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hotels - ddppl

GITB SPECIAL ISSUE_FINAL.qxp:TT Layout 4/17/2015 3:37 PM Page 1
TravTalkIndia.com
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A DDP PUBLICATION
ddppl.com
TravTalkIndia.com
A DDP PUBLICATION
Wanted: Safe & clean India FICCI to focus on inbound
Privatisation
of marketing
abroad
16%
Others
32%
had conducted a poll
14%
Tourist
Safety
asking the industry, “In addition
to Visa Online with ETA, which
10%
other steps will push tourism?”
28%
Foreseeing a similarity in
Clean India
NTB
replies, the following
formation
options were given,
including, tourist safety, Clean India,
formation of a National Tourism Board (NTB)
and the privatisation of Brand India marketing abroad. Nearly
60 per cent of the replies focused on tourist safety and a
clean India. The good news is that the recent government
initiatives such as tourist police and the Clean India
campaign are working towards making India a safe and
clean destination for tourists.
On becoming the President of FICCI, Jyotsna Suri says her
focus will now be to increase inbound and domestic tourism.
Hospitality), who has also
been appointed as President of
Federation of Indian Chambers
of Commerce and Industry
(FICCI), said her main
focus will be inbound and
domestic tourism.
Jyotsna Suri
India Travel Award Winner & President,FICCI
T T B U R E AU
yotsna Suri, Chairman &
Managing Director, Bharat
Hotels
(Lalit
Suri
J
“I see a lot
of
potential
in
domestic
tourism and
thus, at FICCI,
the focus will be
on promoting
inbound
as
well as pushing
domestic
tourism. Inbound has been a
challenge till now. However, with
the government’s new initiative
of the Visa Online, things will
be back on track soon,”
she revealed.
Contd. on page 44 GITB SPECIAL ISSUE_FINAL.qxp:TT Layout 4/17/2015 3:37 PM Page 4
4
NEWS
TRAVTALK GITB SPECIAL ISSUE-2015
Call it ‘e-Tourist Visa’ now Over 10K meetings@GITB
he Ministry of Home
Affairs has decided to
change the name of the
scheme ‘Tourist Visa on
Arrival-Electronic
Travel
Authorization’ to ‘e-Tourist
Visa’ (eTV).
T
The government of India
had launched ‘Tourist Visa on
Arrival enabled by Electronic
Travel Authorization’ (TVoAETA) on November 27, 2014
to 44 countries at nine airports to facilitate short duration international travellers.
Since the launch of the
scheme, 1,10,000 visas have
been issued by the government under this scheme.
It has been observed
that the name of the scheme
(TVoA-ETA) is creating confusion among tourists.
Tourists presumed as if the
Visa is being granted on
arrival, however in present
system the pre-authorization
of Visa to foreigners is being
given prior to travel. Ministry
of Home Affairs had also
received the requests of
name change from some
Indian embassies.
A committee of officers
from Ministry of Home Affairs,
Ministry of External Affairs
and Bureau of Immigration
was formed for formulation of
the new name. A contest was
also conducted inviting suggestions on the name.
Applicants of the eligible
countries may apply online
minimum 4 days in advance
of the date of arrival with a
window of 30 days.
Recent front facing photograph with white background
and photo page of Passport
with personal details
to be uploaded by the applicant. The application is
liable to be rejected if the
uploaded document and
photograph are not clear as
per specification.
The visa fee is US$ 60 per
passenger excluding interchange
charge
for
credit/debit cards. The fee
must be paid 4
days before the
expected date
of travel filled by
you otherwise
application
will not be
processed.
The
visa fee once
submitted is non-refundable.
Applicant should carry a copy
of ETA along with him/her at
the time of travel.
Biometric details of the
applicant will be mandatorily
captured at Immigration on
arrival in India.
The validity of visa will be 30
days from the date of arrival
in India.
The visa is allowed for a
maximum of two visits in a
calendar year.
The visa once issued is only
single entry, non-extendable,
non-convertible and not valid
for visiting Protected/
Restricted and Cantonment
Areas.
Applicants can track the status of their application online
by clicking visa status.
Please be careful while
making payment of the
visa fee. If the number
of unsuccessful attempts
is more than three, then
the Application ID would be
blocked and the applicant
would be required to
apply afresh.
Before re-applying, the
applicants are requested to
wait for 4 hours for payment status updating, after
final submission of the
application form and payment of the fee.
The seventh edition of the GITB this year at JECC Sitapur,
Jaipur, from April 19 to 21 will see 199 exhibitors occupying
251 booths and over 273 buyers from 46 countries.
M E G H A PAU L
n a remarkable milestone
achieved by the Great Indian
Travel Bazaar (GITB) this year,
10,012 meetings have already
been pre-scheduled for the two
days during GITB 2015. This
was revealed by Rahul
Chakravarty, Director- Tourism,
FICCI. The seventh edition of
the GITB this year, a joint initiative of the Federation of Indian
Chambers of Commerce and
Industry (FICCI); Ministry of
Tourism, Government of India;
and the Department of Tourism,
Government of Rajasthan, will
witness the presence of over
273 buyers from 46 countries.
The event is slated to
take place at JECC Sitapur,
Jaipur from April 19 to 21. The
sellers at the event will include
over ten state tourism boards,
travel and tour companies, and
hotels. In all, 199 exhibitors
occupying 251 booths will
display their products and
services at GITB.
I
GITB is returning to
Jaipur after a gap of one year.
Rahul Chakravarty
Director- Tourism
FICCI
As in the past, it will be actively
supported by the Indian
Heritage Hotel Association
(IHHA), Hotel & Restaurant
Association of Rajasthan
(HRAR) and Rajasthan
Association of Tour Operators
(RATO).
Quick Facts
GITB will witness the
presence of over 273
buyers from 46 countries
199 exhibitors occupying
251 booths will display
their products
FTAs surge by 5.3% in March 2015
Foreign Tourist Arrivals
(FTAs) during March 2015
were 7.30 lakh as compared
to FTAs of 6.93 lakh during
March 2014 and 6.40 lakh in
March 2013. There has been
a growth of 5.3% in March
2015 over March 2014. FTAs
during the period JanuaryMarch 2015 were 22.81 lakh
with a growth of 3.2%, as
compared to the FTAs of
22.10 lakh with a growth of
7.9% in January-March 2014
over January-March 2013.
6
AGENTS
Improve tourist amenities in India
HS Duggal, Managing Director, Minar Travels (India), says that while the Visa Online facility will boost inbound tourism,
biometrics is a big handicap as tourists who want to travel to India do not necessarily stay in the cities which have these
facilities. So, to save tourists the trouble of travelling for biometrics, the govt should allow them to be done in India.
TT B U R E AU
With the new Visa
Q
Online facility, how
is the inbound business
looking for 2015?
The Visa Online facilities
announced by the Government
has been a welcome step. In
fact this demand by the travel
trade was pending with authorities for a long time and as the
saying goes, ‘Better late than
never’. The tourist arrivals have
gone up ever since this facility
was granted to many countries.
Business from inbound tourism
should increase in this year.
Q
Which countries do
you think should get
Visa Online facility next,
and why?
Now that summer has
started, the government should
go ahead and announce Visa
Online facility for Italy, Spain
,Portugal, France, UK and Iran.
These countries contribute a
big volume of tourist to India
and this will be our gain if Visa
Online facilities from these
countries are announced at the
earliest. UK is our Number 2
source market and the numbers are bound to increase if
Visa Online facilities are
approved for UK. Similarly
France, which is not included
in the list deserves to be included. To reach the target of 1%
tourism of the world share
there is a need to look at new
markets. One
such market is
Iran which is
growing good.
The biometrics
is a big handicap as people
in their countries do not stay
in the cities
To sustain growth in the travel
and tourism industry, trained
manpower/ workforce is
required at every level.
We also have a demandsupply mismatch with
respect to manpower.
HS Duggal
Managing Director, Minar
Travels (India)
which have these facilities and
shy away from applying for
Indian Visa. Even if Visa Online
for all countries is not possible,
the government should allow
biometrics to be done in India.
buyers, it gives these agents
an opportunity to see India.
Care has to be taken not to
invite ticketing agents and
those selling hotel rooms.
Many buyers come who are
not decision makers.
How helpful is an
Qexhibition
like GITB?
What is your major
Q
concern for Indian
tourism?
The trade exhibitions are
always a good source of networking. And once the foreign
tour operators have an opportunity to visit India as hosted
Amenities available at
various tourist locations and en
route need to be improved.
These include basic amenities
such as drinking water, wellmaintained and clean waiting
rooms and toilets, first aid and
wayside amenities (to meet the
requirement of the tourists travelling to tourist destinations)
such as lounge, cafeteria, and
parking facilities. Swachh
Bharat needs to be strictly
enforced in and around all
tourist interest areas.
Availability of skilled manpower is a major challenge
faced by the travel and tourism
industry, one of the largest
employment generators in the
country, directly and indirectly.
To sustain growth in the travel
and tourism industry, trained
manpower/ workforce is
required at every level. We also
have a demand-supply mismatch with respect to manpower in the travel and tourism and
hospitality sector in India. A
study conducted by the Ministry
of Tourism suggests that the
existing supply of human
resources do not cater to even
40% of the demand. Thus, the
industry has no alternative but
to fill the void with untrained
resources. Such a high proportion of untrained manpower
would adversely affect quality of
services offered to the tourists.
What should be the
Q
focus areas of the
New Tourism Policy ?
The New Tourism Policy
should aim at making the stay
of foreign tourists in India safe,
memorable and a pleasant one
with reliable services at affordable costs, so that they are
encouraged to undertake
repeated visits to India, as
friends. This would be in tune
with India's traditional philosophy of giving the highest honour to a guest (Atithi Devo
Bhava). The government
needs to start aggressive campaign for the general public on
how to respect and honor
tourists and how locals are
benefitted from tourism. In a
nutshell it’s time to start efforts
to change the mindset of an
Indian towards tourists - foreigner and domestic.
8
EXHIBITION
Exploring UP’s vast tourism potential
The recently-concluded first edition of Uttar Pradesh Travel Mart (UPTM) held at Lucknow, has testified the Akhilesh Yadav
Government’s commitment towards furthering the growth of tourism in the state.
asks delegates whether the mart
has succeeded in highlighting the state 'beyond Taj’, in view of the recently launched Heritage Arch tourism scheme.
A NIL M ATHUR
FROM
L UCKNOW
ttar Pradesh Government
in partnership with FICCI
organised the first edition
of Uttar Pradesh Travel Mart
(UPTM) from February
U
22-24, 2015 at Lucknow. The
inaugural address by Chief
Minister Akhilesh Yadav
clearly testified the commitment
the state has towards furthering
The first such venture in UP was
the concept of the Chief
Minister, and FICCI takes pride
in partnering for it. The focus is
now on UP and I hope that
the delegates would take
back memories as fragrant
as the flowers.
for two days with the sellers of
tourism products of Uttar
Pradesh. Pointing out that UP
has diverse attractions, such as
monuments, rivers and wildlife,
Yadav predicted that the full
impact of the infrastructure and
the growth of tourism. 75 fully
hosted top of the line Foreign
Tour Operators from across the
globe and 70 leading tour operators, inbound and domestic,
participated in the pre-scheduled structured B2B meetings
There are diverse attractions in Uttar Pradesh
including
historical
places, potential for
MICE and eco-tourism.
other development works would
be felt in two years’ time. A high
point of the mart was the mesmerising Wajid Ali Shah period
show, Indrasabha, curated by
film maker and Lucknow-lover
Muzaffar Ali at the historic The
Residency. The choice of the
famed La Martiniere for the
grand opening function, complete with dance and music,
gathered much appreciation
from both domestic and international delegates.
The infrastructure in the state is
being developed, with Metro and
other plans and this mart is a pioneering effort in that direction. There
were some logistics issues faced as
it was the first time we had conducted this. By next year, the mart will
get more streamlined.
Amrit Abhijat
Secretary Tourism and
Director General Tourism,
Uttar Pradesh
Alok Ranjan
UP Chief Secretary
Dr Jyotsna Suri
India Travel Award Winner & President, FICCI
There is a need for better connectivity to promote tourism and
proper branding of the product
should be done. The 3Cs-Culture, Craft and Cuisine- of
Lucknow should also be promoted, along with the Nawabi image
and Chikankari work.
Some of the recent attractions
that have come up in Lucknow
would become popular with
tourists in years to come. The
needs and requirements of the
domestic tour operators
should be taken into consideration.
Surendra Jaiswal
President, Uttar Pradesh Hotel and Restaurant Association
Sudhir Patil
Founder Director, Veena World
The UP Govt. and FICCI must
be appreciated for organising
the mart. We have been promoting the Kanpur-Lucknow
area for several years. Top
Travels promoted the wide
range of packages in wildlife
and other areas among the UK,
Turkey, and Myanmar delegates. Next year also the mart should be held in Lucknow,
as Agra and Varanasi are already exposed.
Ranjan Jain
General Manager, Top Travels
I met buyers from several
countries who showed interest
in HHI properties. The event
was a success overall, however, I hope it will be better
next year.
Vishvjeet Singh
Founder Director, Veena World
The mart was a good start and
Lucknow deserved it. Muzaffar
Ali and his team have done a
lot for Lucknow and other
areas through the Kotwara
Initiatives, by promoting cuisine, culture and crafts.
Shoba Mohan
Founder & Partner, RARE Destination Experiences
I got my first such exposure in
UPTM and promoted the
Dudhwa resort among buyers
from Latvia, Sweden, Mongolia.
I could also promote three of our
properties.
Akhil Anand
Group Head, Tree of Life Resorts
and Hotels
The concept of Heritage Arch
is interesting and has good
potential. Better connectivity,
with Yamuna Expressway and
Shatabdis, are positive developments. I met over 25 buyers
from Mongolia, Russia, Hong
Kong, among other countries.
The event in Lucknow was
good for a first time but I hope for better logistics next year.
Amit Prasad
COO, Go India Journeys
The vision of the CM had been
given a shape at the mart. The
message was clear-- UP is
much more than the Taj or the
Ghats. Dudhwa wildlife,
Chambal safari, Lion Safari at
Etawah and the rich history of
Lucknow needed to be told.
With better connectivity, business and leisure traffic will
increase, as the city has several hospitals, pharmaceutical
companies and movie shootings sights.
Rahul Chakraborty
Director Tourism, FICCI
Rahul Sharma
GM, La Place Sarovar Portico
We promoted Walking and Culinary Tours of
Lucknow to the buyers who came from across the
world to attend the mart. We have got a positive
response from the delegates.
Prateek Hira
President and CEO, TORNOS
The Residency must be promoted
more to attract tourists. We have
renovated the hotel rooms to prepare for increased domestic and
international arrivals here.
