enterprise
Minister, said the scheme
was “the result of a high
level of collaboration on work
to strengthen the Common
Travel Area and move to better, common standards for
border and visa issuance”.
It poured tourists in Goa this off-season
With an 18% rise in the numbers compared to the arrivals during the same period in 2013,
Goa has registered the highest percentage of tourist arrivals during the monsoon this year.
M E G H A PAU L
ow ‘off-season’ is ‘on-season’ in Goa. As the state
now evolves to become an allyear tourist destination, Goa
N
witnessed record high tourist
arrivals in June, July and
August this year. With an 18
per cent rise in the numbers
compared to the arrivals during
the same period in 2013, Goa
Ameya Abhyankar
Savio Messias
Director, Department of Tourism
Government of Goa
Vice President, Travel and Tourism
Association of Goa (TTAG)
For the last four
years, the
number of
tourists that visit
the state during
the monsoon is
increasing
Goa has been
attracting
tourists even
during
monsoon
because it is
well-marketed
Some such initiatives
include domestic and
international
roadshows, exhibitions and
international
travel
agents’ FAM trips, he
added.
has registered the highest percentage of tourist arrivals during the monsoons.
Talking about the
increase in tourist this season,
Ameya Abhyankar, Director,
Department of Tourism,
Government of Goa said, “For
the last four years, the number
of tourists that visit the state
during the monsoon is
increasing. Rebranding and
re-positioning of Brand Goa
as a land of all seasons and
capitalising on the fact that
Goa is the world’s only tourist
destination that has the maximum contrasts in the smallest
geographical space, further
notched up the numbers of
tourists in the state during the
monsoons.” The state tourism
department attributed the rise
to the introduction of safety
and security measures,
awareness created on hinterland, culture, monsoon and
pilgrim tourism, through rigorous marketing initiatives.
Savio Messias,
Vice President, Travel
and Tourism Association
of Goa (TTAG) opined,
“Goa has been attracting tourists even during
monsoon because it is
well-marketed as an
entertainment spot. Goa
has also emerged as a
big weekend getaway
destination. We see a huge
influx in domestic tourists during the extended weekends
and this is also driving business in the off-season weekends in the state.” According to
Messias, Goa’s tourism industry will depend heavily on
domestic holidaymakers in
winter as travel agencies feel
fewer Russian charters will be
flying to the state in the peak
season this year due to the
depreciation of Ruble and the
Ukrainian political crisis.
FINAL FILE-November-1st-2014:TT Layout 10/31/2014 12:53 PM Page 29
AVIATION
NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
TRAVTALK
29
Vistara unveils its first A320 IndiGo orders 250 A320neo
The A320, with its unique aubergine and gold livery, IndiGo has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)
landed at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi for 250 A320neo Family aircraft. The agreement will
to a water-cannon salute.
become Airbus’ single largest order by number of aircraft.
T T B U R E AU
arking the 82nd anniversary of JRD Tata’s first
commercial flight from Karachi
to Mumbai, Vistara recently
welcomed its first A320 painted
with the airline's livery. The aircraft landed at Delhi’s Indira
Gandhi International Airport at
1630hrs and was welcomed
M
gives me great pride and joy to
present to you our new aircraft
on this special day. There could
be no better way to celebrate
the 82nd anniversary of a significant milestone in Indian aviation – the first commercial
flight of Tata Airlines that was
piloted by the legendary JRD
Tata. I thank DIAL for this
amazing reception. Each step
with the traditional water cannon salute. This was followed
by a reception at the airport
lounge attended by officials
from Delhi International Airport
(P) Limited (DIAL) and Vistara.
in this journey brings us closer
to the realization of Vistara, an
airline that will redefine the air
travel. We are also thankful to
the DGCA for their cooperation
and support.”
Commenting on the
occasion, Prasad Menon,
Chairman, Vistara, said, “It
Mukund Rajan, Director
on Board, TSAL said, “Our
partnership with GMR/DIAL
stems from our common belief
in the highest standards of
service and will play a key role
in shaping great customer
experiences. Having chosen
Delhi as our home hub, I am
very pleased that Vistara has
commenced a wonderful
working relationship with
GMR/DIAL, and I wish both the
teams the very best as Vistara
heads towards operational
launch.”
Phee Teik Yeoh, CEO,
Vistara, said, “I cannot express
in words the happiness I feel at
having our first painted aircraft
here. The fact that it coincides
with the 82nd anniversary of
JRD Tata’s first commercial
flight in India makes it even
more historic. The entire team
at Vistara has been working
really hard for the last many
months and it is heartening to
see a physical manifestation of
the efforts. With this, we are a
step closer to realizing our
dream of getting the airline off
the ground. I thank GMR and
DIAL for organising this heartwarming reception for us.”
T T B U R E AU
ditya Ghosh, President,
IndiGo said, “This new
order reaffirms IndiGo’s
commitment to the long-term
development of affordable
air transportation in India
and overseas.
A
The additional aircraft
will enable us to continue to
bring our low fares and courteous, hassle free service to
more customers and markets
and will create more job
opportunities and growth.”
IndiGo has previously placed
orders for 280 Airbus aircraft
(100 A320ceo and 180
A320neo).
“The A320neo continues
to dominate world market
share and this commitment
confirms the A320 Family as
the aircraft of choice in the
most dynamic aviation
growth markets. We thank
IndiGo and its co-founders
Rakesh Gangwal and Rahul
Bhatia for their tremendous
vote of confidence,” said
Fabrice Brégier, Airbus
President and CEO.
The A320neo’s ‘new
engine option’ incorporates
many innovations, including
latest generation engines and
large Sharklet wing-tip
devices, which together deliv-
The A320 Family is the
world’s best-selling single
aisle product line with almost
11,000 orders to date and
over 6,200 aircraft delivered
to 400 customers and
operators worldwide. Thanks
to its widest cabin, all
members of the A320
The additional aircraft will enable us to
continue to bring our low
fares and courteous,
hassle free service to more
customers and markets
and will create more job
opportunities and growth
Aditya Ghosh
President
IndiGo
er 15 per cent in fuel savings
from Day One and 20 per cent
by 2020 which is equivalent to
a reduction of 5,000 tonnes of
CO2 per aircraft per year.
Family offer the industry’s
best level of comfort in all
classes and Airbus’ 18”
wide seats in economy as
standard.
FINAL FILE-November-1st-2014:TT Layout 10/31/2014 12:53 PM Page 30
30
NTO
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
Meet the experiential outbound Indian
For most Indians today, travel is not about traversing the distance between point A and B anymore, but rather a
voyage of discovery – of new places, but more importantly – of exciting, non-traditional experiences. It looks like
the Indian outbound leisure tourist is slowly coming of age.
HAZEL JAIN
ndia is emerging as the
world's fastest-growing outbound market - in volume only second to China, and is
expected to reach the 50-mil-
I
go beyond the regular itinerary
and travel to newer, upcoming
destinations.”
holiday potential from India for
the French Riviera, Greece
and Seychelles.
Another short-haul destination Thailand receives a
steady inflow of high-end trav-
According to Anna
Singh, Assistant MD at ATPI
India, the latest trend among
Soraya Homchuen
Jim Paul
Lubaina Sheerazi
Director
TAT, Mumbai
Head, Tourism Ireland
(Australia & Developing Markets)
India Representative
for Ministry of Tourism, Oman
We note a strong
movement
towards
exploration that
goes beyond a
destination’s
best-recognised
icons
lion mark by 2020.
breaks it down.
The luxury traveller
The unprecedented level
of wealth creation has
spawned a whole new segment called UHNI (Ultra-High
Networking Individuals) and
eyeing this segment are the
multitude of foreign tourism
boards. Outlining this demographic is Lubaina Sheerazi,
India Representative for
Ministry of Tourism, Oman,
who says, “The UHNIs are
brand-conscious, love to travel
in luxury and are experiential
by nature. They are willing to
Indians want to
now spend
more time
understanding
a place and
getting under
the skin of the
destination
ellers
parallely. Soraya
Homchuen, Director of Tourism
Authority of Thailand in
Mumbai, notes, “We are noticing that some travellers will
spend a large portion
of their trip staying in budget or
mid-market hotels, but will
devote the last two to three days
and a substantial amount of
their holiday budget to staying
in a luxury hotel.”
In fact, TUI India is now
catering to demand for yacht
vacations complete with captain, chef and butler along
Thailand’s Koh Samui and
Pattaya. It sees similar yacht
Experiential
travel means
straying from the
usual tourist
spots, eating at
local restaurants
and participating
in outdoor
adventures
FITs is luxury travel. “It is
viewed as a status symbol and
destinations such as Zanzibar
and Marina Bay Singapore are
gaining popularity,” she says.
For this discerning traveller,
Thomas Cook India’s luxury
brand has created chic experiences from sightseeing in
New Zealand on a Harley
Davidson or truffle and beer
trails in Belgium; decadent spa
and wellness programs at
South Africa’s Karkloof spa set
in a private game reserve; 45m
abseiling down a 350-year old
banyan tree in Chiang Mai or
Canada’s aurora borealis
escapades.
The experiential wanderer
Thailand also welcomes
a small percentage of Indians
looking for an experience.
Homchuen reveals, “We note
a strong movement towards
exploration that goes beyond a
destination’s best-recognised
icons. No longer do people
want to only visit Bangkok and
Pattaya.” Depending on their
interests, people are heading
towards beach destinations like
Phuket, Hua Hin, Krabi, Koh
Samui and Koh Phan Ngan or
to the hilly regions of Chiang
“Indians want to now spend
more time understanding a
place and get under the skin of
the destination. We have therefore launched the self-drive
route called the Wild Atlantic
Way and also promoting
Northern Ireland where ‘Game
of Thrones’ is filmed,” he adds.
The Ireland Specialist
Program was relaunched in
March this year in India.
According to Paul, over 300
agents have signed up so far,
and they are targetting over
700 agents this year.
Mischa Mannix-Opie
Hanneli Slabber
Regional Manager (South & South
East Asia) at Tourism New Zealand
Country Manager
South African Tourism
The number
of self-drive
holidays has
been on a rise
and will only
increase as
Indians opt for
flexible itineraries
Mai and Chiang Rai, historic
centres like Ayutthaya and
Sukhothai or places of historic
and natural significance like
Kanchanaburi.
The trend is also to
spend more time in fewer destinations. Jim Paul, Head of
Tourism Ireland (Australia &
Developing Markets), concurs.
Considering the
good value
available on
ground, Indian
travellers want
to experience
varied activities
in limited time
Overall there is an
increase in interest for
‘involved’ tourism experiences.
Sightseeing and phototourism is no longer enough.
“People sometimes want to
pick up a skill. That’s why
experiences like Muay Thai
and Thai culinary lessons are
becoming popular. It also
serves as a great bonding
experience for families and
groups,” Homchuen adds.
Sheerazi terms this as the
most compelling trend among
Indians. “Experiential travel
means straying from the usual
tourist spots, eating at restaurants that locals eat at and participate in outdoor adventures.
Destinations known for their
natural beauty, cultures and traditions are also gaining popularity. Also, cities that were often
seen as gateways to historical
and natural environments are
now attracting tourists by offering a diverse set of cultural, economic and social activities,”
she says.
Indians are even opting
for self-drives in New Zealand.
Mischa Mannix-Opie, Regional
Manager (South & South East
Asia) at Tourism New Zealand,
sees a rise in spending power
of Indians as well as an eagerness to explore new places as
against just sight-seeing. “The
number of self-drive holidays
has been on a rise and will only
increase as Indians opt for
more flexibility in their itineraries,” she says.
The experimental Indian
According to Shibani
Phadkar, Senior VP - Products
& Operations for Leisure Travel
(Outbound) at Thomas Cook
India, the Indian traveller is no
longer satisfied with a cookiecutter package. “The new-age
discerning traveller’s bucket list
now comprises an eclectic
blend of engaging experiences
and experimental off-beat journeys. Year 2015 is going to be
all about exploring the unexplored,” she says.
The youthful Indian
traveller loves the adrenalin
rush of adventure options like
diving holidays in Oman,
Ferrari drives in Italy or super
cars in Singapore, ski vacaContd. on page 33 FINAL FILE-November-1st-2014:TT Layout 10/31/2014 12:53 PM Page 31
AGENTS
NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
TRAVTALK
31
DMC biz is the new revenue churner
Through Tourism Enterprises, the company is promoting DMCs from Dubai, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Romania, Czech
Republic, Brazil, Peru-Equador and Panama.
T T B U R E AU
ith India emerging as
one of the world’s fastest
growing outbound market, the
W
trend. One of the travel companies that joined this bandwagon and has seen an increase
in business from the same is
Erco Travels.
The company is promoting outbound travel from
India in the B2B segment.
“We created a brand called
‘Tourism Enterprises’ which
represents worldwide DMCs
in India. The vertical, which
Ravi Gusain
Managing Director
Erco Travels
We have built up
a good sales
team in Delhi,
Bengaluru and
Mumbai to give
strong support
to our clients
(overseas
DMCs) for
setting up their
business
contacts in India
travel and tourism industry
globally and in the home turf is
also cashing in on the new
Adventure Tourism
Festival from
November 7-9
A three-day adventure
tourism festival is to be held by
the Arunachal Pradesh government in collaboration with the
Union Tourism Ministry at the
Mechuka Valley to encourage
tourism in the state.
The festival ‘Adventure
@Mechuka’, will be the second
edition of the festival and will be
held between November 7-9,
Joram Beda, State Tourism
Secretary said.
The state government has
declared the festival as a calendar event of the state, he added.
Beda said tourism was the only
means of sustainable development of the state and the state’s
potential in this respect could be
termed as ‘untapped gold mine’
Nabam Tuki, Chief Minister,
Arunachal Pradeh would inaugurate the festival on November
7 and Kiren Rijiju, Union
Minister of State for Home
Affairs would be there at the
closing ceremony on Nov 9.
has been operational for over
a year now has been an
extremely successful venture,” Ravi Gusain, Managing
Director, Erco Travels said.
While talking about the USP
of the company, he added,
“We are promoting DMCs
from Dubai, Sri Lanka,
Malaysia, Romania, Czech
Republic, Brazil, PeruEquador and Panama so far.
Things are looking positive
and we are looking forward to
introduce some new destinations in the future.”
According to Gusain, the
interest for worldwide DMCs in
the Indian market is increasing.
“We have built up a good sales
team in Delhi, Bengaluru and
Mumbai to give strong support
to our clients (overseas DMCs)
for setting up their business
contacts in India. With offline
and online promotions, we are
also trying to give them better
visibility in the Indian market.
All our destinations with details
about DMCs are given on our
website- www.tourismenterprises.com,” he revealed.
Regarding the revenue
drivers for the company,
the MD commented, “We
have signed up DMC on
representative fees as well
as revenue sharing basis
depends on destination’s interest in Indian market. Recently,
we have acquired 50 per cent
stake in Dubai based DMC
Al Karawan Tourism LLC
www.aktdubai.com, which will
help us to be competitive and
better in services. We hosted a
launch party in Lucknow for Al
Karawan. The event witnessed
a chunk of local travel agents
and tour operators.”
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32
GUEST COLUMN
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
Hyderabad bullish on MICE market
Hyderabad has enjoyed the limelight of being a MICE destination as it was the only city in the country that had
the infrastructure to host large conferences. The emergence of quality convention centres in other parts of the
country is giving Hyderabad a run for its money.
arkets like Hyderabad
which have probably borne
the maximum brunt of the slowdown, have seen a gradual turnaround beginning in the third
quarter. I foresee the last quarter
to be fairly strong and hopefully,
this should bode well for the
following year. With the separate
state decision announcement,
the uncertainty should subside
and international travel – primarily for MICE - should see a
boost.
M
The increased stability
will now help improve the
investment in the city from IT
enabled Services (ITeS),
biotechnology and Pharma
and aerospace sectors.
Connectivity within Hyderabad
too, is set to get better with the
introduction of L&T Metro,
which will change the face of
public transport and boost
infrastructure. All these elements will factor in to improve
the conditions for hoteliers.
The domestic sector has
supported the industry during
the difficult phase, and this
should continue to grow as a
segment. Warming of travel
sentiments in major source
markets like the US and
Europe post elections should
give a much needed vote of
confidence for leisure and business travellers alike.
Changing demand and
supply dynamics
The demand-supply
dynamics across the country
has changed rapidly in the last
year. Most brands that opened
up from 2010 until last year,
were an answer to the pent-up
demand situation that persist-
ed in the period of 2005-2007.
But due to the economic instability, there has been marginal
increase in demand compared
to the increase in supply.
This rise in supply has
resulted in a rate pressure
across the country. The moderation in terms of hotel rates
has made hotels more affordable to the domestic customers
at several destinations. The
fragility in the market has also
given an opportunity for hotels
to revisit their strategies in
terms of sourcing, marketing,
cost controlling, etc.
It is however important
for hotels to recognise and
maintain their price points, lest
opportunities for rate corrections become untenable during
the upswing.
Hyderabad as the ideal
MICE destination, will
the trend continue?
Hyderabad has enjoyed
the limelight of being a MICE
destination as it was the only
city in the country that had the
infrastructure to host large
conferences. The emergence
of quality convention centres
in other parts of the country is
giving Hyderabad a run for its
money. However with the
growing pace of pharma and
healthcare sectors in the city,
Hyderabad should remain a
preferred city for most organisers. This will greatly depend
on the government focusing
on this traditional strength of
the city, and supporting marketing and infrastructure initiatives
for Hyderabad. This is also
important as there is
competition from international
venues for global events, and
these events, if won by
Hyderabad, will enhance the
city’s image as a premier
MICE destination.
Emergence & impact of
online marketing
The business of travel
has evolved rapidly in the
last few years and today, electronic channels have become
an integral source
driving revenue.
for
We are at an age where
our travellers are hyper-connected and prefer being well
informed of the places they are
visiting and where they are
staying at. Travel review sites
like Trip Advisor have become
very popular among travellers
and play a strong role in influencing choices.
Marriott Hotels regard
guest feedback very highly and
has developed many processes and surveys internally to
benchmark excellence in hospitality and service. Today, a
guest has many mediums to
share their feedback, which no
longer remains between the
guest and the hotel management but for the entire travel
community to view. This
has spiked the interest among
hotel chains to increase
and improve their online
reputation.
Contd. on page 38 FINAL FILE-November-1st-2014:TT Layout 10/31/2014 12:53 PM Page 33
NTO
NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
TRAVTALK
33
Moving away from the beaten track
Contd. from page 30
tions or alpine hikes and
mountain
biking
in
Switzerland.
Even destinations like
South Africa are seeing a new
variety of tourists from India.
Hanneli Slabber, Country
Shibani Phadkar
Senior VP - Products & Operations for Leisure
Travel (Outbound) Thomas Cook India
The new-age
discerning
traveller’s bucket
list now comprises
an eclectic blend
of engaging
experiences and
experimental
off-beat journeys
Manager for South African
Tourism, observes Indian
leisure travellers planning their
own itineraries and opting for
experiences like adventure,
culture tours, self-drive tours
and even volunteer tourism.
