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` 50/-Vol. XXVII Issue 20; October 2nd fortnight i ssue 2015 A DDP PUBLICATION Pages : 56

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OCTOBER 2ND FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2015 TRAVTALK 3

recently conducted a poll askingthe industry if all hotels in India

should offer free Wi-Fi in the room.Unanimously the industry feels thatfree Wi-Fi in hotel rooms is now the needof the hour. 96 per cent of the industry voted for free Wi-Fi

while four per cent had reservations due to security concernsin India. Hotels need to look at this demand seriously and now

it might be time to consider Wi-Fi as a necessity and not a luxurythat guests need to pay for.

96%Yes4% No

Industry wants free Wi-Fi in hotels

Vinod Zutshi, Secretary,Ministry of Tourism, says,

“The formation of this board willhave a symbiotic advantage ofprivate and government sector.

As medical tourism in India ismainly driven by the privatesector, the board will act asfacilitator. Today we see no con-solidation of efforts. Every hos-pital is trying their best to meettheir own objective but the over-all objective of Destination Indiahas to be brought to focus,which is also one of the respon-sibilities of the board.”

The board also assuresadditional benefits to tour oper-

ators in the country. SumanBilla, Joint Secretary, Ministryof Tourism, says, “The NationalMedical Tourism and Wellnessboard will provide marketingdevelopment assistance totravel agents and tour opera-tors who are keen on promot-ing medical and wellnesstourism. A total of four trips ayear have been allotted. Theycan also avail monetary aid of up to ` 2.5 lakh for the same purpose.”

Headed by Tourism Minister Dr. MaheshSharma, the Medical and WellnessTourism Board will play an important rolein streamlining medical tourism in India.

Agents benefit frommedical tourism

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Vinod ZutshiSecretary, Ministry of Tourism

In an attempt to tap thetourism potential ofNortheast India, the Ministry

of Tourism has identified con-nectivity as one of the chiefshortcomings in the region.Plans to develop this aspecthave already been taken intoaccount and major funds torefurbish crucial airports havebeen authorised.

Dr. Mahesh Sharma,Minister of State for Culture andTourism (Independent Charge)

and Minister of State for Civil Aviation, says, “TheGovernment is looking atimproving connectivity in theNortheast region. For this pur-pose, funds of `1,200 crorehave been sanctioned for therevamp of Guwahati airport.With the help of Pawan Hans services, Guwahati will also serve as a heli hub – these services have commenced more than twomonths ago.”

He further states thatfunds worth ̀ 484 crore for the

upgrade of Agartala Airportand ̀ 90 crore for Tezu Airportin Arunachal Pradesh havebeen approved.

Furthermore, three additional projects are beingworked on in Majuli andKamakhya in Assam, andTawang in Arunachal Pradesh.Funds to the tune of ` 250 crore have also beensanctioned for projects under the Swadesh Darshan(Northeast Circuit) andPRASAD scheme, he said.

To give inbound tourism a fillip, the Ministry of Tourism is upgrading connectivityto Northeastern states and plans the development of Guwahati as a heli hub.

NE connectivity on MOT radar

KA N C H A N NAT H A N D AH A N A GU R U N G

Dr. Mahesh SharmaMinister of State for Culture and Tourism(Independent Charge) and Minister of State for Civil Aviation



BULLETIN

As luxury continuously gainsnew meaning and momen-

tum in the country, stalwarts ofthe industry have recognisedand acknowledged its impor-tance in the outbound market.For the same reason, Gurgaonrecently hosted the second edi-tion of Vkonect Luxury at TheWestin, Gurgaon, where 25India travel, luxury and hospital-ity companies participated in thepremium B2B meetings plat-form. At the two-day event, net-working sessions were heldbetween the buyers andexhibitors, and exclusive business sessions allowed participants to acquire valuableinformation pertaining to Indianoutbound travel.

Speaking at the event,Punam Singh, Promoter andDirector, Vkonect Events, says,“Vkonect is a thought process,honed over years after attend-

ing industry events globally.Leisure, MICE, Luxury,Weddings, Wellness and SpaTourism came in all forms butLuxury is the most inclusive,demanding and profitable. Ourmain objective was to keep ourbuyers and exhibitors happyand satisfied with the outcomeof the event. So far we havereceived excellent feedback,”she comments. She alsoexpresses that many of the buy-ers were curious about Sports,Shopping and Spa Tourism andthat Vkonect would look intothese aspects. Additionally,

Vineet Gopal, Director,VkonectEvents, says, “This year, theresponse was phenomenal. Wehave received full attendanceand all the participants werevery enthusiastic.” Singh furtherelaborates on the upcomingVkonect event. “The next in lineis Vkonect Weddings which isscheduled for 2016. We haven’tfixed a date yet but it will mostlikely be held during late Marchor April 2016,” she says.

The industry partnerswho participated in the eventare Tourism Boards of

Canada, Philippines,Germany, Jordan, ReunionIsland, Munich, Scandinavia,and Tirol – Austria. Otherpartners include — StarwoodHotels & Resorts, MeritusHotels & Resorts, FRHIHotels & Resorts India PvtLtd, St. Regis (StarwoodHotels), Mandarin OrientalHotel Group, Relais &Chateaux Soneva Resorts,Sahara Star & Aamby ValleyCity, Palazzo Versace,Fanatic Sports, VIA RailCanada, Kairali Resorts andAir Canada.

Vkonect Luxury, India’s first exclusive events platform focused on businessinteraction for luxury, was held from October 10-11, at The Westin, Gurgaon.

Vkonect opens the world of luxury

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VIEWPOINT

STATISTICS

It is evident that tourism occupies pride ofplace in the country’s priority list. It is a

constantly debated issue, whether talkingabout night tourism in India, which wouldprovide safety in the popular areas of variousmetro cities, or medical and wellness tourismhaving a huge potential in India, or seeingthe government‘s focus on enhancing the e-Tourist Visa facility. At present this facility isavailable for citizens of 113 countries arrivingat 16 airports in India.

201,705 tourists arrived on e-TouristVisas from January-September as comparedto 19,290 during the same period last year,registering a growth of 945.6 per cent. Thisis excellent news for the country.

The government announced the settingup of a Medical and Wellness TourismPromotion Board, which will consist of theUnion Tourism Minister as the Chairpersonand members of related governmentdepartments. It would also have experts fromthe tourism and hospitality sector andspecialists from the medical, wellness andyoga fields. This board will support travelagents and tour operators with marketingdevelopment assistance and monetary aid.

Delhi, Maharashtra, Rajasthan,Karnataka, in fact almost all Indian stateshave been pushing for night tourism to notonly increase the inflow of more tourists butalso to improve safety in popular areas. Nightlandings in many areas are now beingallowed, like the Andaman & Nicobar Islands.

MICE has also been accepted as a bigopportunity which has been under-capitalised until now.

Winter tourism needs to be promoted inthe Himalayas with ski slopes and resortsalready developed in Gulmarg and Manali,both boasting world-standard hotels. TheKerala government is promoting the state forits backwater experiences and the beauty ofits green expanses, other than the ayurvedait is famous for, which is the prime focus forwellness tourism.

If the government and the industrytogether stay focused, we should be able toachieve the target set for us of being 1% of1.8 billion international tourists by 2030.

Tourism topsIndia’s priority list

Luxury tax is a debatable subject for the tourism industry. Delhi, after a risefrom 10% to 15%, has the second highest luxury tax in the country.

15% luxury tax bane for Delhi?

TRAVTALK is a publication of DDP Publications Private Limited. Allinformation in TRAVTALK is derived from sources, which we consider reliable and a sincere effort is made to report accurate information. It is passed on to our readers without any responsibility on our part. The publisher regret that he cannot accept liability for errors and omissions contained in this pub-lication, however caused. Similarly, opinions/views expressedby third parties in abstract and/or in interviews are not neces-sarily shared by TRAVTALK. However, we wish to advice our readersthat one or more recognised authorities may hold different viewsthan those reported. Material used in this publication is intendedfor information purpose only. Readers are advised to seek specific

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The variation in levying ofluxury tax has become a

debatable subject for theIndian travel and tourismindustry. Presently, the per-centage of luxury tax variesvastly across the differentstates, with some of them notlevying it at all. As a result, therange of luxury tax within thecountry ranges from zero percent to 20 per cent. Anotherchallenge is that the basis forthe computation of the taxalso varies. In some Indianstates, the tax is levied on thepublished tariff, while in thecase of others it is on theactual tariff. Luxury tax is onlyone of the taxes charged to ahotel guest in India, and overall, the total tax applica-ble may vary from 18 per cent to 25 per cent across different states.

Luv Malhotra,President, HRANI & VicePresident, FHRAI, says, "Theproposed hike in luxury tax bythe Delhi Government cameas a major shock to the traveland tourism industry. Achange to tax on Actual at thesame rate (10 per cent) butwere stunned to hear that ithas been hiked to 15 per centon Published Tariff. Over thepast few years there has beenrapid growth in hotels aroundDelhi which have taken

advantage of the tax structurein Delhi and now we expectmore and more of business toshift there. If one looks at thestatistics for the last 10 yearsone can see most of thenewer hotels (except for theones at DIAL) have come upin Gurgaon, Noida, GreaterNoida and Ghaziabad. Theoccupancies of these proper-

ties have also been in steadyincrease over the last fewyears (except for the last cou-ple due to a slowdown in theeconomy) and Delhi state hasbeen the biggest loser. Weexpect with this decision ofAAP Government the trend tocontinue. I fear that long terminvestments will continue tomove to other cities."

Since WTTCII's previousstudy, Tripura has slipped 14places as a result of increasingits luxury tax from 10 per centto 15 per cent. Similarly,Uttarakhand has moved downfive places as a result of esca-lating its luxury tax from 5 percent to 10 per cent. HimachalPradesh, meanwhile, hasdropped significantly in rank-

ings owing to levying the luxurytax on Published Tariff now, ascompared to Actual Tariff in thepast. Moreover, Delhi, havingrecently increased its luxury taxfrom 10 per cent to 15 per cent,has moved down three placesfrom the last survey. With thischange, its luxury tax is amongthe highest in the country.Resultantly, by default, Goa,Karnataka, Assam, Kerala,Jharkhand, and Chhattisgarhhave witnessed a favourabletransition in rankings by oneplace each. States such asDelhi, Kerala, Goa, Tamil Nadu,Himachal Pradesh andRajasthan can be seen capital-ising on luxury tax. On the otherhand, Jammu & Kashmir,Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland,Arunachal Pradesh, Odishaand Sikkim are consistent interms of levying no luxury taxon hotel rooms.

TT BU R E AU State-wise Luxury Tax on Hotels

States Luxury Calculated Effective Rank Tax On Tax Rate 2015Arunachal Pradesh 0.0% – 0.0% 1Jammu & Kashmir 0.0% – 0.0% 1 Manipur 0.0% – 0.0% 1 Mizoram 0.0% – 0.0% 1Nagaland 0.0% – 0.0% 1 Odisha 0.0% – 0.0% 1 Sikkim 0.0% – 0.0% 1Uttar Pradesh 5.0% Actual Tariff 5.0% 8 Andhra Pradesh 5.0% Published Tariff 7.0% 9 Telangana 5.0% Published Tariff 7.0% 9Gujarat 6.0% Published Tariff 8.0% 11Punjab 8.0% Actual Tariff 8.0% 11 Uttarakhand 10.0% Actual Tariff 10.0% 13Bihar 10.0% Actual Tariff 10.0% 13 Haryana 10.0% Actual Tariff 10.0% 13 Madhya Pradesh 10.0% Actual Tariff 10.0% 13 Maharashtra 10.0% Actual Tariff 10.0% 13 Rajasthan 10.0% Actual Tariff 10.0% 13 West Bengal 10.0% Actual Tariff 10.0% 13Goa 12.0% Actual Tariff 12.0% 20 Karnataka 12.0% Actual Tariff 12.0% 20 Assam 12.0% Actual Tariff 12.0% 20Kerala 12.5% Actual Tariff 12.5% 23Jharkhand 12.5% Actual Tariff 12.5% 23Chhatisgarh 10.0% Published Tariff 13.0% 25 Himachal Pradesh 10.0% Published Tariff 13.0% 25 Tripura 15.0% Actual Tariff 15.0% 27 Tamil Nadu 12.5% Published Tariff 17.0% 28Delhi 15.0% Published Tariff 20.0% 29 Meghalaya 20.0% Actual Tariff 20.0% 29

If one looks at the statistics for the last 10 years one cansee most of the newer hotels (except for the ones at DIAL)have come up in Gurgaon, Noida, Greater NoidaGhaziabad. The occupancies of these properties have alsobeen in steady increase over the last few years (except forthe last couple due to a slowdown in the economy) and

Delhi state has been the biggest loser.

Luv MalhotraPresident, HRANI & Vice President, FHRAI

Source: The State Ranking Survey, compiled by HVS in association with the World Travel & Tourism Council, India Initiative (WTTCII)


QHow many domestic andinternational visitors did

Haryana receive in 2014-2015? In 2014-2015, Haryana has had

more than 75 lakh domestic visitors andover 3 lakh foreigners visiting the state.There has been a steady growth rate incomparison to previous years. In 2012-13, over 62 lakh domestic tourists andmore than 2 lakh foreignersvisited the state and in 2013-

14, more than 64 lakh domestic tourists and about2.4 lakh foreigners paid a visitto the state.

QWhat aspects canvisitors look forward

to at the SurajkundInternational Crafts Mela2016?

