ttj_march_2011

Volume 1 Issue V March 2011 Pages 56 Rs 50

3

Volume 1 Issue V March 2011 Pages 56 Rs 50

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A cursory look on how the inbound tourism performed in 2010 v WelcomHeritage properties are the proud host of many celebrity and Bollywood weddings v Gujarat Tourism, post the travel mart, have more initiatives in store

v Finnair, despite a bad 2010, is all geared to do well

Travel Trade Journal

EDITOR’S note

Sad, but optimistic

Just like the Holi, Diwali and Dusshehra of Indian festival cal-endar, the WTM, ITB and ATM are

the three main travel events, which are a must attend for the tourism indus-try. While people may crib about how these events today have boiled down to being mere networking forums, the fact remains, for those who are part of the tourism fraternity, these shows are a must-attend. And if you do actually get to strike a deal, make new con-tacts, which have the potential of turn-ing into fruitful business propositions, consider it as an added bonus! So here’s wishing that the ITB 2011 gives you the push, the visibility and the fo-rum that will take your tourism vertical to new heights.

While the ITB frenzy has kept most of us on our toes the last few days, the recently announced budget has been a dampener for the tourism industry. What came out made us feel that the tourism related issues are somewhere lying low in the government’s priority list. It is actually ironical when on one hand we have our ministers promising on how air travel will soon become the right and not a privilege of a common man and on the other hand, there is no stopping them from levying high taxes on the same. An additional Rs 50 ser-vice tax on domestic air travel and Rs 250 on international air travel is not something that has left the common man excited; leave the travel agents aside, whose plight is even worse giv-en the high domestic fares.

As if this was not enough, the al-ready “over-priced” or atleast accused to be hugely over-priced Indian high-end hospitality industry will too face the wrath of the budget. Finance Min-ister Pranab Mukherjee has imposed a 10 per cent service tax on hotels charging more than Rs 1,000 per day. Graciously giving an abatement of 50 per cent, the tourists will now have to pay 5 per cent more tariff for their stay. What followed was a 10 per cent service tax on AC restaurants serving liquors, which after an abatement of 7 per cent, will make your eating out ex-pensive by 3 per cent more.

The tourism industry is angry… upset... as the MOT watches on, as a toothless tiger. When will this tiger fight for its cubs, only time will tell...

Priyanka [email protected]

Travel Trade Journal (TTJ) Volume 1 Issue VEditor & Publisher: Ravi Sharma

Managing Editor: Priyanka Saxena

Team SampanSenior Correspondent : Kartar Hemrajani

Associate Director : Pranav Khullar (Mob: 09560264442) Manager PR : Ankit Dixit (Mob: 09560264447)

Regional Manager (South) : Karthik K V (Mob: 09880209405) Regional Manager (West) : Abhay Jamwal (Mob: 09004922747) Manager Administration : Babita Sharma (Mob: 09560264441)

Branch Manager (Chandigarh) : Ashutosh Sharma (Mob: 09815842872) Representative (Jaipur) : Kapil Gupta (Mob: 09672148787)

Manager Subscription/Circulation : Yatin Gupta (Mob: 09911442932) Design & Print Production : Jitendra Rawat (Mob: 09899602256)

Email: [email protected], [email protected]

contents

It’s once again time for one of the world’s best and biggest trade exhibitions and here’s hoping that this one turns out to be a fruitful one for us all. While we have taken out a special ITB Supplement, wherein we have tried to give a different editorial treatment to

all the states and hotels by talking about their USPs and not a mélange of product they of-fer, we have not compromised on the quality of our regular issue. We have for you a series of interviews from state tourism departments to senior airline officials to the veterans behind trade associations. We hope you will like it and as always, your suggestions / inputs are welcome, as we firmly believe that it’s only your inputs which will help us perform better.

Ravi [email protected]

Publisher’s note

In all the noise about international destinations opening tourist offices in India and how Indians are back to travelling abroad, we often give the inbound scenario a miss. TTJ spoke to the vet-erans in the inbound tourism and realised that all is not as hunky dory as it seems...... Pg 10

Many believe there is an oversupply of heritage properties in Rajasthan, but the fact remains that the rich culture and vibrant heritage that the desert state offers, not to mention the lure of living like a royalty, is an unbeatable combo and a major tourist attraction in India. .. Pg 24

Having recently played the proud host to its first ever travel mart, Gujarat Tourism is all geared to register record figures in the present year. A celebrity campaign and a plethora of initiatives, looks like there is no stopping Gujarat Tourism now!.... ................................................. Pg 32

Tapping upon the fast growing Indian outbound tourism pie, many international destinations are opening their tourism offices in India and selling their destination to us. Spain, Taiwan, Korea, Austria and Germany are all eager to get more tourists from India.......... ..................... Pg 42

Editorial and Marketing OfficeSampan Media Pvt. Ltd., 124, 3rd floor, Shahpur Jat, Opp. Siri Fort Auditorium, New Delhi – 110049, Ph: 9560264443, [email protected]

All information in Travel Trade Journal (TTJ) is derived from sources we consider reliable. It is passed on to our readers without any responsibility on our part. Opinions / views expressed by third parties in abstract or in interviews are not necessarily shared by us. Material appearing in the magazine cannot be repro-duced in whole or in part(s) without prior permission. The publisher assumes no responsibility for material lost or damaged in transit. The publisher reserves the right to refuse, withdraw or otherwise deal with all advertisements without explanation. All advertisements must comply with the Indian Advertisements Code. The publisher will not be liable for any loss caused by any delay in publication, error or failure of advertisement to appear.

Owned and published by: Ravi Sharma, Editor & Publisher, 18/3, Railway Colony, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi 110023 and printed on his behalf at Rakesh Press, A-7, Naraina Industrial Area, Phase II, New Delhi 110028

March 2011 6


lIGHTeR SIDe

side

Tickle yourfunnySome hilarious real life examples of our very own Hinglis. Below are some “notices” put up by the hotel which are sure to leave you in splits!

In A DelHI HoTel eleVAToR

The lift is being fixed for the next day. During that time we regret that you will

be unbearable.

HolIDAY uPDATeThe following embas-sies will be closed on the

mentioned dates.

March 15 (Tuesday)

ITALY (Republic Day)

March 17 (Thursday)

IRELAND (St Patrick’s Day)

March 21 (Monday)

AUSTRALIA (Holi Com-

pensation), BELGIUM (Holi

Compensation) NAMIBIA

(National Day)

March 23 (Wednesday)

PAKISTAN (National Day)

March 25 (Friday)

GREECE

(Independence Day)

March 31 (Thursday)

MALTA (Freedom Day)

Courtesy: JETSAVE

In A HYDeRABAD HoTel loBBYPlease leave your values at the front desk.

In A AHMeDABAD HoTel neAR GuJARAT ColleGe You are invited to take advantage of the chambermaid.

eDwARDS lAunDRY on RelIef RoAD, AHMeDABAD

Drop your trousers here for best results.

In A RAMnAGAR HoTelBecause of the impropriety of entertaining guests of the opposite sex in the bedroom, it is rekvested that the lobby be used for this purpose.

In An AnAnD lAunDRYladies, leave your clothes here and spend the afternoon having a good time.

In A HeRITAGe HoTel AT JAISAlMeR Take one of our horse-driven city tours - we guarantee no miscarriages.

In A 5-STAR HoTel CoCKTAIl lounGe In MuMBAIladies are requested not to have children in the bar.

In A SITAPuR HoTelThe manager has personally passed all the water served here.


March 2011 lIGHTeR SIDe 7

A new business landmark in NCR

Chic, Cosy, Contemporary!

VITS

SeVIlla

VITS, a new chain of luxury business hotels, after opening properties in Mumbai, Pune, Aurangabad,

Nagpur, Nashik and Bhubaneshwar, has recently opened its new property on the outskirts of Delhi, in Kaushambi, which is fast becoming a hub for Delhiites. With over 150 rooms and a plethora of busi-ness options which are just perfect to suit a business traveller’s need, the hotel has become the choice of many. VITS has 4 banquet halls with the capacity to host 4000 people, which is the largest in the region. The VITS, as it is called, is a new landmark in the business hotels in the NCR. The USP of the property is its all-day dining restaurant, which has fast become

a major attraction in the region. Serving a vast multitude of cuisines, the restaurant offers the best of Chinese, Indian and Ital-ian. So the next time when you are looking for a business venue in the NCR, let VITS be your host.

Inspired by the sunny landscapes, fun loving folks and exquisite cui-sine, Sevilla – the Mediterranean

restaurant at The Claridges, New Delhi promises an outstanding dining expe-rience. Tucked away in surroundings similar to the famous Spanish town of Sevilla, the restaurant features authen-tic and innovative gastronomic adven-tures from Italy and Spain.

Besides the amazing ambience,

the food at Sevilla leaves you asking for more. It offers cuisine from south-ern coastal Europe, thus carrying a rich culinary heritage from the volcanic soil of Italy (Mt. Vesuvius and Mt. Etna) and Spain (Canarian Islands). I would say its USP is its interactive Tapas Bar where the chef dishes out a variety of tapas a-la-minute. The wood fired pizza offers freshly baked breads and pizza with toppings of one choice. Signature

dishes of the restaurant include vege-tarian and non-vegetarian tapas, wood fired pizza, paella and tartufo and chur-ros in dessert. The restaurant also of-fers a choice of two degustation menu.

Amongst the beverages a must try is the house special sangria selection, available by the glass or pitcher. Sevilla has an extensive selection of Spanish wine besides other spirits.

Review by Sharmila Chand

T I T L I S E N G E L B E R G L U C E R N E S W I T Z E R L A N D

TitlisThe highest glacier excur-sion in Central Switzerland (10’000 feet)

Titlis RotairThe world’s first revolving cable-car that takes you into a unique glacier world!

Ice Flyer Chair LiftFloat safely over the glacier crevasses.

Titlis Glacier ParkEnjoy the thrills of a micro scooter, balancer, boogie board or classic snow tube.

Unique PanoramaBreathtaking view from the sun terrace or the wind-protected Toporama.

Titlis RotairCH-6391 EngelbergPhone +41 41 639 50 [email protected], www.titlis.ch

Snow and Fun all year round

ETTT IN Sommer 250x70 (INDIA) 110210.indd 1 10.02.11 15:38

March 2011 8


CloSe uP

His name is synonymous with achievement. Having scaled the ladder of success with some vigorous hard work, dynamic approach and unmatched passion for life, Arjun Sharma, Managing Director, Le Passage to India (LPTI), is an epitome of humility and a major source of inspiration for many in the tourism industry. For a change, not talking about work, TTJ chats up with him on his views on the lighter things in life.

Your message to the younger generation?There is some-thing new to learn each day and there will always be a better way. Be open to ideas as they will help you grow and many a times be-come the reason for your success.

Up and personal withvPriyanka saxenaArjun Sharma

How do you view life?It’s all about passion! Taking things you be-lieve in to their logical end, not just leaving them as mere ideas but implementing the thought into actions.