“Considering the good
value available on ground,
Indian travellers today want to
experience varied activities in
the limited time. Gone are the
days when Indians used to visit
Anna Singh
Assistant MD
ATPI India
Luxury travel is
viewed as a
status symbol
and destinations
such as Zanzibar
and Marina Bay
Singapore are
gaining
popularity
a country, go sightseeing and
eat Indian food. Today, they are
more adventurous in exploring
and experimenting with the
unknown,” she says.
elled who want an opportunity
to interact with the locals. It is
also popular among the
wealthy who want to give back
while they holiday.”
There has also been
demand for volunteer tourism.
Homchuen from TAT Mumbai
says, “People are also keen to
do volunteer work while travelling. We are seeing a niche of
Indians signing up for voluntourism like planting trees and
teaching English to villagers or
restoring monuments. This is
a trend among the well-trav-
Food is also becoming a
large part of the travel experience and the Far East is a
good place to start. “There was
a time when everyone requested for Indian food. The nonvegetarians evolved first, but
today we’re also seeing vegetarians requesting for vegetarian food cooked in Thai style.
Agents must know of an app
called ‘Happy Cow’ which
shows them vegetarian restaurants and cafes in their vicinity,”
Homchuen says.
erful economies of scale,
which when coupled with our
Personalised Holidays offers
the traveller unique flexibility.”
The prudent holidaymaker
Echoing similar sentiments is Sheerazi who says
that backpackers are still a big
segment for any destination.
“Some backpackers now have
substantial incomes and can
move from a hostel accommodation one night to a five-star
hotel the next. These have
been identified as ‘flashpackers’ usually in their 30s and
40s and with the same adven-
Meanwhile, Thomas
Cook India’s analysis observes
the emergence of another segment – a value-conscious consumer but individualistic in
their own right. Phadkar says,
“This segment is looking for
value-saver packages without
being impersonal. Our group
travel business gives us pow-
turous outlook as backpackers.
The only difference is that they
have cash. Authenticity is very
high on their needs list and
they are in fact the leaders in
discovering new experiences,”
she says.
Quick Takes
N Food is also becoming a
large part of the travel
experience and the Far East
is a good place to start.
N Backpackers are still a big
segment
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AGENTS
NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
TRAVTALK
35
Establishing presence in Dubai, SA
With growing demand from the Middle East region, the Akquasun Group has just opened its office in
Dubai licensed by the Dubai Tourism. It has also bought over two South African tour companies located in Cape
Town owned by a single owner as well as Mumbai-based World of Vacations for its South Africa packages.
TT B U R E AU
fter starting a dedicated
division for MICE called
Akquasun Global B2B MICE
Solutions in 2013, the Indiabased destination management company has now set up
a Dubai office as a licensed
tour operator under Akquasun
Tourism LLC to serve the UAE
outbound market. The new
office was opened on October
15, 2014.
A
BA Rahim, its group
director and CEO, said, “We
want to thank our B2B partners
who made this happen for us.
We now have our own state-ofthe-art set-up with professionally-trained staff for the Indian
market, a growing fleet of vehicles, visa support and above
all, great support. We have
started this to be able to serve
our partners better. We have
blocked hotel rooms for the
upcoming ‘Dubai Shopping
Festival’ and our MICE and FIT
teams are ready to serve them
in the UAE.”
He revealed that this
development came about after
the company terminated the
contract of Dubai-based
ArabianLink Tours. The new
inbound-outbound tourism office
is located in Bur Dubai with 20
staff members. “Dubai is a growing market with very high potential. We were only waiting for our
license to come through to start
operations here. With this new
office, we expect a 40-50 per
cent increase in numbers from
our current 800-1,500 passengers per month in the leisure
and FIT segments. The Dubai
office will handle business
from India, China, Vietnam,
Philippines and some parts of
Europe,” he revealed.
The group is now getting
ready to go online with its new
portal (akquasunonline.com)
going live from November 1. It
will start by focussing on the
Maldives, Mauritius and the Sri
Lanka markets.
Presence in South
Africa
The Akquasun Group has
also bought over two South
African tour companies called
Centurion Tours and Citi Hopper
owned by Ikraam Bulbulia. The
two companies operate as separate entities but work closely
together by virtue of them having a single owner.
Bulbulia, who is now part
of Akquasun Africa as its MD,
said, “I joined Akquasun in
February this year with a 25 per
cles. The two South African
companies are now in the midst
of interlinking their websites with
Akquasun’s website.
cent stake in the business. We
have six travel desks inside the
international airport and are the
only DMC in South Africa with
its own vehicles. We replace our
fleet every two years.”
While Centurion Tours
does transfers and package
tours, Citi Hopper does transfers
and has a fleet of seven vehi-
BA Rahim & Ikraam Bulbulia
Meanwhile, Akquasun
Africa headed by Bulbulia has
also taken over Mumbai-based
‘World of Vacations’ for its
South Africa packages and will
now be called ‘Akquasun Africa
World of Vacations’. “We are
retaining the name and the
identity since it is a well-known
brand in the Indian market that
sells South Africa here.
Akquasun Africa will also be
starting outbound from South
Africa in the next two months
to Dubai, Maldives, Mauritius,
Sri Lanka, Vietnam and
Cambodia,” Rahim said.
FINAL FILE-November-1st-2014:TT Layout 10/31/2014 12:53 PM Page 36
ITA winners sing
praises about the East
Indian tourism celebrated the achievements of
those behind the travel and tourism industry at
the maiden edition of India Travel Awards –
East, held on October 10, 2014 at Novotel,
Kolkata Hotel and Residences. Here is what
the winners have to say about the award
and the potential of East India.
I'm glad that Durga Das
Publications and TravTalk
are taking this step to
recognise people in the East
to provide them their due
recognition.
Though
Eastern India has
a lot of
potential but the only problem is its distance
from the capital of India. East is the place
where you have everything from mountains
to beaches to wildlife and from temples to
forests. Once the East starts picking up I
think the travel market will be equally
distributed.
Jeetendra Kumar Mohanty
Wall of Legends
It is really
an honour
for the travel
agents who have
worked in the
travel industry for
a long time and
done the services to the nation. Once we have
a developed infrastructure in East India, the
area will attract investors to come here and
invest and develop the area more.
J T Ramnani
DDP Game Changer
It's great to
have an award
for the East as
we need more
encouragement.
I cannot expect
the hotel to run
on full occupancy
from its day one. But there is tremendous potential
and capacity. I've full faith that in a few years we'll
be keeping the benefits of this faith. Apart from the
fact that it has visibility in the large part of the expat
group I think the Novotel brand is specifically very
well positioned for a market like Kolkata and that
gives a lot of advantage. We have all the stars
staying in here for the Indian Super League and the
occupancies are better than what we had expected.
We will have to wait to see how it pans out for the
rest of the year. We are very happy.
Apurva Salarpuria
Trailblazer
It's been a great
opportunity for
me. It gives
inspiration for
people like us
to keep the
work on,
who think out of the box and try and do
something different. I really thank
and India Travel Awards for
this honour and I wish you all the
best.
Debjit Dutta
Face of the Future
HOTELS
HoJo makes its India debut
The most iconic of American hotel brands now finds a place in the multibrand market of India with Wyndham’s Howard Johnson making its debut
in Bengaluru. This will be followed by new hotels in Vijayawada, Lonavala,
Jaiselmer, Mumbai and Greater Noida.
The first HoJo property was
launched in Bengaluru on
October 10, 2014 at Manyata
Embassy Business Park in
Hebbal.
HAZEL JAIN
oward Johnson hotels, or
HoJo as it is often called,
has traditionally been independently owned and operated
under franchise agreements.
The same arrangement has
been extended to India with all
HoJo development contract
awarded to a single real
estate developer – Unique
Mercantile India.
H
The Ahmedabad-based
real estate development firm
has acquired the exclusive
Other upcoming HoJos
Rahul Rai
Director
Unique Mercantile India
by 2020 with an infusion of
`1,805 crore over five years.
The land is owned by MS
Ramaiah Group and the
mixed-use project has a 117room mid-market, full service
business hotel along with a
mall. “We have invested `80
crore on this property.
Bengaluru will be followed
by Vijayawada, Lonavala,
Jaiselmer, Mumbai and
Greater Noida.”
Howard Johnson Hebbal
Rahul Rai, Director,
Unique Mercantile India, says,
"We will raise the capital
through internal accruals only.
We are a debt-free company
and want to remain that way."
In Lonavala, a holiday
destination between Mumbai
and Pune, the developer will
convert the already-existing Biji’s
Hill Retreat into a HoJo property.
“This 82-room heritage hotel will
get an upgrade with an infinity
pool in the first phase of
development, following by an
addition of 38 more rooms in
phase two. Part of the hotel with
82 rooms will be ready by
2015-end,” he reveals.
The mixed-use development project in Greater Noida
will have a 100-room resort in
JV with Dhampur Sugar Mills
and will open by 2017. This will
be followed by the opening of
the Mumbai property that will
come up in Andheri’s international airport corridor and will
be ready by 2018.
The rooms at Howard Johnson
Hebbal, Bengaluru are categorised
into 81 deluxe rooms, 23 executive
club rooms, 5 premium rooms and
8 suites. Guests can also enjoy an
outdoor swimming pool, a spa and
a high-tech fitness center. For meetings and business visits, the hotel
hosts a 3,500-square foot conference and event space, which
includes two meeting rooms and a
24-hour business center.
contract to develop properties
under the Howard Johnson
(HoJo) brand by US-based
Wyndham Worldwide across
India for 15 years. It will develop and operate 35 HoJo hotels
traveller and will target the costconscious leisure as well as
business traveller across various
markets.”
Deepika Arora, Regional
VP (Indian Ocean & EMEAI) for
Wyndham Hotel Group, said, “In
India, Howard Johnson will be a
mid-market, full service hotel
which is made for the everyday
Unique Mercantile India
will invest in both incomplete
and existing hotels that are
underperforming or in need of
cash infusion. “We aim to convert such hotels into HoJo
properties and upgrade them
to international standards of
operation and management,”
Rai adds.
A ‘stately’ twist to tourism
Contd. from page 6
Commenting on the
response for the Gujarat
Travel Mart 2013 (GTM),
Kaul said, “Last year, we
received
tremendous
response from both domestic
and international buyers and
witnessed a 40 per cent
increase in participation over
2012.” GTM 2013 comprised
State Tourism Boards, NTOs,
travel trade associations,
transportation partners, travel
agents and tour operators,
MICE operators, technology
providers, hotels and resorts,
specialists in Wellness and
Medical, Adventure as
well as Ecotourism. The
Gujarat pavilion showcased
the different facets of the
state such as its festivals,
beaches, heritage, which
will include the Gandhi
Circuit and Buddhist Circuit,
heritage hotels, National
Parks
and
Wildlife
Sanctuaries, Medical Tourism
facilities, handicrafts, pilgrimage sites, etc.
Sanjay Kaul
Jyoti Kapur
Managing Director
TCGL
President
ADTOI
The main focus
internationally
was on Europe
and domestically
the focus was on
metros and
Tier-II cities
According to Jyoti Kapur,
President, ADTOI, the associa-
In collaboration
with our Gujarat
Chapter, we are
looking at
launching the
State Specialist
Plan next year
tion has adopted a strategy to
promote the state during the
GTM as well. “In collaboration
with our Gujarat Chapter, we
are looking at launching the
State Specialist Plan next year.
This will be a one-week training
programme to enhance the
knowledge of the travel trade
about attractions and destinations of Gujarat thus enabling
them sell the state more effectively.” The Travel Mart, which
was scheduled to happen this
year in the month of March, was
postponed due to the national
elections.
The first edition of
Madhya Pradesh Travel Mart The Wildlife, Heritage, Culture
and Tourism Showcase was
also concluded recently. The
B2B event witnessed over 100
registered buyers from over
ten countries exploring business opportunities for travel
and tourism products. Madhya
Pradesh Travel Mart 2014
offered two exhibitor segments, namely Destination
Madhya
Pradesh
and
Incredible India Section.
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38
FAMILY ALBUM
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
PACTO –OTOAI debut roadshow in India
PACTO, a DMC based in Indonesia, organised its debut roadshow in association with the Outbound Tour Operators Association of India (OTOAI) in Mumbai and
Delhi. In Delhi, it was held in The LaLit on September 11, 2014. A group of 19 properties participated in the roadshow. PACTO is the largest DMC in Indonesia which
is an allied member of Outbound Tour Operators Association of India (OTOAI). This is the first time they organised this roadshow with them in Mumbai and Delhi.
Enabling technology
Contd. from page 32
At Marriott, through technology and systems, we have
created an integrated platform
that monitors and tracks what
guests have to share of their
experience on any of the social
networking sites.
Technology in improving
guest experience
Earlier technology was
perceived simply as an enabler
to carry out the business, but
today we understand the real
benefit of technology that is to
enhance the whole guest
experience—the entertainment, the comfort, the extent
to which we can do so much to
personalise and enhance the
guest’s experience. The advent
of smartphones has helped a
great deal in making travel
easy and smart. Right from
choosing the destination to
travel to, to booking a room at
a hotel and reading its reviews
can now be done via a swipe.
The Marriott website is now
designed as a mobile app
compatible with all smartphones so that a traveller can
book his stay while on the go.
Virtual concierge service
again is a technology powered
process, wherein guests can
share their special requirements and preferences such
as feather-free pillows, extra
towels & amenities, itinerary for
a city tour, etc. with our hotels
prior to their arrival. This helps
us in creating bespoke experiences for our guest.
Technology has also
become instrumental in developing green practices as there
is an increase in the number of
environmentally conscious
travellers. Today we have corporates and independent travellers asking hotels of the
measures they take to pre-
serve the environment and this
has become a deciding factor
for those who keenly seek to
reduce their carbon foot print.
‘Spirit to Preserve’ is part of the
Marriott’s brand ethos, where
emphasis is laid on creating
innovative green practices that
make the hotel more ecofriendly and enables guests to
travel responsibly.
The writer is Sharad Datta,
General Manager Hyderabad Marriott
Hotel & Convention Centre and Courtyard
Abacus ties up with Conferma
Conferma, the expert
providers of Virtual Card Number
(VCN) technology for the corporate travel sector, signed a global
contract with Abacus which will
give corporate travel management companies and corporate
travel agencies throughout the
region access to a secure virtual
payment solution, starting from
the end of this year. Integrated
within Abacus WorkSpace, VCNs
will improve agents’ control, data
and process efficiency across the
full spectrum of corporate travel,
from hotel reservations to air
and rail tickets, car rentals and
more. Automated reconciliation
of booking and transaction data
will also deliver enhanced
process efficiencies, whilst
offering Abacus agents an
in-depth view of their clients’
corporate spend.
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40
TECHNOLOGY
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
Abacus resets travel distribution in APAC
Abacus announced its most radical roll-out at its Asia Pacific customer conference. Leveraging shareholder Sabre’s
award-winning technology, Abacus is using the Red App capabilities of the new Abacus WorkSpace point-of-sale
platform to bring a multitude of content distribution opportunities to its agency subscribers.
Abacus ContentPlus
T T B U R E AU
bacus is bringing
together the best of
global with the best of local,”
explained Martin Symes,
CMO, Abacus who presented
a range of new products and
solutions to an audience of
500, representing the region’s
most powerful retail travel
brands. Highlights include:
“A
Abacus ContentPlus
aggregates the most competitive air, hotel, car, insurance
and ground products to be
sold stand-alone or as part of
a package.
Travel agents no longer
have to access multiple systems: all content sources are
accessible within a single
point-of-sale – with super-PNR
integration between Abacus
ContentPlus
and
the
Abacus GDS.
“We are solving the
problem of content fragmentation, while making travel
agents so much more productive and competitive,” said
Symes.
For accommodation,
Abacus RoomDeal, delivered
in partnership with
Indonesia’s ‘bedbank’
brand, MG Group, will
channel net rates from
Robert Balley
up to 25 leading hotel
President & CEO
content aggregators
Abacus
for unparalleled pricing and
availability.
UK-based Travelfusion
will scale the company’s low
cost carrier (LCC) options.
Already home to the largest
portfolio of LCCs in Asia
Pacific, Abacus will now offer
over 180 budget airlines, with
their ancillary products and
services phased in.
Abacus ContentPlus will
integrate City Discovery’s
portfolio of destination products, introducing 8,000 trending activities, attractions,
event ticketing and tours,
together with a wealth of airport
transfers,
while
Cartrawler provides pre-paid
rentals from over 1,200 car
rental suppliers and chauffeur
driven services in 30,000 destinations. Insurance specialist
AIG Group completes the
range of launch content
providers.
Planned future phases
will see further additions to
What’s Ne
w
Abacus C
ontentPlu
s
Abacus Tr
avelPlus
Abacus M
obileConn
ect
Abacus
ContentPlus, including
rail, cruise, ferry and coach
products.
Abacus TravelPlus
For wholesalers, Abacus
has a separate proposition with
Abacus TravelPlus, a webbased package creation, distribution and booking solution,
which was launched recently.
“Wholesalers want to be
more tactical to maximise their
distribution,” said Symes. “The
capabilities
of
Abacus
TravelPlus, including its built-in
eFlyer creation tool, will move
more inventory faster, increasing
productivity.”
Larry Lo, Managing
Director of Westminster Travel,
Hong Kong said, “We filter with
our travellers’ preferences and
then cross-sell from the wellstocked shelves. It will definitely deliver incremental business,
but the time-saving in packaging is going to be a big benefit.”
It will make it possible for
any travel agency to launch,
with minimal investment, their
own branded mobile app with
all the critical functions needed
by travellers. As well as bookings, these include check-in
prompts, timely trip alerts, flight
status and contextually relevant destination information
such as weather and events,
together with personalised promotions in-trip - ideal for last
minute reservations.
In response to ever
growing concerns over security, Abacus has also introduced a Call for Help function,
using GPS location data to
alert next of kin to difficulties.
It will allow agencies to offer
a 24/7 Online Helpdesk via
VOIP, IM or SMS.
Abacus MobileConnect
Complementing
TripCase, the leading consumer travel itinerary app,
Abacus is also presenting a
travel agency tool for the
small screen in Abacus
MobileConnect.
“Given the increasing
demand for both pre-trip and
in-trip mobile solutions, Abacus
MobileConnect will provide our
agents with a vital new channel
for selling and managing their
clients’ travel,” said Symes.
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42
NTO
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
IRCTC launches an official
Android App ‘IRCTC Connect’
Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC)
has launched an app, ‘IRCTC Connect’ for ticket booking
through Android platform. It will further empower the customers with feasibilty of bookings
through mobiles.
The key features are:
One step login to existing users
Search and Book train tickets
View and Cancel tickets
Retains recently added passenger details
New Users, register from App directly
Upcoming Journey Alerts
Say Hello to Canopy by Hilton
Hilton Worldwide has
recently announced the
launch of ‘Canopy by Hilton’,
a new hotel brand that redefines the lifestyle category
around the mindset of
today’s leisure and business
travellers. Christopher J.
Nassetta, President and CEO
of
Hilton
Worldwide,
unveiled the Canopy by
Hilton
concept
to nearly 1,900 owners and
development representatives
at Hilton Worldwide’s Global
Partnership Conference in
Orlando, Florida.
“Built on extensive market research, our highly-
anticipated Canopy by Hilton
brand delivers a fresh
approach to hospitality and
guest experience,” Nassetta
said. “We identified the need
to take the emphasis off capital-intensive design and
deliver exactly what the target consumer desires: an
energising, comfortable stay
with more included value.”