Col KK Manglik (Rtd.)
Vice President, Hotel Clarks Avadh,
Lucknow
AGENTS
GITB SPECIAL ISSUE - 2015
TRAVTALK
9
RARE Destinations is raring to go!
RARE Destinations & Experiences has managed to stay ahead of the competition. Shoba Mohan, Founder & Partner,
RARE Destinations & Experiences tells what made them take this initiative and the uniqueness of her company.
T T B U R E AU
RARE recently comQ
pleted 11 years. How
has the journey been?
I have covered the journey until now feeling that I am
doing exactly what I love to do.
I and my partner, Sowmya
make a great team. Along came
other members of the team who
are as passionate about
RARE as we are. We reach out
to travellers and trades alike
who have always been excited
partners reaching out to promote our concepts and
acknowledge our initiatives.
What made you take
Qthis
initiative?
Early in my life I had the
opportunity to travel and stay
in all kinds of places. My eyes
lit up at the opportunity to
experience everything outside
Shoba Mohan
Founder & Partner
RARE Destinations & Experiences
my comfort zone. Bhuwan
Kumari of The Cottage in
Jeolikot told me about her
childhood dream of owning a
red roofed cottage in the hills.
I kept weaving Bhuwan’s story
with my own sense of romance
and hen in 2004 I was
approached by Churhat Kothi
to handle their marketing and
reservations, I believe my passion wed my destiny and the
seeds for RARE were sown.
Tell us about the
Qpartners
of RARE.
All our partners are owners of small boutique and niche
concept hotels, palaces,
camps, retreats and lodges. We
believe that ‘it’s about the people’, their endeavours and their
stories of grit, commitment,
passion and resilience which is
what makes each RARE hotel
a unique experience. Each
hotel is unique and is a manifestation of the owners character and interest.hence we have
Belind Wright of Kipling Camp,
Meera and Muzaffar Ali powering Kotwara and its myriad initiatives, the winsome Lakshmy
the savvy owner of Anantya,
Jai the charismatic owner
of Shahpura Bagh, Joanna
and Raghu hosts at Sarai at
Toria, Harsh of Chhatra Sagar
and so on.
Tell us about the
Ladakh properties
which has come on
board recently.
Q
We have three properties
in Ladakh, set in three different
locations and representing three
different concepts. While Stok
Palace is a small key palace
hotel belonging to Ladakh’s roy-
alty, Nimmu House is an ancient
Ladakhi village house with conservation of architecture and
culture as its core. The Ultimate
Travelling Camp’s Chamba
Camp on the other hand is
located in the shadows of the
Thiksey monastery is one of
India’s best camping concepts
offering premium and luxury
accommodation in Ladakh complete with custom made tents,
furniture and amenities.
What kind of compeQtition
do you face?
Till date we have kept our
concept and delivery unique
and we have also been lucky
that the kind of people who
wish to place their hotels under
the RARE umbrella aim for the
niche rather than the mass.
However, there are companies
that offer both online and
offline sales support and very
soon we will also have to begin
to promote our hotels online to
carry the RARE stories to a
larger audience.
Would you like to
Q
share anything else
about RARE?
With our latest alliance
with Secret Retreats, we
endeavour to jointly become
the largest collection of small
and boutique hotels and home
stay in Asia.
10
INDIA TRAVEL AWARDS
Motivating the regional tourism stars
India Travel Awards recognises and encourages the powerhouse of talent across the country and has put the spotlight
on deserving tourism stars.
speaks to some of the award winners to share their moment of pride.
Udaan India
Alliance Hotels & Resorts
To have awards for the travel industry is a fantastic
idea. It gives a lot of encouragement. We keep
watching film awards all the time but nothing for
travel. But now we have something for our own
field and fraternity.
I am glad to receive this award, especially which is organised by
such a reputed publication house. It is a good system that has been
started by SanJeet which also focusses on low profile business
people who otherwise don’t get the deserved recognition. This unique
initiative will help everyone from each region to bring out the best
for the whole country.
Rajan Dua
Managing Director
Zia Siddiqui
CEO
STIC Travels
Cox & Kings
I think India Travel Awards is a great initiative. This
is happening for the first time particularly for a
specific region. It is motivating for all the travel
companies and we look forward to have this
every year.
We believe that these initiatives are good and we heartily welcome
it. It encourages the travel industry and it is important to have
awards for all regions. India is a huge country and while limiting
ourselves to national level is not good. Region wise a lot more
travel agents can participate in the awards.
Praful Khosla
Thomas C Thottathil
AVP-Corporate Communications & CSR
Head of Sales-India
Tulsidas Khimji Holidays
Sunderbans Tiger Camp
This is a great initiative by India Travel Awards. Western
circuit has a lot of potential especially with Goa,
Aurangabad, Mumbai and also Gujarat and Rajasthan
falling under it. The Konkan Bed is increasing and so is
the tourism initiative.
The India Travel Awards East is a very good initiative it being held
for the first time. It gives boost to the tourism industry and it will
also bring in a new level of luxury to actually be recognised all
over India.
Jay Bhatia
Director
Akanksha Garg Dewan
Director
Novotel Kolkata Hotel
Vasundhara Sarovar Premiere
This is probably one of the best that could happen for East
India as this region is a natural wonder. It has been
neglected because the pride is most of the time taken by
rest of India. So, now we also have got an opportunity to
shine and this gives an insight to shine and probably a lot
more which we actually deserve.
We feel so proud after getting India Travel Award. We became the
number only six months after we opened. So getting an award
makes us very happy and encourages us to keep up the hard
work.
Dr P Vasudevan
Managing Director
Jai Kishan
General Manager
Clarks Exotica Resorts & Spa
Mystifly Consulting (India)
It feels great after getting award, especially when all your
hard work is recognized under such a big platform. With
so many international Five Star chains coming up day by
day and competition rising, the award tells us about our
potential and where we can position ourselves.
The award gives us an opportunity to recognise the
entrepreneurship in every part of India. I think awards are mostly
held for whole India but when all regions are given equal
recognition it’s really good to see. This brings an opportunity for
all in the travel industry to bring into limelight what they have done
and contributed for the trade.
M Balaji
Rajeev Kumar G
CEO
Founder, MD & CEO
Just Holidays
India Travel Awards (ITA) has done an
excellent job. I am grateful to it. It will
definitely motivate and recognise the
efficiency of our juniors and make
them work harder. This will also
increase the capacity of the company.
Go Explore
I think the award happening for a specific region is an awesome
idea. It is a huge nation and it’s not fair that only one region gets
recognised. Everyone should get a due share of recognition. North
India is a good market and so many new companies are emerging
here. Ours is just a two and a half years old company and getting
an award on such a big platform is a huge achievement.
Shyam Sunder Agarwal
Shalini Dugar
Director
Managing Director
INDIA TRAVEL AWARDS
TRAVTALK
11
Kudos to best among business hotels
India Travel Awards honours the best of business hotels in the country to recognise the hardwork and
professionalism that goes behind the making of the ultimate giants of the hospitality industry.
features
top four Business Hotels from South, West, East and North regions in India.
South India Travel Awards
West India Travel Awards
Radisson Blu Plaza Hotel Hyderabad Banjara Hills was awarded the Best Business Hotel in South and the
award was received by its General Manager, Rajneesh Malhotra
The award for western region was given to Novotel Pune and received by its General Manager,
Bandish Mehta
East India Travel Awards
North India Travel Awards
The Peerless Inn, Kolkata was awarded Best Business Hotel in eastern region and the award was received by
its Regional House Keeper (East), Sweta Bhaduri and F&B Manager, Imran Siddiquee
Radisson Blu Hotel, New Delhi, Paschim Vihar got the Best Business Hotel award for northern region and
it was received by its General Manager, Barun Jolly
12
HOTELS
Lord of mid-market hotels Fortune Park enters Rajkot
With 24 operational properties currently, Lords Hotels & Resorts is Reflecting the commitment to enhance their presence in Gujarat, the
opening at least five new properties this year. The hotels are coming Fortune Park JPS Grand, Rajkot, is the second hotel to be launched
up in regions such as Jodhpur, Sanga in Nepal, Agra and Jammu. by the Fortune Park Hotels in the state in a span of 15 days.
T T B U R E AU
ords Hotels & Resorts, a
mid-market hotel management company based in New
Delhi, is looking at opening five
new properties this year. The
hotels are coming up in regions
such as Jodhpur, Sanga in
Nepal, Agra and Jammu. This
was revealed by Rishi Puri,
Vice President, Lords Hotels &
Resorts. “These are confirmed
openings and we do expect
some more to be commissioned this year itself as we are
in advanced stages of discussion with more property owners,” he said.
Here it is of paramount importance that we also own hotels
apart from managing third-party
hotels. This gives us a unique
edge over others as we understand both sides of the picture
and also understand the pressures that owners go through.”
L
Talking about the USP of
the hotel brand, Puri said, “We
take pride in calling ourselves
Rishi Puri
Vice President
Lords Hotels & Resorts
‘True Value Hotels’ offering all
star property comfort at most
competitive price points. Most
of our properties are near major
commercial zones and religious
circuits in Tier-II markets ensuring regular business for our
properties year round. Our overheads are much
lower and offer
higher return on
investment for
our hotel owners. This translates to a winwin proposition
for both owners
and operators.
About new trends, Puri
affirmed, “The hospitality industry is truly becoming globalised
with the onset of e-markets. We
have domestic travellers, which
comprise business, religious
and leisure travel. In all these
segments, there has been phenomenal increase in both the
demand and supply. In addition,
Visa Online with ETA and other
decisions being taken by the
government is boosting
inbound tourism. With these
changes we look forward to
greater demand for mid-market
hotels like ours. Social media
marketing has become a must.
The group currently operates in
four categories –Lords Plaza,
Lords Resorts, Lords Inn
and Lords Eco Inn (two-star).
It has 24 operational hotels,
he informed.
T T B U R E AU
ortune Park Hotels
expanded its bouquet of
hotels with the opening of the
brand’s 46th hotel, ‘Fortune
Park JPS Grand’ in Rajkot.
F
Railway Station. The hotel provides a perfect blend of comfort and elegance in an environment that is suited to the
needs of both, the business
and leisure traveller.
Commenting on the
launch, Suresh Kumar,
Managing Director, Fortune
Park Hotels, said, “Launching
two hotels in Gujarat in Dahej
and Rajkot respectively, in a
span of 15 days shows our
commitment to enhance our
presence in this vibrant and
dynamic state. We are
extremely happy to announce
Suresh Kumar
Managing Director
Fortune Park Hotels
Owned by JP Inn, Fortune
Park JPS Grand is conveniently located on the 150 feet
Ring Road in the prime industrial and urban area of the city
with easy access to all major
attractions in and around
Rajkot. It is just 6 km away
from the Domestic Airport in
Rajkot and 7 km from the
Fortune Park JPS Grand in
Rajkot, which would be the
46th hotel under the brand in
the country and 5th hotel in
the state itself.”
Other offerings at
the hotel include a 24x7 business centre, swimming pool
and Wellness Centre with
spa and a well-equipped
gymnasium. The hotel
also offers state-of-the-art
meeting and banquet facilities
that can accommodate
up to 450 guests, in
addition to a pool-side venue
for up to 80 pax.
In the Offing
Dining options at the hotel include ‘Rainbow’, an
exclusive vegetarian restaurant serving cuisines from
around the world and ‘Orchid’, multi-cuisine restaurant
with all day dining
56 Standard Rooms, 18 Fortune Club Rooms and
3 Suites
Fortune hotels in Gujarat now stands at five with hotels
in Rajkot, Ahmedabad, Dahej, Gandhinagar and Vapi
14
AGENTS
TUTC ‘glamps’ it up
Cruises on high tide
As the first truly mobile luxury camps in India covering a calendar With a rise in demand for river cruises from the domestic market,
of destinations and festivals, The Ultimate Travelling Camp lives Brahmaputra Cruise has shifted gears to even out its focus on
up to its name. Indians are fast picking up this product.
India as well as the international market.
of the Himalayas, raft down the
river Indus, watch a game of
polo, picnic in picturesque
spots, celebrate tribal hues at
the Hornbill Festival, explore
quaint tribal Naga villages, or
simply curl up in their tent.”
TT BUREAU
his nomadic super-luxury
camp – The Ultimate
Travelling Camp (TUTC) –
introduces the discerning traveller to different adventures in
carefully selected exceptional
locations in the mountains,
deserts, jungles and unexplored countryside. The first
truly mobile luxury camps in
India covering a calendar of
destinations and festivals.
T
It enables tourists to
experience the many moods of
exotic India with its dramatic
landscapes, rustic and unexplored rural surroundings.
Explaining the kind of
experience that the company
offers, Rajnish Sabharwal,
Rajnish Sabharwal
COO, TUTC
India is ready for
luxurious
glamping
holidays and we
at TUTC have
pioneered the
concept in India
COO of TUTC,
says,
“Our
packages
allow
our
clients to rediscover themselves, meet
the gurus from
the far reaches
Sabharwal talks about
how he sees the inbound and
domestic market developing
this year and says, “We see
inbound business picking up in
the next season whereas the
domestic business is growing
at a healthy pace. India is
ready for luxurious glamping
holidays and we at TUTC have
pioneered the concept.”
It is promoting its camps
in Ladakh with packages from
three-nights up to five nights.
The package price per person
per day on double occupancy
starts at Rs 58,999. A
Presidential Suite costs
upwards of Rs 65,999.
Sabharwal says, “We promote
our luxury mobile tents in
Europe, USA, Middle East
and India. We promote it
through the travel trade in
India and overseas.”
to three nights at a lower price
and continue the rest of the journey by road. “This way they are
able to cover more places in
northeast India with a mixed
flavour,” Borah says.
TT BUREAU
rahmaputra Cruise Private
Limited (BCPL) has long
been associated with the river
Brahmaputra in many ways. It
has worked with different government organizations like the
IWAI (Inland Water Authority of
India), MPSO (Minor Ports
Survey Organization) Mumbai,
and RITES for hydrographic
surveys, for supply of vessels
and logistical support for channel maintenance and other
things on the river.
B
Speaking about market
- inbound and domestic Debajit Kr Borah, Director,
BCPL says, “There has been
an increase in both domestic
and foreign tourists this year.
