Travel News and Updates: travel and tourism

Budget 2019 is in making and the travel and tourism industry has its demands. Relaxation in the taxes will allow improvements in the area. The native and global tourist crowd will experience immense growth and double the income in the sector. Enhancement in the infrastructure and connectivity is expected from the Budget 2019. Hastening the tourism projects in the destinations will attract travelers from across the world. "Last mile connectivity from major metros to tourism destinations will act as a catalyst to double our tourism numbers and contribute to overall development," stated Peter Kerkar, CEO of Travel company Cox & Kings Group. In order to bring in more tourists from abroad, the air seat capacity needs to be increased. This is one of the significant challenges faced by the tourism sector while attracting foreign tourists, he mentioned. Extending the UDAN Scheme to more airports and helping the private tourism sector in making it feasible, he said.

Travel and tourism industry has scaled a massive leap in recent times with the government taking every possible step to boost the tourism industry in the country. However, the Travind Institute of Travel and Tourism witnessed its 4th convocation ceremony in the presence of two renowned personalities in the Tourism & Hospitality industry, Dr L.S. Chirmule, Principal of the BVDU Institute of HMCT, Pune, along with Prof. Nachiket Aradhye, who was present as a keynote speaker. The ceremony was hosted by Ms.Pooja N. Pardesi, a senior faculty at Travind Institute, Pune.
The ceremony kick started with felicitation of the chief guests by Mr.Bhimrao Gotarne, Branch Head of the Travind Institute, accompanied by Ms.Shweta Bodhe, Director of Travind. However, the students present at the ceremony were addressed by the Key Note speaker, Prof. Nachiket Aradhye, who has had a vast experience in the industry. He stressed on how the Hospitality and Tourism Industry goes hand-in-hand:
“It’s no longer a hidden truth that Hospitality and Travel Industry goes hand-in-hand. In the absence of tourism, hospitality suffers a direct impact. Similarly, in today’s scenario, we can readily observe that the students are failing to be consistent enough to survive in the industry. I have had a major struggle to reach the consistency level that made me achieve success. And hence, while going hand-in-hand with the booming opportunities in the industry, one must also take care of maintaining
the consistency to give the tourism industry a major boost.”
To share a piece of knowledge with the students, out of her overall experience, so far, Dr L.S. Chirmule quoted that,

“We have been blessed with the outcomes of the booming hospitality and tourism industry. But, while going hand-in-hand with the industry, there’s also a great need felt of grooming the students. Earlier, only the visual appearance was considered, but as per to what the pacing industry suggests, we need to evolve with the overall skills. You may also be judged upon your representation in public. And hence, do not restrict yourself … absorb as much knowledge as you can.”

On September 9, 2018, the third convocation ceremony of Travind Institute of Travel and Tourism Management successfully took place at MCCIA Trade Tower Shivaji Nagar, Pune. The chief guests of the occasion were Mr. Deep Bhong(Founder and Managing Director), Mr.Vishal Terkar(Finance Director), Mr. Datta Dongare (Technical Director), Mr. Pramod Dongare (Operations Director), Mr. Vivek More (Director of Travind Institute) and the special speaker was Mrs.Archana Biwal, Senior Speaker of Maharashtra State Institute of Hotel Management and Catering. Travind certified 40 students  in this year’s convocation for the courses - Diploma in Travel and Tourism With the Certification of GDS Fares & Ticketing ( Amadeus )

While congratulating the students Mrs.Archana Biwal addressed,

“You will be entering the real world with its ups and downs. The process of transition pose some problems, but I am sure that with the value system and training that you have acquired at this institute, you will be able to face the world of work with confidence.”   

Travind Institute of Travel and Tourism Management marked its wonderful presence in the travel and tourism industry by providing proficient skills and education to the students in an effective and efficient manner. Its students are performing well in the industry and appreciated not only by their employers but clients as well.  

Do you want to travel the world but are you stuck in a 9-to-5 Job with two weeks of holidays? There are jobs for which you can wander on your employer's penny that pay more than $ 100,000 per year.

1. Travel Advertiser (VP or higher)
Average salary: $ 116,000
A publicist establishes and maintains positive relations with the media, placing his clients in different media, from television to magazines. A travel blogger works for a hotel (or hotel chain), a cruise line, an airline or an advertising agency that represents travel clients.
The longer you stay with an advertising agency, the more you can do. The average salary for a high-level vice president is around $ 116,000 a year, according to the Payscale.com job website.