“We’ve launched a
brand that is all about the
mindset of today’s traveller
and creating a positive stay,”
said John TA Vanderslice,
Global Head, Luxury &
Lifestyle Brands, Hilton
Worldwide.
Korea’s new offering for India
Gyeongbuk-do Tourism made its debut in India with a networking dinner
hosted for travel agents in Mumbai recently. Targetting leisure as well as
MICE travellers, the biggest province in Korea will also leverage its Buddhist
culture to attract pilgrims.
T T B U R E AU
he
Korea
Tourism
Organisation (KTO) office
in India is promoting a new
region in India called
Gyeongbuk-do, located in the
eastern part of South Korea.
The NTO introduced the region
to the travel trade at a networking dinner held in Mumbai on
October 16.
T
Boris Byungsun Lee,
Director of Korea Tourism
Organisation, said, “We are
promoting the largest province
in Korea as the 'Jewel of Korea'
and are looking at an annual
increase of 30 per cent in
tourist arrivals.”
After Incheon (which
was recently in the limelight
for hosting the recently-concluded Asian Games) and
Jeju Islands (that is popular
with honeymooners), Korea is
promoting Gyeongbuk-do to
diversify its offerings to the
Indian market. Karan Anand,
Head of Relationships at Cox
& Kings, said, "Gyeongbuk-do
is great for MICE as well as
FITs and perfect for the Indian
market. It only needs better air
connectivity. The province has
seen an increase of 11 per
cent in arrivals in the past five
and social media. Without
revealing KTO’s budget for
2015, the director said that
it will extend special support
to large groups including
field trips for students and
MICE groups.
About Gyeongsangbuk-do
Gyeongsangbuk-do province is home of the Buddhist culture from the Silla Kingdom Era and the Confucian culture from
the Joseon Dynasty Era (1392-1910). The City of Gyeongju,
the old capital of the Silla Kingdom (57 BC-935 AD), is especially known for Buddhist cultural heritage sites as Bulguksa
Temple and Seokguram Grotto, as well as UNESCO World
Cultural Heritage sites like the 500-year-old Yangdong Village
and Gyeongju historic areas.
years, jumping from just
73,000 Indians in 2009 to
1,23,000 in 2013."
KTO will look at joint
marketing promotions with the
trade, product training as well
as familiarisation trips apart
from participation in trade
exhibitions. This will be
outside of outdoor branding
“We will also help the
travel agents by connecting
them to the right DMC in Korea
based on the proposal they
send us,” Lee announced.
Apart from adventure, culture festivals and MICE, the
province will also be promoting
Buddhist tourism along with temple stays. Currently, India is con-
nected to Korea through direct
flights from New Delhi by Asiana
Air and Mumbai by Korean Air,
apart from a few indirect flights
by other airlines. The Korean
visa issued to Indians takes
three working days.
The region is promoting
four main cities: Gyeongju,
Pohang,
Andong
and
Mungyeong, all of which have
online guides as mobile apps
for tourists.
Jewel of Korea
N The
Korea Tourism
Organisation (KTO) office
in India promotes new
region in India called
Gyeongbuk-do
N The organisation intro-
duces the region to the
travel trade on October 16
N The largest province in
Korea is promoted as the
'Jewel of Korea'
44
HOTELS
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
American Airlines
announces
World Connect
as India GSA
A team of 10 will include
a
Product
Manager,
Operational Manager, three
Reservation Agents and two
Sales Executives based in
Delhi, plus two Sales
Executives located in
Mumbai and one Sales
Executive in Chennai.
American can also call upon
additional field staff in other
major cities across India.
Craig Dewey, American
Airlines’ MD, Sales, EMEA
and India comments, “India
is the fastest growing market
for travel to the US with
nearly 1 million passengers
expected to have completed
journeys by the end of 2014.
India is an important market
for American Airlines and
World Connect will help us
increase our presence across
the country.”
Vikramjit S Ahluwalia,
MD, World Connect, said,
“World Connect is delighted
to be appointed General
Sales Agent (GSA) for
American Airlines - the
world’s largest airline - for
the territory of India.”
American Airlines is currently represented by Atlantic
Joint Business partner
British Airways.
New supply builds room rate pressure
Matthieu Firmin, General Manager, ibis Delhi Airport tells
more about the recently opened hotel,
demand and supply issues, and the pros and cons of Delhi Aerocity.
K A N C H A N N AT H
What are the main challenges in
licenses that you have faced
before finally opening?
The challenges we faced was
mainly due to security regulations. Our
rooms are not facing the runway or the
aircraft hanger, so we do not have security clearance issues. We have all the
security arrangements as per the
requirement of the authorities.
porate meetings. There will be competitive pressure due to doubling of upscale
hotel supply with sizeable inventory
growth within Aerocity. Substantial
simultaneous new supply will keep room
rates under pressure in 2015 and 2016.
Is the hotel benefitting from F&B
add-ons like the restaurant and
banqueting?
Yes Definitely! We see a substantial demand of wash & change with
The future demand for the hotel will
arise from a combination of sources –
strong business travel demand in
Gurgaon and Aerocity commercial
areas, airport transit demand, and
corporate meetings
Matthieu Firmin
General Manager, ibis Delhi Airport
What are your targets for average
Occupancy, ARRs and RevPar?
The future demand for the hotel
will arise from a combination of sources
– strong business travel demand in
Gurgaon and Aerocity commercial
areas, airport transit demand, and cor-
meals (breakfast/lunch or dinner) and
fixed departures. Being close to the airport and having decent-sized banquet
space, we also see a demand of wedding blocks, wherein guests use our
banquet space for small pre-wedding
functions. Apart of these, we have a reg-
ular demand for organising meeting and
small conferences.
What is the expected growth of
Aerocity?
Delhi Aerocity is a hospitality district created outside T3 with 13 land
parcels which would eventually
have 11 hotels (~3,750 rooms).
Unfortunately, the convention centre
project is deferred, thereby impacting
all Aerocity hotels.
Good road connectivity from the
airport will enable these hotels to serve
demand in South / Central Delhi and
Gurgaon; day-trip visitors to Noida and
other parts of NCR can also conveniently use the Aerocity hotels. Gurgaon’s
Cyber City micro-market is particularly
accessible from Aerocity; even distant
commercial areas on Sohna Road (21
kms) are only a 30 minute drive. The
metro rail link to Central Delhi is a significant long-term advantage.
Travel through Delhi airport has
grown 60 per cent since 2008; slower
domestic travel in 2012 and 2013 clearly
reflects the sluggish economy and partially explains pressure on hotel occupancy and rates – improved inbound
travel is heartening, particularly as it
includes increased non-business travel.
Expansion of Delhi airport services has
created international and domestic transit stay needs, extending benefit to
Aerocity hotels.
46
INSPIRE
programme for
Indian incentive
travel market
HOTELS
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
The ‘In Singapore
Incentives & Rewards
(INSPIRE)’ programme has
been updated with brandnew activities such as customised food menus and VIP
access to popular attractions.
The programme aims to provide unique and value-added
leisure programmes in
Singapore to Indian incentive
travel groups, and offers an
array of specially-curated
offerings that give Indian
business travellers a chance
to experience Singapore
beyond the typical tourist
attractions.
“The
revamped
INSPIRE programme is set to
bring more exclusive privileges and activities customised to satisfy the evolving preferences of India’s
incentive travel segment,
who are now looking for
experiences that are compelling, immersive and
sophisticated,” said Chang
Chee Pey, Executive
Director, South Asia, Middle
East and Africa, Singapore
Tourism Board. “We are confident that the improved line
up of programme for
INSPIRE will continue to
develop well-differentiated
experiences for our Indian
business travellers.”
Catering to the luxury traveller
This is the age of the ‘money-rich, time-poor’ holiday-makers, and the luxury market is quickly catching
up to this segment and tailoring their products to fit the profile. One such company is The Zanzibar Collection
that has three luxury properties on the pristine Bwejuu Beach.
T T B U R E AU
he trouble with having a
property in an exotic island
such as Zanzibar is that it has
no standard classification system. As a result, hoteliers are
allowed to market themselves
as anything.
T
The uniqueness of boutique
properties which offer
barefoot luxury has caught
the fancy of the luxury
travellers.
Renuka Natu
Amidst all this chaos is
The Zanzibar Collection of
three properties located along
the pristine Bwejuu-Paje beach
in Zanzibar. Renuka Natu, the
India representative for The
Zanzibar Collection, admits
that the numbers at the
India Representative
The Zanzibar Collection
moment are negligible. “But we
are making efforts to increase
it. There is good demand for
luxury accommodation in India,
except that the Indian consumer has become very selective about brands,” she says.
She reveals, “The
uniqueness of boutique properties which offer barefoot luxury has caught their fancy. Rich
Indians prefer discreet attention, as opposed to being
overtly fussed over and the
staff at The Zanzibar Collection
has been specially trained to
give guests that kind of space.”
Natu talks Indian luxury
holiday-makers, saying “They
are becoming increasingly
money-rich and time-poor.
They prefer to visit only one
place, be it a beach or a mountain resort. They can spare
presentations and trainings for
the sales teams of tour operators. “Apart from this, we also
conduct fam trips and study
tours for the trade,” Natu adds.
Offer for agents
The Zanzibar Collection is offering agents a one night
complimentary stay at Breezes Beach Club & Spa on halfboard basis, one night complimentary stay at Baraza Resort
& Spa on all inclusive basis and one night complimentary
stay at The Palms Zanzibar on all-inclusive basis. This offer
is valid from November 1 to December 20, 2014 inclusive
and March 16 - June 30, 2015 inclusive and excludes Easter
Period. Spouses pay Euros 50 per night and an extra night
will be charged at 50 per cent off rack rate in any resort,
subject to availability. A minimum stay of 24 hours in each
property is mandatory and inspections of the three properties will be arranged upon arrival.
around 7-8 days as a break
and love to stay at one place
and explore.”
Natu says that Zanzibar
is a great beach product for
India with a total flying time of
seven hours.
Promoting through agents
The three-property hotel
chain works solely through
agents and partners with travel
agents and tour operators for
brochures. It also does regular
The Zanzibar Collection
is a privately-owned and run
collection of hotels: Breezes
Beach Club, The Palms and
Baraza Resort & Spa.
48
FAMILY ALBUM
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
Wowing Cambodia with PTM 2014
The PATA Travel Mart 2014 (PTM2014) was organised in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, with over 1,000
delegates from close to 60 countries joining the annual networking event organised by the Pacific
Asia Travel Association (PATA) and hosted by the Ministry of Tourism of Cambodia.
Best and brightest come together
PATA Chairman Scott Supernaw said
that for PTM2014, 450 seller delegates representing 233 organisations had booked
over 3,000 square metres of floor space.
The Mart has also attracted 266 buyer
delegates from 252 organisations across
48 countries and territories.
Way forward for
tourism
The leaders of the industry also called to order the
PATA Executive Committee Meeting to discuss the
way forward for tourism to grow.
50
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
FAMILY ALBUM
In the quest for ‘nirvana’
To promote the significance of the religious sites of Buddhism in India and other South Asian countries, the Associated Chambers of Commerce and
Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) presented an International Meet on Buddhist Tourism in Delhi. The seminar was an endeavour to facilitate the promotion
of the Buddhist Circuit across the Indian sub continent and other neighboring countries of value to Buddhism. Shripad Yesso Naik, Minister of State for
Culture & Tourism, inaugurated the seminar and delivered the inaugural address.
Trade, cricket and Tangalooma...
Tourism & Events Queensland along with Tangalooma Island Resort recently hosted an interactive evening for the travel trade in Mumbai with legendary
cricketer Andy Bichel to announce his appointment as the resort’s tourism ambassador. Around 45 agents attendewd the event.
52
QUICKBYTES
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
New circuits: The way forward
From establishing new tourist circuits to ensuring tourist safety, tourism in India is adopting new initiatives to see a quick surge
in tourist numbers.
contacted a few veterans from the travel trade to know what new initiatives can help India stand strong
on the global tourism map. Here are the excerpts...
In order to ensure safety of
tourists visiting the state, the
Odisha government is opening tourist cells in some
selected police stations. In
the first phase, special cells
would be launched on an
experimental basis in the
police stations. The tourist
cells in police stations would be manned by one subInspector, one ASI and field staff.
We have identified two new
tourism circuits recently.
Also, the new Tourist Police
in the state will go a long way
in promoting Odisha among
the domestic and inbound
tourists.
Arabinda Padhee
Commissioner-cum-secretary
Department of Tourism &
Culture, Odisha
Sunil Kumar
Acting President, TAAI
Ashok Chandra Panda
Minister Tourism and Culture, Odisha
The greatest challenge now
is to promote and increase
inbound tourism. Large
group tours have now been
replaced by smaller groups
and more FITs. More and
more tourists are travelling
by cruise ships and they are
now requesting for the same
experience in India.
We see a growing interest
among domestic and
inbound tourists for visiting
our region. Various festivals
in the NE region such as the
Hornbill Festival in Nagaland
are attracting large number
of tourists. North East India
is developing quickly with various MOT initiatives as well.
Bhim Singh
Managing Director
Rajasthan Tours
Among destinations, the
trend is to explore new ones
and Chhattisgarh is an
emerging destination with
lot of potential. Similarly, the
entire North East region is
yet to be explored. A new
tourism product from India
would be Central India and
we need to jointly promote the region.
Ashish Phookan
Managing Director
Jungle Travels India
We segment our people a
lot, calling them business
travellers, leisure travellers
etc. Everybody who travels
is a tourist. If we work
towards having local representatives in various
embassies in India, it is also
essential to engage those
outside the tourism community so that people realise
what India is all about and probably extend this opportunity towards other travellers who are not just tourists.
Harvinder Singh
Country Manager, India, United Airlines
HOTELS
NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
TRAVTALK
53
Hollywood twist to Goan hospitality
The all-American hospitality brand is ready to crank up the fun quotient in South Goa with a 115-key property
developed by Mumbai-based JMJ Group. Targeting celebrity A-listers and HNIs, it is likely to attract a whole new
market to the state.
reports on the development.
T T B U R E AU
ven as the 115-room hotel
readies itself for completion
by the end of this year on the
quiet Uttorda beach in Goa,
Planet Hollywood Las Vegas
Resort & Casino on the other
side of the world is preparing
to host pop star Britney
Spears’ ‘Piece of Me’ show.
E
Brought to India by actor
and businessman Sachiin
Joshi, MD of JMJ Group,
Planet Hollywood or ‘ph’ is set
to raise the ph levels in Goa.
Styled by Shah Rukh Khan’s
wife, Gauri Khan, the
Sachiin Joshi
MD, JMJ Group
Planet Hollywood
brand’s ‘Let there be fame’ philosophy means guests at
the property will be treated
like celebrities.
Joshi reveals, “I have
bought the franchise for
Planet Hollywood in India
and have invested close to
`200 crore in the Goa
property through internal
accruals. I don’t look at debt
and this is through private equity. We also have some amount
of FDI from the private sector
into this hotel.”
Explaining the turn of
events, Joshi added that
Deepika Arora, Regional VP
(Indian Ocean & EMEAI) for
Wyndham Hotel Group,
approached JMJ with the
idea
of
creating
an
intriguing property. “The ph
brand was available and I
immediately grabbed the
opportunity,” Joshi says.
The group is open to having more Planet Hollywood
resorts in India but the location
has to support the brand in
terms of specific market and
environment. According to
Joshi, JMJ is already looking
at Jaipur as a potential destination, making it the third property worldwide.
JMJ plans for India
Currently, JMJ owns a
boutique hotel in Mumbai in
Hiranandani Powai called The
Beetle. “By 2018, I will be doing
another six properties under
various international brands. Of
this, we are already developing
two upscale properties in New
Delhi with Starwood – either
under Westin or W. We are also
developing one hotel each in
Jaipur, Pune and Raipur
besides one 80-room resort
Planet Hollywood Beach Resort Goa
Spread across 10 acres, Planet Hollywood
Beach Resort is a 115-room and 15 luxury
tent resort. Replicating the same style
as its sister property in Las Vegas,
the Hollywood-inspired theme property
will be decorated with movie
memorabilia including props from famous
films, amid low-rise Goan-style architec-
ture, tropical gardens and a coconut
orchard. With large indoor and outdoor banqueting facilities, Planet Hollywood Beach
Resort Goa will feature a mix of eclectic
boutiques, a fitness centre, a spa, pools
and yoga retreats, and an amalgamation of
various international and Indian cuisines at
its restaurants.
and spa in Dehradun,” Joshi
reveals. "We have a huge land
bank spread across different
states in India. We have lined
up an overall investment
of ` 1,500 crore for developing
these seven properties, including
Planet
Hollywood
in Goa," Joshi adds. The company is open to acquiring operational hotels.
54
GUEST COLUMN
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
Asia Rising: Seeing
the trends in tourism
Implementing the HR system
Dynamic hospitality education in global perspective should be the objective
of hospitality educators. Cohesiveness is to be brought in the curricula.
ospitality is a business
which has an international
flavour. Institutions need to
have enough avenues and
resources to evaluate the
global scenario and its interrelatedness to move beyond
the current trends with
futuristic approaches.
H
Ultimately, this is going to
affect our existence and invite
better opportunities into the
tourism and hospitality sector.
Dynamic hospitality education in
system with thinned career
opportunities. Mushrooming
growth of hotel management
institutions in country without
any controlling/ regulatory
authority has worsened
the situation.
One of the prime requirements of hospitality industry is
the consistent delivery of quality services, which is the result
of a programme of steady quality assurance during the training period. Customer-centric
The industry must help in
enhancing the institution’s
capacity for technology
development and innovation
IT&CMA and CTW Asia-Pacific 2014 witnessed over 800 exhibiting delegates which included a host of loyalists and few new destinations, such as
Cambodia and Switzerland. More than 10,000 business appointments took
place over the two-day exhibition and over 80 business, education and networking sessions. This year, special emphasis was on associations with
new partners such as MPI and World PCO Alliance among other long-term
supporters. The education forums focussed on Asia as the growth mover
for MICE and India as a potential MICE market.
global perspective should be the
objective of hospitality educators.
Cohesiveness is to be brought
in the curricula. A serious effort
into this direction has to be initiated by all concerned authorities.
Many facets of hospitality
education bodies have brought
unstructured programmes and
challenged the free education
education system will develop
this culture and has to be conditioned in hospitality aspirants
during his/her education period, beside proper emphasis on
knowledge, skills and attitude.
In the era of Globalisation, we
cannot neglect international
scenario and competition. Age
old curriculum and methodology, along with lack of futuristic
approach towards hospitality
education, are biggest hindrance in producing real managers. The methodology needs
to be readjusted in the age of
globalisation and hi-tech.
To improve excellence,
the institution need to provide
quality infrastructural facility,
academic support, resources
utilisation, entrepreneurship
development opportunities,
effective industry exposure
and partnership with the
industry to provide better training
assistance.
More
Industry-Institution interface
should be included in the
policy of CSR of the organisation. The industry must help in
enhancing the institution’s
capacity for technology development and innovation.