The upcoming Mela willshowcase the heritage craftsof India in a much bigger wayand make an effort to reachout to the craftspersons fromfar flung areas of the country.Existing infrastructure will begiven a facelift and new facil-ities for convenience of visi-tors and craftspersons will beadded. More safety relatedsteps would be undertakenwith special emphasis on disaster management. High-tech CCTV cameras, gasbanks and superior fire-fight-ing equipment will also be installed.

QHow many partici-pants and visitors

do you anticipate?

In 2015, the highest ever footfallof 12 lakh visitors, including a recordnumber of 1.60 lakh foreigners, wasrecorded during the Mela fortnight. Theparticipation of 20 countries in the Mela 2015 has established it as a trulyinternational event. We are expectingabout five to six new countries that will be exhibiting best of their art, craftand cultural performances during theMela 2016.

QHaryana Tourism alsoplans to develop tourist

hotspots in a bid to promotetourism in the state. Couldyou please shed more light onthe same?

Haryana Tourism is planning todevelop Kurukshetra, which falls underthe Krishna circuit, as a mega tourismdestination under the SwadeshDarshan Scheme of Ministry of

Tourism. To improve tourism infrastruc-ture, major investments will be madein places such as Jyotisar, BrahmaSarovar, Sannhit Sarovar, Amin andNarkatari in Kurukshetra district andSalwan in Karnal district.

The state has plans to developthe Mahendergarh Fort as a culturalhub while simultaneously concentrat-ing on the conservation of Madhogarh

Fort, restoration of Chatta Bal Mukandand Takhat Baoli in Narnaul and revi-talisation of Bada Talab and SolahRashi Sarovar in Rewari.

Haryana Tourism has also intro-duced the concept of Farm Tourism inthe country, in partnership with 14 farmowners in Haryana. We offer specialholiday packages in these chosenfarms in Haryana and around Delhi.

The 30th edition of the Surajkund International Crafts Mela, to be held from February 1-15, 2016 is one of the severalinitiatives by Haryana Tourism to boost inbound tourism. Dr. Sumita Misra, Principal Secretary, Haryana Tourism,discusses developments to promote and highlight Haryana’s potential as a major tourism hub.

FTAs in Haryana cross 300,000

AH A N A GU R U N G

To improve tourisminfrastructure,major investmentswill be made inplaces such asJyotisar, BrahmaSarovar, SannhitSarovar, Amin andNarkatari inKurukshetradistrict and Salwanin Karnal district

Dr. Sumita MisraPrincipal Secretary, Haryana Tourism

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8 TRAVTALK O C T O B E R 2 N D F O R T N I G H T I S S U E 2 0 1 5 STATES

QWhat has Maharashtraplanned after MITM 2015? We have declared 2017 as ‘Visit

Maharashtra Year’ and are now firming upa good marketing strategy for that. Wewant to showcase little-known places inMaharashtra. Simultaneously, we will alsowork on upgrading infrastructure.

QThere are talks of having anIndia Travel Mart in Mumbai.

Can you elaborate?We currently have separate marts for

Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Goa, J&K and UttarPradesh so we already have a captive audi-ence in terms of buyers that come to India forthese. Let’s have something as big as WTM& ITB, and for something as huge, Mumbaiwould be the most ideal location. MITMmeanwhile can grow in stature. I haverequested Dr. Mahesh Sharma, Minister ofState for Culture, Tourism (IndependentCharge) and Civil Aviation, to keep Mumbaias the location for a possible India Travel Mart.

QCan you give us an update onthe new tourism policy?The draft of the new tourism policy is

in the public domain right now for com-ments and suggestions by stakeholders.The comments we receive will then be

taken up for discussion to see which onesshould be incorporated. The final tourismpolicy should be in place mostly byJanuary 1, 2016.

I have requested the minister to givean ‘infrastructure’ status to the state’s tourismindustry in the new tourism policy. The newpolicy will also offer incentives for privateinvestments in tourism – not only in hotelsbut convention centres, water parks, etc.

QDoes the state plan to workwith other neighbouring

countries?We want to have joint itineraries with

Sri Lanka, Maldives, Nepal and Singapore.It could be an itinerary shared byMaharashtra with other states – Goa,

Madhya Pradesh or Rajasthan – or theycould combine Mumbai with Sri Lankabecause it is not every day that a long-haultraveller comes to this part of continent.We have just started exploring this idea.

QWhat are you plans for inter-national markets?We will be launching a sustained mar-

keting exercise strategically targeting majorsource markets. We are participating inWTM London and ITB Berlin. We will alsotry and pitch for ATM Dubai this year. Apartfrom that, we will be doing roadshows inselect markets. We just did one in Osaka andTokyo this September. We will also go in fora well-thought out electronic media cam-paign in the US, Western Europe and theFar East markets.

Upbeat after the first edition of Maharashtra International Travel Mart (MITM),Valsa Nair-Singh, Principal Secretary (Tourism & Culture), Maharashtra,discusses the state’s new tourism policy which will be out on Jan 1, 2016.

Maha tourism policy in January

HA Z E L JA I N I have requested our honourable minister to give an ‘infrastructure’ status to the state’s tourism industry in the new tourism policy.

Valsa Nair-SinghPrincipal Secretary

Tourism & Culture, Maharashtra

Tourism Minister, Philippines to inaugurate PATA New Frontiers Forum

The Pacific Asia TravelAssociation (PATA) hasannounced that Ramon R. Jimenez, Jr., Secretary of the

Philippine Department of Tourism(PDOT), will deliver the openingaddress during the PATA NewTourism Frontiers Forum 2015 atthe Oriental Hotel in Legazpi,Albay, Philippines from November25-27. The event is being hostedby the Provincial Government ofAlbay in partnership with TheDepartment of Tourism,Philippines. Secretary Jimenez,who is responsible for the coun-try’s tourism campaign, ‘It’s MoreFun in the Philippines,’ will speakon the ‘Successful DestinationMarketing Campaign – Trend inthis digital economy’. “This forumis timely and relevant as we stepup our marketing efforts for ourdestination-based campaign andas we launch Visit the Philippines

Again (VPA) 2016 –which is goingto be the most massive retail-focused effort the Philippines hasever made. Destination marketingis a daunting task as it involvesselling an experience, both tangi-ble and intangible. The Philippinesprides itself of having a uniquebiodiversity, rich naturalresources, and wide variety ofproduct offerings for tourists. Butmost of all, we have the Filipinopeople—the country’s mostimportant asset—to thank for,who serve as the PDOT’s part-ners in building our brand and ful-filling the promise of a more funPhilippines,” Tourism Secretary

Jimenez said. The Forum willexplore various topics includingClimate Change Mitigation andthe Role of Tourism, MarineTourism & the Implications forWater-Reliant Operations, GlobalAdventure Travel Trends, ASEANfor Adventure: Where Boundariesare Endless, Crisis Management& Risk Reduction for NewDestinations, and the Power ofEcotourism: Best Practices &Models for Implementation.

Ramon R. Jimenez, Jr.Secretary, PhilippineDepartment of Tourism


Just a couple of months intothe job, ‘Turnaround man’

Ashwani Lohani, CMD, AirIndia, likes the challenge hehas decided to take up. “It’s agood job. All of us know whatneeds to be done,” he says.

To start with, he is lookingat improving the OTP (on-timeperformance). “It is fairly decentright now at about 85-90 but ithas to be much higher. We alsowant to improve passengerconvenience, better informa-tion systems, and improvingutilisation. We are also lookingat new routes and have lookedat a new route recently but it’sa complicated exercise and it’stoo early to reveal it,” he says,adding, “The work culture alsohas to improve, but I don’t thinkinterference from the govern-ment is an issue. There aredefinite plans to improve andupgrade the products.”

A total of 63 Air Indiaflights have been shifted toMumbai’s Terminal 2 (T2) – 11international and 52 domestic.This integration will not onlyhelp the national carrier offer

ease of transfer to its passen-gers, but will also be a big thingfor Mumbai.

Star Alliance has alreadybooked 1,000 flights per week.Mark Schwab, CEO, StarAlliance, says, “There are 11Star Alliance carriers operatinginto Mumbai and this integra-tion gives them an opportunityas well to move their passen-gers seamlessly from T2 on

the Air India network. It alsoallows this airport and the cityto compete more effectivelywith other airports and otherhubs in the region. It is just amatter of time when we will seenot only more service, biggerairplanes but much larger num-ber of connections happeningthrough Mumbai.” Air Indiarecently celebrated the firstanniversary of its membershipwith Star Alliance.

Having moved its entire operations to Mumbai’s international airport from October 1 despite higher rentals, Air Indiahas now made Mumbai its secondary hub in the region.

Mumbai becomes AI’s second hub HA Z E L JA I N

O C T O B E R 2 N D F O R T N I G H T I S S U E 2 0 1 5 TRAVTALK 9AVIATION

Selling point for agents “The travel trade was

very eager to have an integrat-ed terminal in Mumbai for AirIndia flights. It will nowbecome very easy for them tosell Air India. We engage withthe travel agents 24x7. Wehave our sales team. I everycity in India and wherever weoperate internationally. We arethe first movers as far as inte-grated ops for domestic andinternational is concerned. Sothe travel trade is very upbeat.”

Pankaj SrivastavaDirector (Commercial & Board

Member), Air India

New HeightsThe first domestic flight departing from T2was AI 627 (Mumbai toNagpur) while the firstdomestic flight to landhere was AI 695(Hyderabad to Mumbai)

Air India’s longest non-stop flight from NewDelhi to San Franciscostarting from December 2,2015 three times aweekwill be on 777-200LR,with seat capacity of 238(First: 8, Business: 35,Economy: 195)


1 0 TRAVTALK O C T O B E R 2 N D F O R T N I G H T I S S U E 2 0 1 5 FAMILY ALBUM

WTTCII & HVS felicitate state performersAnalysing the state-wise potential of travel and tourism in the country, the fourth edition of India State Ranking Survey, conducted by the WorldTravel & Tourism Council India Initiative (WTTCII) and HVS, was announced at The Oberoi New Delhi. An awards ceremony shortly followedto honour the best-performing states after which the esteemed guests socialised and made merry over cocktails and hors d’oeurves.


The Ministry of Tourism(MOT), Government ofIndia, Federation of

Indian Chambers ofCommerce and Industry(FICCI) and India Golf TourismAssociation (IGTA) are jointlyorganising the second editionof the FICCI Golf TourismSummit (FGTS) from October26 - 27, 2015 at The Lalit, New Delhi and ITC GrandBharat, Manesar.

The Summit would havelimited number of table tops ata strategic location for majorpartners. A table top will haveone set of B2B meetings fortwo days. Each set would have20 meetings, each of 15 min-utes duration. All B2B meetingswould be pre-scheduled andstructured and will be at thetable top of the registeredIndian sellers.

The highlights of thisyear’s summit are a platformled by MOT and IGTA, pioneer-ing exclusive focus on inboundGolf Tourism, new set of foreign buyers who will beattending the second edition of the summit.

There will be seven hoursof structured, pre-scheduledB2B meetings in two daysbetween 20 hosted hand-picked leading foreign touroperators from across theworld who specialise in GolfTourism with the stakeholdersfrom India, besides the interac-tive conclave pondering overcritical issues on the first halfof the first day.

A game of golf would beorganised by IGTA on October27 to bring in the cheer and

refreshment post hectic busi-ness deliberations of the twopreceding days.

IGTA would organiseFam trips to golf courses forthe hosted leading foreign touroperators from across theworld who would come for the

summit. This will offer a greatopportunity to the willing golfcourses in the country foronsite marketing of their facili-ties to their target market.

Entry during B2B hoursis restricted to preregisteredbuyers and sellers only.

Riding on the success of the first edition of FICCI GolfTourism Summit 2014, the Ministry of Tourism and IGTA isorganising the second edition from October 26-27, 2015,at The Lalit, New Delhi and ITC Grand Bharat, Manesar.

Golfing more fun in India

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Tee TimeThe Summit would havelimited number of tabletops at a strategic loca-tion for major partners

All B2B meetings wouldbe pre-scheduled andstructured and will be atthe table top of the registered Indian sellers

There will be seven hoursof structured, pre-sched-uled B2B meetings in twodays between 20 hostedhandpicked leading foreign tour operators

O C T O B E R 2 N D F O R T N I G H T I S S U E 2 0 1 5 TRAVTALK 1 1ASSOCIATIONS



O C T O B E R 2 N D F O R T N I G H T I S S U E 2 0 1 5 TRAVTALK 1 3STATES

At ITB Asia, which is regard-ed as one of the biggest

travel and tourism B2B fairs inAsia, Kerala Tourism has takena 27 sq metre stand which isbased on the theme of‘Backwaters of Kerala’.

Four co-exhibitors willalso participate in the eventalong with Kerala Tourism,”says P. I. Sheik Pareeth,Director- Kerala Tourism. “Thedemand for short-haul travel isencouraging from the Asiancountries. We hope to leverageit for our benefit,” he adds.

Kerala bagged the largestnumber of honours at the 2013-14 National Tourism Awards distributed by President PranabMukherjee last month.

AP Anilkumar, Ministerfor Tourism, KeralaGovernment, received theAwards. He says, “The growthof Kerala Tourism is very high.Kerala is the fastest growingtourism destination in the

world. This is mainly becauseof the private industry espe-cially the tour operators andhoteliers.”

Anilkumar infoms thatKerala has submitted to the centre a multi-project plan worth ` 568 crore thataimsto boost the state’stourism profile.