1what, according to you, in the biggest challenge facing the travel industry to-day?The industry is fragmented; we all need to agree on a common way forward to make a sizeable difference. The seed of CITTI (Con-federation of Indian Travel & Tourism Indus-try) has been planted; it is a dream to see this become a reality.

2Your proud moment in life – professionally and per-sonally?The setting up of the Le Passage Travel Foundation ‘Shaping Lives’ that works for less fortunate children.

8Any funny anecdote from your personal and profes-sional life, that still tickles you?When my CFO told me “Cash is a reality and profit is a policy.”

910

where do you see le Passage to India 10 years down the line?On the inbound side, we have grown significantly and have been able to create and sustain logical business verticals. We would like to take this to domestic and outbound business growing it to a national player.3

when not working, you are?Spending time with my two year old daughter!4what’s your favourite travel holiday destination?Goa5

Your travelling essential include?A multiplug, because I never remember which country uses what!7

The latest gizmo that has caught your fan-cy?My IPAD6

March 2011 10


TRADe lIne

Inbound tourism still sailing over rough watersWe put on vibrant smiles and brave faces saying that tourism is flourishing and all is rosy, but in reality, all is not as gung ho as it seems. Only a handful of markets can say that the recessionary effect is over, while many others are still grappling with groping figures. The problems are many – bad infrastructure, poor image and a long list of heavy taxes. TTJ spoke to some opinion leaders of inbound tourism to get an insight into what exactly is going wrong.

The worst, unfortunately, is not over. “The reces-sion is far from over. In

Europe, it is only Germany, Norway and Sweden that have started showing posi-tive growth and may be Hol-land. All other major source markets are deep in reces-sion like UK, Italy, Spain, (France) etc,” said Sunirmol Ghosh, IndoAsia Tours.

Seconding the opinion of Thakur, Rohit Kohli, Cre-ative Travels said, “I would not say the phase is over but there has certainly been an improvement in the busi-ness all over. Unfortunately many source markets for In-dia have not fully recovered from the recession. There has been an increase in numbers from newer emerg-ing markets but the pur-chasing power is weaker as compared to traditional mar-kets. While the numbers are stable, actual spend is down by almost 15 percent as compared to pre recession levels. This affects bottom lines of tourism organisa-tions across the spectrum.”

In the last couple of years, travel has become the last priority in many peo-ple’s list as taking a holiday was considered a “luxury”. While that has changed and people are back to taking holidays, it is not the same as it was, pre recession era. “The worst seems to be be-hind us. The year 2011 will be better than 2010. Busi-ness is expected to grow. There is a lot more confi-dence about business atmo-sphere. As the recovery pick up, holiday spending will be up in western world and no doubt, India will also get its own share. All the trends are pointing towards a positive growth,” said Vijay Thakur, President, IATO.

While Ghosh says that the numbers in 2010 were

better than the year before, Kohli supports the fact with some facts and figures. “2009-2010 was not a great year for almost everyone and that is not a secret. Not only did the global economy affected our business, India was also very badly hit with the after affects of the Mum-bai attacks, which almost put a brake on inbound tourism for a few key months in the middle of the high season. However, the year 2010 was a relatively better year as the whole world clambered out of the recession. But 2011, in comparison, is looking much healthier and we hope for the best,” he said.

Taking the discussion to a positive level, Thakur feels that the inbound tour-ism continued to show posi-tive trend in 2010 which was visible since mid 2009. “This

was reflected through in-creased international tour-ist arrivals in 2010, which reached the 5.10 million fig-ure with 9.9 percent growth over 2009. This is very im-pressive growth inspite the various negative factors that occurred during this period,” he averred.

To address any problem on a national level, it is very important to first identify the reason behind it. So while we may all crib that India is not fully exploiting its tourism potential, it is imperative for us to understand the reason behind it. “The challenges facing the Indian tourism industry are multifaceted and on top of it is the taxa-tion issue. The high taxation on tourism sector has made the cost of travel to India prohibitive. The urgent need is to put pressure on deci-

sion makers for a uniform taxation system for tourism services cross all states and rationalisation of taxes for hotels and transport sector,” says Thakur, adding, “India is still grossly under roomed. No doubt, new hotels, which have come up/ are coming up in Delhi/NCR and which are at various stages of completion, will fill that void at entry point. But we need budget segment say 1 to 3 star category hotels. We need to meet this require-ment for budget tourists and domestic tourists also.”

Supporting Thakur’s views on infrastructure front, Kohli says, “India’s biggest challenges have been the same for many years. We have problems of infrastruc-ture, specially roads that influence the whole tourist experience. We have to deal

with issues of capricious taxation. Our industry con-tinues to face “competition” from unlicensed and unrec-ognised tour operators who sell India to trusting tourists and in turn spoils the image of the country when prom-ises are not delivered,” add-ing, “Another big challenge we face as an industry is that of perception. India is still perceived to be a poor and unsafe country; we are never a first choice for most tourists around the world.” And lastly, Ghosh too agrees that India’s biggest chal-lenge is in “image”, which is still a mix of good and bad in many people’s mind. “The filth and dirt lying all over our country spoils the visitor’s experience. Our poor civic sense and corruption all around adds to a very poor image of our great nation.”

vPriyanka saxena

“The recession is far from over. In Europe, it is only Germany, Norway and Sweden that have started showing positive growth and may be Holland. All other major markets are deep in recession.”Sunirmol GhoSh

“There has been an in-crease in numbers from newer emerging mar-kets but the purchas-ing power is weaker as compared to traditional markets. While the numbers are stable, ac-tual spend is down by almost 15 percent.”

rohit Kohli

“The high taxation on tourism sector has made the cost of trav-el to India prohibi-tive. The urgent need is to put pressure on decision makers for a uniform taxation system for tourism services.”

Vijay thaKur

March 2011 12


AIRPoRTSMarch 2011 flYInG HIGH12


A recap on the domestic carriers’ performance in 2010In the year 2010, domestic industry traffic continued to show a robust growth of 12 per cent over the same period previous year. Demand grew by 20 per cent and low fare carriers continued to grow in proportion and increase their share of the pie from 61 to 71 per cent during this period. To give you an idea on how the year was for domestic carriers, TTJ brings you a quick round up of the domestic aviation scenario in India in the year gone by.

Go AIRWadia Group Go Airlines (India) Pvt Ltd operating its services under the brand GoAir currently has nine brand new A320 aircraft now and flies to 16 desti-nations that include Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Co-chin, Ahmedabad, Jammu, Srinagar, Guwahati, Bag-dogra, Chandigarh, Goa, Jaipur, Nagpur, Nanded , Indore and the latest addi-tion being Patna.

The 10th aircraft was in-ducted on October 2, 2010 to give connectivity to Pune, Leh and Lucknow. GoAir was quick to cash in on the economic slowdown pe-riod and started a Business Class seating coined as ‘GoBusiness’ that involved tickets to the first two rows of every aircraft being sold at a slight premium but with the middle seat going

empty and hot meals were served to GoBusiness pas-sengers. Priority was also given to these customers during check-ins and de-partures.

Additionally, GoAir add-ed four new stations – Pat-na, Pune, Leh and Lucknow and two new Airbus A320 to its growing network. The services on these new stations and new aircrafts started from September for Patna and Pune and for Lucknow and Leh from October 2, 2010 onwards. Pune has emerged as the educational hub, while Patna has established itself as a business hub and Luc-know has been known for its culture and is a vibrant city that is witnessing an eco-nomic boom. Leh, for one, is the fastest growing tourist destination in India. Adding these routes to its network

was indeed a smart move by the airline.

InDIGo The airline took the deliv-ery of its 25th A320 aircraft on the opening day of the Hyderabad Air Show, ‘In-dia Aviation 2010’. Addi-tionally, IndiGo once again created history by placing an order of 180 A320s with Airbus, setting a record for the largest single order for Airbus’ by any carrier in India. Furthermore, IndiGo enhanced its unmatchable customer experience with six new flights from Benga-luru, Delhi, Kochi and Kol-kata and now operates 176 flights connecting 22 desti-nations. IndiGo now oper-ates its 5th flight on Delhi to Kolkata sector and 3rd non-stop flight on Kolkata to Bengaluru sector. In ad-dition, Kochi has been con-

nected with Bengaluru and Kolkata. The new flights provide increased frequen-cies on the routes and offer greater travel options for its customers. After bag-ging the prestigious Skytrax World Airline Award for be-ing the best low cost airline of India & Central Asia at the World Airline Awards, IndiGo also won TAAI Travel Awards. Effective January 2 2010, Trivandrum was con-nected to Delhi, Chennai, Hyderabad and Kochi and new non-stop flights be-tween Delhi-Kochi, Chen-nai-Kochi, and Chennai-Trivandrum were launched. IndiGo also displayed the logo of the centenary cel-ebrations on the 6E fleet of 34 Airbus A320 aircraft to celebrate the success-ful 100 years of the Indian aviation industry.

JeT AIRwAYSThe airline currently oper-ates a fleet of 97 aircraft, which includes 10 Boeing 777-300 ER aircraft, 12 Air-bus A330-200 aircraft, 55 next generation Boeing 737-700/800/900 aircraft and 20 modern ATR 72-500 turbo-prop aircraft. Jet Airways was adjudged the winner of the coveted Customer & Brand Loyalty Award 2011 in the “Domestic Commer-cial Airlines Sector” for the fourth consecutive. It was also declared the ‘Airline with Best Business Class Service in the World’ at the Business Traveller Awards 2010 in Los Angeles. The airline had registered a buoyant 15.3% growth in in-ternational revenue passen-ger traffic carrying 4.23 lakh guests in December 2010 as compared to 3.67 lakh in the same period last year. In

vMUMbai CorresPondent

March 2011 14


flYInG HIGH

the domestic market, revenue passengers grew by an 8.5%, with the airline carrying 9.23 lakh in December 2010, as compared to 8.51 lakh in the previous year. JetLite, the wholly owned sub-sidiary of Jet Airways India Ltd, also clocked a impressive 19.7% growth carrying over 4.07 lakh passengers in the month of December 2010 as against 3.40 lakh in the previous year. Jet Air-ways and JetLite registered on time performance with 85.4 per cent and 82.6 per cent respectively for the month of December. The enhanced do-mestic and international network capabilities, coupled with strategic code-shares, have further helped deliver seamless travel solutions. There has been a marked increase in demand for its Premiere segment with the introduction of four course meals.

KInGfISHeR The airline today flies to 59 cities in India and 8 international destinations and has over 360 daily departures with a fleet of 66 aircraft. King-fisher Airlines has won an impressive line-up of

prestigious international awards over the years and last year too was no different. In Dec 2010, the airline signed a comprehensive frequent flyer agreement with British Airways. As a result of this agreement, which covers the entire route network of both airlines, frequent flyers of Kingfisher Airlines will be able to earn points even when they fly on British Airways flights anywhere in the world and similarly, frequent fly-ers of British Airways will be able to earn points when they fly on any Kingfisher Airlines flight.