Supply shortfall of manpower
in hospitality industry is going
to be a challenging task in
coming days. The disparity
between expectation and
reality, incompetent hiring
system, quality of leadership,
supervision and other hygiene
factors are some of the common causes for the shortfall
as well as failure to retain
employees. Only effective HR
system implementation can
bring these changes.
Parameters should be
clearly performance-based.
Recognising the value of
employee, a regular clear
communication,
higher
employee satisfaction and
pride will improve employee’s
productivity & retention with
improved service quality
and standards.
The writer is RK Bhandari,
Director, Banarsidas Chandiwala
Institute of Hotel Management
and Catering Technology, Delhi
56
ASSOCIATIONS
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
Air India
connects Delhi
to Pantnagar,
Uttarakhand
TAAI supports tourism students
The association is trying to reach down to the grassroots to groom the young who want to join the
industry, through its full-fledged support in formulating and jump-starting a degree course in tourism
in partnership with Mumbai’s HR College.
HAZEL JAIN
he
Travel
Agents
Association of India (TAAI)
has signed an MoU with
Mumbai-based HR College of
Commerce & Economics for a
three-year degree course on
tourism. This is the first time
that the Mumbai University has
approved a three-year degree
course in vocation for travel,
tourism and hospitality sectors
with industry and academic
participation.
T
Air India has started a
direct flight from Delhi to
Pantnagar, Uttarakhand from
October 14, 2014. It will be
a four times a week flight to
operate on Tuesdays,
Wednesdays, Fridays and
Sundays with an ATR aircraft. The flight from Delhi
(DEL) will depart at 1430 hrs
and reach Pantnagar (PGH)
at 1530 hrs. The return flight
will leave Pantnagar at 1550
hrs, to arrive in Delhi at
1650 hrs. In the recent past,
Air India has launched flights
to six regional stations viz to
Bhuj from Mumbai, to
Lilabari, Tezpur, Silchar,
Guwahati and Shillong from
Kolkata. The airline also
operates flights from Port
Blair to Car Nicobar under
charter agreement with the
Andaman Nicobar Island
Administration. Air India’s
regional fleet of 8 ATR
and CRJ aircraft cover 28
stations in India.
TAAI will support and
assist the college and also
help in formulating the curriculum/syllabus. Jay Bhatia,
New Course
N The course is called
Bachelor of Vocation (B.
VOC) in Tourism &
Hospitality Management
N The first batch already has
over 50 students registered
for this program which is
headed by Prof Ameya
Ambulkar
Chairman of Tourism Council,
TAAI, who signed the MoU
and who will also be an
Advisory Board Member with
the college, said, “TAAI is on
the college's advisory board
and will assure the students
placements across the country at the end of the course.
We will also
assist the students
in sourcing
internships and
placements through
our 2,500-plus
members pan
India, not only in
agencies
but in airlines,
hotels, GDS
companies,
airports, etc."
The course is called
Bachelor of Vocation (B. VOC)
in Tourism & Hospitality
Management. The first batch
already has over 50 students
registered for this program
TAAI delegates at the event
which is headed by Prof
Ameya Ambulkar.
This is the first industryacademia joint collaboration
for enhancing skills in the
industry. TAAI assisted the college team in developing the
curriculum which was subsequently approved by the
Mumbai University.
The faculty for the course
will be from the college but
TAAI members will also regularly visit as guest lecturers.
Bhatia adds, “We have tried to
make the course more interactive rather than theoretical. This
will include students visiting
our offices and attending our
workshops as well as roadshows that TAAI is a part of.
This will give students a
chance to observe, understand
and ask questions.”
Industrial visits to
hotels, tourist attractions,
offices of tour operators,
airlines, airports, consulates,
etc. shall be organised to
understand daily operations
of the industry. Members
shall source live project
works to these students. The
course module will include
training on soft skills.
Bhatia added that the
course’s credit-based semester
with an exit option for students
has been approved by the UGC
and the government. “So a student leaving the course at the
end of first year will be awarded
a diploma, an advanced diploma after the second year, and
a degree on completing three
years,” he said.
TAAI will also be inviting
the same college faculty to
train the frontline staff of its
members. Taj Hotels & Resorts
is also one of the partners
with which the college has
signed an MoU.
58
STATISTICS
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
Where to tip and where not to
Tipping while travelling can be confusing. It differs by country and doesn’t always depend on service quality. Wego reveals
where and when you should tip while on the road.
T T B U R E AU
nowing which countries
where you should leave
“K
a tip is just as important as
knowing which countries not
to,” said Joachim Holte, Chief
Marketing Officer for Wego. “In
Argentina, tipping is actually
illegal, however, waiters often
expect to be tipped by foreigners so if you were to tip, dis-
cretion is advised. In the US,
low wage earners in the service industry are reliant on tipping, yet in Romania, tips are
often declined and in
Japan, tipping is considered
offensive.” “It’s wise to be
aware of the tipping customs
in each place you visit to
avoid uncomfortable situations
AND ensure a smooth trip,”
he added.
Guide to tipping while you travel
Tip and risk insulting a nation
$
Argentina
France
its actually illegal
(by law tipping
included in price)
Japan
Oman
Prepare to top! Everyone
Canada
restaurant, bars, taxis
Egypt
UAE
apart from taxis
If you are really impressed, but tip generally not expected
Australia
Hong Kong
Sweden
China
India
Switzerland
Qatar
Mexico
US
restaurant, bars, taxis
If you eat, you trip
(unless service charge is included)
Finland
Indonesia
South Korea
Denmark
Italy
Spain
Dubai
Isreal
Singapore
Fiji
Malaysia
Taiwan
Germany
Norway
UK
Greece
Austria
Netherlands
Brazil
Russia
Chile
South Africa
Ireland
Turkey
Yemin
TECHNOLOGY
NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
TRAVTALK
59
New inbound packages for agents
After expanding its horizons to include leisure and MICE packages for Jordon, Egypt and Turkey for agents,
Clickurtrip.com has introduced inbound packages for Kerala, the Golden Triangle and a few Indian metros. It will
soon follow these with halal packages for foreign tourists travelling to India.
T T B U R E AU
uhammad
Imran,
Founder and CEO,
ClickUrTrip.com, says, “Our
Egypt and Turkey packages
were launched some time ago,
when we were witnessing
good demand. Unfortunately,
due to the slowdown in market,
the numbers have not been as
satisfactory as expected.
However, after participating
in TTF Ahmedabad, Dubai
has picked up and queries
for Saudi Arabia, Dubai
and Turkey have increased
significantly.”
M
Haj figures
Imran reveals that the
company did good numbers for
Haj from India, Malawi, UK and
a few from Canada and South
Africa. Most of the demand
from India for Mecca and
Medina comes from South
India, Mumbai and Gujarat.
“We also sell a lot of room
nights for these two destinations. We are the exclusive
GSAs for three hotels in Mecca
and one in Medina with a total
inventory of 280-300 rooms,”
he added.
Clickurtrip.com has also
recently upgraded its system
and has launched inventory
from local DMCs and local
suppliers on the site this year.
The CEO says, “We are doing
good room nights because of
our competent pricing, especially for five-star hotels where
the rates differ anywhere
between Rs 1,000-Rs 5,000
per night as compared to other
online suppliers. We are looking for some good allotments
in big hotels this year.”
He adds that some of the
largest DMCs are also looking
to upload their inventories on
its site, which will happen soon.
“We have upgraded our site
quite a bit and made it as simple as possible to keep it fast
Company Specs
N Clickurtrip.com has also
recently upgraded its
system and has launched
inventory from local
DMCs and local suppliers
on the site this year.
N There is a special login for
franchisee which enables
them to create sub-agents
under them and earn
impressive mark-ups
defined by them.
N Clickurtrip currently owns
a fleet of 52 luxury
vehicles
(including
Mercedes and GMCs) in
Saudi Arabia along with
Lamia Tourism
and user-friendly for our
agents. We have also introduced franchisee and PSA
module for India and abroad.
They will have special rates
and access to our extensive fix
departures to many destinations including Saudi Arabia,
Dubai, Turkey and Egypt,” he
says. There is a special login
for franchisee which enables
We have upgraded our site quite a
bit and made it as simple as
possible to keep it fast and userfriendly for our agents
Muhammad Imran
Founder and CEO, ClickUrTrip.com
them to create sub-agents
under them and earn impressive mark-ups defined
by them.
Clickurtrip currently owns
a fleet of 52 luxury vehicles
(including Mercedes and
GMCs) in Saudi Arabia along
with Lamia Tourism. “We had
planned to boost our fleet but
we were too busy with Haj
bookings. We will start
expanding
our
fleet
inventory in November and
December to 100-plus
vehicles with some exclusive
services from the airport, as by
2015 we plan to have
travel counters or boots
at Jeddah and Medina airports,” Imran reveals.
60
AVIATION
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
Japan to relax
visa policy
for India,
Philippines and
Vietnam
MEHAIR connects Juhu and Mula Dam
The seaplane service connects Mumbai to Meherabad, Shirdi and Shani Shinglapur. Besides
Pawana and Mula Dam, MEHAIR is also poised to launch services to Gangapur Dam in Nashik
and Dhoom Dam in Mahabaleshwar (Satara district).
To boost tourism from
India and South-east Asia,
Japan National Tourism
Organization (JNTO) will
maximise on the new visa
policy. It will introduce
multiple-entry
visas
this year for India. It has
already introduced multipleentry visas for Philippines
and Vietnam.
Kiyonori
Ogawa,
Director, Marketing &
Promotion
department,
JNTO said that the since
there are direct flights from
Mumbai and New Delhi to
Tokyo, accessibility is not an
issue. However, he added
that what is needed in India
are more relaxed visa
requirements and more
promotional activities in
the market.
T T B U R E AU
fter the launch of seaplane
services in Maharashtra
between Mumbai and Pawana
Dam (Lonavala), MEHAIR and
MTDC recently announced the
next destination of the seaplanes service from Juhu to
Mula Dam. The first passenger
flight took off from Juhu
Aerodrome, Mumbai and landed at Mula Dam, which is a
waterdrome located between
the religious destinations of
Meherabad, Shirdi and Shani
Shinglapur recently.
A
These three religious
destinations attract lakhs of pilgrims throughout the year. The
flights have commenced with
one flight a day departing
Mumbai at 0830 Hrs. On
Thursdays, there will be two
flights departing from Mumbai
at 0830 Hrs and 1400 Hrs
respectively. All will be quick
turnaround flights with only 15
minutes of stop at Mula Dam.
Siddharth Verma, CoFounder & Director, said, “We
have received tremendous
response from the fliers for
Pawana (Lonavala). The serv-
The service will now enable a large number
of pilgrims travelling to the holy
sites of Meherabad, Shirdi
and Shani Shinglapur to travel quickly and conveniently
to their destinations
Siddharth Verma
Co-Founder & Director,
MEHAIR
ice will now enable a large
number of pilgrims travelling to
the holy sites of Meherabad,
Shirdi and Shani Shinglapur to
travel quickly and conveniently
to their destinations in about 45
mins plus a short road trip, as
opposed to a 6-hour journey by
road. We are confident that the
people will see the immense
value of the service and will
take full advantage of it.”
Besides Pawana and
Mula Dam, MEHAIR is also
poised to launch services
to Gangapur Dam in Nashik
and Dhoom Dam in
Mahabaleshwar (Satara dis-
trict) in the coming weeks. The
amphibian planes will eventually connect Mumbai with multiple tourist destinations in the
state, adjacent to suitable
water bodies even though
there may not be any runways
at these destinations.
The seaplane service
was launched in Maharashtra
with Cessna 208 Amphibian
aircraft (9 seater) and Cessna
206 Amphibian (4 seater)
in the month 25th august
2014. These two models can
accommodate 9 to 4 passengers respectively.
Flight Timing
N The
flights
have
commenced with one flight
a day departing Mumbai at
0830 Hrs
N On Thursdays, there will be
two flights departing from
Mumbai at 0830 Hrs and
1400 Hrs respectively
N All will be quick turnaround
flights with only 15 minutes
of stop at Mula Dam
62
AVIATION
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
At 35, it’s about quality, not numbers
Celebrating 35 years of flying, SriLankan Airlines will now cease to focus on increasing numbers, instead opting to grow
revenue by improving the quality of passengers. It is getting ready to launch new routes with a keen eye on its Indian neighbour.
HAZEL JAIN
ven as the Indian skies witness the crest and trough
of various airlines, SriLankan
Airlines, the national carrier of
Sri Lanka, has been quietly
adjusting its strategy.
E
GT Jeyaseelan, its Chief
Marketing Officer, wants to
focus on the emerging markets
such as India and the rest of
Asia Pacific. “In the short term,
we will be focussing on improving our product to India. In the
long term, we are planning to
increase frequencies to double
dailies to existing destinations.
We are also studying a few
new destinations to add to our
routes and the decision will be
made on the outcome of these
studies,” he says.
Speaking about the
strategy that the airline will
adopt, Jeyaseelan says, “We
are not focussing on increasing the number of passengers; instead our main focus
will be on revenue growth and
improving the quality of passengers. In 2013-14, we
recorded an increase of
almost 20 per cent over the
previous fiscal year. Although
our increase has been mar-
ginal since then, our revenue
has grown substantially. We
are not forecasting a major
increase in our numbers for
the next fiscal year. But
we are concentrating on
getting higher revenue from
more or less the same number of passengers.”
No more wide-body fleet
The first carrier from the
Indian sub-continent to join the
oneworld alliance this year,
SriLankan has also undertaken the arduous task of replacing its entire wide-body fleet.
This extensive plan will see the
induction of six new Airbus
In the short term, we will be focussing on
improving our product to India. In the
long term, we are planning to increase frequencies to double dailies to
existing destinations
GT Jeyaseelan
Chief Marketing Officer
SriLankan Airlines
A330-300 aircraft and seven
next-generation Airbus A350900 aircraft. The first A330 aircraft was added to its existing
fleet this October.
“These aircraft will replace
our existing wide-body fleet and
allow us to offer a wider range
of destinations, better connectivity while also achieving improvements in efficiency and yields,” Jeyaseelan adds.
These aircraft will have
all-new interiors, much more
comfortable seats both in
economy and business class,
latest in-flight entertainment
system and online connectivity
through USB ports and WiFi.
“With passenger expectations changing rapidly, we
saw the need to improve our
product with modern online
features. In order for us to
return to profitability, operational and fuel efficiencies have
to be achieved and we can
achieve this by replacing these
older-generation aircraft with
more fuel-efficient aircraft. In
A330-300s and A350s we
found a natural replacement
and enhancement. The gov-
ernment of Sri Lanka has
made a substantial investment
– the biggest in the history of
SriLankan Airlines,” he reveals.
Sharing his perspective
on the Indian aviation market,
he says that every now and
then every market goes
through a process of change
and natural correction. “I am
not sure whether we should
call the Indian aviation industry
volatile. We see it as a
growth market for the future.
We have seen signs of
recovery in the past and the
recent developments in
India will make it even more
attractive. We are here for
the long term and setbacks
are part of any business,”
he philosophises.
It’s all about India
N We see the Indian market
as a growth market
for future
N We have seen signs of
recovery in the past and
the recent developments in
India will make it even
more attractive
64
NTO
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
Attractive incentives for MICE agents
Talking about their cash incentives for MICE agents, Vivek Anand, Country manager – India, Mauritius Tourism
Promotion Authority, says there are companies in Mauritius that specialise in Indian weddings.
PEDEN DOMA BHUTIA
What was the purpose behind
this seminar in Delhi?
The basic purpose of this
roadshow is to familiarise the
travel trade and update them about
what's happening in Mauritius and
what's new. Some new activities
have been added in Mauritius
and we wanted to familiarise the
travel trade about them. Our
MICE incentives have also been
introduced very recently. The idea was
to tell the agents what's new in
Mauritius so that they can spread the
news among clients - both FIT groups
and corporates.
What is the kind of growth that
you expect from India this year?
This year, we expect to grow by
6-7% over last year, so we are performing good. We are well on track
and we'll definitely exceed our targets.
What are the Indian cities in
which you are promoting
Mauritius?
We have been running these
seminars all over the country. We've
been to Pune, Ahmedabad, Mumbai,
Bengaluru, Chennai, Kolkata,
Chandigarh, Delhi and Gurgaon.
We are participating in Tier-II and
Tier-III city trade fairs, which help
us conduct meetings with B2B
clients. We are also participating in wedding fairs. The money
is not just in the metros, but also
in Tier-II and Tier-III cities
Vivek Anand
Country Manager – India
Mauritius Tourism Promotion
Authority
We are also participating in Tier-II
and Tier-III city trade fairs, which
help us conduct meetings with
B2B and B2C clients. We are also
participating in wedding fairs.
cuisine is similar and most of the people speak in Hindi.
Do you think connectivity issues
mar tourism potential from India?
The money is not just in the metros but also in Tier-II and Tier-III cities,
we've covered around 20 cities
already. We are also participating in
trade fairs of cities like Madurai and
Jalandhar. We are trying to cover as
many cities as possible. Mauritius is a
very good destination for Indians as
culturally we are the same. A total of
70% people are of Indian origin, the
Connectivity issues are beyond
our purview. It depends on bilaterals
between Indian and Mauritius, the
Indian government has so far allowed
the Mauritius government four points
in India and we are covering that. If the
government allows more points, then
it would definitely be good news as
travellers save time and money and
it's good for us as well as we get more
tourists to the country.
You talked about participating in
wedding fairs and wooing Indians
to host their marriage in
Mauritius how well equipped are
the hotels there to host Indian
weddings?
The hotels are very wellequipped to handle Indian weddings.
As such a wedding is a MICE activity,
the only difference is that instead of a
stage and a conference, you have a
mandap and a shaadi. There are companies in Mauritius that specialise in
Indian weddings. In Mauritius, you are
allowed to carry flowers and food
ingredients from India,
a Gujarati family also
flew in the Maharaj
to cook for them at
a wedding.
minimum of 2 nights, for 100 people
there's a cash back of MUR 100,000
(which is approximately `INR
200,000). If the group is more than
250, then the cashback is
`4000,000. For such MICE
groups, we provide special immigration counters, both ways. Air Mauritius
gives 7kg excess baggage, free of
cost, both ways. The group can get
duty-free liquor at one place, so,
instead of everyone going and buying
a bottle each, the group leader can
take their boarding passes and buy all
the liquor at one place. Agents are the
ones who bring in the business, they
are the key for us.
Mauritius Roadshows
What are the
cash incentives
for travel agents
who bring in MICE
groups
to
Mauritius?
N Pune
To qualify for
the cash incentive,
travel
agents
should bring in
100 people staying for a
N Chennai
N Ahmedabad
N Mumbai
N Bengaluru
N Kolkata
N Chandigarh
N Delhi
N Gurgaon
66
INTERVIEW
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
Luxury now has a new VKonect
After witnessing a resounding success on hosting the VKonect luxury show in Delhi, Punam Singh
talks about what prompted her to come up with the concept and how she has more shows for MICE
and the leisure market lined up next year.
PEDEN DOMA BHUTIA
What was the thought
behind VKonect? What
prompted the move?
What I went through is
the experience that I had over
10 years of being an exhibitor.
Any such show is a responsibility for the exhibitor and the
buyer to have successful
interactions with each other,
meaningful and hopefully
something which converts
into business at a later stage.