G Kamala VardhanaRao, Tourism Secretary, Govtof Kerala, says that the estab-lishment has been consistentlystriving to position the state asa global destination with a

focus on sustaining and pre-serving the land’s nature, cul-ture and tradition. He adds,“The tourism industry collec-tively in Kerala is doing well.The tour operators and thehoteliers are coming togetherto contribute to the growth oftourism in the state. Theagents are helpful as theyenthusiastically participate ininternational as well as domes-tic roadshows.”

Rao talks about theirmajor initiative, Blog Expressand informs that as a part ofthe promotional campaign they are focusing on tappingunexplored destinations likeChina, Japan and other FarEast countries.

Kerela Tourism attributes its achievements to the privatesectors in the state especially the tour operators andhoteliers, and charts out its plans for ITB Asia.

Kerala backwaters at ITB

SA M A P T I DAS

G Kamala Vardhana RaoTourism SecretaryGovt of Kerala

New AvenuesFor its Blog Express,Kerala Tourism is focus-ing on destinations likeChina, Japan and otherFar East countries

Organised for the secondtime this year, the ACE of

MICE Exhibition is a leadingregional event for the meet-ings, incentives, conferences,events and business travel industry.

The event gathered11,687 industry professionalswith over 269 exhibiting com-panies from 25 countries and656 high-level hosted buyersfrom associations, agenciesand corporate companies.ACE of MICE Exhibition 2015also exhibited colorful panels and held various conferences for three days which hosted 70 expert speakers.

The third edition of ACEof MICE Exhibition will takeplace at Istanbul CongressCenter (ICC) and Lutfi KirdarCongress Center on March16-18, 2016.

At the three-day show,participants will be able to

have pre-scheduled B2Bmeetings with local and inter-national hosted buyers, par-ticipate in seminars, network-ing parties and ACE of MICEAwards Ceremony on March17, 2016 which is gatheringmore than 2,500 MICE profes-sionals from all local industrystakeholders and choosingthe best of the year.

Beyza Aksit, ExhibitionDirector, ACE of MICEExhibition, says, “India is obviously an important MICE destination for Turkey not only with its wide surface

but also with its colorful culture and traditions whichmake this destination more attractive.

“We are also aware that Turkish market is veryimportant for Indians especially for wedding plan-ners as well. Recently Turkishand Indian tourism profes-sionals came together in India which means the relationship between thesetwo countries will keep on improving.

“We believe this meetingis also going to affect MICE activities as well as leisure tourism. We had many hosted buyers and vis-itors from India at the last editions of AME and we’renow in contact with IndianMICE companies to attendAME 2016.

“ACE of MICE Exhibitiongives opportunity to meet with their potential buyersboth local and international,”Aksit adds.

The 3rd ACE of MICE Exhibition, scheduled to be heldfrom March 16-18, 2016, in Istanbul will give Indian MICEsector a chance to meet with reputed hosted buyers.

Next MICE stop: Istanbul

SH I VA N I KAU L

Beyza AksitExhibition DirectorACE of MICE Exhibition



EXHIBITIONS

“This year’s programmeencompasses a range of

topics with many new partner-ships inked. In particular, wehave collaborated with CAPA(Centre for Aviation) to hold theshow’s inaugural industry out-look forum and a collaborationwith DestinationElite to organisethe show’s first Luxury Travel &Hospitality Forum,” says KatrinaLeung, Executive Director ofMesse Berlin (Singapore), theorganisers of ITB Asia.

Talking about what theevent holds in store for agents,Leung explains that this year’sshow will first kick off on thefirst and second day with aseries of keynote sessionsmoderated by PhoCusWrightfounder and industry veteranPhilip Wolf. The keynote pan-elists will include executivesfrom Tuniu, Ctrip, Airbnb,Agoda, Expedia, TripAdvisorand Uber, Venture RepublicGlobal and MakeMyTrip whowill share their insights on

trends and developments thatwill drive growth and ideas toleverage on current industryopportunities. Last year ITB Asia witnessed 852 buyers and 750 exhibitors from76 countries.

On the participation fromIndia in the show over theyears, she says, “India is oneof the fastest growing travelmarkets and we’ve enjoyedstrong support from them overthe past seven years. Acrossthe travel industry, hotels,resorts, tour companies and

tourism boards the presenceof Indian exhibitors has beena staple of ITB Asia.”

Leung also highlights theincreased interest of buyers inthe MICE segments. She says,“Buyers attending ITB Asiacome from a wide range ofindustry sectors. This year, in particular, we’ve seenincreased interest from buyersin the MICE segment, reflect-ing the significant growthoccurring in the region.”

Addressing the Indiantravel industry, Leung says, “AtITB Asia, Indian exhibitors cangain an in-depth understand-ing of what their counterpartsaround the world are doing inthe industry today and under-stand the unique needs of buy-ers outside India to help themdraft their growth strategy for the region. We shall facilitate face-to-face interac-tions, to spread awareness,establish partnerships, build contacts and generate leads for businesses.”

ITB Asia, the ‘Trade Show for the Asian Travel Market’,welcomes exhibitors from a wide range of sectorsincluding MICE, corporate, leisure and technology. Theshow will be held in Singapore from October 21-23.

Focus on MICE @ITB Asia

AN K I TA SAX E N A

Katrina Leung Executive DirectorMesse Berlin (Singapore)



The 50th annual convention of Federation ofHotel & Restaurant Associations of India (FHRAI) took place at MayfairConvention in Bhubaneswar, Odisha. The convention saw participation from

some political bigwigs and hostedengrossing panel discussions.

Key policies unveiled at MITMThe three-day Maharashtra International Travel Mart (MITM) 2015 held in Mumbai last month wasthe perfect platform for the Maharashtra government as well as Maharashtra Tourism DevelopmentCorporation to announce major policy changes and key development plans, respectively.

50th FHRAI Convention livens up Odisha


TECHNOLOGY

roomsXML.com works exclu-sively with travel agents. It

was the pioneer in introducing‘multiple supplier single feed’concept in the industry andoffers 87,410 unique proper-ties across the world – in realtime and at net rates.

If this wasn’t enough tomake it popular with the travelagents, there is more. PrakashBang, Founder, roomsXML,says, “It has a feature thatremoves the guesswork whilstselecting and booking a hotel.Only those properties wouldbecome 'Preferred' if a mini-mum of 10 travel agents nom-inate it. It is like getting a refer-ence from fellow agents, mak-ing it more dependable.”

He lists down 11 innova-tions that set roomsXML.comapart:

1. De-duplication of inventory

2. Room type mapping: Anindustry game-changer,this shows the room name

exactly as the hotels callthem

3. Made to order XML feed

4. Quotation generator:Branded Q-Push, the fea-ture helps the travel agentto submit quotations withproperty images and infor-mation via email directlyfrom the roomsXML book-ing panel

5. Retail interface: BrandedRetina – It is a retail interface that allows the travel agent to confidently flip the screento face their customers

with pre-determinedmark-up

6. Mobile interface for travelagents

7. Online CRM: A ticket num-ber ensures that a queryremains on alert untilresolved.

8. Preferred by agents: Theranking of the propertygoes up as more andmore unique agents preferthat property. It's like get-ting a reference from fel-low agents; certainly moredependable.

9. Map-view search: Searchand view properties on aninteractive map, based onlocation and budget.

10. Local currency commit-ment: Mitigates the cur-rency exchange risk.

11. B2C widget: BrandedFRAME, this widget instant-ly converts a static websiteinto an active, money mak-ing B2C initiative.

Taking content from various suppliers, de-duplicatingthe hotels and presenting them as a single feed hasmade roomsXML a popular online tool with travel agents.

11 innovations ease biz

TT BU R E AU

Prakash BangFounder, roomsXML

QWhat is the USP ofAmoeba

Hospitality?Amoeba Hospitality is

one of the very few compa-nies in the business that arewilling to invest and operateproperties. Amoeba has apolicy of not operating morethan two hotels in a locationthat provides comfort to thehotel owners about their busi-ness profitability. The compa-ny also has business modelthat is travel agent friendlyunlike aggregation modelswhich are killing the OTA andtravel agent industry. We arelooking at developing a longterm and reliable travel agent network that can penetrate markets acrossIndia and overseas.

QWhy should travelagents book

through Amoeba?We have specialised

offers and performance linked

incentivised payouts for ourchannel partners. Currently wehave a 200 travel agent net-work and are looking to makeit to 1000 by next year. We arespecifically focusing on agentswho are familiar with thewildlife segment as we arelaunching our next resort‘Kanha Woods’ in the lastweek of October.

QDo you plan onadding more proper-

ties to the company'sportfolio?

We are currently operat-ing three properties in pristinelocations like Kanatal (Amoeba180 Degree Resort), Gangtok(Bella Casa Amoeba), andAlmora (Amoeba RiverRetreat).We will be doublingour room inventory in theabove mentioned propertiesas well as launching moreproperties in Kanha, Lonavala,Aurangabad and Ooty in the near future. We are aimingfor 12 hotels across the coun-try by 2016.

Within a year, Amoeba Hospitality has established itselfwith four properties and will be adding three more soon.Gaurav Kumar, Director, Amoeba Hospitality, elaborateson the company’s success and future plans.

An agent-friendly model

TT BU R E AU

We are specificallyfocusing onagents who arefamiliar with thewildlife segment aswe are launchingour next resort‘Kanha Woods’ in the last week of October

Gaurav KumarDirectorAmoeba Hospitality



At the recently held SkålDelhi meet, Mandip

Singh Soin, FRGS, was felic-itated. He has been appointedAmbassador of the ’10 Million More’ Campaign by Sustainable Travel

International, USA. He alsoreceived the Citation of MeritAward by the Explorers Club at their ceremony in NewYork in March 2015. He is thefirst Skålleague and the first in the travel industry globally to have received this recognition.

Greesh Bindra,Secretary, Skål InternationalDelhi, says, “For every Skållunch, we try to organise aninteresting event for all our Skålleagues to have a fun time.Today we have felicitated Soinfor his achievement and feelproud that one of our

Skålleagues has reached such a height.”

Ranjit Vig, Treasurer,Skål International Delhi, says,“Skål is initiating many activi-ties which include recognitionof some of our colleagues whoare achievers in the industry to

bring them to the forefront. Weare also initialising efforts takenby Skål International where weare sharing as much informa-tion with our members so thatthey are aware of the eventsand activities that take placeand they don’t coincide withtheir travel plans.”

Soin made a presenta-tion at the meet, about his journey into the Arctic in 1989 that was the motiva-tion in his movement towardsecotourism and responsibletravel that is now beingembraced by the tourismindustry.

Skål Delhi recently had another lunch meet where Mandip Singh Soin, FRGS, was felicitated for his achievement inbringing sustainable tourism to the forefront.

Skalleagues in the limelightTT BU R E AU




A DDP PUBLICATION OCTOBER 2 N D FORTNIGHT ISSUE 2015 TRAVTALK 2 1dd

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COVER STORY O C T O B E R 2 N D F O R T N I G H T I S S U E 2 0 1 5 TRAVTALK 2 3

The Indian hospitalityindustry is evolving

with infrastructure develop-ment in smaller cities, which are short of qualityaccommodation and related services but with latent demand for these facilities.

Sudeep Jain, VicePresident Acquisitions andDevelopment, South Asia,Starwood Hotels andResorts, says, “Tier II mar-kets offer untapped growthopportunities. As the urbanlandscape continues toevolve, demand will come from new markets andleisure destinations.” TheFour Point Brand of StarwoodHotels and ResortsWorldwide recentlyannounced three hotels in

Bhopal, Vijayawada andVembanad Lake in Kerala.

“Many big hospitalityplayers are looking to expandtheir portfolio into these citiesdue to good demand genera-tors and lower costs of devel-opment. Connectivity tothese cities is important andit’s often found that hotels inwell-connected Tier II andTier III cities boast of goodoccupancy at reasonablygood price points,” saysHarikumar Balakrishnan,General Manager, RadissonBlu Plaza, Mysore.

Some of the leadinginternational hotel brands are at the forefront of expansion into these smaller markets, and workingwith agents is essential forthem to generate business.Balakrishnan emphasises on

the importance of travelagents who aggressivelyoffer travel and hospitalitysolutions. “The agents havehelped us reach an audiencefrom far-flung corners of theworld. We treat them as avery important partner in ourbusiness. Almost half of ahotel’s produced room nights coming from online distribu-

tion company is not unheardof,” he adds.

Dilip Puri, ManagingDirector India, and RegionalVice President South Asia,Starwood Hotels andResorts, says, “India today isstill an ‘under-hoteled’ mar-ket, and the demand for high-caliber lodging is expected tofar exceed current supply for

at least the next three to fiveyears. As domestic travelincreases and Indian trav-ellers continue to demandmore sophistication in termsof both quality and experi-ence, we have significantopportunity to grow ourbrands across the spectrumin gateway cities and tertiary markets as well as inresort destinations.”

According to Shanthade Silva, Head of SouthWest Asia, IHG, air connec-tivity to smaller cities is pertinent for growth.“Development of new airportsin smaller cities and towns toencourage air travel acrossthe country, with a target to build around 200 low-cost airports in the next20 years to connect Tier IIand Tier III cities, have result-ed in positive sentiment in theindustry. The industry isexpected to grow four times to over $400 billion by 2022.”

Facilities like inroads,improved infrastructure, lowerland costs and increasingconnectivity to smaller citieshave shown potential growthin these markets. There isaffordable real estate and

As metro cities near saturation point, home-grown and international hotel brands are busy charting expansion plansinto the potential markets of Tier II and Tier III cities. speaks to industry professionals about the emerging trendsin the hotel business.

