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Kerela to explore promoting film locations as destinations for tourism revival

Kerela Tourism, will explore the potential of film locations to promote tourism and thereby accelerate the pace of revival of the tourism sector in the state. Informing this at the launch of the tourism Revolving Fund scheme of the government, Tourism & PWD Minister, Mohamed Riyas has said that he had an initial round of discussions on film tourism with the Minister of Culture. The Minister said that the idea is to identify locations of many yester-year Malayalam blockbusters and promote them as destinations for travel and explorations. He said that there are many such locations which remain unexplored by people. He said that the help and support of the film industry and experts from the tourism sector will be sought for the project. The Minister launched an online registration portal for submitting applications to avail interest-free loans up to INR 10,000 from the Revolving Fund set up by the state government for the employees of the pandemic-hit tourism sector. The Revolving Fund, with an initial corpus of INR 10 crore, has been set up as part of a set of government initiatives to reactivate the tourism industry, which provides jobs to hundreds across the state. Under the scheme, the beneficiaries can avail up to INR 10,000 without furnishing any collateral security. The loan needs to be repaid within two years after a one- year moratorium period. “The pandemic has seriously affected people, who are directly and indirectly linked to the tourism sector. No other state in the country has announced a scheme like this for the workers in the tourism sector,” the Minister said. As per the provisions of the fund, the applicant should be working in an entity which has membership of a recognised tourism sector organisation such as the Kerala organisations.

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Ladakh is looking for quality tourism and not quantity tourism: Jamyang Namgyal

Jamyang Tsering Namgyal, Member of Parliament, Ladakh has said that while the region has huge potential for tourism, it needs qualitative tourism which is sustainable in the long run. Ladakh, he said, cannot afford mass tourism at any point of time which is unsustainable and destructive to the fragile eco-system. Namgyal was speaking at a webinar organised by PHD Chamber on border tourism. Since its opening for tourists in 1974, Ladakh has attracted many foreign tourists and in recent years there has been an increase in domestic tourists, said Namgyal. It is important for domestic tourists to explore and be aware of Ladakh’s rural areas as it will further increase tourism and consequently uplift the livelihood of the locals. Border tourism is crucial for strengthening national security while establishing a strong foothold at India’s border areas. Therefore, border tourism is directly linked to the national interest. Namgyal said that winter tourism is another important segment that could attract domestic tourists and to promote this further, the UT will be organising a month long Winter Sports Festival for the adventure enthusiasts in February 2022. While giving an overview about the tourist places in Ladakh, K Mehboob Ali Khan, Secretary– Tourism and Culture, Administration of UT of Ladakh, said that Ladakh has rich heritage sites, flora and fauna, and religious tourism places, a majority of which are yet to be discovered. The Ladakh Administration has recently done away with the Inner Line Permit (ILP) for domestic tourists visiting all notified protected areas of the region which will further help in increasing tourism. However, while promoting tourism, Khan said that the Administration is laying equally good emphasis on sustainable and responsible tourism. The Secretary Tourism informed that the Administration will soon launch its Tourism Policy, where Border Tourism will also be included. Deleks Namgyal, President, All Ladakh Tour Operator Association, said that Ladakh tourism is now in full swing as infrastructure development like roads and telecom towers have brought both physical and digital connectivity in the region. The new homestay policy is a great initiative to bring tourists closer to the rustic culture of Ladakh. The Umling La Pass has become a major attraction for thousands of tourists and with the opening of Siachen Glacier base camp, it will certainly boost tourism, employment and stronger border presence in Ladakh. Pradeep Multani, President, PHDCCI, Pawan S Jain, Chair– Tourism & Hospitality Committee, PHDCCI, Rajan Sehgal, Co-Chair– Tourism & Hospitality Committee, PHDCCI, were among others who addressed the webinar.

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Malaysia to reopen to international visitors by January 1

Malaysia is gearing up to reopen its borders to international visitors from January 1 at the latest. This is as per a government advisory council, which added that this move comes as the country seeks to revive its failing tourism sector. As per the reports, the Southeast Asian nation started reopening its economy gradually in the past some weeks as the COVID infection rates dipped amid a ramped-up vaccination programme. As per the statistics by the government, more than three-quarters of Malaysia's 32 million population have been vaccinated. Referring to this, former Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin, who chairs a council tasked with spearheading Malaysia's economic recovery programme, informed that the tourism industry was recovering, but too slowly without foreigners, and added that operators required time to resume businesses. Mr Muhyiddin further elaborated that the infection control measures, such as COVID-19 tests, will remain in place, whereas authorities will determine entry of travellers based on the COVID-19 situation in originating countries, as well as other factors. Referring to reopening of the borders, he, however, did not state any specific date for reopening, but added that it will be announced soon.and that the said decision was still being analysed by security and health agencies. Reportedly, Malaysia also announced this week that it would be launching a vaccinated travel lane with neighbouring Singapore from November 29, which will quarantine-free travel for inoculated travellers from both the countries. It has stated that it will introduce a similar travel corridor with Indonesia on a gradual basis.

