Voyager's World January 2016

Vol XIII

Issue III

Pages 48

January 2016

Rs 60

KOCHI

KOLKATA

14, 15, 16 January 2016

4, 5, 6 March 2016

CHENNAI

BANGALORE

29, 30, 31 July 2016

5, 6, 7 August 2016

MUMBAI

GURGAON

23, 24, 25 Sep. 2016

30 Sep 1, 2 Oct 2016

PUNE

HYDERABAD

25, 26, 27 November 2016

2, 3, 4 December 2016

3>>

Vol XIII

Issue III

Pages 48

January 2016

Rs 60

‘SOS’ in travel: Prevention

is better than intervention!

Also featuring...

www.voyagersworld.in

FUTURE TRAVEL... HIGH-SPEED TRENDS TO LOOK FORWARD TO!

A

s we welcome the new year with renewed hopes and plans for growth and innovation, online travel technology is set to see newer dimensions with dynamic advancements on the internet front. Light Fidelity or Li-Fi, a new age high speed fully networked wireless technology, will soon be the talk of the town, surpassing Wi-Fi. The recent months have seen prominent public spots and railway junctions taking to installing Wi-Fi but I think we need to take longer strides and leap higher so as to be able to be in the tech-savy travel wagon! With mobile bookings and internet revolutionizing travel decisions in the country, it is imperative that the travel trade considers future technology in their budget plans henceforth.

In this issue, we have featured stories on duty of care and travel security, loyalty programmes, transit travel and the popularity of train travel in Europe, besides destination stories on Langkawi and Wayanad.

Wishing a prospective business season to the entire travel trade fraternity this year!

Happy Reading....

Warm Regards

PRIYAMVADHA BALARAM

priyamvadha@voyagersworld.in

Managing Editor

Associate Editor

Chief Designer

Web Developer

Advertising & Marketing

Operations Executive

Rohit Hangal rohit@voyagersworld.in

EDIT

ORIA

L

Priyamvadha Balaram priyamvadha@voyagersworld.in

Shyam Vishnot shyam@voyagersworld.in

06 15

Industry Buzz

17

Hospitality Atlantis, the Palm Stay Simple Resorts

Irene Susan Eapen irene@voyagersworld.in

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India Outbound Tourism Council of Bhutan Israel Ministry of Tourism Tourism Malaysia- Langkawi

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38 45

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Industry Buzz

6>>

Taj opens new luxury hotel in Bangalore

ICPB elects Governing Board members for 2015 - '17

T

he 28th AGM of India Convention Promotion Bureau (ICPB) was held in December 2015 in New Delhi. The newly elected members of the Governing Board of ICPB, under the Chairmanship of Suman Billa, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, for the year 2015 – 17, are Chander Mansharamani, Alpcord Network as Vice Chairman and Amaresh Tiwari, A. T. Seasons & Vacations Travel Pvt. Ltd. as Secretary.

T

aj Hotels Resorts and Palaces opened Taj Bangalore located near the Kempegowda International Airport. The hotel has 154 spacious rooms and 12 luxury suites and a presidential suite. Taj Bangalore has over 25,000 sq.ft. of banqueting space, comprising an array of private multifunctional indoor spaces from ballrooms to intimate boardrooms.

Other members include Capt. Swadesh Kumar, Shikhar Travels (India); Saurabh Bhargava, Taj Hotels Resorts & Palaces; Gunjan Suri Travel Corporation of India Ltd.; Naveen Chibber, Orient Express; Ajay Vinayak, Palomino Hospitality Pvt. Ltd.; Vineet Batra, EastBound Tours & Travels Pvt. Ltd.; Sudeep Sarcar, India Expo Mart Ltd.; Amit Saroj, Attitude Events; Sanjay Soni, Incredible Design; Avinash Browne, Sun Business Machines P Ltd.; Ripudaman Singh Chauhan, Translink Express (I) Pvt. Ltd.

“Bengaluru is the epicenter of India’s entrepreneurial wave and an emerging centre for international conclaves and conferences.

As the city continues to grow and thrive, we are excited to add to the momentum by welcoming the newest Taj hotel to the city.

Taj Bangalore reflects the city’s unique urban identity and will extend to its guests the unmistakable Taj warmth and elegance,” said Prabhat Verma, Senior VP – Operations - South, Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces.

New appointees of Wayanad Tourism assume office

V

ancheeswaran of Wynberg Resorts is the new President of the Wayanad Tourism Organisation. The newly elected members of the management committee are Shylesh CP, Edakkal Hermitage who is the Secretary and Babu Vaidyar of Ayurkendra as the Treasurer.

The joint secretaries include Ashok from Blue Ginger Resorts; Anoop from Banasura Island Resorts; Babu Vaidyar of Ayurkendra and Vinod of Sunrise Valley.

Gateway Hotel re-opens in Gir

T 'Visit the Philippines Again 2016' campaign launched

T

he Department of Tourism (DOT) and the Tourism Promotions Board (TPB) of Philippines launched the Visit the Philippines Again (VPA) 2016 campaign following the success of Visit the Philippines Year 2015. VPA 2016 highlights various events that the tourists can participate during their stay there including Asian Tourism Forum 2016 and Routes Asia 2016; Madrid Fusion Manila 2016 for food lovers; 2016 Ironman 70 and the Asia-Pacific Championship for the sports and outdoor enthusiasts.

he Gateway Hotel Gir Forest, located at the edge of Gir Forest, has now reopened for guests. The hotel stands amidst dry deciduous and tropical thorn forests, facing the Hiran River. The Sasan Gir Forest is one of the only two natural habitats of Asiatic lion and has a lion count of 411. The leopard, jungle cat, rusty spotted cat, cheetal, sambhar, four-horned antelope, wild boar and hare are among spotted here. The hotel provides jungle safaris in an open Gypsy. The hotel is also close to various temples such as the Somnath, Banej and Kankai Temple, and historical destinations such as Junagadh, Gondal and Rajkot.

IHG to rebrand Eaton Smart Delhi

I

nterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) signed a management agreement with Radius Developers to rebrand the existing 93-room transit hotel in Terminal 3 of Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi. The hotel, currently operating under the name, Eaton Smart – New Delhi Airport Transit Hotel, which was India’s first airport transit hotel, will be rebranded as Holiday Inn Express by the end of this year.

The hotel will feature the brand’s signature Great Room Guests, where guests can dine and interact with each other, F&B options, spa facilities, Wi-Fi access, free Express Start Breakfast with Grab & Go option, business centre, etc.

83,501 e-visas issued in November 2015

A

total of 83,501 foreign tourists arrived in India on E-tourist visa in November 2015 as against 2,968 in October 2014, recording a growth of 2713.4%. UK is at the top spot followed by USA, France and Germany. From January - November this year, 341,683 tourists arrived on e-tourist visas as compared to 24,963 during the same period in 2014, recording a growth of 1268.8%.

Top source countries availing it last month were UK, USA, Russian Fed., France, Germany, Australia, Canada, China, Ukraine and Netherlands.

Voyager’s World > January 2016

Industry Buzz

7>>

Leela acquires new hotel in Delhi

Gujarat conducts roadshows in metros

T

he Leela Palaces, Hotels and Resorts announced its third addition to the group’s portfolio, which is Ambience Group’s five-star deluxe hotel in New Delhi, now renamed as ‘The Leela Ambience Convention Hotel, Delhi.’ The property is helmed by Jaideep Anand, who manages hotel operations, food and beverage, and wellness.

F

ollowing the unveiling of its new Tourism Policy and granting industry status to the tourism sector, the Government of Gujarat held a roadshow in Mumbai recently to draw investors from Maharashtra. The roadshows were also held in Delhi, Chennai, Bangalore, Kolkata and Hyderabad. Saurabhbhai Patel, Minister of Tourism, Govt of Gujarat, said, “The new tourism policy will position Gujarat as a vibrant tourist destination, with an emphasis on improving visitor experience, livelihood linkages, environmental concerns and enhancing investment opportunities, catapulting tourism as one of the most economic drivers, leading to sustainable development and inclusive growth in the state.”

GVK Lounge wins World Travel Awards accolade

T

he GVK Lounge, operated by Travel Food Services Limited (TFS) and Performa at Terminal 2 of Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (CSIA) in Mumbai, was chosen as the ‘World’s Leading Airport Lounge – First Class 2015’ at the recently concluded World Travel Awards in Morocco. The GVK Lounge was nominated in the world category after winning ‘Asia’s Leading Airport Lounge’ award at the ‘World Travel Awards - Asia and Australasia’ held on 29 October, 2015 in Hong Kong.

India retains top source market spot for Sri Lanka

2

9,329 Indian tourists visited Sri Lanka in November 2015, up by 48.4 % from last year, making India it’s top source market, followed by China up 54.4 % to 16,830. In the 11 months of 2015 arrivals were up 18.1 % to 1,592,266.

Sri Lanka’s tourist arrivals rose 20.4 % to 144,147 in the month of November 2015 from a year earlier, driven by China, India, United Kingdom and Germany.

Indian Terrain TfN 2015 flags off from Bangalore

T

he eight edition of Indian Terrain Tour of Nilgiris (TfN) started from 16 December, from Shangri La, Bengaluru which was organized by RideACycle Foundation (RAC-F), a non-profit advocacy organization, to promote cycling tourism. The cycling tour had a total of 109 riders from Singapore, China, Nepal, Germany, Netherlands, USA, UK and India and covers a distance of 875 kms across Karnataka, Kerala and Tamilnadu.

The cyclists pedaled through the towns of Mysuru, Ooty, Palakkad, Coimbatore and finish at Polachi.

Participants will also ride through three wildlife sanctuaries which comprise Bandipur National Park in Karnataka, Mudumalai National Park in the Nilgiris and Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary in Kerala.

2,200 Amway delegates visit France on incentive tour

A

mway India organised an incentive movement to France from 14 - 17 December, for 2,200 delegates, including the CEO of Amway India and the Regional President apart from the distributors.

150 top performing distributors visited Nice in the Riviera as part of the pre-incentive tour and later joined the group in Paris. The incentive movement took two and a half years of planning and mobilized 120 team members to handle the ground logistics. A team from the DMC, Europe Incoming and freelance team of guides, tour leaders and drivers were part of this group.

The hotel features 480 rooms encased within two towers connected by sky bridges 70,000 sq ft of multi-purpose meeting and banqueting space. The pillar-less ballroom has a pre-function area of 30,000 square feet and a capacity to host 6000 guests in reception style and 2500 in theatre-style.

Now get flight status on your wrist

J

et Airways recently launched its app designed exclusively for Apple Watch to enable guests to access real time travel information. Using the application that works on watch OS2 platform, guests can access their flight status of any flight on Jet Airways’ network as well as receive notification on the same. They only need to enter the flight number on the keypad of the watch to receive the latest flight status update.

For more details, guests will need to click “More on iPhone” on the Apple Watch, and the app will open the flight status details page. The app also enables the guests to get alerts on their upcoming trips and updates on special deals and offers from Jet Airways. To access the Jet Airways app on Apple Watch, users will first need to download the app for iPhone and turn on the ‘Show App on Apple Watch’ option within the ‘My Watch’ tab in the app.

Government to privatise ITDC hotels

T

he Government decided to sub-lease/ give on Operation & Management (O&M) contract properties of ITDC and its joint venture companies that have been leased by the state governments/state agency to ITDC and its joint venture companies. They are Hotel Jaipur Ashok; Hotel Kalinga Ashok at Bhubaneswar; Hotel Jammu Ashok at Jammu; incomplete hotel project at Gulmarg; Lalitha Mahal Palace Hotel at Mysore and joint venture hotels include Hotel Brahmaputra Ashok at Guwahati; Hotel Lake View Ashok at Bhopal and Hotel Ranchi Ashok at Ranchi. Process has been initiated to obtain approval/No Objection of the state government to sub-lease/ give on O&M contract the leased properties.

www.voyagersworld.in

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‘SOS’ IN TRAVEL: PREVENTION IS BETTER THAN INTERVENTION! Business continuity risks are subject to the degree of duty of care exercised by companies while sending their employees abroad, says Nicolas Bertsché, General Manager India at International SOS. PRIYAMVADHA BALARAM

Nicolas Bertsch, General Manager India, International SOS

With more and more Indian conglomerates sending employees overseas and to remote areas, there are risks naturally. The whole phenomenon of outbound travel on business is growing and hence, awareness on the duty of care is also growing. There is more awareness on risks from a business continuity perspective that a company is taking by sending its employees abroad.

A

new study from Ipsos on ‘International Travel: Risks and Reality’ points out that Indian travellers experience illness and injury while abroad more often than average. I completely second this having tripped down and hurt myself hours just a few hours before I began writing this in a location 13,000 km from India. The results of the study indicate that 9 out of 10 Indian travellers have felt their personal safety could be threatened while abroad; I ensure that I fully wrap up in cold locales despite being sufficiently insured during overseas travel.

International SOS, said “India is home to many global organisations that often send their employees abroad on business trips, incentive tours, conferences, etc. Many workers are also expatriates living and working in the country. This increased staff mobility correlates to increased exposure to risks. Therefore, it is imperative for organisations to take care of the health and well-being of their employees by assessing the risks, implementing appropriate preventive measures and preparing to fulfill their duty of care towards their employees.”

International SOS, a global medical and travel security risk services company, offers a range of preventive programs to deliver emergency assistance during critical illness, accident or civil unrest. Nicolas Bertsché, General Manager India at

He referred to ‘Duty of Care’ as the moral and legal obligations of employers to their employees, contractors, volunteers and related family members in maintaining their wellbeing, security and safety when at work, when deputed on

international assignments or sent to work in remote areas of their home country.

Here is where International SOS helps companies understand the risks their employees may face while abroad and better prepare workers and expatriates before they go abroad and to fulfill their duty of care.

This preparedness, he said, would help organisations be more proactive in their risk mitigation efforts.

USP International SOS has over 11,000 employees across the world, led by 1400 doctors and 200 security specialists and clients from more than 850 locations in 92 countries.

We are passionate about helping clients put Duty of Care into practice.

With us, multinational corporate clients, governments and NGOs can

mitigate risks for their people working remotely or overseas.

Nicolas explained: “Preventive measures could be as simple as providing pre-travel safety training for employees. Road safety training may be particularly valuable for Indian travellers, as they tie only with Brazil in having the highest incidence of injuries through road accidents while abroad.”

At 19%, the rate of injury from road accidents for Indian travellers abroad is more than double the world’s average. The study also found that 9 out of 10 Indian travellers had concerns about their personal safety abroad, indicating that employees may benefit from travel security and personal safety training.

“Organisations

have

started

9>> understanding the importance of ‘Duty of Care’ and risk mitigation planning as it also helps them save considerable costs incurred through emergency medical interventions, insurance claims, or evacuation situations. Over the last three years, the number of travellers using medical and travel security pre-trip advisories has increased by nearly 30%. Correspondingly, the number of cases where evacuation and/ or repatriation has been prevented has risen by 10%. However, there is a great scope for more organisations to review both medical and security issues when preparing their employees for travel and assignment abroad.

on the very situation. A very recent example would be of the unfortunate floods in Chennai. We got a massive number of calls from people who were stranded in hotels without any means of communication. We roped in our assistance centres to help the situation,” Nicolas explained.

The company has 2500 verified and audited service providers in India.

In the event of a security concern, it advises people in advance about the same, tracks and monitors the case and keeps the company informed.

In order to cater to the specific demands of high risk industries like oil and gas, mining, aviation, maritime, offshore and remote medical sectors, International SOS partnered with AMAS Medical Services, to provide job-specific and industry compliant health checks, preventive and emergency services to organisations.

There is a strong return on prevention.

For one dollar invested, the benefit will range at a minimum 1.60 dollars.

Risk prevention during travel is widely underestimated. If something goes wrong during an external assignment for any reason, (medical, security, etc.) the average cost of the failure can go up to one million USD or a lot of higher as well.

SOS on-the-scene The first problem faced in times of calamities is that the companies won’t know where the employees are.

International SOS has tools that allow them to identify what is the exposure and how many of their travellers are in that particular affected city/region.

It has a membership model, wherein, when a company approaches International SOS to inform them about sending its workers to remote areas like Kashmir, for instance, or any unmanned territories to tap resources or any overseas location, they seek help to mitigate risks.

“We have a travel tracker tool through which we are able to tell them about

Our motivation. Your assurance.

To help organisations better understand the risks in the markets where they operate and travel, International SOS recently released its Travel Risk Map 2016, the industry’s first integrated medical and travel security risk map for 2016.

The Travel Risk Map displays each country’s medical risk rating and travel security risk rating. The result is a comprehensive overview of risks by destination to aid organisations and staff in their travel risk mitigation efforts.

“We help companies, NGOs and governments manage their medical and travel risks to prevent things from happening by educating people before they go on a trip. International SOS shares facts on disease and epidemic threats prevalent in a certain destination, threats of natural calamities, illnesses, etc. Today 85% of our business lies in helping our clients to prepare and prevent things from happening. The remaining 15% is reserved for things that are not preventable.”

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Its medical team and specialists around the world lend support through a backbone of critical 27 assistance centres including one in India. The difference in its thinking is that it strongly focuses on preventing incidents and not on financial repair. “If something happens, say, if a house is on fire, we first call the fireman and not the insurance guy. We go the extra mile

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10>>

the whereabouts of their employees.

We work with travel agencies; whenever there is a calamity, at the click of a button, we can gather the number of employees working in that particular city. Be it the recent floods in Chennai or the Nepal earthquake last year, communication is generally down during the first few hours in the aftermath. Text messages work most of the time. We use the tool to track people. In Chennai, we had companies approaching us, employees calling the assistance centres and we had coordinates. We activated our gathered information source with the help of ‘Travel Watch India’, a dedicated desk that screens the situation of security at gunpoint,” said Nicolas. “The company working with us will give the ticket PNR issued by its travel agency, and that helps us get information on our travel tracking system.”