Hotel business booms in Tier II, III cities

AN K I TA SAX E N A

Contd. on page 26

Dilip PuriMD India and Regional Vice President SouthAsia, Starwood Hotels and Resorts

Shantha de SilvaHead of South West AsiaInterContinental Hotel Group

Sudeep JainVice President Acquisitions and Development,South Asia, Starwood Hotels and Resorts

HOTELS2 4 TRAVTALK O C T O B E R 2 N D F O R T N I G H T I S S U E 2 0 1 5

QDo you workwith travel

agents?Travel agents are an

essential part of our function-ing and we are increasing ourengagement with them. Beinga five-month-old company, wehave tied up with more than300 hotels across 35 citiesand are trying to engageagent partners in a big way.They help us generate higherrevenues out of the inventoryand help provide the guestwith a standardised propertyat a good price and in theprocess also earn profits.

QDo you offer anyspecial deals for

agents/ regularclients/ corporatecompanies?

Absolutely! If there is aneconomy of scale, we are

more than happy to pass onthe benefits to our partners.

QAre you onlytargeting the

domestic market?How do you plan tocapture theinternationalmarket?

At the moment all ourhotels are based in India andprimarily cater to the domesticmarket. The international mar-ket contributes only 2 to 3 per-cent share in our source mar-ket and is concentrated inGoa, Shimla and Jim Corbettcircuit. However, we wouldexpand to target the foreigntravellers too. To do so, Ibelieve, one has to first iden-tify the channels wheretourists go to and then withthe support of channel part-ners and travel agents wewould offer travel packagesand inventory accordingly.

QWhat categoriesof hotels do you

work with? We operate through

budget and boutique hotelsalong with guest houses tostandardise the general hos-pitality behaviour and then,sell these hotels on our web-site and hotel application. Our95 per cent of tie-ups are 20-25 room segment budgethotels but because we see a

lot of business movement,MICE and big corporateclients, a five per cent share is from the luxury hotel segment.

QWhat are thebenefits for the

hotels whichassociatethemselves withyou?

Our partner budgethotels of 20-25 rooms, whenon their own, generally man-age to sell 5 to 6 rooms dailyon an average but have tocater to prices according to 20room occupancy to earn thebench mark amount. Thisleads to high costs for thesehotels. When they partnerwith us, we sell the inventoryfor them, in effect increasingthe occupancy and thusbringing down the costs. Wetrain the staff of the hotel interms of nuances and subtlety

of hospitality to offer better services. Also, a directbenefit is the increase in rev-enue share.

QWhat are yourplans for the

near future?On the supply front, in

the next 12 months we aregoing to increase the existinginventory of 3,000 rooms to10,000 rooms across 65 cities.On the demand front, we aretargeting the retail market. Weare very focused on the oper-ations segment of what weoffer and have seen anincrease in occupancy up to 65per cent from our partners. Wehave developed a processwhere we are going to stan-dardise all budget hotels as theluxury hotel segment doesn’tneed this work. We have goodpartnerships with all OTAs andare listed with MakeMyTrip foraccommodation facilities.

WUDSTAY aims at providing standardised hospitality services in budget hotels and guest houses acrossthe country. In a conversation with , Prafulla Mathur, Founder and CEO, WUDSTAY, discussesthe propositions of the company, role of travel agents, and its future plans.

Staff training in budget hotels

TT BUREAU

Prafulla MathurFounder and CEOWUDSTAY

Crowne PlazaJaipur to opendoors on Nov 1

InterContinental HotelsGroup is launching CrownePlaza Jaipur Tonk Road on the1st of November. It is the group’s10th Crowne Plaza property inIndia. The hotel will provide 218rooms and 20 suites in all.Speaking on the launchGeneral Manager AshwaniGoela said, “We are very happyand excited with the launch ofCrowne Plaza in Jaipur. Ourhotel will cater not only to busi-ness but even leisure travellers.Ideal for MICE, this property willprovide ample of space for host-ing meetings, events, confer-ences and weddings. We lookforward to welcoming ourguests for a great experience.”Crowne Plaza Jaipur TonkRoad, a green building willincorporate several sustainablefeatures. This Green Engagecertified hotel will give the prop-erty the ability to track energy,carbon and water consumptionas well as to assess how wasteis managed. The Double Glassunit will ensure lower carbonfootprints and allow maximumentry of natural light while mini-mizing heat transmission. It willbe the only hotel façade in India,to not have punch windows.


QWhat are the newproperties that you

are planning to open? We are in the process of

launching a luxury resort inNathdwara, Udaipur close tothe Shreeji Temple. It will have32 keys with a pure vegetari-an multi-cuisine restaurant.We believe in creating ourhotels and resorts in a differ-ent way rather than followingthe old brick and mortarmodel. In the next two years,we wish to add few morehotels in Rajasthan, Chennaiand Gujarat. We are aggres-sively looking for like-mindedhotel developers to takehotels on management con-tract or revenue share model.

QHow closely are youworking with offline

travel agents?India is a complex tourist

destination with a lot of diver-

sity. It is very important towork with offline travel agentswho can provide multiple solu-tions to tourists. We value ourpartnership with them andwork closely with most of the travel companies oper-ating in and outside Delhi,Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennaiand Ahmedabad.

QAre you providingthem special

offers/incentives?

Today’s consumer andtravel partners know howhotels operate and we plan various packages and promotions to link multi-ple cities in the same region.At the same time we shareperformance linked bonuswith travel partners to promote inbound and domes-tic travel trade during lean and high period.

QHow do you thinkthe hospitality sec-

tor has changed overthe years?

Technology and avail-ability of structured hotelshave given added edge todomestic consumer who iswilling to experiment and wish to travel to new places within India. That iswhy most of the large hotelcompanies are not venturinginto mid and small scalehotels in order to capture alllevel of consumers.

Jüsta Hotels has increased its portfolio from a single hotel inBengaluru to 15 hotels in six cities in a span of 10 years, says,Ashish Vohra, Founder and CEO, Jüsta Hotels & Resorts.

New Jüsta in Udaipur

TT BU R E AU

Ashish VohraFounder and CEOJüsta Hotels & Resorts

MICE, weddings top earnerscheaper talent, the cost ofoperations is lower, thus offering better return oninvestment directing towardsa sustainable profit margin.

“Cost of living or cost of doingbusiness in Tier II and Tier IIIcities is lower than Tier I cities, which our guests areable to enjoy without compro-mising on world-class stan-dards,” says Michael Singh,General Manager, ParkPlaza, Zirakpur.

“Due to the ideal loca-tion of our hotel and thelargest ballroom in the region

of Chandigarh, our occupan-cy has been stable through the year (72 percent). We are trying to pull our Average Room Rate(ARR) from `4,300 to

` 4,700 in the next threemonths,” Singh adds.

Discussing the gap inAverage Daily Rates (ADR) between metros and non-metro locations,Balakrishnan says, “Excludinghotels based on a ‘destination experience,’ there is a sizeable gap in the ADRs of metro and Tier IIand Tier III cities.

However, with the ven-ture of big brands into these cities, this gap is being bridged. The pricing in these cities are often very reliant on the market and existing hospitality players. The new luxuryentrants into smaller cities are able to raise the existing city ADRs but often, there is a ceiling price point that becomes rel-evant to the leisure and cor-porate consumers.”

Singh identifies his tar-get segment as corporategroups, tour and travelgroups, destination weddingsand conference groups whileBalakrishnan says that thekey contributing segment forRadisson Blu Mysore isLeisure FITs.

“MICE opportunities inthese secondary markets areimmense. A city like Mysorethat’s within easy reach of big cities like Bangalore,Chennai and Coimbatore,offers exclusive cultural qual-ities for MICE groups,”Balakrishnan says.

Michael SinghGeneral ManagerPark Plaza, Zirakpur

Harikumar BalakrishnanGeneral ManagerRadisson Blu Plaza, Mysore

Contd. from page 23

INTERVIEW O C T O B E R 2 N D F O R T N I G H T I S S U E 2 0 1 5 TRAVTALK 2 7

QHow big is the India mar-ket for you?Sri Lanka has a lot to offer to

the Indian tourist. There is a lot ofpotential to explore not only intourism but also in business andtrade. Another advantage is at thegovernment level where both coun-tries are very cooperative. Therefore,

I invite everyone to come to SriLanka as tourists and explore theopportunities our country has to offer.

QWhat draws Indians to SriLanka?Indian tourists like Sri Lanka as

a destination for its history, religion,nature and spicy food. Even thoughIndia is our closest neighbouringcountry with a lot of similarities, wealso have a lot of differences in ourculture, food and traditions. Indiantourists like to experience these dif-ferences. Moreover, India being alarge country, they have to spend alot more time and money to enjoy thebeauty of their own country. SriLanka in comparison is smaller in

size and Indians can enjoy morewithin a short duration and for almostthe same amount or even lessmoney than they spend in India.

QWhat is the most populartravel product among

Indians?

The Ramayana Trail is the mostpopular trail among Indian devoteesthat brings them to Sri Lanka.Fortunately, our resort is located incentral Sri Lanka, in Kandy, and wecan organise tailor-made tours rang-ing from day tours as well as four tofive day packages.

QWhat does your hoteloffer guests looking for

wellness? Our hotel has a host of indoor

and outdoor facilities including anauthentic ayurveda centre, largeswimming pool, mountain biking, jog-ging court, bird watching and

nature walk trail. We also offer detox-ifying massages, rejuvenation treat-ments, organic meals, yoga experi-ence, meditation, and wellnessguidelines. We offer special wedding packages inclusive ofresorts, photo-shoot locations anddestination weddings.

Tree of Life Travels is our travelarm formed to cater mainly toinbound tourists and specialises inadventure tours and eco tourism. Our staff undertakes package toursto popular destinations as well as customised tours. It’s the first time that a Sri Lankan hotel is looking at tapping the India marketfor wellness tourism.

A. Shelly Thenuwara, Managing Director, Tree of Life Nature Resort, in Kandy, Sri Lanka, shareshow the resort, through its health and wellness products, plans to tap India market.

Sri Lanka’s wellness products TT BU R E AU

The RamayanaTrail is the mostpopular trailamong Indiandevotees thatbrings them toSri Lanka

A. Shelly ThenuwaraManaging DirectorTree of Life Nature Resort

In Nature’s LapThe hotel has a host of indoor and outdoor facilitiesincluding an authentic ayurveda centre, large swimming pool, mountain biking, jogging court, birdwatching and nature walk trail



are coming up with?We have recently

launched Lords Inn Brand inJodhpur. We are going tolaunch two more hotels inJammu and Agra by the endof this year. Keeping in mindthe prime location and the cityboth the properties will beF&B oriented with multi-diningand banqueting spaces apartfrom well placed, comfortablerooms and suites.

QHow helpful aretravel agents for

you and what are youoffering them?

Today, online travelagents are playing a majorrole in promoting and sellingthe hotels’ eSpace. But inIndia ‘human touch’ is veryimportant and hence, offlinetravel agents are equally help-ful to carve out a place for us

in booking package vacationsand pushing the brands tomaximum travellers to our var-ious property locations. Itboosts our revenue as we getthe bookings in bulk. We havelong established business tie-ups with travel agents withregular incentives in placewhich are generally based onthe business volumes gener-ated from each of them.

QWhat special doyou offer to lure

guests?It is always better to offer

true value to the guests for themoney they spent.

We call ourselves ‘True Value Hotels’ and offer high value that we don’t see any need to lure guests withcomplimentary stuff.

QWhat are yourfuture initiatives?As a group, strategically,

we are looking at growing in Tier II and Tier III cities as they offer better return on investment.

We have a target ofexpanding to 40 properties bythe end of 2017. At the sametime we are looking at anexpansion which is stable,sustainable and adds value toall stake holders.

Rishi Puri, Vice President (Operations & Development), LordsHotels and Resorts, discusses their future plans and tellshow helpful travel agents are to boost their revenues.

40 properties by 2017-end

TT BU R E AU

The Ananta Udaipur openedlast year with 160 keys. The

group continues to look atstrengthening its resort portfo-lio with a beach resort inDwarka and another resort atAbu Road. It’s focusing oninvesting not only in real estatebut also in developing thebrand and its loyalty in the staff and training them intechnology, resources andinfrastructure that supportsgrowth, business model and distribution.

Anshul Bhargava,Corporate General Manager,Ananta Hotels & Resorts, says,“We work with all segments ofbusiness whether it is offline oronline agents or corporate. Wehave unique and special offersfor all of them whether it isleisure or corporate.”

Bhargava says that theiraim is to reach maximum

audience. So, when theyattend international marts,they want to capture new and

big foreign markets like Spain,Russia, France, the UK, etc.,as both their resorts attract alot of inbound guests. Headds, “We want to developour brand globally as a uniqueconcept. International eventsare ideal environments fornetworking and brand buildingvia product demonstrations,seminars, conferences andsponsorship opportunities. Wealso expect to check and eval-uate competition.”

According to Bhargava,as the government makeseTV available to 150 countriesby March 2016, certain reme-dial steps are required, likemore initiatives, relaxed taxa-tion policies, correction in pric-ing, rationalisation and a bal-anced perspective. He says,“India has a huge opportunityto increase air capacity; inter-national airlines should startflying to more tourist destina-tions to bring in more foreigners.”

Ananta Hotels and Resorts is looking at developing itselfglobally. Anshul Bhargava, Corporate General Manager, AnantaHotels and Resorts, focuses on the group’s future initiatives.