Again in Dec 2010 the airline announced the launch of five new flights on its domestic route network. The new flights to be introduced are Mumbai – Jabalpur, Jabalpur – Indore, Indore – Mumbai, Mumbai – Belgaum and Belgaum – Mumbai. The flights to Belgaum commenced from January 10, 2011 while the flights from Mumbai to Jabalpur and Indore took off from January 24, 2011. Kingfisher also launched 14 new flights in the same month taking the total number of new flights launched in 2010 winter schedule to 36 new flights.

SPICeJeTSpiceJet has more than 13 per cent market share and operates 169 flights daily to 20 Indian cities. SpiceJet’s new generation fleet consists of 25 Boeing 737-800/737-900ER aircraft. In addition to winning many accolades, the airline reported a net profit of 94.4 crore for the quarter ended December 2010 with a 10 per cent improvement in EBITDA to 114 crore over the same period previous year. With this result, SpiceJet has now declared a profit for the last five successive quarters. Reflecting the robust growth in domes-tic passenger traffic, SpiceJet had their highest quarterly load factors of 87.8 per cent during this period and closed with an all-time high market-share of 13.6 per cent for the quarter against a load factor of 80 per cent and a market-share of 12.5 per cent for the same quarter last year.

One of the highlights of the year was the commencement of SpiceJet’s international op-erations with flights on the Delhi-Kathmandu and Chennai-Colombo routes. In November 2010, the airline reported a net profit of 10 crore for the quarter ended September 2010 compared to a loss of 101 crore in the same quarter last year.

The airline is in the process of enhancing its fleet in the immediate future and is looking at an aggressive addition to double its fleet strength from the current 22 aircraft by end 2013. As part of its new vision, Spicejet is looking to tap the un-derlying potential in the Indian domestic market by enhancing regional connectivity in the coun-try by focusing on Tier II and Tier III cities. It has selected the Q400 NextGen turboprop aircraft from Bombardier Inc. of Canada to facilitate this objective.

Further strengthening air connectivity be-tween neighbouring India and Sri Lanka, Spice-Jet launched a new flight to Colombo in October 2010. The carrier launched its first international flight from Delhi to Kathmandu, Nepal in October 2010. These flights marked SpiceJet’s foray into the international skies..

AIR InDIAAs against a lot of negative publicity that sur-rounds the operations of our national carrier, Air India posted an operating surplus (cash profit) of Rs 21.66 crore in November 2010. Achieving this profit has been largely possible due to sig-nificant improvement in efficiency parameters, better yield management strategies and an in-creased number of passengers showing faith in the national carrier, the company said in a state-ment recently.

Another significant indicator of the national carrier’s operational efficiency is borne out of the fact that 108 of the 194 flights of Air India network during November 2010 made cash prof-its. During the period from April to November 2010, Air India recorded network revenue of Rs 7,250 crore as compared to the revenue of Rs 5,911 crore achieved during the correspond-ing period of the previous year, thus showing a robust growth of 22.6 percent, the statement said. According to the release, out of the total network revenue, Rs 4401 crore was recorded on international flights as compared to Rs 3,801 crore in the year –ago period, showing a gain of 15.8 percent. The revenue on domestic flights also jumped 35 percent, from Rs 2,110 crore in April –November 2009 to Rs 2,849 crore in April –November 2010.

Moreover, the carrier registered an overall passenger load factor of 66.3 percent during April – November 2010, up from 63.1 percent achieved in the year – ago period.

March 2011 16


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Qatar takes the flight tally in Italy to 3 destinationsWith the launch of operations to Venice, the Doha-based carrier, Qatar Airways has strengthened its hold in Italy, making Venice its third Italian destination. Effective June 15, 2011, the Italian destination will be served by the newest Airbus A320 aircraft, with 12 seats in Business Class and 132 in Economy.

Venice, the city that is world famous for being built on water

and its beautiful canals, will become Qatar Airways’ third gateway in Italy after Milan and Rome to where the airline operates daily flights. The addition of dai-ly services to Venice raises the airline’s Italian pres-ence to 21 flights a week.

Qatar Airways’ newly-announced route comes just in time for the busy European summer holiday season.

The new route, non-stop from Qatar Airways’ Doha hub, will be operated with the airline’s newest Air-bus A320 aircraft, featur-ing seat-back TV screens offering a choice of over

700 interactive audio and video entertainment pro-gramming. The aircraft has 12 seats in Business Class and 132 in Economy.

Passengers travelling from Venice can connect to an exciting range of business and leisure des-tinations served by Qatar Airways across the Middle East, Africa and Asia Pa-cific, via Doha.

Akbar Al Baker, Chief Executive Officer, Qatar Airways said, “Venice is a vibrant city with incredible appeal among leisure and business travellers, and we are confident that our new daily flights will be equally successful as our daily services to Rome and Mi-lan. Italy is a large country

where international traffic focuses mostly on Rome and Milan. By opening up the Venice route, it is very much in line with our long-term strategy of tap-ping into economically vi-able underserved markets. Venice has little long-haul access; therefore we are confident of a successful and profitable operation to this part of Italy.”

Marco Polo Airport in Venice serves one of the largest and most dynamic regions in Italy, home to many shoe, textile and eyeglass manufacturing companies with high ex-port activity. The region is also well-known for its jew-ellery, as well as Murano glassworks and ceramics.

vttJ desk

March 2011 18


SPeCIAl foCuS

Radisson DelhiDelivering the best in hospitalityLocated in close proximity to the Indira Gandhi International Airport, The Radisson Hotel Delhi is a landmark property for not only the business travellers but also for leisure tourists who have a taste for finer things in life.

Radisson Hotel Delhi is a connoisseur’s de-light and a preferred

choice for business and leisure travellers. The hotel has large inventory of rooms which are fine examples of elegance, luxury comfort, and are exclusively designed keeping in mind the needs of

a business guest. The hotel offers an ideal sanctuary to business travellers for con-ducting business, sightsee-

ing and shopping along with the versatile dining experi-ence and recreational facili-ties.

The hotel has 256 beauti-fully appointed guest rooms, including 20 suites and one Presidential Suite. All the rooms are aesthetically designed with rich silk up-

holstery and linen in taste-fully matched colour combi-nations. Contemporary and modern in setting, all rooms

are designed keeping in mind the needs of a business guest. They have individual climate control, bath and shower, colour television, di-rect dial, telephone, voice mail and mini bar, tea and coffee maker, daily newspaper and complimen-tary use of the wi-fi service.

Radis-son Delhi’s F&B outlets are some of the capital’s most talked about eateries. The Great Kabab Fac-tory sizzles with a wide array of kebabs and breads. NYC offers freshly prepared deli-cacies from across the globe in an interactive kitchen set up. R-The Lounge is a perfect venue for business meetings and personal rendezvous and last but not the least, the Savannah Bar offers a fine collection of liquors, wines and spirits.

Considering that people today are extremely health conscious and Spa seems to be the latest buzzword in the hospitality circuits, ‘R – The Spa’ offers a perfect wellness treat to its guests. Spread over an area of 20,000 sq ft at three levels, the spa has many facets that include Day Spa, Ladies Spa and Men’s Spa. R-The

Spa is the gateway to three new levels to Rejuve-

nate, Relax and Replenish. The underlying philosophy of the spa is to have the right blend of Asian traditions and European therapies.

Since the spa is close to the airport, it offers jet-lag packages’ to the world travelers. These packages include private suites for the single and couples, body massages, body scrubs, herbal bath, face treatment, refreshment, steam, sauna and sleep time. The number of the treatment vary accord-ing to the packages.

The Fitness Studio, the city’s most exclusive, of-fers state-of-the-art equip-ment from techno-gym from the latest cardio Series to a comprehensive selection of

strength equip-

ment and free weights. The dedi-

cated fitness counsellors and yoga experts would guide you through a per-sonalized workout regimen, yoga and meditation ses-sions and nutrition classes to restore the balance of mind and body.

Experience bliss at the Spa Salon with a range of Caviar treatments for skin contouring and exotic beauty services making a perfect treat for your skin, hair, hand and feet care.

Radisson Hotel Delhi as-sures you of the finest service in the hospitality industry, delivered with a “Yes I can!” attitude by their enthusias-tic team. Subscribing to this motto Radisson Hotel Delhi looks all set to capitalise on the current boom in the hos-pitality industry.(Visit www.radisson.com/newdelhiin

for more details)

March 2011 21


TRADelIne

HRANI: Aiming to bring all trade associations under one umbrellaWorking silently, but constructively, the Hotel and Restaurant Association of Northern India (HRANI) is focused on putting many wrongs to “right”. Ensuring not only proper representation of its members but also seeking ways and means to address their concerns is what the association is focused on. S M Shervani, President, HRANI in conversation with TTJ, shares his plans for the future.

HRANI, in the year gone by, has been working judiciously to ensure

proper representation to all member states, important cit-ies and various districts with a thrust on fulfillment of its aim and objective in promo-tion of hotels and restaurant industry by providing support and assistance to its mem-bers, who are engaged in such businesses in Northern India. During the year, vari-ous meetings, conferences and seminars were conduct-ed; extensive measures were taken for the purpose of pro-motion and development in hospitality and tourism indus-try. Some of them included a workshop on “Hospitality Industry: Challenges & Op-portunities” at The Phoolwari, Pragati Maidan, New Delhi,

a session on budget man-agement by Subhash Lak-hotia, the famous tax guru, workshop on promoting the concept of budget hotels for benefit and feasibility of the mid-segment market, session on stress management and more.

“Being the Northern In-dia’s turn to host the 45th FHRAI Convention, the con-vention was successfully held at the city of Taj–Agra from August 27-29, 2010. The convention was inaugurated by Kumari Selja, the then Tourism Minister at Jaypee Hotel & Convention Centre. The theme of the convention was Wellness Tourism. All the sessions held were taken up by the renowned profession-als of hospitality fraternity. The convention was well at-

tended,” said Shervani.In the coming year, the

association plans to actively contribute and promote the Scheme of Hunar Se Rozgar Yojna through this forum, call for organisation of skill certifi-cation programme to various states along with IHMs. It also plans to undertake training of manpower required for the mid-segment budget hotels specially and aims at holding its first HRANI Convention. “We wish to create aware-ness on safety tourism, moni-toring quality service and need to work closely with the government to promote bud-get and mid-segment tourism projects,” he said.

“It is our belief that the tourism in India can increase substantially when infrastruc-ture is improved and the mid-

segment and budget hotels given a boost. Unfortunately, it does not happen in the speed required because of the various Ministries and States having their own ju-risdiction and the Ministry of Tourism acting only as a facilitator. This shortcoming can only be addressed if an Indian Tourism Council is formed under the Chairman-ship of the Ministry of Tourism giving it the power to clear the tourism related projects in all states of India or at least recommending it to them for immediate clearance so that the applicants can address and get clearances from one place rather than running from pillar to post. Tourism should become the priority of all, given its immense poten-tial in India,” said Shervani.