The company then activates its local service providers and arranges ground transportation. The Travel Watch Desk exists because of an increasing number of business travellers. In India, especially, there is more foreign direct investment (FDI) being pumped, ‘Make in India’ campaign and corporates sending their workforce on outdoor assignments. The desk comes in handy becomes things can difficult when we step out to work outside metros. Hence, International SOS, which has a team of specialists based in New Delhi, monitors the travel security of people on a day-today basis. It sends daily reports to the same people, weekly summary that allow individuals on the ground to appropriately take care of the people.

It has an assistance centre in the national capital as it works with the governments.

Voyager’s World > December 2015

Some examples would be assessing the security situation in the railway station if there were a rally in Kolkata or if a company were sending its employees to Africa on an assignment. As for the latter, International SOS would first help the company assess the risks. Liberia, for instance, poses risks in terms of road safety, vaccination requirements, travel and medical risks, Ebola threat, dengue and malaria, etc.

Further, it provides online training to female employees for security.

Once the employees land in the destination, it tracks them and ensures that they check-in safely and are secure until they check out.

The company offers membership contracts based on duration, size of company, requirements and the renewals are close to 100% usually.

Journey management In the case of an evolving risk, Nicolas says that the company advises its clients against sending their employees to a particular place.

He quotes a finding from a study by the Centre of Disease Foundation, Chennai that states that for every 100,000 travellers visiting a country in a month, 50% will incur some kind of a health problem; 8000 would need to be seen by a doctor; 5000 would have to be confined; 300 to be hospitalised; one would have to be evacuated and one might die on a trip. “Even if we try to do everything that we can, we have to intervene in many instances. We have an assistance centre in Paris that will take care of the one in South Africa.”

Markets Inbound market into India - If a USAbased company, which is already our

member, sends employees to India, then the awareness on travel risks begins in the USA. We work with our American counterparts. Globally, we work with 80% of the top 500 companies.

Outbound market – With more and more Indian conglomerates sending employees overseas and to remote areas, there are risks naturally. The whole phenomenon of outbound travel on business is growing and hence, awareness on the duty of care is also growing. There is more awareness on risks from a business continuity perspective that a company is taking by sending its employees abroad.

International SOS has approximately 50 corporate clients in India that are within energy, mining and infrastructure segments primarily.

“We have observed that automotive and finance sectors are sending their employees abroad. We also have a strong demand from Indian companies operating domestically as there are challenges even within the country such as a hydropower project set up in Himalayas or an automobile plant on the outskirts of Chennai.”

France, Germany, USA, China and Japan are extremely active. Australia is active in mining and there is more reception to duty of care in these sectors in these countries. Some industries like oil and gas are exposed to more risks and they come up with their own risk standards. An oil rig in Navi Mumbai, for example, would need higher medical assistance.

Eventuality Nicolas said, “When something inevitable happens, the employees

will call us. We also have apps that are enabled on the phones of the employees. The apps are in sync with GPS to help us identify where they are.

Through their location, we give them the phone number of the nearest assistance centre. When Ebola broke out, we had dedicated teams screening the globe to ascertain the situation and proactively inform the companies. We did the same when SARS and H1N1 broke out some years ago and during the recent attack in Paris.”

“In times of crisis, we inform the employees and if required, we stand on the spot with the incidence management team like we did it in Nepal. Some of the times when we extended our services were the riots in Kinshasa, Storm Sandy in New York, Gaza conflict, Venezuela protests and the Charlie Hebdo shooting in Paris. We understand the volume of the company’s travelling population, profile of the travellers, level of risks in the place where they are being sent. The risk in Somalia is not the same as something in Europe. We have doctors in suits for corporates; doctors in boots in a mining site and doctors with guns in a hostile situation. In many situations, it is more advisory assistance and no other intervention is required.”

“Unfortunately, companies realise our USP when something happens to them. We ask companies if they think about risks and safety when they send their workers outdoor from the perspective of a duty of care. We recommend this as part of their best practices, self assessment program and to measure their degree of preparedness in the best interests of business continuity,” he concluded.

Flight Talk

12>>

Retain Loyalty members with miles & points…

Loyalty programs is likely to increase the members count in the future.

Singapore Airlines

IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

David Lau, General Manager - India, Singapore Airlines

Singapore Airlines ensures to retain the loyalty of the customers through miles to travel on the airlines and consistent innovations in the cabin products and services

T

he aviation industry is growing with loyalty programmes on a year on year basis with a range of benefits for frequent flyers. Most of the airlines are nowadays keen in offering seamless experiences through miles and point based system. Loyalty programmes will definitely increase the member count and retain members over the years.

Latest trends in loyalty programmes Rajesh Menon, Regional Sales & Marketing Manager - South Asia, Cathay Pacific Airways said that Cathay Pacific offers an exclusive loyalty programme called The Marco Polo Club. The Marco Polo Club offers a range of privileges to our frequent flyers, all designed to enhance their journey before, during and after the flight.

“The latest trend is moving to a points based system from the traditional miles based accrual .This is a more balanced approach towards rewarding members across all club tiers,” He added.

Voyager’s World > January 2016

Growth factor with the loyalty programmes Rajesh states that the number of Marco Polo members has been growing year on year. We have just announced a revamp to our existing loyalty programme and the change will be implemented in April 2016.We will see some impact on membership size owing to the changes as growth is not just about increasing the member count.

“Our focus and aim, through our new loyalty programme will be to retain and recruit quality members by rewarding them with privileges and status benefits such as priority check-in and boarding, excess baggage allowance, upgrades, free companion cards, additional lounge access etc. to name a few,” He added.

New loyalty programs In the opinion of Rajesh, we have introduced changes to the existing loyalty programme by moving into a points based system. This enables

you to earn club points whenever you fly in eligible fare classes with Cathay Pacific, Dragonair or any of our oneworld alliance airlines. There is a whole new range of additional benefits that members can enjoy depending on their membership tier : Green, Silver, Gold or Diamond and also between the tiers.”

“We have also reduced the age criteria for membership from 18 to 12 ,to encourage more youth into the Club. We are also a partner with Asia Miles which offers you a world of exciting rewards,” He added.

David Lau, General Manager - India, Singapore Airlines said that , “The KrisFlyer is Singapore Airlines’ frequent flyer programme gives its members the opportunity to earn KrisFlyer miles whenever you fly on Singapore Airlines, SilkAir and partner airlines (http://beta.singaporeair. com/en_UK/ppsclub-krisflyer/earnairpartners/), or enjoy the services of the many world-class partners (https://www.krisflyerspree.com/).

Rajesh states that you can fly with Cathay Pacific and Dragonair among 25 other Asia Miles partner airlines to earn Asia Miles towards flight awards, upgrades, companion tickets and other lifestyle awards.

Enrolment is free with a variety of air and non-air redemption options.For Asia Miles, our future plans would be to try and increase redemption options for members in India by exploring more local partnership options.

“Members can redeem their KrisFlyer miles for travel to their favourite destinations and upgrades to the next higher class of travel on Singapore Airlines, SilkAir and selected Star Alliance or other partner airlines. Additionally, they can redeem your KrisFlyer miles for award tickets, enjoy the latest promotions amongst various other privileges,” David says.

“KrisFlyer Elite miles are the actual miles flown, plus any applicable class bonuses earned. When flying

Flight Talk

Singapore Airlines

13>>

Rajesh Menon, Regional Sales & Marketing Manager - South Asia, Cathay Pacific Airways

Cathay Pacific Airways offers memorable travel experiences through superior quality products and services to all passengers and helps to retain the loyalty of the customers.

on Singapore Airlines or SilkAir, class bonuses awarded are based on 100%, 125%, 150% and 300% of the actual distance travelled in Economy Class, Business Class, First Class and the Singapore Airlines Suites respectively. In the Suites, 150% of the actual miles flown will be earned in F or P booking class. On partner airlines, the Elite miles earned may differ. Promotional and tier bonus miles earned do not count towards Elite membership. No Elite miles are awarded for booking classes not eligible for earning of miles.

Elite qualification periods are the 12-month periods from the start date of KrisFlyer membership,” He added.

In the opinion of David, the members may qualify for KrisFlyer Elite Silver status by earning the required number of Elite miles.

KrisFlyer Elite Silver status is achieved on earning 25,000 Elite miles in any class of service on Singapore Airlines, SilkAir, Virgin Atlantic or any Star Alliance airline during the qualification period, and

credit them to the KrisFlyer account.

An Elite Silver member can enjoy the following:25% tier bonus on KrisFlyer miles, Priority reservation waitlist, Priority airport standby, Waived or reduced KrisFlyer service fees.

“Members may qualify for KrisFlyer Elite Gold status by earning the required number of Elite miles.

KrisFlyer Elite Gold status is achieved on earning 50,000 Elite miles in any class of service on Singapore Airlines, SilkAir, Virgin Atlantic or any Star Alliance airline during the qualification period. In addition to all of the benefits of KrisFlyer Elite Silver, members can enjoy a host of services reserved exclusively for KrisFlyer Elite Gold, together with the full complement of Star Alliance Gold privileges on all Star Alliance airlines,” He added.

David says that some of the privileges for KrisFlyer Elite Gold members are priority airport checkin, priority boarding when travelling

in Economy Class, priority baggage handling, access to an extensive network of lounges and extra checkin baggage allowance.

“The PPS Club is reserved for those who fly frequently in First or Business Class on Singapore Airlines or SilkAir, or in the Singapore Airlines Suites on the Singapore Airlines A380. Qualification for the PPS Club requires a PPS Value of S$25,000 to be earned within 12 consecutive months. PPS Value is only earned in First or Business Class on Singapore Airlines or SilkAir, or in the Singapore Airlines Suites on the Singapore Airlines A380.” He added Retaining the loyal customers Rajesh concludes that we are committed to providing memorable travel experiences through superior quality products and services to all our passengers. Keeping in touch with our members ,taking constant feedback from them on their experiences with flying our airline are vital. This helps us to meet the expectations of our members and

thereby retain their loyalty towards us.

In the opinion of David, “Singapore Airlines’ constant endeavor is to provide the best on ground and inflight service to our customers.

This includes consistent innovations in our cabin products, services and ancillary products by making them more relevant to the needs of our passengers. By ensuring a seamless experience over the years, we have managed to effectively retain the loyalty of our customers.

“From time to time, we also offer special benefits to our KrisFlyer members through special fares or discount offers. As Singapore Airlines is a Star Alliance member, our loyal customers can also use their miles to travel on other member airlines.” He added.

Total revenue accounts for this segment Rajesh states that nearly 40% of our worldwide revenue is contributed by our members.

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Flight Talk

14>>

Air India’s San Francisco flight launch Evening in Bangalore A Photo Gallery ROHIT HANGAL

Voyager’s World > January 2016

Hospitality

15>>

Atlantis ,The Palm sees increasing roomnights from India IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

Andrea Krenn,Vice President Public Relations, Atlantis ,The Palm says India is an important market .The Indian outbound segment has tremendous potential and will continue to explore new areas across the country.

Point and 23 unique dining outlets.

The resort has observed a growth in the number of travellers that increase their stay to two nights and longer to fully benefit from the numerous activities that the resort has to offer.

Occupancy rate on an average On average, Atlantis, The Palm has an occupancy rate of 89%. India is an important market for the resort and ranks in one of the top three globally in terms of annual visitors.

The Indian outbound segment has tremendous potential and we will continue to explore new areas across the country. We also observe many Indian travellers visiting the resort for a day or for one night to enjoy the various entertainment facilities and unique experiences in resort such as Aquaventure, the number one waterpark in Europe and the Middle East, marine mammal attractions such as Dolphin Bay and Sea Lion

Figures of Indian travellers For 2015, Atlantis has observed a growth of more than thirty per cent in terms of room nights from Indian compared to 2014. An excellent result which we are seeing increase year on year. Alongside a steady influx of guests from the main cities such as Mumbai and New Delhi, we are also observing an encouraging increase in the number of flights from tier two cities, suggesting there is tremendous potential in growth of the outbound market within these areas in particular.

Types of travellers Atlantis welcomes a mix of both first time and repeat guests on a regular basis from a global audience.

Atlantis has become a popular long weekend getaway and a stop-over

destination for business travellers, female travellers and families, especially from India.

Main segments India is one of the biggest international markets for FIT (Free Independent Travellers) and MICE for Atlantis, The Palm. Apart from the increase in number of visitors from the key metro cities, Atlantis enjoys a growth in the number of visitors from tier 2 and tier 3 cities.

Atlantis, The Palm offers state-of-theart conference and entertainment facilities and fabulous room and multiple suite accommodation for all segments: individual leisure travelers, families with children, those travelling in groups, lavish weddings and celebrations and MICE events.

The resort also offers special and innovative team building programmes for corporate delegates. The team at the resort will help guests plan the activities that suit their preferences and

needs, including an extraordinary choice of indoor and outdoor venues for MICE, unlike anything else in Dubai. Venues include the Royal Beach, overlooking the Arabian Gulf, the Lost Chambers Aquarium, where delegates are surrounded by 65,000 marine animals and Asateer, a fantastic venue option for large events to name a few.

Plans for 2016 Atlantis aims to increase presence and top-of-mind recall among travellers and the trade of the Indian outbound market through various marketing and trade initiatives.

The resort has planned extensive consumer outreach initiatives that include marketing partnership in India that target high spenders. In addition, Atlantis continues to work closely with its valued travel trade partners to promote fully integrated entertainment facilities in the resort including the likes of Aquaventure, Dolphin Bay, The Lost Chambers Aquarium and the 23 unique dining options .

Stay Simple Resorts to add 25 to 30 resorts in 2016 IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

Gopalkrishna Kulkarni, Founder and MD, Stay Simple Resorts says Stay Simple Resorts witnessed the occupancy rate above average at all their resorts during the holiday season in 2015 and expects an occupancy rate of 55% in this year. as a resorts chain, apart from the services we offer is in terms of food in all our resorts and activities tie-up with service providers or in house, convenience of sightseeing and service within the resort this is one of the key factors that determines a customer’s satisfaction. Over the last couple of years we have served more than 1,50,000/- customers.

S

tay Simple has a concept of the mid budget leisure segment

Promotional plans Holiday bookings are driven largely by verified content, ratings and of

course visibility. Given this, we do plan to launch a new initiative to collate customer uploaded content in blogs and social media. We also will continue the traditional approach of increasing visibility through our travel partners, trade exhibitions etc.

Upcoming properties We are looking forward to add about 25 to 30 resorts in as many new destinations this year.

Occupancy rate for 2015 Our occupancy has been above average at all our resorts during the holiday season in 2015. Our forward bookings show an increase of almost 30% during the first half of 2016.

Expected growth for 2016 In our existing resorts we are expecting to touch about 55% occupancy through the year.

www.voyagersworld.in

Incredible India

16>>

INDIA MOVES 13 PLACES UP IN TOURISM INDEX PRESS INFORMATION BUREAU

T

he Ministry of Tourism, is the nodal agency for the formulation of national policies and programmes and for the co-ordination of activities of various Central Government Agencies, State Governments/ UTs and the Private Sector for the development and promotion of tourism in the country. This Ministry is headed by the Union Minister of State for Tourism (Independent Charge).

The administrative head of the Ministry is the Secretary (Tourism) who also acts as the Director General (DG) Tourism. The office of the Director General of Tourism provides executive directions for the implementation of various policies and programmes. It has a field formation of 20 offices within the country and 14 offices abroad and one sub-ordinate office/project i.e. Indian Institute of Skiing and Mountaineering (IISM)/ Gulmarg Winter Sports Project.

INDIA’S POSITION IN TOURISM AND TRAVEL COMPETITIVE INDEX: India moves 13 position ahead from 65th to 52nd rank in Tourism and Travel Competitive Index as per the World Economic Forum (Davos) Report.

ACCOLADES FOR INDIA TOURISM At ITB 2015 held in Berlin in March, 2015, the Indian Pavilion set up by the Ministry of Tourism won the 2nd place for the Best Stand in the Asia, Australia and Oceania category. · Ministry of Tourism participated at WTM (World Travel Market) held from 2nd to 5th November, 2015 in London. The theme of the India Pavilion was Yoga. A live Yoga demonstration was organized at the India pavilion during all 4 days of WTM, 2015. The WTM, London was one of the largest attended travel show. At WTM, London, India was voted as Most Preferred Destination in Asia. · At the World Travel Market (WTM) Africa 2015 held in Cape Town, South Africa in April 2015, the India Tourism Stand of the Ministry received the ‘Best Feature Award’ from M/s Reed Travel Expo (organizers of the event). · India participated as the ‘Guest Country of Honour’ at the China International Tourism Mart (CITM)

Voyager’s World > January 2016

held in Kunming, China in November 2015. India Tourism won 3 awards at CITM 2015, i.e. Award for Best Booth Design, Award for Best Organization and Award for Best Innovation of Sales. · India tourism Tokyo participated in Busan International Travel Fair 2015 in BUSAN, KOREA. India Pavilion received two AWARDS, i.e. “The Best Booth design Award” and “The Best folklore performance award” for organizing promotional activities during this show.

FOREIGN TOURIST ARRIVALS · Foreign Tourist Arrivals (Provisional) from January to November, 2015 were 7.10 million, representing an increase of 4.5% over the same period of the previous year, which was 6.79 million. · Foreign Exchange Earnings (Provisional) of Rs. 1,12,958 crore during the period January to November, 2015 representing an increase of 1.0% over the same period of previous year, which was Rs. 1,11,889 crore.