2. Luxury travel advisor
Average salary: $ 100,000
Before the Internet, travel agents (as they used to be known) could do as little as booking a plane ticket. Now, travel consultants not only prepare for your trip, but also provide a high level of service and advice, and manage your vacation time.
Travel consultants are always on the road, especially those who specialise in luxury travel, where customers with large budgets want consultants to know the product through first-hand experiences.
The salary of a travel agent is approximately $ 36,654 per year, with an extra $ 6,000 for bonuses and commissions.

3. Hotel manager
Average salary: $ 105,000
The hotel manager ensures that everything about the hotel works without problems. They manage all aspects of the property, including operations, staffing and customer satisfaction, and are mostly responsible for operational efficiency and profitability.
While the average salary for a hotel manager is approximately $ 105,000, those who work in a large, high-end hotel, especially in large metropolitan cities, can earn close to $ 200,000 a year. The Glassdoor employment website shows a manager position at Rosewood Hotels & Resorts, a five-star hotel chain, with an average salary of $ 114,000 from $ 95,000 to $ 129,000.

4. Sales Director
Average salary: $ 108,737
A hotel sales manager is responsible for developing businesses through direct sales, marketing, direct mail and tours through the hotel, it also boosts sales revenue, which may be reserving large-scale events and conventions at the hotel. The minimum salary of a director of sales in a hotel is $ 88,116, with the additional compensation in cash (including bonus or commission) of $ 20,621 per year, which amounts to $ 108,737.
If you manage commercial sales for an entire region, such as all hotels of the hotel company in a city or region (that is, all Marriott hotels in New England), you can expect a higher salary of $ 117,440 per year with additional compensation of $ 56,729.

5. The pilot of the airline
Average salary: $ 137,330
If you have ever dreamed of being the pilot of a plane, know that you have a high salary: more than $ 100,000 per year (up to $ 208,000 per year for major airlines). The average annual salary is $ 137,330, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

6. Creative or art director
Average salary: $ 133,000
The average annual salary for a creative director in the US. It is $ 133,839, but it can reach $ 200,000 at the higher end for those who have more experience and get jobs in large companies.
Directors working on trips, such as a hotel chain, for example, get the advantage of travelling through their work, travelling to new hotel openings to determine the general vision, working with designers, artists, editors and marketing specialists

Source:CNBC

The promotion of Malabar Tourism will be the focal theme of the upcoming 10th edition of Kerala Travel Mart (KTM), which will be a platform for extensive business-to-business meetings and chalking out measures to make the money-spinning tourism sector of the state a sustainable enterprise.

India’s largest tourism event, the four-day KTM will be inaugurated by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on September 27 at 6:00 PM at Grand Hyatt, Bolgatty, Kochi, coinciding with World Tourism Day organised by KTM Society in partnership with Kerala Tourism, the event will conduct its business-to-business meetings at Samudrika and Sagara Convention Centre, Willingdon Island, Kochi, from September 28 to 30.

Announcing the details of the KTM 2018 at a press conference on Wednesday, Kerala Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran said the opening of Kannur airport this year would give a boost to tourism in the Malabar region in north Kerala.

This is in continuation of the summit meeting between the Indian Prime Minister and the Russian Federation President last year to celebrate 2018 as the Year of Tourism in India and Russia.
Source: Blive
 

As Indians are big fan of sports and travel, sports tourism industry in India sees 10-12 per cent growth says experts.

"Globally sports tourism is a multi-billion dollar industry. According to estimates, global sports tourism was worth USD 7 billion in 2017. While it is a mature industry overseas, in India it is in infancy (stage)," Cox and Kings Head, relationships, Karan Anand told here.

The first love for Indians is cricket and they travel to watch the game, whether in India or overseas, he added.  Sport events like the Soccer World Cup or the Olympics. We see large number of people travelling to the destination where the sport is going to be played. Over the last 10 years its reported that the interest to watch the olympics, the Soccer World Cup and Grand Prix Formula One motor events apart from cricket.

India Marketing Head, Brand, Manmeet Ahluwalia said India saw a change in travel patterns and rise in incidence of travelling for sports events ever since the launch of Indian Premier League in 2008.

“Indians always loved to adored the two games and travel, so occasions around donning occasions are the ideal mix to fulfill two desires immediately, he added.
Many people travel for watching these sports and hence these trips boost sport tourism and many tourism industry have began to realise the value of wooing these tourist -  many of them fall into the high-spending category, stay longer than other tourist categories, are high-calibre and often stimulate other tourism," he added.

Source: Economic Times.