Targeting global outreach

TT BU R E AU

Rishi PuriVice President (Operations &Development), Lords Hotels and Resorts

Anshul BhargavaCorporate General ManagerAnanta Hotels and Resorts

Castle khandela, situated inan ancient heritage town

of Khandela in Shekhawatiregion of Rajasthan, is oftenflocked by tourists and knownfor its colorful markets, tradi-tional havelis which showcaseold architecture and peacefulambience. The palace, whichhas been restored and con-verted into a heritage hotel,has 17 rooms with all modernfacilities but maintains the tra-ditional ambience, decor andarchitecture intact.

Khandela is well-con-nected to Delhi and Jaipur,making it an easy destinationto reach. Dr. Raisal Singh,Owner, Castle Khandela, talksabout how travel agents play a key role in increasingbusiness for the hotel. “Thetravel agents are helping andregularly sending guests toCastle Khandela. It is with their

support and encouragementthat we started this project 3 years back,” he says.

According to Singh, “Ina short span of 3 years, wehave done fairly well and areimproving every year. Guestreviews have majorly con-tributed in putting CastleKhandela on the world map.We are listed in many guidebooks and brochure programin international markets.”

Discussing the futureendeavours for the hotel,Singh says, “Looking at themarket trend, we are trying tomarket Castle Khandela andKhandela Haveli in theEuropean Market.” With itsheritage attractions and archi-tecture, Castle Khandela pro-vides its guests with latesttechnological amenities.

The Castle also caters tothe MICE groups that come tothe hotel. Expressing theimportance of MICE travel forthe hotel, Singh adds, “MICE plays a very special role in Heritage hotels as smaller groups enjoy out-door activities like villagewalks, jeep safaris and camelsafaris. It also allows us toarrange gala evenings fol-lowed by dinner at the Castle.MICE groups are always wel-come as we can provide themwith specialised and cus-tomised packages.”

Castle Khandela, an old palace built over 300 years ago, hasbeen converted into a heritage hotel, providing its guests aunique and exciting glimpse into the heritage of Rajasthan.

Heritage at Castle Khandela

TT BU R E AU

QWhat are yourmain source

markets? Deepali Wagle: Our

sourcing is 80 per cent fromthe domestic market for now.We have a focused approachto make our presence felt inTier II and III cities and areexpanding our sales offices inthese locations.

Amita Nair: Inboundtourism is also a part of ourshort term strategy. Our plansare to get inbound traffic latestby April 2016 and our firstgroup of 200 foreign touristsare lined up to be in India on21 April 2016, followed by 150people in July 2016.

QWhat are latestIndian tourism

industry trends?Amita: ‘One big Indian

family’ has now become a thing

of past. People have smallernuclear families that create big-ger budgets to fulfil their needfor holidaying. Now, vacationinghas become a need and whilefamilies would travel maybeonce in two years, they nowtravel twice a year or evenmore. This has opened a lot ofopportunities for professionalsin the tourism industry.

QWhat kind ofsupport do you

expect from theGovernment?

Deepali: TheGovernment should ease itsstrict visa regime, improvetourism infrastructure for thetourists’ right from the time theyland, and provide liberalisedtaxation for foreign exchangeearners on par with other indus-tries like software etc. It will helpcreate opportunities and attractright talent to take the industryto the next level.

Meandering Vacations plans to get inbound traffic latest byApril 2016 and its first group of 200 foreign tourists are linedup to be in India on April 21, 2016.

Moving into Tier II, III cities

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Dr. Raisal SinghOwnerCastle Khandela

Amita Nair Director,Meandering Vacations

Deepali Wagle Director,Meandering Vacations

International events are idealfor brand building via productdemonstrations,seminars,conferences andsponsorship

HOTELS


are coming up with?Except our hotel in

Ranakpur, we have acquiredland in Varanasi. We will builda hotel there once the marketgets better. We are alsoexploring the possibility ofleasing other hotels inUdaipur, Mount Abu or near-

by areas. In next two years,we'll definitely have at leasttwo more properties.

QHow helpful aretravel agents for

you? Are you offeringthem any incentives?

Ranakpur is a destina-tion which is not yet known to

mass travellers in spite ofhaving so many attractions forall age groups. To promotethese to the potential marketwe are using all the possiblechannels including travelagents who are playing a bigrole in promoting the destina-tion as well as our hotel. Weare offering them special

rates commensurate to thebusiness they give to us apartfrom invitations for Fam tripsregularly. We work closelywith the travel trade to under-stand the true needs of thetravellers to ensure an unfor-gettable experience.

QTo what extent doyou think hotels

should provide free-bies to lure moreguests?

We don't believe in lur-ing our guests with compli-mentary stuff. Instead, we try

to understand their prefer-ences and customise experi-ences. This goes a long wayin satisfying a guest rather than offering themcomplimentary serviceswhich may even offend aguest at times.

QHow have hospital-ity trends changed

over the years?Change is inevitable and

it holds true for the hospitalityindustry as well. The one traitwhich is constant in our industry is ‘customer satisfac-tion’. A modern day traveller is well informed. Therefore,they seek a wholesome experience rather than just a package which includesroom and food. Not only are they exploring new destinations, but are challeng-ing the hotels to go

beyond what was convention-ally considered to be theirscope of services. With theadvent of the OTAs and otheraggregators, the best deal interms of value for money isalso a big decision making fac-tor for travellers.

Travel agents play a big role in promoting Mana Hotels Ranakpur and the destination, says Dheeraj Jain, Marketing Manager, Mana Hotels Ranakpur. He reveals the company’s expansion plans.

Mana Hotels’ next stop: Varanasi

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Dheeraj JainMarketing ManagerMana Hotels Ranakpur

Slated to be operational byearly 2017, Orritel Hotel’s

new yoga resort is likely tobring some level of recognitionto Roha – a small city twohours away from Mumbai, inthe Raigad district ofMaharashtra. The Orritel Yoga& Ayurveda Spa Resort isspread across five acres ofland. Amit Dholakia,Managing Director, OrritelHotel, reveals more and says, “It will have 40 units of accommodation, areas for yoga camps, alternate therapies and a wellnessresort. We are in the final stages of approval for the plans. The designs are in place.”

He adds that there willbe specially trained yogateachers from the IyengarYoga Institute. “Everythingfrom the landscape to thedesign and the food will bemade keeping in mind theunderlying theme of wellness.

So there will be special florathat promotes health, forexample Ashoka trees to treatblood pressure, neem plants,etc,” Dholakia says.

“The kitchens will use natural products like herbs and organic ingre-dients. Of course, all food will be vegetarian. This will be an important aspect of the packages that we will create. The resort itself will be an all-inclusiveresort,” he adds.

There will be ayurvedicdoctors also present on thehotel premises. “We want toattract travellers from theWestern countries, Europe,

Israel, etc who visit India forlong-term stays and who don’t necessarily want to stay in an ashram but look for clean and quality accommo-dation – nothing too intense.We will also tap expatriates,Indian HNIs and senior citi-zens. This resort will not bepriced very high but will offerthe best of both – a relaxingholiday while gaining valuefrom their India experience,” headds. A 21-day package will besold at around $1,000.

An adjoining plot of 80acres will house an IyengarYoga institute. Dholakia hasmore than seven projects inthis industrial belt inMaharashtra.

Leveraging the increasing popularity of health and wellness properties among travellers across segments, Orritel Hotel has planned a yoga resort in Roha, Maharashtra.

Orritel’s yoga resort in Roha

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Amit DholakiaManaging DirectorOrritel Hotel

To promote [Ranakpur] to thepotential market we are using allthe possible channels includingtravel agents who are playing a bigrole in promoting the destinationas well as our hotel

QWith the mushrooming ofboutique hotels in the

country, how do you counter-act the competition?

In a city where the lure of profitis endangering its architectural her-itage, the creators of La Villa deliber-ately embraced the challenges ofsustainability. Limited number of

rooms, the use of traditional buildingtechniques, re-purposing architectur-al elements from demolished villas,employing local artisans to preservetheir ageless craft, adapting the proj-ect to preserve trees hundreds ofyears old, are a few examples of thechoices made to transform the hun-dred-year-old villa into a luxury six-suite boutique hotel. Even the hotelstationery is made from recycled cot-ton. All paper and bottles are recy-cled and proceeds are redistributedto the personnel.

QWhat was the occupancyof La Villa last year? What

clientele did you receive?We received 60 per cent

occupancy on the first year and areexpecting 75 per cent this year.Themajority clients are Indian (40 percent) followed by French (25 percent) while the rest are from allover the world. We target high rev-enue individual couples, familiesand group of friends for a one nightstay or a private reservation of allthe six suites.

QWhat is La Villa’s USP?La Villa is one of the oldest

houses in Puducherry (19th century)and has been converted into a 6suite hotel with a swimming pool, restaurant, and an Idea Shop with La Villa products. Each

suite has its own atmosphere. The use of noble and natural materials like precious wood, fabrics,silver cutlery, fine porcelain alongwith a distinctive sense of colour and detail draws you into the atmosphere of poetic intimacy andnon-ostentatious luxury.

Segiyane Paquiry, Managing Director, La Villa Puducherry, shareswith how the property embraces the idea of sustainability.

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We target highrevenue individualcouples, familiesand group offriends for a onenight stay or aprivate reservationof all the six suites

Segiyane PaquiryManaging DirectorLa Villa Puducherry

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“India is no longer a pre-dictable market; it has

become very dynamic,” saysAlefiya Singh, Director of Mumbai-based Iris Reps. Representing multipleniche products in India, IrisReps is actively promoting twomajor international hotelbrands – Beachcomber Hotelsand Regal Hotels International.

Speaking about theIndian market, Singh adds,“Indian travellers are nowbecoming more aware of thedeals. They do loads ofresearch before settling downon a destination or property. Ofcourse, personal referrals stillgo a long way for Indians butonline tools such as TripAdvisorare fast becoming a reliablesource for reference checks.”

For these two hotels, Iris Reps offers special deals

through DMCs, online portals, GDS’ as well as special rates for airline andindustry partners.

Pioneer of the Mauritianhotel industry, BeachcomberHotels owns and manageseight hotels in Mauritius, an island-resort in theSeychelles and the Royal Palm Marrakech. These hotels represent the highest quality when it comesto luxury and variety.

“Despite having eighthotels in Mauritius alone, whatsets all of them apart are thethemes, concepts and theambience. Beachcomberunderstands that each marketis different from the other andperfectly caters to differentmarkets keeping in mind spe-cific preferences and foodhabits. With a good inventoryof rooms we can easily caterto weddings, MICE as well asFIT segments,” Singh says.

She says thatBeachcomber has madegood inroads into India andother international markets fortheir four-star property. “Nowwe are slowly and steadilycreating a market for their five-star properties as well. SinceSeychelles as a destination ispicking up, we are now focus-ing on this luxury island resortand look forward to welcom-ing more and more Indianclientele,” Singh says.

Representing multiple hotel brands in India, Iris Reps hasmanaged to create a market for niche products likeBeachcomber Hotels and Regal Hotels International.

‘Beachcomber’ targets MICE

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Alefiya SinghDirectorIris Reps

In a bid to enhance its brandpresence in India’s experien-

tial luxury holiday segment,The Residence Zanzibar byCenizaro has announced itsforay into the Indian market.Represented by Mumbai-based company OutboundKonnections, the luxury hotelbrand has already created aniche in India through two ofits other properties – TheResidence Mauritius and TheResidence Maldives.

Anjum Lokhandwala,Founder and CEO, OutboundKonnections, says that anurge to see its untouched nat-ural beauty will drive touristsfrom India to Zanzibar. “Thiscombined with the opening ofthe Zanzibar Tourism office inIndia, we are positive aboutthe year-on-year growth fromIndia to Zanzibar. It is amongthe most unique destinations

on the African continent thatis yet unexplored,” she adds.

Sharing her views onthe emerging travel trends sheforesees in India,Lokhandwala says, “India isone of the largest and thefastest-growing travel marketsin the world. The importanceof India as a source market formost foreign destinations can-not be undermined as thecountry with its emerging mid-

dle class and the upper-mid-dle class has massive poten-tial. The tourism trends aroundthe world are rapidly changingand with the sudden boom inyoung Indian entrepreneursmaking big money, we areoptimistic about the experien-tial and luxurious holidays,”she opines.

As far as special dealsor incentives for the travelagents and tour operators areconcerned, Lokhandwalareveals that so far, they havenot tied up with any Indiantravel agents or tour operatorsfor The Residence Zanzibar.“However, we are keen to liai-son with Indian agents. But weare selective in our approachto keep the product’s niche appeal in perspective.We want to reach out to the top Indian trade whoare established with a long-term business proposition,”she states.

Taking advantage of the rising India outbound numbers, TheResidence Zanzibar by Cenizaro is making its presence feltin India through Mumbai-based Outbound Konnections.

Zanzibar hotel woos Indians

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Anjum LokhandwalaFounder and CEOOutbound Konnections

QUICKBYTES

Freebies are an attraction and proposition to increase business in the highlycompetitive hotel industry. finds out from hoteliers about current markettrends and how hotels can benefit from providing giveaways.

Freebies help in growth

AN K I TA SAX E N A

Freebie is always an attractionfor customers today in a highlycomparable market space, topick and choose the hotel onvalue for money ground. In bargain, hotels gain out ofcustomer loyalty.

Vinay ChaturvediGeneral Manager,

UNA Hotels, Amritsar

Apart from customised VIPamenities placed in all the gue-strooms & suites, it is veryimportant to host events such asGM’s Cocktail/Bookers Party ona regular basis to enhance thecommunication between guestand hotel staff.

