Voyager's World October 2017

Vol XIV

Issue XII

Pages 52

October 2017

PUNE 24, 25, 26 NOVEMBER 2017

HYDERABAD 01, 02, 03 DECEMBER 2017

KOCHI 11, 12, 13 JANUARY 2018

KOLKATA 23, 24, 25 FEBRUARY 2018

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4>>

Heritage Drive

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he ongoing Paryatan Parv, which will culminate on 25 October, has included initiatives like walks and guided tours to draw attention to the country's heritage.

On that note, the Ministry of Tourism, along with the Ministry of Culture has advocated the 'Adopt a Heritage' initiative with a view to provide world class tourist facilities at the various heritage sites / monumentsand other tourist sites across the country.

As we step up our efforts to boost the country's appeal on the global front, it is needless to say that utmost attention has to be paid to the nitty-gritty of the amenities and infrastructure to be on par with other heritage destinations. We have looked at the heritage of Bangalore, the Silicon Valley of India, in the cover story, while examining efforts made by organisations towards the restoration and preservation of monuments. This will be the beginning of a series of features on the country's heritage. This apart, we have featured many interviews with hoteliers, tourism boards, OTAs, technology providers and destination stories.

Ahead of the festive season, here is wishing you all a very colourful and safe Deepawali/Diwali and may the Festival of Lights brighten the prospects of the industry in the days to come.

Happy Reading...

Warm Regards

PRIYAMVADHA BALARAM

priyamvadha@voyagersworld.in

Managing Editor

Associate Editor

Associate Editor

Priyamvadha Balaram priyamvadha@voyagersworld.in

Anju Anna Alex Irene Susan Eapen anju.alex@voyagersworld.in irene@voyagersworld.in

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Senior Designer

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06 10

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Industry Buzz Hospitality

16

Interviews with hoteliers, homestays, property review

Incredible India Initiatives by State Tourism Boards

20

Surinder Hakhu sanjay@voyagersworld.in & Rohit Hangal rohit@voyagersworld.in

38

OTA New apps and technology

Cover Story

Bangalore's heritage

49

Top Appointments

fro A m Po So st ut ca h rd Af ric a

Cover Credits: Attara Kacheri (Karnataka High Court) in Bangalore_View from Cubbon Park in 1916 (c) Rohit Hangal

SOUTH AFRICAN TOURISM

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Industry Buzz

6>> Oman simplifies visa rules for Indians

RateGain integrates with roomsXML

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ateGain Technologies announced its recent integration with roomsXML in September, following which the roomsXML can fully automate the process of providing realtime access to rooms, by making their offering more efficient and relevant to their customers including travel agent partners.

he Oman Airports Management Company unveiled the revised terms and conditions issued by Omani authorities on the granting of non-sponsored tourist visa for citizens of India, China and Russia who reside in or who hold an entry visa to one of the following countries – USA, Canada, Australia, UK and Schengen States - to enter the Sultanate of Oman. The visa shall be granted for one month for a fee of OMR 20. The spouse and children of the visa holder would be allowed to enter the Sultanate while accompanying them, even if they do not hold a visa from these countries. Applicants must have a return ticket and confirmed hotel reservation to be granted the visa.

Prakash Bang, Founder and Executive Chairman, roomsXML, said, “Our alliance with RateGain is another step towards providing our wide set of customers with an immaculate and unified booking experience, and also help us enhance and multiply our reach with hoteliers.

IDS Next launches FX Service

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DS Next Business Solutions Pvt. Ltd launched a new product –FX Service, a mobile based service quality improvement platform that will enable hotels to attend to guest requests ahead of their expectation. This app will also help hotels to improve guest experience and staff productivity. Hotels can create guest requests in a web-based application.

Once a guest raises a request or compliant, staffs in the respective department get notified on their FX Service Android app, enabling them to act immediately. Hotel staff can start to work on a task, mark it as completed when it’s done. They can even create and confirm service requests on behalf of guests.

Rezlive.com wins twin accolades

R India Travel Summit 2017 discusses new age industry trends

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homas Cook India organised the second edition of the ‘India Travel Summit 2017–The New Age of Travel’ in New Delhi recently with a participation of over 250 delegates for the exchange of ideas that will benefit the travel and tourism in India.

There were panel discussions on easing visa processes by consular representatives, tourism boards discussing the new-age Indian traveller, technology partners and strategists debating on the future of the travel eco-system and senior policy makers deliberating on the Indian tourism story - Incredible India 2.0.

ezLive.com won two international awards -'B2B Standard of Excellence' award by the Web Marketing Association and 'Online Travel Services | Booking Interface' award by Travel Weekly Magellan Awards. Both the awards were decided on the basis of submissions and cross examination by the jury. Jaal Shah, Group Managing Director-RezLive. com, said, “Thanks to the efforts of my team at RezLive.com, we have received the said two international awards. It is a great achievement for a hard working team, headed by great sales team and well supported by tech support staff and outstanding operation representatives.

This award will act as a motivating factor for the team to achieve new heights and prosper together."

Visa rules relaxed for Indians visiting Taiwan

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ndian passport holders who possess valid or 10-year expired visas of United States of America, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Japan, New Zealand or any of the Schengen countries are eligible for a Travel Authorization Certificate issued online to visit Taiwan. As per information issued by the Taiwan Tourism Bureau India Office, Indian passport holders who possess any category of a previous Taiwan Visa (Business Visa, Personal Visa or Group Visa) are also eligible for visa exemption. The online application for R.O.C (Taiwan) Travel Authorization Certificate is applicable to citizens of India, the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, Myanmar, Cambodia and Lao.

TrawellTag Cover-More plans further growth after acquisition

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rawellTag Cover-More reported ongoing strong growth for their business six months after their acquisition by Zurich Insurance Group.

In April 2017, Zurich successfully acquired Cover-More Group, the parent company of TrawellTag Cover-More.

According to Dev Karvat, CEO of TrawellTag Cover-More, “The Zurich brand is well-recognised and has an excellent reputation worldwide.

We plan to further leverage the association with Zurich to drive more innovation into our business and achieve stronger growth in the travel insurance market in India.”

Voyager’s World > October 2017

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Industry Buzz

8>> Korea Specialist Online Training Programme launched in India

Lemon Tree Hotels expands presence in Patna and Alwar

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emon Tree Hotels opened Lemon Tree Premier, Patna and Lemon Tree Hotel, Alwar, marking their entry into the historic cities. Lemon Tree Premier, Patna has 105 rooms and suites, a 24x7 multi-cuisine coffee shop, a spa and salon- Fresco, a gym, a rooftop swimming pool and a soon to open Indian restaurant.

The hotel offers 20,000 sq. ft. of banquet and meeting spaces, an exquisite board room, a business centre along with a rooftop terrace.

Lemon Tree Hotel, Alwar has 40 contemporary rooms and suites, a multi-cuisine coffee shop - Citrus Café, a private dining area- Sky Lounge, a hip recreation bar – Slounge, a conference room as well as a fitness centre.

T Singapore to host Formula 1 World Championship until 2021

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ingapore GP and Singapore Tourism Board announced about their continuation to host the FIA Formula 1 World Championship for four more years from 2018 to 2021. During the first decade the race attracted over 450,000 international visitors to Singapore and about S$1.4 billion in tourism receipts1. With over 90% of the race organisation sub-contracted annually to Singaporebased companies, it contributes to local economy.

he Korea Tourism Organization India Office has launched its first ever South Korea Specialist programme in India. The course is targeted to educate pan-India travel trade partners about the travel assets of South Korea. The content is specifically designed as per the needs, requirements and expectations of Indians. The course has four modules, each focusing on different aspects of tourism offerings of the destination.

Upon completion, the participants will be duly acknowledged with Korea Specialist certificates. The course is created and hosted on www.travelgyaan.com.

Flight Centre Travel Group, Australia opens outlet in Ludhiana

InterGlobe Hotels launches ibis in Coimbatore

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nterGlobe Hotels launched the ibis Coimbatore City Centre, marking the debut of the smart hotel brand in the second largest city in the state of Tamil Nadu – Coimbatore.

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light Shop & Travel Money recently opened their first retail store in Ludhiana. With this launch, FCTG, Australia now has 16 operational Flight Shop & Travel Money stores across India.

The new store in Ludhiana is spread over 900 sq ft and will offer travellers Flight Shop’s entire range of products and services - domestic and international flights, customised and group holidays, hotels, car transfers, visa, cruise holidays, honeymoon holidays, adventure holidays and more. Along with these, Travel Money will cater to all foreign exchange needs, ranging from currency, traveller’s cheques, multi-currency forex cards and remittance.

The business hotel is strategically located in the city's central business district at Lakshmi Mills Junction, within close proximity to local tourist attractions and shopping hubs, and a short drive from the city’s railway station and airport. The hotel has 129 well-appointed rooms.

TAFI 2017 Convention slated to be held in two Turkish cities

Jaisalmer to be latest addition on SpiceJet’s network

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he Travel Agents Federation of India (TAFI) Convention 2017 will be conducted at two beautiful yet lesser-known cities of Turkey, Dalaman and Antalya. The convention dates are 27 to 31 October 2017. For the first two nights, delegates will be staying at Hotel Hilton Dalaman Sarigerme Resort & Spa, Dalaman and the next two nights at Hotel Rixos Premium Belek, Antalya.

ITDC celebrates 51 years with multiple offers

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n the occasion of completing 51 years in tourism, travel and hospitality industry,

India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) announced multiple offers including exclusive ‘Wheel-O-Fortune’ festival at The Ashok, from 1 - 15 October, during which visitors can spin the wheel at a cost of Rs. 499/- and try their luck to win attractive offers on the wheel. It also

Both the properties are par-excellence and equivalent to 7-star Categories. TAFI, in line with its past destinations, chooses off-beat destinations, to showcase the region to its members.

Voyager’s World > October 2017

unveiled 51% discount on rooms along with 15% on food and beverages from 1 - 7 October at its flagship property The Ashok.

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ffective 29 October, 2017, SpiceJet will add Jaisalmer to its domestic network making it the first and only airline in the country to provide direct air connectivity between Jaisalmer and Delhi. The carrier will also introduce direct flights between Jaisalmer and Jaipur from the same date making it the only Indian carrier to connect the two key tourist and business destinations of Rajasthan. The airline will also recommence flights between Delhi and Jodhpur from the same day. JaipurJaisalmer will be the fourth sector under UDAN connectivity scheme for SpiceJet. The route will be serviced by the Bombardier Q400. Tickets for RCS seats on the Jaipur – Jaisalmer route will be available at INR 2,330 (all in) whereas RCS fare on the Jaisalmer–Jaipur route will be INR 2,280 (all in).

Hospitality

10>>

RCI committed to growing the Timeshare ecosystem ANJU ANNA ALEX

Sabina Chopra, Managing Director, RCI, India; talks about how the timeshare concept is slowly gaining momentum in India and the need to maximise efforts in nurturing the timeshare ecosystem in India.

Future of time share in India India has increasingly turned out to be a land of vacation seekers which is an indication of changing trends.

More so, they are investing in newer holiday experiences and timeshare as a concept allows them just that. A lot of global companies are investing in the timeshare concept and various hospitality chains are looking at timeshare as a viable business in the long run. Timeshare has seen a rapid

growth- as per the AIRDA (All India Resort Development Association), 3,50,000 families have already subscribed to timeshare as of 201617 and the figure is expected to grow substantially by 2020. Over the past six years, timeshare has grown almost 50% and this is only set to pick up going forward.

We are also focused on the overall expansion strategy in India. So far, we have affiliated resorts in over 60 unique destinations across the country. We plan on extending to triple digits by 2020. The overall emphasis will be on growth in terms of resorts and adding more value to our members.

also reported less worries in terms of accommodation, affordability, safety and security concerns amongst other things. Indian travellers are realizing that with timeshare membership and the concept of ‘pay now, vacation later’ they end up saving over the long run, making it ideal for every type of traveller.

Immediate plans for RCI My main objective at RCI would be to lead the strategic priorities for the Indian market along with increasing the penetration within the affordable market segment in the country. As you know, RCI became a driving force within the timeshare industry and has been at the forefront of the holiday ownership industry since it was founded in 1974. So in those terms, our strategy would also focus on amplifying awareness about the timeshare space in India.

Current attitude towards timeshare among Indian travellers We recently released a travel survey report in partnership with Kantar IMRB detailing the trends we have observed in the timeshare ownership space.

The survey revealed that the level of satisfaction reported by timeshare owners is much more than nontimeshare owners. In absolute terms, 55% of timeshare owners reported being satisfied with their vacation compared to mere 37% of nontimeshare owners. Timeshare owners

While India is at a nascent stage when it comes to the Timeshare concept, it is slowly but surely picking up steam.

We as an industry need to maximise our efforts in building the timeshare or vacation exchange ecosystem in India. In doing so, we have partnered with some of the well-known players such as Mahindra Holidays, Sterling Holidays to name a few. We have also pioneered some innovative concepts like ‘The Sweepstake’ which was run digitally to amplify the awareness of timeshare.

TGI Hotels unveils expansion plans by 2020 across india IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

The fast growth in occupancy across its properties has encouraged the group to expand further in different categories, says Amit Kumar, Chief Marketing Officer, TGI Hotels.

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he Great Indian (TGI) Hotels and Resorts is certain in its purpose of ensuring personalized service to its guests by way of less than 100 rooms in its hotels and resorts. With properties across Hosur, Salem, Pondicherry, Mahabalipuram, Yercaud, Ujjain and Dewas, the guest demographics of the brand range

Voyager’s World > October 2017

from corporate, MICE to leisure. Its Chief Marketing Officer Amit Kumar talks about the group’s growth, future prospects and marketing plans. “We have witnessed a growth for more than three years. We started our first footprint in Yercaud, followed by a portfolio of five properties across five cities in South India and two in Madhya Pradesh Dewas and Ujjain.

Some of the segments that we focus are on corporate, leisure and MICE. We also have inbound clientele to the Mahabalipuram and Pondicherry resorts.”

Amit believes that the country has much to offer any kind of traveller.

“It will only grow from where we are now, as the government is promoting business ventures in Tier 1 and

Tier 2 cities. For foreign tourists, we are now having a visa-on-arrival programme that would increase the inflow. The growth in the hospitality sector and its contributions to the GDP will continue to be substantially higher than those of the other sectors of the economy given the huge tourism potential in the country.

The tourism and hospitality industry have always been focus areas in the service sector in India, in view of the diverse products in their portfolios like cruises, adventure, medical, wellness, sports, MICE, eco-tourism, film, rural and religious tourism.“ TGI Hotels is directing its marketing efforts towards mobile e-commerce and loyalty pricing for guests to book directly and determine the value of each guest. Besides being active on

social media, it plans to launch the customer loyalty card.

“We are targeting to have 2020 rooms by 2020 in three service categories - TGI Grand (Upscale Hotels), TGI Residency (Business Hotels), TGI Resorts and TGI Inns (B&B Hotel).

We plan to launch in Central and East India and other attractive locations, in addition to adding 10 hotels this year in Indore, Khajuraho, Bhopal, Shirdi, Sundarban, Dooars and Gangtok. The new hotels will be under a management contract as the company follows asset-light models.

As a part of our 10 year strategy, we may also aim to raise funds through private equity and expand operations to neighbouring countries like Srilanka, Thailand, Dubai, etc.”

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Hong Kong Inclusions

Macao Inclusions

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• SIC Hong Kong city night tour - One Way Peak Tram to Victoria Peak, Star Ferry Ride from HK to Kowloon, Old Clock Tower, and Symphony of Light Show - During the visit in the Peak, we are now providing an option for guest to explore Madame Tussauds at own expenses • Ferry tickets (Hong Kong - Macao)

• • • •

Two nights accommodation for two guests Coach transfer in Macau by hotel free shuttle bus (Pier - Hotel - Pier) Daily breakfast or lunch at Sands Resorts Macao designated outlets One - Way Cotai Water Jet Cotai class tickets from Macao to Hong Kong; or Gondola Ride; or Entries to Qube/ Qube 2/ Qube Kingdom; or Entries to Aqua World; or Eiffel Tower Observation deck admission tickets; or Planet J admission for two guest • Macao Discovery tour; or Monkey King show tickets for two guests; or Shopping and Dining dollars

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Hospitality

12>>

New wave of travel beckons tourists to try adventure amidst nature IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

Girish Subramanian, CEO, The Wave Wayanad, comments on the varied demographics of travellers who come to experience the activities in the property.

Types of travellers Domestic travellers are expressing interest to visit and explore new destinations. We have also noticed weekend and long weekends are the preferred time for holidays among the domestic travellers.

International tourists are also keen in exploring new and experienced based destinations. We have also had solo women travellers stayed

with us mainly from North India and international tourists. We are offering a special packages for Corporates for team building activities within the resort premises and offsite also. We have also tied up with places where activities like water sports, kayaking, zip line, bamboo rafting, trekking, wild life safaris and taking to village life experience etc.

Segments We are focusing on leisure, MICE and adventure travel so that we can offer the travel products accordingly to the customers need. The resort is an ideal location for a leisure traveller as it is designed to enjoy the nature and serene waters of Karapuzha Dam. We have noticed

consistent growth in MICE and most of the travellers these days are planning to try something new with the top choice being wild life safari and adventure travel.

Growth and occupancy from the Indian market in 2016 We have witnessed a significant high growth rate of 20% in 2016 and this year looks prosperous in terms of growth as well.