E-TOURIST VISA · A path breaking initiative by the Government, e-Tourist Visa launched on 27th November, 2014, which enables the prospective visitor to apply for an Indian Visa from his/her home country online without visiting the Indian Mission and also pay the visa online. · Till December, 2014 e-Tourist Visa was available to the citizens of 43 countries. During the year 2015, 70 more countries were covered under e-Tourist Visa regime. This facility is now available for citizens of 113 countries arriving at 16 Airports in India. · During January-November, 2015 a total number of 3,41,683 tourist arrived on e-Tourist Visa while during the same period in 2014 a total number of 24,963 tourist arrived on e-tourist visa registering a growth rate of 1268.8%. · The percentage share of top 10 source countries availing e-Tourist Visa facility during October 2015 were as follows:UK (22.80%), USA (16.70%), France (17.09%), Germany (7.02%), Australia (5.53%), Canada (4.39%),

Russian Fed. (3.99%), China (2.93%), Ukraine (2.14%) and Spain (2.11%).

SWADESH DARSHAN FOR INTEGRATED DEVELOPMENT OF THEME BASED CIRCUITS · Launched in pursuance of the Budget announcements of 201415, Swadesh Darshan Scheme aims at integrated development of circuits having tourist potential in a planned and prioritized manner, promoting cultural heritage of country, development world-class infrastructure in circuit destinations, pro-poor tourism approach, promoting local arts, handicrafts, cuisine and generating employment.

NATIONAL MISSION ON PILGRIMAGE REJUVENATION AND SPIRITUAL AUGMENTATION DRIVE (PRASAD): · The scheme aims at integrated development of pilgrimage destinations to provide complete religious and spiritual tourism experience. · 13 cities identified for implementation in first phase – Varanasi, Amritsar, Ajmer, Mathura, Gaya, Kanchipuram, Velankanni, Dwarka, Puri, Amravati, Kedarnath, Kamakhya and Patna. · Eight projects have been sanctioned under PRASAD during the year 2014-15 and 2015-16, two for Mathura and one each for Gaya, Puri, Amritsar, Ajmer, Kamakhya and Amravati for a total estimated cost of Rs.187.81 crores.

SWACHH BHARAT ABHIYAN · The initiatives of ‘Swachh Bharat – Swachh Paryatan’ Swachh Bharat – Swachh Smarak’ and ‘Swachh Bharat – Swachh Pakwan’ were announced during the celebrations of Good Governance Day on 26th December, 2014. · A Nation-wide Sanitation/ Cleanliness Campaign from 25th September – 31st October, 2015 was observed by Ministry of Tourism and its subordinate offices and affiliated Institutes. As a part of it, to motivate the Officers and staff of the Ministry towards the ‘Swachh Bharat Mission’ and invite innovative ideas for making the Mission a ‘Jan Aandolan’, an essay competition was organized both in Hindi & English for the officers and

staff of the Ministry.

SWACHH BHARAT SWACHH PAKWAN (HUNAR ZAIKA) · Launched in December, 2014, this programme aims at upgrading the skills and hygiene standards of Street Food Vendors. As part of the orientation, the vendors are also sensitized to personal, environmental and waste disposal hygiene. The initiative converges two important initiatives of the Government – ‘Skill India’ and ‘Clean India’. Funds provided under this programme by the Ministry includes compensation to the vendors for the income loss during the duration of orientation.

HRD/ SKILL DEVELOPMENT INITIATIVES: · Hunar Se Rozgar Tak, a flagship Programme of the Ministry of Tourism to impart employable skills to youth in the age group of 18 to 28 years, sustained its acceptance and momentum as over 65000 persons were trained in the first eleven months of the year. With this, the total number of persons trained under the Programme since its inception in the year 2009 stood at about 229500. · In order to expand the HSRT outreach, it was opened up to implementation by private organizations with domain specific credentials / competence in terms of two verticals titled Badhate Kadam I and Badhate Kadam II. While Badhate Kadam I covers four hospitality trades namely Food Production, Food & Beverages Services, Bakery and Patisserie and Housekeeping Utility, Badhate Kadam II provides training courses to bring up Event Facilitators, Tour Assistants, Transfer Assistants and Office Assistants, Tourism Security Guards, Skin Care & Spa Therapists. · In January, the IITTM organized a course targeting the local youth, to bring up tourist facilitators.

Under the National Skill Testing & Certification, a total of about 14000 existing service providers were oriented and certified upto 30th November. This number is exclusive of street food vendors sponsored

by NASVI and certified during the period under Swachh Bharat – Swachh Pakwan (Hunar Zaika).

India Outbound

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Bhutan foresees optimistic growth in 2016 IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

Damcho Rinzin, Head Marketing & Promotion Division, Tourism Council of Bhutan says Bhutan is about experiencing the country life as we received about 100,000 Indian tourists in 2015 and are expecting good numbers in 2016 Indian Traveler require valid Indian passport or Voter Identity card (and traveler from Maldives and Bangladesh requires valid passports). The Tourism Council will soon launch an online permit system for the Indian traveler wherein if

Growth of Indian market We have received about 100,000 Indian tourists in 2015 and witnessed a tremendous growth in terms of Indian visitor arrival in 2015.

Destinations Visiting Bhutan is mainly about experiencing a country life. Most of the visitors return after their tour of Western Bhutan need to visit the central and eastern Bhutan as these places have more to offer in terms of Happiness.

they come through a Bhutanese tour operator or hoteliers, they can process the permits online in advance. Currently one has to wait in queue to process the permit.

Indian travelers

Spending and stay pattern of the

products

Indians prefers to stay in Bhutan for an average for 6-7 Nights.Indians also likes to spend on shopping colorful Bhutanese textiles and craft

Launching the biggest B2B platform in the

Middle East for outbound travel Where global sellers will meet premium buyers on a one-of-its-kind platform....

Marketing and promotional plans Bhutan tourism is participating in tourism events to enhance their presence and working closely with media.

Segments like adventure and pilgrimage tourism Bhutan is the Buddhist country and all our places have sacred connections to Guru, the second lord Buddha. We have rich historical anecdotes and many fascinating pilgrimage sites. Trekking and hiking is very popular in the adventure segment as we have natural landscape, rich flora, fauna and indigenous culture.

Connectivity India is well connected to Bhutan by the two National airlines Drukair flies to 6 destinations in India – Kolkata, Delhi,Mumbai, Guwahati, Bodhgaya,Bagdogra.Bhutan airlines flies to two destinations currently- Kolkata and Delhi Travel requirements for Indian travelers and other travelers Travelers to Bhutan have to book through a local Bhutanese tour operator and must pay a minimum daily package.

KUWAIT, QATAR , UAE

April 2016

First Ever Multi-destination Roadshow Your gateway to the Middle East Outbound Travel Market

For further enquiry and booking, contact: Sphere Travelmedia & Exhibitions Pvt. Ltd., #245, Amar Jyothi Layout, Domlur, Bangalore - 560 071, India Ph: +91-80-4083 4100, Fax +91-80-40834101 Email: otrindia@otrindia.com Website: www.otrindia.com

www.voyagersworld.in

India Outbound

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Israel keen to attract travellers from Bengaluru IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

I

srael Ministry of Tourism (IMOT) organized their first roadshow in Bengaluru as the city has been identified as a key market for leisure and MICE for Israel. The event was graced by the presence of Ambassador Dov Segev-Steinberg, Acting Counsul General, Consulate General of Israel, Bengaluru.

Israel continues to be an emerging outbound destination among Indian travellers looking for new places to visit and new experiences. Israel is one of the top destinations of the world and has visitors from across the globe. The country witnessed a notable 12% increase in tourist arrivals from India in January to November 2015 as compared to the same period in 2014.

Hassan

Madah,

Director,

IMOT,

highlighted, “Israel has been continuously witnessing a significant growth from India. Israel offers a perfect holiday with diverse offerings for leisure as well MICE. Bengaluru is one of the mature markets in South India, evidently witnessing an increase in leisure and MICE groups from the city. We endeavour to consolidate the Israel’s growing popularity in Bengaluru, as the city is a potential gateway market from South India.”

Israel offers attractions like Dead Sea, Eilat for both - water adventures and desert activities. The city of Tel Aviv and Jerusalem is showcasing a mix of historic and modern attractions clubbed with exciting nightlife. Other cities and regions like Haifa, Acre, Massada, Negev Desert, Mountains of Galilee, etc have some unique

historic attractions, picturesque locations. Israel is also known as the haven for gastronomic delights and the world’s best vegetarian food.

Israel also has world class accommodations, undisputed attractions, adventurous activities and tranquil nature which suit the needs of both leisure and MICE

groups. The vibrant country is an adept at meeting MICE needs with tailored hotels for business visitors, event halls, elaborate convention centers of all sizes, exhibition halls, advanced multimedia equipment and capabilities, and the finest in communication equipment and advanced transportation.

Israel Ministry of Tourism expects 70% to 80% increase in 2016 from india Hassan Madah, Director, Israel Ministry of Tourism, India says Israel has witnessed a continuous increase in tourist arrivals from India with a growth of 13.2 in the month of December 2015 compared to December 2014.

IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

Indian Market Israel is a well-known tourist destination around the world as a large number of tourist visit Israel every year. Israel offers unique experiences with its art, culture, history and music all interwoven.

Israel is gaining a wide popularity in India. Israel has witnessed a continuous increase in tourist arrivals from India. We also witnessed a notable growth of 44 % in the month of October 2015 compare to October

Voyager’s World > January 2016

2014.The growth is around 12% until November and we have witnessed a growth of 13.2 in December 2015 as compared to December 2014.

Since the numbers of tourist arrivals from India has increased over the years, we have target of 70% to 80% increase in 2016.

audience from all over the world. ilat is another destination for the adrenaline junkie with water and land adventure.We plan to promote the culinary tourism and wine tourism with a number of wineries to explore. Israel is also very well known for its vibrant nightlife.

Marketing plans In 2016 IMOT plans to use an integrated marketing strategy to enhance the growth of tourist arrivals from India. We will continue to target MICE, high-end, leisure FITs (families and honeymooners), niche, and pilgrimage groups. IMOT will use different marketing tools to reach these segments and will emphasize on digital to reach the direct consumers.

Spending patterns of Indian travellers Israel witnesses a mix of India travelers constituting of leisure groups, business travelers and pilgrimage. It is often noticed that pilgrimage spends the least compared to other travellers which in general make the Indian traveler an average spender compare to other nations. The amount spent is approx 1300$ (excluding airfare) per stay for around 7 nights.

Main segments Israel hosts music events every year including the Jazz Festival which has

New destinations promoted Israel is filled with an interesting mix

of cities starting from Jerusalem, mainly known for its religious offerings. Tel Aviv is another city filled with modern attractions and an amusing nightlife. We are also looking forward to promote the city of Eilat this year which is on the shores of the Red Sea and the best place for the families and couples to enjoy a vacation in Israel. Visitors to Eilat can also enjoy the sea sport activities, land activities like camel rides, sea observatory, Dolphin reef and Eilat being a VAT free city is great for shopping. Other cities and regions like Haifa, Acre, Massada, Negev Desert, Mountains of Galilee.

Trends We have seen an increase in the MICE business and in the Leisure business specially FIT’s in the past.

In the near future, we hope that this trend will keep growing .

India Outbound

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Langkawi Island targets FIVE million tourists by 2016 Noor Azman Samsudin, Director – Tourism Malaysia, South India says Langkawi received a total of 1.2 million of tourists as of June 2015 and expects a good number in 2016.

IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

Promotional Plans We are actively promoting all the adjacent islands such as Pulau Dayang Bunting, Pulau Payar and other small islands. We also promote the mainland states that are Kedah, Perlis, Perak and Penang.

Connectivity The connectivity to Langkawi by Air from Kuala Lumpur, Subang, Penang and Singapore. (i.e: Malaysia Airlines, Air Asia, Firefly, Malindo Air plus Silk Air & Tiger Airlines from Singapore). The total domestic & international flights servicing this route is 239 flights weekly as of December 2015.By Sea the Ferry service are from Kuala Perlis, Kuala Kedah, Penang and Satun (Thailand).By Rail you can also ride a train from Kuala Lumpur to Perlis and take a ferry from Kuala Perlis. The new Electric Train Service (ETS) from KL to Perlis takes only 4 hours & 15 minutes and another 1 hour journey by ferry to reach this beautiful island.

Trends of different travellers As for now, apart from honeymoon couples and families, we see more FITs coming to this island.

Indian Travellers Island hopping According to the statistic given by the Langkawi Development Authority, as at June 2015, a

come and see all these uniqueness of this geo-park island especially in Kilim & Mat Chincang area.

L

angkawi Island is the oldest landmass of Malaysia being 550 million years old. It is the first geo-park island in South East Asia and 52nd in the world conferred by UNESCO on June 1, 2007.Langkawi Geo-park comprises 99 islands with the main Langkawi Island constituting the largest and most populated one. The total land area of the geo-park is about 478 square kilometers with a total population of around 96,000, predominantly of Malay ethnic origin. Tourists can

Expected growth 2016 Langkawi has received a total of 1.2 million of tourists as of June 2015.

We are targeting the arrival of 5 million tourists with Visit Kedah Year 2016 campaign, and out of that 3.5 million are expected to visit Langkawi Island.

number of 31,071 tourists from India have visited this island Spending and staying patterns Indian travellers spend 6-7 days while holidaying in Malaysia.

Indian tourists spend more on accommodation, shopping & sight- seeing. Approx 22% of their expenditure is spent on shopping however, depends on the reason they are visiting Langkawi either for leisure or wedding ceremony they normaly stay between 3 – 4 nights.

Other segments Other than the shopping, sightseeing, tourists can also opt for adventurous activity such as sky diving, sea diving, rock climbing, bird watching ,luxury activities such as helicopter tours, cruising out in the sea with luxury yacht. Lots of couples have chosen Langkawi as their wedding destination.

Tourism Organisation Engadin St. Moritz aims 10,000 visitors by 2020 IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

Ariane Ehrat, CEO, Tourism Organisation Engadin St. Moritz, says that the growth from India is slow, yet steady with an array of leisure and sports activities offered to tourists. activities, and the multitude of events

Growth of Indian market The Engadin St Moritz is recognised as one of the biggest and most contrasting areas for winter sport in Switzerland, the guests are always inspired and enthralled by the wide array of sports and leisure activities on offer, the specialties of its regional cuisine, the wealth of cultural

There is a slow and steady growth in the number of visitors travelling from India to St. Moritz. We aim to host 10,000 visitors by 2020. Winter tourism was invented in St. Moritz over 150 years ago. The guests from India enjoy learning how to ski and snowboard either in a group or in private lessons at The Swiss Ski School St. Moritz which is the oldest and largest ski school in Switzerland.

The School organises special and separate courses for children complete with required equipment.

Segments We have observed a growth in

adventure lovers visiting the destination for winter sports such as skiing in the dark during full moon on the Diavolezza or for Snowkiting on the frozen lake in Silvaplana .

A new highlight is the “St. Moritz Music Summit” with internationally renowned DJs from across the world on the mountains.

Promotional plans The St. Moritz is Switzerland is largest winter sports region. After the 2014/15 anniversary winter when St. Moritz and the Engadin celebrated 150 years of winter tourism, the new winter season is set to be just as thrilling. The 2015/16 winter season is all set by one top event after the

other the spectacular races on the St. Moritz-Celerina Olympia Bob Run, top-class equestrian sports at the St. Moritz Snow Polo World Cup and the St. Moritz White Turf, with the newly launched ‘Night Turf’, or the 2016 St. Moritz Gourmet Festival.The World Cup finals on Corviglia in March 2016 will pave the way for the 2017 FIS Alpine World Ski Championships in St. Moritz.

Occupancy rate on an average at various properties St. Moritz has been a very popular summer holiday destination for the English guests before winter tourism was introduced more than 150 years ago.

www.voyagersworld.in

India Outbound

20>>

FAST AND FANTASTIC…EXPLORING EUROPE THE RAIL ‘WAY’!

Punctuality, year-round services, speed and scenic views on networks like the DB and Rail Europe have spurred more Indians to travel around Europe on trains.

(c) DB AG

PRIYAMVADHA BALARAM

T

ravel in Europe has sustained its popularity and helped develop tourism predominantly due to well-connected and efficient rail network. Rail travel has proven to be a preferred means of exploring the various destinations of the continent for leisure travel as well as business and MICE travel. Here is a comparative look at how Rail Europe products and Germany’s Deutsche Bahn are faring in the Indian market in terms of growth, popular requests and why these trains are the best way to explore Europe.

excellent growth from India. The year 2014 was the most unassuming one for us as in the first half of the year, we ended up just below our sales of 2013 in the same period.

The second half though, turned out to be extremely productive with over 24% growth in that period. It helped us end the year over 12% positive in sales value and number of tickets sold. The previous year ended at over EUR 15.5 million in sales revenue and over 170,000 tickets sold. It has been great two years as far as growth from India is concerned.”

Kunal Kothari, Executive Director, Rail Europe India Pvt. Ltd. Talks about the train travel trends of Indians when they visit Europe. Rail Europe is the official distributor representing all the European railways and networks.

As of November 2015, the sales value topped EUR 20 million in sales revenue and is already 35% above January-December 2014. The number of tickets sold is also 35% up, with over 227,000 tickets sold until November. Kunal pointed out that there were group cancellations in the aftermath of the Paris attacks

“In the last two years, we have seen

Voyager’s World > January 2016

in November, but still the sales in the month stood over 20% up over the same month in 2014.

Most popular trains among Indian travellers The most selling rail product for Indians has been the Swiss Travel Pass and associated Swiss Travel System products. In terms of destinations in Switzerland, Lucerne and Interlaken continue to be extremely popular, especially with the first timers. Of course, the highspeed trains like Eurostar, TGVs, Thalys, Trenitalia’s Frecciarossa, NTV’s Italo, Spanish high-speed AVEs continue to be popular with Indians. Trend for travelling to up to four countries continues.