Chalking out the goal of HRANI, he said, “Our goal is to head towards promotion of HRANI as an association of trade, hotels and restaurants. We would also like to bring all participants under one um-brella like various trade as-sociations (TAAI, PATA, IATO, IATA, ADTOI) travel agents along with big and small ho-tels.”

vPriyanka saxena

S M Shervani

March 2011 22


HoTel ConneCT

WelcomHeritagePlan you ‘royal’ dream wedding with

Wedding is considered to be the most auspicious moment in one’s life and who doesn’t want to make it a special affair? With an objective to tap the ever growing demand for hosting royal weddings both for the domestic clientele as well as high net worth NRI’s, the WelcomHeritage Group has many offerings in its plush properties that promises to make this special day into the most memorable one in one’s lifetime.

WelcomHeritage Kh-imsar Fort and Kh-imsar Sand Dunes

at Khimsar and other Wel-comHeritage palaces and Resorts are now actively be-ing promoted as the perfect wedding destinations. “Wel-comHeritage properties have experienced a boost in the number of weddings, both royal and celebrity, which has also given a strong vis-ibility to the properties for discerned visitors,” said Su-nil Sikka, Head-Marketing and Business Development, WelcomHeritage.

Referring to the market worth from the marriages to WelcomHeritage Sikka says, “It depends and varies from our property to property. Some of our properties have inventory to hold large wed-

ding celebrations with excel-lent banquet facilities such as WelcomHeritage Khimsar Fort and WelcomHeritage Noor-Us-Sabah Palace, Bho-pal. WelcomHeritage Umed Bhawan Palace and Wel-comHeritage Bal Samand Lake Palace, Jodhpur also have excellent banqueting facilities, which are like a heaven for couples looking for out of the box marriage experiences. These prop-erties at Jodhpur, Khimsar, Kota and Bhopal have been unarguably accepted as perfect venues for royal wed-dings and experiencing the traditional festivities in very private settings as if it’s one’s own palace. Most certainly the wedding celebrations at these properties have also given a boost to them to emerge as preferred royal wedding destinations in the country.”

The group is further pro-moting these heritage proper-ties by sending regular mail-ers depicting the packages, events and experiences for the weddings on offer both nationally and internationally and is also planning to intro-duce exclusive wedding and banquet brochures, which would be sent to its partners

viz. domestic travel agents and foreign tour operators.

Talking about the celebri-ty quotient, famous television actor, Rajiv Khandelwal just recently got married at Wel-comHeritage Khimsar Fort early February. Marriages like these also act as pub-licity forums for the group’s heritage properties.

Staying at the Wel-comHeritage properties, a guest can be rest assured to get a unique experience of the destination. The group, through its various proper-ties, firmly believes in recre-ating the regal ambience of the bygone era at the finest venues, offering spacious halls, banquet halls, large lounges, excellent facilities modern and luxury, excel-lent accommodation along

with unmatched hospitality. “We are also promoting them as most desirable marriage destinations for the couples looking for out of the box marriage experiences. We intend to reach the target audience by communicating the uniqueness of our prop-erties as marriage venues by making the travel agents aware of our USP’s as mar-riage destinations as well as using press and media in our efforts,” said Sunil, adding, “Our hotels have also wit-nessed shootings of some of the famous movies, of which ‘Rajneeti’ is the most recent one, shooting of which has been done at WelcomHeri-tage Noor-Us-Sabah Palace in Bhopal.”

Also the very famous wedding scene in ‘3 Idiots’

has been shot at the lush green lawns of the Wel-comHeritage Woodville Pal-ace. Many scenes of the famous movie ‘Black’ have also been shot at the prop-erty. The revenue generated through marriages at the WH Woodville palace has increased over the last three years after the famous shoot-ing of 3 idiots at the property. These are clear signs that it has certainly helped the proposition for high revenue generating events.

Well, what can we say? The wedding market in In-dia is huge and only getting stronger with time. With the kind of offing that Welcome-Group has, the future looks even brighter than the pres-ent.

vttJ

Sunil Sikka

March 2011 24


InDIA CAllInG

The Royal Rajasthan –Feast for one and all!

The grandeur of impregnable forts, a surfeit of opulent palaces, the age old Havelis adorned with marvellous murals and the delightful hues of turbans and odhnis, Rajasthan remains a favourite palatial retreat for domestic and foreign tourists alike, befitting the signature folklore… ‘Padharo mhare des main…..’

India’s beauty and charm lies in its age old heri-tage, remnants of which

can even today be seen in each and every corner of our country. One such heritage testimony are the havelis and palaces, built by the Mahara-jas of the bygone era, which have now been converted into plush heritage hotels. By converting these palaces into hotels, which can now be rented by anyone who is ready to pay the price, Raj-asthan has somewhere ful-filled the secret fantasy that most of us harbour, which is to live in the royal times. This “heritage” pull alone acts as a major magnet for tourists coming to the region.

India is a country with a profound history, heritage and culture. The state of Ra-jasthan alone epitomises the brilliance of rich architectural and cultural heritage in its majestic forts and vibrant customs. From the magnifi-cent forts that tell the story of the region’s gallantry to the beautiful palaces that reflect the affluence of the royal era, Rajasthan has al-ways charmed travellers with its prosperous legacy. This lavish repertoire of heritage, customs, people and cui-sines, blended with modern

amenities, proves that Ra-jasthan is indeed the most colourful state of India, thus making it the most preferred holiday destination for tour-ists.

While both government and private authorities have been working towards restor-ing our heritage sites, the ser-vices and facilities at these sites need to come at par with other countries. We to-gether need to work towards offering world class services to international tourists in terms of hotels, connectivity, infrastructure and amenities. “At Boutique Hotels, we have been actively involved to preserve the heritage of the colourful state of Rajasthan. The 250-year-old Devi Garh Palace, in Delwara was re-stored and transformed into a hotel, which took 10 years to renovate and conserve. We have restored the exte-rior of this 18th century fort to its original quality while the interior spaces have been completely renovated in a minimalistic yet stylish way. As part of our efforts we also showcase the rich cultural heritage of Rajasthan at the hotel. We are confident that with added support from government and private sec-tor, the heritage tourism in-

dustry of Rajasthan will scale newer heights in the coming years,” said Rajnish Sabhar-wal, President, Boutique Ho-tels, Rajasthan.

Meanwhile, Ankur Rara, General Manager of the high-end heritage property, The Raj Palace at Jaipur feels that along with the pick-up in tourism, the occupancy rates have also risen. “The global financial crisis had a great impact on occupancy rates, which plunged by 39 per cent in 2009. But the economic recovery in the West and the US in 2010 has again boosted the rates to 65 per cent, rising 35 per cent from 2009 levels.”

She further believes that the new hotels coming up in the Jaipur city will not have any significant impact on a heritage property like The Raj Palace. “Most of the visi-tors coming to the state like

to experience the region’s quintessential culture, heri-tage, art, and ambience that the city of Jaipur has to offer. The Raj Palace is uniquely positioned to cater to such tourists. In that sense, the significance of heritage properties will always come on top of the list in a state like Rajasthan. However, visi-tors should be made aware that there are also segments within the heritage category such as heritage, classic and grand. Facilities and experience vary according to the particular segment,” added Rara.

Although reluctant to flesh out more on the chain’s expansion plans, Rara said the group has plans for two more properties in Agra and Gurgaon.

But the chairman of the Fort Rajwada, a top-end property in Jaisalmer with

5-Star facilities, says inter-national traffic still remains a concern. “The number of do-mestic visitors has been en-couraging. But tourist figures from the international markets have still not improved to the expected levels. But there is an over-all recovery as our occupancy rates have gone up to 62.5 per cent in 2010 from around 57 per cent in the previous year,” said Ji-tendra Singh Rathore, Chair-man, Fort Rajwada Group.

Rathore said that things can improve significantly if infrastructure issues are ad-dressed. “Connectivity to Jaisalmer has been a major bottleneck. There is only one train and one luxury coach from Delhi. We need to have connectivity to potential markets like Mumbai, Delhi, Udaipur, Ahmedabad etc to make the city a convenient destination for tourists. The growth of tourism in this part of the state is important since it supports the livelihood of 60-70% of the people in the region. We have already made representations to state government and Union government to address the issues of communication is-sues,” he said.

However, the group is bullish on the prospects of tourism in the state and has plans to expand its footprint in the coming years. “Al-though nothing has been finalised, we do have plans for two properties. Right now, we are studying two loca-tions – Jodhpur and Bundi,” added Rathore.

(Inputs by Sharmila Chand and Srikant Tripathy)

Jitendra Singh Rathore Ankur Rara Rajnish Sabharwal

Head Office: Conservation Corporation of India (Pvt.) Ltd., ‘Atlanta’ 881/888, 209, Nariman Point, Mumbai - 400 021Tel.: +91 22 61466400 Fax: 022 - 61466499 Email: [email protected]

Sales & Marketing Office: Conservation Corporation of India (Pvt.) Ltd., C-32, Sushant Lok, Phase-I, Gurgaon - 122002 (Har), INDIATel : 0124 - 4655800/833 Fax : 0124 - 4655804 Mob : +91- 9911813300, 9650193664, 9650193662

email : [email protected], [email protected]

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March 2011 27


HoTel ConneCT

Unique f&b & a high-end nightclub, Radisson Blu is ready to rollIf you thought a five-star hotel in West Delhi will have problems getting good business, take a look at the occupancy figures of the newly-opened Radisson Blu in Paschim Vihar, which in just couple of months of its operations is already enjoying high client rush. Heralding the new concept of a “Tea Lounge” and “live Indian food cooking counters”, the hotel has been aptly chosen as our ‘Hotel of the Month’, this month.

A Tea Lounge, a nightclub, a 27x7 coffee shop that serves buffet with a differ-

ence and a bar done in all gold interiors, the Radisson Blu Pas-chim Vihar, though still partially open, has earned an enviable reputation for itself in the hos-pitality industry. “The theme and concept of the entire hotel has been done in a very neo gothic style. Though essentially planned in shades of silver and black, we

are now planning to add certain “red” element to it to make it look more vibrant. Besides the basic, our USP is going to be our f&b outlets. The tea lounge is a very new concept in Delhi and here we would be serving over 100 varieties of tea. Also, though our coffee shop serves buffet lunch and dinner, we also add a touch of personal service to it wherein your soup and starters are served to you on your table,”

said Preet Inder Singh, General Manager, Radisson Blu Paschim Vihar.