Promotional Plans We are planning to attend major travel shows, road shows and involve with destination promotions, concentrating on digital marketing and direct marketing in high potential areas. We have plans to add more properties in North

Malabar and other destinations as well.

Trends Travellers now prefer to spend time on stunning locations and carrying memories along with their holidays.

A right combo of comfortable stay with excellent service, good food with choice of cuisine with more of local flavours, entertainments to relax, facilities to engage and spend quality time and exploring experience based places with activities.

"The future of tourism in India looks bright and prosperous. India has all the potential with the favourable aspects. Tourism will grow and spread across the country in the coming years."

Homestay trends make headway for responsible tourism IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

Ravindran K, Owner, Pranavam Homestays, talks about the USP of his property and how homestays can be utilized to reach out to the communities at the grassroots level. totally changing their outlook on various practices in different parts of the world as well as different culture and civilizations world at large.

Concept of Homestays Homestays should be allowed to flourish as they are the grassroots of responsible tourism, which is the order of the day, as they empower the women in the household. You should see how it widens the horizon of the giver and taker,

Voyager’s World > October 2017

"Our major junk of travellers are international travellers and a few women solo travellers.

We also welcome bloggers, photographers and bird watchers.

We serve vegetarian food and only homemade food.Our homestay is all about relaxation with no TVs in the room and it is a non alcoholic and no-smoking stay. We also organise offsite tours and team building tours with the help of our assosciates M/s Muddyboots. We focus on families and children with an interest in the knowledge of heritage, history culture and culinary art and

exchange of the same for mutual benefit that can trigger responsible tourism in the homestay sector and honeymoon is another segment."

Growth from Indian Market The domestic market has been steady so far with the low ranging growth of 17-20% occupancy only with a mere inventory of four rooms to occupy maximum 12 at a stretch during 2016. The growth will remain the same level for 2017 if not decrease owing to various factors faced by Wayanad alone like lack of adequate support from government agencies, climate change, crop failures, unrest in plantation sector, etc.

Promotional Plans "We focus on group marketing

that is the major source of market support done by Wayanad Tourism Organisation, which is a unique organization of Consortium of competitors in tourism. They have innovative marketing strategies like SPLASH(Monsoon Carnival) and they participate in roadshows and events across various Indian cities like Ahmedabad, Hyderabad and Bangalore. Besides that, we also do the low budget individual marketing plans. Some of the major activities we offer at our property are guided plantation walks with a trained guide specialised in agronomy, ornithology and hospitality, apart from country bamboo rafting in the plantation boundary rivulet, cycling, VLE, cookery, etc."

Hospitality

13>>

Coffee Board of India celebrates International Coffee Day in Bangalore IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

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he Coffee Board of India recently organized the World Coffee Day and the India Coffee Awards Ceremony on 4th October 2017 at Hotel Shangri La Bangalore.

The event was inaugurated by Subhash Chandra Khuntia, IAS, Chief Secretary, Government of Karnataka along with Srivatsa Krishna, IAS, CEO & Secretary, Coffee Board of India, Reena Prakash, Vice- Chairperson, Coffee Board of India, Dr.Y.Raghuramulu, Director of Research, Central Coffee Research Institute.

been there and it has a significant impact on coffee growing in the country. Karnataka grows the maximum coffee in India and India is one of the producers although we are not one of the largest

producers. While 70% of our coffee is being exported perhaps more and more will be consumed in the domestic market. So we need to make all efforts for coffee to be popular that India coffee should be

known globally. Another channel is that we can organize is growing organic coffee and the Coffee Board is already encouraging to grow organic coffee and so that we can go for global sale.”

Srivatsa Krishna, IAS, CEO & Secretary ,Coffee Board of India said, “ Coffee as a crop has a great history in India and Coffee Board as an institution as many of you old times used to tell me it used to be a temple where coffee growers used to go for a pilgrimage. Over the years the temple seems to have been a little jaded and the effort of all of us is to renew and in reimaging that temple so that coffee can gain back its rightful place where it always part off. For the first time we are going to brand India Coffee.

Our effort is to brand India Coffee such that the India coffee exporters can take it far and wider parts of the world. So that coffee becomes a brand ambassador for India itself.

Towards that end of the year we are in the middle of creating a media campaign and will have a brand New Campaign “India through India Coffee”. We will cherish the drink as the drink for the New India. The New India is the slogan now we are all moving towards and the hope is coffee becomes a drink of New India. Secondly we are living in the century of the technology so that we can infuse technology from the bean to the cup.”

Subhash Chandra Khuntia, IAS, Chief Secretary, Government of Karnataka explains,” If Bangalore is famous throughout the world one reason is that Bangalore has our national coffee board. It has been a very distinguished organization even prior to independence it has

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Hospitality

14>>

Millennials + Mobile: A Match Made in (Hotelier) Heaven VW BUREAU

Mike Murray, Founder of TripCraft, reasons why mobile channel is important for hoteliers and provides specific tips on how to improve a property or brand’s mobile strategy to better reach the millennial market.

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ost people today are aware of the HUGE impact that mobile phones have had on our everyday lives; of course, it allows us to communicate at any time via many different messaging mediums, but there is also a significant change in the way mobile has affected business. People no longer have to be at home, sitting in front of a desktop computer, to be an online consumer; today, they’re online, onthe-go, 24/7, as the vast majority of people – or at least those in the Baby Boomer generation and younger - have a mobile phone or device of some sort. Heck, even my 91-year old mother has a smart phone – and she can’t even work the TV controller! (Now granted, it’s a first-generation flip phone with a few apps she never uses, but it makes her feel like she’s part of today’s mobile society.)

If you’re one of the few who haven't joined the mobile movement, you’re in a small minority; recent studies show “the majority (95%) of Americans owns a mobile phone of some kind, and most (77%) use a smartphone”. Globally, “almost two-thirds of the world’s population has a mobile phone… half use a smartphone”.

It’s clearly a significant trend, but what is more important is how hoteliers can leverage this phenomenon to increase business.

In terms of booking travel, “twothirds of US travellers have shopped or booked (air or hotel) on a mobile device, and nearly half of those are under 35 years of age.” ¬¬The same trends apply worldwide as¬“mobile bookings made up 27% of all online travel bookings during Q2 2016”.

As I’m sure you are aware, the new generation of travellers (a.k.a. Millennials) live almost every aspect of their life via their smartphones – and that includes travel research and booking!

Voyager’s World > September 2017

“Around 98% of Americans, aged 18 to 35, own a smartphone” and “75% of Millennials want to travel abroad as much as possible (compared to 52% of other generations)”. So it’s easy to see why mobile is imperative for hotels that want to boost bookings and revenue earned from this new (and largest) generation of travellers. ¬As a hotelier, how can you optimize your efforts to encourage Millennials to book with your brand or property?

To better understand the behaviors of Millennial travellers looking to book a hotel room, let’s examine a few things they identify as their biggest (mobile) dealbreakers: Broken or Ineffective Mobile Websites It’s a well-known fact that consumers have little patience with poor mobile web sites; this is even more critical for Millennial travellers who grew up with technology and believe that “it should just work”. Beyond that, there is the additional need to ensure that your property provides a good user experience (UX) as it will drastically improve your conversions and ROI. Studies show that “57% of users won’t recommend a business with a poorly designed mobile site” and, because Millennials are heavily influenced by peer recommendations, a poor mobile site (or app) can have a significant negative impact on your bookings and revenue.

Yup, you heard that right: if your mobile website isn’t making it easy and painless for potential guests to search for rooms, compare options and book, it is VERY likely that you’re not only missing out on valuable bookings but also giving them to your competition!

Inconsistencies of User Experience Across all Channels Ready for another buzzword?

Today’s consumers are looking for an omni-channel experience, which, in layman’s terms, means that users want the same (or similar) brand experience, regardless the channel through which they engage with your brand. As a matter of fact, “83% of mobile users say that a seamless experience across all devices is very important” so, in addition to having a mobile website that works well, it is also important that your guests’ mobile experience is consistent across all channels.

(This point is particularly important to Millennials bookers!)

You obviously cannot have complete control over your property’s branding and the mobile user experience of the indirect channels (i.e. OTAs) but on your own channels, it is integral that you maintain consistent brand presentation and pricing. Whether they book through your desktop website, mobile website, mobile app, email, call or text, your customers should be receiving the same recognition and service at every touchpoint.

Inability to View Video Via Mobile Did you know that “48% of Millennials view video solely on their mobile device”? No wonder they are always staring at their mobile devices!

So it stands to reason that if your mobile site doesn’t have the bandwidth or capability to showcase the videos that you have on your desktop website, almost 50% of your potential guests (i.e. Millennials) will never see your video content. Because we know that video is a highly effective marketing medium for travel companies (“45% of leisure travellers booked instantly after watching a video of the travel activity… 72% of business travellers and 74% of affluent travellers booked upon watching a video”), this mobile mistake could cost your property a lot of revenue.

There you have it: three big problems that will push Millennials into the arms (or to the mobile website) of the competition! Next week, join us in this same space to learn more about the two types of mobile tools (apps and mobile websites), and to examine which is most useful in attracting the new generation of travellers.

If you have any questions about the benefits of mobile for your brand/ property or want to learn more about these mobile dealbreakers, feel free to contact me at any time: mike.murray@tripcraft.com.

Hospitality

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ANANTARA KALUTARA RESORT: STROKE OF ARCHITECTURAL GENIUS BY THE SEA PRIYAMVADHA BALARAM

The Sri Lankan property, one of the final projects of the late Sri Lankan architect Geoffrey Bawa, is a well

T

he Anantara Kalutara Resort, stands adjacent to its sister property the Avani Kalutara Resort, with stunning views of both the lagoon and the sea in the southwest coast of Sri Lanka. I spent a short while at the property while on a visit to the country in August, but the brevity of my stay was outweighed by the stateliness of the property and the warmth of the staff who spared no efforts to ensure a comfortable stay.

The property is about an hour and a half drive from the Colombo Airport which makes it very viable for the discerning Indian outbound market, both leisure and meeting groups. There are 141 rooms in the Anantara Kalutara Resort under different categories like One bedroom ocean view suite, one bedroom Anantara suite, one bedroom Presidential pool suite,

© Ball Room

© Ball Room

© Two bedroom villa living room

designed setting for leisure and business events by the sea.

one bedroom pool villa and two bedroom pool villa. I stayed in a one bedroom pool villa which is 170 sq m in size, offering an azure private plunge ppl with sundeck and loungers, a master bedroom with king size bed which opens onto the pool deck and a separate lounge. The bathroom is fully replete with luxury essentials. The other amenities included free WiFi, mini bar, LED TV, coffee maker, bluetooth speaker for music and wine humidor.

Norman Zweyer, the property's Cluster Director of PR, took me on a site inspection, highlighting the various meeting spaces, the spa, rooms, the restaurants and the beachfront space. "The architecture of Anantara Kalutara Resort was one of the final projects of renowned Sri Lankan architect Geoffrey Bawa," Norman informs.

Bawa had been commissioned in 1995 to design a luxury resort on a site between the estuary of the Kalu Ganga and the Indian Ocean.

The project which was shelved following his death, was revived recently; the property's designs in the main building, the arrival hall, lobby lounge and upstairs bar retain Bawa's signature style.

The resort has a library which is a model of his personal study and the furnishings are either designed by him or were owned by him.

There are five dining options in the resort - the Olu, Spice Traders, Acquolina, Upper Deck and Dining

by Design. The chef at the Spice Traders prepared a sumptuous Indian fare for dinner, something that would meet the requirements of Indian groups.

The capacity of the ballroom is up to 400 for a reception and 350 for

banquets and it can be partitioned into two spaces. The other meeting spaces include Nelum, a flexible meeting room for 20-50 pax; Pichcha, a meeting room for up to 50 pax and the Araliya which is a small boardroom for 12 pax. One can choose to spend the entire time within the property during the course of his stay or experience the Kalu Ganga on a cruise, take a train journey from the nearby Kalutara South Railway Station or experience the area's heritage of forts and quaint bungalows.

Although a short stay, it was a special one for me. The property, ambience and the hospitality extended would be cherished always. I would definitely recommend the place as one-of-a-kind with the location and amenities suiting leisure lovers and also those wanting to do business amidst serenity.

www.voyagersworld.in

Incredible India

16>>

India is fast gaining acceptance as a riding destination IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

Nirup V Nair, Director Marketing, V-Twin Holidays, observes the developments on the Indian terrain as motorcycle tours see new dimensions.

M

otorcycles have kept on as a thrilling way of exploring places by road over the years; the trend of hitting the road on a bike has only evolved itself over the recent years with many bike brands, guided tours and new itineraries spurring the youth to plan short and long trips across the length and breadth of the country, riding solo, with friends and with those from biker groups.

V-Twin Holidays offers Harley Davidson experiences on good biking roads in the country through tours that can be customized for solo, self-guided and group bikers.

Nirup V Nair, its Director Marketing says, “A holiday from a biker’s perspective would evidently mean trying a new route and exploring new places as he would not have to undergo the nightmare of logistics shipping his bike and international permits; one has to just reach the airport and go on one’s dream holiday. We offer guided motorcycle tours around South India using Sportsters, Dynas and Fatboys from the Harley Davidson stable.

We mainly cover Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Goa through motorcycle tours. We have also organised holiday rides up the East Coast to Orissa.”

Marketing plans “We would like to focus on the channel that services our niche market while creating and increasing awareness.

Social media is our prime choice. Our travellers are mostly a mix of the local HNI and from the Middle East and the UK. We have also had women riders joining our group with their husbands. We can organise offsite tours and team building tours as we believe there is no comparison to riding together in a group when it comes to building team spirit.

Award winners (2015-16) in different categories Best State for Comprehensive Development of Tourism - Gujarat Best State for Comprehensive Development of Tourism - Madhya Pradesh Best Inbound Tour Operator – Category I - M/s Le Passage to India Tours & Travels, New Delhi Best Inbound Tour Operator – Category I - Ms SOTC Travel Services Pvt Ltd Best Inbound Tour Operator – Category IV - Ms Travelite (India ), New Delhi Tourist Transport Operator Category I - Ms Alwar Tourist Transport Service, New Delhi Most Innovative Use of Information Technology - Department of Tourism, Govt. of Kerala

The Ashok, New Delhi Best Stand Alone Convention Centre - Leonia International Centre for Exhibitions & Conventions, Hyderabad Best Stand Alone Restaurant Khyber Restaurant, Mumbai Best Eco Friendly Hotel - ITC Maurya, New Delhi Hotel providing best facilities for the differently abled guests - The Lalit, New Delhi Heritage Basic Category - Samode Haveli, Gangapole, Jaipur Heritage Grand Category - Fateh Prakash Palace, Udaipur

We have participated in all the major bike weeks and rallies and were a part of the recent Adventure Tour Operators Association of India (ATOAI) convention held in Kerala.”

India as a riding destination is

gaining increasing acceptance as a result of the growth in infrastructure for motorcycle trips and availability of such bikes.

Presently, this segment is in a nascent stage in India from the perspective of it being an international destination, but Nirup sees it as growing rapidly.

“India is in the nascent phase for organized players. We have a few players across the four metros and the north has quite a few offerings for Indian bikes; we expect to see stronger growth in the south with better traffic and roads in general.

The growth herein India is expected to be exponential; our focus would remain strongly on customised tours to bikers and help them connect with the biker community in India.

National Tourism Awards 2015-16 presented on World Tourism Day PRESS INFORMATION BUREAU

T

he President of India Ram Nath Kovind presented the “National Tourism Awards, 201516” to various segments of the travel, tourism and hospitality industry at a function organised by the Ministry of Tourism on the occasion of 'World Tourism Day' in Delhi on 27 September. The Minister of State (I/C) for Tourism Alphons Kannanthanam presided over the function. The President launched the 'Incredible India 2.0 Campaign'; ‘Adopt A Heritage’ Project and new Incredible India Website on the occasion. ‘Adopt A Heritage’ Project plans to entrust heritage sites to the public sector and private sector companies and individuals for the development of tourist amenities. They will become ‘Monument Mitras’ and adopt the sites. The new 'Incredible India Website' is an advanced version of the website with more useful features.

Voyager’s World > October 2017

Hospitality segment Convention Centres Best Hotel Based Meeting Venue -

Niche Tourism Awards Most Innovative & Unique Tourism Product - Hanuwantiya and Jal Mahotsav.

Madhya Pradesh Tourism Responsible Tourism Project / Initiative - Sikkim for various Responsible Tourism initiatives Department of Tourism, Govt. of

Kerala for Responsible Tourism in Kumarakom Tourism Friendly Golf Course Jaypee Green Golf Course, Greater Noida Wellness Centre - Somatheeram Research Institute & Ayurveda Hospital Pvt. Ltd, Kerala Medical Tourism Facility - Apollo Health City, Hyderabad Best Film Promotion Friendly State - Madhya Pradesh Best State for Adventure Tourism Madhya Pradesh Other categories Best Heritage Walk Leading from the Front: Being Gandhi – Gandhi Tour - By India City Walks Best Heritage City (Joint Winners) - Warangal, Telangana; Chanderi, Madhya Pradesh Best Maintained and Differently Abled Friendly Monument Chaowmahalla Palace, Hyderabad

Incredible India

17>>

Kerala to be re-branded as ‘The Land of Adventure’ ANJU ANNA ALEX

P. Bala Kiran, IAS, Director, Department of Tourism, Government of Kerala, in an exclusive interview with Voyager’s World; talks about the novel initiatives and promotional plans that are expected to boost tourist arrivals to the state. age so we want to create an activitybased image for Kerala. All along its coast lines it plans to develop water parks and promote water based activities. We will subsidise water sports and incentivize these.