As per the data, by WTTC the travel and tourism sector generated Rs 14.1 trillion (USD208.9 billion) in 2016, which is the world’s  7th largest economy and the sum is equivalent to 9.6% of India’s GDP.

Additionally, the new report says that the tourism sector created 40.3 million jobs in 2016, which ranks India 2nd in the world in terms of total employment generated. The sector accounts for 9.3% of the country’s total jobs.

David Scowsill, President, and CEO, WTTC, said-

“India is a tremendous Travel and Tourism economy, and I am pleased to see the sector GDP is growing. However, we believe that these numbers could be even higher and that the positive impact of our sector could be more wide-ranging. India has a huge potential to increase its international visitors and, in doing so, it can create more jobs and drive economic growth”.
He added, “We encourage the Indian government to continue to adopt policies that encourage the tourism in India”.

Therefore, it's a great advantage for those who are working in travel and tourism sector and also for those who wish to make their career in travel and tourism sectors.

Source "economictimes"

The world was stunned by the arrival of latest technologies in recent years, same way the travel and tourism experts are surprised by the use of these technologies in travel and tourism industry. Subsequently, travel companies are opting different technologies to improve customer interface and operations.  




According to Elena Mogos, Associate Analyst for Digital Travel & Tourism at GlobalData, remarks: “Travel still revolves around meaningful human interactions. However, to be successful, companies need to create a balance between the technological innovations and the human element. Improving the customer experience must always be on the back of travel and tourism companies’ minds when investing in technology.” - Source (Global data)

Here are some of the advance Technologies used in Travel and Tourism

Augmented and Virtual Reality (AR and VR):  Augmented Reality is being used in all other industries for content marketing or to enhance the consumer’s experience. Nowadays airlines are using VR Tech to show passengers the cabins in virtual reality, to get sell more expensive tickets.

Artificial Intelligence (AI): AI is almost behind every latest technology which is evolving in travel and tourism. The livingly applications of this technologies are  Machine Learning, ChatBots or Travel Bots, and Robots.

Internet of Things (IoT): Internet of Things has a lot of potentials to change the future of travel and tourism industry. For ex. Lufthansa Airlines has recently introduced the function of real-time tracking of your luggage in their respected app.

Wi-Fi connectivity: When traveling people want to stay connected with their family or friends by the medium of social media due to that most of hotels and airports are giving free of cost internet usage.

Wearable devices:  Now Disneyland and universal studio to introduce the smart  wearables to track the time for rides and to eliminate the waiting and it is smart innovation

Indian tour operators and the travel agents are requested to add value to the tour packages as per the growing demands, changing needs of the travelers apart from their define itinerary.

Ms. Meenakshi Sharma, Additional Director General Tourism, Government of India. She was addressing an interactive meeting of the IATO on March 1 in Delhi. She said -
 “ tourists were no longer interested in just seeing monuments, they wanted to experience things for themselves. Diversified products must be offered and value for money should be the criteria, not cheap packages.”

Ms. Sharma addresses more towards the growth of tourism, She talks about the Campaign "The Great Indian Blog Train" Where 60 bloggers who were on four luxury trains recently, commented that more freedom should be given while traveling, rather than just follow a rigid itinerary.

The ministry asks the tour operator to give their suggestions to revamp the ministry website as per the growing demands and changing needs of the travelers.IATO president Pronab Sarkar revealed that under the ‘adopt a heritage program’, the association was taking up Mahabalipuram and Ellora for maintenance. said
“that the recent Bharat Parv Festival was a great success with domestic tourism promotion and should be held every year.”

source = eturbonews

Uttar Pradesh, Yogi Adityanath government has undertaken the development of 10 new airports in Uttar Pradesh (UP) to boost religious business tourism in India by increasing the connectivity between the religion, region and business to boost the economy of the country.

The Union Civil Aviation Ministry, develop Agra Kanpur airport after bidding under the regional connectivity scheme in the first phase. In second phase the government also decided to built 10 more new airports - Allahabad, Aligarh, Bareilly,Azamgarh,Chitrakoot, Hindon (Ghaziabad), Jhansi, Moradabad, Muirpur (Sonbhadra), and Shravasti are under the project. As these are the prominent cultural and religious tourism places in Uttar Pradesh. Kanpur (Leather) , Aligarh (Lock Making Units)and Moradabad (Brassware) are the place have industry that will help in the business growth.

Yogi government had urged the Center to expedite the proposal in order to boost the religious business tourism in India.

‘Travel and Tourism’-the new engine for India growth. Cruise tourism is one segment of the tourism industry and is famous all over the globe. It is one of the expensive, luxury tourism witnessed a steady growth over time. India also has a large number of travelers who choose to spend time at sea and explore popular destinations at the same time.