Kanchan Rizvi, Director – Sales and Marketing, Radisson Blu Paschim Vihar, added, “Indyaki will be our interactive Indian restaurant which will be very competitively priced. Also, the nightclub – Unplugged with a capacity to host 200 plus people will the first of its kind in the area and is already becoming popular, much before its opening. We are a very boutique style hotel and I believe there is a lot of scope in this part of the Delhi especially with regards to the wedding market. With four huge banquet halls that come with separate entrance and lobby and parking space for as many as 800 cars, I

think we are in the right place at the right time.”

The hotel is adjoined with D-Mall, an upmarket shopping mall showcasing designer and pre-mium brands for unique shop-ping experience; this makes the hotel stand uniquely amongst the New Delhi hotels. The hotel and the mall, both are owned by strategic partner, Tirupati Infra Projects Private Limited, one of India’s most respected business conglomerates.

Recreational facilities at

the hotel includes a luxuriously designed Tatva Spa (yet to open) offering rejuvenating treatments by trained international mas-seurs to pamper every element of your body and soul, a 24 hour Fitness Center featuring a care-ful selection of cardiovascular and weight equipments and an outdoor roof top pool in green environs providing the perfect break from a hectic day. Kids wading pool will keep the kids engaged as you relax and laze in poolside splendour.

vPriyanka saxena

Preet Inder Singh Kanchan Rizvi

March 2011 28


SPeCIAl foCuS

kangra Group Taking hospitality to another levelKangra Group, in addition to running a school and crusher are primarily known for their distinct stint in hospitality. From the famous Surajgarh Fort in Shekhawati to a unique quaint property in Dharamshala, the group already has three successfully operating properties and is soon planning to open eight more in the near future, all thanks to enigmatic vision and concerted efforts of Aishwarya Katoch, the prince of Kangra and his wife Shailja Katoch.

Built in the times when history was not recorded, Kangra Fort is presently accepted by the Archeological Survey of India to be one of the oldest dated and largest forts in India. It was built by the Royal family of Kan-gra, the Katoch Dynasty, which traces its origins to the ancient Trigarta Kingdom, mentioned in the Mahabharata.The Fort is located at the en-trance of the Kangra town. It stands on a steep rock in Pura-na Kangra (Old Kangra) domi-nating the surrounding valley, built strategically at the conflu-

ence of Banganga and Majhi rivers. It is said that “Kangra belongs to the one who owns the fort.”The entrance to the fort is through a small courtyard en-closed between two gates which were built during the Sikh period, as appears from an inscription over the en-trance. It is here, close to the entrance, that ‘Maharaja San-sar Singh Museum’ has been created by Tikaraj Aishwarya Katoch, to showcase the his-tory of Kangra Fort.To make the visitor understand

the true significance of what is India’s oldest dated fort, the Museum offers audio guides. Narrowcasters, an Australian company has developed au-dio guide tours of the museum. These audio tours inspire, en-tertain, educate and add value to the visitors’ experience. The tour is uniquely crafted to communicate in a voice that reflects the spirit of Kangra Fort and its history by creating unique stories to inform visitors on multiple levels, and can be heard in as almost all global languages, including Tibetan.

MAHARAJA SAnSAR CHAnD MuSeuM

TIKARAJ AISHwARYA KAToCH AnD TIKARAnI SHAIlJA KAToCHHaving opened its first property in Dharamshala, Clouds End, Aishwarya, the visionary behind the concept, felt the need to open a heritage property in Rajas-than, which is when The Kangra Group of Hotels and the Surajgarh came into exis-tence. “The USP of all our properties is its pricing and unique locations. We are not a cheap city hotel nor do we call ourselves ‘boutique’ properties. The idea behind opening each of our property has been to offer a unique and different experience to our guests, which is why most our prop-erties are in back end places, where few have dared to venture,” he said, adding, “I look at hotel projects keeping the venue in mind. Every property has its own merit.’

The group has as many as eight new properties opening in the near future and every property will have something unique to offer. From the untouched beauty of Barot, which will have an all glass cottage property to the earthen spa experience at the Deeg Palace, the group has an excit-ing range of projects in store that will rede-fine the way people holiday in India.

“We do water harvesting and have our own water body in addition to 24 hours power back up. We are also extremely green conscious, which is why none of our properties have centralised air con-ditioning or boilers. All rooms, across all our properties have individual heating and cooling system,” said Aishwarya.

“In the upcoming segment, our small properties would be averagely priced at Rs 7000 – 8000. The infrastructure around all our properties is well-developed and there are a plethora of activities on offer around them. The hotels are targeted at both domestic as well as foreign travel-lers,” said Shailja.

In ConVeRSATIon

Surajgarh Fort


March 2011 29SPeCIAl foCuS

Once inside, the guest is rewarded by great hospitality, large

rooms beautifully painted, and sumptuous food. Each room is unique in its char-acter and all 23 rooms share an earthen feel. The town of Surajgarh in the Shekhawati region of Rajasthan derives its name from the 18th centu-ry fortified palace Surajgarh. The name literally means “The Castle of the Sun”. This four acre fortified palace is being lovingly restored to give our guests the experi-ence of living like a Maha-raja. Established in 1780 by

Shekhawat Suraj Mal, ruler of the Jhunjhunu thikana, the township of Surajgarh came up with the construction of the fort, for the construction of the fort not only offered employment to the people from the neighbouring villag-es, but after its completion also offered a safe sanctu-ary from marauding bandits and invading armies. Today, the Surajgarh Fort is a sanctuary for people who wish to run away from the cacophony of city life.

Just 180 km from Delhi by road, the pic-

turesque drive on an excel-lent road takes you past mus-tard fields and small villages. This four-acre fortified palace is be-ing lov-ingly

restored to give the guests the experience of living in that same aura of exuber-ance, romance and royalty. Surajgarh Fort comprises

nine luxurious suites (deluxe and standard) with attached bathrooms, and 12 rooms (8 deluxe and 4 standard)

Overlooking the waters of the Maha-rana Pratap Sagar and the Dhaulad-har range, the lodge is situated in the heart of the Ramsar Pong Dam Wet-land Sanctuary, which is the largest fresh water sanctuary in India with

a water area of 475 sq km. The size of Pong Dam and its location in the extreme northwest of the northern plains make it a suitable habitat for migratory birds entering the plains of India from Central Asia. Over 220

bird species belonging to 54 fami-lies have been recorded. The per-fect getaway for birding, the Lodge at Pong is situated on the shores of Maharana Pratap Sagar also known as Pong Dam in district Kangra in Hi-

machal Pradesh.Some of the facilities at the

lodge include six deluxe rooms with attached modern bathrooms, television and air-conditioning, din-ing hall serving Indian, Continental and Himachali cuisine. The lodge is equipped with 100 per cent pow-er backup, roof top bar-be-que and options for many fun-filled activities such as boating, fishing and bird watching with the guide.

‘Clouds End Villa’ is the residence of the Raja of Lambagraon-Kangra. A sprawling 9 acre property with its own step field, gardens and forests, Cloud End was recommended in the Tatlers Travel guide 1993 as one of the 50 best hotels in the world.

This glorious old fashioned bungalow has an annexe which has views of the Kan-gra Valley below. There are charming walk throughs in the adjoining forests to Macleod-

ganj, where you can visit the headquarters of the Dalai Lama.

Built during the British period, the prop-erty has 10 cottages to rent with attached modern bathrooms, television and air con-ditioning. The gusts can savour authentic lo-cal delicacies prepared by the master Chef whose family has been with the Raja for gen-erations. There is also 100 per cent power backup at the Villa.

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March 2011 31


InDIA CAllInG

J&k aims to attract over 10m tourists by year-endThe Travel Agents Society of Kashmir (TASK) along with Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI) – Jammu & Kashmir Chapter recently organised an interactive seminar in Mumbai to promote Jammu & Kashmir as a year-round tourist destination and also to restore confidence among tourists about the state being safe to visit.

ANawang Rigzin Jora, Minister Tourism & Culture, Government of Jammu & Kashmir was the chief guest on the oc-

casion. The theme of the seminar was ‘Kash-mir – In Command of Inspiration & Innova-tion’ and the inaugural speech at the event was delivered by G Rasool Siah, President, TASK. Guest of Honour on the occasion was Jenab Nasir Aslam Wani, Minister of State, Housing & Urban Development, PHE, Tour-ism, Revenue and Relief.

Joining the long list of dignitaries present were Farooq Shah, Director Tour-ism, Kashmir; Atal Dullo, Commissioner Secretary to Jammu & Kashmir Govern-ment, Department of Tourism & Culture; Manzoor Ahmed Wangnoo, Chairman, Houseboat Owner Association and Haji K M Dar, Chairman, TAAI Jammu & Kashmir Chapter along with people from travel trade from Maharashtra and Gujarat.

The officials reported that the tourism scenario in the valley is changing at a fast

rate as the growth of tourist inflow has started increasing. For instance, tourist arrival to the valley exceeded the 725,000 mark and several tourist spots in Jammu re-ceived about five lakh leisure tourist arrivals in 2010. Beside this, the state had received over five lakh tourist visitors during the Amarnath Yatra last year and over 75,000 tourists visited Ladakh in 2010.

“Currently, we are primarily focussing on three tourist sectors – golfers, heritage tourists and winter sports lovers. We are in the process of developing golf circuit under which golf centres are coming up in Pahal-gam, Gulmarg and also Jammu. There are a lot of heritage sites in our region and we are strongly focussing on developing a Buddhist circuit. As for winter sports, we have the highest skiing point in the world – 13,400 – Gulmarg Gandola and have already hosted three of the five international sports events, which says a lot about the winter sports facilities available in our area,” said Farooq.

vttJ desk

(L-R): Farooq Ahmed Shah (Director Tourism), Atul Duloo (Secretary / Commissioner Tourism J&K Govt), Nawang Rigzin Jora (Minter of Tourism), Nasir Aslam Wani (Minister of State for Tourism) and Khazir Mohammed Dar (Chairman TAAI – J&K Chapter)

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March 2011 InDIA CAllInG32


A new logo and celebrity campaign, Gujarat Tourism going strongThe forever vibrant Gujarat recently created waves in the tourism industry by hosting its first ever travel mart in Ahmedabad last month. A plethora of initiatives and a hugely aggressive marketing strategy is sure to bring about a surge in tourist arrivals to the place. Vipul Mitra, Tourism Secretary, Government of Gujarat shares his plans and thoughts with TTJ.

Are you happy with the re-sponse you have got this year to your tourism initia-tives?Yes, we are very happy with the response. Tourism traffic, both domestic and interna-tional has shown remarkable increase as compared to last year.