Micheal SinghGeneral Manager

Park Plaza, Zirakpur

I would call added incentives aspackaging. Gone are the dayswhen guests were happy to buyonly a ‘bed and breakfast’ propo-sition from hotels. Packagingamenities or facilities that aremost likely to be used by guestsis becoming very important.

Harikumar BalakrishnanGeneral Manager, Radisson Blu, Mysore

Freebies and value add-onshave become a part of thechanging customer profile andexpectations. The most impor-tant aspect is to have qualityproduct and service whether itsthe Internet, transportation andother add-ons.

Nalin MandirattaGeneral Manager, Crowne Plaza Today, Gurgaon

Keeping our guests’ preferencesin mind, we were the first hotelcompany to announce freeInternet for all IHG RewardsClub members, whether theyare dropping in for a cup of cof-fee or staying the night.

Shantha de SilvaHead of South West Asia, IHG

Freebies are a must for guestsand that is why we provide freeWi-Fi, drinks along with tradi-tional welcome. We also provideour guests with other amenitieslike mini bar, tea/coffee makeralong with a personalised expe-rience at our heritage hotel.

Raisal SinghOwner, Castle Khandela

The 5, 7 and 14 day dedi-cated programmes will

educate guests on the tradi-tional Hindu medicine sys-tems, uniting them with spe-cialised Yogic practice andnutrition.“Creating an overallwellness routine, the pro-grammes are specifically tai-lored by the Shanti Mauricedoctor to suit each individual,based on their dosha (bodytype), as well as their emo-

tional, physical and spiritualstate,” says MPS Puri, CEO,Nira Hotels and Resorts

Lead by ShantiMaurice’s expert Yogi, guestswill receive morning lectureson the Yoga Sutras and theway of their application todaily lives before participatingin a number of guided yogicpractices to support harmo-nious living. Puri adds,“Beachfront yoga, pranayamateachings and powerful med-

itation practices, such asmusic mantra meditation, notonly achieve results, but canbe easily maintained byapplying techniques learntinto daily routines once leav-ing the resort.” Guests will beintroduced to Ayurvedic cui-sine through a selection of nutrition workshops.“Combined with Yogic practicethe cuisine is designed to nat-urally detoxify, leaving thebody lighter, refreshed andrejuvenated” says Puri. Active

guests can also take advan-tage of the paddle boardyoga, Watsu, aqua aerobics,Pilates, jogging, fusion fitnessand yoga bike tour on offer atShanti Maurice.

Shanti Maurice is launching its first Ayurvedic Yoga Journeyretreat throughout November. The tailored programmes will be conducted at Shanti Maurice’s Nira Spa.

Shanti Maurice goes Yogic

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MPS PuriCEONira Hotels & Resorts


The tourism industry inIndia has been working

endlessly to reach the targetof attracting one per cent ofthe world’s tourists to India by2020. With the Ministry ofTourism launching new initia-tives and planning additionalones, the country is hoping toincrease the number of FTAsto India and consequentlyboost inbound tourism.

Highlighting India’s enor-mous tourism potential, hospi-tality magnate Vikram Oberoisays, “Tourism is one of thefew industries that enable peo-ple with little or no skill to beskilful very quickly and con-tribute to tourism related sec-tors.” He further adds, “Aunique aspect of the tourismand hospitality industry is thatfor every rupee that getsspent, tourism creates that

much more employmentopportunities than any otherservice.” He lauds the IndianGovernment for recognisingand acknowledging the industry as a key driver of employment and growth in the country.

Subsequently, Oberoiaddresses some challengesin the hospitality sector thatneed to be recognised andresolved. He brings up the

issue of the country requiringmore good quality hotels toaccommodate a higher num-ber of tourists. “Openinghotels in India is capital-inten-sive, time-consuming, and ittakes roughly four years for ahotel to be ready andlaunched,” he comments.“The key thing that would helpmy industry is if the infrastruc-ture status would allow preferred interest rates and a longer gestation period

for loans to be paid off,”Oberoi adds.

The second matter ofconcern in Oberoi’s opinion isthe number of approvals thatare required to open up ahotel. He mentions that it istime-consuming and in somecases, lacks transparency, soone discovers things along.Oberoi further brings up theissue of a well-debated topicin the country – taxes. “Taxes

are cumbersome,” he says.“Different states have differenttaxes which more than oftenconfuse tourists. A lot oftimes, tourists look at multipledestinations and have multi-ple choices. It is therefore cru-cial for our tax structure to becompetitive within a region.”By providing more jobprospects and workingtogether, Oberoi anticipatesthat the next five years willbring substantial developmentin the tourism industry.

As Indian tourism industry aims at multiplying inbound numbers, Vikram Oberoi, President,Hotel Association India, stresses on the need for reform and development for the country toset the bar high and be capable of accommodating double the number of tourists in a decade.

Competitive taxes within a region crucial

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Progress begins hereLonger gestation periodto pay off loans

More transparency inapprovals

Competitive tax structurewithin a region

A unique aspect of the tourism and hospitality industry is that for every rupee that gets spent, tourism creates that much more employment opportunities than any other service.

Vikram OberoiPresident, Hotel Association India

ITDC declares20% dividend

India Tourism DevelopmentCorporation (ITDC) closed theyear with an all-round increasein the performance as com-pared to the previous financialyears. The turnover of theCorporation has increased by7.37 per cent to `504 croreapproximately. The net profitbefore tax has increased by226 per cent to `38.95 croreas compared to `11.93 croreduring 2013-14. The profit aftertax has increased by 265 percent to `34.37 crore as com-pared to `9.42 crore during2013-14. The profit earned byITDC during 2014-15 has bro-ken the records of last 7 years after 2007-08. This was declared during thecorporation's 50th AnnualGeneral Meeting at theGroup’s flagship hotel, TheAshok, New Delhi.

The highlighting feature ofthe AGM was the declarationof a dividend of 20 per cent to `17.15 crore approximately.Out of ̀ 17.15 crore, an approx-imate amount of ̀ 14.93 crorewill go to the Government ofIndia. The meeting was chairedby Umang Narula, IAS,Chairman & Managing Directorof the Corporation.

Egypt will be celebratingnew opportunities at

WTM London and offeringtravel trade members thechance to go on a Fam trip to experience the wonders of the country for themselves.

The Egyptian TourismAuthority’s online trainingcourse helps tour operatorsand agents improve theirknowledge about the landof the Pharoahs. Individualswho complete the coursewill be entered into a prizedraw, and two winners willbe selected on a quarterlybasis to enjoy a seven-dayFam trip to Egypt, includingflights, accommodation and transfers.

A spokesman for theETA says, “The diversity ofEgypt’s tourism product isone of its kind, fromunmatched historical sites,beautiful beaches along theRed Sea Riviera and theMediterranean Coast, inaddition to state-of-the-artresorts providing top qualityservices in magnificentlocations. All this is reachedin less than five hours’ flyingtime from the UK.”

Egypt will also be atWTM London promotingthe completion of the newSuez Canal extension, amulti-billion project that willboost the country’s tradeand economy, which wasofficially opened in August.

Meanwhile, in theskies, EgyptAir Expresshas announced the launchof new domestic routesbetween Sharm El Sheikhand Hurghada, operatingthree weekly flights onSundays, Tuesdays andThursdays, as well asflights from Cairo to Marsa Matrouh with twoweekly flights on Sundaysand Thursdays.

EgyptAir Expressalready operates 77 weeklyflights from Cairo to Sharm El Sheikh and 62 weekly flights from Cairoto Hurghada.

Influential movers andshakers in the travel indus-try will be at World TravelMarket London 2015 – theleading global event for thetravel industry – to debatekey issues affecting thetrade. There will be two

‘World Travel Leaders’ ses-sions, along with a ceremo-ny to present the WorldTravel Leaders Awards toindividuals and organisa-tions that have contributedthe most to the global traveland tourism industry overthe lifetime of WTM. Thefirst WTM World TravelLeaders session is titled

‘Asia – Inbound andOutbound Travel – GrowingGlobally.’ Moderated byrespected global strategicadvisor Anita Mendiratta –Founder and Managing,Cachet Consulting – thepanel debate will discusscrucial issues driving this growth, now and in thefuture, and how to

take advantage of theexpansion.

The second WorldTravel Leaders debate isentitled ‘UK Inbound andDomestic Travel – BreakingRecords’ and will be moderated by DeirdreWells, Chief Executive,UKInbound.

The Egyptian Tourism Authority (ETA) will be offering the travel trade community a chance to goon a seven-day Fam trip to experience the wonders of Egypt. Those travel agents who completeETA’s online training course at WTM London will enter into a lucky draw for the trip.

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Win a Fam to Egypt @WTM London



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850 attend Switzerland Travel Mart Switzerland Travel Mart (STM 2015), which was held from Sep 21-23, 2015, in Zermatt, is the most important trade show for the Swiss tourism business. 360 Suppliers/Exhibitors and 480 Buyers from 50 countries, including 25 top travel agents from India, attended the mart. This is the first time the event was held in a mountain destination.


AWARD TALK

India Travel Awards is now celebrating its 6th edition in Goa on October 14, 2015, recognising the leaders of travel and tourism industry in the western region of the country. brings you the details of how Maya reaches the most deserving personalities.

It has a very unique method of selection,giving the option of self nomination to

whoever believes they are worthy of gettingan award. You just need to log on to indiatravelawards.in and select the nominationoption, complete it and submit it… as easy as 1,2,3!

After whetting the information we send a confirmation and a ‘cast your vote’

link which can be converted into a vote buttonon your website or add a link to your email signature. You can send out mailers,newsletters or advertise in the print media.People and well wishers from anywhere in theworld can cast a vote.

Leaders and game changers are recog-nised regionally with the beautiful Maya, cel-ebrating the grandeur of tourism. Her beauty

The Face of the Future award acknowledges work doneby the youth of the industry for bringing in new initiativesand thinking out of the box to take the industry forward.

The Trailblazer award is for those who have walked theroad of success and created a path for others to follow.

We have the legends of the industry, leaders that we look up to, who must be recognised for putting India on the global map of tourism. They go into our Gallery of Legends.

Game Changers are the need of the hour for India. We recognise those who have transformed the industry

to become what it is today and will become tomorrow.We felicitate them.

Going for the Gold

The only regionalawards in the country

that give theinspiration for even thesmallest player in theindustry to make that

extra effort.

India Travel Awards is recognised by

all the trade bodies and the Government

of India, Ministry of Tourism.

The only Black-tie Silver Service award

event in the country.

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reflects the best, with the power to changethe industry. This regional outreach gives an opportunity for people to be acknowl-edged even in the smallest of towns across the country, for the good work and dedication they put into the industry and giving them the motivation to go that extra mile.

India Travel Awards carries a lot ofweightage today as it is supported by all

the travel trade associations andthe Government of India, Ministryof Tourism. It is now hailed as oneof the most esteemed awards,widely acclaimed and accepted by the tourism industry of India and abroad.

The winners are supported inall the DDP publications with articlesthroughout the year.

Awards in Goa


4 2 TRAVTALK O C T O B E R 2 N D F O R T N I G H T I S S U E 2 0 1 5 NEWS

Tourists visiting Macau thisyear are in for a treat as a

host of events are lined up toshowcase the city’s rich cul-ture and heritage. WelcomeNovember with the 15th MacauCity Fringe Festival, whichcommences November 7-22

and emphasises on reflectingcreativity, development ofmodern art and uniqueaspects of the city, among theothers. The 15th Macau FoodFestival follows fromNovember 13-29 and takesplace opposite the Macau

Tower. Throngs of local guestsand tourists revel in the variety of mouth-watering Asian,European, Mainland Chineseand local delicacies and withother entertaining activitiessuch as games and beer com-petitions, the food festival isone of the most popular andawaited events in the city.

What’s more, racingenthusiasts can look forward toa thrilling experience at the 62nd

Macau Grand Prix, scheduledfrom November 19-22 which isalso the most internationallyknown Formula 3 event pro-duced in Macau.

December plays host toa number of fun activities aswell. The month begins withthe Macau InternationalMarathon on December 6where visitors can participatein full-course marathon, thehalf-marathon or the mini-marathon. Scheduled for thesame day is the Latin City

Symphony Parade, anannual parade held since2011. A cultural integrationof the city, the parade fea-tures different teams fromall over the world, alongwith local artists, residentsand tourists, who flock thehistorical streets singingand dancing along.

Macau is also a shop-per’s paradise, thanks to the4th Macau ShoppingFestival that goes on

throughout December. Itbegins in grand style with performances by well-knowncelebrities at the opening ceremony and the rest of thefestival treats shoppers to aretail experience they willnever forget.

Macau Tourism guarantees tourists an unforgettableexperience in the city with celebrations like the Food Festival,Macau Grand Prix, and the International Marathon.

Macau abuzz with festivities

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New Delhi-based IndianLegends Holidays has

stayed true to its name andhas been actively promotingIndia to international markets.According to RavinderKumar, Director, IndianLegends Holidays, the figuresfor inbound tourism as pergovernment records are veryencouraging. “This is reflect-ed in our company’s growthwhich on an average is 15-20per cent. Inbound business isgoing through a major transi-tion. e-Tourist Visas will defi-nitely change the image ofthe country as getting visa isone of the toughest parts ofthe journey to India. The initialreports from the US and other countries are showingencouraging results but we need to wait for the next12 months to see the effects,”he says.