More than that, there has
been a rise in queries for
cruises on the Brahmaputra
from domestic segment. The
domestic tourists are showing
an increasing amount of interest in the cruises because of
the information that is readily
available to them. Earlier, the
interest was more for short
distance cruises but now the
Debajit Kr Borah
Director, BCPL
We also do FAM
trips and provide
good charter
rates for our
vessels to
tour operators
domestic tourist is also looking for long cruises of five to
seven nights.” He says that
while demand was earlier limited to high-end tourists who
would cruise for seven to 10 or
more nights, a new trend is
developing where a medium to
budget foreign traveller would
like to do a short cruise of two
As a result of this change
in balance between the Indian
and international tourists the
company has accordingly
adjusted its focus. “Earlier we
had been concentrating more
on international market but from
this year we are planning to give
equal importance to the domestic market. We believe that every
domestic tourist coming to the
northeast should have at least
a night’s spend on the
Brahmaputra,” he adds. BCPL
is now planning road shows in
all major cities of India with the
help of the tourism department
of Assam. “We also do FAM
trips and provide good
charter rates for our vessels to
foreign as well as Indian tour
operators. We are always open
to tie-ups with new companies
who are serious about
developing tourism in northeast
India, particularly Assam,”
Borah adds.
16
HOTELS
More than jüSTa hotel
Far away from the crowd
jüSTa Hotels & Resorts is expanding in India. Rohit Katyal, Head The Radisson Blu Hotel Rudrapur has positioned itself as the
of Sales & Marketing – NCR, jüSTa Hotels & Resorts, tells about best business hotel with an enormous growth potential, says
the new initiatives and the expansion plans of the group.
Narender Pathania, GM, Radisson Blu Hotel Rudrapur.
Q
What kind of competition are you facing?
TT BUREAU
Q
What are your upcoming ventures?
We are in the process of
expanding our footprint in the
leisure destinations. Our focus
in Rajasthan continues. We are
also looking to move to
Himachal Pradesh and
Uttarakhand. Tier II towns offer
value and opportunity, we are
actively pursuing these markets in Indore, Lucknow,
Nagpur, Ahmedabad etc.
Q
What is the main USP
of your properties?
We believe in the concept of small luxury hotels. At
jüSTa hotels, warm invitation
of Indian hospitality meets
international standards of luxury. The experience is further
Rohit Katyal
Head of Sales & Marketing – NCR
jüSTa Hotels & Resorts
enhanced
by
Deepika
Govind's hand crafted design
for each jüSTa property. We
believe in individualised service. Therefore, each of our
hotels has less than 50 rooms.
Q
Are you planning to
open new properties?
We are in the process of
adding
two
properties in
Rajasthan by
the end of 2015.
We will add one
property
in
either Himachal
Pradesh
or
Uttarakhand by
the end of 2015.
The past couple of years
have not been good for the
economy and capacities have
increased across the board.
The unorganised sector has
mushroomed, with a host of
B&B options in the cities. The
leisure locations have seen a
hit in traffic as well. We recently
launched a 14 room luxury
place called, Cabanas by
Justa@Bay15. The pressure of
rates is putting a lot of stress
on margins. The costs of every
aspect have gone up in the
past few years but the markets
have not kept pace.
Q
What are the MICE
facilities you provide?
Ours are small hotels, so
we cater to only niche groups
in this space. We have recently launched ‘The Jehan’ in
Delhi. It’s a unique centre
spread over 12 acres with
over 28,000 square feet of
pillar-less air conditioned
banqueting and over four
acres of green open space,
customised to host over
15,000 participants.
TT BUREAU
deally situated at the crossroads of the Delhi-Nainital
and Khatima-Panipat highways, the Radisson Blu Hotel
Rudrapur stands out among
hotels near intriguing Rudrapur
attractions. Families on holiday
or business travellers who
want to explore the area can
easily access Uttarakhand
temples, hill stations and Jim
Corbett National Park.
I
Talking about the USP of
the property, Narender
Pathania, General Manager,
Radisson Blu Hotel Rudrapur
said, “The Radisson Blu Hotel
Rudrapur offers a selection of
premium venues for both cor-
Narender Pathania
General Manager
Radisson Blu Hotel Rudrapur
porate and personal events.
From meetings to marriages,
the hotel can customise the
well-designed meeting rooms
and banquet halls to suit
guests' needs. Radisson Blu
has positioned itself as the
best business hotel in the hos-
pitality industry with an enormous growth potential. It is situated in the state’s industrial
hub of Sidcul. The place is also
known as the ‘corridor of the
Kumaon’ region.” Radisson
Rudrapur’s USP is its impressive features, which include
onsite dining, spa, fitness centre along with a refreshing outdoor pool, he added.
Regarding occupancy
levels and existing ARRS,
he pointed out, “The industry
occupancy levels have witnessed improvement in the current fiscal. Occupancy levels for
2015 will approach exceptional
growth. The current ARR is
around 4200.”
18
HOTELS
Solace amidst city life
Appealing to the senses
Colonel’s Retreat, located in the heart of South Delhi, is a favourite The Bijolai Palace hotel in Jodhpur charms Indian and international
with business travellers and foreign tourists. Suman Khanna, Director, travellers. Keeping this in mind, it has launched attractive deals not
Colonel’s Retreat, talks about why the place is special.
just for consumers but the travel trade and their families as well.
T T B U R E AU
T T B U R E AU
Tell us about the special offers and packages that you provide?
Q
We have reduced rates in
the lean season. We feel we
offer excellent value and do not
offer any special packages during the rest of the year.
would you say
QisWhat
your USP?
Personal interaction with
guests and attention to detail
sets us apart. We have an excellent product at superb value.
What kind of competition do you face in
the market?
Q
Suman Khanna
Director, Colonel’s Retreat
he Bijolai Palace is a
charming hotel which was
an erstwhile hunting lodge of
Maharaja Gaj Singh of Jodhpur
which was later gifted to
his NGO Jal Bhagirathi
Foundation. Treehouse Hotels
took over the palace on a longterm lease in December 2014
from Jal Bhagirathi Foundation
and has since then been
actively promoting it in the travel trade.
T
In the current hotel scenario with rates for large hotels
dropping and a surfeit of supply
available, the
pressure on
rates is severe.
However, we
are able to hold
our own as our
focus at this
point of time is
to raise the
quality of our
product even higher to keep
ahead of the competition.
Do you also book
Q
tours for other parts
of India?
No we do not do tours but
we do sell our 100-year-old
heritage property in Srinagar
quite actively. Bread and
Breakfast (B&B) owners interact directly with guests on a
daily basis and can provide
immediate answers and inputs
to the guests about the city
they are visiting. In addition,
B&B owners can provide real
time information about the city
they are based in to the authorities as well. If tourism authorities want immediate feedback
there is no better resource than
the B&B owner.
Richa Khurana Singh,
Executive Vice President,
Treehouse Hotels, talks about
the segments it caters to. “The
hotel is geared to cater to all
segments. By virtue of its stunning backdrop of a private lake,
it makes for a beautiful theme
wedding. Our international
guests, besides enjoying the
hotel, also love our focus on
responsible tourism and like to
go through the experience of
the ‘water walk’ which tells
them how the old methods of
water harvesting are being
deployed to ensure that water
is being conserved. Besides
being a getaway for families,
the hotel also caters to corporates for meetings. Some interesting conferences also happen on the hillock surrounding
the hotel or on the rooftop overlooking the lake,” she adds.
Richa Khurana Singh
Executive Vice President
Treehouse Hotels
She believes that the
best way to experience the
hotel and promote it is by
exposing them to the maximum number of people. “We
have rolled out special offers
for friends and families of our
travel trade partners. We welcome our friends and their fam-
ilies in travel trade to connect
with us and experience the
hotel,” Singh says.
Besides this, Bijolai
Palace is actively soliciting and
contracting with the DMCs
especially for brochures,
domestic leisure, MICE and
wedding planners. It will also
be participating in travel trade
fairs, the closest one being
GITB in Jaipur and later at the
domestic fairs in India. The
team will also be using social
media and digital platforms to
promote the hotel and will be
looking at some brand
alliances.
Speaking about the
growing market, Singh says,
“There seems to be
some cheer with the US and
some European markets
showing signs of revival. With
the Visa Online, we are hoping
to see more visitors from
these countries as well.
The exciting part remains
the domestic market with a
lot of Indians travelling to see
newer places.”
20
ASSOCIATIONS
Conserve the past for the future
Yogesh Srivastav, Director, PHD Chamber, says the discussions at the 4th India Heritage Tourism Conclave aimed at
promoting and propagating Indian heritage potential for both domestic as well as international tourism communities.
PEDEN DOMA BHUTIA
What was the outQ
come of the Heritage
Tourism Conclave?
The Conclave was very
well carried out. The detailed
discussions and deliberations
by senior government representatives and industry experts
have been submitted to the
Ministry of Tourism by way of
recommendations from the
PHD Chamber of Commerce
and Industry for their consideration and for any further necessary action.
What were the takeQ
aways from the
event?
The discussions at the
Conclave aimed at promoting
and propagating Indian her-
itage potential not only to
domestic tourists but also to
international tourism communities. We are hopeful that the
concerned agencies will work
towards proper upliftment of
heritage prides to attract foreign tourists in India.
What is the road
Q
ahead for heritage
tourism in India?
The Ministry of Tourism
has so far done a commendable
job in promoting Indian heritage
in
overseas
markets.
Future endeavours must be
focused to tap less inclined
tourism markets by showcasing
the Indian heritage treasure
through workshops and various
branding opportunities.
Indian heritage, it is imperative
to make a collective approach
both by public and private
agencies. The funding, management, strategies, etc
should be pooled in under
Public Private Partnership
mode and laid down in the
existing policy of the Ministry
of Tourism.
For the successful conservation of Indian
heritage, it is imperative to make a collective approach both by public and private
agencies. The funding, management,
strategies, etc should be pooled in under
Public Private Partnership mode and laid down
in the existing policy of the Ministry of Tourism
Yogesh Srivastav
How can
What is the relation
Q
we syner- Q between heritage
gise public conservation
and
and private
parties for the
conservation
of our heritage?
For the
successful conservation of
tourism?
Heritage conservation
and tourism go hand in hand.
Conserving and preserving heritage will attract more and more
tourists. Heritage tourism offers
a wide variety of interests to the
tourists belonging to diverse
Director, PHD Chambers
region, age, demographic
dividend since heritage details
the history of different forms
of our nation.
What are the chalQ
lenges in preserving
Indian heritage?
The government is
undoubtedly facing challenges
in preserving its heritage
prides. We need to overcome
challenges like planning, regulating and implementing regulations in the built environment along with well defined
statements of significance in
many sites.
How can we build
Q
and conserve new
heritage?
To continue with the current momentum of the
Indian tourism industry, it is
needed to develop and preserve not only newer heritage
sites but also different forms
of heritage like music,
cuisines, dance, fashion,
culture, values, etc. by
way of developing advocacy
efforts, expanding education
and public knowledge, building visibility, streamlining
services, and Identifying
and protecting historic
properties.
22
STATISTICS
The growth story of FTAs in India
The Foreign Tourist Arrivals (FTAs) to India has grown in the last many years. The FTAs to India grew by 7.1 per
cent during January to November 2014 over the corresponding period of 2013. FTAs during the period JanuaryNovember 2014 were 65.85 lakh. And now with the Visa Online facility we expect these numbers to grow significantly.
T T B U R E AU
Percentage share of Top 10 Countries for
FTAs in India in 2013
(P) Provisional, @Growth rate over Jan-June 2013
Source: (i) Bureau of Immigration, Govt. of India, for 1997-2013
(ii) Ministry of Tourism, Govt. of India, for Jan-June 2014
The FEE surge
The Foreign Exchange
Earnings (FEEs) from tourism
in terms of USD grew by 5.2
per cent during JanuaryNovember 2014 as compared to 4.9 per cent over the
corFEE from tourism in terms
of USD during JanuaryNovember 2014 were USD
17.606 billion with a growth
of 5.2 per cent, as compared
to USD 16.742 billion with a
growth of 4.9 per cent during
January-November 2013
over the corresponding
period of 2012.
Top 10 Source
Markets for FTAs
in India (2014)
USA
(17.62%)
UK
(11.44%)
Bangladesh
(10.22%)
Canada
(4.81%)
Australia
(4.75%)
Russian Federation
(3.91%)
Malaysia
(3.65%)
Germany
(2.58%)
Sri Lanka
(2.54%)
China
(2.25%)
Experiencing the unexplored
The leading DMC, active in the European and South American markets, has seen a surge in its inbound business in India in the
last few years. The group is planning to introduce and promote new destinations and directly interact with FTOs.
TT B U R E A U
stablished in 2010,
SenKay Tours and Travels
is one of the leading Indian
DMCs. It is highly specialised
for India, Nepal and Bhutan
inbound arrivals and is wellknown for its ‘value-added features’ in all the itineraries. The
E
objective of SenKay Tours and
Travels is to make travellers
experience the real spirit of
India in a most comfortable
and joyful manner with the
highest level of priority to customer service. Talking about
the evolution and new developments in the company, Anil
Kumar, Director-Marketing,
Product
Development
Operation and
Contracting,
SenKay Tours
and
Travels
pointed out,
“One of the key
points of the
strength
of
SenKay Tours
memory.” The choice of routes
is important, but not more than
its content. It is in this spirit that
we approach all our itineraries
with the intent to be different,
outside the usual patterns but
Anil Kumar
Director-Marketing, Product
Development Operation and
Contracting, SenKay Tours and Travels
and Travels is to be distinctive.
Our primary goal is to make
the traveller experience a
unique journey with something
special with greater intensity,
which imparts an unforgettable
segment in the last few years.
“In the last two years, we have
achieved a decent growth, not
only in our business volumes
but also in our credibility in the
domestic and international
Our primary goal is to make the
traveller experience a unique
journey with something special with
greater intensity, which imparts an
unforgettable memory
inside the intensity of the destination without any additional
cost, he added.
The group has witnessed
a huge growth in the inbound
market. The knowledge and
understanding of the present
day travellers help us to
analyse and work out our marketing strategy,” he opined. The
group sees addition of valid
inventory in all the categories
of hotels.
Regarding the challenges in promoting India for
inbound tourists, Kumar
laments, “We keep on hearing
about the changes in the Visa
issuing procedures. However,
in reality there is a lot that
needs to be done. Also, the
electronic media’s way of presenting and debating negative
news about certain unfortunate happenings of the recent
months has put a serious dent
on the credibility of India as a
safe destination. These are
challenges in promoting India
as a safe destination for the
inbound guests.”
HOTELS
TRAVTALK
23
Jewel in Chennai’s hospitality crown
The award-winning Hotel Ambica Empire is at par with a luxury hotel and their constant endeavour is to provide the best.
R Kalathinathan, GM, Ambica Group of Hotels, says that the hotel is purely based on the patronisation of its existing customers.
TT B U R E A U
Q
What is your hotel’s
specialty?