How is Gujarat’s tourism plan on the whole shaping up?There is a two-fold approach. A sustained advertising cam-paign and infrastructure de-velopment at various places. Initially, there was less traf-fic at many important tourist destinations because of in-adequate infrastructure. And

investment in such destina-tions was not happening as there was no traffic. The new advertising campaign broke this deadlock, and as a re-sult, we are seeing more traf-fic and new investments for tourism projects in the state. The government is also in-vesting in infrastructure and beautification of various im-portant tourist destinations like Saputara, Ambaji, Dwar-ka, Somnath, etc.

what are the initiatives that have actually helped?Amitabh Bachhan’s cam-paign changed the entire game, with Gujarat coming into limelight as a potential tourist destination. Also, the government has adopted a proactive approach. It has formed Gujtop, a company formed by Gujarat Govern-ment and ILFS, dedicated specially for identifying in-vestors for specially identi-fied projects in Gujarat. How can the state be posi-tioned?The new logo of Gujarat Tour-ism has the Asiatic Lion in it, symbolic of the only place in India where Asiatic lions can be found, and is a position-

ing strategy. But Gujarat can be positioned as a family destination that has some-thing for each family mem-ber. Also, we pride ourselves as being the safest place to travel in India with the friend-liest people.

what needs to improve or change?Infrastructure development and private sector participa-tion in tourism sector is some-thing that we are strongly looking at.

what are your immediate plans? As mentioned above, a sus-tained media campaign, backed by a strong product development.

what are the challenges in executing your plans?Infrastructure projects can-not be completed overnight and it has a long break-even period. But things now in Gu-jarat are looking up. Tourism is a dynamic industry and is a continuous process.

what is your target for your tourism sector?Our aim is to place Gujarat amongst the top 3 states in

both domestic and interna-tional tourist arrivals in next 3 to 5 years, and creating Gu-jarat as the most sought after destination in the country.

what lessons have you learnt over the past few years?It is important to have the right investor with a vision. Tourism development is a collaborative development and all departments/func-tions must contribute togeth-er to make it happen. Role of private sector is immensely important.

where do we see Guja-rat Tourism in the next 5 years?We want to be the most sought after destination in India.

vsharMila Chand

Vipul Mitra

March 2011 InDIA CAllInG34


Fresh campaigns and new policies to up tourist figures to GoaNew campaigns, an aggressively marked tourism policy, a fresh tourism approach and a plethora of initiatives, if you thought tourism in Goa has reached its pinnacle, think again. Swapnil Naik, Director Tourism, Government of Goa talks to TTJ in detail on what are their plans and strategies to once again achieve the 15 per cent targeted growth.

How has the year 2010 been for the tourism industry in Goa? Is the recessionary phase over?Goa has done exceedingly well, better than previous years, despite the recession. Goa enjoys the maximum number of repeat tourists, especially from UK and parts of Western Europe. Foreign tourists arriving into Goa stay for an average period of two weeks including short and long term stays, not less. In terms of room nights too, Goa does exceptionally well.The state is expecting close to 750 charter flights from different parts of Europe through the tourist season. There has also been an in-crease in the arrival of do-mestic tourists. December especially saw domestic tourists pouring into the state as Goa is a favourite destina-tion for Christmas and New Year celebrations.

what percentage increase did you register in 2010 over the year 2009?The last tourist season witnessed a 15 to 20 per cent increase in tourist arrivals compared to the previous year. So far Goa has 718 confirmed charters. Each year we have either been at par or are doing bet-ter than the previous years. We are extremely optimistic about this tourist season. We are looking to definitely cross last year’s figures of 25 lakh, 62 thousand tourists and may even

cross the figures of 2007, which has been the highest in recent years, 25 lakh and 97 thousand.

was there a notable in-crease in the MICe sector?Not really, but the MICE sec-tor has been doing extremely well in Goa anyway. Goa is a great place to mix work with fun which is why it’s an ideal destination. Moreover con-nectivity to Goa is excellent, making travel to the state hassle free and easy. The number of hotels and resorts coming up in the state with comprehensive conference facilities is a strong indica-tor that the MICE market is thriving.

How has the response to the Monsoon Campaign of Goa been?Monsoon tourism or Raindrop Tour-ism as we call it has seen positive results with over 10% of the total tour-ist inflow into the state coming in during the monsoon months. We

have also tapped markets in west Asia, where rains are sparse. The campaign was marketed extensively through the internet, social networking sites and at travel marts. The Sao Joao festivals where revellers jump into wa-ter bodies to welcome the rains is promoted by the de-partment. what percentage increase are you looking at in 2011?Like the earlier years we are looking at close to a 10 per-cent to 15 percent increase in tourist arrivals.

Any new campaign that you have launched / are planning to?Goa has embarked on a 360 degree, targeted campaign. We are proactively pitching Goa as a holiday destination

to the European countries, Scandinavia, Russia,

CIS countries and the east includ-

ing Japan. We

have road shows planned in domestic and interna-tional markets right through the year. Alternately, as a parallel approach, we have launched a campaign to at-tract domestic tourists as well. We are also working on a sensitization campaign for local and domestic tourists focused on treating guests to the state, especially women, with dignity and respect.

Have you chalked out any marketing strategies / bud-gets for the coming year? what new tourism products are you planning to pro-mote in the coming year?Marketing Goa beyond shores:We have just returned from a successful promotional trip to Japan where we showcased Goa as an ideal destination to the urban Japanese tour-ist. We are looking to attract all age groups of tourists from Japan; however the focus will be on the young traveller. Ja-pan has already been grant-ed a visa-on-arrival facility by the Indian government, and

we are looking to tap into this oppor-

tunity.

We will be shortly visiting Spain, France, Italy and oth-er parts of Europe. Alternate-ly as a parallel approach we had launched a campaign to attract domestic tourists as well. The state government has recently set up a Tourism Security Force especially to safeguard tourists who visit Goa annually. The security force manned by ex-service men guard the beach ar-eas, night markets and other popular tourist hot-spots. Additional recruitment and training of the force will com-mence soon.Goa Tourism is constantly innovating and improving keeping up with the expec-tations of our guests. From improving infrastructure to taking adequate measures to ensure safety and secu-rity of our guests to drawing up a calendar of high-activ-ity events ranging from the colourful and vibrant Goan carnival to beach sporting events and midnight cruises aboard a floating vessel for Christmas, we are going the extra mile to make sure that you, our guests, have a won-derful stay in Goa. Our an-nual spend is pegged at 18

crore.

vPriyanka saxena

Swapnil Naik

March 2011 36


InDIA CAllInG

educating the agents to sell madhya Pradesh to one and allThe tourism scenario of MP is indeed vibrant. The state government is keen to ensure that the tremendous potential of its tourist products is realised in full, and has put up a dynamic mechanism in place to encourage private sector investment in tourism related projects. Taking this dynamic and aggressive approach forward is its visionary, Hari Ranjan Rao, Managing Director, Madhya Pradesh Tourism.

“Now that the new tourism policy is on, which is concentrat-

ed on promoting private invest-ments, and is extremely investor friendly, tourism projects in our state will grow manifold. Right from giving exemption in taxes to land at subsidised rate, we are offering a wide gamut of benefits to attract the private investor to come forward and set up a proj-ect.

The state has also identified and set up Special Tourism Zones under which luxury tax has been exempted, along with benefits such as 75 per cent rebate in liquor licenses, exemp-tion of motor vehicle tax and many more. “We have also set up a State Tourism Development Council, which will be chaired by the honourable Minister and the work of which will be to identify and declare Special Tourism Zones,” he said.

From opening up water bod-ies and offering them to private investors to developing water activities around it, MPTDC is also concentrating on develop-ing heritage and adventure tour-ism. “Narmada is perhaps the cleanest river in the country and is thus ideal for cruise tourism

and floating house boats. The idea is to facilitate private inves-tors to come forward and take the league,” he explained.

Recently, Madhya Pradesh Tourism in collaboration with Kuoni Academy launched a training programme for tour operators, first session of which was jam-packed and received very good response.

Talking about attracting local as well as international tourists to the state, Rao said, “While international tourists are important, our thrust is more on attracting domestic tourists and making no distinction between an international and a national tourist. Both are equally impor-tant to us.”

Talking about the new initia-tives that MP Tourism is taking, Rao said, “We are now promot-ing Caravan Tourism, which

makes us the first tourism board to take up such an initiative. In the first phase, parking bays are coming up at Bhopal, Tawa and Panchmarhi. Other destinations like Shivpuri, Gwalior, Orchha, Indore, Maheshwar and Mandu will follow. MP Tourism has already purchased three Caravan bays. MP is huge and roads are a prominent mode of transport. It will surely be an experience of

a lifetime.” In addition to this, MP Tour-

ism is developing the Mandsaur-Ratlam Circuit. This new circuit has beautiful heritage sites; rock cut temples, huge water bodies and more world-class wonders. MP Tourism is also setting up a hotel in this region. At pres-ent, there are 52 hotels run by the Madhya Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation

(MPTDC) and ever year some new additions or renovations to the existing ones are made in order to match the standards of many privately-run hotels. “We have doubled the capacity at the Palash Residency in Bhopal and added swimming pool and con-ference facilities at many of our hotels in various locations like Jabalpur, Gwalior and more,” he said.

vPriyanka saxena

Hari Ranjan Rao

March 2011 38


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ADTOI: Working hard to help domestic tour operators perform betterIt opened new chapters, organised business meets, fun picnics and did some serious work in propagating domestic tourism in the region, Association of Domestic Tour Operators of India (ADTOI) has a plethora of initiatives chalked out for the year ahead. Rajat Sawhney, General Secretary, ADTOI and Director, Rave Tours and Travels shares the details with TTJ.

Working diligently to address the gnaw-ing issues and mak-

ing sure that domestic tour operators in India become a well looked after lot, ADTOI undertook a bunch of activi-ties in the year gone by. “We had opened our State Chap-ter in Gujarat, which is the third one besides Jammu & Kashmir and Kerala. Plans are afoot to have more state chapters in the near future,” he said, adding, “We had organised a meeting-cum-picnic for members of ADTOI and their family members at Hotel Raj Hans, SurajKund, Faridabad in association with Haryana Tourism.”

Domestic Tourism is the major segment in the tour-ism industry and domestic tourists play a vital role in

contributing to country’s eco-nomic growth. Realising the vast business potential from domestic tourists a number of hotels in NCR region agreed to host the ADTOI meetings to showcase their products to the members of the associa-tion who in turn can promote them among the domestic tourists.

“We conducted educa-tional/familiarisaton tour for our members to visit desti-nations at Kerala, Madhya Pradesh and North-Eastern Region. ADTOI has also tak-en the lead to evolve close working relations with all the major travel trade associa-tions to come on a common platform to discuss the issues relating to the trade and con-template holding a National Travel Mart represented by

all the associations. Our as-sociation initiated STATE SPECIALIST PROGRAMME (SSP) with various state gov-ernment tourism departments to impart knowledge to the travel agents/tours operators regarding their states. While states like Madhya Pradesh have already started the same, others are to follow suit,” Sawhney elaborated.

As for future, ADTOI has plans to organise its annual convention in September/ October, 2011. “Apart from this major event we have plans to organise road shows and fam trips in various states with the support of state tour-ism boards. We would like to undertake social and chari-table activities like organising blood donation camps, main-taining public utility services

at major tourist destinations, and much more,” he stated.