The main source markets in India come from the West, followed by North, South and East in the given order.

Top three requests made by Indians on Rail Europe tours Passes are still very popular and there are many reasons for it.

Indians like to explore more and thus, end up travelling quite a bit within the country or countries they are travelling to. Switzerland, Austria, Italy, Paris, Germany, Benelux countries, Spain continue to be popular destinations.

Do you have any new plans for the Indian market for 2016?

Kunal said, “Not only for the Indian market, but worldwide too, we will be launching a few new products. There are going to be changes to the Eurail Pass range after they changed their child policy in 2015. The Swiss Travel Passes will now be priced in CHF which will be the biggest change from an Indian perspective.

Of course, we will continue with our successful campaigns like our Swiss

India Outbound

21>>

Kunal Kothari, Executive Director, Rail Europe India

As of November 2015, the sales value topped EUR 20 million in sales revenue and is already 35% above January-December 2014. The number of tickets sold is also 35% up, with over 227,000 tickets sold until November.

Travel Pass SuperStar, the Swiss Travel Pass promotion in AutumnWinter period, Anniversary and Offpeak promotions etc.”

USP of Rail Europe Rail Europe offers convenient travel points from city-centre to citycentre travel, along with comfort, punctuality, 365 days operation in any weather and the trains are family friendly. “Well, I could go on as long as you want,” Kunal gushes.

Deutsche Bahn in Germany Deutsche Bahn or DB, as it is popularly called, is a German railway company that carries about two billion passengers every year. Julia Haas, Marketing Executive for nonEuropean Markets International Sales & Marketing, DB, says, “First, we need to say that we cannot track how many tourists

of a specific country travelled on our trains but how many tickets we sold in India.” In 2015 (estimated number), a total of about 40,000 tickets have been sold in India.

Its estimate is that about 10,000 Indians travelled on its trains in 2015 as every traveler takes the train about four times on his/her trip to Germany.

“This is a huge growth of about 30% compared to 2014. From 2013 to 2014 we could already see an increase of about 25%,” she added.

On the preference for first class tickets as against second class coaches when it comes to group travel, she said that in the past years, about 3.9% of all group travelers travelled in first class. One can see that second class is still the preferred class of travel when it comes to groups.

What are the top three requests made by Indians on DB tours?

Mostly, trips of Indians start in Frankfurt and continue to mainly Munich, Stuttgart or Berlin.

Do you have any new plans for the Indian market for 2016?

In 2015, we introduced the Eurail pass portfolio to our own distribution channels. This brought us one step further in allowing travelers to buy even more ticket types for Germany and beyond. Fact remains that most travelers like to see various European countries and therefore the Eurail pass was of big concern to us. For 2016, we aim at strengthening direct sales to customers via Indian OTAs. Over the last five years, sales via websites (our own www.bahn.com and the ones of cooperation partners) became more and more important

and that is why we are looking for strategic partners in India and other countries.

The country’s big metros - Mumbai, New Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chennai and Kolkata are the top source markets for DB. Two reasons as to why DB is the best way to experience Germany.

To travel by train in Germany is fast, convenient, comfortable and allows you to enjoy Germany’s beauty with landscapes passing by while sitting relaxed onboard our high-speed trains traveling with about 300 km per hour.

“The best way to travel - no matter where you are - is always to do what the locals do: 2.25 billion travelers onboard DB’s trains in 2014 cannot be wrong,” she sums up.

www.voyagersworld.in

India Outbound

22>>

Travelshop Turkey organises 7-city roadshow IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

T

he Travelshop Turkey in association with Turkish Tourism Board and Turkish Airlines conducted roadshows in several Indian cities including New Delhi, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Chennai and Bangalore from 7-11 December. The Ahmedabad and Mumbai editions were held on 14 and 15 December respectively. This year Travelshop Turkey is celeberating the tenth anniversary of the organisation.

The delegation included Murtaza Kalender, Managing Director of TravelShop Turkey; Halime Tastan Dasbilek, India Office-Head of TravelShop Turkey; E. Sabri Ergen, Consul General, Turkish Consulate General, India; Farhad Kuka, Regional Sales Representative of Turkish Airlines and representatives of hotel groups in Turkey such as Dosso Dossi, Movenpick and Gamirasu Cave Hotel.

The workhsop held in Bangalore unveiled the latest information on visa, payment methods, guides, itineraries, activities, night life, food, accomodation, safety, and transportation, that travel agents ought to know while sending their clients to Turkey. The attendees also got to know specifically, the 11 categories of tours that Travelshop Turkey has designed just for the Indian Market.

The event also ellaborated on various types of tours to Turkey such as MICE tours, eco tours, Black Sea tours, wedding tours, women art tours, family holiday tours, winter tours, adventure tours, student tours, group tours, anzac tours,cooking tours and combined tours through dedicated presentations. Through the workshops Turkey is promting Istanbul as their major attraction point for the Indian market.

“We had overall, 40 million tourist arrivals from all over the world out of which 1, 25,000 were from India. We guarantee satisfaction of customers and we will continue to focus more on that. Turkey is a very special place that the tourism industry can fully enjoy themselves.” said E. Sabri Ergen, Consul General, Turkish Consulate General, India.

“Turkey has great infrastructure to offer that adds to the comfort and makes the customers really happy.

We are also happy to announce that we have managed to fit into the top five destinations of the world,” he added. On safety of travelling to Turkey he said that it is absolutely safe and no attractions are promoted anywhere near Syria.

EUROPAMUNDO UNVEILS CUSTOMISED TOURS FOR INDIA’S MIDDLE INCOME SEGMENT VW BUREAU

E

uropamundo, founded over 20 years back, is now a Japan Travel Bureau (JTB) group company.

The JTB group is 104 years old and Asia’s largest travel and tourism company and the sixth largest in the world in this sector.

Europamundo’s motto is “Perfect moments always’. Having recorded growth at an average 20% annually, the company carries 125,000 tourists annually from Spanish or Portuguese speaking countries and is also one of the largest coach tour operators in the world. It is the only coach tour operator company in the world affiliated to the UNWTO (United Nations World Tourism Organization) and is also affiliated to WTTC (World Travel and Tourism Council).

travelers as well as the travel agency fraternity in India, as a result of which the company is introducing English guided tours with a particular focus on Indian requirements.

Buoyed by its success in Spanish and Portuguese speaking markets, Europamundo researched the Indian travel market to evaluate the feasibility of its seat-in-coach (SIC) product for middle income

The travel agent retail community can directly participate through the online real time booking system that is user friendly and can be accessed through Europamundo’s distributors or its website www.europamundo.

Voyager’s World > January 2016

The company offers more options to the FIT segment for customization and freedom besides good itineraries, quality services, meals, stays, etc. Its decision to enter the Indian market is based on the fact that no other market showed a healthy growth of 10-12%, given the rising middle class traveler traffic to Europe. In India, Europamundo will be represented by one distributor in each region and may add more depending on demand and development.

com. The company will engage in roadshows and trade events across India in the near future. The USP of Europamundo’s B2B model, built to empower travel agents, is that• Final bookings, air tickets, health insurance, visa application can only be made through travel agents.

• Trips can be quoted and prebooked and cancellation policies are considerate • Numerous programs in Europe, USA and Mexico to choose from, spanning five to 20 days, beyond what is offered in the market and departures will be all year around weekly or bi-weekly • Assurance that every listed departure is guaranteed so air bookings can be done well in advance on a planned basis and avoid deviation charges.

Benefits for the traveler are-

• ‘IN CITY’ hotels with easy access to public transportation, daily full buffet breakfast, full itineraries including sightseeing and admission to major attractions, inter-city drives that are not just a city-to-city link, flexible programs, convenient departure cities, etc. They can add extra days before or after a tour with immediate booking confirmation • Each traveler has access to the ‘My trip’ application that provides complete transparency of the tour details. This application gives the travelers a possibility to retrieve and download all possible information on their booked trip, photos and videos from the trip, guide books and an access to meet fellow travelers on a social network. Children of all ages are welcome and there are discounts for children, senior citizens, groups and triples.

Europamundo products will be distributed all over India and Sri Lanka.

Online Travel

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Track live experiences ‘on the go’ with Travelibro Monish B Shah, CMD- Travelibro, says that the app caters to the needs of a person’s entire travel expectation, from planning to the actual experience and creating warm memories.

IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

Main idea of launching TraveLibro Travel and Social Networking are running parallel as two big industries with a huge target audience however there is not one significant substantial brand, portal or app which caters to combining the two and providing an entire travel experience with social

networking at the core of it.

The idea of launching TraveLibro was to create a solution that helps you plan your trip using quality niche information rather than spend hours researching online and using information from your friends and families past trips to plan your travels without having to call them.

TraveLibro is going to very soon let you book flights, hotels, home stays, car rentals, parking spaces and tours & excursions. Hence you can plan, book, experience, share and cherish all on just one portal and app, which is the vision behind TraveLibro.

Highlights of TraveLibro TraveLibro is a travel social networking

app and portal which caters to a travellers entire travel experience right from the stage of planning to experience and finally cherishing past memories. The highlight of TraveLibro is a feature called ‘On the Go’ on the App which allows people to track their live travel experiences with simple check-ins, picture uploads and status messages while they are on the go.

Benefits to the travel trade industry TraveLibro is the first global portal which caters to a traveller’s entire experience from selecting a destination on your bucket list to a suitcase full of memories. It helps you explore destinations with quality information on must do’s, restaurants, hotels, itineraries to

bookings to planning your trip using this information to experiencing your travel on the go to finally cherishing your travel stories forever and sharing the same with friends and family.

App helps the travel agents/other people from the industry TraveLibro helps connect travellers and travel agents from around the world. Any travel agent from any part of the world can register on TraveLibro for free and have a page dedicated to them where they can display their area of specialty, the countries they cater to, the type of travels they specialize in and a space to display their popular itineraries.

Goodbox: Merging app presence for businesses and consumers Goodbox app can be used by travel agents, hotels and homestays; the customers can also interact with the travel service provider, says Abey Zacharia, the app’s CEO & Co-founder IRENE SUSAN EAPEN mobile front-end and sell on an app that doesn’t have the tech ability or the budget to create and maintain their own app. Even if they do create their own app, consumers don’t like to download multiple apps for multiple purposes.

Goodbox Highlights Goodbox is like a commerce-enabled WhatsApp between businesses and consumers. It is a mobile app that allows businesses to sell to their consumers over mobile without having to create an app of their own.

For businesses, Goodbox offers small and medium businesses an app presence. Every small medium enterprise would like to have a

Goodbox can be used by travel agents, hotels, homestays or any other travel category player. Most businesses have a set of regular customers who can download Goodbox and start interacting with this travel provider and pay online on the app itself.

Main idea of Goodbox Small businesses lack the technology ability and resources to create and maintain a mobile presence. Goodbox was created to serve millions of SMEs in India. India is second only to China in terms of

the number of SMEs – there are about 48 million of them and employ 40% of the workforce in the country.

It is high time they get access to the ability to sell on app and be in control of their customers. They want to accept online payments but there is no solution that allows them to do that. Goodbox is an app that serves all their needs with one simple product. The vision is to enable every business with an app that helps them sell, get new business and conduct business online without having to worry about technology.

Marketing plans for 2016 Our marketing plans are concentrated towards getting businesses on board and communicating our offering to them at scale.

Growth in Travel trade industry Travel agents and hotels have lacked the ability to take these payments online. A customer can quickly send a query and get a reply within minutes. This experience is lacking in most business communication methods , this way even smaller players have the ability to survive.

Goodbox also has a lot of customers on the platform as these customers look out for travel service providers.

Therefore, Goodbox is a great proposition for travel trade as they help boutique business hotels / homes stays get their hotel on the Goodbox app in less than 5 minutes.

Their partners find great value in using Goodbox to interact with their customers, make reservations over chat or an online menu and accept payments online.

www.voyagersworld.in

Association

24>>

TAAI’s Joint Bank Guarantee Scheme to roll out from Jan 2016 The PA Conference-approved Joint Bank Guarantee makes India the first country in the world to offer Joint Bank Guarantee Scheme to its members as an alternate mode of financial security to IATA. VW BUREAU

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he Travel Agents Association of India’s (TAAI) ‘Joint Bank Guarantee Scheme’ finally got the nod after intense perusal in the past two years. The scheme, that was pioneered by TAAI for over 20 years, had been discontinued two years back, following which the association had made presentations to the Agency Programmed Joint Council (APJC). PA Conference has approved the Joint Bank Guarantee effective 1st January 2016, making India the first country in the world to offer Joint Bank Guarantee Scheme to its members as an alternate mode of financial security to IATA. With the support of members of the Travel Agents Federation of India (TAFI) and airlines TAFI, the scheme was approved by APJC during a meeting at the PA Conference held in San Diego in October 2014, when

it was placed for inclusion under the forms of ‘Financial Security’. Further, at the PA Conference, both at the PAPGJC and at the PA Conference; presentations were made by TAAI to convince the PAPGJC and the PA Conference to include Joint Bank Guarantee as one of the options for agencies to offer as Financial Security to IATA which it did and voted in favour of the Joint Bank Guarantee Scheme.

The PA Conference resolution suggested that the IATA Legal and APJC must review the draft agreement. Since some clauses in the draft agreement were not in line with our presentation to determine the member liability, both associations were keen to have this agreement amended. After extensive deliberations, it was concluded that the Joint Bank Guarantee Scheme

be resent to PA Conference for their final approval with the proposed agreement. During November 2015, IATA rolled out a mail ballot to PA Conference for the final approval of the Joint Bank Guarantee Scheme.

Reintroduction of the JBG scheme is said to be necessitated due to changes in insurance and the complexity and increasing costs of individual bank guarantees. Sunil Kumar, president, TAAI, said, “The JBG scheme has been of immense help in many ways. The previous scheme offered members to do away with the hassles of liaising with banks for a bank guarantee. Banks charge heavy on a bank guarantee and also seek collateral, which was a burden. Those who preferred insurance scheme, in addition to the payment of insurance premium, found it difficult to get their capping increased due to seasonal

COIMBATORE VADODARA NAGPUR VIZAG AMRITSAR

Voyager’s World > January 2016

: : : : :

sales or group movement.”

“The scheme served as a simpler way to have an agency covered and also offered flexibility on sales limit.

The bigger benefit was that the entire deposit received from members was banked in a fixed deposit and the entire interest was considered profit for distributing back to members, in case there were no defaults,” he said. “added. “In the current context as well, these will apply. Airlines will be monitoring sales of our member agencies with far more limitations attached, especially when the sales of the agencies go beyond the cover amount. Despite several members opting for higher insurance covers, insurance companies did not honour all members with this facility. The growing premium rate is another concern. Thus the problems are same and the scheme serves as a good option.”

22, 23, 24 January 2016 19, 20, 21 August 2016 14, 15, 16 October 2016 4, 5, 6 November 2016 16, 17, 18 December 2016

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3rd Africa Hotel Development summit 28th - 29th January 2016, Lagos, Nigeria

For the third consequent year, Noppen is organizing the Africa Hotel Expansion Summit. After 2 successful years in Ghana and Senegal, this next edition will be taking place in Nigeria; since 2014 the largest African economy.

The 3rd Africa Hotel Expansion Summit will bring together local and international hotel chains, hotel and investors to discuss new developments and hotel deals in Africa.

breaks that allow face to face meetings with future business contacts.

• Mr. Michael Cooper VP Development Sub Saharan Africa Hilton Worldwide • Mr. Ludwig Bouldoukian Associate Director, Acquisitions & Development Africa & Indian Ocean Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide • Mr. Trevor Ward Managing Director W Hospitality Group • Mr. Panos Loupasis Senior Development Director Middle East & Africa Wyndham Hotel Group • Mr. Richard Shaw Managing Partner Senga Bay Capital

Current Sponsors

For more details you can contact Ms.Barbara Cornelissen, Conference Director Tel:+32 14 22 90 92, Fax: +32 14 85 90 04, Email: barbarac@lnoppen.be www.voyagersworld.in

ASSOCIATION

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OTOAI North India Member’s Meet VW BUREAU

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he OTOAI organized a North India Member’s meet in Lucknow on 18th December 2015 with the presence of Punam Singh-Executive Director, OTOAI, Vineet GopalChairman, Northern Region OTOAI, Riaz Munshi -Vice President, OTOAI and Guldeep Singh Sahni- President

OTOAI addressing the gathering on the outbound market and benefits of OTOAI membership.

The event was attended by over a hundred travel agents and tour operators from the entire U.P. region of Lucknow, Kanpur,

Allahabad and Dehradun.

OTOAI General Secretary Shravan Bhalla and Finance Head, Rajeev Sabharwal joined the OTOAI team in conducting a round of lucky dips contributed by various OTOAI partners like Jordan Tourism,Tiger

Air, Starwood - Sandeep Raghav, representing W Hotel and many others. This event created a buzz with the demands of NTO’s to hold work-shops in Lucknow, for the VFS to open a branch and more international airlines to add Lucknow as a hub.

ATOAI TO HOST 2016 CONVENTION IN MP VW BUREAU has over 100 islands within which also have a lot of wildlife.