Hotel Ambica Empire is focussing
on providing the best facilities and services as well as hygienic and tasty food
to its visitors. Our promoters have studied and incorporated the best of the
facilities and services observed from
their globetrotting. In Chennai, people
appreciate the specialty of our biryani
and kebabs, which is loved by everybody. Our mid night biryani is one of the
famous in the city. Every two to three
months we conduct food festivals to
strengthen our F&B outlets.
ing for up to 500 people, a multi cuisine restaurant, a coffee shop, a pub
and a spa.
Q
Q
What is the main
USP?
The hotel has earned name and
fame for good food along with personalised services. Our hotel is located
in Chennai, in close proximity to the
city centre as well as modes of transport, business, shopping and entertainment options. The hotel also has
90 rooms, five banquet halls with seat-
What kind of change
have you seen in the
hospitality sector since you’ve
entered business?
New Technologies have been
introduced in the hospitality industry
recently. Nowadays, all menu
orders and guest comments are
being taken through iPads and this
has lessened paper work. Even
Awards Received
Best Three Star Hotel of the
Year 2012 in Tamil Nadu,
issued by South Indian
Hospitality Award
The Best Three Star
Hotel of the year 2013 by the
Epicurus - Indian Hospitality
Awards.
India says “YES” to the awesome food at Ambica Empire,
Chennai certified by Holiday
IQ.com
R Kalathinathan
GM
Ambica Group of Hotels
Sales personnel are using
Whatsapp, voice mails, for the
sales promotional activities’.
Q
What are the MICE facilities that you provide?
Conference and social
events are being conducted by
the companies and private parties on a regular
basis with us. Our ‘His
Highness’, ‘Her Majesty’
& ‘16 AD Halls’ adhere to
the requirements of the
guests especially for the
meetings, conference,
functions, parties, weddings, receptions. The
halls can handle up to
If you need
to host a
banquet, we can
conjure exciting
menus that suit
your taste and
yes, you can
entertain 500-600
guests (floating)
250 guests for conferences. If you
need to host a banquet, we can conjure exciting menus that suit your taste
and yes, you can entertain 500-600
guests (floating). Citrus Hall is one of
the excellent board rooms that are
provided with modern amenities.
24
HOTELS
Ananta bets big on luxury weddings
With two properties in Pushkar and Udaipur, Ananta Spa & Resort’s location remains its biggest advantage, especially
when it comes to destination weddings. This summer, it is expecting more numbers from the domestic traffic but the
inbound market isn’t too far behind.
TT B U R E A U
veryday is a step towards
improvement and development, says Anshul Bhargava,
Corporate GM of Ananta Spa
& Resorts. As a result of this
continuous attention to refinement and transformation, the
hotel company has recently
unveiled a new addition at its
Udaipur property. “We have
recently added a large banqueting venue which is one of
the biggest pillar-less halls of
about 14,000 sq ft. This will be
perfect for a wedding or even
a MICE event,” Bhargava adds.
E
Speaking about the way
the markets are performing
this year, he says, “We are
happy to see the immense
support we are receiving from
both - the inbound and domestic markets - for The Ananta,
Udaipur and Pushkar properties. But we surely appreciate
the incremental footfalls that
we are recording from the
domestic travelers.”
Highlighting some of the
trends he sees emerging in
this segment, Bhargava says
that travel patterns have been
changing a lot in these last
few years. “Now, guests prefer
more luxury and recreational
activities. High quality food
with different cuisines on offer
has also become a priority,” he
says. Ananta Spa & Resort
has over the years carved a
niche as a popular wedding
destination. Its
Udaipur property has an
inventory of
242 luxurious
villas and a
capacity
to
cater to 5,000
Anshul Bhargava
Corporate GM
Ananta Spa & Resorts
guests with a 75,000 sq ft
area of banqueting with different venues. It has therefore
been positioned as a luxurious resort with expert spa
treatments and multi-cuisine
restaurants. Its Pushkar property has 73 villas.
The company promotes
its two properties in both the
domestic and international
markets giving equal impetus
to both. “We give the same
importance to both these markets. The only difference is that
our properties are positioned
differently. We have recently
designed attractive packages
for the summer for the domestic guests. Meanwhile, we are
also taking initiatives to understand the changes that are taking place in the individual
economies of countries abroad
so that we can have a better
understanding on improving
our inbound business,”
Bhargava says.
Considering the current
scenario, Ananta is looking
at a 60/40 ratio from the
domestic and inbound
segments,
respectively.
As far as reaching out to
Spa sojourn in the hills
Ananta Spa & Resort, Pushkar is a nine-acre luxury spa resort. Pushkar is home to the only temple in
the world of Lord Brahma - the Hindu god of creation. The hotel offers many on-site facilities such
as ironing facilities, LCD TV, in-room safe, fitness
center, pool (kids), jacuzzi, sauna, steamroom, etc.
Ananta Spa & Resort, Udaipur is located in the City
of Lakes and covers 40 acres of land. The site
offers beautiful view of Sajjan Garh Palace, which is
now known as Monsoon Palace and is a hilltop
abode in Udaipur. Ananta Hotel is placed in hills having highest peak 150 meters, from where the guests
can best enjoy the scenic locales.
the trade is concerned, the
company continuously hosts
its partners on familiarisation
trips to its properties to show-
case its wonderful concept
resorts in Pushkar and
Udaipur as “seeing is the
best experience”.
Hospitality with royalty
The resort has been built on a 25 acre plot of which around 14
acre has been left for landscaping.
cance. The grandeur of
Rajputana hospitality is truly
visible as the resort rests in the
lap of the Aravallis and a hill
forming its backdrop.
TT BUREAU
ajasthali Resort & Spa,
Kukas is a luxury resort
strategically located on the
Jaipur-Delhi highway. It is aptly
placed at 22 km north of
Jaipur, yet at proximity for a
complete getaway feel.
According to Girish Agarwal,
Chairman & Managing
Director, Rajasthali Resort &
Spa, Kukas, Jaipur, the resort
is targetting both leisure and
corporate segments. He says,
“We have themed the entire
resort on the royalty that
Rajasthan is known for. The
R
Girish Agarwal
Chairman & Managing Director
Rajasthali Resort & Spa, Kukas, Jaipur
The resort has been built
on a 25 acre plot of which
around 14 acre has been left
We are aggressively tapping FITs,
both domestic and international
travellers. We did occupancy of 68
per cent last year. We are now
eyeing a target of 85 per cent
occupancy for 2015-16
resort name refers to ‘where
kings dwell’. Similarly, we
wanted to make people feel
as if they are kings when
they stay with us.”
for landscaping, so the spread
brings forth the royal element.
A watch tower in the landscaped area adds an old world
charm having its own signifi-
According to architecture and design also, it differentiates itself from the rest of
the hotels located in the
Kukas region of the city.
Talking about how the property has positioned itself in
the Jaipur hospitality market,
Agarwal reveals, “The
hotel is an upscale high-end
luxury boutique resort. We
are aggressively tapping
FITs, both domestic and
international travellers. We
did occupancy of 68 per cent
last year. This is remarkable
as this was the second
year of operations for the
hotel. We are now eyeing a
target of 85 per cent occupancy for 2015-16.” Giving
more information about its
MICE offerings, Agarwal
informs, “We are placed in
such a way that we will
attract a lot of incentives and
in-house
conferences/
meetings
and
Royal
Destination Weddings.”
HOTELS
TRAVTALK
25
JAIPUR
ITC Rajputana,
Experience the finest luxury hotel in Jaipur - ITC Rajputana. The property claims to offer the best accommodations in the city
with a host of comforts and services in settings that reflect the spirit of Rajasthan and its royalty. Just 15 kilometres from the airport
and half a kilometre from the city centre the hotel’s regal-influenced design and gardens echo the city’s history.
Elegant and Distinguished
The ITC Rajputana is a
business hotel with a unique
concept of accommodation in
the heart of Jaipur (Rajasthan).
ITC Rajputana reflects everything that is splendid about
Rajasthan and all that is unique
about ITC Hotels.
in a modern uncluttered and
contemporary idiom and bring
alive the spirit of Rajasthan
and makes it distinguished
amongst the luxury hotels of
Jaipur. Discover all that
Rajasthan has to offer while
staying at the ITC Rajputana.
Refined artistry
A world of comfort and
luxury, with responsibility
Designed to echo the traditional havelis of the region,
ITC Rajputana has a red brick
exterior rising to different levels
around a central area. Long
corridors, secluded courtyards
and simplified lattice work
recall Rajasthani architecture
ITC Rajputana is a legendary 5 star luxury hotel in
Jaipur with 218 guest rooms
and suites. The guest rooms
and suites offer spacious bathrooms, a refreshment centre,
safety locker for your valuables, well designated sitting
area for guests comfort and
Sweet Sleeper Bed™. The lavish and rich food of Rajasthan
at Jal Mahal or the old and
authentic cuisine from the
Northwest makes it an iconic
luxury hotel in Jaipur offering
a unique culinary experience.
Unwind in the Kaya Kalp Spa,
workout at the fitness centre or
simply relax with signature
massages or the complimentary steam and sauna,
available at the hotel.
Leisure
A variety of recreational
and leisure facilities are available for guests at ITC
Rajputana.Enjoy fun games
like croquet, water polo,
table tennis or even the life
sized snake & ladder board
!Rejuvenate with a peaceful
Yoga session or indulge
in exotic therapies at the
Kaya Kalp spa.
Apart from these, the
hotel also offers assistance in
arranging a variety of in
city experiences like sightseeing, city tours, shopping,
horse riding, hot air ballooning
etc and for younger guests,
the hotel offers a gaming
console, colouring books and
a children's library.
WelcomHotel Jodhpur
Facilities & Amenities provided
on complimentary basis :
Hotel Facilities:
24 hour concierge service
24 hour currency exchange
On the edge of the Thar Desert, set against the sombre and arid landscape of
Rajasthan is – WelcomHotel Jodhpur. As a tribute to the city of Jodhpur, laden with
history, culture & monuments that enliven the royal era of the princely state;
WelcomHotel Jodhpur endeavours to bring about an element of grandeur through
food, music, colour and an ethnic mélange of unique experiences.
Due to vivid blue-painted houses, Jodhpur is famously known as the
blue city. It is thought that Brahmins –
members of the priestly class – first
took to coloring their houses blue to
signify their domicile and to set them
apart from the rest of the population.
It is likely that the ubiquitous blueness
of Jodhpur is an exuberant display of
human resilience against the stark
thar desert which surrounds the town.
Against the bleak backdrop of
parched brown earth, the blue city
exerts itself magnificently.
would fall to the ground and everything would become a single color –
blue. Jodhpur would lie before
them, opening up like a blue
treasure in the desert.
Desert Rose
Travellers journeying through
the desolate landscape of the unforgiving thar desert in the Indian state
of Rajasthan would know when they
had reached their destination. The sky
WelcomHotel Jodhpur draws
inspiration from the desert oasis, the
timelessness of the colors and traditions of Rajasthan, not limiting itself
to any gharana or royal lineage.
tions and celebrations,
creating impressionable
memories during and
after the stay. It has a
splendid display of rambling courtyards, landscaped gardens and
water bodies each distinctively unique and rich
in character.
Access to Spa, Salon and Health Club
Access to Swimming Pool (Hotel Swimming
pool will remain closed till 12th Jan 2015
for maintenance)
Valet and self-parking facilities
In-Room Facilities:
Internet usage at the Business Centre for
30 minutes per day
Safety Locker
Multi-channel television
Daily newspaper
Guest stationary
Bottled mineral water
Tea/Coffee maker
Personal care amenities
Unique Experiences
At WelcomHotel
Jodhpur, guest is king.
A glamorous setting
engages through a
diverse offering including the finest culinary
experiences, spa and
fitness facilities, cultural
sojourns as well as
state-of-the-art infrastructure for conven-
Advertorial
The Blue city
24 hour room service
26
MOT
Tourism Policy to focus on job creation
The new Tourism Policy will be launched on May 15, 2015. Dr Lalit Panwar, Secretary, Ministry of Tourism
tells
that MoT is working hard to include source counties in the next phase of Visa Online list.
PEDEN DOMA BHUTIA
National Tourism Policy
Q
talks about job creation
and tourists’ safety, how are
you working towards this?
The Prime Minister has been
laying special emphasis on skills
and also on tourism. Our policy
will try to attempt a synergy
between skills and tourism. The thrust
will be on how to create jobs for our
youth. Any policy for example,
Make In India, is basically designed
for manufacturing which leads
to creation of jobs, so our ministry’s
thrust will be on creation of as
many jobs as possible for the youths
of our country. The Himmat app of the
Delhi police already exists, so when I
stress on App it means apps like
the Himmat App, which can be finetuned to suit the requirements of
the tourist and take care of their safety
and security.
What are the other
Q
focus points of the
Policy?
India is a cultural tourist destination so another focus area will be on
how to preserve the past for our future.
If the past is not good the future will not
be good. We have a common minister
so there will be a synergy between
these two units. Without culture there
is no tourism as well.
How are you working
towards formulating
the National Tourism
Policy, 2015?
Q
We had a detailed one-day
workshop where all the top brains
of the Indian tourism industry were
there, we had national-level consultations on tourism. On April 8 we
called all state secretaries of
tourism and we’ll also be meeting
the tourism veterans of our country
for their suggestions. So, we’ll
have 6-7 rounds of consultation before we begin
work on it.
With the Finance
Q
Minister calling
for Visa Online for 150
countries, how is the
MoT working on it?
We already have 44 countries under this
scheme and in the last three
months (Jan-March 2015)
90,000 visas have been issued.
We’ll be implementing it in two
phases, we have prepared a list
of countries from where we are
getting tourists and sent it
to the government.
Lalit K. Panwar
Secretary, Minister of Tourism
We already have 44 countries
under this scheme and in the last
three months 90,000 visas have
been issued. The response has
been tremendous and now we’ll be
implementing it in two phases, we
have already prepared a list of
countries from where we are
already getting tourists and sent it
to the government. We exactly went
by the percentage of our source
markets, starting from the country
where we get the maximum tourists
and then on. We’ll be sending out
the list in two phases, the first list
has countries which are our top
source markets the remaining 50
are countries which are our potential markets. The countries for the
first phase will be declared in the
next 2-3 months, probably by end
June so that we get good bookings
for the next season.
With work starting on
Q
the Indian Culinary
Institute what can we look
forward to?
The foundation stone of the
Indian Culinary Institute has been
laid by the Tourism Minister and within two years the construction will be
complete it is being constructed by
National Building Construction
Corporation (NBCC), we’ll offer
degree programmes, post graduate
degree, doctorate programmes,
anything related to the culinary
science and art.