The new tourism policy is expected to give more thrust to tourism infrastructure. Can you elaborate?

The government of Kerala will unveil its new tourism policy focused on 'green carpet' initiative. Under this initiative, the tourism board of the state plans to build a sustainable destination management system.

Envisaging the green carpet initiative as a comprehensive awareness campaign, the government plans to embody the state as a cleanest, safest, healthiest state to woo the tourists across the world. Moreover, our aim is to target the youth by offering them adventure tourism.

Eco--tourism and adventure tourism initiatives The Department of Tourism, Government of Kerala is following a robust development plan in order to promote the adventure tourism of the state as it has huge potential and can substantially contribute to the overall growth of the tourism sector. With the prime focus on developing new possibilities to drive the adventure tourism, the tourism board is keen on working closely with the forest Department.

Kerala will be re-branded as ‘The Land of Adventure’ to woo the younger generation of tourists by offering them activity and waterbased tourism. Moreover, the Department of Tourism has planned to develop water based activities like Kayaking, Cruise tourism. To promote green tourism, the state government plans to develop 10 eco-tourism circuits to connect various forests.

As per the Kerala Tourism survey report of 2016, sixty-five per cent of our population is below 35 years of

Efforts to promote tourism in North Kerala The state is extensively focusing on promoting the Northern Kerala as a tourist destination. To increase the geographical spread of tourist arrivals to the state, Kerala Tourism now plans to promote its Malabar region aggressively through a Rs. 325-crore project. This include unexplored destinations like Kozhikode, Wayanad, Vekkal, and Kannur. Kerala Tourism will link up the circuit through an exciting river cruise project - called Malanadu cruise - that links eight rivers and backwaters of Kannur and Kasargod districts. Apart from the river cruise, Kerala Tourism is investing in light and sound shows at Bekal and Kannur, music fountains, monsoon tourism in Wynad, etc.

Despite an aggressive marketing campaign Kerala stands at no. 18 in attracting domestic visitors.

Any remedial measures in this direction?

Kerala Tourism spends around 30% of its budget on branding and marketing. The share of digital media has gone up in the state’s advertising and marketing budget. It accounts for 20 percent of the total in its latest campaign. Furthermore, the state will be re-branded as ‘The Land of Adventure’ to attract the adventure enthusiasts across the world.

In 2016-17, the state saw 13.1 million domestic tourists, up by 5.4% as compared to the previous year. The state is looking to push up domestic tourist arrivals by over 8% every year. Further, the aim is to double the number of travelers from home as well abroad by 2021 targeting the millennial travelers.

And to achieve this there is no other way, but to reinvent ourselves.

Henceforth, while retaining and increasing the existing portfolios

and locations, the focus would be to attract new generations. North Kerala will be promoted in a big way with a major thrust on experience-led tourism. Kerala Tourism has planned several trade shows across high potential domestic markets in order to promote state tourism.

Recently Kerala has received a lot of accolades including Munnar being adjudged as the Best Destination for Romance at the Lonely Planet Magazine Indian Travel Awards 2017. Kerala Tourism was also voted as 'India's favourite Waterfront Destination' for Alleppey by the HolidayIQ Better Holiday Awards. The ‘Responsible Tourism’ (RT) initiatives of Kerala have yet again garnered recognition with the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) describing them as a model for other destinations to replicate.

These accolades are recognition to the efforts of the Tourism Department.

Moreover, Kerala has bagged 9 national awards across various segments of the travel, tourism, and hospitality industry whereas Kerala Tourism has been lauded with 6 National Tourism Awards 2015-2016.

Kadakampally Surendran, Hon’ble Minister for Tourism, Government of Kerala received six National Tourism Awards from The President Shri Ram Nath Kovind on the occasion of World Tourism Day 2017. Interestingly, Kerala Tourism has been lauded with Hall of fame award for the ‘Most Innovative Use of Information Technology - Social Media / Mobile App’ for the ninth consecutive year. Kerala tourism also bagged an award for the Best Responsible Tourism Initiative for ‘Kumarakom’. The categories for other awards include Best State for

‘Comprehensive Development of Tourism’ and Best Civic Management of a Tourist Destination Category ‘C’ for ‘Sarovaram Bio Park’. Out of these six awards, Kerala Tourism bagged two awards in the marketing category, including ‘Best Tourism Promotion Publicity Material’ for a film tourism brochure- ‘Your Next Blockbuster Destination’ and ‘Excellence in Publishing in Foreign language other than English’ for a Spanish Brochure titled “Reanimar – Enel Propio Pais de Dios”.

Tell us about your initiative to promote inclusiveness by announcing a policy to initiate barrier free travel experience for differently abled tourists.

Kerala Tourism is implementing “Barrier Free Kerala Tourism” this year, which shall result in creating accessible spaces to the differentlyabled and elderly tourists.

Department of Tourism, Government of Kerala (generally referred to as Kerala Tourism) provides funding to small projects that create facilities and infrastructure useful for tourists in destinations across the state. As the first step towards providing more services to the disabled, the tourism board plans to equip all major tourist destinations in the state with basic facilities for the differently abled tourists.

Expected growth in footfall Kerala has witnessed 10,38,419 foreign tourists and 1,31,72,535 domestic tourist arrivals during 2016, with an increase of 6.23 percent and 5.4 percent respectively. The state targets to increase domestic tourist arrivals by over 8% and international tourist arrivals by 13 percent, every year.

www.voyagersworld.in

Incredible India

18>>

Chhattisgarh Partners With Gujarat For 'Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat' VW BUREAU

Chhattisgarh & Gujarat join hands to increase the mutual association between the various cultural & economic zones of both the States.

A

s a part of Union Govt scheme “Ek Bharat, Sreshtha Bharat”, Chhattisgarh Government organized a Roadshow in Ahmedabad, Gujarat on 21st September 2017 to promote the enigmatic destination, dynamic culture, and tradition of Chhattisgarh. The two states aim at promoting a deep structured engagement through planned activities, showcase the rich cultural & tourism treasure of each other and renew the traditional unity.

Following the roadshow, a group of tour and travel agents from Chhattisgarh was taken to Gujarat on a FAM (familiarization) trip.

At the heart of this Roadshow lies the aim to promote mutual understanding and cooperation among the two states under the “Ek Bharat Shreshta Bharat” under the vision of the Prime Minister so that they can work together hand in hand for better results in the days to come. The deliberations will

Voyager’s World > October 2017

lead to new ways of uplifting the status of Tourism and Culture in the country so that Chhattisgarh can be represented to the world through the eyes of tourism sector as well.

The MoU between the two states was signed on 21st January, 2017 followed by a chain of various programmes to connect the people of the two states through exchanges in areas of culture, tourism, language, education, trade etc, to enhance the understanding and bonding between the states, thereby strengthening the unity and diversity of India.“Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat” is a Union Govt scheme, launched by Hon’ble PM Narendra Modi to celebrate the cultural vibrancy of India while establishing a concrete mechanism to inculcate nationalism and cultural awareness among the fellow citizens, to promote the spirit of National Integration, to showcase the rich heritage and culture, to

establish long-term engagements and to create an environment that promotes learning, sharing best practices and experiences.

It has paired the states to implement the exchange programs in education, tourism, literature among others to ensure that the people understand and appreciate the diversity while fostering the sense of common identity.

The roadshow was fronted by Hon'ble Tourism Minister of Chhattisgarh Shri Dayaldas Baghel with prominent delegates of Chhattisgarh Tourism Board including Smt. Niharika Barik Singh, IAS Secretary of Tourism, Mr. M.T.Nandy, IFS Managing Director and Mr. Sanjay Singh General Manager. The Roadshow focused on key areas like encouraging and promoting Rural Tourism, Tribal Culture of Chhattisgarh, the local fairs and festivals, inter-state sharing of culture, tourism and

heritage and many other applied areas of opportunities.

“Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat” was announced by Hon’ble Prime Minister on 31st October 2015 on the occasion of the 140th birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. Subsequently, the Finance Minister announced the initiative in his Budget Speech for 2016-17.

Through this measure, the knowledge of the culture, traditions and practices of different States & UTs will lead to an enhanced understanding and bonding between the States, thus strengthening the unity and integrity of India.

The broad objective of the scheme is to showcase the rich heritage and culture, customs and traditions of either State for people to understand and appreciate the diversity that is India, thus fostering a sense of common identity.

Incredible India

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jharkhand... a treasure trove of heritage and culture VW BUREAU

The naturally bountiful state of Jharkhand boasts of a very rich history that is illustrated by way of the people's culture,

© Amadubi

tradition and art. Amadubi and McCluskieganj are examples of its heritage.

Amadubi Amadubi not just another village in the heartland of Jharkhand’s vast rural areas- It’s a treasure house that any visitor will never forget. The place is now a focus point in the Tourist Map of the Department of Tourism, Government of Jharkhand.

Strangely enough, the artists paint their pieces on soiled and used papers, and on scrolls made from leaves and barks of trees. They use vermilion and natural colours applying them with needles or the hairs of a goat. They are known as Chitrakars (literally picture craftsmen) and Amadubi is their home. But these paintings are found across the length and breadth of the undivided Singhbhum because the artists of the Payatkar community are roamers and move around from place to place. Once they reach a house where a person has recently died or a new baby is born, they start telling tales and sing songs by way of self-composed lyrics. Tales of Garur Puran (scriptures on a mythical Bird God who is the bearer of Lord Vishnu) form the very essence of these paintings. This languishing painting form has been successfully revived and there are more than 100 artists painting today in Amadubi.

Kala Bhavana the Art Department of Rabindranath Tagore’s Vishwa Bharti at Santiniketan have joined hands to train and re-train Paytakar

Painters, giving them new, more marketable ideas and to make their art commercially viable. Even the environment of the village whose hutments have artistic borders and wall paintings are charming. You can paint with the Chitrakars if you want – live experience –brought to you by the NGO Kalamandir.

Heritage is still alive at Amadubi It is alive in the many monuments and artifacts that exist across the village.

Pandava brothers Mahabharata.

Rajbari Temple: was once part of the palace as the name indicates and stands about a kilometer from Dhalbhumgarh Bolck Office at Narsingarh, the Rajbari premises.

Ruam: this village was in ancient times a place where the lay-Jains or Sravakas had settled. This quaint and pretty village is about 4 kilometers from Mahulia. Some researchers disagree and call this the remnants of a fort under the Raja of Ruam. There are a few water bodies and a huge heap of petrified copper slag which probably indicates ancient mining in the area.

Trivineshwar Temple: shares the premises with the Rajbari and it features ‘three lingas’ which represent Bramha, Vishnu and Maheshwar (the three principa Gods of the Hindu pantheon).

Dasbhuja Temple or Durga Temple: is an ancient temple dedicated to the ten-armed goddess whose deity still stands within the crumbling ruins of the Rajbari, surrounded by other temples and lake.

The Panch Pandvas: this is a place of legend, north –west of Ghatsila where five large rock formations are fond which resemble the five

of

the

epic

Ras Temple: the unique architectural beauty of this temple is noteworthy and also the fact that the temple is supposed to be from the very ancient ‘Dwapar’ Age of Indian history Kotwal Temple: About a kilometer from Dhalbhumgarh was probably dedicated to an army general.

Guhiapal: here there are archeological artifacts that date back to a civilization that thrived on the banks of the Subarnarekha River in the 10th century BC. You still get to see brick structures, artifacts, coins etc. if you visit the Bahragora Block of Singhbhum District.

McCluskieganj On the Chhotanagpur Plateau, barely 60 kms from Ranchi, lies the

idyllic hamlet of Mc Cluskieganj.

The erstwhile bastion of the AngloIndian community is known as lapra or Ganj among the residents. It is at an altitude of 450 m. the weather is ideal for a brief getaway, in this hamlet, particularly in the sweltering summers. Even in the peak of summer, the mercury seldom crosses 37 degrees Celsius. The humidity too is very low.

Ernst Timothy Mc Cluskie, after whom mc Cluksieganj is named once, had a dream. During the tumult of Swadeshi movement, in the early 1900’s, this real estate agent based in Kolkata got perked with an idea of creating a retreat for the Anglo-Indians in a verdant hamlet. After scouring the region, he found the perfect spot in the Lapra forest, nestled amidst sal forests.

It was then under the rule of Ratu Raja, whose capital was close to Ranchi.

The houses were constructed in typical European style, with a portico, large balconies and high roofs, the owners soon became known for housing grand banquets.

They brought with them their pianos, horses, mahagony chests and teak beds...all went well till 1946 but only 20 families remain today, as most of the Anglo-Indian community left after World War II.

www.voyagersworld.in

Cover Story

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Heritage Trails in Bengaluru!

An INTACH perspective PRIYAMVADHA BALARAM

Meera Iyer, Co-Convenor, INTACH Bangalore, speaks about the vision of the organisation and the

© Victoria Statue

© One of the four Kempegowda Towers near Mekhri Circle

various steps taken towards the conservation of properties in the city.

I

ndia is home to thousands of evidences of architecture, literature, manuscripts, inscriptions, etc. which are illustrative of the nation's rich heritage. While a lot of it is already known to the world, there are still far many that have gone into obscurity or destroyed owing to the ravages of nature, time and sometimes, human intervention. Yet, the Ministry of Tourism and many related bodies have been constantly undertaking initiatives to preserve the existing heritage as well as identify, restore and conserve those hidden gems.

The Ministry of Tourism, in close collaboration with the Ministry of Culture and Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) envisages providing world class tourist facilities at the various heritage sites / monuments and other tourist sites across the country under the “Adopt A Heritage” initiative. The project would begin with ASI ticketed monuments and would be expanded to other cultural sites across India. It envisages entrusting of heritage sites/ monuments and other tourist sites

Voyager’s World > October 2017

to private - public sector companies, or individuals for the “Monument Mitras” development of tourist friendly amenities and facilities.

Heritage in Bangalore The IT hub of India, Bangalore, formerly known as Pensioner's Paradise, is home to several colonial buildings and structures of historical significance. The legacy left behind by the old monarchs and the erstwhile British has many a tale to tell through its buildings and people.

In this series of heritage features, we shall look at how the Indian National Trust for Art and Heritage (INTACH) has been making efforts to restore and preserve the city's heritage.

Established in 1984, INTACH aims to lead heritage awareness and conservation in India. With over 190 Chapters across India today, INTACH has led the way to conserve and preserve natural, built and intangible heritage. The Bangalore Chapter is into multiple activities such as heritage walks, workshops, heritage interpretation and works closely with schools as part of its outreach programme.

We in the INTACH Bangalore chapter we aim to • Sensitize the public about Bangalore's diverse culture • Instill a sense of social responsibility towards preserving this common heritage • Protect and preserve the city's living, built, and natural heritage by undertaking necessary actions and measures • Document the city's built heritage as this is the first step towards formulating conservation plans • Develop heritage policies and regulations, and make legal interventions to protect India’s heritage when necessary • Work on conservation and restoration of our heritage buildings

Talking about the vision of the organisation, INTACH Bangalore's Co-Convenor Meera Iyer, says, "INTACH's vision is based on the conviction that heritage enhances the quality of life. Also, I may add that not many people know that as per the Indian Constitution, Article 51A(f), it is a fundamental duty of every citizen of India "to value and preserve the rich heritage of our composite culture." Accordingly, we in the Bangalore chapter we aim to - Sensitize the public about Bangalore's diverse culture - Instill a sense of social

responsibility towards preserving this common heritage - Protect and preserve the city's living, built, and natural heritage by undertaking necessary actions and measures - Document the city's built heritage as this is the first step towards formulating conservation plans - Develop heritage policies and regulations, and make legal interventions to protect India’s heritage when necessary - Work on conservation and restoration of our heritage buildings Government

support

for

Cover Story

Š Victoria Hospital

Š Seshadri Memorial Hall, now a library (built in 1916)

21>>

conservation and promotion of heritage properties Right now, we are working with the State Government on a couple of different projects. One ongoing project is the conservation and restoration of Balavana, the estate in Puttur, near Mangalore, where Jnanpith-award winner Shivaram Karanth spent 40 of his most productive years. The house where he lived has been restored and on October 10th (Shivaram Karanth's birthday), Veerappa Moily inaugurated a museum in it. There are plans to restore some of the other buildings in the estate and make it a vibrant cultural centre. This project is funded by the State Government.

Another State-funded project a couple of years ago was the restoration of the 130-year-old building of the Oriental Research Institute in Mysore. We are also working on destination development at some heritage-rich locations in Karnataka. That said, we find a lot less support conservation of heritage in Bangalore city itself.

How does INTACH identify places, buildings, landmarks and things of historic importance?

There are several parameters including age, architectural merit, associational value (eg, did Mahatma Gandhi stop by there anytime?), historical significance (eg, Did some major event in history happen there?) and so on.

Unique concepts and tours offered to tourists and explorers seeking discerning experiences Our heritage walks are more to promote awareness of local history and heritage. Our stress is on content - authentic, curated content. We believe it makes a huge difference to the way people perceive their city or their locality when they know more about how it got to be the way it is, or how it evolved, or who all contributed to it. So we aren't really seeking to promote experiences. We are more about knowledge transfer but in a fun way!