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'It feels good': New York welcomes back tourists

New York is welcoming back visitors with open arms after the US ended its 20- month Covid travel restrictions, but it will likely take several years before the number of tourists to the Big Apple reaches pre-pandemic levels. The economic and cultural powerhouse of Manhattan is already feeling busier since the United States lifted its ban on "non-essential" travel on November 8, with Europeans among the early returnees. Eglantine Lasserre, a 40-year-old from Bordeaux, was on the first flight to NYC out of France on Monday. "New York has always been a dream of mine, so when I heard about the reopening of the borders I jumped at the opportunity," she told AFP beneath the giant electronic billboards of Times Square. French couple Alexis Maynier, 33 and his wife Camille also decided to make their first trip to New York this week. On a piercing blue-sky fall day, they enjoyed the freedom of meandering around Broadway, 5th Avenue and Central Park. "We were under a lot of constraints and now we want to go back to more normal activities," said Maynier, referring to the nearly two years of various pandemic restrictions in France. "We want to enjoy and not think too much about these concerns," he added. The ban, first imposed by ex-president Donald Trump in March 2020, impacted foreign visitors from about 30 countries, including those in the European Schengen area, Britain, China, India and Russia. Visitors can now travel to the US provided they are fully vaccinated, a landmark moment in New York's bid to recover economically from the pandemic. The city welcomed almost 67 million tourists in 2019. They brought in USD 70 billion and more than 400,000 jobs, according to Chris Heywood, Executive Vice President of NYC & Company, the city's tourism board. "Tourism is an economic engine of our city. It's really the lifeblood of this economy," he told AFP. With 8.5 million foreign tourists expected to visit New York in 2022, he recognises it is "going to take a few years for us to fully be back," in the global tourism competition against Paris, London and Rome. It feels good "We're expecting by the end of 2024 to be back to the levels that we were in 2019," said Heywood. The diverse metropolis of 8.5 million people spanning the five boroughs of Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx and Staten Island has already come along way. In spring 2020, the city was unrecognisable. Manhattan's normally choked roads and sidewalks were deserted, resembling the science fiction movie Vanilla Sky, as residents self-confined at home, only venturing out for essential food supplies. Hospital and funeral services were overwhelmed by the crisis that has killed more than 34,000 New Yorkers. Slowly, the city has come back to life: Broadway is in full flow again and restaurants and bars are busy. Many workers have yet to return to offices though, leaving business districts still feeling quieter than before Covid-19. New York requires proof of vaccination to enter museums, theatres, cinemas and restaurants, providing a sense of comfort for residents and visitors. "We feel completely safe and we even tend to forget everything we've been through, and it feels good," said Lasserre

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Shillong beckons tourists as winter sets in

GUWAHATI: The mercury has dipped to single digits in Shillong and Kohima ushering in the winter chill. The Met office said on Saturday, there would be a significant decline in temperatures across the northeast in the next two weeks. The minimum temperature slipped to 8 degrees Celsius in tourist hotspot Shillong on Saturday, as per India Meteorological Department (IMD) data, whereas on Wednesday itself, the minimum temperature touched 9.8 degree Celsius in Nagaland capital Kohima. Shillong is witnessing a noticeable inflow of domestic tourists from neighbouring Assam and West Bengal with the slide in the mercury. The minimum temperature dropped gradually in the last three days. From 10.7 degree Celsius on Thursday, the temperature in Shillong dropped to 8 degree Celsius, 2.8 degree below normal, on Saturday. In Guwahati and Imphal, the minimum temperature on Saturday was 16 and 16.6 degree Celsius. The corresponding figure in Arunachal Pradesh capital Itanagar was 13.2 degree Celsius, though at 23.1 degree minimum temperature on Saturday, the weather was pleasant at Agartala. Kohima continued to experience cold weather with the minimum temperature recorded at 10.8 degree Celsius on Saturday.

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Meghalaya to attract tourists to ‘Garo Heritage Village’ with museum on tribe

In a major boost for tourism in Western Meghalaya, Chief Minister Conrad Sangma on Saturday announced setting up of a "Garo Heritage Village" in West Garo Hills district at a cost of ₹10 crore. Though the chief minister did not elaborate on the project, official sources said it will be a museum showcasing the culture and tradition of the Garo community at Chibragre locality of Tura, the headquarters of West Garo Hills district. Various infrastructure would be developed to attract tourists to "Garo Heritage Village". The chief minister announced the project while addressing a programme on the concluding day of the three-day of Wangala festival in the district. "Govt is committed to promote & preserve the rich culture & traditions of the Garos. With this objective, Govt has earmarked ₹10 Cr to develop a Garo Heritage Village," Sangma later tweeted. During the programme, the CM presented a ₹20 lakh cheque to the 100 Drums Wangala Festival Committee through the deputy commissioner for the year for hosting the festival.

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