Tejbir Singh Anand

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dventure Tour Operators Association of India (ATOAI) to organize its 12th Annual convention from 12-14th Feb 2016 in Madhya Pradesh.The theme for the convention is Adventure Travel-” Changing Dynamics” and the venue is at Hanumantiya which is at the banks of Indira Sagar Dam. Convention Chairman & Immediate Past President Tejbir Singh Anand said,” MP State Tourism has proven

Voyager’s World > January 2016

Akshay Kumar

to be a pioneer in this field. In the past 10 years, MP has achieved great milestones and easier for the travel stake holders to trust this state tourism and invest in this destination. The objective of conducting this convention at this location, is to showcase it to the travel trade stakeholders and potential investors, while experiencing the potential and magnificence of this new destination. Indira Sagar Lake

“The travel trade is witnessing rapid changes in technology and dynamics, it constantly poses a challenge to our tourism industry to maintain compatibility and match its pace. Changing dynamics hint at innovations and investments.

The convention will offer a mix of activities keeping the tradition of active tour operator’s along with a lot of brainstorming pulsating sessions.” He says.

“Today’s business challenges need to be addressed jointly and understood in collaboration. The convention will offer plethora of adventure and other activities to make it a memorable experience such as: - Climbing an artificial wall, Obstacle Course, Beach Volleyball, Cycling, Community Service &

Hiking, Cruise boating, local fishermen catch the fish, Banana Rides, Water Parasailing, Island Overnight Camping, Stargazing, Tree Plantation Activity, Hot Air Ballooning. Para motoring, Bird Watching.” He added.

Akshay Kumar, President ATOAI, says “The adventure travel industry in India has witnessed an unprecedented growth over the past few years. As the domestic Indian traveler matures and looks forward to explore India’s hidden treasures, the industry has jumped on this opportunity to provide investment to set up infrastructure to support the increasing demand. At the same time our inbound traveler is gradually started to realize the scope for adventure sports in India and numbers are looking better than ever before. The E Visa regime has also gone a long way in helping to move numbers.

Cruise

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SuperStar Virgo begins new deployment with pomp and fervor!

Star Cruises organized a preview cruise to announce the deployment of the liner in Nansha and to unveil Genting Hong Kong’s new brand Dream Cruises that will cater to luxury travelers.

PRIYAMVADHA BALARAM

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tar Cruises organized a familiarization trip aboard the SuperStar Virgo for a group of travel agents and tour operators as well as travel trade media, against the backdrop of the announcement of the deployment of the ship at Guangzhou’s Nansha Terminal from 3 January, 2016 and to unveil Dream Cruises, the group’s luxury line of cruises.

The trip was part of a special ceremony and preview cruise held from 6 – 8 November, 2015. Genting Hong Kong, noted global leisure, entertainment and hospitality enterprise, announced the the signing of two Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) concerning the Nansha port facilities – reinforcing the company’s commitment in developing China’s Pearl River Delta into a world class cruise destination.

During the event, dignitaries from the local government were present to help mark the occasion including Cai Chaolin, Vice Mayor of the People’s Government of Guangzhou Municipality along with other officials associated with the local and regional tourism industry. Also in attendance were representatives from Genting Hong Kong, Guangzhou Port Group and China Communication and Construction to formalize partnership plans for Guangzhou Nansha.

SuperStar Virgo will begin her homeport in Guangzhou from 3 January 2016. During her deployment, SuperStar Virgo’s itineraries from Guangzhou (Nansha Port) will offer a yearround 2-night weekend cruise departing Fridays calling at Hong Kong and a 5-night weekday cruise on Sundays calling at Halong Bay, Danang and Sanya. To attract the international market, passengers can also embark in Hong Kong for a 7-night itinerary calling at Guangzhou, Halong Bay, Danang, Sanya and either Shenzhen or Zhuhai using Nansha Port. For greater flexibility and travel options, passenger embarkation will also be available at Sanya where guests can experience a 7-night itinerary calling at Guangzhou, Hong Kong, Shenzhen or Zhuhai using Nansha Port, Halong Bay and Danang.

SuperStar Virgo’s triple homeport strategy will help stimulate the fly cruise market into the five main airports in the Pearl Delta – Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Macau and Hong Kong – along with Sanya in attracting tourists from not only other parts of China but also passengers from India, South East Asia, Australia and beyond. Genting Hong Kong also signed two Memorandums of Understanding (MOU) during the event to further develop the Pearl River Delta as a major cruise hub in the Asia Pacific including an

MOU with the Guangzhou Port Group to help renovate the existing port in Guangzhou Nansha and upgrade and install new facilities for the comfort and convenience of passengers.

Dream Cruises has been designed to meet the demands of Asia’s premium cruise market; bookings for the same will begin early in 2016 while sailings are expected to commence from the later part of the year.

Cruise Experience The three-day itinerary was well-executed by the host with a thoroughly communicated programme, right from the immigration upon landing in Hong Kong and up until we disembarked from the SuperStar Virgo on day three. Hong Kong and the Republic of China exercise stringent security measures and so, be prepared to undergo many security checks and immigration throughout. All the travelers from India flew into Hong Kong from different cities and we converged at the immigration point to board the ferry that would take us to Guangzhou’s Nansha port.

Chinese is the main language and the locals typically respond in English after a customary few queries with gestures. The hosting team from Star Cruises had efficiently coordinated the process until the whole group met, so as to

ensure nobody faced any problems.

SuperStar Virgo, at 75,338grt, is the largest cruise ship in Star Cruises fleet. The ship has 13 decks and 935 cabins with 1,870 lower berths. We were all booked in balcony view cabins offering fantastic views of the sea at day break and after. The ship’s amenities include 14 restaurants and bars offering various cuisines and beverages, a performing arts theatre, karaoke, cigar lounge, swimming pool, water fun pool and Jacuzzi, beauty salon, rock climbing facilities, gym and meeting rooms.

On day two, the ship entered Hong Kong port for about five hours where all of us were required to disembark and get our passports stamped. Some of us visited the local shopping districts to take a look at the city and pick up some souvenirs before we returned to the ship.

With many vegetarians present in the group, we were treated to good Indian fare during the trip; in fact, one of the Indian chefs on board was glad to dish out special requests including Jain cuisine. On the last night before disembarkation, there was a Mumbo Jumbo retro party organised at the pool side.

The entertainment was marked by colours, rollicking music and food and completed the preview cruise on a delightful note.

www.voyagersworld.in

Editor’s Pick

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Content marketing is king and key for building credibility Jennifer Nagy, President of JLPNR Inc. lists effective ideas to consider while planning marketing plans this year.

Jennifer Nagy in helping to shorten your sales cycle.

To find out more about how content marketing can help shorten your company’s sales cycle, please read my recent article: “Three Ways to Shorten Your Company’s Sales Cycle”.

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any companies are now working on finalizing their marketing plans for 2016. For some, it will just be a continuation of the same 2015 strategy, slightly updated to suit the expected market and demand changes in the New Year. Others will be scrapping the old, and ushering in the New Year with a brand new marketing strategy. But no matter which way your company is planning to move forward, there are lessons that you must take from 2015 to ensure that your strategies are effective at accomplishing your 2016 development goals.

Content (marketing) is king.

By now, you’ve probably heard many people extol the virtues of content marketing over and over again.

Many of you will have chosen not to implement a content marketing strategy yet but, let me tell you, it will be an operational imperative in 2016.

Content marketing is the creation and distribution of “educational, engaging content with the purpose of driving action. As well as raising awareness about a company and its products or services, content marketing is highly valuable for building credibility in potential customers’ minds.

Content marketing is not a direct sales tactic.

One of the biggest mistakes that a marketer can make in 2016, is using content marketing as a medium for the distribution of sales messages. If that is the strategy that your team chooses to implement, I can guarantee that your content marketing strategy will never help you to accomplish the branding and credibility boosting goals that it was designed to do. Both branding and credibility are integral

Voyager’s World > January 2016

For start-ups, PR is more effective than advertising.

There are many reasons that PR is the most effective marketing tactic for start-up companies. First, PR is much more cost-effective than other more traditiona marketing/advertising tactics and the results that can be achieved, greatly exceed the ROI that can be earned from advertising.

Second, the inherent nature of a start-up creates a story angle that will be more attractive to media, and therefore, you are more likely to secure coverage. Third, articles written about your company by a journalist gives your company more credibility in the mind of potential customers.

The same message delivered by an advertising spokesperson will be ignored many potential customers, as most consumers know that the ethical standards for messaging are less strict in advertising than they are in journalism. Finally, PR helps a company to establish itself as an expert in an industry, which – when combined with the credibility and trust factor offered by editorial coverage – helps to shorten the sales cycle when approaching potential new customers.

Public Relations is a marketing tactic that is better left to the experts.

While it is very possible for companies to handle their PR outreach internally, with no help from freelancers or PR agencies, it will often surprise marketers how much time and effort PR can be. Between the copywriting, building and maintaining a media list, researching story angles and journalists’ past articles, sending pitch emails out and ongoing correspondence with media, it really is a full time job.

It is a more effective use of a company executive’s time to focus on the overall sales strategy planning and execution, rather than PR. I recommend that start-ups outsource PR efforts to a

reliable agency or freelancer, who can secure more coverage for your company at an affordable rate.

Social media is important for all companies, no matter the industry in which they do business.

Many companies assume that if they are not selling directly to consumers (B2C), there would be no reason to do outreach via social media. This would be a mistake because, like PR and content marketing, social media helps a company to deliver its key messages to its target audience – no matter who they might be.

Of course, B2C companies should use different social media channels than B2B companies, as the audiences that they are trying to reach and action that they are trying to stimulate is different. In general, B2C companies should use the social media sites that consumers use most frequently, such as Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, Vine and Pinterest. B2B companies should use social media sites that have a strong business presence, such as Twitter and LinkedIn. If a B2B company is selling a highly visual product, they can also use Facebook and Instagram to connect with potential customers.

Press releases are no longer the most effective way of securing editorial coverage from journalists.

Many people exclusively associate public relations with press releases.

Back in the day, the press release was a more effective way of securing coverage but today that is no longer the case. Journalists receive hundreds of press releases every day by email, making it impossible to actually read every one that passes their desk. As such, journalists tend to scan the message subjects, headlines and perhaps the first few lines of the press release to see if it’s something that they would be interested in covering. If those few words don’t convince them, then your press release is lost in the shuffle, never to be read again.Sounds futile right?

Your press release could simply state that you are launching the great new product but it will, most likely, be

ignored. A more effective way to pitch your new product to media is to write a short paragraph about why this new product is important.

PR and content marketing are not substitutes for an effective sales strategy.

This one is pretty self-explanatory.

Although PR and content marketing bring HUGE benefits to a company – a measurable increase in visibility/ awareness and a boost in credibility – they are not direct sales tactics.

Establishing your company as an expert in the mind of a potential customer is important, but (in most cases) it won’t be enough to get them to sign on the dotted line.

Once you’ve written great content, don’t file it away.

Good content doesn’t have to be a oneoff. Once you’ve used a piece smart marketers will repurpose the content to increase the ROI obtained from the work. In general, repurposing content can accomplish two outcomes: change the format of the content or the audience that the content is intended for or it can be both.

Demonstrate your expertise.

Customers are always more receptive to making a purchase from a person and company that they know and trust. When a potential client already trusts that you are an expert, they are more likely to respond positively to a sales pitch – even one that results from a cold call.

Market to existing customers.

It is a proven fact: it is easier and more cost-effective to make a sale to a pre-existing client, rather than a brand new customer. Even though many marketers are aware of this fact, many don’t develop an appropriate sales strategy for this lucrative market. Just as your company has a complete marketing strategy to target new customers in various stages of the sales cycle, you should also be implementing a strategy specifically tailored to pre-existing customers.

Both the messaging and the marketing collateral should be specific to this audience.

Leisure Travel

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India’s theme park industry worth 17 bn, expected to roll high by 2020!

By 2020, new projects worth $1.8 billion are likely to be invested in the Indian amusement sector, says Ajay Sarin, President, Indian Association of Amusement Park and Industries (IAAPI).

ROHIT HANGAL show for the amusement and theme park sector, will also highlight safety and allied services this year.

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he ‘Indian Association of Amusement Parks & Industries’ (IAAPI) will open its 16th edition of the ‘IAAPI Expo’ from 3 - 5 March in Mumbai; the event is forthcoming even as the Indian amusement and theme park industry is only about 20 years old and quite young as compared to its origin in the West, as pointed out by research firm ‘Insight Alpha’ in an industry insight, while adding that the amusement industry business in India is estimated to be around 4000 crores and expected to grow by 10% per annum in the next two years.

Ajay Sarin, President of IAAPI, says that the upcoming edition of its Amusement Expo will witness new rides and attractions developed by leading rides and equipment manufacturers from more than 100 exhibitors from the country as well as 19 other countries including Australia, Bulgaria, Canada, China, France, German, Korea, Hong Kong, Italy, Philippines, Spain, Saudi Arabia, Switzerland, Lithuania, Netherlands, Turkey, UAE, UK and the USA. The event, said to be India’s only focus

“Currently for a population of 1.15 billion in the country, there are only 120 amusement parks and 45 family entertainment centres (FECs). This indicates that the growth potential of Indian amusement and theme park industry is substantial,” he said.

The event will provide a B2B networking platform for decision makers from India and overseas, consisting of park operators, resort owners, real estate & mall developers and allied professionals connected to the amusement and leisure industry. For the first time, the expo is encouraging exhibitors to display their bigger rides and attractions outdoors. Concurrent events of networking evening and IAAPI Award Nite will be organized on the sidelines of the expo.

In a day where the hospitality industry is looking at creating multiuse infrastructure, how can adding amusement activities lend value to reducing the gestation period of their investment?

The success of amusement parks globally is because resorts and hotels being the integral part providing the comfort of hospitality coupled with entertainment. Countries like Singapore, Hong Kong, USA attract millions of tourists because the amusement parks are connected

with resort and hotel chains. In India, Ramoji Film City, Wonderla, Imagica, VGP Universal, MGM Dizzee World have also developed amusement park along with hotels. The parks turned them into off season/weekend/ wedding/corporate event destinations which were, otherwise, occupied only during vacations and festival seasons.

Through amusement parks, hotels can attract families since they provide outdoor entertainment and add additional USP to attract consumers.

This will also increase occupancies for hotels even in off-seasons and get enhanced visitation on weekends.

IAAPI’s Proposed recommendations The IAAPI has proposed certain recommendations for the industry such as• 100% entertainment tax exemption for newly built amusement parks/ theme parks/water parks/FECs in line with the concession given to multiplexes. They also need to be incorporated in all publicity material published by the state tourism department.

• Capital subsidy to be extended to existing parks upgrading their infrastructural facilities including investing in new and sophisticated rides and equipment as per zonal classification.

• A list of amusement parks/theme parks/water parks and FECs to be hosted in the official website of the State Tourism Department and to also be promoted by the department

when participating at national/ international exhibitions and roadshows.

Government’s view on giving the sector an industry status The amusement sector comes under the aegis of the Tourism Ministry both at the central and state levels. IAAPI, over the years, has been aggressively promoting the sector to be an integral part of the tourism agenda. We are gradually creating importance for the sector, as it encourages outdoor entertainment/activities for children and youth. State governments have come forward and shown interest in giving land on long term lease along with tax concession and subsides towards the development of this sector.

It is expected that by 2020, approximately 500 new projects worth $1.8 billion are likely to be invested in the Indian amusement sector. Currently the annual revenue generated by this industry in India is approx. INR 17 billion and is growing at a CAGR of more than 17.5%.

“IAAPI is also actively participating in framing policy initiatives along with the central and state tourism departments,” says Ajay while summing up that this year’s expo would target real estate and mall developers, architects, town planners, hotels and resorts, urban development boards to visit the exhibition.

www.voyagersworld.in

OTA

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Q&A SETS MUTUAL EXPECTATIONS BETTER BEFORE EXPERIENCE: TRIPADVISOR Nikhil Ganju, Country Manager, TripAdvisor talks about how engaging in a Q&A session before experiencing a place helps both the hotels and the customer to know what to expect onsite.

PRIYAMVADHA BALARAM

Nikhil Ganju, Country Manager, TripAdvisor India

We are encouraging the industry not to try manipulating content because they will get caught and land in bad light in the eyes of a traveller. The traveller who sees that will not be willing to stay at a place where the property has the need to manipulate content on a consumer used website.

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early 94% of Indian hoteliers said that online reputation was very important, in a TripBarometer study by TripAdvisor last year. The study, which pointed out global travel trends, studied various factors including plans to increase investment for online reputation management and the findings were most notable in India in particular.

Nikhil Ganju, Country Manager, TripAdvisor, in a visit to Bangalore during the PATA Travel Mart 2015, spoke about how the company kept itself on its toes and ahead of competition while revealing trends on Indian reviewer behavior among others.

“I think the question is about how we ensure the integrity of the content as in there is no room for inaccurate news or reviews at any juncture. So we have a couple of ways for doing that.

One primary way is the algorithms that we build and remember that with the scale with we operate on 160 reviews a minute to 50 billion reviews. At that scale we enjoy the advantage of detecting patterns that cannot be seen by anybody else. So at that very first stage we are able to kind of filter any content that may be a suspicious that gives you the pattern. So once the use of content is identified suspicious, then we have a team, content industry experts, three of them that have backgrounds in financial probe detection, credit card probe detection etc. These are people who look at these pieces of content and investigate what is happening behind that content.”

Lastly and most importantly, with every piece of content and review there is a link that reports content that

Voyager’s World > January 2016

is not appropriate. Users themselves report large instances where the review is not looking genuine and that is another opportunity for our industry experts to look at the content. All of these ensure that the content on the site is generally giving an accurate picture of what they will experience at the hotel.

“We also give the industry an opportunity to use the management center so when they have taken ownership of their property, which is completely free for them, they can tell us if they find any review suspicious and we will respond to them within 48 hours,” said Nikhil.

The system goes through tens and tens of filters first and anything that flags goes to analysts and there are so many stages within the system that is constantly worked on. A lot of TripAdvisor’s content detective specialists come from financial and banking background. “The question is physical; if someone is using your credit card somewhere and somebody needs to catch anything that is suspicious.”