Challenges "The biggest challenge that we

face is Money! Funding!! Seriously though, two perennial challenges are that heritage is seen as very lowpriority and that it is seen as being anti-development."

Awareness levels One of the four Kempegowda towers (Photo in story - see caption) is in a park near Mekhri Circle - did you know just a few feet away from it is one end of a baseline for the Great Trigonometric Survey which began in the 1800s and eventually led to the measurement of Mt Everest? There are many such unknown or forgotten architectural gems across the city that INTACH has been working to discover, turn up, restore and bring it back to light.

"I would say that in the last 78 years, there has been a tremendous increase in interest in Bangalore's heritage and hence a corresponding increase in awareness too. That is really heartening. One parameter to gauge the level of interest - our heritage walks inevitably get sold out within half an hour of our announcing

them! However, compared to the entire population, I must add that the heritage-conscious group is sadly very small," she concluded.

The

Great

Survey

Trigonometrical

was

a

project

which was undertaken to measure the entire Indian subcontinent with scientific precision. It was begun in 1802 by the infantry officer William

Lambton,

under

the patronage of the East India Company. Under the leadership of his successor, George Everest, the project was made a responsibility of the Survey of India. Everest was succeeded by Andrew Scott Waugh and after 1861 the project was led by James Walker, who saw the first completion of it in 1871.

Source: Wikipedia.

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India Outbound

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Traversing South Africa’s Small A group of travel agents and media from across India experienced the small present them in new itineraries back home.

© White lions @ Inkwenkwezi

PRIYAMVADHA BALARAM

M

© Paragliding in Wilderness

oving away from the traditionally explored destinations, South African Tourism’s India office chose routes less travelled to showcase to the travel trade and trade media as part of a familiarisation trip in September 2017 from the 12 – 21.

The tourism board took a group of 14 travel agents and three media from Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Delhi, Mumbai, Nagpur and Pune through the picturesque Garden Route and the Eastern Cape area, in a bid to present newer destinations and lesser known locales that the Rainbow Nation has to offer to the Indian market.

Our itinerary comprised visits, stays and experiences across small towns like George, Oudtshoorn, Knysna, Plettenberg Bay, Port Elizabeth and East London. We experienced several adventure activities like canoeing, kayaking, crocodile cage diving, zipline, wildlife safaris, bungee jumping, paragliding, quad biking, in addition to activities like wine tasting, river cruise, shopping in the local markets, speed marketing sessions and helicopter ride.

Voyager’s World > October 2017

The highlights of the tour include travelling on a party bus in George, experiencing adrenaline rushes at the world’s highest commercial bridge bungee jump from the Bloukrans Bridge in Plettenberg Bay, free fall from the Giant Swing in Port Elizabeth and the Meerkat adventure early in the morning.

From O.R Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg, we took a short flight to George, a small but dainty town, whose landscapes are marked by vast stretches of meadows with cattle and several farms cultivating different kinds of berries. Our first stop from the airport was to the Red Berry Farm for a guided tour, where we were treated to a delicious strawberry juice and picked some berries for the experience.

The bungee jumping, a first for most of us, surprisingly for me, did not stress me out at all, contrary to what I believed I would go through; perhaps, the knowledge that it would last about a minute and that it is absolutely fool-proof made me jump. The close encounters with the ostriches at

India Outbound

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Towns with Big Surprises!

© Ocean Odyssey Charters in Knysna

towns in South Africa to learn more about their tourism products to

© Cango Caves

the High Gate Ostrich Farm and the lions at Inkwenkwezi encapsulated the wildness of the region; the high risk of being devoured by the jungle king and his pride did not deter us the least bit from quietly zooming the lenses and taking photos, a mere few feet away from them. The trip came to a fitting end with a helicopter flip offering a bird's eye view of East London before we departed to the airport. Some of the souvenirs that the group picked up included the Nougat, a South African sweet, tribal masks and wooden carvings, local snacks, etc.

The objective of this educational trip was to learn more about South Africa’s diverse offerings in addition to Durban, Johannesburg and Cape Town which are already popular in the Indian market. The six new towns offer a mix of wildlife, local culture, adventure and culinary experiences that are sure to appeal to returning visitors to South Africa as well as to the thrill-seeking lot with a more time in hand. We experienced the various kinds of hotels as well as

inspected properties that would be of interest and relevance to Indian leisure and MICE groups.

The Garden Route has many hotels and restaurants that can cater specifically to Indian groups based on their requirements. Some of us, food aficionados in particular, tasted some of the local fare such as ostrich and springbok delicacies.

We also enjoyed specially crafted picnic lunches and wine-paired meals during the trip.

The speed marketing sessions held across the towns, were carefully designed into the tour programme, balancing leisure and business and brought the delegation in face-toface networking with the various local tourism players offering different products while suggesting ways in which we could integrate them in our tour packages for Indian travellers.

In the next few editions, I shall illustrate the experiences under different categories in the best interests of the travel trade and the traveller.

www.voyagersworld.in

India Outbound

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UP joins INKYU-B to explore exchange of best practices VW BUREAU

The Uttar Pradesh Government and the Indo-Nagasaki- Kyushu Business Centre (INKYU-B) looked at the exchange of best practices and culture through the innovative 'i-Travel 2 Japan' programme.

T

he Government of Uttar Pradesh, along with the Indo-NagasakiKyushu business delegation, led by the Eighteenth Bank, held a meet at Delhi on 18 September 2017 to enhance the possible collaboration in space of trade, commerce, industry and culture as a core initiative of ‘Nagasaki Breakthrough’. This programme is a joint initiative of Infallible Travel Concepts Pvt Ltd (I Travel) with Silver Peak Japan (SPJ) in association with Indo-Nagasaki- Kyushu Business Centre (INKYU-B) and Nagasaki Breakthrough.

While both the Governments are making substantial efforts to build cooperation between two of the global emerging powers through various public- private initiatives,

Infallible Travel Concepts Pvt Ltd is committed to build a strong connect between people to people through its unique and innovative 'i-Travel 2 Japan' programme. This is the first such effort through the true exchange of best practices and culture between these two countries, which will impact the general lives at micro level. The programme enables young academia to undergo two weeks of cultural training from the best of universities based out of Japan to understand the importance of etiquette and value system in life. This programme not only enable these young academia to transform them into a true global citizen for tomorrow but also helps to understand the value of discipline in personal life to a social circle. One of the most critical attributes of

Japanese culture is of mindfulness about others. ‘Live and Let live' is prominently visible in their public life, which not only builds the harmony but also it enhances the cooperation among people resulting quality productivity from individuals.

On the flip side, these students will

be the true ambassadors for the future to build awareness about Japan as a wholesome destination to visit, work and live.

The website www.itravel2japan. com was launched to facilitate this unique initiative.

Netherlands bets on more Indian arrivals with new air connectivity IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

H. E. Alphonsus H.M. Stoelinga, Ambassador of the Netherlands to India, spoke about Indian arrivals, on the occasion of the launch of Jet Airways' Bengaluru - Amsterdam flight.

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he Ambassador of the Netherlands was in Bangalore recently for the launch of Jet Airways' new flight from Bengaluru - Amsterdam. The flight will commence its services on 29 October, 2017.

In a brief chat with Voyager's World, the Ambassador spoke about how the boost in flight connectivity is

Voyager’s World > October 2017

anticipated to contribute to more Indian arrivals to the Netherlands.

"We have witnessed a growth of 30% in tourists mostly comprising business travellers and students from 2015 to 2016. The number of visas we issue to Indian citizens is increasing at 25% per year and we have noticed an increase in the number of students. We are the No.3 investing country in India. India is at No. 5 in the Netherlands; with 20% of all your exports entering Europe there is a lot of business going on.

Tourism will continue to be a growing segment."

Marketing Plans We think that the Jet Airways daily nonstop service from Bangalore to Amsterdam launching on the 29 October 2017 will automatically get

more tourists to our country. We will have the Indian people coming in big numbers to Europe and the Netherlands, in particular, like in the 1960s and 1970s when the Japanese used to come in numbers as we present Netherlands as a hub.

Types of travellers We have seen mostly business travellers and students coming from India. From Mumbai we have noticed a lot of business travellers and now I expect more business travellers from Bangalore soon. We get a mix of leisure and business travellers from Delhi. We have witnessed a large percent of our Indian travellers are business travellers. The main sectors that we are promoting include film tourism as there is always a movie lined up with special programmes.

We offer movie directors a subsidy of 50% on the cost they incur to make a movie. We also promote MICE movements through Netherlands Convention Bureau.

Main Destinations Amsterdam is one of the most famous destinations being promoted to the tourists. Delft is another destination like Amsterdam with the same kind of canals. We are trying to promote the smaller cities as well. Amsterdam is known for many tourists and if you would like to visit places with fewer tourists you can definitely visit the smaller cities.

Indians usually do a trip to Europe as Netherlands is a part of Europe and they stay for a few days in Netherlands and then they go to Paris.

Association

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13th ATOAI Convention foresees great progress in adventure tourism IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

T

he Adventure Tour Operators Association of India (ATOAI) organised its 13th annual convention from 18-21 September 2017 at the Backwater Ripples Kumarakom, Kerala. The four-day event was around the theme ‘Emerging Pathways’.

It was inaugurated on 19 September by Kadakampally Surendran, Minister of Tourism, Govt. of Kerala, along with Satyajeet Rajan, Director General Tourism, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India and Dr. Venu V, IAS, Principal Secretary Tourism, Government of Kerala; ATOAI’s Office Bearers - Capt. Swadesh KumarPresident- ATOAI, , Rajesh Ojha- Hony Secretary- ATOAI, Ajeet Bajaj- Sr. Vice President- ATOAI, Tejbir Singh AnandVice President – ATOAI, Vaibhav KalaHony. Treasurer- ATOAI and Executive members of ATOAI including Vishwas Makhija, Vinayak Kaul, Shashank Gupta, Sanjay Basu, Mohan Tickoo, Anirudh Chaoji, Akshay Kumar and convention committee members like Commander Sam T Samuel and Pradeep Murthy.

The event witnessed over 300 delegates with representatives from 16 states. There were panel discussions on changing trends, Emerging Pathways & Creative Partnerships, marketing adventure travel and GST practical application in adventure travel.

Rajesh Ojha said, “The adventure tourism business working in the rural area is aiming adventure for

financial and environmental roads.

In this context, adventure travel is an excellent means through which the local community can generate revenue, create jobs and have the environment protected. Our policy planners need to understand that adventure travel is found as a mentality different from other sectors in tourism; its economic structure, modes of investment and the request for service providers and buyers are radically different.”

adventure activities. We are planning to organise a Mega India Adventure Tourism Summit in Delhi in April 2018, apart from seminars in states.

We will invite the Adventure Travel Trade Association for Adventure Next Event in December 2018 and are also hosting the PATA Adventure Travel Mart in February 2019 in one of the Himalayan states. We are planning to launch adventure tourism in each every town and ensure they have their own association.”

with the international standards and post discussions with the various departments.”

Capt. Swadesh Kumar says,” The concept of adventure tourism has gone through a drastic change; we have been an active association working with the government and other bodies. Adventure tourism is growing at a faster pace in this country with almost 30% in the domestic market and 10% in the incoming arrivals. We are very confident that the business of adventure tourism will grow in the next three years by 100%, which is the target. In India, this mostly exists in the unorganized sector. In the next three months, we are looking forward to having an addition of 2000 members and a 40% increase in our verticals, as we want to support all the verticals of adventure tourism. The Ministry of Tourism, Government of India has accepted the recommendation to declare 2018 as the Year of Adventure Travel in India which is a great initiative for adventure tourism. We will have activities lined up for 18 months including international roadshows in USA, Australia and Japan to market

Jose Dominic, MD & CEO, CGH Earth Group, explains, “The golden age of adventure is about to come and Kerala now awaits adventure. The greatest opportunity you have for operators like you is in Kerala. Kerala Tourism began in the early 1990s.

The growth in Kerala from the mid90s for the next 25 years is almost a miracle.”

P Bala Kiran, IAS, Director- Kerala Tourism, “We believe we are in a critical juncture that we need to rebrand ourselves before facing our challenges in adventure. This year for the first time, Kerala Tourism has crossed 1 million tourist arrivals in our state. We believe adventure and activity is here to stay in Kerala.

We have already started promoting Kerala as an adventure destination through 'Yalla Kerala Campaign'. This year we are investing 3.25 crores in Malabar cruise tourism in North Kerala. We are also launching the Kannur International Airport soon.”

Kadakampally Surendran quoted, “After this convention, India will now agree Kerala is an ideal adventure tourism destination and Kerala is rightly India’s most happening travel destination. The tourism industry is also changing rapidly and going beyond the historical monuments and temples and modern science, with the increasing of the place preference like hills, waterfalls, forests through indulging in adventure activities such as trekking and wildlife safaris and paragliding etc. Considering the safety of tourists, Kerala tourism has released several safety guidelines for adventure tour operators in tune

Dr. Venu V stated, “We are proud and honoured to partner with ATOAI Convention. Activity and adventure will be the mantra for Kerala Tourism for the next few months. Over the next two years, we are targeting in getting 5000 visitors who will come here for pure adventure and incorporate adventure activities for at least 25%.”

Satyajeet Rajan said, “People used to think earlier adventure is only in the Himalayas but there is adventure all across the country.”

The delegates also experienced the backwaters of the Vembanad Lake during a stopover at the Vaikom Jetty and visited the beautiful Vembanad Lake Villas.

www.voyagersworld.in

Association

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Over 600 delegates attend SKAL World Congress 2017 ROHIT HANGAL

Hyderabad hosted the 78th SKAL World Congress this month tourism stakeholders from more than 85 countries convening in the southern city for the event.

H

yderabad hosted the 78th SKAL World Congress 2017 from 5-9 October at the Hyderabad International Convention Centre (HICC), in association with the Tourism Department, Government of Telangana.

The Congress formally kicked off on 6 October with the state's Deputy Chief Minister Mohd. Mahmood Ali inaugurating the four-day event, in the presence of David Fischer, Skal International President, B Venkatesham, Secretary of Telangana Tourism, and Vijay Mohan Raj, President of Skal Hyderabad Chapter. The deputy CM said conferences like Skal Congress would help in promoting a state’s tourism. The theme of the Congress was 'Together We Can'.

Speaking on the occasion, David Fisher said, "Today's traveller is looking at a fuller experience of a place and wants to explore the local life and cuisine and have the feel of the place."

Voyager’s World > October 2017

Many delegates were keen in exploring the city. They not only want to explore the tourist destinations in the city but also experience our culture, traditions, cuisines and many more said Harikishna Valmiki, one of the organizing members of the SKAL World Congress.

The newly elected world president from Finland Susanna Saari hosted a Presidential Dinner on Sunday which was a gala affair. Delegates in their best formal attires graced the occasion. The outgoing President David Fisher, felicitated members for their outstanding contribution.

The SKAL World Congress launched the Young SKAL Hyderabad, the first such club in Telugu states. During the Congress, 12 Indian cities(SKAL Chapters) twinned with 12 USA cities(SKAL Chapters). It is the first time any entire nation has fully twinned with another SKAL Nation.

SKAL Club Hyderabad twinned with SKAL Clubs in Sacramento and San Francisco. 2017 is the 'Indo-US

Tourism Year'. A large contingent from USA participated in the SKAL World Congress besides Australia, Mexico and many other countries.

During the fourdays, SKAL International Excellence Awards and Sustainable Tourism Awards were presented.

B. Venkatesham, Secretary (Tourism), said that the state had a great potential for tourism, while mentioning that 30% of pharmaceutical drugs used in the world were produced in Hyderabad and that the world famous Kohinoor diamond was mined here. More than 600 delegates representing the tourism boards of 85 countries such as Andorra, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Belgium, Bermuda, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Czech Republic, Spain, Fiji, France, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Jordan, Kenya, Cyprus, Luxembourg, Mexico, Monaco, Netherlands, New

Zealand, Nigeria, Papua New Guinea, Portugal, Romania, South Africa, Switzerland, Turkey, UK, USA, Zimbabwe, Sweden, Norway, Guatemala, Ecuador, El Salvador, Finland, Bahrain, Bangladesh, China, Venezuela and many more participated in the event.

30 exhibitors put up stalls. Two Telugu states besides many state government’s tourism departments such as Kerala, Gujarat Tourism, Union Tourism Ministry, Ramoji Film City, Ark Travels ( a Preferred Sales Agent for Star Cruises), Indigo Airlines, Oman Airlines, Akqua Sun Group( a global destination management company), Riya Travels and many Tour and Travel Operators, Prestigious Properties showcased their offerings in the exhibition.

Speaking on the occasion of closing the SKAL World Congress Vijay Mohan Raj said through hosting SKAL Congress in Hyderabad, "We brought the world to Hyderabad, and made the world view Hyderabad.”

Destination

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Gazing at the 'Gems' of Sri Lanka!

© Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic

© Exterior of St. Andrew's Hotel, Nuwara Eliya

© Nuwara Eliya Post Office

PRIYAMVADHA BALARAM

S

ri Lanka has a myriad of destinations to experience amid contrasting weather conditions and changing landscapes, such that steering away on a one hour drive from a given point will transport you to a different setting altogether.

Two such places offering pleasant experiences to tourists looking to explore something other than the capital or the pilgrim routes, are Kandy and Nuwara Eliya.

I took a short detour while doing the Ramayan circuit while on a trip to Sri Lanka in August and went to Kandy, which is about one hour from Colombo and Nuwara Eliya, which is about two hours from Kandy.