The association would like to take up the issues con-cerning its members with the central/state governments like rationalisation of taxes, providing infrastructure facili-ties, seamless travel through-out the country, etc. “Because of high cost of tour packages within the country our people are opting for overseas lei-sure holidays which are much cheaper. Government should provide tax relief on avia-tion sector to make air travel cheaper so that more and more Indians travel within the country to experience the in-credible India. Government may also consider an Income Tax rebate on the tour pack-ages for a family taking an annual domestic holiday as

this will stimulate domestic tourism growth vis-à-vis eco-nomic activity in the country,” Rajat said.

He further feels that there is an urgent need to organise the travel trade as people op-erating as travel agents/tour operators without the requi-site knowledge/experience in the trade are giving bad name and disrepute to the industry. This he feels can be done un-der the aegis of Central /State Government.

vPriyanka saxena

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March 2011 GRowInG ouTBounD

Follow the ‘Benz’ trail in Germany this yearvPriyanka saxena

It might be interesting for many of us to note that after Great Britain, it is Germany which is ranked second in terms of favourite travel destination for Indian travellers. Encouraged by the increased overnights the country registered last year, the German National Tourist Office ‘India Pool’ has chalked out an aggressive plan to promote the destination for Indians.

To enhance destination Germany’s presence in India, the Germany In-

dia pool recently conducted a road show in various met-ros across India. The dele-gation showcased the latest updates, highlights and at-tractions for Indian traveller. Romit Theeophilus, Director

Marketing and Sales, Ger-man National Tourist Office said, “The marketing and promotional efforts made by the Germany India Pool and GNTO in the past few years are showing constructive results. Furthermore, the In-dia Pool initiative has been a major contributor to the increased destination aware-ness created in the Indian market.”

Having registered a 26.1 per cent increase in over-nights for period between January to November 2010, there is little doubting the growing popularity of the destination in the Indian mar-ket. “The perception about

Germany in Indian mindsets is changing. The country is celebrating this year as the 125th year of German automobile, which has es-pecially been chalked out for the Indian market,” said Horst Lommatzsch, Director – Regional and Destinations Management, GNTO.

Germany has as many as 1500 Indian restaurants and more than 400 shopping centres. While great bar-gains and attractive deals are alluring enough, another attraction for shopaholics is the return of 19 per cent VAT when they leave the coun-try, making their shopping completely tax free! Comple-

menting the heritage and cul-tural hubs are a huge variety of Theme Parks in Germany which act as a major attrac-tion to the region.

The German National Tourist Board ‘India Pool’ has seen the inception of two new partners in the pool this year, namely, the city of Mannheim and the region of Baden-Wurttemberg.

With seven non-stop flights a day operating be-tween India and Germany, the connectivity to the region is a great advantage. So if you too are interested in follow-ing the tracks of the world’s first long-distance journey by automobile performed by

Bertha Benz in 1888, from Mannheim to Pforzheim/Black Forest and back, visit Germany and experience the famous ‘Bertha Benz Me-morial Route’ yourself, after all, it’s the automo-bile year!

Romit Theeophilus and Radhika Krishnan

Horst Lommatzsch

March 2011 42


GRowInG ouTBounD

enlightening the Indians about destination Spain

vttJ desk

Indian tourists have a great deal to look forward to in Spain this year. Besides Madrid, its capital, the country has some other important cities such as Barcelona, Valencia, Seville and Malaga and blessed with a climate that offers year round sunshine. In its endeavour to attract the Indian public to Spain, the Spain Tourist Board recently hosted a presentation workshop in Delhi.

“We as-

sure you that you will see and hear more of Spain this year, as we are focusing on reaching out to Indian traveller this year,” says Miguel Nieto, Director, Spain Tourism, India, adding, “Our strategy will be to engage the consumer and we will do cam-

paigns and promotions to reach out to them. Spain for India – offers history, natu-ral beauty, sport and enter-tainment. There is a strong blend and distinct culture and ethos.” Spain has world class shopping centres, ho-tels, restaurants with veg-etarian food. Spain Tourism registered a growth of 11 per cent in 2010 and Miguel ex-pects the market to grow at a rate of 25 per cent atleast for the next decade.

Tourism office of Spain had set up office in India six months ago to promote Spain as a destination in the India

market. “We have embarked on trade awareness program to educate the travel trade about the destination. We have also run consumer me-dia campaign and are happy with the response we are generating from the consum-ers. As a result we see Spain as a destination which is a brochure product with lead-ing tour operators and we are hopeful that others will follow as well,” says Miguel. Spain has 47 domestic and international airports and a wide range of hotels with in-ternational chains.

Spain has a variety of

cultures which are unique to each region, specially their local architecture, food, music and lifestyle. It is the second most mountainous country in Europe. “We be-lieve that India has great po-tential in terms of tourists who would want to experience Spain. For the coming year, we are going to focus on me-dia campaigning as part of our marketing plan,” he said. From MICE to leisure, Spain tourism is targeting every possible segment of poten-tial tourists in its endeavour to up the arrival figures.

Miguel Nieto

Taiwan hopes to see more visitors from India this year

vttJ desk

The Taiwan Tourism Board recently unveiled its new branding – with a contemporary slogan ‘Taiwan – the Heart of Asia’, complemented by a heart-shaped logo that has been designed to promote Taiwan as a destination with heart and most importantly – soul!

The Taiwan Tourism Board Director, K S Philip Chao and Rep-

resentative Taipei Economic & Cultural Centre, New Delhi, Wenchyi Ong were recently in the capital for a presenta-tion on how Taiwan scores as the region’s must-see desti-nation and the perfect family holiday spot for the Indian traveller.

Lying off the coast of East Asia and a mere six-hour flight from India, Taiwan is a beautiful, friendly island. The capital, Taipei, is a modern and hospitable city that pre-serves its traditional Chinese culture while providing all the modern amenities. In Taipei,

visitors find it easy to get around, bask in the pleasant climate and savour all kinds of Chinese and international cuisine — including authen-tic Indian food!

Tourism from India to Tai-wan is on the rise with visitor numbers from the Indian sub-continent registering a record growth. Statistics reveal that 23,849 Indians visited Taiwan in 2010, showing a growth of 30.66 percent over last year. In 2011, the number of for-eign visitors to the island is projected to grow to 6.5 mil-lion with Indians contributing significantly to that number.

Taiwan is also an ideal coun-try to visit with family as it has

natural beauty, theme parks and world-class museums. Taiwan’s attractions include Theme Parks such as Leo Foo Village and Window on China – A Miniature Park apart from the architecturally stunning Na-tional Palace Museum.

Wen-chyi Ong said, “We see India as a huge potential market for outbound tourism to Taiwan. We are increas-ing Taiwan’s presence on the travel landscape and through continued effort we want it to become a popular country to visit this year.”

He reiterated the safety of Taiwan as a destination, apart from the ease through which visas are made available to

Indians travelling to Taiwan. “We have made the process of obtaining a Taiwanese visa extremely simple. Our online facility permits passengers to obtain visas without any cost. Taiwan also has a visa-free

policy that permits people holding visas or citizenships to countries like Japan, USA, Canada, Europe, New Zea-land and Australia to enter Taiwan without a separate visa,” said Ong.

K S Philip Chao

March 2011 GRowInG ouTBounD44


Austrian tourism show-cases new attractions to Indian travellers

vPriyanka saxena

The Austrian National Tourist Office recently held its annual roadshow in three Indian cities – Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai from February 7 – 11, 2011. Comprising representatives from Vienna, Tirol, Swarovski Crystal Worlds and Innsbruck, the workshop was aimed at highlighting the various interesting facets of all the destinations.

As part of the delega-tion that conducted the three-city road-

show, various Austrian part-ners, comprising The Vienna Tourist Board, The Salzburg Tourist Office, The Innsbruck Tourism, Tirol Tourist Board, The Oetztal Tourism, Gastein Tourism, The Swarovski Crystal Worlds, The Mozart Orchestra, Pegasus Incom-ing, Panorama Tours and Austrian Railways, show-cased and highlighted the interesting activities that one can undertake in these des-tinations.

The year ahead is filled with activities in Vienna with summer ball nights and ample restaurant celebra-tions and festivals. Opening mid-April, the city will play the proud host to Madame Tussauds with 65 lifelike wax statues of various historic and popular personalities. Standing amidst them will be the humble statue of Mahat-ma Gandhi as well. Angelika Grzebyta from the Vienna Tourist Board outlined a list of other interesting activities that one could indulge in Vi-enna.

Moving on from heritage, Gunda Bleckmann from

Salzburg took everyone a lit-tle back in history by promis-ing an unforgettable ‘Sound of Music’ tour, which is a must for every tourist visiting the region. And if theatrics interest you, then the coming months will have many a city theatres showcasing music theatricals.

Not many of us would know that the mesmerising sights that caught our atten-tion in the recent Bollywood flick ‘Yuvraaj’ is not the Great Britain but Tirol, the lake cap-ital of Austria. As many as 70 Indian films have been shot in the region and after see-ing the presentation by Karin Roessier that talked about the 5 glaciers and 57 breath-

takingly beautiful lakes the region has, one was left is complete awe of the place.

Christiane Gasser from Swarovski Crystal Worlds and Nicholaus Boeckdrukker from Innsbruck Tourist Board too made brief presentations outlining the attractions that their districts have to offer. This was followed by an in-teresting presentation on Austrain Federal Railways (OBB), which is the national rail network of Austria. The OBB network offers con-venient overnight trains between Austria and other countries like Switzerland that helps a traveller not only to catch on his sleep but also saves on his hotel cost.

Continuing with their zealous efforts to perk up the tour-

ism figures, Korea Tourism is expecting arrivals from India to grow further this year with increased pro-motions and connectivity. “Korea recorded 86,000 Indian visitor arrivals in 2010, recording the growth of 19 per cent over the last year. We are aiming for 20 per cent growth in 2011 in terms of family travel, MICE, special interest tours and more,” said Lee.

South Korea has been one of the booming out-bound Asian markets this year and the market is growing in double digits. The Korea Tourism Or-ganisation is aiming at targeting segments such as MICE, leisure travel and honeymooners. KTO also has plans to attract Indian film makers as well.

“Korea is a shopper’s paradise. One can visit My-eongdong for latest fashion brands. Namdaemun Mar-ket and Dongdaemun Mar-ket serve all night and you can find great bargains. High quality electronics in

Korea is a great bargain for international visitor in Seoul at Yongsan and at centum city in Busan,” out-lined Lee, keeping in mind the shopaholic side of the Indians. As for Indian food, that too seems to be get-ting better with time. “You will find many Indian res-taurants in Seoul which offer good Indian cooked food. All price ranges offer a wide variety of flavours to suit all tastes and pockets. The popular Indian restau-rants are Ashoka Indian restaurant, Ganga Indian restaurant and TAJ restau-rant.