He added, “The staffs we have and the system we have in place is excellent. If someone has written a review on my favourite restaurant in London, complaining on very small portions, I do not think it is a nice review. It is true that they have small faults but amazing food. So I will write my review saying I have eaten in this restaurant about 30 times and the food is really worthwhile; may be a little bit more expensive. So that way people can and would want to defend the places they love as a traveller.”

The consumer falls in love with a property or restaurant and when they see someone writing negative review

about it, it is their opinion and they are entitle to it. One really cannot say that the opinion is inappropriate. It is their opinion and it is okay that they did not like it but people can still go in there.

Growth over the years “If we look at our growth, we were launched 15 years ago and where we are today, it is a true testimonial for our content. That is the only reason why hundreds and millions of people come into the site. They love the content, they read the content.

But when we talk about the content coming in site, there are videos and images posted. And the different reviews give different perspectives. A content from a married couple gives an incredible perspective. You look at the consumer portals and then at the hotel portals. When you find a property where supplies are closely linked, you are happy with it. The management feels great to have the consumer portals in there,” he said.

If something is there that isn’t right and if it is featured, you know it might happen to you as well. So your expectations are met. So if you are paying less at a hotel, you may know why. When you go there, you know what to expect. “In everything we do, we look at the industry and the consumer, which has been our strength. We got 25 million reviews as stated in a press release 2008.

Now it is 50 million. We respond to consumer needs avoiding slightest frictions on our side.

Elaborate on the team and behind the scenes work that happens on a day-to-day basis “I think our content team never has a typical day. There are almost 100

of them operating in 28 languages working 24/7. So there is always someone who is working on our content integrity. We have to make sure that the business is constant and people are there. There are almost 3200 employees. We have several companies that we have purchased like Cruise Critic for example. We have several sites underneath these companies as well.”

Rebranding prospects in the near future…

When asked if TripAdvisor looked at re-branding itself in the near future, Nikhil said that the brand was seen and loved by millions of people over the years and the logo, along with the certificate of excellence, have been around for years and trusted by years. “It is not just about the logo, our strength lies in the content and people really come to us because of the content. If you look at our logo, the red eye and the green eye are sort of stopping, planning and booking and I think there is a whole thing about the eyes. Because it is the eyes of an owl, it suggests having a vision and being able to advise people. Many cultures see owl as lucky and wise.

“I think we changed the size of the eyes slightly on the Chinese site of TripAdvisor products. So we play around with it a little bit. A couple of years ago a luggage company in America started using our logo on their luggage and we had two ways of reacting to it; either saying they should not have done it or that it was an amazing visibility opportunity. It gave us great brand exposure and we were happy they were doing that. It is because of the logo, the stickers, campaigns and the hotels themselves. We offer them stickers

OTA

31>> on printed cards and that way, we have a lot of opportunities to get the content on their side and the logo has been around from the beginning.”

As we started offering this structure in an organized way through B2B sites, where hotels can buy such merchandise, some of the countries that did not know where to buy the merchandise from began making versions of our logo and put large logos on their websites. The large owl eyes as our logo began to have much more association with our brand.

Coming to the Indian market, how has the consumer evolved in terms of actively responding in making decision based on TripAdvisor ratings?

Investment plans differ by market but online reputation is top priority for majority. The TripBarometer report shows that investment is set to increase across many aspects of the hotel sector in 2015; however, the planned increase in investment for online reputation management is most notable worldwide, particularly in India. Globally, three in five hoteliers (60%) will spend more on online reputation management in 2015 and one in four (26%) plan to spend ‘much more’. This number is significantly higher in India with three in four Indian hoteliers (76%) indicating that they will invest more in online reputation management and nearly half (48%) planning to spend ‘much more’ this year. Not surprisingly, when asked which elements they feel are most important to the future of their business, online reputation is cited as important by 94% of Indian hoteliers.

Listing a few data points, Nikhil said that one of their audience measurement surveys done recently stated that their brand had been used by millions of people in India.

The online industry widely accepts the ranking in terms of traffic as the third party audience measurement rule of choice. “We have always been in the top three travel sites in India and for the last couple of years, we have already spent millions of dollars in advertising, in comparison to other OTAs and have got a lot of traffic.

This hints that the brand really is known in India and that is not just an assumption perspective but also a contribution perspective.”

A few years ago when TripAdvisor launched in India, our initial task was to get the people who were on fence, to start writing reviews and to contribute reviews. We tied up with frequent flyer programs in the

country such as those offered by Etihad Airways, which was a great motivator to the right set of people like frequent travelers who were likely to receive more messages about written content.

The average review rating of Indian accommodation on TripAdvisor has seen a steady rise in the past 10 years, increasing by over 10% from3.69(out of a possible 5) in 2004 to 4.09 in 2014. According to a recent study, the average accommodation review rating for India trailed behind the global average, but research illustrates that the gap has narrowed

in recent years.

Closer analysis of the B&B and hotel global findings over the last five years (from the start of 2010 to the end of 2014), found that B&Bs were given an average review rating of 4.40 compared to the average review rating of 4 given to hotels

by TripAdvisor travellers. In India, we see that whilst B&Bs do have a slightly higher review rating average than hotels during this period, the difference between them is much smaller with B&Bs achieving a 4.09 average and hotels closely behind with 4.01).

The study also revealed some interesting insights into the preferences of different types of travellers. For example, business travellers are the most discerning, awarding the lowest average review rating to both B&B’s and hotels compared to other types of global travellers. Couples are the most satisfied, giving hotels and B&Bs the highest average review rating amongst all types of travelers.

Further analysis into review by room count over the last five years (from the start of 2010 to the end of 2014) revealed properties with 25 rooms or less received the highest average

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review ratings by global travellers (4.36 out of 5). However, properties with 251 rooms or more were also highly rated by travellers (4.05 out of 5), suggesting that travellers are equally drawn to the wide array of amenities offered by large properties and resorts, as well as the intimate experience offered by smaller properties.

Now the vast majority of content that comes on the site is by Indians on Indian listings. Any listing which the portal selects from the last 10 reviews will be from Indians. TripAdvisor also has the largest number of Indian accommodation, activities and restaurants available on an Indian site with lots of reviews by Indians.

That is what makes it more relevant to Indians. “Our hotel partners will tell you themselves that there is nobody else who gets them such a scale, volume and quality in terms of hotel offers delivered to them. I think it is a robust place to be in right now.

We are also excited about instant booking we launched in the US and some time back in the UK.” Once the portal gets its supply in place and it perfects the user experience, it plans to roll it out in India gradually.

“It takes the consumers to make the booking and we pass on compliance data to the hotel or to connectivity partner to enable the booking to happen. The hotel takes everything from that moment on and uses the data management from our system.

So the money goes to them which is a great way of helping hotels with the issue that they face like consumers are not getting email addresses, for instance. We help the customer to

Voyager’s World > January 2016

32>>

come back to them and retain their loyal customers. It becomes like a transaction where they come and go and that enables them to know the consumer and enable functionality on our side,” he said.

Process after the booking Once the booking has already happened, there is normally a lead time for users to start their questions and answers. For example, this lady travelling with a son in a wheelchair to Chicago asked about how hotels help with the parking system and which were the museums that were wheelchair friendly. She got answers stating where exactly she should go in the museums and that way she was able to save a lot of waiting time at the museum wondering if there were a ramp. She felt that the question and answer system was great. On the other hand, the museums and the hotels were well informed that the guest was coming with a special request and were kindly prepared to attend to her concerns. As soon as they realize anyone asking a question is coming there, rather than waiting for the person to come there, they can actually serve them beforehand.

Detecting suspicious activity on the site We do not have any transactions happening directly in TripAdvisor. For a booking on credit card, the actual transaction goes to the property and the commission is payable once the person has stayed.

We have some cases where optimization companies sell reviews using our sites. If the property we deal with engages with one of these optimization companies, we give them the opportunity to complain to

say ‘okay, I have used an optimization company’. If they deny and if they don’t work with us, they get a red patch on their listing which is really harmful. This is because it is possible that these hotels can manipulate the section on our site. So the traveller who sees that will not be willing to stay at a place where the property has the need to manipulate content on a consumer used website. So we do penalize those hotels. They go really down in our popularity ranking and do suffer from it. Since it is a very serious decision, the case goes through various departments and we gather proper evidence before questioning such a client.

“We are encouraging the industry not to try manipulating content because they will get caught and land in bad light in the eyes of a traveler,” summed up Nikhil.

The TripAdvisor study also analysed data such as click throughs to Business Listings links across a sample of accommodation pages.

The findings revealed a correlation between review ratings and booking enquiries from travellers researching places to stay on TripAdvisor.

According to the study, the higher the accommodation review rating, the higher the number of clicks to the property’s website from its mobile usage is on the rise throughout the entire traveller journey, according to the TripBarometer Connected Traveller report released by TripAdvisor last year.

The report defined Connected Travellers as those who have used a smartphone to plan or book a trip and provides in-depth insight into their habits and behaviors.

Key amongst the findings are 45% of Connected Travellers usually use their smartphones to book activities for a trip, almost three quarters of Connected Travellers (72%) use their smartphones to look for restaurants while on vacation and a third of Connected Travellers (34%) want their accommodation to offer mobile check-in.

Commenting on the findings Nikhil said, “Mobile is proving to be the ultimate game changer in the travel business. It is increasingly becoming the primary device to not only plan and book trips but also discover places to eat and things to do upon reaching the destination.

The fact that a majority (72%) of the connected travellers use their smartphones to look for restaurants and 67% to find attractions just reiterates the significance of the device in the travel journey. While mobile app bookings with respect to accommodations has seen an increase from 4% last year to 8% this year, it is only a matter of time before this proportion becomes the majority.”

With 47%, India ranks 9th in the list of countries having the highest proportion of connected travellers leaving behind countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia and Japan.

The trend toward mobile platforms for bookings is even more apparent when it comes to travel activities, where the smartphone becomes the second most popular booking device after laptops – 45 percent of Connected Travellers say they use activities for their trip, while 55 percent say they use a laptop.

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34>>

New System, New Features, New Branding – RezLive.com The online booking system has introduced many innovative features, inventory and interface to provide its users the best B2B online booking systems.

VW BUREAU

Jaal Shah, Group MD – Travel Designer Group & Founder, Rezlive.com

The kind of inventory we have now will suffice your global travel needs throughout the year. We have advanced easy-to-use, yet sophisticated tools that can be directly integrated to your site.

T

he Global B2B Online Booking System Powering Global Travel Content to Travel Partners, having offices in 19 countries and carry 15+ years of experience, has taken a leap forward and underwent massive change from UI, Architecture and technology perspective to better meet the ever growing needs of its travel partners and further to make their overall booking process experience continuously better with RezLive. com. RezLive.com being known for

innovations, global reach, reputation, trustworthiness, competitiveness, advanced technology and booking interface has added a basket of new features, inventory and interface to provide it users the best B2B online booking systems. Rezlive.com now offers 175,000 Hotel & Apartment Rooms, More than 45,000+ sightseeing items & over 5000 tours in 500 cities and 5000+ transfer options in over 900 Airport & city locations across the globe.

Innovative Features: • Express Search Option • Filters to optimize search • Quotation templates • Option to book last 5 searched bookings • TripAdvisor Reviews • Option to Compare Hotels • Interactive Map view • Larger Inventory with mapped information • Option to search Apartment only • Coupon Codes • Store last 5 bookings, searches and quotation details • Agent dashboard analytics • Multi-Currency Payment Gateway • VIP Desk • Local support and local currency offering • Multi-Currency rate display • Mobile Friendly • Easy Navigation • Built on advanced architecture Key Benefits: • Registration Fees: We offer login details to our travel partners free of cost.

• Accessibility: 24*7 B2B call center giving assistance throughout the day and year.

• XML Technology: Do you want your clients directly book hotels on your website. RezLive.com has the most advanced tools which are sophisticated yet easy to use. We will work with you to determine the best ones, and can provide tools to directly integrate them onto your site.

Voyager’s World > January 2016

Adding to the above, Mr. Jaal Shah( Group Managing Director – Travel Designer Group and Founder of Award Winning Global Reservation System –Rezlive.com) said: We are a global supplier of accommodation, sightseeing and transfer services to our travel partners across the globe and are currently connected with 11,000+ Active Travel Partners. We have been consistently providing the best and biggest inventory to the travel partners globally, by sourcing

them through multiple suppliers and contracting with hotel chains across the globe. Our travel partners trust us to deliver and support them 365 days because of our vast experience, healthy relationship with suppliers and hotel chains and local market understanding. We give our travel partners the platform to create their future and prosper together. Some of the Innovative features that have been inculcated into the completely new system are:

• Built-in Analytics: Have in-depth knowledge about your sales, top destinations and book counts!

• Larger Inventory: The kind of inventory we have now, we will suffice your global travel needs throughout the year.

• Impeccable Customer Experience: With its award winning design, the RezLive.com website offers an impeccable customer experience and resulting high conversion and repetitive business for your customers.

• Multilingual Team: With our regional and international presence we have a multilingual team to support our travel partners and have local currency account provision.

• Best Nett rates: Real-time online booking confirmations at competitive wholesale rates.

• In-depth Details: Up-to-date product images, descriptions, amenities, location and interactive maps.

• Subagent: Option to mark-up net rates and re-distribute to sub agents.

• Your branding: Vouchers branded with agent’s Logo.

• Online Reports: Online statement of account, Online invoicing, detailed booking reports.

• Global Reach: A global brand with local reach and support.

• Payment Gateway: Book now with RezLive.com at 0% processing charges for credit/debit card payments.

We are sure that travel partners of RezLive.com (A Product of Travel Designer Group) across the Globe will be happy to see the new system and explore the features highlighted by them in a refreshing new look and make the most out of it.

Transit Travel

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NIRANTA FOCUSES ON LUXURY STAY FOR TRANSIT PASSENGERS Sharin Surendran, Consultant, International Hotels and Resorts P Ltd (IHAR), says a luxurious experience is the main focus of the Niranta Airport Transit Hotel and Lounge in CSIA in Mumbai.

ALAN MARIA JOSE

T

he Niranta Airport Transit Hotel and Lounge for transit passengers was launched on 1 August, 2015 at Terminal 2 of GVK Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (CSIA) in Mumbai by International Hotels and Resorts Private Limited (IHAR). “We have two more hotels in the pipeline, of which the third will be launched in the first quarter of 2016. These upcoming projects will be located at two different sectors of the airport, began Sharin Surendran, Consultant of International Hotels and Resorts P Ltd. (IHAR) while dwelling at length on the USP and facilities of the hotel, among other things.

“This is our first airport transit hotel project and right now, we are focusing only on this and the upcoming ones. We offer luxurious hospitality services for transit passengers. In India, other than the Mumbai airport, only Delhi has transit hotels.”

Niranta offers a pay-by-hour facility for passengers who wish to stay for as low as three hours too and aims to give correct value for money and help its guests save time. “There are a lot of five star hotels within one km radius of the airport, but the point of having a transit hotel within the airport is that when they have to transit between two flights, a good sleep is what they need the most and with our hotel, they do not have to step out of the airport,”

said Sharin. “We have 24 hours check-in and check-out facility, a 24hour signature concierge system to assist travellers through their airport requirements like forex, city tours, etc.”

The maximum period of stay by the guests is 36 hours. The average time of stay that Niranta has observed until now is seven to eight hours and receives five to six guests on an average every day. The hotel also caters to the needs of differently abled passengers. Upon arrival, guests can check in even during wee hours.

USP “We offer customized stay options for transit passengers. Often 90% of the budget carriers come late.

Passengers who travel over eight hours experience jet lag and they need rest before taking another flight. Instead of having to opt for uneasy chairs for an uncomfortable sleep, we provide luxury stay options.

We receive different categories of travellers with business travellers being the top ones. During peak travel season, we also get many leisure travellers and family groups.

We guarantee that our hotel and its facilities to be the safest stay option for transit passengers and our services are often valued the best,” he says.

Niranta places a lot of importance on customer feedback and takes

online reviews very seriously, while ensuring quick remedial action to address issues. In fact, travellers had expressed concerns over the access to the lounge, having to go through customs or immigration and the need for an Indian visa to access the hotel and so on.

The hotel is located on the same level as that of the arrivals in Level 1 and hence convenient for passengers. Upon arrival, there are signages directing them to find the hotel. Niranta plans to launch a mobile application with maps to make it easier for the travellers to access the hotel. Currently most of its bookings happen online. Its website is enabled with a live chat option to assist the passengers. It is also listed on most of the booking websites as well as with many travel agents.

Sharin added that the hotel had a very powerful complaint management system. “We give utmost importance to the comfort of the guests. Our rooms do not have windows so as to avoid external disturbance and use dim lighting to help them relax. The second hotel that we would launch will have windows taking into account that some of our guests have noticed the absence of windows as unusual.

It will also have landside entry and a terrace. With the opening of the second hotel, we will have 84 rooms totally open for the transit

passengers thus enabling us to cater to all incoming guests. The third hotel will be at the transit area where the guests do not require an Indian visa or the need to undergo customs and immigration to access the hotel. The domestic terminal is situated very close to the hotel. So we hope that all these address the concerns of our guests.”

Facilities The staff are well trained to attend to the needs of all segments of guests.

“One thing that I have observed is that the concerns expressed by transit passengers staying at Niranta are different from those normally received at other star hotels. We are well equipped to serve our guest to meet any need.”

The hotel also plans to give information regarding the hotel and lounge on flights, so that passengers are spared of the hassles of stepping outside the airport to stay in city hotels. “We have inroom flight information system, Wi-Fi connectivity, ICO – internet connection, a mini bar and an allday dining restaurant that offers food that is refreshing and light on stomach which will be perfect for travelling. We have an expert cook capable of catering to the needs of transit passengers, who has 18-20 years of experience with Movenpick.