Culture of Tourism
The ministry is brainstorming with tourism veterans on the
new tourism policy
The Indian Culinary Institute will be ready within two years and
will offer degree and post-graduate programmes.
The countries for the first phase of Visa Online will be declared
in the next 2-3 months, probably by end June
28
AGENTS
Fly to Pune
on Vistara
Travel trade a priority for West Bengal
Vistara has launched its
inaugural flight from New
Delhi to Pune. With the addition of Pune in the airline’s
route network, customers
can now travel from Delhi to
seven destinations- Pune,
Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Goa,
Hyderabad, Guwahati &
Bagdogra and vice versa.
Speaking on this occasion,
Phee Teik Yeoh, CEO,
Vistara said, “With addition of
Pune on its network, Vistara’s
footprint in India continues to
grow at a rapid pace with
newer destinations to be
announced later this year. We
are confident that the travellers between Pune and
Delhi will welcome the opportunity to enjoy the quintessential Vistara experience.
We have received enthusiastic response from our customers when we launched
flights to Goa, Hyderabad
and recently to Guwahati and
Bagdogra.” Vistara’s A320 aircraft deployed on the route
has a capacity of 148 seats
and are configured with 16
Business Class seats, 36
Premium Economy seats
and 96 Economy seats,
which is 20 per cent less,
compared to many of the single aisle aircraft operators in
order to provide greater comfort and personal space to
its customers.
The West Bengal Tourism will now reach out and engage the travel fraternity in India to promote the
state as a ‘complete destination’. It will soon conduct road shows simultaneously with major trade
fairs to create the best impact.
HAZEL JAIN
est Bengal is striking the
iron when it’s hot. Holding
the ninth position among all the
other states with respect to
domestic tourist footfalls and
sixth for international tourists according to India Tourism
Statistics 2013 – West Bengal
has geared up to reactivate the
travel trade channel.
W
Umapada Chatterjee,
Director-Tourism, Government
of West Bengal, says, “The
present government has taken
several initiatives to boost
tourism in West Bengal. We
shall be actively participating in
tourism festivals across India,
coupled with road shows.”
The department confirmed it’s participation in
tourism fairs being held in Surat,
Pune, Hyderabad and Kochi
apart from the metro cities like
Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai,
Ahmedabad where it will showcase itself. Chatterjee adds that
West Bengal Tourism is now
looking at expanding its reach
to Tier II markets as well by participating in travel festivals even
in markets like Lucknow,
Chandigarh, Nagpur, Vizag and
Coimbatore. The roadshows will
be organized simultaneously
with the major fairs.
5-year vision document
by HVS
The state has also hired
US-based consulting firm HVS
WB Incentive Scheme 2015
The West Bengal Incentive Scheme 2015 that came into effect
from January 2015 and valid till December 2020 is applicable to all
tourism projects as well as expansion projects of existing units set
up on or after the date of commencement. It also extends incentives
to adventure tour operators. Companies that have brought in more
than 50 international tourists or 100 domestic tourists are entitled
to additional incentive for purchase of adventure and sports equipment by way of reimbursement of VAT refunds at varying degrees.
International to create a fiveyear vision document for
tourism development. AR
Bardhan, Principal Secretary,
Government of West Bengal,
said HVS is creating a
roadmap, which will provide
the foundation for the state’s
forthcoming tourism policy.
“The state has been working on the PPP model for
tourism infrastructure development and we have adopted several incentives including capital
subsidies for development of
new leisure industry properties
and services in the state,
Bardhan said. He added that
the state has invested in a new
TVC by O&M, which will be out
in a few months. This, he said,
is due to the perceptible
increase of budgetary allocation
particularly in publicity account.
Consumer campaigns in print,
TV, radio and digital platforms
will also emerge soon.
The state attracts about
12.5 lakh foreign tourist a year
based on the arrival figure at
the international airport.
Domestic tourist footfall in the
Umapada Chatterjee
AR Bardhan
Director-Tourism
Government of West Bengal
Principal Secretary
Government of West Bengal
The department
confirmed it’s
participation in
tourism fairs being
held in Surat, Pune,
Hyderabad and
Kochi apart from
the metro cities
state is estimated at over two
crore. CII has also urged the
government to accelerate the
two conference centres in city
US-based
consulting firm HVS
is creating a
roadmap, which
will provide the
foundation for the
state’s forthcoming
tourism policy
with a total area of 70,000 sqft.
According to CII, Kolkata
currently holds 370 such
events a year.
Experience the culture-rich India
The ultimate goal of Monks & Monkeys Travels (M&M) is to project India as a rich, cultural and diverse destination. Dr Sharad
Kumar Jindal, Director, M&M and Dr Arvind Kumar, Director, M&M talk about making India the best tourism destination.
TT B U R E A U
Q
What is your company’s speciality?
Monks & Monkeys Travels
was conceived with a singular
idea of presenting India to the
world as one of the most interesting destinations to look at, in
Asia. True to our philosophy, we
have invited people from diverse
backgrounds and passionate
about travelling to build a strong
team. In a short span of our
existence, we have earned the
reputation of being among the
most preferred travel designers
for our guests.
Q
What is your main
USP?
Transparency and efficiency are clearly our two key
Q
How has it changed
since you’ve got into
business?
USPs. Without a trace of
doubt these have worked for
us and have helped us
generate and convert our
customers
and
loyal
associates. This has further
helped us have healthy relations with all our associates
and stakeholders; including
vendors.
Q
hat do you think
are the new trends
coming up in the travel
industry?
Technology inclusion and
intervention is the most
important developing trend
in the travel business. Just
like in any other business,
technology innovation is offering immense possibilities to
connect with the prospective
customers, to
showcase
our product
offerings in
a more personalised manner
and to revert
to customer’s
queries
in
no time.
Dr Sharad Kumar Jindal
Dr Arvind Kumar
Director
Monks & Monkeys Travels (M&M)
Director
Monks & Monkeys Travels (M&M)
Transparency
and efficiency are
clearly our two
key USPs.This
has helped us
have healthy
relations with all
our associates
and
stakeholders;
including
vendors
Technology
inclusion and
intervention
is the most
important
trend. Technology
innovation
is offering
possibilities to
connect with the
prospective
customers
We believe that perfection can be achieved only by a
regular process of changing
and internet plays an important
role in this field. In the last
decade, we saw a lot of new
websites and mobile apps
offering different services. Also
number of domestic travellers
is rising and many companies
are now focussing on domestic
market instead of inbound.
Q
What kind of competition are you facing?
Due to excessive non
regularised companies; quality
standards of service are get-
ting compromised and affecting the overall industry. I
think that everybody is facing
a challenge of low pricing.
Expenses are going up in
every manner but profitability
is going down.
Tourism can be a large
contributor to India’s GDP.
India still remains to be capitalised as compared to
the neighbouring countries
like Sri Lanka, Thailand,
Vietnam, Nepal etc., who, in
spite of their small area and
lesser tourist sites are doing
well. Only a joint effort by
the trade and Government
policies will make tourism in
India a big success.
The Diverse Trails
Monks & Monkeys Travels was conceived
with a singular idea of presenting India to
the world
True to its philosophy, the company has invited
people from diverse backgrounds and passionate
about travelling to build a strong team
HOTELS
TRAVTALK
29
Hear the call of the wild@Namah
The resort launched by the DS Group, surrounded by natural beauty and lush greenery, is located on the bank of the River Kosi
in Corbett National Park. A stay here will ensure the guests enjoy tranquility and serenity enveloping all of Jim Corbett.
TT B U R E A U
harampal Satyapal Group
(DS Group) is expanding
its hospitality business through
its arm, DS Hotels & Resorts
(India) with the launch of a new
luxury property -- Namah, Jim
Corbett National Park.
D
Giving more information
about the property, Nikhil
Vahi, Senior Vice PresidentHospitality Operations &
Development, Dharampal
Satyapal Limited said,
“Namah, Jim Corbett National
Park is currently the only luxu-
ry destination in Corbett area
that offers you international
luxury and service coupled
with culinary excellence.
All this is offered in the
serene lap of nature along with
the majestic views and wildlife.
At Namah, Corbett National
Park, ‘Straight from the Heart’
is not just a statement but it’s
our way of life.”
Maharani at Nainital will also
be rebranded as a Namah
shortly,” he informed. The
hotel is betting big on domestic and inbound travellers with
an array of experiences.
“Whether they want a wildlife
Nikhil Vahi
Namah in Sanskrit
means “I bow and welcome
you with folded hands”.
“Namah is the brand name of
our boutique hotels and
hopefully we should see
Senior Vice President-Hospitality
Operations & Development
Dharampal Satyapal Limited
many more of our boutique
properties opening under this
brand name. The Manu
important indulgence during
vacations and holidays and the
resort’s Executive Chef personally takes care of the
guests’ preferences, serving a
culinary experience akin to
fine-dining in any city.
The resort at Corbett National Park
has a slew of activities for all age
groups. There are game drives,
elephant safaris, birding trips
and forest walks with an
accomplished naturalist
getaway or a simple getaway
from the city, Namah has a
slew of activities for all age
groups. There are game
drives, elephant safaris, birding trips and forest walks with
an accomplished naturalist.”
Manned by trained therapists, it offers every opportunity for a relaxing session with
a range of traditional,
European and Oriental massages along with signature
Namah therapies. Indian or
international delicacies are an
Regarding the new initiatives in this property, he added,
“At Namah, we are constantly
looking at enhancing guests’
experiences. The introduction
of a bar
stocked with
international
and domestic
spirits and a
new
world
wine menu,
launching of a
grill restaurant
on the riverfront with a live
wood fire pizza oven and
opening a souvenir shop selling local merchandise and
handicrafts will all enhance the
guest stay experience.
Initiatives are also constantly
introduced to making it more
eco friendly and green hotel.
We have recently launched a
waste management programme, where the waste
(both solid and liquid) are segregated at source.”
The DS Group owns and
runs the Manu Maharani which
is the iconic property at
Nainital, The Radisson Blu
Guwahati , which is the first
five-star property of the state
and the North east. It will unveil
Crowne Plaza Jaipur which
should be operational by
September this year.
30
STATES
Mega desert circuit@` 50 crore
Talking about the focus areas for promotion of tourism in 2015, Principal Secretary Tourism, Government of Rajasthan, SK
Agarwal says they are looking at better air connectivity, developing new circuits, and the launch of the revised Tourism Unit Policy.
PEDEN DOMA BHUTIA
In his budget speech the
Q
Finance Minister mentioned providing resources to
How is the Central
Q
Financial Assistance of
` 10,781.01 lakh given to the
Rajasthan Govt. during 200914 being utilised?
Kumbalgarh and other hill
forts in the state. What is happening in that direction?
al,
health
and
wellness,
adventure, wildlife and wedding. It
would be appropriate to mention here
that in the latest budget the state
government has given high priority to
The state is developing the mega
desert circuit (Jaisalmer-JodhpurBikaner-Sambhar-Pali-Mount Abu) at
the cost of ` 50 crore. The state is
also planning new circuits on
‘handicrafts’, ‘birding’ and
‘spirituality’
Kumbhalgarh and other hill forts
like Amber, Chittorgarh, Gangron,
Jaisalmer, and Ranthambore have
been declared World Heritage Sites
by the UNESCO. The state government will be doing the needful to
develop these hill forts. That the Union
Budget has earmarked funds for its
development is surely a welcome
step. We are also making efforts to
enlist fresco paintings of Shekhawati
region and step wells of Abhaneri,
Bandikui and Bundi in the UNESCO
heritage list in the future.
SK Agarwal
Principal Secretary, Tourism
Government of Rajasthan
The funds are being used to
develop tourism infrastructure,
new circuits, upgradation of
museums and monuments.
What are your focus
areas for promotion
of tourism in 2015?
Q
There are a number of
focus areas for Rajasthan,
among them are MICE, spiritu-
the tourism sector. For instance, there
is a 68% hike in allocation for tourism
art and culture in 2015-16 vis-à-vis the
last financial year. A sum of ` 35 crore
has been earmarked for the development of tourist destinations while another ` 20 crore has been earmarked for
the development of various museums
and panoramas. The travel mart, Great
Indian Travel Bazaar, will be once again
held in Jaipur. The year 2015 will finally
see Rajasthan
becoming an allimportant tourism
hub. There will be
development in
new circuits, infrastructure, and
increase in night
tourism, creation
of more rooms
and the launch of
the
revised
Tourism
Unit
Policy. We are
also hoping for
improved
air
connectivity in cities like Kota, Udaipur
and Jodhpur.
Kumbhalgarh and Akbari Quila in
Ajmer. More monuments will soon
have this facility.
What is the tourist influx
Q
that you are looking at
The
Archaeological
this year? Have you devel- Q Survey of India is planoped any new circuit for proning to open the 5,000-yearmotion this year?
There has been an increase of
9% on the arrival of tourists in the
financial year 2014-15. With concerted efforts both in marketing as well as
development of infrastructure and new
circuits – it is hoped that increasingly
more tourists will visit Rajasthan. The
state is developing the mega desert
circuit (Jaisalmer-Jodhpur-BikanerSambhar-Pali-Mount Abu) at the cost
of ` 50 crore. The state is also planning new circuits on ‘handicrafts’, ‘birding’ and ‘spirituality’.
For the first time, forts
Q
and monuments will
remain open at night. What
was the tourists’ reaction?
Well, we have recently begun
night tourism with the Amer Fort. The
response has been encouraging with
over 200 tourists and visitors each
evening. The number is gradually
increasingly. In times to come Night
Tourism will also be introduced in
other forts and monuments.
Adequate arrangements are being
made for security. The Sound and
Light Show is already operational at
Amer Fort, Jantar Mantar,
old Kalibangan site for
tourists. How are you planning to develop the site?
Since ASI is opening the
Kalibangan site, the state government
will surely look into how the area can be
developed and its connectivity
improved.
What are the MICE opporQ
tunities that you plan
to tap?
We will be pitching Rajasthan as
an ideal destination for MICE. In fact, a
large number of hotels have been successfully organizing prestigious international conferences and conventions.
The newly-developed Jaipur Exhibition
& Convention Centre (JECC) at
Sitapura near Jaipur has become
a popular venue for MICE events.
Jaipur’s Birla Auditorium is known
pan-India for its prestigious and
international conferences.
has swine flu affectQedHowtourism
in Rajasthan?
There has been negligible
effect of swine flu in tourist
arrivals in the state. The situation is
under control.