Having planned a one night halt in Kandy, I stayed right next to the Isini Gems retailers which has a mini gemological museum with video presentations and exhibits depicting how gems were extracted from the earth. Kandy is known for different kinds of gems like sapphires, cat's eye, diamonds, rubies, emeralds,

amethyst, etc. and there are several retailers specialising in original gems.

The gem museum overlooks the Kandy Lake which is the icon of the city. After seeing the gem museum, I headed to the famous Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic which preserves the tooth of Lord Gautam Buddha. It is one of the most sacred Buddhist pilgrimage centres in the world, drawing thousands of Buddhists from all over the world, Chinese being their No. 1 in terms of visiting worshippers.

The tooth is preserved beneath seven golden caskets inside the sanctum sanctorum that is surrounded by elaborately embellished interiors showing intricate Buddhist paintings and carvings. The present day temple stands restored after it came under terrorist attacks some years ago.

Kandy has many other attractions like the Botanical Gardens and the Royal Palace. The complex of the Royal Palace of Kandy once included the royal conference hall and the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic.

But now, only a part of the original

palace remains. This part has been converted into the National Museum of Kandy.

The next morning, I checked out and headed to Nuwara Eliya, the hill town of Sri Lanka, also the erstwhile getaway of the colonial rulers.

Needless to say, the temperatures dipped sharply as we ascended up the town which is flanked by tea plantations and tea factories along the hills. I stayed at the St. Andrew's Hotel which was built in 1875 by the British and the property has passed a few hands before it became a club and now a hotel. The hotel, however, retains the original design. I took a one hour tour of the Glenloch Tea Factory to see how the green tea leaves metamorphose into the brown aromatic beverage that the world adores. There is also an outlet selling various grades and varieties of teas.

Nuwara Eliya maintains the old world charm with many heritage structures standing as testimony to the bygone colonial era. The Nuwara Eliya Post Office is one of the oldest

post offices in the country, built in 1894. The sun set rather early as we drove past the magnificent Lake Gregory, built during the time of the British Governor Sir William Gregory.

Tourists and locals come to the lake for short picnics and to relax during the evenings.

There are several picturesque places in the vicinity that have drawn Indian filmmakers, said my chauffeur, as he took me from one Indian restaurant to another only to find long lines of Europeans waiting to dine. Indian food is not hard to find by in Sri Lanka, yet, I recommend that one try the local cuisine which is made using similar ingredients and spices as ours but still stands apart distinctively.

For those looking at a short getaway from India, Sri Lanka is an attractive option, as was evident from the number of Indians I met throughout my stay, and Kandy and Nuwara Eliya are sure to impress one with the best of history, nature, culture and food.

www.voyagersworld.in

Flight Talk

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Jet Airways launches daily nonstop from Bangalore to Amsterdam IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

This flight will be Jet Airways’ third daily service between India and Amsterdam and will complement its existing direct daily operations to Amsterdam from Mumbai and Delhi.

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et Airways organised a press conference to announce its daily nonstop service from Bangalore to Amsterdam launching on the 29 October 2017.This flight will be Jet Airways’ third daily service between India and Amsterdam and will complement its existing direct daily operations to Amsterdam from Mumbai and Delhi.

The new service will be operated in codeshare with KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, Air France and Delta Air Lines, with each airline placing their respective codes on the service.

• Jet Airways 9W 236 will depart Bengaluru at 02h25 (LT) and arrive in Amsterdam 08h35 (LT).

• Jet Airways 9W 235 will depart

from Amsterdam at 10h50 (LT) and will arrive in Bengaluru at 00h40 (LT).

On the occasion of the event, H.E. Alphonsus H.M. Stoelinga, Ambassador of the Netherlands to India, said –“ Holland is a hub for India and this connectivity will connect multiple destinations in India and Europe. The Dutch traders felt at home in India four hundred years ago. Already 400 years ago, Netherlands was Asia’s hub in Europe and is India’s hub in Europe.

Today again, India and Netherlands are very important economic partners for each other. The number of visas we issue to Indian citizens is increasing at 25% per year."

“A lot of Indian companies consider Netherlands to be an ideal location for setting up their head office in Europe like Tata Steel Factory. Today again, Netherlands is the hub for Europe and India. Netherlands as a destination is a hub for India and also a hub for travellers. We will be opening a consulate general in Bangalore which will be the second consulate opened in India after Mumbai. One week before Jet Airways launches the Bangalore to Amsterdam flight, we will organise a Holland meets Bangalore event a weeklong event,” he added.

Vinay Dube, Chief Executive Officer, Jet Airways, explains, “We are very proud to introduce our new flight

from Bangalore to Amsterdam with this we will be connecting to the Southern part of India to Europe and beyond. This is the third international destination out of Bangalore. For Bangalore is the domestic and international hub for us in the Southern part. We are happy to connect with Bangalore via Schipol as we can connect all of Europe and via Schipol you can also connect all of North America as well.

Bangalore has a vibrant economy and a growing market; so the growth is just getting started for us plus you also have an excellent middle class crowd. Bangalore is the hub for seamless connectivity for India and the rest of the world.”

Luxury Travel

Luxury, wine and All Things Nice...!

ANJU ANNA ALEX

Nikhil Agarwal, Sommelier & CEO at All Things Nice, talks about the wine culture in India and the demand for luxury spirits from the Indian market.

A

ll Things Nice is a wine, spirits and luxury marketing platform with a great connect for SHNI’S in India. This enables them to communicate, market luxury goods and services, wines and spirits and even financial products to them. The company works closely with brands like Martell Cognac, the Classic Malts of Scotland from Diageo and a range of wines from all over the world who are looking to reach out to their consumer network.

Voyager’s World > October 2017

Demand for luxury spirits & wine culture in India There is a certain bracket of people in India who consume the very best and enjoy ultra luxury, fine wine and spirits. This is a very tiny percentage of people. Then there is the next segment which enjoys luxury wine and spirits. Both the segments specified, see more people enrol into the categories on a yearly basis and they form the bulf demand of luxury wine and spirits in India.

What amazes me is the price that people are willing to pay.

This price is far more than the price someone would pay in any other country which gives you an idea of just how wealthy this group is.

They drink Champagne, Cru Classe Bordeaux, the best of Italian and top end wines from around the world. In terms of spirits they have moved on from the regular brands you would

see in a typical 5 star bar and are looking for something different.

More artisanal, more unknown.

Japanase whiskies have taken on cult status for example here in India.

Tell us about the experiential events that you organize All Things Nice puts together hedonistic events bringing together high quality wines or spirits and gourmet food. The events are curated by us and allow our guests to understand and experience these beverages or food and drink pairings like never before. We reach out to a well heeled audience that are sincerely enthusiastic about food and drink. We do wine and malt dinners, tastings and also have original event formats like Twisted Decadence, Submit, the Indian Wine Consumers Choice Awards, Celebrating India’s Finest, Tour de Cognac that we do with Martell, Malt Week that we have partnered with

Diageo and more.

Emerging trends I think more people are drinking more wine and they are taking food and wine pairing more seriously.

There is a steady increase in sales of both domestically produced wine and wines from other countries.

Artisan gin is very fashionable at the moment. Well crafted cocktails are a rage. Craft beer has boomed in the last few years and I don't see the boom stopping for time to come.

Today All Things Nice has added many more verticals. We offer PMS services through our relationship with Alchemy ( one of the partners bieng Rakesh Jhunjhunwala). We work with top end luxury brands including all the major players in the lucury automotive sector. We also have started bespoke food and drink international tours which caters to a very niche audience.

Travel Events

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India International Travel Mart continues its winning streak with Delhi Edition 2017 VW BUREAU

T

he 98th Edition of India International Travel Mart (IITM) from 15-17 September at the Tivoli Garden, Oakwood Hall, New Delhi, proved to be yet another remarkable chapter in the of traveltrade exhibitions , organized under the aegis of Sphere Travelmedia and Exhibitions.

This year’s Edition of IITM in Delhi was yet another milestone, with Sphere Travelmedia & Exhibitions completing 18 successful years of providing the travel and tourism industry and discerning buyers from the travel trade and corporate sector, a plethora of invaluable opportunities to do business. With organizations and tourism boards from more than 11 Indian states, IITM showcased a variety of destinations from different segments such as pilgrimages, adventure, culture and heritage, beaches, hills and many more.

The Delhi 2017 IITM provided an ideal marketing opportunity and excellent backdrop to enhance the participant’s brand equity in the eyes of the discerning end consumers and the travel trade. The event saw participation of 78 exhibitors from across India from the states of Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Goa, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkand, Kerala, Delhi, Maharashtra, Karnataka, West Bengal and Punjab. The event also witnessed international participation from Europe.

Apart from the above tourism boards, prominent Destination Management Companies (DMCs), leading hospitality chains and other companies with global presence also participated in the exhibition showcasing their destinations/ products. The event attracted over 650 Trade Visitors and 2800, General visitors during the three days.

PLETHORA OF NEW PRODUCTS UNVEILED AT IITM MUMBAI VW BUREAU

S

phere Travelmedia & Exhibitions organized its 99th edition of India International Travel Mart (IITM) from 21 - 23 September at the Bombay Exhibition Centre, Goregaon West in Mumbai.

With this year’s edition of IITM in Kolkata, Sphere Travelmedia & Exhibitions completes 18 successful years of providing the travel and tourism industry and discerning buyers from the travel trade and corporate sector, an unparalleled opportunity to do business. With organisations and tourism boards from over 13 Indian states, IITM showcased a variety of destinations from different spheres such as pilgrimages, adventures, culture and heritage, beaches, hills and many more.

The IITM provided an ideal marketing opportunity and excellent backdrop to enhance the participant’s brand

equity in the eyes of the discerning end consumers and the travel trade.

The event had over 124 participants from Indian states such as Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Goa, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Meghalaya, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Telangana and West Bengal. The international exhibitors represented Dubai, Greece, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Maldives, Nepal, Seychelles, Singapore and many more.

The event attracted over 1148 Trade Visitors and 4300 General visitors during the three days. Maharashtra was the Host State for the event.

There was a big representation from different travel and tourism products of Maharashtra. Gujarat and Jammu & Kashmir were the ‘Partner States’ while Andhra Pradesh and Goa were the ‘Feature Destinations’ at the event.

www.voyagersworld.in

Travel Events

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10th edition of Holiday Expo Nagpur reinforces trade potential in Tier 2 cities VW BUREAU

The event, which aims to tap the travel trade prospects in Tier 2 and 3 cities in the country, saw an overwhelming response from the industry players and the public during the three days.

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he 10th consecutive edition of Holiday Expo Nagpur took place from 6 - 8 October at the Naivedhyam Celebration Centre, reaching out to avid travellers in the city seeking new tourism products.

The event witnessed the participation of seven state tourism departments, 10 of India’s leading travel agencies and various other industry players like theme parks, hotels and resorts and travel technology providers. The state tourism stalls were provided various brochures and materials pertaining to the tourism attractions, accommodation options, tariffs and packages available in the respective states.

"Being the 10th consecutive year for the Holiday Expo in Nagpur, the event has garnered a better response in

the form of participation from the state tourism departments and private agencies," said the Director of Holiday Expo, Dilip Biswas. "Even the footfall has been on a rise as people can get all the details at one place from the best travel companies and from the officials from the state tourism departments who are usually present throughout the show."

Maharashtra was the ‘Host State’, while Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh were the Partner States. Karnataka and Jharkhand were the Focus States for the event. Other participants were from North East India, Delhi, Karnataka, Goa, etc.

Private participants included Cox & Kings, MakeMyTrip, Spiceland Holidays, etc.

There were packages to more than 100 destinations in India and abroad.

10th Edition of ITB Asia Looks to the Future of Travel VW BUREAU

Milestone event will feature stellar line-up of keynotes and speakers, amidst record participation from international partners.

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TB Asia 2017 will celebrate its 10th anniversary with an exciting view to the future of travel and tourism.

Under the conference theme ‘The Future of Travel’, ITB Asia 2017 will showcase an extensive programme of key presentations and discussions by industry heavyweights from the travel and tourism sector. This includes global brand names as well as promising travel startups.

“We are proud to have put together such a rich and diverse conference programme, which is only possible with the continued support from the global travel industry. This is testament to the show’s expanding role as an important platform to bring all the different stakeholders in the travel and tourism sector together.

We believe everyone attending this

Voyager’s World > October 2017

year’s show will enjoy and benefit from engaging with the influential and exciting speakers on the most current and pressing topics in the industry,” said Katrina Leung, Executive Director of Messe Berlin (Singapore), the organiser of ITB Asia.

Artificial Intelligence and OTAs to be focus of ITB Asia 2017 keynotes To kick off the show, headlining keynote speakers on Day 1 include Tony Menezes, Vice President of Industrial and Distribution Sectors at IBM Asia Pacific, Rob Torres, Managing Director of Advertising and Marketing at Google, and Jane Sun, CEO of Ctrip. Both speakers from IBM and Google will focus on Artificial Intelligence while Ms Sun from Ctrip will speak on its global strategy. On Day 2, the highlight of the keynote

panel will focus on the trends and market conditions of the travel trade market and how Online Travel Agents (OTAs) are transforming travel through technology, particularly in Korea, Japan and India.

Moderated by Nick Vivion, Editorial Director of Tnooz, the panel will include Ike Anand, Vice President at Expedia, Min Yoon, CEO of Tidesquare, Amit Taneja, Chief Revenue Officer of Cleartrip, Ken Mishima, VP of eCommerce Strategy at iJTB, and Jose Murta, Global Head of Hospitality at trivago.

Showcasing current trends and opportunities in virtual reality, Cruise and travel innovation While VR has mainly been used in promotional and marketing

materials, hotel and accommodation visualization and training, disruptive startups Hiverlab and Zebra Design will share experiences on the realities and opportunities for augmented reality and VR in hospitality and tourism. Savioke, a Silicon Valley startup that makes autonomous indoor delivery robots, will also present key takeaways from its pilot project at M Social, Asia’s first deployment of front-of-house service robots.

With younger generations, including millennials and Generation X, forecast to embrace cruise travel more than ever before, ITB Asia 2017 will feature its first Cruise panel. The line-up will have global cruise operators who will discuss rise of cruise in Asia Pacific, the growing market and opportunities.

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Incredible India

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32>>

Safety remains key priority for managing business travel VW BUREAU

Findings by the ACTE and CWT show an increased attention paid to ensure safety of business travellers while improving travel policies.

S

purred by new norms of hyperconnectivity, on-demand services, greater personalisation and always-on support, business people expect a simpler and more flexible experience when travelling on behalf of their employers.

According to new research from the Association of Corporate Travel Executives (ACTE), underwritten by American Express Global Business Travel (GBT), travel managers are taking a more traveller-considerate approach to developing travel policies and programmes.

The study, Managing the Modern Business Traveller, reveals how travel managers are addressing the expectations of modern business travellers to adapt and develop travel policy and to retain and improve compliance levels.

Influencing traveller behaviour is an important aspect of this: 87% say they use or are considering using visual guilt, prompting users to reconsider travel purchases if a more cost-effective option is available, and 85% point to peer pressure and corporate culture to guide travellers.

“Business travellers have come to expect a personalised experience when they’re on the road, but many

Voyager’s World > October 2017

organisations continue to take a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to travel policy, driving travellers to work outside the normal channels,” said Greeley Koch, executive director, ACTE. “While travel polices absolutely need to change to take individual needs into account, travel managers can—and should—tap into travellers’ point of view to encourage them to do the right thing. After all, managers are on the hook for not only the safety of their travellers, but also the cost of doing business.”

However, more traditional methods of ensuring policy compliance remain prominent. An overwhelming majority (93%) of travel managers say they use education, and just over three-quarters (77%) mandate compliance. Other approaches include rewards and incentives, both non-monetary (20%) and monetary (17%).

“The needs of the business and the desires of today’s business traveller are often different, but we have to quickly rise to the challenge of finding a programme balance that supports both,” said Philip Haxne, Regional Director EMEA, Global Business Consulting for American Express Global Business Travel.

“Advances in technology and the managed travel toolset make matching individual needs with the business policy more efficient, and there is great opportunity to better personalise traveller experiences, ease anxieties about safety and simultaneously encourage policy compliance.”

Travellers remain focused on quality of life Continuing a trend seen in the first instalment of Meet the Modern Business Traveller, managers are seeing quality-of-life enquiries from travellers increase. Thirty-one per cent say they’ve experienced more enquiries about work-life balance, while 30 percent say more travellers have asked about adding a leisure element to business trips. This is a slightly slower rate of increase than seen in the October 2016 edition of the study, when traveller enquires about work-life balance and leisure increased 48 per cent and 42 per cent, respectively.

While the 2016 research found a more dramatic increase in usage, the trend remains clear. As a result of heightened expectations surrounding work-life balance, more business travellers are

exploring non-traditional—and potentially out-of-policy—travel and accommodation methods. Last year, 79% of managers saw growth in usage of services like Uber and Lyft.

This year, half (50%) saw the usage of non-traditional ground transport grow. The same holds true for accommodation options like Airbnb, with 20 per cent of managers seeing traveller usage increase this year, versus 40 per cent last year.