Kumar adds that thetravel trade collectively mustsell India as a year-rounddestination rather than just for

five to seven months. Heexplains, “My sincere requestto the tour operators andhoteliers is to not do negativepublicity about India being ahot country. We have ways todo sightseeing even in May

and June. As a company, wehad handled 2,500 pax inMay and June on the GT sec-tor in 2011.”

Sharing his perspectiveon the changing trends ininbound tourism, he says thatthe focus is more on experien-tial tourism than just visiting

the sites and cities. “Clientsare asking for interactionrather than just follow the itin-erary. The Golden Triangle stillrules along with Khajurahoand Varanasi. But there hasbeen a huge surge in theBuddhist Circuit, Leh, MadhyaPradesh and the North East,”Kumar says.

In the past couple ofyears, Indian LegendsHolidays, has focussed onadventure products, withcamping in Himalayan, bicycletours and soft trekking. Itsbicycle tour from Manali toLeh has proved to be verypopular in the past two years,which indicates a growinginterest in adventure.

“Our endeavour is tocreate more products with the Buddhist Circuit but not limited to Bihar and UttarPradesh. We have a big range of these products.Nasik Kumbh is quite suc-cessful and we are working onUjjain Kumbh for 2016,”Kumar adds.

While the e-Tourist Visas are strengthening inboundnumbers, India needs to be promoted as a year-rounddestination to really reap its benefits.

Sell Indian summers as well

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Ravinder KumarDirectorIndian Legends Holidays


AVIATION

QWhat new develop-ments can we

expect from AirSeychelles this year?

As we enter the busy win-ter season, our focus is on thesignificant developments thatwe have introduced on ourMumbai route this year. Weincreased the number of weeklyfrequencies to four from three inApril and now place our ‘HM’flight code on Jet Airways’domestic flights betweenMumbai and nine points inIndia, including Delhi, Chennai,Kolkata, Hyderabad, Bengaluru,Jaipur, Ahmedabad, Cochinand Trivandrum.

One of the larger projectswe are working in is our migra-tion to the Sabre CSS platform,which is also used by EtihadAirways and Jet Airways. Thiswill modernise our IT systemsand enhance many processes,such as check-in and reserva-tion. The changeover is sched-uled for March 2016.

QHow are you reach-ing out to the travel

trade here? We have a sales team

based in Mumbai that worksclosely with travel agents, touroperators and corporateclients to promote Seychellesand the other unique destina-tions in our Indian Ocean net-work. We are able to work withtheir top managers to generateprogrammes and tours thatcan be sold throughout India.In addition, our partners EtihadAirways and Jet Airways provide further sales support

to us in India and we have aclose relationship with theSeychelles Tourism Board.

QWhat cities are show-ing good demand? Mumbai, as the first point

of entry into India, is showingvery strong passenger demand.However, since the expansionof our code-share agreementwith Jet Airways, we have start-ed to see a growing number ofbookings coming from NewDelhi, Ahmedabad, Hyderabadand other cities covered underthe agreement.

QElaborate on yournew initiatives.There are several initia-

tives that we have planned inIndia as we close off the year,including joint marketing activi-ties with the Seychelles TourismBoard, joint promotions with ourtrade partners, and familiarisa-tion trips for Indian media toSeychelles. We are alreadyengaged with SeychellesTourism Board on joint planningfor key activities in 2016.

Mumbai, as the first point of entry into India, is showingvery strong passenger demand for Air Seychelles. Butwith the expansion of its code-share with Jet Airways, itis seeing a surge in bookings from other cities as well.

HM flying strong in Mumbai

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Roy KinnearChief Executive Officer Air Seychelles

Hahn Air has added over 30new airlines to their net-

work of over 300 air and railpartners in 2015. Celebratingthe successful year,Kimberley Long-Urbanetz,Vice President Sales andAgency Distribution, Hahn Air,said, “2015 has been a verysuccessful year for us so far.We signed an agreement withour first shuttle partner, theDutch company Tinker andthey will be the first car shuttleprovider to sell their servicesin the air displays of all majorGDSs under the reservationcode 5W.”

Discussing the futureplans for working with Indiantravel agents, Urbanetz said thatHahn Air is constantly looking fornew tools to support the agentsand will continue to enhancetheir business and services.“The Indian market holds greatpotential. Indian travel agencieshave increased their businesswith Hahn Air to date by over 20per cent in 2015 compared to2014,” added Urbanetz.

Hahn Air offers additionalcontent of non-GDS airlinesand railway companies underthe reservation codes H1 and

5W. Elaborating upon theincentives offered by Hahn Airto Indian travel agents,Urbanetz said, “Travel agentscan issue tickets for many air-lines in one ticket; includingthose which are not in theirlocal BSP. If they cannot issuea ticket after completing abooking, they can simply issuethe services on a Hahn Air HR-169 document using the stan-dard ticketing process of theirGDS. The passengers alsohave a larger choice of desti-nations and the security of ourcomplimentary insolvency-insurance Securtix.”

Kimberley Long-Urbanetz, Vice President Sales andAgency Distribution, Hahn Air, tells about whatthe airline has in store for agents.

Multiple bookings in 1 ticket

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The Indian marketholds greatpotential. Indiantravel agencieshave increasedtheir business withHahn Air to date byover 20% in 2015compared to 2014

Kimberley Long-UrbanetzVice President Sales and AgencyDistribution, Hahn Air

Agent-friendlyNew tool lets travel agentsissue tickets for many airlines in one ticket;including those which arenot in their local BSP

The passengers also havea larger choice of destina-tions and the security ofour complimentary insol-vency-insurance Securtix



The 38th PATA Travel Mart was held in Bengaluru from September 6-8, 2015. The Mart this year witnessed two incrementalforums – the Technology Forum which was conducted in partnership with PhoCusWright and the Investment Forum whichwill encourage tourism investments in India.

Bengaluru on PATA map

Contd. on page 46


QHow have you beenraising the bar in air-

craft charters? We’ve earned our reputa-

tion by redefining luxury andconsistently placing a premiumon privacy, flexibility, safety, andreliability. It is the constant com-

mitment to the highest stan-dards, the never-ending pursuitsof better results. We have alwaysfocused on delivering the bestservices and go above andbeyond the standard offerings.

QHow has the privatejet service industry

developed in India in thelast 10 years?

Compared to the US,which has the largest number ofgeneral aviation planes, around2,55,000, operating from across5,110 airports, India has onlyaround 150 active airports andaround 700 such planes.However, India has nowemerged as a pivotal market forprivate jets with the rising eco-nomic growth, expanding busi-ness interests and an increasingnumber of billionaires. The gen-eral aviation industry, the unmis-takable enabler of industrialgrowth around the world, alsopaced alongside and clocked itshighest surge in the year 2006at 26 per cent. In 2012, thecountry became the second-largest business jet market inthe Asia-Pacific region with afleet of 165 (up from 26 in 2005),after China with its fleet of 220.The domestic general aviationmarket is now on the threshold

of catapulting itself into the glob-al arena. It is expected to growat 10 per cent per annum tocross $4.5 billion by 2017. It isestimated that around 120 business jets, 150 small aircraftand 180 helicopters will beadded by 2017.

QHow has businessbeen for you in

2015?

Due to the slowdown ofthe economy, both domesticand international air charterhas been majorly hit. Thedomestic travel reduced to 15per cent whereas internationaltravel is most affected withalmost 25 per cent dip in theflying. The corporates, whoare our major clients, have also highly cut down ontravel expenses.

QWhich are the most popular

routes for group charters?

Group charters are more popular in the Westernand Northern states fordomestic travel and in the international segment,Middle East and South East Asia have major popularity.

The domestic aviation industry is on the threshold of catapulting itself intothe global arena and is expected to grow at 10 per cent per annum by 2017,says Nisha Sharma, Managing Director, Aloft Aviation.

450 new charter aircrafts by 2017 O C T O B E R 2 N D F O R T N I G H T I S S U E 2 0 1 5 TRAVTALK 4 5AVIATION

India has nowemerged as apivotal market forprivate jets with therising economicgrowth, expandingbusiness interestsand an increasingnumber ofbillionaires

Nisha SharmaManaging DirectorAloft Aviation

Paperless railway ticket on an App

Railways Minister Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu has launched anUnreserved Ticket Service (UTS) mobile Application. He said,“Following the Prime Minister’s Digital India vision, wehave come up with the UTS that will greatly reducepressure on ticket windows and is more convenientfor passengers. Ticket Vending Machines will also beavailable that will be operated by currency, coin orcard,” he adds. Created by Centre for RailwayInformation Systems (CRIS), the UTSservice is available for Central(Mumbai), Western (Mumbai) andNorthern Railway (Delhi) where pas-sengers can book paperless plat-form and season tickets through theApp. Additionally, the minister alsounveiled the National Train EnquirySystem (NTES) for iOS where passen-gers can find out livetrain statuses.

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Technology for trade at PATA Contd. from page 44




O C T O B E R 2 N D F O R T N I G H T I S S U E 2 0 1 5 TRAVTALK 4 9HOTELS

21st Annual Meet: Sarovar Hotels

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Sarovar Hotels recentlyorganised its 21st Annual

Meet on September 11-12,2015, at the Optus Hometel,Bhiwadi. This annual eventwas attended by CorporateHeads, General Managers ofall 70+ Sarovar Hotels acrossthe country & East Africa, aswell as key Sales & Marketingassociates from across allregional offices in India.Themed as Together TowardsTomorrow the agenda of this two-day event was care-fully put together with a host of external speakers from varied fields.

The meet witnessed pres-ence of renowned speakerssuch as Ritiesh Aggarwal,Founder, OYO Rooms, JagbirSingh, Ex Olympian; RJFriedlander, Founder andCEO, ReviewPro, and PawanHora, Founder, WishboxStudio. The meet also had thepresence of Anil Madhok,Managing Director, SarovarHotels and Ajay Bakaya,Executive Director of the group.

The theme of the two dayevent was around the flavoursof Rajasthan and had special cultural shows by thelocal artists.

Delhi has mostsrooms per sq km

Delhi has the maximumnumber of branded hotel rooms per square kilometres in the country: 895.28 per 100 km square (8.95rooms per square km).



170,000 throng JATA ExpoThe Japan Travel and Tourism Association (JTTA), along with the Japan Association of Travel Agents (JATA), organisedthe second annual travel event — JATA Tourism EXPO Japan 2015 — from Sept 24-27 at Tokyo Big Sight. With173,602,thenumber of visitors broke last year’s record. As many as 1,161 organisations from 141 countries and regions participatedin the expo. Additionally, plans have been set to organise next year’s “JATA Tourism EXPO Japan 2016” from September 22-25, at Tokyo Big Sight.



NTO

Promoting its luxury productsas “affordable,” Thailand has

been moving from quantity toquality. Keeping this in mind, theTourism Authority of Thailand(TAT) – Mumbai recently took its‘Luxurious Pleasure Roadshow2015’ to Mumbai, Ludhiana andNew Delhi. It is now looking toadd Chennai to the list of cities.Soraya Homchuen, Director,TAT – Mumbai, said, “We have considered taking ourroadshow to Chennai. It is acash-rich city and we are keento tap its potential.”

Thailand’s luxury road-show brought with it destina-tions hitherto unseen by Indiantravellers. This included three ofits regional offices that show-cased new areas to the travelagents – TAT Koh Samui, TAT Chiang Rai and TAT Trat.The destination is also promot-ing its satellite cities as ‘12Hidden Gems’.

Leading the roadshowwas Kittipong Prapattong,

Director, TAT (ASEAN, SouthAsia and South Pacific MarketDivision), who revealed thatthe tourism board has createda new logo. He said, “We havehad the previous logo since2007 and it was time to delivera fresh look. Our new logo will

be launched at WTM Londonthis November.”

Explaining the logo,Homchuen added, “The newlogo depicts a smile – reminis-cent of happy memories frompast visits to Thailand, world-renowned Thai hospitality andthe warm, welcoming smiles ofthe Thai people. The tagline will

be Amazing Thailand: Discover Amazing Stories. Itsunderlying theme will bewomen and families. We are seeing an increase inawareness about womanpower and we want to build onthat foundation.”

Talking about TATMumbai’s future activities, shesaid, “After this roadshow wewill do joint promotions withtravel agents. After touching906,428 Indian arrivals in2014, we hope to touch 1.05million travellers by the end ofthis year – an increase of 12per cent. Luckily, we havealready recorded seven lakh

arrivals from India in the firsteight months alone this year.”

Of this, Prapattong stat-ed, around seven to 10 percent are luxury travellers.“Quality tourists are also a sub-set of luxury tourists. The aver-

age spend of an Indian touristsis about Baht 5,492 per day butthey still figure in the top fivemarkets. Their average stay inThailand is about seven daysas against 12 days for interna-tional travellers. Tourism diddecline after the recent terrorattack, but there have not beenmany cancellations from India,”he stated.

After meeting travel agents in Ahmedabad, Bengaluru and Mumbai, theTourism Authority of Thailand – Mumbai is looking to add cash-rich Chennaito its luxury roadshow.

