News

Pride Group of Hotels launches Pride Biznotel Manjusar, Gidc Vadodara

Pride Group of Hotels has launched Pride Biznotel Manjusar in GIDC, Vadodara in close proximity to the National highway. Located in Mukut Nagar, the hotel is well-connected by road to prominent commercial and leisure destinations around the city namely Manjusar GIDC, Halol GIDC, Statue of Unity, Champaner Fort, Pawagadh Temple and Sayaji Baug. Pride Biznotel brand is moderately priced, upscale, full-service hotels that meet the discerning needs of a business traveller. Announcing the launch, Atul Upadhyay, Vice President, Pride Group of Hotels, said, “We are delighted to announce the launch of Pride Biznotel Manjusar, which is our 11th property in the State of Gujarat. We are buoyant on the industry’s growth of Gujarat that has fuelled demand for upscale mid-market hotels in this region. We believe Pride Biznotel Manjusar with its strategic location, imposing décor, delectable food options, banqueting and host of hospitality services will appeal to business and leisure travellers in this region.” Pride Biznotel Manjusar boasts of elegantly designed rooms. All the rooms are fully air-conditioned and filled with modern amenities like LED television, ergonomic work table, tea/ coffee maker, iron and ironing board, wardrobes, high speed internet connectivity and much more. The eclectic dining outlet comprises Café Pride – the multi cuisine restaurant that presents a variety of sumptuous cuisines and authentically prepared dishes. With an amalgamation of a vibrant and rich ambience, the restaurant takes pride in crafting delectable culinary voyages. Pride Biznotel Manjusar adds some zing to your business travel with state-of-the-art banquets and a sprawling lawn. The banquets are perfect to host private parties, social events and classified gatherings. The lush green lawn spans across 8,000 sq ft which is ideal for destination weddings, product launches, training sessions, team-building exercises and outdoor events. Guests can also enjoy a break at the Gym facilities within the hotel, like a re-energizing workout at the fitness centre.

Read more

Covid-19 travel update: Thailand to charge foreign tourists an entry fee of $9

Thailand plans to start collecting a 300 baht ($9) entry fee from foreign holidaymakers as the tourism-reliant nation predicts a recovery for the pandemic-hobbled travel industry once the current Covid wave eases. The fee will help fund the development of local tourist attractions and an insurance program for visitors, government spokesman Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana, said in a statement Wednesday. The levy will be added to air ticket prices from April, while the method of collections from entry by land has yet to be determined, he said. The plan for entry fee comes as the Southeast Asian nation attempts to chart the course for its tourism sector after the pandemic. The country has been experimenting with various plans to revive its travel industry with limited success. While Thailand was forced to suspend quarantine-free visas to curb the spread of omicron, it added more tourist destinations this week to the so-called Phuket Sandbox program to keep the industry afloat. While the entry fee has been in discussions for a long time, its implementation was delayed by Covid, said Suthipong Phuenphiphop, a vice president of the Tourism Council of Thailand. The levy is similar to charges on tourists in many other countries, and the benefits that will come from the initiative will be huge compared to the nominal fee, he said. Foreign tourists will have a maximum insurance coverage of 1 million baht each in case of death and up to 500,000 baht for hospital charges, Thanakorn said. The government is targeting as much as 1.8 trillion baht in tourism revenue this year, with 800 billion baht coming from foreign visitors, he said. The government expects 5 million foreign visitors based on the current situation, with the majority of arrivals expected from Europe and the US, Thanakorn said. If Chinese and Indian tourists return, arrivals could reach 9 million, and if land borders are reopened, that number would rise to 15 million, he said. “Visitors from Europe, the US, and the Middle East will continue to be the drivers of the Thai tourism sector this year, and the fee won’t have any impact on these groups,” said Amonthep Chawla, head of research at CIMB Bank Thai Pcl. “The focus right now should be to ensure business operators have enough liquidity to employ workers. But if the current situation stretches into the second half of this year, it’d hurt the economy.”