Travel managers enhance and simplify policies and tools Travel managers are responding to the needs of modern business travellers by adjusting policies and restocking the corporate travel toolbox to keep pace. On policy, managers are acting across the board, such as incorporating nontraditional accommodations. In 2016, just 9% of managers included so-called sharing economy lodging options in policy, versus 22% this year. On the tools front, apps are on the rise, with 93% of managers providing or planning to provide trip information apps, 89% providing apps for booking and 81% offering T&E apps. This is up from 76%, 67% and 62% in 2016, respectively.

33>>

Gaining modern business traveller perspective With business traveller expectations evolving for the foreseeable future, travel managers must look for ways to get into the travellers’ mind and understand both their stated and unstated needs. One key method to achieve this is leveraging internal and external data. 90% of managers say they use TMC travel and spend data, 76% turn to card payments providers, 66% each leverage internal systems and TMC analysis and 60% assess internal policy compliance data.

“Data can make a world of difference for the travel manager seeking to wrap their brain around a growing constellation of traveller needs and expectations,” said Koch. “But it’s not enough to gather the data; managers must actually analyse it and translate it into action. A successful, data-driven travel programme can achieve any corporate travel executive’s core objectives: positioning their travellers for success, while also demonstrating the travel manager’s value as a business leader.”

“It’s also important to remember that a successful travel programme

can serve as an effective tool when it comes to attracting and retaining talent – a major consideration for today’s competitive business landscape,” added Haxne. “Strong programmes that contribute to employee happiness and productivity underscore the travel manager’s valuable role to the business as a whole.”

Simplification a Key Priority for Travel Managers, but Roadblocks to Execution Persist With new technology proliferating and business traveller needs and expectations evolving, travel managers are struggling to manage complex, multi-layered travel programmes. According to new research from the Association of Corporate Travel Executives (ACTE), underwritten by HRS, travel managers recognize this challenge and understand that simplifying their programmes could yield benefits— but simplification initiatives face competing priorities.

The new study, Simplifying Managed Travel, finds that traveller safety trumps the agenda: Most buyers (94%) say duty of care is a key priority; 82% say it is their top priority.

With 72% rating it a key priority for

their managed travel programme, simplification follows behind cost reduction (88%), data security (84%) and improving traveller satisfaction (75%).

However, travel managers recognise that simplification initiatives can support their other strategic priorities. For example, 47% of travel managers say that simplification will improve duty of care and 39% believe it will reduce the overall cost of their travel policy.

“Travel managers and travellers alike long for a simpler system for business travel—it’s become beyond onerous for many of them to navigate policies, processes and outdated tools as new technologies have been phased in without the opportunity to phase out older ones,” said Greeley Koch, executive director of ACTE. “The great irony is that simplification can help meet higher-priority business objectives.

Travel managers who make that argument and use simplification to address other concerns can position themselves as true leaders in their organizations.”

Travel Managers Struggle Translate Priority into Action

to

Despite recognizing the importance of simplification, travel managers see a gap between intention and execution. Reflecting the strategic importance placed on traveller safety, duty of care is the travel buyer’s top priority for simplification: A majority (83%) says duty of care requires immediate action (62%).

Data security appears second on buyers’ list of simplification targets.

Disconnects between buyers’ simplification priorities and their actual behaviour, however, indicate barriers to pursuing strategic goals.

The execution gaps for duty of care and data security are large relative to other priorities, with more than one-in-five buyers saying they are not currently translating their traveller safety (23%) and data security (24%) concerns into action.

Suppliers and Internal Stakeholders Must Become Partners in Simplification Today’s complex travel programmes encompass multiple partners and stakeholders—internally and externally. To be effective, simplification initiatives often require support from these parties.

While nearly one-in-five buyers do not get support from peers in other

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34>> departments, most report that internal stakeholders are on board with simplification initiatives: - Procurement is most often regarded as a partner in simplification (57%); Internal risk/security and communications staff follow (40%); - IT support (36%) and human resources (28%) lag other departments.

Third parties can supply relevant tools and expertise, providing support to travel buyers’ simplification initiatives. Buyers welcome this assistance: More than half of buyers not currently receiving help from travel providers say they want it.

Internally and externally, the data suggests that the travel buyers who say simplification is a top strategic priority are better at collaborating to reach their simplification goals.

“The value travel management provides to a company is increasingly measured in optimised processes and cross-department collaboration,” explained HRS CEO Tobias Ragge. “The study shows this close collaboration is vital and that leading companies build on their internal stakeholder network, but they also rely on the data, advice and support of external partners to reach their strategic goals.”

Driving Effective Simplification Simplification is a key route for travel managers to achieve their business objectives.

However, facing the hurdles of limited resources and differing levels of support from internal and external stakeholders, buyers must ramp up communication with suppliers, other departments within the organization and with the travellers themselves.

“With so many competing priorities on travel managers’ plates, it can be easy to lose sight of the most important stakeholder of all: the business traveller,” said Koch.

“Simplification allows travellers to spend less time worrying about the logistics of their trip and more on the purpose of their trip. This makes all the difference between a good business outcome and a great one.”

Findings by Carlson Wagonlit Travel Airfares and hotel rates in key locations for the Energy, Resources and Marine (ERM) sectors are expected to rise in 2018 - according to CWT Energy, Resources & Marine, the specialist division of global travel management company Carlson Wagonlit Travel.

As

business

activity

in

ERM

industries increases, the annual 2018 CWT Energy, Resources and Marine Travel Forecast, published today, provides a region-by-region analysis and insight into travel conditions for key markets in the coming 18 months.

“Companies in this realm are finally set up to operate with profits despite the continued lower price of oil,” said Raphael Pasdeloup, senior vice president, CWT Energy, Resources & Marine. “We are seeing investments going up, especially within supply chains. With this increased activity ERM travel prices will rise, which means costs will need to be managed appropriately as budgets catch up.”

According to the International Monetary Fund, global GDP growth is expected to hit 3.6% in 2018.

This, along with favorable foreign exchange rates (valued against the USD) within many ERM-dependent countries, will boost pricing. Expect operations in remote areas to see increased airline routes and hotel capacity, reversing the trend of the past couple of years.

Top recommendations for ERM travel in 2018: The Forecast identifies four key areas where companies can manage expenditure against external, volatile and unpredictable factors impacting growth: 1.

Be Prepared – Start with unit cost optimization and asset utilization.

2.

Have a Robust Travel Policy – Build cost-effective supplier agreements to negotiate with hotel suppliers. The best way to keep the unit costs of your travel down is to build a strong travel policy, with cost-effective supplier agreements in place, and then make sure your travelers adhere to the policy. In particular, negotiate with hotel suppliers, on price, last room availability, bed and breakfast deals, inclusion of Wi-Fi in the price and so on. It is worth seeking two-year agreements now, while the rates are low.

Once you have your agreements in place, enforce the policy. Don’t allow employees to book travel outside of your channel. Make sure people book as early as possible: question every booking made within two weeks of travel.

Don’t always accept the lowest fare offered, even if that has been your policy recently. Make sure

Voyager’s World > October 2017

your travelers always stay in your selected hotels, to keep costs down and strengthen your hand in the next round of negotiations. Deviation from the policy always ends up being more expensive and may raise security concerns, especially around hotel bookings. It also weakens your hand when it comes to negotiating with suppliers next time round.

3.

Leverage Technology – Use software tools to manage the entire travel process.

4. Be Mindful of Safety – Enhance the measures you already have in place with technology and review travel healthcare procedures.

While travel prices for the ERM sectors are broadly expected to rise across the globe in 2018, regional and local variations exist.

Asia Pacific Centers of ERM activity in Asia Pacific have all felt and, in some cases, still feel the impact of a particularly bad few years. Some key destinations like Mumbai, Singapore and Tokyo are rebounding, while others like Perth are still struggling.

In China and India, rises in airfares and hotel rates are inevitable because of the macro-economic picture of ever-increasing domestic demand. Indeed, there are potential capacity issues on the horizon if demand in the region stays on its current path.

At the same time, airlines are developing their business models and governments are acting to impose some control on the market, in an effort to increase capacity in line with demand. Low cost carriers are also set to play a greater role in business travel with route expansion and the provision of premium cabins.

Still airfares across the region are set to rise, with Mumbai, Jakarta and Manila expected to see the steepest increases of 7.7%, 7.0% and 6.0% respectively.

With mining picking up again, there will be pressure on specific routes, particularly in Australia. Companies have a legal duty to impose minimal impact on the local community and that includes working with the airline(s) to make sure there is enough availability, at a reasonable price, even when the mining industry is taking up every available seat.

LATIN AMERICA

São Paulo, 3–5 April 2018

Discover the World US$ 374

Million

of new business generated in 2017

600 exhibitors

10.000 attendees

from across the world

from 50 countries

d n a st com

r tm. u o .w

y rica k o e

Botinam la

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Genesys Summit to bang the digital drum as part of WTM’s tech programme VW BUREAU

P

aul Richer, the well-respected founder and senior partner of Genesys Digital Transformation, will moderate the sessions: a debate on day one, Monday November 6, and the Genesys Summit, on day two of WTM London.

First off, Richer will lead a thoughtprovoking debate entitled the Future of Technology in Travel and Hospitality. Organised in association with Travel Technology Initiative, speakers include Jose Murta, global head of hospitality at Trivago, who will give his take on how the industry is set to develop in years to come.

Richer said: “This session will look at how, as technology continues to evolve, new opportunities present themselves to operate our businesses in an increasingly sophisticated manner.

“These opportunities also provide an entrance into our industry for new technology-led companies that are challenging the accepted orthodoxy – and revolutionising the way travellers connect with independent hotels, hotel chains and OTAs.” The session takes place on Monday, November 6 on the WTM Global Stage: AS1050, from 16:00-17:30.

As the first day of WTM is invite only, delegates must ensure they are registered for all three days to attend this session.

Then, on day two, some of the world’s most digital-savvy executives will take part in this year’s Genesys Summit. The 2017 summit is entitled Future Digital Thinking and

Voyager’s World > October 2017

looks at how organisations are – or should be – addressing the growing consumer market of digital natives.

Richer said: “Future thinking requires bosses to look ahead three to five years and put strategies in place that will allow businesses to continue to thrive in these everchanging times.

“The summit provides the perfect opportunity for people to hear from those in the know what the future has to hold. It’s also an opportunity to address key questions such as whether companies are positioning their business for the future and where they should be focusing their resources.”

Joining Richer in the discussion are Daniel Wishnia, digital marketing consultant at GCH Hotel Group GmbH; Paul Mulcahy, senior vice president commercial at Movenpick Hotels and Resorts, as well as Max Sinclair, founder of Eco Companion – the booking engine for sustainable wildlife and nature travel experiences.

The Genesys Summit – Future Digital Thinking will take place on Tuesday, November 7 from 10:0012:00, in Platinum Suite 4.

World Travel Market London, Senior Director, Simon Press said: “The Genesys sessions at WTM are always well attended, with some of the most knowledgeable figures in the digital world willing to share their views and best practice.

“Paul Richer has long been an expert in the tech field and remains

at the forefront of the latest digital developments. As such, this year’s Genesys Summit is a must-attend for anyone who wants to plan their medium-term strategy in order to retain a competitive edge in the fastchanging technology arena.”

Content is the name of the Game at WTM London 2017 In the last 18 months, many of the leading destinations and travel players have quickly adapted their approach to prioritise strong content marketing as the central component to gain traction online and engage effectively with potential visitors.

WTM London and Digital Tourism Think Tank will explore this trend further and look specifically at how to build a Content Dream Team on Tuesday 7 November on the WTM Global Stage.

Nick Hall, founder of the Digital Tourism Think Tank and overall destination marketing expert, will moderate the session and look to understand how teams are reinventing themselves to be more content ready and how they’re pulling together creative talent, putting an emphasis on editorial workflow to be able to engage wherever and whenever it’s relevant to do so.

Hall explained: “We’ll look at what skills are needed, how long it’s likely to take, what should and shouldn’t be considered in this journey and how a great content team should function on a day to day basis.”

Joining

Hall

on

this

content

masterclass will be Mark Henry, Central Marketing Director for Tourism Ireland, telling their Game of Thrones story and how they’ve incorporated it into their tourism marketing campaign.

Other speakers include Ross Borden, Founder of Matador Network will share his knowledge on building a global creator network; Robert Wells, Marketing Manager for Evaneos will talk about communicating authentically local stories; Bart van Poll, Co-Founder of Spotted by Locals will discuss how they work with local ambassadors and Simon Lewis from Travel Concept Solutions will share his news from a recently successful campaign.

WTM Portfolio Conference and Seminar Manager, Charlotte Sutton said: “The Digital Tourism Think Tank sessions at WTM have always been an extremely popular choice for delegates, with the hottest trends and leading speakers all sharing their knowledge and best practice.

“Nick Hall brings with him an abundance of knowledge, and this session will not disappoint. A mustattend session for those looking to update their content marketing strategy or simply just wanting to stay ahead of the game.”

This session will take place on the WTM Global Stage, from 16.00 – 18.00 on Tuesday 7 November.

Digital Tourism Think Tank will also be running a session on Wednesday 8 November, from 10.30 – 12.30 entitled The Era of Intelligent Tech in Travel.

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Robust startup ecosystem to drive MICE to India ANJU ANNA ALEX

Neil Paterson, General Manager, Novotel Hyderabad Convention Centre and HICC, discusses HICC’s integral role for channeling MICE to India in general and Hyderabad in particular.

How successful has HICC been in channeling MICE to the city of Hyderabad?

Over its decade of operations, Hyderabad International Convention Centre has played a significant role in positioning Hyderabad on the MICE world map. Hyderabad now features among the top 4 MICE cities

in India by number of events hosted, and the fact that a majority of these have been hosted in HICC over the years underlines its contribution to strengthening Hyderabad’s image as a MICE friendly city. The combination of state-of-the-art infrastructure, provision of over 100000 sq. ft. of conferencing space, and world class services provided by a trusted brand like AccorHotels has helped HICC become India’s most trusted MICE venue.

2017 is shaping up to be another successful year for Hyderabad International Convention Centre.

It has hosted several large conferences bringing more than 3 lakh international and national visitors to the city over the year so far.

The contributing segments included

Another trend that we are observing is that the robust startup ecosystem is beginning to drive MICE in India.

The venue has supported many conferences and expos encouraging the startup culture and most of such events are quite energetic. Taking this forward, HICC shall also be hosting the much-talked about 2017 Global Entrepreneurship Summit later this year is being conducted in Asia Pacific for the first time.

medical tourism, HR, agriculture, financial services, entertainment, aero sciences and others. Apart from these, various international associations and conference boards have been contributing to this year’s progression.

Emerging MICE trends in India Globally, the influence of healthy food consumption and sustainable conferencing is catching on. We are witnessing an increasing demand for balanced menu spreads and locally sourced produce to help reduce the carbon footprint and also help delegates keep their health in check over the duration of the meal.

This also falls in line with Planet 21 – AccorHotels’ sustainable development program.

M.I.C.E SCAN

CALENDAR 2017

Dubai showcases dynamic business events offering at IMEX America At the recent IMEX America held in Las Vegas from 10-12 October, Dubai Business Events (DBE) showcased the Emirate’s latest venues and activities for business event groups, including La Perle, a new permanent aqua theatre show created by Franco Dragone, and the 150-metre tall Dubai Frame, which offers views of both the historic and modern parts of the city, latest hospitality options, with over 105,000 rooms across Dubai, including new properties such as Five Palm Jumeirah Dubai and Address Boulevard.

PATA extends CEO contract The Executive Board of the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) extended the contract of Chief Executive Officer Dr. Mario Hardy for a period of three years commencing 1 January, 2018. Mario Hardy joined PATA in 2012 as COO and was appointed CEO in 2014. He is a past Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the PATA Foundation. He worked for 26 years in specialised aviation businesses with a focus on data analytics and technology, occupying leadership roles in Montreal, Vancouver, London, Beijing and Singapore.

Over 1100 delegates attend PATA Travel Mart 2016 The 40th edition of PATA Travel Mart 2017 (PTM 2017), hosted by the Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO), drew 1131 delegates from 66 countries. There were 460 sellers from 252 organisations and 37 destinations along with 293 buyers from 281 organisations and 51 source markets. PTM 2017 officially opened in Macao SAR on 13 September. PTM 2017 also welcomed the SheTrades Pavilion hosted by the International Trade Centre (ITC).

FCM Travel Solutions, KPMG reveal advanced digital technology for business travel FCM Travel Solutions introduced Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools recently for Indian business travellers to manage their travel. Phoenix, the online Self-Booking Tool, offers a broad selection of travel content through an intuitive and easy-to-use experience, giving users total control of their corporate travel programme. An AI-based Chatbot called ‘SAM (Smart Assistant for Mobile) will be launched in 2018 for iOS and Android. SAM will be a 24-hour travel assistant blending AI with the expertise of a real FCM travel consultant.

Contemporary business traveler The Contemporary business travelers can look forward to a unique conferencing experience at HICC along with a range of rejuvenating options at the adjoining hotel Novotel Hyderabad Convention Centre.

November 27, 28 Asia Hotel & Tourism Investment Conference Colombo, Sri Lanka 28, 29, 30 IBTM World Barcelona, Spain

December 1,2,3 Chengdu International Tourism Expo (CITE) Chengdu, China 4,5,6,7 International Luxury Travel Market, Cannes, France

January 2018 17, 18, 19, 20, 21 FITUR Madrid, Spain 22, 23, 24, 25, 26 ASEAN Tourism Forum Chiang Mai, Thailand

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OTA

38>>

Exciting times ahead for Cleartrip ANJU ANNA ALEX

Subramanya Sharma, Chief Marketing Officer and Head of Products, Cleartrip, talks about the brand’s successful journey so far as well as the opportunities and challenges that lie ahead.