TAT roadshow in Chennai soon

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For more information, contact us at: [email protected]

OCTOBER 2015NATIONAL

16-18 Lucknow India Travel Mart 16-18 Bhopal Madhya Pradesh Travel Mart26 Delhi Scandinavian Tourism Board

Media Brief26 Mumbai Spain Tourism Office

Leisure Workshop 27 Delhi Scandinavian Tourism Board Travel

Trade Seminar 27 Mumbai Spain Tourism Office MICE Workshop28 Delhi Spain Tourism Office

Leisure Workshop28 Mumbai Scandinavian Tourism Board Travel

Trade Seminar29 Delhi Spain Tourism Office MICE Workshop29 Chennai Scandinavian Tourism Board Travel

Trade Seminar30- Nov 1 Noida India Travel Mart

NOVEMBER 2015INTERNATIONAL

2-5 London World Travel Mart

8 - 9 Brussels, Belgium UFTAA AGA + Forum

17-19 Spain, Barcelona IBTM, World

NATIONAL

6-8 Visakhapatnam Holiday Expo

19 Chandigarh India Hospitality Awards North andEast

20-22 Guwahati Travel & Tourism Fair

22-24 Amritsar CII Tourism Fest

22-24 Chandigarh CII Tourism Fest

23 Delhi German National Tourist Office B2B Roadshow

24 Bengaluru German National Tourist Office B2B Roadshow

25 Ahmedabad German National Tourist Office B2B Roadshow

25 Mumbai Monaco Government Tourist & Convention Bureau B2B Roadshow

26 Mumbai German National Tourist Office Networking Event

27 Mumbai German National Tourist Office B2B Roadshow

27 Delhi Monaco Government Tourist & Convention Bureau B2B Roadshow

27-29 Pune India International Travel Mart

27-29 Ahmedabad India TravelMart

27-29 Kolkata Travel East

DECEMBER 2015NATIONAL

1-3 Bhuj Rann Utsav

3 Delhi European Quartet B2B Workshop

4 Bengaluru European Quartet B2B Workshop

4-6 Hyderabad India International Travel Mart

5-7 Jaipur India Travel Mart

5-13 Kolkata East Himalayan Expo

5 Mumbai European Quartet B2B Workshop

11-13 Madurai India International Travel Exhibition

18-20 Siliguri Tourism Fair23-27 Haridwar CII Uttarakhand Fair


O C T O B E R 2 N D F O R T N I G H T I S S U E 2 0 1 5 TRAVTALK 5 3CLIPBOARD


5 4 TRAVTALK O C T O B E R 2 N D F O R T N I G H T I S S U E 2 0 1 5 MOVEMENTSInterContinental Hotels Group ChennaiInterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) has announced the appointmentof Arindam Kunar as Area General Manager, South India. This

includes the company's two hotels in Kochi:Crowne Plaza Kochi and Holiday Inn Kochi;

Crowne Plaza Bengaluru Electronics City,and Holiday Inn & Suites BengaluruWhitefield. The company's two hotels due to open in Chennai over the next year, InterContinental Resort Chennai

Mahabalipuram and Holiday Inn ChennaiTidel Park, will also fall under his remit.

He will continue to be based atCrowne Plaza Chennai AdyarPark where he was previ-ously General Manager.

Hilton ChennaiChennaiHilton Chennai has appointed Amit Kumar as its General Manager.With over 17 years of experience in the hospitality industry in India,Kumar has previously worked with Taj Hotels Resorts & Palaces,The Leela Palaces, Hotels & Resorts and Starwood Hotels & Resorts.

Before joining Hilton Worldwide, as theExecutive Assistant Manager, Food &Beverage Services at The Lalit,Mumbai, Kumar led the Menu Planning, Forecasting, Budgeting,Resource Planning, Quality and CostControl processes.

Radisson Blu Hotel DwarkaNew DelhiMohammad Shoeb has been appointed as General Manager for

Radisson Blu Hotel New Delhi Dwarka. He holds aPost Graduate Diploma in Tourism & Hotel

Management and has been associatedwith the hospitality industry for more than25 years. Shoeb was earlier working withAccor Hotels and was involved in the suc-cessful opening and operating of NovotelVisakhapatnam & Novotel Chennai. In thelast 10 years, Shoeb has been instrumen-

tal in opening of four hotels in southern partof India. In the past he has also worked

in ITC Welcomgroup andInterContinental Hotels Group.

JW Marriott Mumbai SaharMumbaiJW Marriott Mumbai Sahar has appointed Saeid Heidari as theGeneral Manager. He brings with him 25 years of hospitality expe-rience with Marriott hotels across Middle Eastand Europe followed by his move to Indiaas the General Manager for RenaissanceMumbai Convention Centre Hotel andLakeside Chalet Marriott ExecutiveApartments, Mumbai. Under Heidari'sleadership, Renaissance MumbaiConvention Centre Hotel was awarded‘The Best Convention Hotel 2012’ byTravel Agents Association of India.Heidari holds a graduate degreein Chemical Engineeringand Law.

DoubleTree by Hilton Gurgaon New Delhi DoubleTree by Hilton Gurgaon - New Delhi NCR has appointed Samir Kant Avasthi as General Manager. Avasthi has over 12 yearsof experience. He joined Hilton Worldwide in June 2014as Director of Sales – ISO and successfully ledthe company’s effort to gain greater shareof business from the Indian market forHilton Worldwide’s international portfolioof hotels and resorts. Before joiningHilton Worldwide, Avasthi was with TheExplorers, a destination managementcompany. He has also worked withbrands like Marriott Hotels, The Grand,New Delhi, InterContinental Hotels Group,and TajSATS Air Catering.

Cygnett Hotels and ResortsGurgaonDeepak Jad has been appointed as Chief Planning Officer– Projects& Technical Services at Cygnett Hotels and Resorts. With 20 plusyears of experience in India and South Asia, Jad was instrumental

in setting up the Design and Technical serv-ices department at Accor hotels in India

and has provided technical assistancefor over 40 hotel projects ranging midlevel to luxury projects including theconstruction of top hotels such as TheOberoi Udaivilas Udaipur. He is a quali-

fied civil engineer from BITS, Pilani anda post graduate Diploma in constructionmanagement from NICMAR, Pune.

Clarks Inn GurgaonSameer Malhotra has been appointed as General Manager at TheClarks Inn Gurgaon. He was previously the General Manager for TheAcura BMK Hotel in Gurgaon till June. Malhotrahas held the position of Associate DirectorSales and Marketing in Ramada GurgaonCentral and Head Business Developmentin Seasons Hotel Gurgaon. He holds aBachelor's degree in English from DelhiUniversity and Master of BusinessAdministration in Marketing fromEastern Institute for Integrated Learningin Management.

Crowne Plaza JaipurJaipurRishabh Jain joins Crowne Plaza Jaipur as Associate Director ofSales in the soon to be commissioned hotel, wherein he will beresponsible for business development, sales operations and ensuring

the hotel is set up for success. Jain comes toCrowne Plaza from Jaipur Marriott Hotel,

where he was working as AssociateDirector of Sales. Prior to this, he wasassociated with Taj, Starwood and ThePark. He is a post graduate in businessmanagement from ITM BusinessSchool Mumbai.

Ishvinder Maddh, Founder and Managing Director,ROBINVILLE Intech, says he is still in love with his birthplaceAustria. “When I moved from Vienna to Delhi back in 2007, Iwas motivated by two causes. Firstly, I wanted to rediscovermy Indian roots – my family had left India decades prior to

my birth. Secondly I wanted to unitethe best of both worlds – the

European one as well as theIndian one – into a melting potof history, art, culture andlifestyle. Being able to show thebeauty of my home country

Austria and its neighboursGermany, Switzerland, the Czech

Republic and Hungary tothousands of individuals per year

makes my dream come true.”

Nick Crouch, Regional Director, UK Visas & Immigration forSouth and Southeast Asia, says he has travelled far and wideboth for work and personal reasons. “I travel a lot for work sotry to make sure I see some of the real India, and not just theoffice, hotel and airport! In India, of the places I’ve so far visited,

it’s hard to beat Kerala for sheerbeauty, but closer to my current

home, I love the buzz of OldDelhi – the food, the people, thenoise.” Crouch says he has somuch more to explore duringhis time here.

Ranjeesh P. K., General Manager, Davanam SarovarPortico Suites Bangalore, has a unique hobby of collectingmotor bikes and enjoys riding every Sunday. Ranjeesh,who has worked with several hotels in India and abroad in

his 20 years as a professional, hascollected 1600cc Harley

Davidson, 500cc RoyalEnfield and another 350ccRoyal Enfield. He is ahistory buff and also listensto rock music to relax. Hisfavourite place to visit in

India is Kerala andabroad isSwitzerland.

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: Kanchan Nath & Anil Mathur

Marriott International Inc.MumbaiMarriott International has appointed Neeraj Govil as Market Vice

President for South Asia. Prior to this, Govil was GeneralManager at the Shanghai Marriott Hotel City

Centre, China. With over 14 years in the hos-pitality sector, Govil brings a wealth of inter-national experience and expertise to thetable spanning across several disciplinesincluding Operations, Marketing strategyand Business development. An alumni ofIHMCT & AN, Goa; Govil graduated in Hotel

Management and Catering Technology in1997. Prior to this post he was General

Manager at the Beijing Marriott HotelNortheast and then at the Shanghai

Marriott Hotel City Centre.



Postal Reg. No.: DL(ND)-11/6044/2015-16-17; WPP No.: U(C)-178/2015-17 for posting on 1st-2nd and 16th-17th

of the same month at New Delhi PSO, New Delhi - 110001, RNI No.: 53492/1991Date of Publication:15-10-2015

QHow many visit visas havebeen processed this year?For visit visas which covers the

tourist visas and business visits we haveissued 350,000 visas during July 2014-June2015, which represents a 15 per centincrease as compared to previous year.The percentage increase is a proof thatIndia is a top priority tourism market forthe UK. There are three big processingcentres – Delhi, Chennai and two inMumbai. We have also launched morevisa application centres this year, onebeing in Gurgaon and the other in Jaipur.We have increased the frequency of tem-porary enrollment in Goa and are expand-ing, making it easier for people to apply.

QHow has the visa processbeen simplified?We have launched a video as a global

initiative which will help travel agents under-stand the visa process better. It explainsthe visa application process and breaks themyth that it is difficult and complicated. It isa simple 5 step process. To apply for visa,one has to go online, fill the applicationform, gather all relevant documents and visit the visa centre for a biometric pro-cessing. A visa fee of £84 or ` 8,400(exchange rate subject to fluctuation) hasto be paid for the processing and the documents can be collected or returned tothe applicant via courier.

QPlease explain the BIVSScheme?This scheme, only applicable for

Indians and Chinese nationals, allows trav-ellers to visit UK and Ireland on one visitvisa. This is a new product that we launchedand have received positive response fromagents, VisitBritain and the Irish TourismBoard. The British Irish Visa Scheme allowsthe holder of such a visa issued by thecountry of first arrival thereafter to travelfreely between Ireland and the UK, includ-ing Northern Ireland, for the duration of thatvisa. Also if they are returning to Ireland fol-lowing a visit to the UK, they will not requirea re-entry visa and vice versa.

QWhat is the passport pass-back scheme?The passport passback scheme

allows the applicant to retain the passportafter payment of a convenience fee while

the visa processing takes place. This isvery helpful for those who have applied fortwo visas or travel a lot for work and needtheir passports while the UK Visa is beingprocessed. After completion of biometricprocess the traveller can take the passportwith them. Once a decision has beenmade to sanction UK visa at one of theprocessing hubs, they can bring the pass-port to get the visa stamped. The conven-ience fee to be paid for the service is £40or `4000.

QAre there any services avail-able to further expedite the

processing of visa applications?The super priority visa scheme is

now a global product, being offered inmost countries but India was the first loca-tion where the UK launched it. Across the

world, where we have our processing cen-tres, the applicant can apply for a visa andget it processed in 24 hours after payingan additional fee of £600 or ̀ 60,000 apartfrom the regular visa fee of `8,400.However, it is only in India where we offerthe travellers to apply in the morning andget their visa processed the same afternoon. In India, this facility is offeredat Delhi, Chennai and Mumbai.

QWhat are the provisions fortravellers during transit from

the UK?If you are going onwards or from

Australia, New Zealand, Canada, or USA,have a valid visa of the respective countriesand possess a ticket as proof, then you can

spend 24 hours in the UK or the night of thenext day without a UK visa. If you are trav-elling by air, you can travel without a transitUK visa to anywhere in the world if you havea valid visa for USA, Canada, Australia orNew Zealand, or an e-residence permitand/or Irish biometric visa. Someone withan Irish BIVS visit visa can transit the UKvisa free either airside or landside so longas they have an onward flight that leaves on the day they arrive or before midnight onthe day after.

QHow do you work with travelagents to increase business? This year we actively attended major-

ity of the VisitBritain roadshows and con-ducted webinar series for agent training.During the roadshows we made sure thatthe visa section was up to date and helpful

to agents. We also conducted agent meetsin Mumbai, Delhi and Chennai.

QWhat are your marketingstrategies to reach out to the

agents with the new products?Now that the season is finishing, we

are consolidating the ideas we have comeup with during agent meets and roadshows.We are also conducting surveys with toptravel agents as we believe they reallyunderstand the visa system. We are waitingfor their suggestions, to see how aware theyare of the product and their feedback onwhat they find easy and difficult in the UKvisa process. The new video will be helpfulto agents to further understand the visaapplication process.

The Indian tourism market is of top priority for the UK government, says Nick Crouch, Regional Director for UK Visas & Immigration, South & SoutheastAsia. Crouch tells how the UK visa process has been simplified andhow the launch of a new video can help agents understand the process better.

Now, UK and Ireland on one visa

KANCHAN NATH & ANKITA SAXENA

We have launched a video as aglobal initiative which will help thetravel agents understand the visaprocess better. It explains the visaapplication process and breaksthe myth that it is difficult andcomplicated.

Nick CrouchRegional Director for UK Visas &

Immigration South & Southeast Asia


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