News

Citra Kebun Wisata turns into Batam’s new tourism destination.

Tourists visiting Batam in Riau Islands now have a new destination to explore. Fans of durian will especially enjoy going to the 18-hectare Citra Kebun Wisata (Citra Tourist Garden), which is home to more than 1,000 durian trees of various varieties, including musang king, ang he, jantung and kampung. After paying the entrance fee of Rp 15,000 (US$1.07) per adult and Rp 10,000 per child, tourists are allowed to freely explore the area. However those wanting to eat the fruits must pay extra depending on the type of fruit and amount. Citra Kebun Wisata manager Nina Sofiana recently said that the main target market for this destination was tourists from Singapore and Malaysia who enjoy durian but have never seen the actual trees. The garden was soft launched in Dec. 7 and is expected to hold a grand opening event in 2020 while the management prepares more facilities, including villas and cottages to accommodate tourists who want to spend the night, as well as facilities to support outdoor activities. Ali Ulai, the owner of Citra Kebun Wisata, said it cost Rp 50 billion to design the garden, including purchasing the land and supporting facilities such as road access. Animals that are legally permitted by the government to be maintained in such a site, such as deer and birds, will be brought to enliven the garden as well. According to the Association of Indonesian Tour and Travel Agencies (ASITA) head for Riau Islands, Andika Lim, almost 80 per cent of foreign tourists who came to Batam as well as the province were residents of Singapore due to close proximity, reliable transportation and purchasing power. Tourism contributes Rp 200 billion per year to the Batam city budget, which is around Rp 2 trillion in total.

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Arabian Travel Market 2018 to start on April 22 2020 at the Dubai World Trade Centre.

The Arabian Travel Market 2018 would start on April 22 2020 at the Dubai World Trade Centre. Celebrating its 25th year, the four-day event will display the largest exhibition of regional and global hotel brands in the history of ATM. More than 2,500 exhibitors and 40,000 industry professionals from 150 countries would be there to commemorate 25th edition of the largest travel and tourism event in the Middle East. Travel trade professionals from across the world’s hospitality industry will come to Dubai for the opening of Arabian Travel Market (ATM) 2018, the region’s leading travel industry event.

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Japan Airlines to give away 50,000 domestic flights to overseas tourists for travel during Olympics.

Japan Airlines (JAL) will give away 50,000 domestic return tickets to international visitors in an effort to encourage tourists to "see Japan with fresh eyes" and "discover a new Japanese city". The Win a Trip with JAL campaign would enable visitors to "experience regional attractions", the airline added in a joint release with the Nomura Research Institute and NRI Digital. The campaign, which kicks off late February next year, lets passengers fly for free to select local destinations from Haneda Airport in Tokyo, as well as Itami and Kansai airports in Osaka. Participants must, however, be a JAL Mileage Bank frequent flyer member registered outside of Japan.Travelling period for the Win a Trip with JAL campaign will be between July and September 2020. More details will be announced in mid-January. The campaign is part of a larger tourism push by the Japan Tourism Agency and Japan National Tourism Organization. By boosting tourist travel to other parts of Japan, it is hoped that the campaign will help ease the shortage of accommodation expected in Tokyo over the Olympics and Paralympics period, according to the Nikkei Asian Review. The Olympics is scheduled to run from Jul 24 to Aug 9, while the Summer Paralympics will run from Aug 25 to Sep 6.

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Indian Hotels Company (IHCL) Signs Its Second Hotel In Gangtok, Sikkim.

Indian Hotels Company (IHCL), South Asia’s largest hospitality company, today announced the signing of a 50-room Vivanta hotel in Gangtok, Sikkim. This hotel is a management contract with Skipping Stones Pvt Ltd. Commenting on the signing, Suma Venkatesh, Executive Vice President – Real Estate & Development, IHCL said, “Sikkim is very famous for its ecotourism – trekking, mountaineering, river rafting and other nature oriented offerings. The signing of IHCL’s second hotel in Gangtok demonstrates our commitment to the region, taking our tally to 11 hotels across our brandscape.” The hotel is located at Pakyong, Gangtok’s neighbouring town and is a short drive from the new Pakyong Airport. Spread over 3.5 acres, it is situated amidst thick forests on a hill top with stunning valley views. The hotel has a distinctive design that showcases the region’s natural beauty. The spacious rooms are built around a large open air courtyard. The swimming pool is set amidst lush greenery. The other features include a multi-cuisine restaurant, recreation facilities and modern meeting spaces. It is a Brownfield project slated to open in mid-2020. The city is a gateway for all tourism in the region. Sikkim is famous for fascinating views of the Himalayas including Mount Kanchenjunga, numerous streams, meadows, lakes, hot springs and high altitude passes. It also boasts of around 5000 varieties of flowers and rare wild life. IHCL has eleven hotels in the North East region, West Bengal and Bhutan including five under development. The company is aiming at a Vivanta in every state capital with the brandscape expected to touch 25 hotels by 2022.

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China’s Henan province promotes destinations to Nepali tourists.

China’s Henan province, also known as the birthplace of Shaolin Kung Fu, has presented itself as an attractive tourism destination for Nepali travellers here.Song Liping, chief of Henan provincial department of culture and tourism highlighted the province as the birthplace of Chinese civilization, with five world heritage sites and many relics related to China’s ancient capital. Connectivity in Henan is also great. Many tourism sites could be reached through high-speed railway in a short period of time, she said. Henan is willing to collaborate with the Nepali tourism authorities on promoting tourism to each other as Henan’s over 100 million population is a major tourism source market too, she noted. On the occasion, Nandani Lahe Thapa, senior director at Nepal Tourism Board, the main tourism promotion body of Nepal, said that there was great potential for Nepalis visiting Henan as increasing number of Nepalis visiting abroad as their incomes are rising. She also sought support from the Chinese side as Nepal has been organizing visit Nepal Year 2020 when the Himalayan country aims to attract two million foreign tourists. China has been a second-largest source market for the last several years for Nepal’s tourism.

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Queenstown’s new theme park will attract 3 million tourists each year.

The theme park developers have converted an old underground aquarium into a virtual time machine named “Timetripper”, telling the story of how New Zealand and in particular Queenstown came to be. With this the authorities expect that the newest addition will attract more than 3 million tourists each year. With fossils millions of years old being found in the Otago region, it won’t be too far-fetched to tell that story. This new “Time Machine” will generate more tourism revenue to the state also. Ian Taylor and his animation team are the ones behind it, transforming history into a brand new video experience. Animation Research Limited, lead by Mr Taylor, have helped create the virtual time machine beneath the lakeside jetty in the town’s underwater observatory. The new attraction will service around three million visitors who make their way to Queenstown each year. Māori history, the formation of Lake Wakatipu and some unusual creatures, are all part of the new attraction bringing a different kind of thrill to the tourist hot spot.

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