Maharashtra's Minister of Tourism Jayakumar Rawal said cruise tourism will “create more jobs while making a value addition of Rs 32,500 crore to the national economy.”

An increase in the cruise tourism will increase the economic growth of the country as the purchasing power for India’s middle class has fuelled a rising demand for luxury travel. 

Mumbai developing the city as a homeport, Jayakumar Rawal along with the chairman of the Mumbai Port Trust Sanjay Bhatia working to boosting tourism in Mumbai the port has huge capacity to explore. 

Tourism Minister Jayakumar Rawal said that the “shipping ministry plans to convert all six ports into cruise ports”. He also lauded the Immigration Department for introducing e-visas at ports like Mumbai, Goa, Kochi and Chennai.

He also announced Mumbai Mela, a shopping festival on the lines of the annual shopping event in Dubai to attract more people to the city.

The European Union’s Mobility and Transport Commissioner Ms Bulc has invited India to explore a longer engagement in the civil aviation industry.
Ms. Bulc talked focused on the importance of global agreement on railways and safety, security and improvements in airports.

Which result is the growth in the aviation sector in India. This will explore new career opportunities in the aviation industry in all possible concrete areas.
In an interview, Violeta Bulc said that she met Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju on Tuesday and had suggested holding an annual aviation summit in India to explore ways to improve safety, security, and the size of airports.

Ms. Bulc said - 

“We shared connectivity issues during our meeting,”  “That's why I invited the minister to consider the next step in our bilateral agreement, which would be a comprehensive aviation agreement. That will, of course, have a direct positive impact on tourism as well.”

She also met Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari and Railways Minister Piyush Goyal, where she discussed the issues related to railways and road safety.

She said - “Road safety is at the top of our agenda,”
“It has become a very important global issue. It has been elevated at the UN level as well. The Minister [Mr. Gadkari] expressed an interest in how we approached the systemic issues to decrease road safety, especially fatalities. So, I shared with him our policy attention, and also our Vision Zero, which I invited India to join.”

“One thing that was very effective in the EU was that we started to collect statistics on road safety and compare member states and wherever we saw that there was not such a good performance, we would then engage with the member state and help them make the next step,”

“In engineering, many new features will be introduced in cars, we are working with industry.”

While talking to Mr. Goyal Ms. Bulc Highlighted on the importance of global standards and had also said that there is emerging a need for an international agreement regarding railways.According to Ms. Bulc

“So, we will initiate a joint global event where we can start discussing standardization and regulator alignment on a global scale. We hope that this will emerge next year. There could be potential for a new UN chapter like we have for aviation,”

Source:thehindu

Alphons says the tourism ministry has recognized medical and wellness promotion tourism by organizing campaign shows

The government said that the value of medical tourism in India is likely to touch USD 9 billion by 2020 forecast as compared to the USD 3 billion in 2015.

Tourism Minister KJ ALphons today informed the Lok Sabha that India has developed as a major medical tourism destination over the years.

According to a Ministry of Commerce report 2016- India is ranked among the top six medical value travel destinations of the world including - Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan and Mexico.

"It is further informed that as per the report, through adequate focus and effective execution, Indian medical value travel, pegged at 3 billion USD in 2015, can be 9 billion USD opportunity by 2020", the minister said.

Road transport and highway minister on Monday came with a big plan to promote Indian tourism industry by exploring the possibility of connecting India with Asean Countries through cruise tourism.

He said that he already had talked about this with the companies about the cruise connectivity from Singapore exploring the various option.

Gadkari said:

He also pointed to the connectivity projects such as India -Myanmar-Thailand trilateral highway project and also discussed about the establishment of marine transport working group with Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam.

source: financialexpress

The government to invest Rs 57 crore, implement new tourism development projects in Kozhikode.Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran has said.

Observing the good tourism prospect in north Malabar the Kerala State Institute of Hospitality Management here on Thursday decided to open the works for boys’ hostel.

The government would implement new projects that are beneficial for local communities, promoting the eco-tourism and cultural-tourism. All the projects would be scrutinized to ensure about the quality.Mr, Surendran the tourism minister said “ the government will work on girls hostel would start from next year” he participated in the cake mixing ceremony and distributed sweets in orphanages.

Cultural zone
After the cake mixing ceremony, the minister introduced about the cultural zone at the Kozhikode beach. The tourism department plans how to go head with the cultural tourism to set up two more stages to utilize them as permanent venue rich heritage for more tourism for the Kerala Literature festival.