Cleartrip recently celebrated its 11th anniversary. Your comments.

It has been a wonderful journey for Cleartrip so far. We have been constantly striving towards one clear goal – to help make travel simple. It is our innovative endeavors and customer fanaticism that have helped us mature as the most sought-after choice among value-oriented customers in the online travel space in India and international markets, and achieve the kind of success that we have had year after year.

Brand philosophy Right since inception customers have been at the core of our every thought and action. Travel planning is complicated owing to the multiple touch points involved in it, so simplifying products and experiences is the key to standing out. Even till today, we continue to offer a customer exactly what they want when one comes on our site rather than throw distracting banners and waste their effort and time. We continue to sharpen our customer service process and recently introduced a smart IVR which helps customer query resolutions considerably faster.

of the product giving us conversion and retention. In terms of tactics, it is a combination of product strategy (which gives us the word of mouth), and highly optimised online performance marketing to get us new customers. We believe that a big percentage of problem statements in travel are yet to be solved. We’ve just touched the tip of the iceberg!

This gives us enough space to solve for the long term. From a market standpoint, the markets we currently operate in, India and the Middle East offer significant, yet different opportunities, and that will keep us busy for quite some time.

Future for the brand For us, the product is the brand and the main marketing channel.

The paid marketing strategy complements the product by inducing trial, and we are confident

Short term and long term challenges of the brand We are in exciting times. The size of disposable income has gone up in the market and the love for travel across age groups has never been

higher. Numerous reports speak of how millennials, which form a major of the chunk of India’s population, are prioritising travel over buying a car or even a house. Phenomenal growth of travellers and that of the support ecosystem is inevitable under such circumstances. In parallel, the problem statements in travel space are just partially solved and each of the markets that Cleartrip operates in are growing at over 50%.This combination gives us a wide playfield to solve for the long term. From a market standpoint, India and the Middle East markets with their own set of unique characteristics offer significant opportunities, and that will keep us busy for quite some time.

Laser sharp execution and staying true to the course will be the big opportunity as well as our main challenge.

WIYO Travel: Making ‘Travel Real’ through unique travel experiences ANJU ANNA ALEX

Jay Kantawala, Founder, WIYO Travel, talks about the inception of the brand and how its cutting edge technology supports the creation of unique travel experiences and superior customer centric offerings.

About WIYO Travel After working for over 12 years with different companies in the travel industry, I launched WIYO Travel in the year 2006 to cater to customized travel segment and tailor-made holidays. During my tenure with different companies, I felt that I had restrictions to use my skills in planning and executing due

Voyager’s World > September 2017

to various constraints of a job. Main reason to start WIYO Travel was to give clients true experiences of a destination and not just a tick on their list of destinations. So we have a concept of ‘Travel Real’, focused on custom travel giving unique travel experiences to all our clients. We are working on creating different theme based holidays such as culinary travel, wildlife, soft adventure etc. and in addition to the standard sightseeing we will add the theme based activities to suit client’s preferences. We also offer clients options to visit off beaten locations or monuments.

Travel with Technology With the changing trends in the travel industry, we worked and conceptualized a new website in second half of 2015, the site took

over a year to create. We have finally managed to create a completely dynamic website for our customized tours. Our clients can customize the activities and hotels from our database for most Indian Packages as of now. We are currently working on creating a tool for our customers to create their own India trips. Our site is simple to use and gives a user experience to our customers. We are constantly trying to improve our site and user experience on our site. We will also work on adding air booking engine at a later stage along with live hotel inventory. We constantly strive to use technology and have managed to successfully develop a unique website for our customers.

All the WIYO Travel offerings come with ‘personalized travel arrangements and friendly team

members’ to make their client ‘Travel Real’. They work hard to ensure that all their clients have an enriching and memorable time.

Key Industry Trends Travel industry has come a long way since the 90’s, today the dual income families and increase in disposal income, people have started spending more on travel, most people now opt for more than one holiday in a year. Destination and hotel information is available very easily and the social media plays a very critical role with today’s travellers. Due to the changes in technology, today’s customer is well informed and has a specific plan in mind, prior to the customer finalising a trip, they usually do their basic research before moving ahead.

OTA

39>>

Customer centric offerings to catapult Booking.com to greater heights ANJU ANNA ALEX

Ruchi Lahoti, Area Manager–Delhi and Kolkata including Nepal, Bhutan and Bangladesh, Booking.com, shares her views about the competition in the segment and the main priorities they strive to address in the Indian market.

Competition in the market Any company that is operating in the online accommodation booking space could be viewed as a competitor and in India the online travel segment is cluttered with several players. At Booking.com, we focus on our own business and not that of our competitors. Our main focus is it to continue to build

a product that consumers love and bring our partners more business and customers through their front door every year. The satisfaction of our customers and partners is our top priority. Since Booking.com is all about the experience, we will keep offering more awesome, unique places to stay than any other travel company in the world. We also aim to connect every traveller with those travel experiences which perfectly match their personality, desires and ambitions. Through the Booking. com website and app we provide travellers with a holistic view to plan their trips so that they can maximize their travel experience.

Challenges from the Indian market In India, we see a large number of international visitors who love

visiting the country apart from Indians who travel within their own country. There are so many wonderful things to experience and explore in India which range from the ancient sites to the temples and hill stations, from our deserts and beaches to the backwaters including our bustling metropolises with world – famous cuisine. Since our country is so diverse, our team in India is constantly working towards bringing more partners on board and making more accommodation options available to travellers. It is an exciting and positive challenge for us.

Entry of new players like Airbnb Booking.com has been offering vacation rentals, including homestays, for years and has offered

this type of accommodation since the company was founded. Today, we have over 750,000 vacation rental properties representing over 2.5 million rooms, including options here in India. We offer so much diversity because we know our customers want access to choice in their desired destination. A key difference with us is that unlike other online homestay booking sites our homestays are instantly bookable and instantly confirmed.

Our customers tell us that knowing instantly that their accommodation is booked is something they really appreciate, and this isn’t the process on other websites that offer home stays and other types of vacation rentals. Plus, there are absolutely no fees for consumers, unlike many other sites.

Tripoetic - In the business of creating exceptional holiday experiences ANJU ANNA ALEX

Gunjan Indrayan, Director and Co-Founder, Tripoetic Travel Planners, talks about what makes their brand unique and about the current industry trends.

T

ripoetic is a bespoke travel company that specialises in creating tailor-made vacations for its customers and aims to bring together globetrotters from diverse backgrounds that share the love of travel. The company has been established by the husbandwife duo of Gunjan Indrayan and Pranjali Indrayan who are avid travel enthusiasts.

USP Tripoetic’s philosophy is a simple one, to offer its clients the best travel experience possible!

Whatever the destination, however unusual the request, we plan dream luxury holidays for our customers.

Our trips don’t come off the shelf, there are no pre-set itineraries. They are personalised down to the finest detail around our clients’ tastes and interests with an absolute commitment to quality. The vacation crafters at Tripoetic have global travel experience. They encourage travellers to see the best sights in a different light, and introduce them to places that others might miss.

A couple of our offerings set us apart from other players in the industry. First, every traveller is

handed over a customized and detailed sightseeing itinerary before the trip. This means they don’t have to worry about “where, what and how” while on vacation.

Second, to ensure a smooth sailing experience throughout the planning and execution phase, a dedicated concierge team is available for the travellers for any advice or guidance before and during the trip.

We strongly believe that any holiday should be much more than just checking off a list and clicking pictures at the main attractions. In other words - experience and don’t just observe, blend in and don’t stick out.

Our idea of handcrafting each itinerary helps in avoiding

stereotypes while ensuring we give travellers something unique and beyond their expectations.

Destinations on Demand Indian travellers are exploring and experimenting more. Our customers on one hand unquestionably like the charm of eternal Europe, where places like Paris, Switzerland and Prague are still on the top of the list.

At the same time, the high-end clients seek to explore new and offbeat destinations like Iceland, Ireland, Russia, South America, South Africa and Bora Bora. New Zealand and Australia are very popular among honeymooners, here they get nature and adventure combined in one package. Asian destinations like Bali, Singapore, Thailand and Maldives are always popular for shorter vacations.

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Online Travel

40>>

Novel players urge travellers to challenge beyond limits IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

Ishan Sharma, Co Founder, Get Beyond Limits, beckons travellers to explore outdoor travel beyond what they believe they can.

Stok Kangri in Ladakh, etc. and the ones who want their adventure to be limited to their weekends and prefer enjoying forests and meadows, choose the Western Ghats and go to places like Kodachadri, Kudremukh, Coorg to Kerala Trek, Nishani Motte Trek, Tadiandamol Coorg Trek, etc.

Coorg is a destination which offers ample opportunities for adventure like trekking, water rafting, quad biking, elephant safaris, etc.

Main trekking destinations On a larger level, Himalayas and Western Ghats are chosen by the people for treks. Usually people who want longer trips or want higher altitude or snow prefer going to the Himalayas to places like Roopkund in Uttarakhand, Valley of Flowers in Uttarakhand, Kedarkantha in Uttrakhand, Goecha la in Sikkim,

We have usually had two categories of people; one type who would have a mindset wherein they like to challenge themselves and put themselves in situations they have never been before and the other type of people who come to unwind and prefer to disconnect from the hustle bustle of the city.

Promotional plans We have always tried to think out-ofthe-box and have made content that is very people centric. For instance, recently we declared September as 'Teachers Month' to honour the contribution of a mentor in one’s life and offered a flat discount to all the teachers who came on board. We also constantly have different photo contests where people get a change to share their content based on the theme provided by us with different outdoor/adventure incentives.

"We are also very active on social media and make a lot of interactive opportunities for people to be a part of the trip. Being customer centeric acts as a strong marketing and promotional plan for us.

Trends We have noticed two kind of travellers- those who are very passionate about travel and adventure to pursue their travel over weekends, etc. or even long weekends. The others are the long weekend travellers who experiment in travel and adventure over long weekends and then join for weekend adventures.

Indian Market 2016 As per our experience, we anticipate that there will be a further rise in the number of people choosing the outdoors for trekking and adventure over people choosing to be in the cities following the regular routine for the year 2017-18.

Charter unknown courses through spontaneous trips IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

Arjun Malhotra ,Co-founder, No Thepla Holidays, explains how one can make a holiday even more exciting without making too many preparations and going with the flow. founder Arjun Malhotra talks about what they do.

N

o Thepla Holidays was founded by like-minded people who liked the idea of taking a break in the sense that they don't plan to go on holidays where everything is planned. Interestingly, they make certain that travellers don't miss out on important events and mustdo activities in each place. Its Co-

Voyager’s World > October 2017

Destinations Most of our trips are from one weekend to the following weekend.

For this year, the trips we have had are Maldives - a scuba diving trip, Philippines - a flashpacking / party trip and Jordan - a flashpacking / experiential trip. We are in the stages of releasing one more trip in Asia. We also have a yearly trip to a European summer music festival .During the Diwali season 2018, we will have more trips to the South East. We are looking at trips to new countries such as Laos, Israel, Georgia etc. We have only one trip within India which is an overnight rafting, barbeque and pool party trip between Mumbai and Pune.

Travellers We definitely have solo travellers joining our trips, but we also have couples and sometimes, two or three friends joining the trip. Our group size is always 10or below, so we do not encourage a group of six to seven friends coming as it leaves the remaining trip participants feeling left out. All our trips are for people over the age of 18 years only. We also have corporate offsite trips for a large company as a team building activity. Indian travellers are now looking for something experiential and the willingness to meet someone new.

Indian Market India's outbound tourism has been growing well; 2016 was a good year for the modern Indian flashpacker,

till the end of the year. The year end of 2016 and the first quarter of 2017, the effects of November 8 and GST played dampeners as holidays in general are hit immediately with a reduction of cash in hand. At present, things seem to be on the rise once again, so, we are hoping 2018 will be a good year.

Marketing Plans Our marketing is mainly done through social media. In 2017, we created two events like Lazy Daze, a one day music festival with craft beer and Cool Runnings, a party event for around 1,000 people at the Race Course during the racing season. Apart from this, we also organize food pop ups for less than 40 people, made from ingredients sourced during our travels.

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Online Travel

42>>

India Untravelled.. bridging tech gaps in responsible tourism IRENE SUSAN EAPEN

Sifti Dhillon, Marketing and PR, India Untravelled, talks about how the portal brings the urban traveller closer to rural parts of India through digital marketing. trips in terms of hikes, walks, birding tours, village visits etc.," says Sifti Dhillon, Marketing and PR, India Untravelled.

Concept of India Untravelled India Untraveled is a social enterprise that focuses on bridging the digital marketing gap between socially responsible tourism offerings in rural parts of India and urban travellers looking for authentic travel experiences. "We are offering activities available at our homestays that include nature

India Untravelled promotes farmstays and homestays across the country, places that are in a rural setting, away from the crowded hill stations. " The important aspect of all our accommodations is mainly responsible tourism.

We make sure all our locations we offer are benefiting the local community as well as taking care of the environment. Today's urban travellers are looking to visit offbeat locations."

and walks of life. We have a couple coming from U.K. next month for a 15 day trip and they are both 70+ years old. Usually the age group we get is between 30-50 years."

Growth in Indian market

"Our marketing tools are social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. We have had travellers from all age groups

Offbeat tourism is a rapidly growing branch of tourism. With the travellers looking forward to stay at locations away from the touristy

hotels and spots, the growth in this field is tremendous. India is a country that offers travellers a mix of culture, heritage and nature.

It has been a favourite among international travellers for decades.

With the introduction of offbeat expereinces the international travellers have a new found interest in travelling to India again."

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Voyager’s World > October 2017

Technology

43>>

Opening the way–technology should make travel accessible from start Courtesy: Tnooz.com

A

madeus has published ‘Voyage of Discovery,’ an in-depth report on accessibility in travel with insights on areas for improvement along the journey, including in the technology, which helps those with disabilities and seniors plan and navigate travel.

Tomás López Fernebrand senior vice president, general counsel & corporate secretary Amadeus IT Group explains the need for the travel industry to develop greater understanding of the challenges of the journey for the disabled and persons with reduced mobility in the introduction: “Millions of people with accessibility needs around the world want to travel more, be better connected, and have greater variety of personalized travel services and destinations. Above all, they want to be considered as travelers first, with the ability to plan, search, book and purchase their travel independently.

“The travel industry has taken important steps towards improving the offer to those with accessibility needs, but much work remains.

environments and initiatives, or equipping those working in the travel sector with the relevant information to support travellers with accessibility issues.

Stefanie Kratz, project manager, Lufthansa, said, “The most challenging task was to enable our website for screen reader usage, because we had to learn how our blind customers perceive a web site.

“We realized that accessibility overlaps with other best practices such as usability, design for older users, search engine optimization (SEO), improved maintainability and further system development."

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“Offering accessibility services is the right thing to do, and that will continue to drive action. What might create even greater momentum is the business sense to address a growing and increasingly important demographic – it is estimated that by 2050 a fifth of the world’s population will have some accessibility need.”

Amadeus identifies four key elements of the ideal accessible trip: effective communication, responsive service, along with standardized content and serves, as well as a personalized offer. It says: “Across these four areas, technology must be seen as an enabler of more accessible travel, providing user friendly, dynamic and effective tools to better manage travel experiences.

This will be achieved through mobile devices and personalized services, delivering improved web navigation and facilitating the access to relevant content.

“Technology can play a powerful role in all interrelated areas, whether through deploying more innovative designs, understanding how people will react to and with different

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FESTIVALS OF 3rd November Loi Krathong festival Thailand The Loi Krathong festival in Thailand highlights the close relationship between the Thai way of life and water. Starting 3 November, people generally gather around the lakes, rivers, canals, and other waterways for floating the krathongs, which are vessels shaped like lotus blossom made of banana leaves containing a candle, incense sticks, flowers and coins. The festival is celebrated in Bangkok, Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya, Samut Songkhram, Sukhothai, Suphan Buri and Tak and Chiang Mai.

21-29 October Jamaica Food & Drink Festival Jamaica The Jamaica Food and Drink Festival is taking place from 21 -29 October 2017. It is a delicious food festival that will entice the crowd at Kingston, serving an array of dishes like Pork Palooza, Chopstix, Vintage, Crisp, against the backdrop of themed events. The festival is meant for food lovers where you can enjoy the exotic dishes paired with ice cold beers. It showcases top 45 celebrated chefs from across the world, such as Lij Heron, Andre Fowles and other culinary mastered connoisseurs.

18-22 October Amsterdam Dance Event Amsterdam Known as the Mecca for electronic music lovers, the Amsterdam Dance event is happening from 18-22 October. This is the world’s biggest dance event that will be celebrated in 80 locations with 2000 DJs performing along with 300 events. The event is expected to draw over 350,000 visitors, followed by the annual announcement of DJ MAG Top 100. Some of the top venues for the festival are Melkweg, Amsterdam Arena, AFAS Live, and RAI Amsterdam.

Voyager’s World > October September 2017 2017

22 October Jidai Matsuri Kyoto,Japan The Jida Matsuri is happening on 22 October in Kyoto, Japan, wherein there will be an ancient costume procession that highlights the long history of Japan at the Heian Jingu Shrine. It is one of the third largest festivals of Kyoto. The highlights of the festival are the Jidai Gyoretsu, a historic pageant and a portable shrine called ‘mikoshi’. Around 2,000 people dressed in costumes, representing various eras of Kyoto’s 1,200-year history, parade through the city.