The board is also open to co-marketing cam-paigns with tour opera-tors and TV broadcasting agencies. Korea Tourism Organisation’s marketing strategy for 2011 would comprise FAM trips thrice a year, two of which will be held between March to June while one will be hosted during September to October. “We would be conducting road shows and participating in major travel fairs in addition to getting into co–marketing activities with the travel agencies,” he said.

On the visa front he said, “In India we have consulate offices in two cit-ies New Delhi and Mumbai. Korea visa takes 5 work-ing days to be processed. One has to provide their financial documents with the air tickets and itiner-ary details. Korea Tourism Organisation is trying their best to make the visa pro-cess easier for tourist.”

easy visas, good food & shopping invites you to korea

vPriyanka saxena

Thanks to the efforts of Korea Tourism Organisation, the region registered a high growth of Indian arrivals to South Korea in the year gone by. In terms of visitor arrivals, Korea welcomed an increase of 19 per cent visitors from India. TTJ chats up with Jae-Sang Lee, Director, Korea Tourism Organisation, to know about his plans for the current year.

Jae-Sang Lee

The Austrian delegation that came to India

March 2011 46


TRADelIne

kuoni launches extensive Indian Holiday Report 2011vMumbai Correspondent

Kuoni India recently announced the launch of the Kuoni Holiday Report 2011 in Mumbai. The report provides key insights into the psychology and behaviour of an Indian traveller before, during and after the holiday.

The report discovers important highlights with regard to eating

and spending habits, man-ners and etiquette, physical appearance and emotional behaviour, and also some interesting facts like holiday romance and friendships.

How do Indians pre-pare for a holiday? Do we change our culinary habits abroad? Or will the future holiday dream be flying to the moon? Kuoni’s Holiday Report 2011 reveals some facts like, women buy new clothes before a holiday (65%), men long for adven-ture and excitement (41%), and generally we shed our inhibitions while holidaying in the foreign land. Despite the

regional variations highlight-ed throughout the report, the research highlights the differ-ent behaviour of the Indians when away from home. Evad-ing all the barriers of day-to-day life, regular persona and stress, Indian holidaymak-ers divulge a complete new countenance while they are in holiday mood.

Kuoni’s Holiday Report 2011 asked 1011 Indian holi-daymakers from 25-65 years of age to give an overall and in-depth insight about their holiday behaviour. Kuoni commissioned Opinion Mat-ters to carry out independent research in November 2010 with a representative panel that goes on a holiday abroad at least once every year.

Zubin Karkaria, CEO and Managing Director, Kuoni India and South Asia, said, “Kuoni’s Holiday Report 2011 showcases interesting insights about the behav-iour of the Indian traveller. The report is an ideal way understanding the Indian holidaymakers. The report is beyond just statistics and focuses on a more personal and searching nature to un-derstand the psychology and behaviour of what actu-ally happens before, on and after a holiday.”

On the launch of the report Chef Sanjeev Kapoor said, “Eating and drinking is an in-trinsic part of any good holi-day. Food in India is synony-mous with luxury and leisure.

This report shares distinct and unique behaviour about Indians relating themselves to food during their holiday.

Enjoying and experimenting with a variety of delicacies is the most noticed attitude of the Indian traveller.”

(L-R): Sanjeev Kapoor and Zubin Karkaria

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March 2011 48


RAZZMATAZZ

now enjoy the luxuries of a new spa at the Met

the spanish delegation all set to woo indian public

The Metropolitan Hotel New Delhi (The Met), as part of its ongoing refurbishment, recently launched the luxurious NeoVeda Spa. To mark the event, The Met hosted a celebratory party that saw the who’s who of the travel industry and other noted personalities turn up for the event. The new Spa offers luxurious col-lection of time-tested ancient and traditional healing remedies and treatments whilst incorporating the latest international wellness trends to provide the guest an authentic and holistic experience.

In order to facilitate the growth further in outbound travel, the Spanish Tourism office recently arranged a trade show where 29 delegates, including regional tourism boards, hotels and tour operators met their counterparts in India to share their offerings and strike business deals. Tourism office of Spain had set up office in India six months ago to promote Spain as a destination in the India market.

March 2011 50


RAZZMATAZZ

stars shine down at Parkland exotica

Czech republic hosts a b2b cocktail dinner

Shahrukh Khan was recently spotted at Parkland Exotica hotel, Chattarpur Mandir road, for the second consecutive year and was seen happily mingling with the management of the Parkland Group. He was in the capital to attend IIPM’s quiz event DARE 2011. Amongst the people present were Arindham Choudhary, Dean, IIPM and Anish Gupta, MD, Parkland Group of Hotels.

After succesfully conducting opening presentation showcasing the Czech Republic for Indian travel trade, Czech Tourism continues to tap the Indian market. It recently hosted a special B2B cocktail dinner for the travel trade to give more space for business interaction and presentation of Czech companies. An at-tractive lucky draw offered by Pilsner Urquell, Ruckl Bohemia Crystal factory and vouchers for stay in Prague from Jerome travels, Conti Promoter and Vienna International hotels and resorts found the lucky winners and added a special touch to the event.


March 2011 52

Qatar airways prepares for capacity increase to Germany

Qatar Airways will launch additional flights to Frankfurt and Munich next month, together with the introduction of

services to Stuttgart – its fourth German gate-way. With two new weekly flights to Frankfurt, four additional services to Munich and the in-troduction of thrice-weekly flights to Stuttgart, the airline’s German frequency will rise from 24 to 33 flights a week. All the flights are non-stop to and from Doha, Qatar Airways’ operational hub. Services to Germany’s capital city Berlin remain at daily.

special offers for women travellers by Jet airways

Jet Airways will offer its women guests special benefits, fares and offers to commemorate In-ternational Women’s day. As part of the “Cel-

ebrating Womanhood” initiative, effective February 25 to March 31, 2011, every group with at least one woman traveller that makes a booking on the airline’s online destination namely www.jetairways.com, will enjoy a 5 percent discount on base fare and fuel surcharge (excluding taxes). A similar discount of 5 percent would also be available for booking done on all classes and on all routes operated by Jet Air-ways or Jet Airways’ Konnect service or JetLite.

starwood’s Middle east portfolio to grow 50% by 2015-end

Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. is strengthening its long estab-lished position in the Middle East as

one of the leading luxury hotel operators in the region with a portfolio of nearly 50 ex-isting hotels and a pipeline of 25 new ho-tels. This growth, primarily in the luxury and upper-upscale segments, represents an increase of nearly 50 percent. By 2015, the Middle East will become the second region, after North America, to operate all nine of Starwood’s world-class brands.

tune hotels greets a surplus of 1 million guests

Since opening the first hotel in Downtown Kuala Lumpur in 2007 and 11 others af-ter that, Tune Hotels has welcomed in

excess of one million guests. The hotel is offer-ing 50 percent off on any two nights booked in selected hotels in Malaysia and Bali, Indonesia for stays from February 27 to April 30, 2011. This deal will be applicable for the booking period from February 14 to 21, 2011 available exclusively online at www.tunehotels.com. The 50 percent off promo for two nights stay is the first of many regular promos that the hotel will be offering.

Mial revamps its official Csia website

Mumbai International Airport Pvt. Ltd. (MIAL) announced the launch of a revamped official website for Chha-

trapati Shivaji International Airport (CSIA) - www.csia.in. A key feature of the new web-site is the first of its kind Mobile Airport Portal application that visitors to the website can download on their smart phones to access flight schedules and other important airport information. The website will also enable visi-tors to request for sms and email updates of arriving and departing flights from the live Flight Information Display feature.

air arabia takes delivery of two new airbus aircrafts

Air Arabia announced that it has taken delivery of the third and fourth of 44 A320 aircraft it has ordered from Airbus.

The announcement also marks the first aircraft to be delivered by Airbus in 2011. Air Arabia took delivery of the third aircraft on January 6 and the fourth on January 31st, at the Airbus facility in Toulouse, France. With the delivery of the two new aircraft in January this year, Air Arabia global operating fleet has now reached 27 Airbus A320 aircraft. A total of six aircrafts are expected to be delivered in 2011. Once completed in 2016, the delivery of the 44 A320 aircraft will more than double the size of Air Arabia’s existing fleet, bringing the airline’s to-tal operating fleet to over 50 aircrafts.

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SHoRT TAKeS


for take offWhile many retain their diplomatic stance on the year that was, Kari Stolbow, Director – Indian Subcontinent, Finnair makes no pretence of the fact that the year that was, was “awful” for the airline, courtesy ash chaos, baggage handling issues and staff strike. But that hasn’t deterred the airline in its growth plan. Here’s a look at its strategy to turn losses into profit in the coming year.

“2007 was perhaps the last year when the aviation in-

dustry made profit. Though travelling was back on many people’s list of things, there were other natural hindranc-es that blocked the growth, such as the ash chaos, the cabin strike, baggage han-dling issues, etc. but we are keeping our fingers crossed for the present year,” said Kari.

In the year 2010, on all Finnair flights, 7.1 million passengers were carried,

which

was 4 per cent less than in 2009. As a result of the vol-canic eruption in Iceland, ash restricted flying in the spring, which, together with a cabin staff strike and a decline in leisure traffic, re-duced Finnair’s overall traf-fic by just under 4 per cent. European traffic declined by 2.5 per cent and domestic traffic by just over 4 per cent last year. Capacity was suc-cessfully reduced, however, to meet the fall in demand, so the load factor improved in all traffic.

On a positive note, the amount of

cargo carried by Finnair grew by 38 per cent in 2010. This impressive growth figure was mainly due to the cargo aircraft operations that be-gan in May, but also due to a pick-up in cargo demand, particularly in Asia.

Design is an important element of Finnair’s heritage, which has been apparent throughout the company’s history. Continuing with the same, Stefan Lindfors has been chosen to update the design on Finnair flights. “From how an aircraft is painted to our new logo, new uniforms, how announce-

ments should be

made in an aircraft, what kind of cutlery is served, etc, all these small details will be worked upon and finalised as per the instructions of the designer,” said Kari, adding, “There is nothing wrong with our existing identity, but we just feel it’s time to re-brand and re-position ourselves. We want to give the airline a fresh look. The first of the many aircraft has already been painted.”

Talking about the USP of the brand and what makes it stand apart from the rest, Kari said, “We firmly believe in delivering “peace of mind” of our business as well as lei-

sure traveller.”

Finnair launched direct flights between Delhi and Helsinki on October 30, 2006. The flights between Mumbai and Helsinki were launched on 27 June, 2007, but were temporarily sus-pended in March 2009. “The Delhi-Helsinki route looks promosing, especially now when the domestic carriers’ operations too have shifted to T3. It has made onward connections very easy for the traveller on Finnair as our flights land in the morn-ing, giving ample time to the passenger to find a suitable onward connection without the hassle of changing the terminal,” observed Kari.

vPriyanka saxena

March 2011 Coffee wITH TTJ54

Finnair buckles upWith new logo and new fleet,

Kari Stolbow

ttj_march_2011

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