Loyalty program is something that we are working on currently,” concludes Sharin.

www.voyagersworld.in

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FESTIVALS OF 5-7 February, 2016

T

he Chiang Mai, in Northern Thailand celebrates the 40th annual flower festival from February 5-7, 2016. The tens of thousands of Thais tourists throng to the hill city for the spectacular floral displays.

In addition to floral displays and horticultural competitions, there has also been a street parade featuring marching bands and giant floats intricately adorned with flowers.

Chiang Mai Flower Festival, Thailand

From 22nd January

T

he Mendocino Crab Beer and Wine Festival starts on January 22nd California where you can eat crab feeds, winemaker’s dinners, wine competitions, crab cruises, cooking classes, and familystyle cioppino feeds at the regional celebration of the North Coast’s bounty. The Restaurants, inns, B&B’s, winemakers, and artisanal food purveyors offers seafood specials and events throughout the county, from the coast to Mendocino County’s inland valleys.

Mendocino Crab Beer and Wine Festival, California

12-21 February 2016

13-14 February 2016

P

attaya Bike Week also known as Burapa Bike Week is an event that brings bikers together for various activities and shows held every year in Pattaya from February 13 and 14th. The Bike Week is filled with music, food with a warm concert/ music festival vibe. It is a time for bikers from Thailand and the world over to come together and showcase their bikes, where their love for biking and connect with fellow biking enthusiasts.

Burapa Bike week, Pattaya Voyager’s World > January 2016

T

he Riverside County Fair & National Date Festival starts from February 12 till 21, California where you can sip creamy date shakes in Coachella Valley with plenty of local entertainment. The Monster Trucks, Demolition Derby and Bull Riding show for starters, the brand new, educational Butterfly and Ag Adventureland exhibits. The Camel & Ostrich Races, a longstanding tradition will delight audiences of all ages.

The Riverside Country Fair & National Date Festival, California

37>>

THE WORLD 17 January 2016

S

inulog Festival is a significant festival in Cebu city, Philippines that is held on the 17th January, the annual festival, held on the third Sunday of January, infuses both culture and religion.The festival celebrates the acceptance of Catholicism by locals, as well as the triumph of Christianity over secular religions that the country previously upheld. The festival features a contest where attendants can take part in the various categories like the Sinulog Base group, The Free Interpretation as well as the Street Dancing Group.The festival lasts nine days and marked with the Sinulog Grand Parade.

Sinulog Festival 2016, Philippines

13-15 February 2016

T

he young couples take vows or renew their vows underwater from February 13-15 where an official actually officiates the marriage underwater, signing the certificate underwater. Couples take a dreamy parade through Trang where they are felicitated and blessed by local residents. The ceremony consists of Buddhist wedding rituals and the traditional Thai wedding ceremony of pouring water, and having happily married old couples escort brides and grooms to their honeymoon suites.

Trang Underwater Wedding, Thailand

30 January - 7 February 2016 11-16 February 2016

T

he Philippine International Hot Air Balloon Fiesta (PIHABF) is also known as “A Weekend of Everything that flies� that starts from February 11- 16, 2015 in Clark, Pampanga, Philippines. The festival features multicolored hot air balloons with more than a hundred balloon pilots from around the world and the biggest aviation sports event in the Philippines. The fiesta is an opportunity to share and exchange cultures and traditions with visiting pilots from all over the world. The visitors can enjoy a taste of Filipino hospitality and the fiesta spirit.

T

he Philadelphia Auto Show motors in the Pennsylvania Convention Center from Jan 30- Feb 7, 2016. The 70,000 square foot show floor will feature 700 hot production, pre-production, concepts, exotic and classic vehicles from more than 40 worldwide manufacturers. Philadelphia International Auto Show is one of the top shows in the country. This show includes 700 rides, 40 brands, 9 days and 1 place- Pennsylvania Convention Center.

Philadelphia Auto Show, Philadelphia

20th Philippine International Hot Air Balloon Fiesta www.voyagersworld.in

Destination

38>>

Wayanad: Wrapped in rapture, embraced by nature!

The verdant getaway throws in a lot of pleasant surprises to the writer as she feels cradled by nature in all its forms during a short sojourn to the district.

Wayanad Ghat

ALAN MARIA JOSE

W

ayanad has plenty to offer those who come in search of green views, wildlife and many other nature’s magnificent creations. It never disappoints the gleaming eyes of photographers; I can vouch myself for its breathtaking photogenic attributes after I took a trip to the pretty place recently. Even if it is a short journey that lasts about two days like the one I took, there are plenty of attractions to experience that make your trip worth its while. It is a perfect destination for families and there are plenty of resorts and hotels that offer comfortable stays.

The winding roads to Wayanad gave us a blissful welcome before unfolding its enchanting tales. The view of the mountains standing tall in harmony and the fog made me forget to blink. We stopped at the view point and enjoyed the sight of curving miniature roads and toylike vehicles moving at the pace of ants and wondered how reality is double-faced, projecting amusing but illusionary images of itself.

When we had almost reached Wayanad, we stopped at the Chain

Voyager’s World > January 2016

Tree to which an old story has been bound with rusted chains. The locals said that a tribal guide, who is assumed to have found his way through the mountain terrain leading to Wayanad, was killed by a British engineer to take the credit of finding the route. It is believed that the soul of the murdered guide used to haunt the place and had to be chained to the tree. We could see many people stopping by at the Chain Tree.

After reaching Wayanad, our very first halt was at the Soojipara waterfalls near Mepady, which is about 200 metres. To see the spectacular view of water gushing down through a narrow opening, we trekked down about 2 km through a stone laid path domed with trees on both sides where the sun tries hard to pierce its eyes on the visitors. When I saw the falls, I felt as if a creative hand had painted an animated picture that was still fresh with the paints of white, green and black. If you are tired after the short trek, you can stop by one of the many petty shops that sell refreshments amidst the chirping of winged visitors around.

When you come back to the initial place from where you started tramping down, you can buy baskets made of bamboo and cane, utensils and many other useful things that you can take home as a souvenir.

You can also savour the gooseberry dipped in honey which is a local food.

Later, we left for Kuruvadweep, a group of uninhabited islets of evergreen woods located on one of the tributaries of River Kabani, also known as Kabini, about 14 km from Mananthavady and close to the border of Karnataka.

Nature lovers would find the place a paradise with the trees and the gurgling of the river along with the mellifluous warble of birds and little kids. At Kuruvadweep, I felt wrapped in the arms of giant trees that spread its hands around and walked on small connecting bridges across streams, while engraving the moments in my mind.

Crossing the river is an adventure of sorts as one has to step on to a raft that makes one feel almost on

water. Of course, we did not miss any chance to wade through shallow waters wherever possible.

Our last halt on day one was the Muthanga Wildlife Sanctuary that borders the Bandipur National Tiger Reserve. The sanctuary offers jeep safaris but we took our car to traverse the forest. The tarred roads, unstained by the mud, and the spotlessly clean air provided for a breather of fresh air, literally and figuratively.

When we took this road, we joined fellow tourists who were on an expedition to explore the region’s vegetation and native lifestyle; we managed to spot elephants, deer, monkeys and multi-hued birds. The road is laid down with plenty of speed breakers on which you bump into every now and then, thus letting you slow down to take in the essence of nature at a calm pace. Every time the car in front of us slowed down, we were filled with excitement and looked fervently in all directions desperately hoping to spot an animal or two, but, it was more often than not a speed breaker. The joy

Destination

Chain Tree

Bandipur National Park

Banasura Dam

39>>

and thrill of travelling through the forest, with the car windows down, is indescribable. In the truest sense, I deeply inhaled the scent of nature in its crudest form and captured it into a memory that I would often replay in my mind. Surely it will be one among the most treasured and memorable experiences I have ever had.

fewer vehicles on the road. We lost no time in turning back and took the same route back. Even while inching towards night time, the forest still looked beautifully bathed in silver moonlight. Until we reached the main town, we continued to hold on to jitters that refused to subside. At the end of the day, we all could tell that it was quite an adventure.

When the sky started splashing reddish orange hues, we drove to the Bandipur National Tiger Reserve. Our eyes widened even more in search of tigers as we entered the reserve.

We spotted safari jeeps packed with tourists with their heads tilted to either of the two sides, coming from the opposite direction. The majestic sun, that seemed to have bathed in red ink, spilled the diluted colours of red and orange on the sprawling vegetation and trees, rendering the entire place absolutely picturesque.

It was not long before the area was enveloped by darkness and we had to move out of the reserve; it is not advisable to drive on one’s own without a forest guide or a guard.

Moreover, we were found ourselves filled with hints of fear as we saw

On our second day, we woke up early to watch the day break at the Sunrise Valley, which is one of the noted scenic spots in Wayanad.

However, to our dismay, we were told that due to some unfortunate events, it had been closed. Luckily, our disappointment did not last long as we chanced upon a tea shop in the vicinity. An old lady, its owner, welcomed us with her warm smile, and suggested that we walk a little towards the left to reach a breathtaking waterfall cascading down huge mountains, the only hitch was that there was no proper paths to walk towards the spot. Undeterred, we prodded on to find the falls which definitely compensated for the valley visit that we missed.

Next, we went to the Banasura Sagar dam built across Karamanthodu River, which is also one among the many major tourist attractions in Wayanad. It is the largest earthen dam in India and the second largest in Asia. We enjoyed the spectacular views of the Banasura hills the most as they threw their reflection on the water, thus holding spectators in pure rapture! After relaxing a bit on the green laps of lands stretching towards the water, we stopped at the nearby lake adorned with pretty water lilies, before we bade goodbye to the birds and butterflies.

On the way back to the place we were staying, we happened to see the Pazhassi Park that shelters tall trees bearing fewer leaves and more number of bats hanging to it, making themselves appear as bat-shaped fruits. Apart from that, the remarkable clusters of bamboo everywhere gave the perfect frame for the greenery, the nearby brook and the paths flanked by lines of colourful flowers. That was the icing on the cake for us in the entire Wayanad trip. Since we planned to return on the same day, we decided

to relax at our relative’s place for the rest of the day.

Wayanad is a perfect getaway for short trips and the only thing is that you need to have a guide with you to show known and lesser known nook and cranny of the place. You need to choose the places to visit beforehand so as to make the best use of time, especially when you are on a whirlwind trip and thereby, cover maximum places. Food lovers will surely enjoy Kerala cuisine here.

A word of caution for those planning to visit Wayanad between the months of December and February, be prepared for cold weather. The preferred time to visit Wayanad is from October to May. If you are a trekking enthusiast, make sure to carry a pair of trekking shoes.

A trip to Wayanad is all about discerning nature at a relaxed pace and to me, it is not a matter of the number of attractions that I cover. If you have more number of days you can add more attractions to your itinerary, because Wayanad is never short of tourist attractions.

www.voyagersworld.in

Destination

40>>

Langkawi: Rejuvenation in its blue lagoons A stroll through the pristine beaches of Malaysia’s Langkawi Island, the rustic beauty of Kedah and the amazing graffiti of Penang make a heady cocktail of unique experiences.

Pulau Payar Island Langkawi

IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

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ourism Malaysia organized a mega familiarization programme for 152 international media and travel agents from 17 countries highlighting destinations like Kedah, Langkawi and Penang from 9th Nov to 15th Nov 2015. Malaysia offers you an array of attractions in terms of culture, history, gastronomy and water sports.

One needs to take a longer vacation of a month for island hopping, experiencing life in homestays and loads of shopping for all.

Our trip started with us boarding over the next flight on the Malindo Air from KLIA Airport to Alor Setar Airport which was an hour journey. On our drive to Bujang Village,Merbok we noticed the number of trees. We started our tour to Semeling Jetty complex wearing our lifejackets for a lovely boat cruise across the Merbok River that gave us the spectacular view of the long stretch of magnificent mangrove trees and motor boats. As we entered the village we were astonished to see the ladies wearing the paddy hat made of straw or bamboo planting in the field. The ladies generally sit back in the hut around the paddy field to husk the paddy. The homestays in this village offers well furnished rooms and facilities. The huge traditional wooden drum or Gendang Raya placed on a long wooden stand at the entrance of a house is generally used to call people for prayers, meetings, festivals or alert of a danger, also

Voyager’s World > January 2016

houses an exhibition of traditional baskets for various purposes. People were friendly and eager to spend time which was a once in a lifetime experience for all of us.

after a drizzle.The Sungai Petani is an attractive town with the amazing views of the Masjid Zahir amidst the street and the well-designed lamp posts.

We were excited to explore the village on bikes to the honey harvesting area Trigona Stingless Bee Honey &Propolis-Madu Lebah Kelulut, although we could see bees in the box we still got to sample fresh honey with a straw from the small holes. Homestays are a natural way of experiencing life in a village and encourages every tourist to be part of activities like paddy planting, honey harvesting and boat cruise, we stayed over at the Grand Alora Hotel.

After that we headed to the Sungai Batu Civilization Complex that highlighted the excavations of artifacts like beads, iron objects and the fallen brick structures. We were thrilled as we entered the Tree Top Walk in Sungai Sedim, for a breathtaking canopy walk where you could see the lush green forest and the streams gushing over the forest. The narrow lane towards the tree top is an interesting stroll. You can take two routes for the walk which is about 5 to 6 hours or an hour the shortest route in a group of 8 to 9 or alone on the steel canopy. You can get a spectacular view of the Sedim River and indulge in activities like whitewater rafting, jungle trekking, flying fox and abseiling. For a great experience you can stay over in chalets and dormitories. Some of the delicacies of Kedah are Luksa Kusla Kedah a dish with rice noodles and aromatic fish gravy, Nasi Kandar a dish of rice with mixed curry. Kedah is a state known for its royal heritage, history, natural beauty and paddy fields.

Our voyage turns out to be interesting as we entered Penang, we were enthralled to step into George Town, with our first stop over at the St. George Church, the oldest church that has four pillars and a black

The next day we decided to explore Alor Setar, as you step into the town you can see the stunning view of Zahir Mosque. We begin our tour to Sungai Petani as we passed by a white building the Galeri Sultan Abdul Halim, the Menara Alor Setar or Alor Setar Tower has an observation deck offering you amazing scenic views and a wonderful garden, the Royal Palace Museum,the Balai Nobat a three tiered tower with an onion shaped dome that houses antiques.

The Zahir Mosque a beautiful mosque with its grey domes, white building, the lovely white arch , the white interiors are very artistically done and the beautiful chandeliers. We also got a different view of the bustling town

clock on the white building in the center of the town a fabulous sight.

We walked further to Kuan Yin Teng or the Goddess of Mercy Temple, the oldest Chinese temple is artistically designed and the entrance had a lot of lotus candles burning and joss sticks burned by devotees. The very sight of all the pigeons feeding and flying in front of the temple is a wonderful sight. We passed through Sri Mahamariamman Temple , the Tokong Han Jiang an ancestral temple and Masjid Kapitan Keling the famous mosque. After that we came across the Black Kettle Café right opposite to the red and white windowed building the old central fire station in the Beach Street looks very classy and nice.

As we entered the street of art and painting in Penang, we noticed the fruit hawkers, people on bicycles and trishaws. We first halted over the most famous mural Little Children on the Bicycle Mural by Ernest Zacharevic.

During our visit we met a bride and bridegroom clicking pictures in front of this mural. There are a number of other graffiti over the street like food delivery on bicycle an interesting mural, a little boy screaming in violet painting teaching you to speak Hokkien a picturesque spot for all along with the hand pulled rickshaw art on the side is another spot for a great picture by pulling the rickshaw and the little boy trying to climb the

Destination

Underwater World, Langkawi

Goddess of Mercy Temple, George Town

Zahir Mosque, Alor Setar

Graffiti in Penang

Paddy fields in Kedah

41>>

wall in yellow tee shirt and black jeans trying to peep or pick a glass of water. The graffiti in George Town are amazing and interesting. We passed through Batik Painting Museum Penang and the Armenian an suite Restaurant. On our stroll further we tasted ice cream lollipops and also got to taste the yummy ice creams like the Dragon Ice Ball, the Penang Heritage Ice Kachang, Fresh Orange cup ice cream at the Dragon Ice Ball Shop and met Mollie Yeap the Dragon Ice Ball Creator who had an inspiring story on the Dragon Ice Ball Shop. We clicked a lot of pictures of the street art, ate loads of ice creams and then passed by the American CafĂŠ that had a grass van parked with a link www. somewhereovertheworld.com.

The George Town is known for the heritage trails that can be explored on foot or on trishaws. We stayed over at the Hard Rock Hotel Penang in Batu Ferringhi Beach area and had a great time attending the show of Project X Band playing various tracks at the Hard Rock CafĂŠ. We got some lovely photographs of sunset in the beach.

The night life in Penang is something one should not miss especially with music and the array of delicacies you get to experience in this town. Penang the gastronomy of Malaysia serves some of the local delicacies like Char Kway Teow the fried flat noodles and prawn noodles and famous Cendol the local drink or dessert.

Our expedition to Langkawi was very inspiring as we stepped out to notice small boats in brown and blue at the quay. We first got into the Express Bahagia Ferry from Kuala Kedah to Langkawi which was a journey of an hour and half and reached the Jetty Point in Kuah, the complex also has a duty free shopping center. Some of the other ferries are Coral Island 1, Coral Island 3 and Langkawi Express.