What was happening at a lot
of platforms was that the hosted buyers were never seen,
the physical meetings were
not happening in a desirable
format. From an outbound
perspective, you didn't know
that the agents you were
meeting were actually outbound agents or ticketing
agents or domestic agents.
There was nobody as an
overseas supplier to guide
you whether you were at the
right platform. What I wanted
to do was to focus on something only for the outbound
market and I wanted the suppliers and the hosted buyers
to have a no-interruption
meeting with each other and
to do so in ideally one day if
not in one and a half days. We
had 900+ meetings.
The profile of the hosted
buyers is slightly different
from what we see at most
shows?
I have kept the big boys
out this time very deliberately. They have the advantage
of backing and experience.
The hosted buyers here are
individuals or family-run businesses where there have
been a lot of personal efforts
to put packages together.
These people know the end
clients very well and the temperament of the end client. In
the supply chain somewhere
There are going to be 3 shows - Luxury, MICE and
Leisure. The shows are going to go across India at
different stages. This time, the hosted buyers from
the North region are slightly more; next time, it may
be the West region and similarly we'll go to East,
South and Central India
Group seems reasonably
convinced so they are
happy to talk to us for Agra
as one of the destinations for
the next show.
Punam Singh,
Promoter and Director, VKonect
the personal interaction
tends to get watered down
and for the luxury market,
one very important requisite
is that the personal interaction is strong. It's a one-onone interaction.
Will you be concentrating
on other places other than
Delhi for future shows?
There are going to be 3
shows - Luxury, MICE and
Leisure. The shows are going
to go across India at different
stages. This time, the hosted
buyers from the North region
are slightly more; next time, it
may be the West region and
similarly we'll go to East, South
and Central India. Not only will
there be a hosted buyer focus,
but the region of that particular
part of India will also be showcased, so whereas this is an
outbound effort, inbound of that
particular destination will also
benefit from so many people
and the marketing efforts.
What are the other cities
you are looking at?
We've already shortlisted a couple of places; we are
looking at the Ramoji Film
City in Hyderabad; we are
looking at one of the cruise
ships in Goa which also has
a floating casino. The Oberoi
Once this is over, we are
going to sit and toss them
around, and decide which one
fits the MICE bill and which
one fits the Leisure bill. The
next show which is the MICE
show will be held next year in
April but we need to decide
and make sure that it doesn't
clash with any other MICE
shows, that is, because we
want to work with everyone
together in a symbiotic fashion. Around July-August, there
will be the leisure show and in
October-November next year
will be the next luxury show.
What is luxury to you?
Luxury is an experience,
it's very much of a
perception; luxury is not just
money, it is the entire
experience together. It's how
you make it memorable
and
how
you
make
it a little more than what your
expectation is. India has come
of age and the luxury market
has now evolved over
the years.
Quotes from guests
Hemant Mediratta
Himmat Anand
VP Sales, Travel Trade,
The Oberoi Group
Founder
Tree of Life Resorts &
Hotels
It's a very good beginning. A great initiative
has been taken by the
organisers to get
select few buyers who
actually are boutique operators and sell luxury holidays. Also in terms of suppliers and
hotels, they've got really high-end hotels to
participate. It's a great achievement. This is
just the beginning. Over a period of time, if
they can sustain this event, it can grow from
strength to strength.
I think there is a huge
demand in 2 segments - the top end
luxury segment which
is a handful of people;
then there is something at the next level
which is called affordable luxury where the
market is huge and is in millions. What is
driving this market today is the disposable
income. We've just managed to scratch the
tip of the iceberg. I'm very impressed with
what I saw at the event. I had never expected this kind of participation.
Guldeep Singh
Sahni
President, OTOAI
This show should go
international now. I'm
impressed especially
with the process of
selection of buyers
and suppliers. They have not just concentrated on numbers but instead on the quality
of people. The show is pertinent especially
in recent times as luxury is now expanding
in such a way that even budget travellers
want one or two days to spend on a luxury
destination or a luxury hotel now when they
go for a seven-day holiday.
Vineet Gopal
Consultant and Advisor,
VKonect
The format for VKonect
is special, because it is
a closed-door event. So,
the right hosted buyers
met the right sellers,
and only luxury buyers came to meet the luxury sellers. Also, this is the first seller-oriented
show, each seller nominated six buyers and
the buyers' ratings were clubbed together and
the top 30 buyers from each seller's ratings
were selected as the hosted buyer. This gave
the sellers to choose whom they wanted to
meet. Serious business was tabled and 900
meetings for a luxury segment is great.
GUEST COLUMN
NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
TRAVTALK
67
Innovation drives Digital Marketing
The possible routes for disruption in hospitality industry are not too hard to find. Even, as we read this, entrepreneurs
are chipping away at the gaps that traditional players have left open.
dam Smith is famously
attributed with the term
‘invisible hand’ in how it creates
equilibrium between supply
and
demand.
Joseph
Schumpeter was more direct
and more brutal – ‘creative
destruction’, a term coined by
him that implied one thing –
Innovate or Die.
A
The hotel industry will do
well to pay heed to the two
gentlemen prophets of economics. Hotels in India are
essentially, in a state of flux. A
storm of innovation in technology, and the cropping up of
alternate business models, is
buffeting the industry, while giving very little elbow-room. Just
when a business model
seems to be settling down,
along comes someone with a
disruptive business model to
‘destroy creatively’.
Can the hotel industry
be under the illusion that
it will be protected from
this rapidly-changing world?
Can it afford to wait for its
Uber moment?
Look at Uber. Who
had heard of it a couple of
years ago? Banking issues
notwithstanding, today they are
handing out nightmares to
almost all established players
around the world. A mobile
app, and providing heightened
convenience to customers, is
the core of the model.
The possible routes for
disruption in hospitality industry are not too hard to find.
Even, as we read this, entrepreneurs are chipping away at
the gaps that traditional players
have left open; creating solutions, packaging them and selling them back to the same traditional players.
fine and you get a good deal,
you will buy again.
One of the biggest gaps
that the hospitality industry is
leaving open is in the
digital space. And before we go
further, let me make this statement. Digital in hospitality,
cannot work when divorced
from the brick and mortar.
That is, digital in hospitality is
not just a website and
driving traffic to it and try and
create conversions.
Not so much in the digital space for hospitality. Here,
the model is of service e-commerce. This can only work well
when there is a virtuous cycle
created between what the
guest is sold and what they
actually experience. A good
digital marketer might be able
to create the best experiential
website and lure the guest to
book using visual tools and
excellent UX (user experience) design and great deals.
But if the guest has a below
average experience, or god
forbid, a bad one, they will
express themselves - on
TripAdvisor, Facebook, Twitter
and so on.
The current giants in ecommerce – Amazon, Flipkart,
et al, have built their business
model of selling products, which
can be standardized. When you
buy a smartphone, you know
exactly what you are going to
get. There are variations in delivery experience, packaging etc,
but at the end, if the product is
We all know people
research using the Internet
before making any purchase –
product or service. But here is
the critical difference. For products, people search for reviews
of the products themselves. For
service, they look for reviews
of the service provider. For
buying a Canon DSLR, you will
not research reviews about
Amazon. But for a holiday, you
will search for what people
have talked about the hotel!
speed. The downside? Haven’t
we all read reviews which had
words like “not at all how it
looked on their website”?
So, when we talk about
the future of digital in hospitality, we need to start with noting
and acknowledging this very
critical difference. Hotels will
need to keep on tightening the
synergy between what is
online and what the guest will
actually experience. It’s great if
the promised smiling service is
actually felt on the ground
when the guest is checking in
after a long ride from the airport. The home-cooked food
experience is a great talking
point, if the food actually tastes
like what your mom may have
made (ok, so even if it’s close,
people will love it!). The operations team and the digital team
cannot live in alternate universes, and need to be aware of
what is happening in their own
domain. The upside? Guests
will talk great things about you
who will come up in search
results and the good old word
of mouth will grow your business at internet bandwidth
This brings us to a related field in digital that often
tends to be overlooked,
because of our razor-sharp
focus on visible RoI – social
media. Social media is the digital equivalent of a massive
loudspeaker. And it is increasingly becoming a part of the
search results when a potential
guest is searching for the next
stay. And TripAdvisor is simply
the tip of the iceberg.
Facebook, Twitter, Google
Plus, Google Business listings,
Google Business reviews,
YouTube, Instagram are just
the major ones we should be
looking at and managing.
These are places where people are talking about how they
feel about you. If you are not on
them, not only are you losing
potential customer voices, but
avoid them long enough, and
you will soon be considered a
business in the Paleolithic era.
Contd. on page 75 68
EXHIBITIONS
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
VKonect: A boon for luxury travel
Filling the much-needed gap in the Indian luxury market, VKonect's maiden luxury show took off to a great start at
The Oberoi, New Delhi for closed-door dedicated business meetings between buyers and sellers.
Buyers
Sellers
Hemant
Chitlangia
Runjuan
Tongrut
Himanshu Patil
Manager- Corporate
Business Development,
Lufthansa
Director, TAT
The event is a very
good beginning for the
luxury segment. So
far, we had people just
talking about the luxury market. VKonect
has provided a platform to promote this
particular segment in India. The
appointments have been handled and
scheduled very well. I'm sure next time, it'll
be on a bigger scale and more number of
participants will join in.
It's a great opportunity
that such an event is
happening where the
buyers and suppliers are able to meet in
such a set-up. For us, the luxury and premium segment is a very important segment.
We have been rated as a five-star airline and
this event gave us an opportunity to meet
potential buyers. It's a great opportunity for
Lufthansa and the Lufthansa group. It's especially helpful as from October 27, we'll start
the A380 to Delhi.
I'm very glad to be
part of such an event
in India. The Indian
travellers have developed and are looking
for something new and unique and the travel trade in India should develop according
to the need of the travellers. The event was
very good and was very well organised. We
are very happy with the response, and are
glad to know that something new is happening on this front.
Chandni Chabra
Tekla Maira
The interactions at
VKonect have been
very good - it was an
action packed day as
we got to meet about
30 buyers. We have been in this market for
almost 4 years so a lot of them are known
to us. But it's always good to reconnect. I
did meet new people who seemed
interested in our brands and now it is for
us to follow up and see how we can tailor
make it to make sure that it suits us as well
as the buyers.
It's been a great platform in conveying the
right message to the
right people. In such
a short duration, we
had about 30 meetings and we were very
happy to inform what Germany has to offer
to travellers. We could convey that Germany
can be explored in terms of luxury. It's been
a great show for us.
Christine Mukharji
Carl Vaz
Director, India, Austria
National Tourist Board
The event has been
very well organised;
the idea is great. The
buyers here already
have a lot of information about the different destinations and this
gives them a chance to go a little deeper. It
also gives us a chance to showcase ourselves in a different direction and perspective. I was really surprised by the knowledge
of people about the destinations. I felt some
of them knew more than me.
MD & VP,
N Chirag Travels
Director, India
Representative Office,
Dubai Department of
Tourism and Commerce
Marketing
The VKonect B2B
sessions have been
very encouraging. This
being the first edition, our agenda was to
interact with luxury travel agents and we
were able to do that. We wish the organisers all the best and we will be considering
coming back for the next set of editions that
they will be having.
VKonect is a great
platform and this is the
first of its kind show in
India and has been
handled very professionally. I'm very impressed with their selection process. Luxury is a big market and
has great potential in the Indian market for
travellers so such shows are very helpful to
promote this segment.
Radhika
Khanijo
Mahendra
Vakharia
Manager -Sales &
Marketing, GNTO
Director-Global
Sales, FRHI
Riaz Munshi
Director, Kesari Tours
MD,
Pathfinders Holidays
MD, Welgrow Travels
Finally something is
happening in this segment in India which
was completely void
so far. A small and exclusive event like this
is a very good sign, I'm happy that something is happening in this direction. There is
still a void in the sense that demand is there.
It just has to be tapped and channelised into
the right source. That combination of having
the right supplier partner to deal with who
understand us and is ready to cater to us is
important.
The event has been
very helpful. It seems
it'll be very productive
for all buyers. The
products have also
been very well managed and picked up so
an event like this would really help the luxury industry to progress. Events like this will
help outbound to progress in the longer run
and will give us more products to feature to
our luxury clients
Ajay Chabria
Ranjana
Sharma
MD, In-Time Travels
If you want to learn a
brand, this is the right
platform. This is the
place to be in. I'm so
glad with the one-onone 15 minute sessions and the time is just enough to give
you the right information from people. There
are certain products I have seen at
umpteen events which I could never
understand. However, today, I have
understood them and a few of them have
been that insightful.
CEO, Trav-N-Tours
International
I'm highly impressed
to see the travel fraternity that is present
here today, even
though we think we know it all but when you
have one-on-one interactions with
exhibitors you get to know a lot of insight
into the products. It's been a pleasure and
I'm very happy to see that. I wish to see this
going international soon.
HOTELS
NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
TRAVTALK
69
‘Room rates in India are very high’
And what makes them so, are a string of taxes and archaic laws. The newly-elected President of Hotels &
Restaurants Association (Western India) Bharat Malkani talks about how they are affecting the industry and what
the association plans to do to bring about fundamental changes. After all, if the hoteliers benefit, so will the tourists.
HAZEL JAIN
umbers don’t lie. In fact,
they often give a clearer
picture of matters as they
stand. Bharat Malkani, the
recently-elected President
of Hotels & Restaurants
Association (Western India) for
2014-2015 and MD of
Mumbai-based Hotel Transit,
uses statistics to illustrate an
interesting point.
N
“The official figure of
Indian outbound tourists last
year was 23 million. Compare
this to the six million tourists we
received from other countries
– although we dispute this
since half of them are easily
Indian-origin NRIs visiting
friends and relatives. This gap
is ridiculous and part of it is the
very high tax structure in
India – higher even when compared to other international
cities,” he says.
As a result, foreign
tourists as well as domestic
find it very expensive to stay
here, Malkani adds. As the
head of the hotel association
therefore, he along with the
other committee members
will be taking up the issue with
the government.
A matter of syn-tax
On top of the agenda is
the unreasonable tax structure
that hotels here have to abide
by. “We will prioritise resolving
the various tax and regulatory
issues like luxury tax
rates in Madhya Pradesh and
entertainment
tax
in
Maharashtra,” he says.
HRAWI recently did a
survey on luxury tax that all
hotels pay to the government.
He argues, “The cut-off rate for
a room rate in Mumbai to be
exempted from this tax is
`500-`800, but it is very difficult
to find a decent hotel at
that rate in any city in India.
That can hardly be called a
‘luxury’. We would rather move
to the GST (Goods & Services
Tax) regime. “
Taxing Issues
N A city like Paris has a
luxury tax of one to two per
cent, London is under four
per cent, and New York is
five per cent.
N Neighbouring destinations
like Kuala Lumpur,
Bangkok or Sri Lanka have
it under five per cent.
N Hoteliers in India are paying
17.5 per cent!
To illustrate this point, he
informs that a city like Paris
has a luxury tax of one to two
per cent, London is under four
per cent, and New York is five
per cent. Neighbouring destinations like Kuala Lumpur,
Bangkok or Sri Lanka have it
under five per cent. Hoteliers in
India are paying 17.5 per cent!
A 17.5 per cent luxury tax
means that if tourists are
staying for four days, they
are in effect paying for the
fifth day as well in taxes
Bharat Malkani
President, HRAWI
“Their governments have
realized that if you impose a
tax at a reasonable level, then
it incentivizes the tourists to
visit their country and the collection is much higher. Indian
hotel rates are hardly an incentive for foreign tourists. A 17.5
per cent luxury tax means that
if they are staying for four days,
they are in effect paying for the
fifth day as well in taxes,”
Malkani says.
FSI adds to the chaos
A low FSI (Floor Space
Index) makes things worse as
it ultimately increases the capital cost for hoteliers and
tourists are the ones paying for
Contd. on page 72 70
NTO
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
India No. 2 source market in Asia
There has been a consistent growth from the Indian market to Scandinavian countries. Denmark’s capital
Copenhagen has witnessed over 50,000 room nights from India every year.
MEGHA PAUL
ccording to Mohit Batra,
India
Representative,
Scandinavian Tourist Board,
India is the second important
source market in Asia after
China, for Scandinavian countries. Batra was speaking at the
recently concluded roadshow
in Delhi, hosted by the
Scandinavian partners, Visit
Denmark, Visit Copenhagen,
Visit Norway and Visit Flam.
“There has been a healthy
growth in the number of
Indians travelling to these destinations, primarily from
Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai and
Bengaluru. We have also witnessed a spurt in outbound
travellers from Tier-II cities
such
as
Pune
and
Ahmedabad,” he added.
A
He pointed out, “There
has been a consistent growth
from the Indian market to
Scandinavian
countries.
Copenhagen has witnessed
over 50,000 room nights from
India every year. A lot of fixed
departures to Norway are also
earning good business.
Mohit Batra
Ditte Furstrand Nytofte
India Representative
Scandinavian Tourist Board
Travel Trade and Media Manager International Marketing, Visit Copenhagen
There has
been a
consistent
growth from the
Indian market to
Scandinavian
countries
Currently, our only challenge is
to increase awareness about
the destinations.” The lack of
direct connectivity from India
to Scandinavia is also a huge
roadblock. “Through Emirates,
Qatar Airways, Turkish Airlines,
We eye leisure
and MICE as
we have
the best
environment
to work and
relax
Media Manager - International
Marketing, Visit Copenhagen,
the city is looking at tapping the
high-end leisure and MICE
segment from India. “We eye
both leisure and MICE travellers from India as we have
the best environment to work
and relax. Copenhagen is one
of the happiest cities in the
world. The city will appeal to
India travellers as it is known
for spa, wellness and shopping
options with Indian restaurants,” Nytofte remarked.
KLM and Lufthansa, we hope
to get direct connectivity from
Delhi or Mumbai in future,”
Batra added.
Visit Denmark is also
drawing long-haul clientele to
Scandinavia. Flemming Bruhn,
Director, Visit Denmark
revealed, “We are aiming at 20
per cent growth this year. For the
fourth year in a row, we are promoting both MICE and
leisure segments. We feel
MICE, specifically Incentive
travel to Denmark from India
is growing fast. We are combining itineraries to Denmark,
Norway and Sweden for leisure
travellers as well.”
As per Ditte Furstrand
Nytofte, Travel Trade and
Visit Denmark has been
active in the Indian market and
Flemming Bruhn
Bengt Hammer
Director
Visit Denmark
Sales and Marketing Manager
Visit Flam
We feel MICE,
specifically
Incentive travel
to Denmark
from India is
growing at a
rapid pace
has assisted travel agents
and tour operators to sell
the destination effectively
through
FAMs.
Flam
Railway is looking at a ten per
cent increase from India this
year. “We had a total of 8,000
We see over
3,000 leisure and
2,000 individual
travellers, visiting
Flam and the
Flam Railway
in total
groups from all over the world
travelling by the Flam Railway
last year, making it one of
Norway’s most spectacular
tourist attractions,” Bengt
Hammer, Sales and Marketing
Manager, Visit Flam opined.
NTO
NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
TRAVTALK
71
New York comes calling
A continuous growth in Indian arrivals has prompted NYC & Company to actively reach out to the trade and
stress on nothing but education about the dynamic city that is New York.