THE WORLD 1-31 October Lantern Festival Macao The 2nd Macao Lantern Festival is taking place from 1 - 31 October, 2017 as part of the Mid-Autumn Festival at Waterfront Promenade of One Centre and Anim’ Arte NAM VAN in Macao. The 10 monumental luminous rabbit installations are designed by renowned Macanese architect and artist Carlos Marreiros. The brightness of the neon lighting at Anim’Arte NAM VAN will showcase Macao’s unique image with the blending of Chinese and Portuguese culture. These exhibits, together with the artistic rabbit lanterns at the Promenade of One Central Macau, embellish the moonlight and the festive atmosphere.

19 October MassKara Festival The Philippines The MassKara Festival is taking place on 19 October in Bacolod City, Philippines. This is one of the most famous festivals that is celebrated with the locals of the city who will don colourful smiling masks demonstrating a multitude of smiling faces and backing Bacolod’s title of the ‘City of Smiles’. This is also a celebration of the founding anniversary of Bacolod City. The festival includes carnivals, float parades, fairs and MardiGras-style costumes and masked street dancers.

4 November The New Zealand Cider Festival New Zealand The New Zealand Cider Festival is taking place on 4 November at Nelson’s Founders Heritage Park. The cider makers gather up to promote their best and latest tipples. The festival is the celebration of diversity, whether it is ingredients, producers or consumers. One also gets a chance to sample both traditional and new varieties from across the country, along with good food and entertainment.

18 November, 2017- 31 January, 2018 Winter Festival of Lights Canada The Winter Festival of Lights will take place from 18 November 2017 to 31 January 2018, celebrating the 35th season of the Ontario Power Generation Winter Festival of Lights. The event will include the opening ceremonies in Queen Victoria Park with illuminations of iconic Zimmerman Fountain, three dimensional Canadian Wildlife displays including moose, deer and bison in Dufferin Islands, the world’s largest Canadian-American Flag, Noah's Ark, the illumination of Niagara’s iconic Skylon Tower, over 50 trees in Dufferin Islands wrapped with lights in Dufferin Islands and the Toronto Power Generating Station Light Show.

www.voyagersworld.in

Happenings

MP wins Hall of Fame Award at National Tourism Awards

M

adhya Pradesh bagged the Best Tourism State National Award for the third consecutive time this year at the National Tourism Awards held on 27 September in New Delhi. The President of India Ramnath Kovind bestowed the the Hall of Fame award to the state at a grand ceremony organised at Vigyan Bhavan to Minister of State for Tourism (Independent Charge) Surendra Patwa, Chairman of State Tourism Development Corporation Tapan Bhoumik and Secretary Tourism Hariranjan Rao. The Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Tourism and Information Technology K.J. Alphons was also present on the occasion.

46>>

Goa Tourism splashes carnival colours at IFTM Top Resa

G

oa Tourism took part in the 39th edition of the IFTM Top Resa - MAP Pro Trade Fair that took place at the Porte de Versailles in Paris from 26 - 29 September. The coastal state promoted its carnival festivities during the event with the theme ' Viva Carnival Theme Stall' that was inaugurated by Manohar Trimbak Ajgaonkar, Minister of Tourism, Govt. of Goa. Also present was Menino D’Souza, Director of Tourism, Govt. of Goa. The stall was erected on an area of 45 sq m and two side open displaying colourful carnival masks adoring the stall all round it and portraying drawings besides posters of Goa’s unique tourist attractions. Goa's adventure activities, wellness, MICE, heritage and hinterland tourism were also highlighted in a big way.

Tejbir Singh Anand bags Hall of Fame Award at ATOAI Annual Convention

Seychelles Tourism Board conducts a three-city road show

T

S

ejbir Singh Anand receives the Hall Of Fame Awardee during the ATOAI 13th Annual Convention at Kumarakom, Kerala as he has played a great role in the Indian tourism industry for over two decades and has held various positions as the executive committee member for Adventure Tour Operators Association of India and the treasurer of ATOAI for two terms.

He has also been the Chairman for three national conventions of ATOAI.He was the President of ATOAI from 2008 – 2010 and again was re-elected for the term 2010-2012.

Voyager’s World > August 2017

eychelles Tourist Office India recently organised a three-city roadshow from 18 to 22 September 2017 in Delhi, Ahmedabad and Mumbai. The event was attended by travel trade representatives from north and western parts of India. The tourism board commenced its event with the Round Robin format for pre-scheduled meetings between the partners that included DMCs- Mason’s Travel, 7 Degree South, Vision Voyages, Summer Rain Tours, Luxury Travel Services, Hotel- MAIA Luxury Resort and Spa, Eden Bleu, Enchanted Island Resort, Savoy Resort, Le Relax Hotels, H resort, Cruise Company- Variety Cruises and Airlines- Air Seychelles, Sri Lankan Airlines, the Seychelles government association- SHTA-Seychelles Hospitality and Tourism Association.

Sherin Francis, CEO Seychelles Tourism Board said, “We look forward to strengthen our bonds with the Indian travel trade with more of such events.”

Happenings

47>>

Hong Kong Tourism organized a travel mission in India

T

he Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) organised an annual travel mission in India from 21 – 25 August in Chennai, Mumbai, Kolkata and New Delhi with 31 Hong Kong trade partners, to emphasize the growth benefits from the leisure and MICE segments while focusing on building a strong relationship between

India and Hong Kong trade partners.

Peter Hoslin, Regional Director, Europe and New Markets, HKTB, said, “India is an important market for us. Families are our key segments and we are also seeing leisure travel segment especially among millennials and independent travellers. ” Highlights included city and culture, outdoor activities, culinary trails, nightlife, bargain shopping, walking tours in Old Town Central, visit to Big Buddha and Po Lin Monastery, outdoor activities on Lantau Island, nature hiking trails with views out over Victoria Harbour, secret temples, Disneyland and Ocean Park.

Punjab Tourism marks World Tourism Day

P

unjab Tourism celebrated World Tourism Day on 27 September 2017 at the Senate Hall Punjabi University, Patiala. The theme was on 'Sustainable Tourism for Development'.

There was participation by the Industry stakeholders like speakers from farm owners and Indian association of Tour Operators (IATO).

Navjot Singh Sidhu, Tourism and Cultural Affairs Minister, Punjab, was the Chief Guest along with the Principal Secretary Tourism and Cultural affairs Punjab Jaspal Singh, Director Tourism and Cultural Affairs Punjab Shivdular Singh Dhillon, Vice Chancellor Patiala University Bhoora Singh Ghuman and Punjab Tourism Officers.

IAAI organises ICON 2017 in Kochi

I

CON 2017, the National Convention of the IATA Agents Association of India (IAAI), was held from 14 - 17 September at the Cherai Beach Resorts, Kochi. Inaugurated by the Union Minister of State for Tourism, K.J. Alphons, the convention was attended by over 400 delegates from across the country. The occasion was graced by the presence of Public Accounts Committee (Parliament) Chairman K.V. Thomas M.P., Sanjay Shrivats, Regional Director, India Tourism; ExMinister for Fisheries S. Sarma MLA. K.J. Alphons who spoke at length about the efforts to be taken for the growth and development of tourism lamented that the foreign tourists are forced to check in to the hotels just to answer the nature’s call as there are no public lavatories on the national highways of Kerala.

India’s first medical tourism network launches in Kerala

T

he MediBiz Ayur Home, the country’s first medical tourism network promoted by MediBiz TV, was inaugurated by Santhigiri Ashram Organizing Secretary Swamy Gururethnam Jnana Thapaswi on 8 October near the Thiruvambadi Beach, Varkala in Kerala.

NRI entrepreneur Sohan Roy launched MediBiz Ayur Home as part of the efforts to develop Kerala into an international medical tourism destination.

The first Medibiz Ayur Excellence Awards, accredited by the World Medical Council, were given on the occasion to honour medical associations, hospitals, resorts, holistic services, medical publications and organic food networks for their valuable contributions towards the healthcare sector.

www.voyagersworld.in

Travel Trends

48>>

Business travel success: reduce friction, add tech, serve up satisfaction Courtesy: Tnooz.com

T

his is one of the key findings in a new report – Creating a Frictionless Travel Experience– released this week. According to the report: “For companies around the world, enhancing the travel experience for employees instead of cutting corners on costs promotes workplace satisfaction, organizational loyalty and operating efficiencies.”

The best way to enhance the travel experience is to make it frictionless.

Satisfaction, loyalty and efficiency are key parts of an employee’s mindset when he or she takes to the road on behalf of their company. The evidence that travel can positively impact these three states of mind is clear from the study, providing the trip is frictionless from start to finish.

The experience matters The connection between frictionless travel and a loyal and satisfied workforce applies around the world.

The report not only provides a global overview, but also drills down into four regions – EMEA, North America, Asia-Pacific and Latin America.

And while there are differences in some areas, the fact is that 80% of travelers believe their trip experience affects how well they do their job.

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By region -79% of travelers in AsiaPacific are generally satisfied with traveling for work at their current job. Sabre found that APAC travelers want automated information, itinerary-management apps, and mobile payment capabilities.

Similarly, 93% of Latin American travelers say they are satisfied with their business travel. Convenient, comfortable hotels are key to a frictionless experience for Latin American business travellers. For EMEA travellers, travel safety and efficiency are top priorities. “Highperforming organizations realize that less traveler friction equates to more productive journeys,” the study says.

Pain relief Having established that frictionless travel is a prerequisite for a loyal and productive workforce, the study identifies the pain points felt by travelers and suggests ways in which technology can alleviate the annoyances.

The pain points are relatively consistent across the regions and tend to fall into the “worklife balance” category. Business travelers expressed dissatisfaction with the amount of time spent traveling, a pain point which, other than ensuring direct flights or high-speed trains with convenient departure times are available, is hard to eliminate.

But tech-based solutions can be applied before, during and after the trip to make the experience as frictionless as possible. Travelers from Latin America said that improving communication can help eliminate many of the pain points – good news for corporations as it is a relatively low-cost service to

implement. Travelers in EMEA and North America identified the filing of post-trip expenses as a headache and wanted to be able to do this via their smartphones; the APAC responses are around convenience and comfort, such as the ability to change a flight or hotel booking on the go via mobile, which was also identified as a high priority.

The proof is in the policy Travel programs serve two masters – the corporation and the traveler.

From the former’s perspective, negotiated rates and preferred supplier contracts can deliver significant and easily measurable cost savings. The benefits of a traveler-centric program that boosts employee well-being and job satisfaction are more abstract.

For travelers, the situation is unequivocal – 100% of the sample said travel is an important driver of job satisfaction and the majority said that a potential employer’s travel program and policy is important when deciding on a new job. This is most evident in Latin America where 67% agreed, whereas EMEA respondents were the least concerned with 50% of potential recruits factoring travel policy into their decision-making process.

From the findings above, it is clear that corporations with a frictionless travel policy have the edge over those that focus on cost savings when it comes to bringing in new staff. Having also established travel

as a key driver of job satisfaction, an argument can also be made that travel can be a determining factor in staff retention.

Corporations most heavily impacted are those that focus primarily on cost-saving travel programs rather than traveler-centric experiences.

According to external research, the cost of replacing senior employees can be more than 200% of their annual salary. Having a frictionless travel policy is not necessarily a guarantee that staff will stay – people change jobs for a variety of reasons – but it clearly helps if employees feel the corporation is doing everything it can to make the business travel experience as stress-free as possible.

The big picture Creating a frictionless travel experience for travelers has been part of the corporate conversation for some time. Technology tools and solutions are available to address most of the pain points felt by travelers, while the investment required can be justified by the benefits of having a more productive, loyal and satisfied workforce.

The report concludes: “By prioritizing the business traveler’s experience, companies can foster organizational loyalty, a dedicated team, and a positive work environment while offsetting the loss of productivity and revenue that can occur when the travel experience is poor.”

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Voyager’s World > October 2017

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Top Appointments

49>> Katerina Giannouka

Anshuman Bali

President- Asia Pacific Carlson Rezidor

Executive Chef JW Marriott Mumbai Sahar

C

arlson Rezidor Hotel Group appoints Katerina Giannouka as the President of Asia Pacific who will be responsible in leading the Asia Pacific executive committee and its corporate offices in Singapore, Shanghai and Delhi. Prior to this, she was working with the Rosewood Hotel Group. She has also worked with the Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide and HVS.

J

W Marriott Mumbai Sahar appoints Anshuman Bali as the Executive Chef. He brings with him an experience of over 16 years.

He started his career with the Taj Group of Hotels as a Management Trainee. He has also worked with the Imperial Hotel in New Delhi and the Oberoi Hotels and Resorts. Prior to this, he was responsible for kitchen operations with hotels such as The Leela Palace Hotel in Udaipur and Four Seasons Hotel in Mumbai.

Tony Douglas

Shanta Kamath

Chief Executive Officer Etihad Aviation Group

Director of Sales J W Marriott Mumbai Juhu

J

W Marriott Juhu appoints Shanta Kamath as the Director of Sales. She brings with her an experience of over 11 years in sales, marketing and business development. Prior to this, she has worked with Grand Hyatt, Mumbai who was responsible in developing various pricing strategies, maximizing business and analyzing vital sales statistics, Intercontinental Hotel Mumbai and ITC Hotels.

T

ony Douglas joins as the Chief Executive Officer of Etihad Aviation Group effective from January 2018. Prior to this, he has worked as CEO of the Defence Equipment and Support department, from the United Kingdom’s Ministry of Defence. He worked in senior positions with airport operator BAA, and as Chief Operating Officer and Group Chief Executive designate of Laing O’Rourke in UK.

Gaurav Taneja

Jennifer J

General Manager Radisson Blu Atria, Bengaluru

G

aurav Taneja is appointed as the General Manager of Radisson Blu Atria, Bengaluru . He brings with him an experience of more than 22 years. Prior to this, he has worked with various leading brands like Novotel Mumbai Juhu Beach, Oberoi group of Hotels – Hilton Towers Mumba and Renaissance Mumbai – Marriott .

Sales & Marketing Head, UVA Meridian Bay Resort & Conventions

U

VA Meridian Bay Resort & Conventions, Kundapur appointed Jennifer J as the Sales and Marketing Head. She has an experience of 10 years in sales and has worked with various brands like Le Meridien Bangalore, Marriott Group and Royal Orchid Hotels, Bangalore. In her new role, she will be responsible for driving the sales of the property.

Mansi Bhasin

Vijay Puthran

Head of Corporate Communication/ PR The Suryaa New Delhi

Regional Head of South Asia &GCC Ujala Vacations

M

ansi Bhasin is appointed as the Head of Corporate Communication and PR of The Suryaa New Delhi. She brings with her an experience of over 8years. She has worked in corporate PR, lifestyle, entertainment and hospitality, Media Relations, Client Servicing, Marketing Strategies and event Management.

She has also handled and promoted several prominent hospitality brands especially in the Delhi NCR region.

V

ijay Puthran joins Ujala Vacations as the Regional Head of South Asia & GCC. Prior to this he has working with Royal Arabian Destination Management Company as the director of sales. He brings with him an experience of over 40 years in various companies, while 16 years of experience include in sales and marketing in cruise industry of India.

Rishi Kumar

T

Director of Operations Sheraton Grand Bangalore at Brigade Gateway

he Sheraton Grand Bangalore Hotel at Brigade Gateway appoints Rishi Kumar as the Director of Operations. He brings with him an experience of over 14 years and has worked with various brands like Taj Group and The Orchid Hotels. Prior to this, he has worked as the Director of Food & Beverage at Taj Lands End Mumbai.

Anuj Soin F& B Manager Vivanta by Taj

A

nuj Soin joins Vivanta by Taj as the Food and Beverage Manager. He brings with him an experience of over a decade in the hospitality industry. He started his career with the Rambagh Palace, Jaipur. He has worked with various brands like the Leela Gurugram, Courtyard by Marriott Gurugram as Food & Beverage Manager.

www.voyagersworld.in

NETWORKING ISTHe THE NeTwoRkINg Is ke KEY y October 2017

November 2017

December 2017

January 2018

February 2018

October 2017 25, 26, 27 ITB Asia Marina Bay Sands, Singapore 27, 28 Visit Lugano - Italy Italy Travel Trade

November 2017

December 2017

3, 4, 5 Holiday Expo Vizag

30 Nov, 1, 2 Dec Chengdu International Tourism Expo Chengdu, China

6, 7, 8 World Travel Market London

1, 2, 3 India International Travel Mart Hyderabad

23, 24, 25, 26 Philoxenia Greece

8, 9, 10 Greek Tourism Expo Athens,Greece

24, 25, 26 India International Travel Mart Pune

11, 12 Brussels Travel Expo Brussels, Belgium

January 2018

February 2018

8, 9. 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16 Outbound Travel Roadshow Mumba, Chennai, Bangalore, Delhi

5, 6, 7 IBTM Arabia Abu Dhabi - UAE

11, 12, 13 India International Travel Mart Kochi

6, 7 IMTM Tel Aviv - Israel

17, 18, 19, 20, 21 Fitur Spain 26, 27, 28 Holiday Expo Coimbatore

11, 12, 13, 14, 15 Outbound Travel Roadshow Dubai, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman 23, 24, 25 India International Travel Mart Kolkata

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