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Dubai tourism authority relaxes Covid occupancy restrictions for hotels

Coronavirus-related restrictions on hotel operations in Dubai have been relaxed, according to a circular sent by the Dubai Corporation of Tourism and Commerce Marketing. The circular, seen by Arabian Business, tells industry stakeholders that they can now operate at 80 percent capacity, up from the 70 percent stipulated in rules issued by Dubai’s Supreme Committee of Crisis and Disaster Management in late February. "We are happy to announced that... we have increased the occupancy allowance at the hotels to 80 percent while adhering to all the precautionary and safety measures and guidelines," read the circular. "Moreover, we highly encourage you to ensure your whole workforce and staff have completed the vaccinations," it added. One hotelier told Arabian Business: "Dubai continues to see significant increase in demand and this is a timely announcement from Dubai Tourism, one of the many government bodies that continue to steer the city towards new heights of recovery." During the pandemic, 92 percent of people saw Dubai as the safest place in the world to conduct business meetings, Dubai Tourism Chief Helal Saeed Almarri. Almarri, speaking at the Dubai Global Events Re-opening Forum last month, also said that 98-99 percent of international visitors to Dubai after re-opening felt safe or very safe. Although the city was one of the first to shut down, it also became one of the first to reopen. Domestic tourism returned in May and international visitors were welcomed back to the emirate in July. In February, it was announced that coronavirus precautionary measures would be extended until the start of Ramadan in mid-April. The precautionary measures that will be extended until the start of Ramadan include: Indoor venues, including cinemas and entertainment and sports venues, will continue to operate at 50 percent of maximum capacity and under intensified precautionary measures. Visitors allowed in shopping malls will be limited to 70 percent of total capacity. Restaurants and cafes will be required to close by 1am. Pubs/bars will remain closed. Intensified monitoring and inspection campaigns will continue to ensure strict compliance with measures including physical distancing and wearing of facemasks. Dubai International Airport reported a 70 percent slump in traffic last year as flights were grounded and borders were closed in measures designed to contain the spread of coronavirus. The number of travellers through the Middle East’s tourism hub fell to 25.9 million in 2020 – that included 17.8 million passengers in the first quarter of the year. On Thursday, the UAE's Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP) announced 2,315 new coronavirus cases were reported in the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of recorded cases in the UAE to 463,759. MoHAP also announced two deaths and 2,435 recoveries, bringing the total number to 1,499 and 447,790 respectively.

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COVID-19 surge: Sikkim issues new guidelines for tourists

GANGTOK: Amidst the rising COVID 19 cases across the country, Sikkim government has issued fresh advisory mandating RT PCR negative reports for any tourists visiting the state starting April 7. All tourists will be required to carry a certificate of being COVID-19 negative from 72 hours prior to their visit and present it upon their arrival to Sikkim. According to the new guidelines, if the tourist fails to present the RT PCR negative certificate starting April 7, the establishments such as hotels and homestays where they are booked to stay will have to ensure the test is conducted at the nearest specified location. Earlier in March, Sikkim’s Health department had presented the need for screening of tourists at the state borders and the government was considering screening at Siliguri entry point in West Bengal. The new notification released by the Home department on March 31, however, has no mention on the same. Meanwhile, the Sikkim government has has also announced restrictions on vehicular movement between 10:30 pm to 6 am. Earlier, some relaxation was given to tourist vehicles, but the same has not been mentioned in the new notification. The only movement allowed during the restricted hours will be emergency and commercial goods vehicles. The Sikkim government offices will also remain closed on weekends. The Health department has also urged all eligible citizens above 45 years of age to come forward for vaccination from April 1. All government employees, including teachers above 45 years of age shall be vaccinated on or before May 1. Starting May 1, it will be mandatory to produce preliminary certificate of vaccination for all those above 45 years of age for visiting any government offices or using public transport. The vaccination certificate will also be mandatory for all hotel staff, homestay owners, taxi drivers as well as employees in commercial establishments, who are above 45 years of age.

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Tourism Malaysia gears up for border opening, to rope in operators from Ahmedabad

Amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic that has hit the tourism industry worldwide, Tourism Malaysia has decided to touch base with international tour operators in Ahmedabad to woo potential tourists from Gujarat to famous destinations in Malaysia once travel restrictions are eased. Currently, Malaysia is closed for foreign tourists with the exception of students and essential workers. It is mulling to reopen borders if the Covid-19 situation improves. Addressing a virtual press conference during a two-day Gulf Travel Show on Wednesday, officials with Malaysia Tourism Promotion Board announced the launch of #WeMissYou campaign to attract tourists from India and Middle East once travel restrictions are lifted. “At the virtual Gulf Travel Show 2021, we are planning to showcase Malaysia with our 10 selected tourism partners who will engage with potential buyers in Middle East and India during the 2-day virtual show. This a great opportunity for us to interact with the industry players and plan for the new normal… For this year, we are promoting the #WeMissYou to the market indicating that we miss the tourists coming to our beautiful country and can’t wait to see them again at the Malaysian shore soon,” said Shahrin Mokhtar, the director of Tourism Malaysia, Dubai. Manoharan Periasamy, senior director of International Promotion Asia & Africa Division, Malaysia Tourism Promotion Board said India and the Middle East markets have been a key source market for them. “Summer has always been a key Middle East market driver as we receive many travellers during this period, whilst May is the peak for Indian tourists. Over the past year, the pandemic, however, did hinder the situation, but now we are preparing once again to welcome our friends from India and the Middle East to a safer destination which would provide them what they require in terms of a secure, family friendly holiday escape,” Periasamy said. Officials added Gujarat remains their top priority and they intend to explore potential tourists when the borders reopen. Of the 5 lakh tourists visiting Malaysia every year, before the pandemic, a major chunk was from Gujarat, they added. “Tourism Malaysia has pan-India presence, however, Gujarat remains one of our main markets to boost the tourism. For this, our Mumbai-based office is touching base with international tourism operators in Ahmedabad,” Periasamy said. In 2018, the Tourism Malaysia had organised a training session of Ahmedabad-based tour operators with field professionals in Malaysia. Stressing that such an exercise will be repeated in the post-pandemic year, Mokhtar said, “Through webinars, we are not only connecting with our staff at Mumbai office, but will also organise training sessions for tour operators in Ahmedabad so that they are updated about the latest popular destinations and packages available. Operators will also be trained regarding guidelines of the World Health Organisation on travel protocols during Covid-19.”