Tourism Oasis
Efforts being made to enlist fresco paintings of Shekhawati region and
step wells of Abhaneri, Bandikui and Bundi in the UNESCO heritage list
` 35 crore has been earmarked for the development of tourist destinations
while ` 20 crore has been earmarked for the development of various museums and panoramas
Visit Kerala 2015 launched
Union Minister of State
(MoS) for Culture and
Tourism
(Independent
Charge) and MoS for Civil
Aviation,
Dr
Mahesh
Sharma, launched ‘Visit
Kerala’ 2015-16, an all-year
tourism campaign that promises to present travellers to
Kerala a lifetime experience
of the state’s natural beauty,
cultural splendour, culinary
traditions and hospitality.
“Kerala needs to be promoted
across the world. The state
has a lot of potential. It has
beautiful nature, backwater,
cleanliness, security and
everything that is required in
a state to promote tourism,”
said Dr Sharma, who promised central assistance to the
state to raise the profile of the
state as a top tourist destination in the world.
The minister, in his inaugural address, made a strong
case for women empowerment through their participation in the growth of tourism,
saying a major share of
women personnel in the
tourism industry has to be
ensured in the future.
AP Anilkumar, Tourism
Minister, Kerala, said
“Starting this Vishu (Kerala
New Year), on April 15, up to
the next Vishu in 2016, every
visitor to Kerala will experi-
ence ‘God’s Own Country’
like never before. Every visitor will take home memories
that will last a lifetime.”
Dr Lalit K Panwar,
Secretary, Ministry of
Tourism was the Guest of
Honour and said that creativity and imagination by the
state tourism department
have sustained the visitor’s
interest in Kerala over the
years. Among those who
addressed the gathering
include Subhash Goyal,
President, Indian Association
of Tour Operators (IATO);
Abraham
George,
President, Kerala Travel Mart
Society; Jose Dominic,
Member, Kerala Tourism
Advisory Council; and
E M Najeeb, President,
Kerala Confederation of
Tourism Industry.
HOTELS
TRAVTALK
31
Brys checks in to Delhi with ‘Elan’
After establishing two properties – one in Jaisalmer and the other in Jim Corbett – the Brys Group is gearing up to introduce Brys
Elan, a business hotel, near Delhi, soon.
TT B U R E A U
rys Hotels, part of Brys
Group, seems to be growing rapidly. With hotels already
in well-established in the heritage and wildlife segments,
the hotel company is getting
ready to launch its third property in the north.
B
Called Brys Elan, it will
be a business hotel near Delhi.
Varun Mehta, Vice President
(Sales & Marketing) at Brys
Varun Mehta
Vice President (Sales & Marketing)
Brys Hotels
MICE has
become one of
the most
important
segments and
we are working
on some new
strategies
Hotels, says, “Brys Elan, our
third property is in the last
stage of completion. The current trend is that more and
more Indians are traveling
within India like never before
which is a very positive sign for
the growth of our industry.”
Speaking about the
domestic market, Mehta says,
“It is doing very well. Looking
at the current scenario, it will
grow quite a bit this year. On
the other hand inbound seems
to be very low and the numbers are dropping. We are hoping to see some improvement
with the Visa Online but it
would be too early to say any-
thing. With the current scenario, the ratio between
domestic as against inbound
is going to be almost equal.”
In India, Brys Hotels is
focusing on developing its travel partners as well as do direct
market. “Brys Caves, Jim
Corbett is doing fairly well with
the direct market whereas
Brys Fort, Jaisalmer gets more
of inbound business. We will
also increase our focus on the
online travel portals to ensure
that we are able to capture the
maximum online audience,”
Mehta says.
However, the hotel company is very active with the
travel trade. “We have regular
promotions in place for our
trade partners and it keeps
changing from time to time for
both our properties. We will
now add the strategy for our
upcoming property as well. For
the two properties, we reach
out to all the segments –
inbound, domestic, and the
corporate segment. In fact,
MICE has become one of the
most important segments and
we are working on some new
strategies,” Mehta revealed.
Brys talks business
Brys properties include Brys Fort in Jaisalmer and
Brys Caves at Jim Corbett. While the Brys Fort
encapsulates the legendry medieval Rajputana
grandeur, Brys Caves is an ultra-luxurious resort
Its third property, a boutique business hotel called
Brys Elan is only a few minutes from Delhi’s
border and is slated for inauguration shortly
32
STATES
Sacred land of Madhya Pradesh
A recent TV commercial depicts the various tourist attractions of MP through shadowgraphy
or ombromanie – the art of performing a story using images made by hand shadows. Various ad
makers have presented romantic, mystical and fantastical depictions of MP, but the state is surely
more beautiful than any of its eye-catching commercials.
OMKARESHWAR
erful and greatly loved monkey god
who is a great devotee of Lord Ram.
Here, Hanuman is shown sleeping,
his enormous mace by his side.
Seen from high above, and
through the eyes of faith, the
two hillocks on this riverine island,
separated by a gentle lowland,
assume the form of the sacred
syllable OM.
Chand- Suraj Gate: This Moon-Sun
Gate, which is what Chand-Suraj
means, is set in massive walls of
dressed stone with carved corbel projections to support the topping stones.
What to See
Mamleshwar Temple: Built in the
10th century, this ancient temple is
under the protection of the
Archaeological Survey of India(ASI).
In its heyday, it must have had
two large shrines and a number of
smaller ones. Nowadays, only
one large shrine seems to be open
to worshippers.
Omkar Mandhata Temple: To the
right of the hall is the sanctum holding
the greatly revered Jyotirlinga. The idol
is a small shivling rising out of a shallow
pit, protected by a broad silver flame.
Omkareshwar, Madhya Pradesh
Parikrama Path: It accesses
many places of reverence like the
Omkar Math, Ananda Mai Temple
and the Ramakrishna Mission
among others.
Sangam: This river is the confluence
of the Narmada and the Kaveri .
Gauri Somnath Temple: This is at
the top of a flight of 270 steps, that
rises up from the ghats, for those who
want to do a half-parikrama.
Patali Hanuman: In a pavilion,
out of which a tree grows, is a three
metre long idol of Hanuman, the pow-
Siddinath Temple: Many visitors
find this ruined temple the most
impressive one on the island. Its
unroofed pillars rise from a plinth richly sculpted with a frieze of elephants
and equestrian warriors.
Arjun Bhim Gateway: This
is a massive gateway set in thick
walls, largely ruined now, with sculptures of two warriors of the
epic Mahabharat War: the Pandava
brothers Arjun and Bhim.
How to Reach
By Air: The nearest airport is
Indore (77 km), connected by
regular flights with Delhi,
Mumbai, Ahmedabad,
Nagpur, Kolkata, Jabalpur,
Gwalior and Bhopal.
By Rail: Nearest railhead is
Omkareshwar Road(12 km)
on the Ratlam-Khandwa section of the Western Railway.
By Road: Omkareshwar is
connected to Indore, Ujjain,
Khandwa and Omkareshwar
road by regular bus services.
UJJAIN
Maheshwar, Madhya Pradesh
MAHESHWAR
Maheshwar was a glorious
city at the dawn of Indian civilization
when it was Mahishmati, capital
of King Kartivarjun. This temple town
on the banks of the river Narmada
finds mention in the epics of
Ramayana and Mahabharata.
Revived to its ancient position of
importance by the Holkar queen
Rani
Ahilyabai
of
Indore,
Maheshwar’s temples and mighty
fort complex stand in quiet beauty,
mirrored in the river below.
What to See
Rajgaddi
and
Rajwada:
A life-size statue of Rani Ahilyabai
sits on a throne in the Rajgaddi
within the Fort complex. This is the
right place to begin a tour of
Maheshwar, for this pious and
wise queen was the architect of its
revived importance.
How to Reach
Chausath Yogini Temple:
Dedicated to the 64 aspects
of the Mother Goddess, this
temple depicts them in a
largely non-representational
form:64 red faces, most of
them virtually indistinguishable from each other.
What to See
By Air : Nearest airport is
Indore(91 km).
By Rail : Nearest railheads
are Barwaha (39 km),
Khandwa (110 km), Indore
(91 km) and Mhow on the
Western Railway.
By Road : Regular buses are
available from Barwaha,
Khandwa, Dhar and
Dhamnod.
Best Season : July to March
Ghats: Peshwar Ghat, Fanase Ghat
and Ahilya Ghat line the river
Narmada, flights of steps lead down
from the sandy banks to the river, and
through the day a kaleidoscope of
rural India can be seen here.
Maheshwari
Mazar – E- Najmi: Here
are the white marble tombs,
or mazars, with silver doors,
of the 39th , 40th , and 47th
Syednas, or spiritual heads,
of the prosperous trading
community of Bohra
Muslims.
The ancient city of Ujjain
lies on the banks of the river
Shipra. Legend has it that Ujjain
is one of the saptapuris, or the
seven holy cities of India that
grant moksha or liberation from
the cycle of birth and death.
Ujjain hosts the Simhasth, as
the Kumbh Mela is known here,
every 12 years, the latest of
which was in 2004.
Sarees:
Introduced into Maheshwar
250 years ago by Rani
Ahilyabai, the sarees are
renowned throughout India
for their unique weave.
Woven mostly in cotton, the
typical Maheshwari saree
has a plain body and sometimes stripes or checks.
Travellers to Ujjain generally
start their tour of this historic city
by visiting the Mahakaleshwar
Temple.
The Mahakaleshwar Temple: It
enshrines one of the 12 jyotirlingas
and is thus one of the most sacred
Shiva shrines in India. The original
structure of Mahakaleshwar Temple
was rebuilt by the Marathas in the
1850s. Legend has it that no one can
rule over Ujjain without first surrendering their faith to Mahakaleshwar.
Bade Ganesh Ka Mandir: This
temple situated above the tank near
the Mahakaleshwar temple, enshrines
a huge artistic sculpture of Ganesh.
Harsiddhi Temple: The site where
Sati’s elbow fell is consecrated as
Harsiddhi Temple. The Sri Yantra, or
symbol of shakti, is also enshrined
here. The central deity here is goddess Annapurna.
Vedha Shala or the Observatory:
Ved Shala, locally known as Jantar
Mantar, is an observatory built in the
17th century by Raja Jai Singh(16881743). It is located on the Ujjain –
Fatehabad Road, 2 kms from
Mahakaleshwar Temple. Jai Singh
Mahakaleshwar, Ujjain
also constructed similar observatories
in Jaipur, Delhi and Varanasi.
Chintamani Ganesh: The temple
is built across the Shipra on the
Fatehabad railway line. The Ganesh
idol enshrined here is supposed to
be swayambhu- born of itself.
The temple itself is believed to
be of considerable antiquity.
Riddhi and Siddhi, the consorts
of Ganesha, are seated on
either side of Ganesha. The
artistically carved pillars in
the assembly hall date back to the
Paramara period. Worshippers
throng to this temple because
the deity here is traditionally
known as Chintaharan Ganesh
meaning ‘ the assurer of freedom
from worldly anxieties’.
Gopal Mandir: Gopal Mandir, one
of the largest temples in Ujjain, was
built by the Marathas in the mid-19th
century. The huge silver plated
doors of the garbhagriha once
belonged to the famed Somnath
Temple in Gujarat.
Mangalnath Temple: It is
mentioned in the Matsya Purana as
the birthplace of Mars (Mangal). The
garbhagriha enshrines an image of
Shiva in his Mahadev manifestation.
Incidentally, the site of the temple
offers one of the clearest views of
Mars and is hence considered suitable for astronomical studies.
How to Reach
By Air: Nearest airport is Devi
Ahilya Bai International airport
at Indore (55 kms).
By Rail: Ujjain has its own railway station which is well connected to the major cities of
India.
By Road: Regular bus services
connect Ujjain with Indore,
Khargone, Jalgaon, Khandwa,
Omkareshwar, Maheshwar,
Dhar and Bhopal.
HOTELS
Not at the cost of heritage
At Khandela Haveli in Jaipur, heritage goes hand-in-hand with
technology and maintaining its original architecture is given as much
importance as free Wi-Fi service by the current owners.
T T B U R E AU
lending its past architectural elegance with modernday amenities, Khandela
Haveli serves as one of the
finest heritage hotels in Jaipur.
With 22 different styles of
rooms including aesthetically
restored suites, this haveli
presents the same form of
architecture and traditional
royal hospitality that was
offered in the past.
B
Girdhar Pratap, Owner, Khandela Haveli
means they are spending more
on holidays. “Weekends have
become more meaningful for
all and they like to travel and
spend on weekends especially
the long ones,” he says.
Girdhar Pratap Singh,
its owner and one of the
descendants of Khandela
Haveli, is satisfied with the current market dynamics. “The
inbound and domestic markets
have grown considerably over
the last few years and more
and more Indians are traveling
and spend on holidays. Their
budgets have also increased
considerably as an average
Indian can now spend more
through various options such
as credit cards,” he says.
Another reason why he
thinks people are traveling
more is because of the connectivity between cities. “With
regards to travel trends, the
internet is playing a major role
in booking and comparing a
destination. Even hotels and
resorts can be compared as
per their ratings and reviews,”
Singh adds.
Singh adds that debit and
travel cards also allow travellers to move around without
carrying any cash which
Khandela Haveli offers
free access to wi-fi in all areas.
It has a special roof-top poolside restaurant as well. Since it
is a boutique hotel, the owners
are also developing more
theme-based rooms. It has 22
rooms and all of them are of different types although it has
been categorised into seven
suites and 15 deluxe rooms. All
rooms are differently furnished
and are combinations of twin
bedded and double bedded categories. Common areas like
gardens and courtyards play a
major role and are more ethically designed.
Singh says, “With regards
to numbers of international
tourists and inbound tourists,
there is a definite increase in
percentage of Indian tourists not
only travelling inbound but also
going abroad individually and in
small groups.”
Retreat in the hills
Ajayghosh Parameswaran, Marketing & Business Development,
Shaheen Bagh Boutique Resort & Spa, says the resort can be
a lifetime experience for one who is looking for a peaceful holiday.
TT BUREAU
Q
What are your plans in
terms of growth for
your company in 2015?
Nestled in the Doon
Valley on the bank of the Tons
River is Shaheen Bagh, the
country home of a wild life
photographer. This private
estate on the hills is now open
to visitors who desire a getaway in the midst of nature.
It’s a luxurious resort in the
middle of Dehradun, we have
started a lot of activities at our
resort. We have recently started conference facilities for
corporate customers and we
have opened traditional SPA
centre. Our resort offers a
wide array of meeting and
event venues, with features
that range from abundant natural lighting and contemporary décor accents to the latest technological equipment
and support.
Q
What do you think
about the market?
We mostly have domestic crowd only. So far our customers are mostly either
through travel agents or
OTA's or customers themselves contact us. 80 per cent
are domestic corporate
guests only. Inbound fully
depends on the seasonal
availability.
Q
What time of the year
do you receive maximum guests?