HAZEL JAIN
ven Frank Sinatra was
affected by the magic of
New York City. How then, can
this perennial capital of culture,
not touch a billion Indians who
have some connection to the
E
visitors from India in 2013, a
growth of seven per cent over
the previous year.
6% growth this year
This year, it is projecting
a growth of six per cent in
Indian arrivals over 2013. This
We added Bengaluru this year.
As an IT city, we see major
potential for business travel
to NYC. We now want to
highlight the affordability,
accessibility and diversity
of the five boroughs
Makiko Matsuda Healy
Senior VP (Global Tourism
Development), NYC & Company
US, at some point or another in
some way.
According to NYC &
Company, the official marketing, tourism and partnership
organisation, the city welcomed an estimated 231,000
kind of year-over-year growth
has prompted NYC &
Company to actively reach out
to the Indian trade. It recently
led a three-city delegation to
India as part of the Brand USA
Sales Mission 2014 to promote
NYC’s five boroughs.
Makiko Matsuda Healy,
Senior VP (Global Tourism
Development) at NYC &
Company, who was part of this
mission, was ecstatic with the
response they received from
the trade in Bengaluru,
Mumbai and New Delhi. “We
added Bengaluru this year. As
an IT city, we see major potential for business travel to NYC.
We now want to highlight the
affordability, accessibility and
diversity of the five boroughs,”
she said.
NYC Indian Visitor Profile
For this, NYC is also
conducting a trade familiarisation trip to the city
N Of this, 27% were
VFR
N 80% travel alone
N 5% travel
children
with
N 13% travel with their
spouse/partner
N 51% stayed at a
hotel
N Average stay: 11
nights
N 18-34 years largest
demographic
N 67% used NYC as
port of entry to the
US
Agent education
On the agenda, Healy
says is “Education, education,
education!” This is why they
are encouraging agents
to be part of the NYC
Travel Training Academy. “This
interactive programme features information on NYC’s
hotels, offers, shopping, dining, culture – basically all
information they need to
become an official NYC
Specialist,” she says.
N 54% of Indians
traveled for leisure
N 43% book air tickets
through agents
this November with eight top
agents. “This will be a
very product-oriented trip,
intensive learning experience,” she says.
Meanwhile, the NYC &
Company office in India is also
doing additional one-on-one
sales calls with two of their
partner suppliers who were
down this time (Broadway
Collection and Empire State
Building). “We have arranged
for meetings in the northern
belt this month, mostly touching New Delhi and Punjab. We
also work very closely with the
Visit USA committee for educational seminars, MICE
events, etc,” she reveals.
Meanwhile, knowledge
about visa processes is also
looked into. “Getting a US visa
is easier now. We therefore
conduct regular seminars on
visa at the consulate offices,”
Healy added.
The interesting thing
about Indian visitors, Healy
says, is that they are very
interested in experiencing the
culture of NYC. “Broadway
shows no longer need an
explanation. Their queries
now are: Which show is going
on?” she says.
72
HOTELS
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
Hotels: The taller, the
better they function!
Contd. from page 69
it. Malkani explains, “A lot of
tourists visiting Indian cities
want to stay in the city centre,
where land costs are extremely high. But when you have an
FSI of between one and two, it
means that hotels can
build only double of the
total land area forcing them
to increase their room
rates. New York gives a minimum of 40 FSI, which means
that hoteliers can build 40
times the area of construction
land even in the city centre
giving them more rooms to
sell. The capital costs come
down dramatically.”
per month in tax just as entertainment duty and this is all
coming from the end consumers. You add up all these
costs and the final bill shoots
up. We have reached critical
mass where taxes now form
almost as third of the total bill,”
Malkani adds.
To address all these
issues, the association headed by Malkani will be talking
to the various ministries,
including the Ministry of
Tourism, Ministry of Finance
as well as the Ministry of
Industry & Commerce.
HRAWI will also be
engaging with the new
‘Be receptive to change’
Kanwarjeet Singh Kochhar, Managing Director, Best Western Taurus, talks about
changes affecting the hospitality industry, the relevance of travel trade in this day
and age, and his expectations from the implementation of VoA.
T T B U R E AU
How do you think the hospitality
sector
has
improved/changed?
We will all agree that running a business today, is more
complicated and requires more
resources than in the past.
Technology today plays a
major role in almost all aspects
of hospitality. We need to be
receptive to change, and
extremely willing to acquire
new skills. And in these times
of rapid change, strategies
must be formulated and implemented quickly and swiftly.
What are the occupancies
like?
He goes on to the string
of indirect taxes in India levied
on hotel – VAT on food at 12.5
per cent, VAT on foreign liquor,
entertainment duty if a hotel
has a bar with music, property
tax that are unbelievably disconnected with reality, etc.
“Hotel have to pay `100,000
Chief
Minister
of
Maharashtra. He adds, “Our
PM Narendra Modi has
already started talking about
doing away with archaic laws.
After the state elections, we
will have new people in place
and maybe we will have a different point of view.”
In our kind of business,
hotels occupancies are affected by a lot of external factors
such as seasonality, conferences and symposiums being
held in the city, shift in government policies and of course the
very essential competitive set.
These days, the guests are
spoilt for choice. They have a
plethora of hotels to choose
from in each segment.
For rooms, I can comfortably state that over 50% of
our business comes through travel agents and
OTAs. Our business partners work hand-in-hand
with us. In fact, they enjoy a very dominant position
in our business module.
Kanwarjeet Singh Kochhar
Managing Director
Best Western Taurus
Therefore, even in the capital
city of Delhi, our occupancies
fluctuate from 25% during lean
seasons, to 80-90% during
peak seasons.
How much business is
generated by travel agents
and OTAs?
Today, our business partners work hand-in-hand with
us. In fact, they enjoy a very
dominant position in our business module. For rooms, I can
comfortably state that our 50%
business comes through
TAs/OTAs and counting.
How relevant is the travel
trade in this day and age?
Travel is indispensable to
hospitality industry. What is the
point of having a beautiful property at a scenic locale, if there is
no accessibility? Today, guests
are spending lesser number of
nights outside their homes, and
this is made possible with the
constant endeavor to improve
connectivity, infrastructure and
conscious effort to built hotels
closer to the airports.
How do you think the
implementation of VoA will
help boost tourism?
I most definitely will
vouch for Modi Government’s
VoA policy. It will provide a
major boost to India’s push to
develop into one of the world’s
noteworthy tourist destinations
— a position that it rightly
deserves. But with increased
inbound tourists, we need to
focus on India as a brand. India
seems to offer everything, from
deserts to evergreen forests,
beaches to snow-clad mountains, ancient historical sites
and pilgrim centres to modernday urban hotspots. We also
need to improve our infrastructure, cleanliness and upkeep.
Tourists do not only see monuments. They are also exposed
to various other things, which
make a deep impression on
their minds and contribute to
the overall experience.
NEWS
NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
TRAVTALK
75
Going social in hospitality Flying Seychelles to Mumbai
Contd. from page 67
Another often overlooked
part of the digital landscape is
creating original rich media
content where people talk
about you and their experiences with you. Businesses
talking about themselves are
advertising and subconsciously, the digital customer today
takes this with a pinch of salt.
But real people talking about
you are peer review and that is
far more believable. Creating a
bank of such content is hard
work and will involve combing
creative talent and social
media strategy. But imagine a
series of videos of people talking about you.
And in a world of coming
disruptions like Google Glass
and live Street Maps, how can
we afford to ignore virtual
tours of hotels? The future
digital customer will want to
experience the hotel from their
laptop or mobile, and then
make a decision.
A hotel with a virtual tour
will subconsciously come
across a more open hotel with
nothing to hide from a hotel
that relies solely on pictures.
The faster hotels understand
this reality, the better the first
mover advantage will be with
them And how can we close
the discussion on future of digital in hospitality without talking
about the one the biggest disruptions around the corner? A
disruption will force hotels to
closely integrate the offline and
online world. Or die out. I am
talking about the “Internet of
things”. A series of technology
that will covert any thing physical to a digital medium and
gives a rich and memorable
experience to guests. The
internet of things will combine
everything in digital and give a
real world experience to the
guest based on this digital
data. Sounds like science
fiction? Well, so did
mobile technology and internet
in the 1980s!
Some of these changes
are already happening and
some are just around
the corner. But one thing is
certain. The change from
around the corner to
everyone doing it is becoming
ridiculously like a fast timelapse video. Mobile disruption
from a talking device to a personal concierge happened
over five years or so. Uber happened in two.
Now is probably a good
time to ask ourselves: are we
prepared for what might be
happening already in the digital
space in hospitality?
Ashvin Iyengar, DirectorSpecial Projects and
Protik Basu, Head, Digital and
Rewards, The Lemon Tree
Hotel Company
Air Seychelles has recently announced the launch of
direct flights to Mumbai, commencing December 2,
2014.
reports...
T T B U R E AU
India convenient and direct
access to the Seychelles
islands.” “Seychelles is an
increasingly attractive market
for international investors, with
many ambitious tourism, property and infrastructure developments planned over the
coming years.
ubject to regulatory
approvals, the new three
times a week service
will be operated by a
two-class Airbus A320 aircraft,
configured with 16 Business
Class and 120 Economy
Class seats.
S
Air Seychelles’ new service brings the number of
regional destinations served
by the airline to five, along with
Antananarivo, Dar es Salaam,
Johannesburg and Mauritius.
Manoj
Papa,
Air
Seychelles’ Chief Executive
Officer, said: “We are thrilled
Manoj Papa
Chief Executive Officer
Air Seychelles
to launch flights to Mumbai.
India represents a considerable opportunity for Air
Seychelles. Our new Mumbai
schedule has been purposely
designed to offer business
and leisure travellers from
Our new Mumbai schedule
has been purposely designed
to offer business and leisure
travellers from India convenient
and direct access to the
Seychelles islands
“Bringing Mumbai into
our growing organic network
is also a direct result of our
strategic partnership with
Etihad Airways, and how
together, we have worked to
increase travel options for the
benefit of our combined customers, whilst benefiting trade
and tourism at each end.
The convenient early
morning arrivals and departures in Mumbai will allow
passengers travelling in
either direction to enjoy
seamless
connections
between
Mumbai
and
a large number of cities
throughout India, including
Ahmedabad,
Bengaluru,
Delhi, Chennai, Hyderabad,
and Kochi.
TECHNOLOGY
More ‘TravelOptionz’ in Orbit
The B2B leisure holiday company has now merged with MICE specialist Orbit,
while still retaining its identity. Both companies have pooled in their expertise to
become a force to reckon with in the MICE as well as B2B leisure markets.
T T B U R E AU
learing all ambiguity surrounding the status of
Mumbai-based TravelOptionz
Holidays is its director, Sanjay
Subraidu. Without giving any
numbers though, he reveals
that the seven-year old
company that he founded with
two other partners – Anahita
Avari and Dilshaad Buhariwala
– is now part of Orbit.
However, it continues to retain
its old identity.
C
present only in the B2B space.
Through Orbit, we now have
presence in the B2C space as
well. We now have a very
strong leisure brand, each
prominently present in its own
niche,” he adds.
TravelOptionz specialises
in customised international
B2B holidays. Orbit is a
company that is an expert in
trade fairs and MICE. It seemed
like the perfect match
Sanjay Subraidu
Director, TravelOptionz
New products
The company meanwhile is busy working on an online
portal called traveloptionz.com which should be ready in the
next six months. “It will be basic starting with room nights
only. We will graduate to enable agents to book packages
online,” Subraidu says.
TravelOptionz will now offer a lot more products,
including Trafalgar coaches, worldwide cruises in the
budget and luxury categories and a new portfolio of thirdparty products. “We will also aggressively sell private luxury
van tours. Orbit has an office in Germany where the team
organises private van tours for families, which is becoming
very popular,” he reveals.
The company is currently in talks with tourism boards to
do joint promotions, including Seychelles Tourism.
“TravelOptionz specialises in customised international
B2B holidays. Orbit is a company that is an expert in trade
fairs and MICE. It seemed like
the perfect match. Orbit owner,
Rupen Vikamsey, and me
have been childhood friends
and we had spoken about synergising our expertise multiple
times. We finally did it,”
Subraidu says.
Apart from MICE, Orbit
also has a leisure business
called ‘Freedom Tours’.
The merger helps both
companies. “Orbit is strong
in MICE, but there is a lot
of potential for it in
leisure. Meanwhile, we were
The immediate advantage for TravelOptionz is Orbit’s
infrastructure and its all-India
presence through 14 offices
across
the
country.
TravelOptionz was operating
from
two
offices,
in
Mumbai and Bengaluru. “Orbit
in turn benefits from the experience and leisure expertise
that my business partner
Anahita and I bring to the
table,” Subraidu adds.
The third partner,
Buhariwala, is now part of
TravelBullz as head (Product
Development & Marketing) for
Asia along with Product
Development, Contracting &
Marketing for Rest of the
World. She is based out of
Mumbai. Subraidu meanwhile
plays a dual role – as director
of leisure division for Orbit as
well
as
director
of
TravelOptionz.
B2B focus leads to 25% growth
After witnessing dynamic growth in its franchise stores pan-India, Ezeego1.com
is giving them the option of going the B2B route as well. Currently, in the midst of
upgrading its website, the online travel agency is also busy planning a roadshow.
T T B U R E AU
ith a current total of 21
franchises across 11
Indian cities, Ezeego1.com’s
franchise model is growing at
a fast pace. Neelu Singh, COO,
Ezeego1.com, says, “We are
doing a lot of franchise signups, and we are getting
demand from across the board
W
– from A, B and C cities. Some
are very keen to do B2B as
well so we have kept the option
open for them.” “Our B2B business is growing at a healthy
rate of 25 per cent and we
have seen our relationship in
the B2B space getting
stronger,” Singh says.
Elaborating on its
increased B2B focus, Singh
Our B2B business is growing at
a healthy rate of 25 per cent
and we have seen our
relationship in this space
getting stronger
Neelu Singh
COO, Ezeego1.com
More deals for packages
“Our packages for Ladakh, Kashmir and Sikkim gave
agents an opportunity to earn a commission of `3,000 per
package. Our ‘Your Europe, Your Way’ offer that gave customers
the option of choosing three European cities of their choice and getting
the fourth one free was also a hit with agents earning an attractive
commission on every package. Our adventure holidays and Dubai
packages are also doing very well with agents.”
“We want to capitalise on the B2B domestic market.
This season, we have introduced products for Andaman,
Ladakh, Kerala, Rajasthan and Goa in the domestic segment
and Dubai, Mauritius, Thailand in short-haul international
destinations. We also have packages for long-haul honeymoon
destinations such as New Zealand, Australia and South Africa.”
informs that the
company recently went through a
solid process of
updating
its
agent list. She
says, “We did
some clean-up
activities in terms
of the kind of
agents, we were
dealing
with
because we had
a couple of
cases where the
market
was
going through a
churn due to the
IATA issues. We
did some amount
of streamlining – sort
of a KYC on the agents –
to safeguard our interest
and theirs.”
Other than that, the
company is busy upgrading
its online platform. “We are in
transition right now from the
old platform to the new. It will
have lot of new features.
Airlines are of course
online, but hotels and
holidays is where we are
experiencing a bit of resistance from the agents in using
technology. Not many want to
transact online, which is why
we have the call centres,”
Singh adds.
78
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
Madhya Pradesh, the ‘Heart of India’, where the majestic tiger once
roamed unchallenged, is the largest state in India, dazzling with forests
and is a haven for wildlife. The region accounts for one-third of the total
forest cover in India and is home to the magnificent Indian Tiger.
very year, thousands of
tourists from around the
world, armed with fancy cameras make a beeline to
Madhya Pradesh to see one of the
most popular Indian attractions – the
tiger. Madhya Pradesh is home to a
large number of tiger reserves offering
an opportunity of admiring the royal
tiger in its natural habitat.
Tiger reserves are open again to
tourists! The Supreme Court has finally
lifted the ban on tiger tourism in core
areas of reserves and sanctuaries.
According to the new guidelines,
tourism is allowed in at least 20 per
cent of the core areas of tiger sanctuaries and NTCA has proposed a new
conservation fee for the tourism industry, which will be used in improving the
ecology and the quality of life of the
local community living nearby. In July,
the Supreme Court had banned
tourism in core areas of all tiger
reserves in the country based on an
existing policy of the Centre.
Madhya Pradesh is a multi-faceted
state, offering incredible wildlife
reserves, intricate temples and
palaces, and a dazzling tradition of
arts, crafts and cuisine. The forests of
Madhya Pradesh are a haven for
wildlife. Madhya Pradesh is a pioneer
state in the national movement for conservation of the Tiger. Madhya Pradesh
is also known as the 'Tiger State' as it
harbors 19 per cent of India's Tiger
Population and 10 per cent of the
world's tiger population. At present,
there are five Tiger areas in the state
namely
–
Kanha,
Panna,
Bandhavgarh, Pench and Satpura.
Bandhavgarh was the hunting
preserve of the Maharajas of Rewa:
their old fort still dominates a hill rising
out of the forest. Tiger-Spotting is virtually guaranteed at Bandhavgarh as
it has the highest tiger density in India.
Kanha's sal and bamboo forests,
rolling grasslands and meandering
streams stretch over 940 sq km in dramatic natural splendour which form the
core of the Kanha Tiger Reserve created in 1974 under Project Tiger. This
was the park that the Central Indian
Barasingha, also known as the hard
E
ground barasingha, was brought back
from the virtual edge of extinction. By
a special statute in 1955, Kanha
National Park came into being.
Since then, a series of stringent conservation programmes for the protection of the park's flora and fauna has
given Kanha its deserved reputation
for being one of the finest and best
administered National Parks in Asia,
an irresistible attraction for all
wildlife lovers and a true haven for its
animal population.
Panna is home dominated by the
splendid Ken river, altering valleys and
plateaus, grasslands, gorges and
escarpments, Panna National Park is
an ideal tiger country. Relics of
Gondwana period (rule of the tribal
people of Central India) are scattered
all over the Reserve. Besides the
wildlife watchers (around 12000 annually), Panna gets visitors (around
20000 annually) who exclusively visit
the famous Pandav Fall.
Pench Tiger Reserve comprises
the Indira Priyadarshini Pench National
Park, the Mowgli Pench Sanctuary and
a buffer. The Park nestles in the Southern
slopes of the Satpura ranges of Central
India. The river Pench, which splits the
National Park into two, forms the lifeline
of the Park. The area of the present tiger
reserve has a glorious history.
Satpura Tiger Reserve is a welcome change to the regular wildlife circuit in India. The reserve is spread over
1,500 km of pristine wildlife habitat and
is truly one of the few modern day
wilderness spots left in the country.
What makes Satpura unique is the
variety of options it offers, to experience the flora and fauna is this magnificent forest. It is the only park in central India which allows people to
explore tiger country on foot. Further
the forest department is working
towards offering non-motorized ways
of discovering the tiger reserve. In
addition to walking, guests can also
opt for jeep, canoeing, elephant and
motorboat safaris. At the park, one will
get to see close glimpse of animals like
sambar, cheetal, nilgiri, wild boar, barking dear, black buck sloth bear, wild
dogs, leopards and the elusive Tiger.