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IndiGo starts 14 new flights under Udan scheme

IndiGo on Thursday said it has started 14 new flights under regional connectivity scheme Udan from March 28 onwards. In a press release, the carrier said it has started these flights on various routes including Bhubaneswar-Allahabad, Bhubaneswar-Varanasi, Bhopal-Allahabad, Dibrugarh-Dimapur, Shillong-Agartala and Shillong-Silchar. Under the Udan scheme, financial incentives from the Centre, state governments and airport operators are extended to selected airlines to encourage operations from unserved and underserved airports, and keep airfares affordable.

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Amarnath Yatra is expecting heavy footfall

The Chief Secretary of Jammu and Kashmir, BVR Subrahmanyam asked officers to prepare for an expected football of six lakh pilgrims during the Amarnath Yatra that is coming up. The yatra is a 56 day long pilgrimage, which takes you to 3880 m high to the holy cave shrine of Amarnath. The pilgrimage takes place in south Kashmir, and this year it is supposed to start on June 28, and culminate on August 22. The Chief Secretary has directed the divisional commissioners of Jammu and Kashmir to closely monitor, and arrange all required things such as camps along the yatra route for the pilgrims. This is particularly going to be so in Jammu, Ramban, Kathua, Samba, Srinagar, Anantnag, Udhampur, Baltal, and Chandanwari.' The holding capacity of transit camps must be enhanced, under the jurisdiction of almost 1.22 lakh yatri to this holy pilgrimage. Here you have the cave-bound pilgrims, and the ones that are returning on a daily basis. The Chief Secretary has reviewed the arrangements for the safe, smooth, and secure movement of pilgrims. This is particularly true for Jammu-Srinagar National Highway, Baltal and Chandanwari yatra. Basic amenities for pilgrims shall be provided here, along with adequate provisions all throughout the route that the pilgrims will take. The Amarnath pilgrimage is one of the most important ones for Hindus across the world. It is a cave temple located in Jammu and Kashmir, and is at an altitude of 3,888 m. It is mostly covered with snow, except during the summer months when it is opened to pilgrims.

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Boost to cruise tourism! State-of-the-art cruise between Surat and Diu flagged off; Check details

Cruise service between Surat’s Hazira Port and Diu flagged off! A cruise service between the Hazira Port in Gujarat’s Surat and the island of Diu was flagged off by Union Minister of State for Ports, Shipping and Waterways Mansukh Mandaviya. It was launched on Wednesday via a video conference. The cruise would be operated from a ferry passenger terminal in Hazira, which is developed by Essar Ports. Essar said that the new cruise would transform the coastal transportation in the western coast of the country, while also giving the coastal tourism in Gujarat a major push. During the launch, Union Minister Mandaviya said that cruise tourism and its development has been among the top focus of the Centre. Giving some figures, he stated that when Prime Minister Narendra Modi took helm of the office in 2014, India had about 1.07 lakh cruise passengers in a year, and by 2019-20, this number increased to 4.63 lakh passengers a year. Meanwhile, during this time, the cruise calls to Indian ports also rose from 139 to 445, he added. He also shared the aim of Maritime Vision 2030, as per which, by 2030, the Centre hopes to have over 350 cruise ships and more than three cruise training academies. Apart from this, the Centre is also hoping to have more than 3,000 annual cruise calls and 50 lakh annual cruise passengers by then. The minister further said that Hazira has developed as a cruise tourism hub, and with that, Gujarat tourism would also be benefitted. The cruise-cum-passenger ferry that would run between Surat and Diu is called JAI SOFIA ‘Mumbai Maiden’. It is a state-of-the-art ferry, which would be able to ferry 300 passengers in a single journey. The Union Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, in a statement, said that the cruise would last for around 13 to 14 hours on one side. The cruise vessel has 16 cabins to accommodate the passengers, and also has a gaming lounge, entertainment provision on the deck, and a VIP lounge among other facilities. The ferry would operate two round trips in a single week, and one side of the journey for one passenger would be Rs 900. However, this cost is only for entry. If passengers also want to avail cabin services, they would have to pay an additional Rs 3,500, and an extra Rs 3,000 would be charged for the VIP lounge, with taxes being extra.

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