The maximum
traffic
comes around
April
to
September and
also
during
Christmas and
New Year.
Q
What is the USP of
your group?
Shaheen Bagh Boutique
Resort & Spa is far from the
madding crowd and one can
discover great pleasure. It is
your sabbatical. Combine this
with morning yoga and other fitness regimes, adventure sports
and farming exercises. It is a
completely different experience
for the corporate executives. For
honeymooners it can become
a beautiful experience.
Q
What sets you apart in
terms of your products and offerings?
Shaheen Bagh Resort &
Spa and the adjacent cottage
are designed in the style of a
colonial country bungalow with
sloping roofs, decorative 'monkey tops' and wide verandahs
from where one can enjoy the
scenic view. Each room is individually designed, furnished
with beautifully restored period
furniture, and decorated with
antique fittings. All rooms offer
air-conditioning in summer and
heating in winter.
36
NEWS
ITC Grand Bharat
launched in
Gurgaon-NCR
Trek along the Frozen River
Himalayan Voyages is proud to deliver brilliant experiences in terms of adventure tourism,
handling back-to-back daily charter movement, adhoc groups, incentives or FIT customers.
Stany Wangchuk, Managing Director, Wisdom – Himalayan Voyages, speaks to
.
TT B UREAU
ITC has launched its first
all-suites luxury property ‘ITC
Grand Bharat, GurgaonNCR’, the company said in a
statement. The hotel, comprising 100 suites and 4 presidential villas, is spread
across a 1.2 sq. km and has
27-hole Jack Nicklaus signature golf course, elaborate
culinary experiences, conferencing facilities and extensive spa, recreation and wellness services.
Nakul Anand, Executive
Director, ITC said, “The
retreat marks ITC’s hotel
group’s entry in the luxury
leisure segment with a mosaic of luxury experiences that
celebrate the glory of India.”
Set amidst the Aravali hills,
the property is 45 km from
New Delhi. It also offers
indigenous spa brand, Kaya
Kalp covering 3251 sq-m
with nine therapy rooms,
including a couple suite.
How was 2014 for
Q
Himalayan Voyages? What
are your plans for 2015?
The year 2014 was a great year
for Ladakh, where we saw some good
exponential increase in traffic. Ladakh
has become the most popular destination amongst tourist destinations and in
particular the domestic tourists. This
year, 2015 looks quite exciting. We are
bullish and geared for a good increase
in traffic compared to 2014. We are also
adding offbeat places in Ladakh, apart
from our regular bouquet of products.
How has adventure tourism
developed in India?
Q
Adventure tourism is quite niche
and this segment’s demand is lower in
India with slower growth compared to
mainstream holidays. However, it is fast
catching up and we can see some great
traction in the coming years. Ladakh has
numerous options for adventure activities, which is up close to nature and
offers some unique adventure activities,
which other destinations don’t have. We
have seen a lot of demand for Chadar
Trek (Frozen River Trek) and a few other
adventure activities in Ladakh like motorbike safaris, cycle safaris, trekking,
mountain expeditions, rafting etc.
What are the roadblocks
in promoting adventure
tourism in India?
Q
The major road block is largely on
marketing adventure tourism aggressively and secondly the infrastructure
needs to be of International standards
Q
What are the most famous
adventure routes?
Today, Chadar trek is in
great demand where we do
trekking on the frozen river of
Zangskar Valley. One of the most
famous trekking routes is Markha
Valley Trek. We have various
peaks above 6,000 metres. Some
of them are easily doable like
Stok Kangri (6140m) and Kang
Yatse trek (6400m).
We have a team of 60 experienced
professionals in our organisation
who not only know every bit of Ladakh,
but are well trained to cater to every
need of a customer, be it domestic
or foreign tourist.
Stany Wangchuk
Managing Director
Wisdom – Himalayan Voyages
How different are domestic
What is your
Q
tourists and foreign trav- Q Selling Point?
ellers when it comes to adventure tourism?
There is a huge difference when
it comes to demand for adventure
tourism from foreign travellers viz-aviz Indian travellers. In fact
foreign tourists have been more
exposed to adventure tourism
compared to Indian tourist. They
certainly have lot of facilities and
options abroad which they have been
exploring regularly compared to an
Indian tourist.
Unique
Our USP is that we have a
very strong networking across Ladakh,
even in remote villages. Also, we cater
to every request. We have a team of
60 experienced professionals in our
organisation who not only know every
bit of Ladakh, but are well trained to
cater to every need of a customer, be
it domestic or foreign tourist. It’s also
not about organising all arrangements
but also to ensure that all customers
go back with some wonderful memories and experiences.
38
STATES
Of wildlife & heritage trails in
Nestled on the west coast, Karnataka is blessed with a perfect
blend of nature, heritage, wildlife and pristine beaches.
arnataka has ageless
monuments, world heritage sites, lush green forests,
amazing wildlife, spectacular
waterfalls, romantic hill
stations, timeless temples,
pristine beaches, exhilarating
adventure sports and vibrant
art & culture.
K
The state is home to ‘The
Golden Chariot’. It is South
India’s first and only luxury
train. Offering two memorable
itineraries: ‘Pride of the
South’
and
‘Southern
Splendour’, it takes you
through South India’s destinations in absolute luxury.
Karnataka State Tourism
Development Corporation
(KSTDC) has also introduced
‘The Silver Chariot’. On the
lines of the Golden Chariot,
these Volvo coaches offer
package tours around coastal
Karnataka.
port. It is 40-km from the city
and is also well connected to
all major airports in India.
Accommodation
The city railway station,
the Cantonment Railway
Station and the Yeshwanthpur
KSTDC owns 16 hotels
across different tourist destinations in the state. These are
being upgraded and 50 more
rooms are being added. In
addition, KSTDC also operates Jungle Lodges & Resorts,
a chain of resorts offering
wildlife, eco and adventure
tourism. Presently, there are
13 such resorts across
Karnataka,
and
going
ahead 11 more will be added
at the identified eco-tourism
sites. Besides, there are
other luxury and economy
hotel
accommodations
also available.
Badami, Belgaum, Lakkundi,
and many more. Then, there is
a plethora of romantic hill stations, along coastline and
some of the largest jungle
tracts in South India.
Details on other major
tourist destinations in the
state and packages and itineraries can also be obtained
through Karnataka Tourism’s
website, http://www.karnatakatourism.org.
Connectivity
The state
is well connected by road, rail
and
air.
Karnataka’s
capital
city,
Bengaluru
boasts of a
world-class
international air-
Things To Do
Railway
Station
are
within 10-km from MG Road.
Bengaluru is well-connected
by rail to all the major cities of
India. The hi-tech city is
also connected to India’s
major cities through the
National Highways-NH 4,
NH 7 and NH 209.
Destinations and
Packages
Karnataka is known for
its heritage trail. There are very
few places where one can find
such a profusion of monuments. These peerless wonders are eloquent reminders of
a rich heritage. These include
World Heritage Sites of Hampi
and Pattadakal, Aihole,
Luxury Trains
Heritage
Wildlife
Coastal life
Culture & festivals
MOT
Goa #6 among world’s
top 10 nightlife cities
Dilip
Parulekar,
Tourism Minister, Goa
recently announced that
the state has been positioned sixth in the list of
top 10 nightlife cities in
the world by ‘National
Geographic’.He said
that the city’s night
bazaars and music festivals
are popular and the tourism
department will encourage
and promote such events
which are conventional to all
laws of the land. Dublin in
Ireland has been ranked first
in National Geographic’s ‘Top
The Indian Govt has benefitted immensely by granting Visa Online facility to
more than 44 countries. Tourism Minister Dr Mahesh Sharma says the country
targets to get one per cent share of the global tourist arrivals, in three years.
ourism continues to be
one of the most important
socio-economic activities
globally and it is very relevant
T
Explore Agra beyond Taj
Uttar Pradesh Tourism has
announced forward-looking
initiatives to develop Agra
beyond Taj and the Heritage
Arc of Uttar Pradesh which
runs across the heart of the
State covering three district
regions – Agra, Lucknow and
Varanasi.
The
Agra
Development Authority is
building an inner ring road
from Kuberpur to Fatehabad
Road that will connect the
Yamuna Expressway to the
Taj and will reduce the travel
time. The Archaeological
Survey of India has initiated
online ticketing. Key attractions near Agra like Sur
Sarovar Sanctuary and
Keetham Lake are also being
promoted that are home to
woodland and wetland birds.
The Sanctuary, which is
home to 250 rescued bears,
attracts tourists from across
the world.
39
‘India targets 1% of global tourists’
T T B U R E AU
10 Nightlife Cities’ list, followed by Belgrade in Serbia,
La Paz in Bolivia, Sao Paulo
in Brazil, San Juan in Puerto
Rico, Goa In India, Ibiza in
Spain, Houston in Texas,
Thessaloniki in Greece and
Baku in Azerbaijan.
TRAVTALK
Dr Mahesh Sharma
Minister of State
for Tourism (I/C)
for India’s economy as well.
An investment of `10 lakh
generates 18 jobs in agriculture, 45 jobs in manufacturing and 78 jobs in the tourism
sector hence tourism plays
an important component in
the socio-economic development of the country.
Dr Mahesh Sharma,
Minister of State for Tourism,
Culture and Civil Aviation
says that India is poised to
receive one per cent of global
tourists in three years.
Discussing this at Pravasi
Bharatiya Divas, Dr Sharma
said, “Presently, India
receives about 7 million foreign tourists annually and the
target is to get one per cent
share of the global tourist
arrivals which is around 1.1
Within few weeks of the Visa Online
launch, the total number of visas
issued online has multiplied manifold.
These 44 countries covered about
42 per cent of the source market
for Indian Tourism
billion in three years. The
Union Government introduced Electronic Travel
Authorisation (ETA) for 43
countries on 27th November,
2014, looking at the progress
of this.” Dr Sharma adds,
“Within few weeks of the Visa
Online launch, the total num-
ber of visas
issued online
has multiplied
manifold.
These 44 countries covered
about 42 per
cent of the
source market
for Indian Tourism at the world
level and Ministry of Home
Affairs has been requested to
include China, UK, France,
Germany, Spain and Italy also
in this list of ETA countries.
These countries would bring
in 20 per cent of world tourism
market for India.”
40
STATES
Experience Chhattisgarh’s tribal journeys
Boosted by a 15 per cent growth in domestic tourists compared to 2013, Chhattisgarh Tourism Board is now
gearing up to offer better experiences. It is also looking at tying up with a larger number of GSAs this year.
M E G H A PAU L
o boost tourism in the state
and to offer new niche experiences to the travellers,
Chhattisgarh Tourism Board
(CTB) is now looking at promoting the ‘Walk with the Tribe’ experience. Visitors can go on a
nature walk with the learned and
local tribal people who have
been living there for years.
According to Santosh K Misra,
Managing Director, CTB, with 80
per cent biodiversity and significant natural abundance, a major
focus will be on promoting the
‘Walk with the Tribe’ experience,
unexplored tourism circuits, and
development of collaboration
between the locals and the State
Tourism Department. “With this
new initiative, major milestones
such as job creation in tribal sec-
Chhattisgarh partner state @Surajkund Mela 2015
At the Surajkund International Arts and Crafts Mela 2015, Chhattisgarh presented a diverse array
of experiences for the visitors. The artisans and craftsperson from the tribal areas of Surguja and Bastar
narrated their experiences and stories. One could visit the Apna Ghar, a replica of the tribal huts at
Surguja where a tribal family was residing for 15 days of the festival. Apart from an exciting lineup of
cultural performances, the theme offered an enticing teaser with reconstructions of several attractions.
Displays of handlooms, artefacts, kiosks offering Chhattisgarhi cuisine and a fashion show conducted
jointly with The National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT), New Delhi— there was a lot that the
state had to offer at the Surajkund Mela 2015.
T
tors and improved standard of
living can be achieved. We
also seek to create vistas of
awareness for international
tourists whom we seek to attract
with our engaging packages and
specially designed tourism
junkets,” he added.
As Chhattisgarh aims to
be
India’s
biggest ecotourism hub,
the
Board
wants to partner with a larger number of
travel agents.
“Currently, we
have over 15
GSAs working with us. All they
need to do is write to us and
we will get back to them soon.
We will be offering handsome
commissions to the agents for
promoting the state along with
helping them to form new itineraries. We are interested in
working with agents across
India. However, we will be
emphasising on agents working actively in Maharashtra,
Gujarat, West Bengal, Odisha
and Andhra Pradesh as these
form our main source markets,” he pointed out. The
Board is also looking for
Public Private Partnerships
(PPP) to strengthen its tourist
service sector. “Our state has
We will be offering handsome commissions to the
agents for promoting the state
along with helping them to form
new itineraries. We are interested
in working with agents
across India.
Santosh K Misra
Managing Director
CTB
an abundance of natural
beauty and is rich in minerals.
To keep it intact, we don’t want
to attract huge crowd and
therefore we are targetting
HNIs. Our infrastructure is in
place, now we want to
strengthen our service sector,
for which we are looking at
private investments or
projects based on the PPP
model,” he added.
The state is also betting
big on emerging source markets. Talking about the new
development, Misra said, “There
is immense potential in relatively
new source markets of South
East Asia such as Laos,
Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia
and Thailand. These are the
countries the Tourism Board is
looking forward to tapping.” This
year, the Board aims to capitalise on its relationship with the
travel trade associations. Walk
with the Tribe’ experience, unexplored tourism circuits, and
development of collaboration
between the locals and the State
Tourism Department. “
STATES
TRAVTALK
41
Soon, app stations in Goa
With Goa keen to tap new markets like Spain, Japan and China, Sanjeev Mendes, Member, State Level Marketing
and Promotion Committee, says that in two years time, Goa Tourism will present a different side altogether.
PEDEN DOMA BHUTIA
Despite
Russia
Q
being one of the top
source markets, the rouble trouble has affected
tourism in Goa. How are
things now?
The rouble trouble has
affected Goa, no doubt about
it, but it’s not that we have had
a very drastic drop in numbers.
We still have Russian tourists
and tourists from Europe coming to Goa. But now, we are
focusing on new markets also
and we are looking at tapping
markets like Spain, Japan and
China and we are participating
in international fairs like ITB
Berlin. The German market is
showing signs of revival back
again, with flights coming in via
Condore, from Munich to Goa.
Options have been open now
and options are open wide.
How
has
the
Q
govt’s Visa Online
policy helped Goa
tourism?