Where to stay
The Madhya Pradesh State Tourism Development Corporation
(MPSTDC) operates hotels in the tiger reserves providing an opportunity for
visitors to live near the wilderness and enhance their experience. They
include Kipling's Court in Pench, Jungle Camp at Panna, White Tiger
Forest Lodge at Bandhavgarh and properties at Kanha which include
Baghira Log Huts, Tourist Hostel and Kanha Safari Lodge. Madhya Pradesh
Tourism also operates special packages to the Jungles.
For more information and bookings, contact the Delhi Marketing office
at Room No. 12, Hotel Janpath, Ground Floor, Janpath, New Delhi 110 001.
TECHNOLOGY
NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
Creating a matrix for agents
Helping agents go from offline to online in one quick step, TripFactory enables them to join
its vast marketplace where they can sell their products. It has recently partnered with AirCosta,
thereby launching the holiday portal aircosta.tripfactory.com.
T T B U R E AU
erging the two worlds of
travel and technology,
Vinay Gupta made his debut
with Via.com in 2006. Seven
years later, he launched
TripFactory
along
with
Amit Aggarwal with the
objective of creating a
platform that integrates a range
of travel products at best
prices directly sourced from
travel companies while also
providing a personalised shopping and booking experience
for the end travellers.
M
TripFactory not only
brings offline travel companies
to the online world, but also
bundles products from suppliers efficiently. Explaining his
product further, the co-founder
and CEO, says, “We work with
tour operators, experts and
activity providers to update
their knowledge and bring their
content online, making it
accessible to millions of travellers. We help them join our
vast marketplace where they
can sell their products and
packages to consumers. It is
like aggregation of many entre-
What TripFactory offers
Every travel expert has a dedicated page on the
TripFactory platform, which offers them tools to create their entire website which is powered by
TripFactory for free
It recently partnered with AirCosta. Under
the partnership, it launched a holiday portal
aircosta.tripfactory.com
This partnership enables customers to book
packages and hotels combined with AirCosta flights
at competitive rates
We are a travel technology platform that
organises the world’s travel
knowledge and products,
offer advice, and present
travel products at best
prices directly sourced
from travel companies
Vinay Gupta
Co-founder and CEO,
TripFactory
preneurs on one big platform
and this offers win-win situation
to all—end user customer, travel agents and us.”
Every travel expert has a
dedicated page on the
TripFactory platform, which
offers them tools to create their
entire website which is powered by TripFactory for free.
“There are also other tools like
real-time chat with visitors,
analytics, payments as a service, etc. A lot of travel experts
have grown their businesses
up to 40 per cent without any
investment or expenditure
through
this
platform,”
Gupta adds.
It recently partnered with
AirCosta. Under the partnership, it launched a holiday portal aircosta.tripfactory.com.
This partnership enables customers to book packages and
hotels combined with AirCosta
flights at competitive rates. He
says, “This is our flagship feature: of bundling hotel brands
with special airfares, which
results in savings of up to 40
per cent. This benefits both
independent business travellers and SMEs.”
The packages in the new
portal include flights, hotels,
car transfers and sightseeing
options. The platform also powers holiday portals of SpiceJet
and GoAir.
Co-headquarted in India
and in the US, TripFactory
thrives on a collaborative
model that enables seamless
collaboration between various
stakeholders of the industry.
Hence, every transaction
involves travel agents. They sell
one or more of their offerings
combined with offerings from
other players.
“We are a travel technology platform that organises the
world’s travel knowledge and
products, offer unbiased
advice, present a range of travel products at best prices
directly sourced from travel
companies. Our platform
enables customers to browse
travel products using semantic
search technology,” he said.
TRAVTALK
79
India in top five
fastest-growing
markets: IATA
IATA released its first
20-year passenger growth
forecast, projecting that passenger numbers are expected to reach 7.3 billion by
2034. That represents a
4.1% average annual growth
in demand for air connectivity that will result in more
than a doubling of the 3.3
billion passengers expected
to travel this year.
By 2034 the five fastestincreasing markets in terms
of additional passengers per
year will be China (856 million new passengers per
year), the US (559 million),
India
(266
million),
Indonesia (183 million) and
Brazil (170 million).
Among the highlights of
the report is the expectation
that China will overtake the
United States as the world’s
largest passenger market
(defined by traffic to, from
and within) by 2030. In 2034
flights to, from and within
China will account for some
1.3 billion passengers, 856
million more than 2014 with
an average annual growth
rate of 5.5%. Also, eight
of the 10 fastest-growing
markets in percentage terms
will be in Africa with
Central African Republic,
Madagascar,
Tanzania,
Burundi and Kuwait.
NEWS
A palatial hotel fit for kings
NATIONAL
NOVEMBER
10
12
Bengaluru
Delhi
12
13
Hyderabad
Bengaluru
13
Ludhiana
14
Mumbai
14-16
17
18
24
26
27
Siliguri
Lucknow
Ludhiana
Mumbai
Kolkata
Delhi
28
Delhi
28
29
Mumbai
Pune
Visit Britain's B2B Roadshow
German National Tourist
Office'sRoadshow
Visit Britain's B2B Roadshow
German National Tourist Office's
Roadshow
Brand USA Discover America
educational program
German National Tourist Office's
Roadshow
Travel and Tourism Mart
Visit Britain's B2B Roadshow
Visit Britain's B2B Roadshow
Italia Expo Roadshow 2014
Italia Expo Roadshow 2014
Italian National Tourism
Bureau'sItalia Workshop 2014
OptiMICE Events' MICE Travel Mart
+ Luxury & Leisure Travel Mart
European Quartet Roadshow
European Quartet Roadshow
INTERNATIONAL
The Indana Palace Jodhpur is nothing short of ‘royal’. The 88-key hotel is a
combination of old-world charm and new-world luxury with architecture and interiors
modelled on palaces and services and facilities that provide opulent comfort.
T T B U R E AU
rmed with a strong belief
that it is no longer about
selling a product, but selling an
experience, Meera Pahwa, VP
(Marketing & Sales) for Indana
Palace Jodhpur, says that her
property focusses on customer
experience, value-added services and making packages that
attracts the holiday-makers.
A
“Our service remains our
major USP, where every guest
is treated with personal attention. We target domestic and
international individual travellers, groups, weddings and
MICE. We are now trying to
extend our focus to business
groups that require longer
stays,” she says.
3-6
London
World Travel Market (WTM)
7-10
Taipei
Taipei International Travel Fair
8-9
Sydney
Work & Travel Expo Sydney
Working with the trade
12-14
Shanghai
FHC China-Retail & Hospitality
14-16
Bremen
Reiselust
18-20
Barcelona
EIBTM
Indana Palace Jodhpur
works with the travel agents
and tour operators through
joint marketing services. It also
regularly updates them on the
latest offerings at the hotel as
well as helps them build itineraries. In order to provide them
with a first-hand experience of
the hotel, it also hosts fam trips
for its inbound as well as
DECEMBER
NATIONAL
1-2
1
1
2
2
Delhi
Surat
Bengaluru
Delhi
Kolkata
3-5
3
9
Mumbai
Ahmedabad
Pune
9
Ahmedabad
Atout France Mission
Visit Britain’s B2B Roadshow
European Quartet Roadshow
European Quartet Roadshow
Brand USA Discover America
educational program
Atout France Mission
Visit Britain’s B2B Roadshow
New South Wales, Tourism
Queensland &Tourism Victoria
Workshop
New South Wales, Tourism
Queensland &Tourism Victoria
Workshop
INTERNATIONAL
1-4
Cannes
International Luxury Travel Market
4-7
Turkey
TRAVEL TURKEY IZMIR, Trade
Fair & Conference for Tourism
5-7
Florida
USTOA Annual Conference &
Marketplace
10-11
Brussels
BTExpo
JANUARY 2015
tries namely Germany,
France, Italy and Spain. It also
gets business from Israel,
“It is being observed that
foreign nationals are evoking a
lot of interest in vibrant Indian
customs which is all about spirituality, mysticism, and Vedic
rites. Most international couples are making their way to
India and are looking out for a
royal wedding. We have
observed that the domestic
market has shown an incremental growth over the
inbound. But this coming season, we see a trend of the
inbound segment growing. We
have already confirmed groups
in advance,” Pahwa claims.
China apart from the US and
Latin American countries.
NRIs and foreigners who are
interested in traditional Indian
wedding are also a huge part
of its clientele.
With the new government
taking the initiative of setting up
VoA and announcing a robust
agenda to boost tourism, the
sector has definitely been
given a shot in the arm.
We target domestic and international individual
travellers, groups, weddings and
MICE. We are now trying to
extend our focus to business
groups that require longer stays.
Meera Pahwa
VP (Marketing & Sales)
Indana Palace Jodhpur
domestic partners. The hotel
has also tied up with the major
online travel agents in India.
“We have been promoting our hotels through Indian
DMCs as well as advertising in
important media at ITB Berlin
and WTM exhibitions, thus creating awareness of our brand.
With more Indana hotels coming up in Jaipur and Udaipur
shortly, we will be participating
in international trade fairs from
2015. We also have a fair share
with international web portals
and we do launch promotions
on them from time to time,”
Pahwa says.
The group’s key source
markets are European coun-
A cricketing invite to paradise
Tourism Queensland has appointed former Australian Test cricketer and bowling
coach of the Indian Premier League Chennai Super Kings team, Andy Bichel, as
Tourism Ambassador for Tangalooma Island Resort.
T T B U R E AU
ourism
&
Events
Queensland, along with
Tangalooma Island Resort,
recently hosted an interactive
evening for the travel trade in
Mumbai with legendary cricketer Andy Bichel to announce
his appointment as the resort’s
tourism ambassador.
T
NATIONAL
6
Chennai
Brand USA Discover America
Educational Program
7
Bengaluru
Brand USA Discover America
Educational Program
8
Hyderabad
Brand USA Discover America
Educational Program
19
Mumbai
Gray Line Latin America 2015
Roadshow
20
Hyderabad
Gray Line Latin America 2015
Roadshow
21
Kolkata
Gray Line Latin America 2015
Roadshow
22
Delhi
Gray Line Latin America 2015
Roadshow
For more information, contact us at: [email protected]
Sharing memories of holidaying at Tangalooma Island
Resort with family and friends,
Bichel said, “I have spent many
a sunny Queensland afternoons indulging in the resort’s
popular activities of sand
tobogganing, wreck-diving,
whale-watching and quad
biking. Now I wish to host
a barbeque on the beach for all
my Indian cricketer friends
some day!”
Tangalooma Wild Dolphin
Resort is spread over an area
of 1.5 km along the coastline
of the third-largest sand island
Andy Bichel and Nishant Kashikar, Country
Manager, Tourism Australia
in the world Moreton Island, in
the Moreton Bay and Islands
region, off Brisbane in
Australia. Surrounded by both
National Park and Marine Park,
the Tangalooma Island Resort
is a haven for seeing nature in
a pristine environment.
Talking about the association with Andy Bichel, company director David James, said,
“This partnership
offers Tangalooma
Wild Dolphin Resort
a great opportunity
to build its profile
within the international
tourism
arena, particularly
the Indian corporate
and leisure markets, utilising Andy’s
success as bowling
coach to the
Chennai
Super
Kings as well as his
international cricketing career profile.”
The resort is easily
accessible and only 70 minutes by express catamaran
from Brisbane. It is rare that
wild dolphins choose to
swim regularly ashore to
‘meet’ people. Yet, every
evening at sunset a pod of up
to ten, local bottlenose dolphins swim to the beach in
front of the resort where all
guests can feed them.
Ross Gregory, Director
(International) for Tourism &
Events Queensland, said,
“Queensland is a top destination choice for many Indians
travelling to Australia and
we have seen double
digit growth year-on-year
from this emerging market.
Having Andy Bichel wave
the flag for Tangalooma
Island Resort which welcomes
over 1,500 Indian guests
annually to the resort will certainly help to further enhance
interests in Queensland’s
island experiences.”
Pristine Beauty
N Tangalooma Wild Dolphin
Resort is spread over an
area of 1.5 km along the
coastline of the thirdlargest sand island in the
world Moreton Island, in
the Moreton Bay and
Islands region, off Brisbane
in Australia.
AGENTS
NCR to get BRYS Elan in 2015
Varun Mehta, VP, Sales and Marketing, BRYS Hotels, talks about how the
company is aiming to attract MICE, their future plans and business strategies
to stay relevant in the market.
T T B U R E AU
What is the USP of BRYS Hotels?
BRYS Hotels is here to strive for quality and customer satisfaction. Each of
our property has been designed keeping
in mind the surroundings. The BRYS
Fort in Jaisalmer has been designed
like a Fort to take you back to history
which reminds you of royal lifestyle.
Similarly, BRYS Caves is about experiencing luxury in wilderness.
Our target clientele is everybody who
wants luxury, comfort,
experience and quality.
Be it leisure or
MICE, we would be
delighted to cater all.
As we all know competition is growing fast
and to sustain, we
need to promote ourselves. We are doing
Our target clientele is
everybody who wants
luxury, comfort, experience
and quality. Be it leisure or
MICE, we would be
delighted to cater all.
Varun Mehta
VP, Sales and Marketing, BRYS Hotels
Could you tell us about your expansion plans?
The BRYS Elan is slated to open
in the first quarter of 2015 in Sahibabad
– NCR region. It will be a combination
of luxury and business hotel
which will spread its wings in the Delhi
market very soon. We would describe it
as a contemporary hotel built primarily
to cater to the MICE segment.
What are your main marketing and
business strategies?
the same by electronic, social and
print media, active participation in
trade shows like WTM, Fitur, ITB
Berlin, GITB, GDTB, TTF-OTM, etc.
We are also doing active branding,
marketing and promoting BRYS
Hotels amongst our trade partners and
corporate clients.
Adapt to survive... and thrive
Speaking to
, Surpal Singh, Director, Maxxfun Holidays, talked about their
organisation, future plans for their company and also got answers to issues faced
by tour operators in the trade today.
T T B U R E AU
elling us about the future
plans for the company,
Singh said, “Maxxfun Holidays
is a receptive tour operator
which has been providing a
wide range of services in Indian
Tourism industry for more than
a decade. The Ministry of
Tourism, Government of India
recognises Maxxfun Holidays as
Inbound Tour operator. We are
the proud recipients of the
National Tourism Award for Best
Inbound Tour Operator for 20102011, and also members of all
leading travel and tourism trade
bodies such IATO, PATA etc.”
T
“Our future plan is to
move into niche tourism, as the
more mature travelling public
is increasingly seeking experiences which satisfy a whole
spectrum of interests. Cultural
and nature-based experiences
are statistically tourism’s two
greatest ‘special interest’
strengths - involving substantial visitor volumes and fre-
quent travelling, high-spending
customers. It also pays to
understand that the most
impactful and value-added
way of engaging with
nature and culture is
through forms of ‘experiential
tourism’ - discovering it all
in far more personal, rewarding
emerging markets - consistent
profitability for many travelrelated firms remains elusive.
Given this state of flux, where
are future profits to come from?
More specifically, what are the
travel trends that will secure
consistent revenue streams?
Catering to travellers from
Travel is a way of life and
even in the toughest times, it
continues to be a priority for
people around the world.
Surpal Singh
Director
Maxxfun Holidays
and imaginative
he added.
ways”,
Singh said, “It is quite
interesting to know that despite
a huge expansion in the travel
industry - fuelled by opportunities created by the internet and
emerging markets - particularly
Brazil, India, Russia and China
- will be a huge revenue
stream. The travel industry particularly will have to be more
attuned to their needs. India’s
growing middle class is travelling to more distant destina-
tions. However, as of now, there
is less desire for the 'adventure
travel' experiences as currently
favoured by Westerners. The
travel industry will change radically over the next decade. It
seems that only those executives who can think out-of-thebox will profit from it.”
“We attribute our success
to two factors,” he says, “Firstly;
we are dedicated to servicing
only the fields in which we are
experts in - tourism.”
Then, he goes on to say,
“Secondly, individual areas of
expertise of each of our partners combine to create a company greater than the sum of
its parts. Our new plans to
develop more options in
the field of special interest
tours, 4x4 self drive tours,
motor homes expeditions,
international leadership seminars, boutique hotels and
air charter services have
helped us increase our global
brand positioning.”
OPPORTUNITY
NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
TRAVTALK
83
84
MOVEMENTS
TRAVTALK NOVEMBER 1 ST FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2014
FHRAI
Fortune Park Hotels
Bloomrooms
New Delhi
New Delhi
New Delhi
Tejinder Singh Walia has been elected as President of the
Naveen Sharma is now with Fortune Park Hotels as its National
Beni Agrawal has joined as the Director Brand Growth and
Federation of Hotel & Restaurant Associations of India (FHRAI) for
2014-15. An alumnus of the University
of Calcutta, Walia is an accomplished entrepreneur, with business
interests spanning hospitality, retail
and merchandise exports. He had
served on the Joint Export
Promotion Committee set up by the
United Nations Industrial Development
Organisation (UNIDO).
Sales Manager. He has a career spanning over 17 years in the hospitality sector. His previous assignments have
been with Jaypee Hotels, The Park, Park
Royal, The Grand New Delhi, Kingdom of
Dreams & Galaxy Hotel and his last role
was as a Corporate General Manager –
Sales at Lemon Tree Hotels. At Fortune
Hotels, Naveen is responsible for
planning and directing overall
sales
activities
and
strategies across the chain.
Development at Bloomrooms. Prior to joining Bloomrooms, he was
responsible for the growth and development
of the Keys Hotel brand across India,
signing over 30 successful management
contract deals. He has over 15 years of
all-round hospitality experience in
operations of hotels such as Hilton Charles
De Gaulle Paris, Frasers Suites
Glasgow, La Defense Paris,
InterContinental
Dubai,
and with companies like
Sarovar Hotels, HVS
Hospitality Services and
Cinnovation Group.
Eastin Hotel Ahmedabad
Sarovar Hotels
Piccadily New Delhi
Ahmedabad
New Delhi
New Delhi
Gaurav Taneja has been appointed as the General Manager of
Manju Nishant has been appointed as the Senior Sales Manager
Eastin Hotel Ahmedabad, by the Absolute Hotel Services India. Prior
to his new appointment at Eastin Hotel
Ahmedabad, he was a General Manager
at Sarovar Group of Hotels – Park Plaza
Chandigarh. Taneja began his career
as senior captain in charge of all the
restaurants at Radisson Hotel Delhi. He
has also worked at the Renaissance
Mumbai Hotel and Convention Centre
as an assistant restaurant manager.
– Travel Industry Sales for Sarovar Hotels. She will be responsible
for driving travel sales for Sarovar Hotels
across business as well as leisure
destinations in India. With over 17
years of experience in the
hospitality industry, Nishant has
worked with brands like Radisson,
Usha Lexus Hotels & Resorts,
Choice Hospitality and the Leela
Group. Her last assignment, before
joining Sarovar, was with
Keys Hotels.
Ashutosh Pandey is the new Director of Sales of the Piccadily
New Delhi. Pandey has to his credit 10 years of experience as a
Sales professional. He is a Hotel Management
graduate and has done his postgraduation
in Business Management. He has been
associated with The Park, Intercontinental
Hotels, The Claridges Hotels & Resorts,
The Lalit Suri Hospitality Group and
Sarover Hotels & Resorts. His hands-on
experience, industry knowledge and
strong management skills
make him suited for this
role of Director of Sales.