Read more

MoT allocates INR 500 crore to Uttar Pradesh under Swadesh Darshan scheme

The Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, has allocated INR 500 crore to the state of Uttar Pradesh under its Swadesh Darshan’s scheme for strengthening tourism infrastructure through various spiritual circuits such as the Ramayana and Buddha circuits. The information was shared by Union Tourism and Culture Minister, G Kishan Reddy after he virtually inaugurated PRASAD scheme projects at Govardhan, Mathura in UP. So far under the PRASHAD Scheme, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand together have close to 25 per cent of the total allocation of approximately INR 1200 crore towards pilgrimage, spiritual, and heritage rejuvenation, informed Reddy after inaugurating various components developed at the Govardhan Bus Stand under the project “Development of Govardhan, Mathura” under PRASHAD scheme of the Ministry. The project was approved by the Ministry of Tourism with a cost of INR 39.73 crore in January 2019. The components viz ‘multi-level car stand block, cloak room & toilets, boundary wall, and surface development at Govardhan bus stand’ have been successfully completed with the cost of INR 15.82 crore. Reddy further added that his Ministry is working tirelessly towards improving the overall facilities and tourism infrastructure. Other components sanctioned under the project include the development of Mansi Ganga, Chandra Sarovar, Govardhan Parikrama, and interventions at Kusum Sarovar. The illumination of the Kusum Sarovar is already completed and dedicated to the nation in February 2021, stated Reddy while mentioning that the work for all other components is in advanced stages of completion. In addition to the above-mentioned project at Govardhan, five more projects. have been sanctioned in the state of Uttar Pradesh under the PRASHAD scheme of the Ministry of Tourism. The total outlay of the projects sanctioned under the PRASHAD scheme for Uttar Pradesh is INR 139.75 crore. The sanctioned projects include the Development of Mathura Vrindavan as Mega Tourist Destination, Construction of Tourist Facilitation Center at Mathura, Development of Varanasi, and Development of Cruise Tourism in River Ganga

Read more

No Covid testing for fully vaccinated at Heathrow Airport

The Heathrow Airport in London has called for dropping Covid testing for those who are fully-vaccinated, while revealing that "at least" 600,000 passengers cancelled flights during the key holiday month of December, Sky News reported. The UK's largest airport said that "swiftly imposed" action during the month of December to tackle the Omicron variant in the run-up to the festive season prompted uncertainty among the travellers who faced additional bills for costly PCR tests. It added that there was now significant doubt on when demand would return despite the subsequent lifting of UK rules last week governing pre-departure Coronavirus testing for people arriving in the country, the report said. Heathrow urged governments to go further to help the wider travel sector gain traction. John Holland-Kaye, Chief Executive Officer at Heathrow Airport, said, "There are currently travel restrictions, such as testing, on all Heathrow routes - the aviation industry will only fully recover when these are all lifted and there is no risk that they will be reimposed at short notice, a situation which is likely to be years away", as per the report. Heathrow said that it carried fewer passengers in 2021 than in 2020 when the crisis first took hold - with lockdowns globally forcing it to cut jobs and report a 2 billion pound annual loss.

Read more

Thailand to launch new tourism campaign to reboot economy

Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has ordered the launch of a new tourism campaign under the theme, Amazing Thailand New Chapter, with an aim to revive the hard-hit tourism sector. According to government spokesperson Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana, the campaign aims to facilitate tourism sustainability and safety, reports Xinhua news agency. The government also planned to introduce an entry fee of THB 300 (USD 9) per person for incoming tourists, starting from April this year, Thanakorn said. This fee will be incorporated in the airfare and is meant to be used to develop tourist attractions as well as for insurance of tourists, he added. Expected revenues generated from tourism this year are around THB 1.3-1.8 trillion, with 800 billion of which from foreign travellers, the spokesperson said. Thanakorn said that if this year's pattern follows that of last year, tourists from Europe and the US would be major contributors, followed by travellers from India, possibly mounting to 7 million. According to the World Bank Global Economic Prospects Report released on Wednesday, Thailand's economy is expected to recover gradually over the next two years, with growth picking up to 3.9 per cent in 2022 and strengthening further to 4.3 per cent in 2023, with a recovery in tourism and travel.

Read more

India has everything needed to be a hub for medical tourism: PM Modi in Tamil Nadu

Inaugurating 11 new medical colleges and a new campus of Central Institute of Classical Tamil (CICT) in Tamil Nadu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that India has everything needed to be a hub for medical tourism. He further added that in the coming years, he envisions the country as being the go-to destination for quality and affordable care. Addressing the inaugural ceremony through video conferencing, the Prime Minister reaffirmed the importance of the health sector. “The future will belong to societies that invest in healthcare. The Government of India has brought many reforms in the sector. The Pradhan Mantri Ayushman Bharat Infrastructure Mission aims to address the critical gaps in health infrastructure and health research especially at the district level. I envision India as being the go-to destination for quality and affordable care,” he remarked. “India has everything needed to be a hub for medical tourism. I say this based on the skills of our doctors,” PM Modi added. He urged the medical fraternity to look at telemedicine as well. The new medical colleges are being established at an estimated cost of about INR 4000 crore, out of which around INR 2145 crore has been provided by the Union government and the rest by the Tamil Nadu government. The districts in which the new medical colleges are being established are Virudhunagar, Namakkal, The Nilgiris, Tiruppur, Thiruvallur, Nagapattinam, Dindigul, Kallakurichi, Ariyalur, Ramanathapuram, and Krishnagiri. The new medical colleges, with a cumulative capacity of 1450 seats, are being established under the centrally sponsored scheme of establishing of new medical colleges attached with existing district/referral hospital. Under the scheme, medical colleges are established in districts, which do not have either a government or private medical college.

Read more