Visa Online has opened
Goa in a very big way. If you
look at the statistics, we are No
3 on the list for Visa Online and
we have issued close to about
2000-odd visas in the last couple of months and we’ve got
people coming in from USA
and all other destinations. It
Technoholic
At the moment, Goa Tourism has now formed a new marketing committee where they are roping in travel agents
They are taking them to roadshows and making them participate in international events
They are also promoting a lot of hinterland tourism and are
developing sectors and routes for that and very soon they
are going to go digital with apps
has become a big boost and
supplemented a lot of loss of
business because of various
economic factors everywhere.
The Goa Tourism
Q
Minister had talked
about starting Hop-on
Hop-off tours and a slew
of other initiatives some
time ago; what is happening on that front?
We did a recce for the
Hop-on Hop-off during the
exposition of St Francis
Xavier and we have decided
on routes and in the coming
season, we are going to fix
those routes and extend it
right from Panjim to old Goa
and surrounding areas of
Panjim. In regard to changing
rooms and locking rooms,
those are also in the pipeline
as land has been identified
and work will start soon after
issuing of tenders and final
permissions. By next season,
we’ll have things in order.
What are you doing
Q
about safety for
tourists? Is Goa doing
enough?
If you look at the statistics, we
are No 3 on the list for Visa
Online and we have issued close
to about 2000-odd visas in the
last couple of months and we’ve
got people coming in from the USA
and all other destinations
Sanjeev Mendes
State Level Marketing and
Promotion Committee, Goa
From what we were
almost three or four
years ago to now, we have
gone several steps ahead in
terms of safety. We have
tourist police on the beach
who restrict people from taking alcohol on the beach.
They try and restrict
people from littering the
beaches; we have got lifeguards now in practically
all
the
beaches
of
Goa. The lifeguard timings
have been extended from
7pm right up till midnight in
some crowded beaches. We
are doing things in terms of
safety as we want visitors to
feel safe in Goa.
How is the state
Q
tourism department
working with travel
agents? Are you doing
enough?
Yes we
are; we have
got a lot of
committees. At
the moment,
we have now
formed a new
marketing committee where
we are roping
in travel agents and taking
them to roadshows and making them participate in international events. We are also
promoting a lot of hinterland
tourism and we are developing sectors and routes for that
and very soon we are going to
go digital with apps. So,
tourists can come with their
smart phones, download the
app and they get information
about the route. We are also
looking at having app stations
where you reach a particular
point and a pop up will come
up which will give you a
description of the place you
are in. All these might
take around 2 years to develop and in that time you’ll
see a different side of Goa
Tourism altogether.
42
NOSTALGIA 2013
GITB creates euphoria in inbound circles
The 6th edition of The Great Indian Travel Bazaar ended with euphoria among the travel trade
on April 16, 2013. The buyers and sellers expressed great satisfaction on account of more
than 9,000 meetings held in the course of two days, which has become one of the major
attractions as part of this niche inbound platform in India.
NOSTALGIA 2014
TRAVTALK
43
A renewed push for inbound industry
The Ashok, New Delhi, played host to the first edition
of the India International Travel Bazaar (IITB-2014). The
event took off to a great start as it witnessed participation of a large number of buyers from all over the world.
44
Cashing in on history
and heritage
IHH represents and promotes
boutique hotels, heritage hotels,
including forts, palaces, havelis, wildlife
destinations, luxury camps, and hill
resorts in India.
T T B U R E AU
otel sales and marketing
consultancy
Indian
Historical Hospitality represents and promotes heritage
H
experience in the hospitality
industry, the company is providing end-to-end solutions for
accommodation, travel and
logistical requirements.
Talking about the initiatives of the group, Alok Bhatt,
Director-Sales & Marketing,
Indian Historical Hospitality
says, “We are showcasing
niche properties with a fine
blend of luxury, heritage, boutique and resorts spanning different regions across India.”
Alok Bhatt
Director-Sales & Marketing
Indian Historical Hospitality
Earlier we saw an
ever-increasing
number of
inbound clientele.
However, now
there is a
huge chunk of
domestic travellers
hotels, including forts, palaces,
havelis, boutique hotels, wildlife
destinations, luxury camps and
hill resorts in India. Promoted
by professionals with extensive
Regarding the new
trends in the hospitality industry, Bhatt adds, “Earlier we saw
an ever-increasing number of
inbound clientele. However,
now there is a huge chunk of
domestic travellers and they
are appreciating heritage, rural
and eco tourism experiences.”
Regarding the accommodation and MICE facilities at
the properties, Bhatt points out,
“All our properties have sufficient meeting and in-house
conference facilities backed by
all the modern gadgets. The
hotels witness occupancy of
60-67 per cent on an average.
Going forward, the group
is looking at bringing more
exclusive properties, especially
in off-beat unexplored areas
under its umbrella.
Fillip to travel & trade
Contd. from page 3
Suri
has
been
Chairperson of the FICCI
Tourism Committee for the last
five years and is the only
woman at the position. She’s
also the only person from the
travel and trade industry to be
the President of FICCI.
Outlining her agenda for
the next one year, Suri
remarked, “My vision for the
next three months will be
based on 3Cs – concise, collaborative and conclusive.
Communication will be to the
point and concise. Action and
direction will be collaborative,
first within FICCI itself and then
with the industry and other
industry associations and
the government. The aim will
be to conclude all initiatives
taken in this one year by the end
of my term.”
The Travel Trade has
accomplished many achievements under her direction.
Some of her most significant
achievements while at FICCI
include the introduction of ‘The
Great India Travel Bazaar’ in
2008 and
‘The Great
Domestic Tourism Bazaar’ in
2011, both of which are
keenly-awaited
events in the
annual calendar of travel
and tourism
business interactions and
which garner a
very favourable
response.
CLIPBOARD
CLIPBOARD
TRAVTALK
45
46
AGENTS
Green Chili Holidays expects a good 2015
Offering unique experiences to domestic and inbound tourists visiting India, Green Chili Holidays is expecting 2015 to
be an even better year for Indian holidays. Here’s a glimpse of what the company has planned for this year.
T T B U R E AU
boutique
destination
management company
specializing in holiday packages within India, Green Chili
Holidays offers customized
holiday solutions to inbound
travellers. Speaking about
plans
for
this
year,
Kunwarjeet Bhalla, Director
of Sales & Marketing of Green
Chili Holidays, says, “Last
year was a successful one for
Green Chili Holidays. Going
forward, we expect 2015 to be
a positive year for us. Apart
from welcoming tourists from
all major international markets we will continue to offer
best products and services to
our clients. We will continue to
work towards strengthening
our presence as an inbound
tour operator. With the government recently implementing the visa online facility for
nationals of more than 40
countries, we expect it has
opened up new markets for
Indian travel companies.”
A
Offering unique experiences to inbound tourists, its
personalized service and
attention to detail has ensured
a loyal clientele base. Speaking
about its high-performing markets, Bhalla says, “We receive
overwhelming response from
the US, Mexican and the
Middle East markets.”
North East gains popularity
Sharing some insight
into the upcoming destinations
in India, Bhalla says,
“Although destinations like
Delhi, Agra, Jaipur, Rajasthan,
Goa and Kerala will continue
to be popular among tourists,
new destinations like North
East will also see increase in
tourist arrivals. North East is
a region which is mostly unexplored. All the states of North
East have some unique tourist
sites which need to be promoted. With the new government looking to improve economy and infrastructure in the
North East region, I hope the
and time, along with genuine
insight into both the hotels and
destinations. “We are the onestop destination for all kinds of
inbound and corporate travel
needs. We have a range of
products that can cater to the
luxury travellers,” Bhalla says.
Although destinations like Delhi,
Agra, Jaipur, Rajasthan, Goa and
Kerala will continue to be popular
among tourists, new destinations
like North East will also see
increase in tourist arrivals
Kunwarjeet Bhalla
Director of Sales & Marketing,
Green Chili Holidays
tourism sector there will also
grow further.”
Another emerging travel
trend that he sees this year is of
wildlife tourism. “This is another
segment in which we offer a
host of products. With a number
of national parks and forest area
in India, wildlife tourism will
remain in demand,” he says.
The team at Green Chili
Holidays extends valuable recommendation with regard to
appropriate travel destinations
match between the requirement and the delivery that we
do. It is not just about putting
things together, it is about
adding value to the amassed
product. To create the best suitable program we focus on individual needs and business culture of our clients for suggest-
The company also specialises in complete planning
and management of MICE.
Bhalla says, “We believe that
an event is an experience and
we aspire to make that experience a treasured memory
packed with spirit and passion.
We always aim for a perfect
ing and implementing tailormade solutions.”
Speaking about the challenges he faces in the Indian
market, Bhalla underlines infrastructure as the main problem.
“Infrastructure in India continues
to be a challenge for the growth
of travel and tourism industry
though it has improved greatly
over the years. We need to have
a world class infrastructure be it
roads, transportation or way
side amenities across India. It
will help us to offer a smooth and
seamless experience to tourists
of all kinds. Development in
infrastructure needs to take
place in not just major cities but
smaller cities as well,” he adds.
However, he praises the
Clean India Campaign of the
new government, which he
says is a step in the right direction. “Finally, an Indian government has shown interest in
improving the image of the
country and project it as a
clean destination. Such a great
initiative should be supported
whole heartedly by all travel
and tourism companies as we
often gets complaints about
lack of cleanliness at tourists
spots. We also need to educate
our clients to be responsible
and support such a campaign,”
he says.
Clearing hurdles for inbound tourism
In view of India’s miniscule share in the world tourism pie, the government and tourism industry really need to pull
up its socks if it is looking at hitting the 10 million mark anytime soon. There is also a need to rationalise and lower
taxes, thereby encouraging more visitors, generating more forex and employment.
aving travelled to several
countries across the
globe, and having seen several
of the wonders of the world,
and over a 100 of the 1000plus World Heritage sites, I can
confidently say that several
sites in India, not just the Taj
Mahal, but even say the Ajanta
Caves or the ruins of Hampi,
or for that matter, even
Humayun’s Tomb in Delhi,
more than match up to sites
like the Machu Pichu in Peru
or the Angkor temples in
Cambodia.
H
India’s share is miniscule
Looking at where we
stand in terms of our share of
the world’s tourism pie, unfortunately, the picture is not quite
as good. With just about seven
million tourists coming to India,
our share is still miniscule. The
Incredible India campaign has
of course been a great success, and brand India is now
recognized well, in part due to
the excellent advertising campaigns in several important
tourist generating markets. But
other than that, we really need
to get our act
together if we
are looking at
hitting the 10million mark
anytime soon.
Based on
what our clients
say post their
Vikramajit
Chairman
SanJeet
Editor & Publisher
Deepa Sethi
Editor-in-Chief
Editorial
Megha Paul
Devika Jeet
Hazel Jain
Kanchan Nath
Samapti Das
Shivani Kaul
News-Editor
Peden Doma Bhutia
Marketing
Gunjan Sabikhi
Aarti Nagrath
Harshal Ashar
Karishma Khanna
Priyanshu Wankhade
Prableen Pasricha
Elizabeth Rani
Susan Eapen
Bharat Chawla
Gaganpreet Kaur
Naveen Kumar
travels and considering what
we as tour operators would
need, to market the destination
more effectively here are some
pointers that require our immediate attention are:
Our highway
infrastructure
Everywhere else in the
world, the travel time between
cities is on the decline,
because of better highways
and road connectivity. But in
India sadly it seems to be on
the rise. The 250-kilometer
journey from Delhi to Jaipur
could take in excess of six
hours and the less than 200kilometer journey from
Kovalam to Kumarakom, takes
as long as five hours. Given
the size of our country, having
a top class or at least a reasonably good highway system
would do wonders for tourism.
Design
Nityanand Misra
Sudhir Mudgal
Advertisement Design
Vikas Mandotia
Nitin Kumar
Production Manager
Anil Kharbanda
Circulation
Ashok Rana
CIN: U22210DL2012PTC230432
Photographers
Simran Kaur-Delhi
Safety perceptions
Recent incidents have
highlighted the concerns for
safety, particularly from women
tourists. We really need to get
our act together so that we can
once again be perceived as a
safe nation for travellers.
Ease of visas
While there has been a
major step in terms of the introduction of Visa Online, we’ve
recently even taken a step
backward. In the last one
month, India has introduced
biometrics for all visa applicants from the UK. A lot of our
agents and clients are really
peeved about this since it is a
cumbersome and time-consuming process. I do appreciate our need for national security, but surely this is something
that could have been done
after the Visa Online for travel-
GITB Special is printed and
published by
SanJeet on behalf of
DDP Publications
Private Limited
72, Todarmal Road,
New Delhi - 110 001
Ph: +91-11-41669575,41669576
Fax: +91-11-23351503
E-mail: [email protected]
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ers from the UK was introduced, and not before. This is
going to put off many potential
travellers from one of India’s
largest tourism markets,
the UK.
Taxation
While we have seen a few
positive announcements to do
with taxation for the industry at
large, a key thing still lacking is
the fact that the government
does not seem to be thinking of
inbound tourism the same way
as it thinks of let’s say garment
exports. Tourism is a huge foreign exchange earner and a
huge employment generator but
for reasons best known to the
policy makers, has never been
given it’s due, when it comes to
tax and other incentives. It is a
known fact , that when we put
together all the taxes that a
tourist ends up paying, the proGITB Special is a publication of DDP Publications Private Limited.
All information in GITB Special is derived from sources, which
we consider reliable and a sincere effort is made to report
accurate information. It is passed on to our readers without any
responsibility on our part. The publisher regret that he cannot
accept liability for errors and omissions contained in this
publication, however caused. Similarly, opinions/views expressed
by third parties in abstract and/or in interviews are not
necessarily shared by GITB Special. However, we wish to advice
our readers that one or more recognised authorities may hold
different views than those reported. Material used in this
publication is intended for information purpose only. Readers are
advised to seek specific advice before acting on information
contained in this publication which is provided for general use,
and may not be appropriate for the readers’ particular
circumstances. Contents of this publication are copyright. No
part of GITB Special or any part of the contents thereof may be
reproduced, stored in retrieval system or transmitted in any form
portion of taxes going out of the
tourist’s dollar in India ranks
among the highest in the world.
If we are really serious about
our tourism, this needs to be
rationalised, and lower taxes will
result in the destination being
more attractively priced, thereby
encouraging more visitors,
thereby generating more forex
and more employment.
Kapil Goswamy is the MD of Trans
India Holidays, one of the leading
inbound tour operators in India
without the permission of the publication in writing. The same
rule applies when there is a copyright or the article is taken from
another publication. An exemption is hereby granted for the
extracts used for the purpose of fair review, provided two copies
of the same publication are sent to us for our records. Publications
reproducing material either in part or in whole, without
permission could face legal action. The publisher assumes no
responsibility for returning any material solicited or unsolicited
nor is he responsible for material lost or damaged.
This publication is not meant to be an endorsement of any specific
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