Our trip started with the Langkawi SkyCab, has 35 Cars of 700 passengers which is about 15minutes to drive to the top and 15 minutes to drive back. Each Gondola can accommodate 6 people and the VIP Gondola offers cushioned seats with food. The Cable car stops over at the top station, middle station and base station. The Gondola Ride takes you to the top of the Mt. Gunung Mat Cincang and gives you exciting views of Langkawi Island .During the drive we met a flute artist playing Malay tunes . This place has so much to offer with a lot of activities like SkyCab, SkyBridge, SkyBistro, SkyDome, Sky Trail, Sky Adventure Park, SkyBoutique,6D Cinemotion and SkyPos. We passed through the Anjung Spa for fish therapy, kids playing in water balloons over the blue waters close to the yellow buildings, the Muzumi the Japanese restaurant.

The journey gets exciting as we got into a ferry and then into a small boat to explore the Pulau Payar Island, as we reached the island we all

wore lifejackets and the snorkeling equipment to enter the blue lagoons.

The tranquility of this place is simply impeccable with fishes all around you while floating over and into the turquoise waters. We admired this marvelous sight and enjoyed every minute in the pristine waters of this island. Snorkeling for first timers might be difficult at the first stage once you get the fear out of your mind you are going to enjoy snorkeling in this island.

The long brown bridge along the trees across the turquoise waters is a fabulous sight and the pathway of the bridge offers you picturesque options across the island. You can also get an excellent view of the white boats over the blue lagoons and the islands in green. The huts, the greenery and the turquoise waters are all perfectly placed in this island.The Pulau Payar an ideal place for water sports, it is a great feeling to float over the blue lagoons with the fishes around you.

The crystal clear turquoise water along with the boat of divers and the small hut shaped shades is an inspiring sight for most of us.

The tour added some more excitement with our visit to the eagle square that has the red bricked entrance, the statue of an eagle and a huge garden.

We had an interesting walk through the Underwater World Langkawi with the Flamingoes, Rock Hopper Penguin, Blue and Gold Macaw and fresh water fishes of Malaysia.

Our voyage turned out to be fabulous as we visited the Langkawi Craft Complex, exhibiting wedding costumes, wall paintings, newspaper handicrafts, batik paintings in flowers, unique magnets with fragrances, traditional baskets and different Congkak in wood the traditional marble game in Malaysia.

We then entered the Faizy Crystal Glass Blowing making exquisite crystal items by the local artisans which are amazingly beautiful. We got to see the process of crystal making and molding of an eagle trophy in green and red, the flower vases and bunch of blue and red tulips. The entrance of this place is decorated with glass arts and various colourful hangings. Lastly we got into the Kota Mahsuri highlighted the history of Kota Mahsuri and the entrance has a painting of people playing various instruments and the Rumah Mahsuri or the Mahsuri house. You must not miss the opportunity to shop the shell hangings from the night market, the chocolates, liquor chocolates and liquor for family and friends from the duty free shop. For an overnight we stayed over at Holiday Villa beach Resort & Spa Langkawi.

The greenery of Kedah, graffiti of Penang and the Langkawi Island amazes you with its serene vibes. So get ready to soak yourself in murals, Emerald waters and white beach sands.

www.voyagersworld.in

Happenings

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KTO- India to support Rotary International Convention 2016

roomsXML.com bags world's many prestigious awards

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yungsun Lee, Director of Korea Tourism Organization (KTO), India, met the Rotary International World President K R Ravindran at an intercity event in Chandigarh on 10 Dec 2015 and extended full support to boost participation from India for the Rotary International Convention 2016 which is scheduled to be held in Seoul, South Korea in May 2016. The convention is expected to draw a global participation of more than 40000 people. Every year 2000 – 5000 Indian members visit Rotary International Convention. KTO will support the convention by providing brochures, maps, booklets to interested members, assisting regional clubs and their travel agents partners with reliable ground handlers, supporting visa application documentation for groups.

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Tourism Fiji & Fiji Airways organise agents familiarization trip

Thomas Cook India now fully acquires Kuoni Travel

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ourism Fiji & Fiji Airways hosted 8 travel agents from five different cities for a familiarization trip to Fiji from 7 – 14 December 2015. The group travelled to different regions and islands in Fiji and stayed at properties popular in the Indian market.

Apart from site inspections, the itinerary included various cultural activities and experiences that sets Fiji apart from other beach destinations. The agents represented Rio Fiesta Holidays, Mumbai; Millennium Travels, Pune; Varun Worldwide Holidays, Mumbai; Plan My Holiday, Kolkata; Global Walk Holiday Packages, Delhi and Kashish Holidays, Surat. The group visited Coral Coast, Pacific Harbour, Suva, Mamanuca Islands, Savusavu & Denarau Island. They also visited the Pure Fiji factory, experienced zip lining, snorkelling, sunset dinner cruise, spa and shopping and the Cloud 9 floating bar and pizzeria.

Voyager’s World > September 2015

oomsXML.com was conferred with the WTM Global Award for outstanding contribution to the travel industry, World Travel Award for being Asia’s and Australasia’s leading hotel booking solutions provider, Travelmole Web Award for Asia Pacific’s Best Travel Wholesale Solution; Magellan Award for being the Best Travel Agent Only Website. Prakash Bang, MD, roomsXML.com, said, “By focusing only on accommodation, we have no other option but to do things more efficiently - robust technology, de-duplicated inventory, dependable 24x7 global support and competitive net rates. The efforts have bourne fruit by way of increased revenues; travel agent’s happiness quotient and host of awards.”

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homas Cook (India) Ltd, along with its wholly owned subsidiary Travel Corporation (India) Ltd, acquired 100% shareholding of Kuoni Travel (India) P Ltd from the Kuoni Group on 16 December, 2015. The deal worth Rs 535 crore was initially announced in early August. Kuoni Group’s Travel businesses across India and Hong Kong are now owned

by Thomas Cook India. The formal acquisition, which was completed yesterday, will allow Thomas Cook India to use the SOTC brand including SITA in perpetuity, the Kuoni brand in India for 12 months and in Hong Kong for five years. “We have successfully completed the closure process for the acquisition of Kuoni Travel across India and Hong Kong; this gives us significant synergies across the entire spectrum of travel services, including inbound, MICE, outbound and domestic, as also corporate travel,” said Madhavan Menon, MD of Thomas Cook India.

Happenings

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Best agents of Swiss Travel Pass SuperStar Campaign felicitated in Switzerland

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he Swiss Travel Pass SuperStar campaign, jointly initiated by Switzerland Tourism, Swiss Travel System and Rail Europe to promote, spread awareness and enhance the knowledge of Switzerland and various Swiss Travel System Passes amongst Travel agents and Tour operators, was a huge success with 855 people registering for it. Selection was on the basis of monthly quizzes as well as the number of Swiss Travel Passes sold during that month. Monthly prizes consisted of iPhone, iPads and iPods or Bucherer watches which were distributed during events held in Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata. A treat for many of the winners was receiving a monthly prize as well as the Grand trip.

In December, the best Swiss Travel System agents from the participating markets were invited to Switzerland for the Swiss Pass SuperStar Celebration Trip 2015. 9 delegations took part on pre and post trips on various routes through Switzerland to discover the magnificent beauty of the country while travelling by train, bus and boat. They could get a first-hand experience of the destination Switzerland and the Swiss Travel System. The highlight of the Swiss Travel Pass SuperStar Celebration Trip was the Gala Event on December 1, organized by Swiss Travel System, Switzerland Tourism, Mount Rigi and Lucerne Tourism. 92 best agents were awarded in Lucerne’s traditional Swiss Folklore Restaurant “Stadtkeller” by the top management of the related companies personally.

Trafalgar organises agents Fam trip to Eastern Europe

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rafalgar organised an agent familiarization trip from 6-12 November for its Asian partners to the Eastern European cities of Budapest, Prague and Vienna. 44 members from Asia, including seven from India, participated in the week –long trip which comprised two nights stay in each of the three cities. The participating companies from India included Cox & Kings, Club7 Holidays, Master Holidays and Comfort Leisure. The group visited places like the Great Synagogue in Budapest, St. Vitus Cathedral in the 1000-year old Prague castle, Viennese music concert, etc.

India-Japan to ease visa regime from 2016

Sanjeev Dessai takes over as Goa Tourism Director

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Japan would ease the requirements for issuing multiple-entry visas to short-term Indian travellers from 11 January 2016. The maximum period of stay will be extended to 30 days from the current 15, with visas valid for five years, up from three years.

He will oversee the department’s role in the maintenance of the state’s beach cleanliness, beach safety, tourist policing, master plan and all other tourism policies. He belongs to the Goa Civil Service cadre and was the Deputy Collector (Revenue), North Goa, before his promotion to (Grade I) Senior Scale and appointment as Director of Tourism. He was promoted to Sr. scale of the GCS on 27 November, 2015. He was inducted in the GCS Jr. Scale in 2004 and was the Deputy Collector (Revenue), South Goa as well.

ndia and Japan entered into a mutual regime regarding the visa system with the former offering Visa on Arrival (VoA) to Japan while the latter will agreed to relax the present visa regime. Modi, while addressing the media with the visiting Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, announced that India would offer VoA to Japanese tourists and business travellers from 1 March 2016.

anjeev C. Gauns Dessai took over as the new Director of the Department of Tourism with effect from today, replacing Ameya Abhyankar.

www.voyagersworld.in

TRAVEL TRENDS

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56% Indians addicted to mobiles during vacation: Expedia VW BUREAU

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he Egencia/Expedia Mobile Behavior Mobile Index, a global study of mobile-devicerelated behavior and preferences among travelers conducted across multiple countries and continents was launched recently. The survey highlights that India (80%) leads in checking in with work followed

by Thailand (74%) and Mexico (65%). 20% Indian spouse or travel partners said that they were most annoyed with partners who check in with work during a vacation.

Business travelers use mobile devices to remain tightly connected to their home office. Mobile devices are the top resource for navigation, for photo-taking and for staying connected to loved ones. The three countries that place the highest premium on mobile devices as a travel companion are China (where 94% of respondents ranked it #1), Taiwan (also 94%) and Thailand (91%).

“In India, constant connectivity is a priority when mobile devices are carried in hand from work to home and now on vacation too. When we’re more efficient and productive using mobile devices and apps that provide a seamless experience, the quality of our vacation is improved and the work/life balance can be prioritized.” said Amit Arora, Country Director of Egencia India.”

Subscription Form

“The dependency on smartphone

and gadgets have increased over a span of time and it is very well reflected in traveler behavior.

According to our Egencia/Expedia Mobile Behavior Report, 56% Indian travelers are addicted to their mobile devices, while 36% Indians carry a rechargeable pack/case/ portable charger/spare battery to use as a backup when travelling.

We understand the importance of being present on a mobile platform and were one of the first OTAs in India to launch a booking app, which now also facilitates travel at various check points of the journey.

No wonder Indians rank #1 globally in considering mobile device an important travel companion,” said Manmeet Ahluwalia, Marketing Head, Expedia India.

while travelling • 26% Indians keep a power cord with themselves at all times and would search for the nearest available outlet to recharge ASAP

The findings of the survey are given belowWhat’s most essential?

• Smartphones: 82%; toothbrush: 48% • India leads globally with 9% of people who consider condoms to be the most essential item while travelling for leisure • Indians consider the following as an essential item which can cause anxiety if lost while travelling - Mobile (35%); Wallet (50%); Luggage (15%) Keeping the Mobile alive is key priority!

• 36% Indians already have a rechargeable pack/case/portable charger/spare battery that they take along to use as a backup

Can’t Live Without Apps • Most used apps during Leisure Travel are - Maps and navigation apps (53%); Social media apps (52%); Email or messaging apps (43%); India leads globally with 5% of people using fitness or weight loss apps • Most used apps during Business Travel- Email and messaging apps (66%); Social media apps (34%); India leads globally with 23% of people using readings apps

How about Wi-Fi? • 74% of Indians seek free Wi-Fi in café or restaurant like Starbucks, McDonalds etc.

• Purchase of inflight Wi-Fi - Business Trip: 46% | Leisure Trip: 35% Mobiles are the best companions • India leads globally in considering/ thinking- Mobile device an important travel companion (36%); Mobile devices and apps improve their quality of vacation (29%); Use their mobile device more at vacations than at home (20%)

Offensive behaviour Highest ranked inappropriate behavior by fellow travelersMaking/taking calls on speakerphone (56%); take photos/

videos of unknown people (54%).

Indians find the following behavior of fellow travelers most offensive/ inappropriate globally- Photographing food during a meal (37%); attaching a fitness tracker visibly to an undergarment (33%); Usage of location based dating apps (26%); taking photos using a tablet device (23%) Log in on vacation 29% of the Indians check mails, texts or voicemails by clients/colleagues for 30 minutes daily; India leads globally with 80% people checking in on work at least once daily; India leads globally with 13% people checking on work for more than 1 hour daily; India ranks at the bottom, with only 1% saying that their job is not the type of work where they are expected to check-in while on vacation; 54% of Indians do not react on their spouse or travel partner even if they check in on work during vacations.

The survey was conducted online from November 3 to 20 November, 2015 across North America, Europe, South America and Asia Pacific using the Kantar-owned GMI (Global Market Insite) and Lightspeed Research amalgamated group of panels. The study was conducted among 9642 adults aged 18 years of age and older who own at least one mobile device across 19 countries.

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Voyager’s World > January 2016

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Top Appointments

45>> Gaurav Khandelwal

Nasir Shaikh

Global Head- Tours, ANTA Holidays

General Manager, Courtyard by Marriott Pune Chakan

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NTA Holidays ( Destination Management Company – UAE ) appoints Gaurav Khandelwal as the Global Head – Tours. In his new role, he will head the tours division encompassing product development, contracting, operations and sales. He brings about 20 years of experience in the travel industry.

asir Shaikh has joined Courtyard by Marriott Pune Chakan as the General Manager.

He has over 15 years of work experience and prior to this, he had worked with Renaissance Mumbai Convention Centre, Le Royal Meridien, JW Marriott and Westin among others.

In his new role, he will take care of the overall running of the property.

Frederic Saunier

Prabhakar Singh

Head of Corporate IT - Asia Pacific, Amadeus

Director of Sales & Marketing, Novotel Kolkata Hotel and Residences

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madeus appointed Frederic Saunier as Head of Corporate IT for Asia Pacific.

Prior to this, he has been part of Amadeus for many years with Amadeus France and Air France-KLM. In his new role, he will increase Amadeus’ regional focus on the segment through direct sales and channel partners, with a portfolio of online solutions and GDS offerings.

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rabhakar Singh has joined Novotel Kolkata Hotel and Residences as the Director of Sales and Marketing will be responsible for guiding a team of 20+ members of Sales & Marketing based in Kolkata and in 3 other metro cities. Prior to this, he worked as the Director of Sales and Marketing at Vivanta by Taj – President, Mumbai. He brings about 10 years of expereince with the Taj Hotels, Resorts and Palaces.

Rupert Peters

Ritesh Sharma

Managing Director, Destination Canada - India

General Manager, TajFalaknuma Palace

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upert Peters, Regional Managing Director, Destination Canada will now head the India market. He joined Destination Canada in 2008 and is based in London. His core responsibility includes overseeing marketing and operations across UK, France, Germany, Australia and India. Prior to this, he worked for VisitBritain, with a career spanning two decades.

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itesh Sharma has been appointed as the General Manager of TajFalaknuma Palace. He started his career with the Taj family 15 years ago, as Front Office Associate in Taj Coromandel, Chennai. He joined the Mumbai International Airport in 2008 to manage the terminal at the domestic airport. In 2012, he worked as the Resident Manager of The TajMahal Hotel, New Delhi.

AbhiShek Sahai

Rohit Bajpai

General Manager, Courtyard by Marriott Hotel- Agra

General Manager, Radisson Blu, New Delhi Paschim Vihar

he Courtyard by Marriott Hotel, Agra appoints as Abhishek Sahai as the General Manager. He started his career with the oberoi Group .He brings about of over fifteen years of expereince in the hospitality and customer oriented operations with luxury hotel chains like The Oberoi Group and The Leela Hotels. Prior to this, he held the role of a General Manager at The Leela Palace Udaipur. He has worked with The Leela Group for over 5 years.

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adisson Blu Hotel, New Delhi Paschim Vihar appoints Rohit Bajpal as the General Manager. In his last assignment he has worked as the General Manager at Radisson Blu Hotel, New Delhi Dwarka.He brings an experience of over 16 years in the hospitality industry. In his new undertaking, his responsibility includes the overall running of the property.

www.voyagersworld.in

NETWORKING ISTHE THE NETwORkINg IS kE KEY Y January 2016

February 2016

March 2016

Arpil 2016

January2016 22, 23, 24 Holiday Expo Coimbatore

28, 29 Third Annual Africa Hotel Development Summit, Lagos, Nigeria

February 2016 8, 9, 10, 11 Outbound Travel Roadshow New Delhi, Mumbai

11, 12, 13

March 2016 4, 5, 6 India International Travel Mart Kolkata

9, 10, 11, 12, 13

BIT Milan, Italy

ITB Berlin Berlin,Germany

13, 14

17, 18, 19, 20

The Vancouver Golf & Travel Show Vancouver, Canada

Int’l Tourism and Travel Trade Fair Sweden

17, 18, 19

29, 30, 31 World Travel Market Latin America Sao Paulo, Brazil

Routes America San Juan, Puerto Rico

April 2016 March 30, 31 April 1 Ukraine International Travel & Tourism Ukraine

May 2016 19, 20, 21, 22 World Travel Fair Shanghai

4, 5, 6

24, 25, 26, 27

IBTM Africa Cape Town, South Africa

Next Travel Trade Exchange Mexico

6, 7, 8

18, 19, 20

World Travel Market Africa Cape Town, South Africa

WTM Connect Asia Penang, Malaysia

25, 26, 27, 28

23, 24, 25

Arabian Travel Market Dubai

WTM Connect China Hainan Island, China

May 2016