Hotel Fidalgo, Hyderabad
Goa Marriott Resort & Spa
JW Marriott Hotel New Delhi Aerocity
Hyderabad
Goa
New Delhi
Atanu Banerjee has joined the Hotel Fidalgo, Hyderabad as its
Anupam Gulati has recently joined the Marriott Group of Hotels
Sales Manager. Previous to this, he was the Head of Sales for Quality
Inn Pearl. He has also worked for Sarovar
Hotels & Resorts (Aditya Park & Aditya
Hometel), Quality Inn Residency,
VCI Hospitality and Quality Inn
Residency. A product of Osmania,
Banerjee also has a Diploma in
Hospitality Management from IIASSchool of Hotel and Tourism
Management – Darjeeling.
as the Executive Chef at Goa Marriott Resort and Spa. Prior to joining
Goa Marriott Resort & Spa, Chef Gulati has
been associated with Oberoi Hotels &
Resorts for nearly 14 years. His last stint
was at The Oberoi Cecil in Shimla where
he was designated as the Executive
Chef. He has also worked with
luxury hotels like The Oberoi Gurgaon,
Trident Gurgaon and The Oberoi
Amarvilas, Agra.
Ankur Chawla has been appointed as the Beverage Manager at
JW Lounge, Oval Bar and Akira Back, JW Marriott Hotel New Delhi
Aerocity. Chawla started his career
with Taj Mahal Palace and Tower,
Mumbai in June 2008 where he
joined as the Assistant Manager
for Wasabi by Morimoto, Taj
Mahal Palace in October, 2009.
Apart from his association with
Taj Group of Hotels for about 4
years in the past, he has also
gained experience of launching
stand-alone restaurants such
as Masala Library by Jiggs
Karla and Made in Punjab.
Talking People is a special dedicated corner, created as a sounding board for who’s who of the Indian and International travel industry. With Talking People, it is our endeavour to bring you face-to-face with people.Contributed by: Megha Paul, Samapti Das and Hazel Jain
P. K. Mohankumar, Chief Operating Officer-Gateway Brand, Taj
Hotels Resorts & Palaces takes the saying ‘Early to bed, early to
rise makes a man healthy and wise’ to
heart. He wakes up daily at six in the
morning. “I am a health freak and I
love indulging in activities such as
swimming, jogging and yoga,” he
says. Interestingly, he is also a
Kalaripayattu (an Indian martial art
from Kerala) expert and enjoys outdoor
sports such as cricket, football and hockey.
“Staying fit is the ethos of my life.
For the last ten years I have
been practicing veganism
and have given up rice
completely,” he adds.
Antony Page, General Manager, JW Marriott, New Delhi
Aerocity, says that his favourite monument in India is the Taj
Mahal as he loves the history and diversity
of that part of India. He also finds
Bengaluru ‘fun’, loves Indian cuisine,
especially biryani and yellow dal.
Shanghai is Page’s favourite
destination outside India because
of its diversity. He also loves Hong
Kong and hometown, Sydney in
Australia. “If I want to go to a place
after I retire, it would be
in Tuscany in Italy,”
Page says.
Not many know that Siddharth Savkur, General Manager, Alila
Diwa Goa, is a closet blogger. He is also a big foodie and combines
both his loves on his blog. “Unfortunately, I
am unable to devote as much time to it as
I'd like to,” he says. He feels fortunate
to call Goa – a place that many long to
just holiday in – home. “A walk on the
beach or a long drive through its lush
greenery is a great stress-reliever. I also
enjoy a good meal with family and close
friends to lift my spirits,” Savkur
says. As far as favourite holiday
spots are concerned, Savkur
prefers to spend time at
a place called Destiny
Farm Stay on the
outskirts of Ooty.
Postal Reg. No.: DL(ND)-11/6044/2012-13-14;
WPP No.: U(C)-178/2012-14 for posting on 1st-2nd and 16th-17th
of the same month at New Delhi P.S.O., RNI No.: 53492/91
Date of Publication: 30-10-2014
35 years of World Travel Market
WTM 2014: The best by far
As World Travel Market 2014 celebrates its 35th event, Craig Moyes, Portfolio
Director, Reeds Travel Exhibitions, says the event will be the best yet and India
will again have a bold and colourful presence this year.
PEDEN DOMA BHUTIA
With WTM completing 35 years,
what are your expectations from
the event this year?
WTM 2014 will be the best yet as
World Travel Market celebrates its 35th
event. This will be marked by extended
opening hours to facilitate even more business deals. The event will stay open for an
extra two hours to 8pm on November 5
evening, giving exhibitors the opportunity
to host WTM 35th event celebrations ‘WTM
Festivals’ on their stands. This will allow
them to network with buyers in a more
relaxed manner than during the traditional
business hours, while also showcasing
their destination’s culture and uniqueness.
So far we’ve got Belgium, The Caribbean,
Cyprus, The Philippines and Taiwan lined
up to host WTM Festivals on their stand,
and we’re really looking forward to it.
What is the way ahead for WTM?
Any expansion model that you'd
like to share?
World Travel Market has really grown
into the event that means business. Last
year, WTM facilitated more than £2.2 billion
in industry deals; this includes more than
£264 million for exhibitors from Asia/ Pacific/
Indian Ocean and the India regions.
This year and over the next five years,
we expect even more business
will be conducted at the event, including
with those exhibitors from India. One of the
best ways for exhibitors to meet new
buyers and sign deals is the WTM Speed
Networking, which takes place on Monday
and Thursday mornings.
Incredible India will share its stand with over 30 tour
operators, state governments, hotels and other tourism
suppliers. The amount of business WTM,
and other RTE events conduct for all of
our exhibitors from Asia and India
regions is phenomenal and a testament
to Reed Travel Exhibitions’ role
Craig Moyes
Portfolio Director
Reeds Travel Exhibitions
conduct for all of our exhibitors from
the Asia and India regions is phenomenal
and a testament to Reed Travel
Exhibitions role in facilitating business on
a truly global scale.
Considering the government as
well as the private sector, how
big is the share of India in
the WTM pie?
India will again have a bold and
colourful presence at WTM this year.
Incredible India will share its stand with over
30 tour operators, Indian State
Governments, hotels and other tourism suppliers. Bangladesh Tourism Board is making
a big splash as well around ExCeL London,
so look out for their banners on your way
into the venue. Indian states such as Kerala,
Karnataka and Goa will be returning, along
with longstanding health and wellness
resort - Somatheeram Ayurveda Group.
How has the India market been
faring across the RTE portfolio?
What is your criteria for
buyers and do you plan on
developing it further?
The amount of business WTM,
and other Reed Travel Exhibition events
WTM Buyers’ Club - the leading
global business network: making contacts,
concluding deals - is World Travel
Market’s exclusive business club
for the travel industry’s most senior
buyers with direct responsibility for
purchasing. An example of a WTM
Buyers’ Club member would be a
buyer for a tour operator looking to
purchase product from exhibitors to
put in its brochures, or an IT director
looking to purchase a technology for
their organisation.
Membership is open to the entire
travel industry with a strict selection
process in place to ensure that only the
most senior industry buyers are granted
membership. To apply, Indian buyers
should visit www.wtmlondon.com/registerbuyers.Benefits will continue to be
offered, with new and exclusive benefits
added all the time. They include the WTM
Speed Networking sessions (on the first
and last days of the event), exclusive WTM
Buyers’ Club lounges with free refreshments, access to private meeting rooms,
fast-track entry to WTM, dedicated cloakrooms and discounted travel, accommodation and entertainment.
TravTalkIndia.com
ddppl.com
East India welcomed India Travel Awards – East 2014 with open arms as the awards celebrated the best in the
travel and tourism industry of the region. Bratya Basu, Minister of Tourism and Culture, West Bengal, was the
chief guest at the event that was hosted at Novotel Kolkata Hotel & Residences.
The winners of the India Travel Awards - East with their trophies, along with SanJeet, Director, DDP Group, at the Novotel Kolkata Hotel & Residences
P EDEN D OMA B HUTIA
ast India is always said to have
immense tourism potential but
for some reason or the other, the
thunder is always stolen by destinations like Delhi, Agra, Jaipur, Kerala
or Goa. So, when an award show
highlights that part of the country,
then the tourism industry does sit up
and take note.
E
After its tryst in South and West
India, Maya, travelled Eastwards as
the India Travel Awards – East celebrated the achievements of those
behind the travel and tourism industry in that part of the country.
The swanky Novotel Kolkata
Hotel & Residences hosted the
event which witnessed the
major players of the travel, tourism
and hospitality industry in attendance. Bratya Basu, Minister of
Tourism and Culture, West Bengal,
was the chief guest at the event
while Umapada Chatterjee,
Director, West Bengal Tourism, was
also one of the guests.
Basu talked about the awards
being an encouragement for the travel and tour operators in the East to
help them further the cause of
tourism. He highlighted the efforts of
the West Bengal state government
under the leadership of Chief
Minister Mamata Banerjee in developing tourism and making the state
a tourism hub.
Addressing the gathering,
Amita Motwani, Mrs India
International 2013 and the Guest of
Honour, said, “Travel and Tourism has
today been recognised as an important sector of our growing economy,
both by our government and our people. It not only adds revenue from
both domestic and international
tourists, but also encourages us to
keep our country clean and safe. It
motivates us to restore our archeological sites and keep our heritage
alive. I congratulate this industry for
their hard work and dedication.”
The awards were presented to
achievers from different segments of
the industry which included aviation,
domestic and international tourism
boards, hotels and resorts, travel
agents, tour operators, technology
partners etc from the eastern region.
Some of the big ticket winners
were Jitendra Kumar Mohanty,
who got the Wall of Legends Award,
Debjit Dutta was named the Face of
the Future, JT Ramnani was
adjudged DDP Game Changer while
Apurva Salarpuria received the
DDP Trailblazer award.
Talking about the way the
industry reacted while voting for the
awards, SanJeet, Director, DDP
Group, said, “Nominations were
received in 95 different categories,
nine new categories were created by
the travel industry themselves. When
voting was finally opened, over
5,58,480 votes were received from
all over the world, and the total votes
received were from 45 countries and
320 cities. Votes came in from countries like Canada, UK, Germany,
France, UAE, Thailand, China,
Australia. After India, the second
highest number of votes were cast
Amita Motwani, Bratya Basu and SanJeet releasing the book, Eastern Heritage, an ode to the immense
beauty, heritage, culture, and the delectable cuisine of East India at the Awards ceremony
from Singapore and then UK. In
India, we reached as far as Siliguri,
Guwahati, Raipur, Rajkot, Shillong,
Ambala, Imphal and Port Blair. We,
of course, monitored then to ensure
transparency, and avoid them from
being duplicated from the same
nominated organisation.”
field. The travel industry in East India
is at a nascent stage. There are plenty of untapped regions like the
Northeast, Sikkim and Darjeeling
which offer a lot for tourists. It is a
win-win situation for the participants
and the audience who will come to
know more about these regions.”
Jai Kishan, General Manager,
Novotel Kolkata Hotel & Residences,
said, “The event is a prestigious
event for the hospitality and travel
sectors, and prepares groundwork
for future generations to excel in this
Beginning with South India, the
awards moved on to its regional edition in West and now reached the
East. It will finally be followed by
North India, culminating into the
India Travel Awards Finale.
INDIA TRAVEL AWARDS - EAST
Wall of Legends
DDP Game Changer
Jitendra Kumar Mohanty, Managing Director, Swosti Group of
Companies, was conferred with ‘The Wall of Legends’ Award. He
receives the award from Bratya Basu, Minister of Tourism and
Culture, West Bengal, and Amita Motwani, Mrs. India International
2013 and SanJeet, Director, DDP Group
JT Ramnani, Managing Director, Vensimal World Travel
Agents Pvt. Ltd receives the ‘DDP Game Changer’ Award
from Bratya Basu, Minister of Tourism and Culture, West
Bengal, accompanying him are Amita Motwani, Mrs. India
International 2013 and SanJeet, Director, DDP Group
DDP Trailblazer
Face of the Future
Apurva Salarpuria, Executive Director, The Salarpuria Group
receives the ‘DDP Trailblazer’ Award from Bratya Basu,
Minister of Tourism and Culture, West Bengal, and
Amita Motwani, Mrs. India International 2013 and
SanJeet, Director, DDP Group
Debjit Dutta, Founder & CEO, Impression
Tourism Services receives the ‘Face of the
Future’ Award from Bratya Basu, Minister of
Tourism and Culture, West Bengal, and Amita
Motwani, Mrs. India International 2013 and
SanJeet, Director, DDP Group
Best International Tourism Board
Best Global Consolidation Services
The award was given to Tourism Authority of
Thailand and received by its Assistant Director,
Chanyuth Sawetsuwan from Umapada Chatterjee,
Director of Tourism, Government of West Bengal and
Amita Motwani, Mrs India International and
SanJeet, Director, DDP Group
The award was given to Mystifly Consulting (India) Private
Limited and received by AVP Client Servicing, Hormuz Dangore
Best Luxury Resort
Best Airline Domestic
The award was given to WelcomHeritage Denzong
Regency and received by its Managing Director,
Thinley Namgyal Densapa
Best Foreign Exchange Provider
The award was given to IndiGo (Interglobe Aviation Limited) and
received by Deputy General Manager Sales - East India,
Sanjit Bhattacharya and Director, Airport Operations East India, Vijay Matta
The award was given to Centrum Direct and
received by its General Manager (North &
East India), Harendra Choudhary and
Vice President, Biswajit Dutta
INDIA TRAVEL AWARDS - EAST
Best Global Distribution System (GDS)
Best Design & Debut Hotel
The award was given to Abacus and received by its
Managing Director, Jeet Sawhney
Best Travel Insurance Provider
The award was given to Novotel Kolkata Hotel and
Residences and received by its General Manager, Jai Kishan
Best Wildlife Resort
The award was given to TrawellTag Cover-More and received by its
Regional Manager - East, Kunal Choudhury, Training Head India,
Sangita Ghosh and Branch Manager, Jitendra Karia
Best Cruise Travel Agent
The award was given to Sunderban Tiger Campand received
by its Director, Akanksha Garg Dewan
The award was given to Just Holidays Pvt. Ltd.
and received by its Director, Shyam Sunder
Agarwal and Manager Leisure, Shreya Kothari
Fastest Growing Hotel Brand
Best Inbound Tour Operator
The award was given to Summit Hotels and Resorts
and received by Managing Director, Sumit Mitruka
and Head of Sales, Vandana Agarwal
Best MICE Operator
The award was given to Clubside Tours & Travels
and received by its CEO, Sumit Periwal
Best Destination Management Company
The award was given to Incentives and Conference Planners
and received by its Chief Executive, Sunaina Chatterjee
Best Debut Mid-Market Hotel
The award was given to Neptune Holidays Pvt Ltd
and received by its Director, Chandra Prakash Bhatter
The award was given to Hyatt Raipur and
received by its Director of Sales,
Soumodeep Bhattacharya
Best Mountain Destination
Best Luxury Tour Operator
The award was given to West Bengal Tourism and
received by its Assistant Director, India Tourism,
Rajinder Kumar Suman
Best Travel Agency
The award was given to Travel at Blue and
received by its Business Head, Chandi Patnaik
Best Luxury Hotel
The award was given to Gainwell Travel and Leisure and
received by its Managing Director, Manoj Saraf
Best MICE Consolidator
The award was given to Park Plaza Kolkata Ballygunge and
received by its General Manager, Amitava Guha Thakurta
The award was given to Aaryan Leisure &
Holidays Pvt Ltd and received by its
Directors, Vanessa Mehra and Neha Mehra
INDIA TRAVEL AWARDS - EAST
Best Travel Management Company
Best Business Hotel
The award was given to Meghdutam Travels Pvt. Ltd. and
received by its President & Directors, Swaguna Mukherjee
and Jaydeep Mukherjee
Best Business Travel Agency
The award was given to The Peerless Inn, Kolkata and
received by its Regional House Keeper (East), Sweta Bhaduri
and F&B Manager, Imran Siddiquee
Best Corporate Incentive Tours Operator
The award was given to Discovery Holidays and received by its
Director & CEO, Prasant Binnany
Ultimate Service Award in Hospitality
The award was given to Just Holidays Pvt. Ltd.
and received by its Manager - MICE, Abhisek Gupta
and Manager - Leisure, Shreya Kothari
The award was given to Swosti Group of Hotels
and received by its Managing Director,
Jitendra Kumar Mohanty, Managing Director,
Swosti Group of Companies
Best Outbound Tour Operator
Best Leisure Tour Operator
The award was given to Club7 Holidays and received
by its Regional Manager (East), Ritab Basu Mallick
and Manager Sales, Barun Bhattacharya
The award was given to NCS Travels & Tours Pvt. Ltd.
and received by its Director, Vikas Sarawgi
Best Corporate Travel Agency
Best Emerging Travel Portal
The award was given to Travels and Rentals Lufthansa
City Center and received by its Managing Director,
Devendra Parekh and Assistant Sales Manager,
Suman Roychoudhary
The award was given to Vayuseva.com and received
by its CEO, Sajan K Gupta
INDIA TRAVEL AWARDS - EAST
Partner State
The award was given to West Bengal Tourism and received
by its Director, Umapada Chatterjee
Hospitality Partner
The award was given to Novotel Kolkata Hotel and Residences
and received by its General Manager, Jai Kishan and Team
Chief Guest Bratya Basu, Minister of Tourism and Culture, West Bengal
being honoured with Pearl Trophy ‘Maya’
est Bengal is settled in the midst of all corridors. The immense development of tourism has
been enhanced in the last 3-4 years and it is due to the fact that Kolkata has created a pass
for all over East India and for this I congratulate the hoteliers, travel agents and tour operators.
The award is an encouragement for all. Our Chief Minister, Mamata Banerjee, is also focusing a lot on
tourism. She has created already two big hubs in West Bengal – Gajal Doba in North Bengal, a tourism
mega hub, and Jharkhali, near the mangrove area of Sunderbans.
W
We have already created twin mega circuits in our state and I firmly believe that the Central
Government will also assist us to develop all circuits and promote them as well. The West Bengal
Chief Minister is encouraging new hoteliers and new developers to invest in the area so that more
infrastructure is created and more tourists get to avail these facilities. The West Bengal government
is specially emphasising on improvement of infrastructure as well as quality of services rendered by
the West Bengal Tourism Development Corporation (WBTDCL) guest houses.
We are planning to change the overall approach and appearance of a few of our guest houses
matching the history and tradition of the place. Our Bolpur guest house will be the first such guest
house to witness this change. While we are keen on promoting tourism in the region, we are also
trying our best to promote the local culture. A recognition of this kind wherein the travel, tourism
and hospitality industry in the east is acknowledged will encourage everyone.
INDIA TRAVEL AWARDS - EAST
Glimpses of India Travel
Awards - East 2014
INDIA TRAVEL AWARDS - EAST
Recognising the best at
India Travel Awards-East
INDIA TRAVEL AWARDS - EAST
Talent gets appreciation at
India Travel Awards - East
INDIA TRAVEL AWARDS - EAST
A round of applause for
the winners of ITA - East