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India, Germany to hold talks on October 6 on resumption of flights

Germany said on Friday it will hold talks with India on October 6 on how to resume passenger flight operations between the two countries. "We have received signals that India is also interested in a quick and satisfactory solution for both sides," the German Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure (BMVI) told . On Tuesday, Lufthansa had announced cancellation of all "planned flights" between India and Germany from September 30 to October 20 because of an "unexpected rejection" of its flight schedule by the Indian authorities. Air India on Thursday cancelled all 12 flights between Frankfurt and India till October 14 because Germany withdrew its permission to operate them. In response to queries sent by the , the BMVI stated it and the Indian Ministry of Civil Aviation are "confirmed to hold bilateral talks on October 6 through video conference". "The aim is to find a solution on how to restore civil air transport between Germany and India in the spirit of the existing air transport agreement between our two countries," it added. In response to question on what is the way forward to resolve the situation, the BMVI said it "does not want to anticipate the bilateral talks". "In the light of our long history of good aviation relations, we are convinced that we can reach a mutually beneficial solution. We have received signals that India is also interested in a quick and satisfactory solution for both sides," it added. Scheduled international passenger flights have been suspended in India since March 23 due to the coronavirus lockdown. However, special flights have been permitted under "air bubble" arrangements India has formed with 16 countries, including Germany. Few hours after Lufthansa's announcement on Tuesday on the cancellation of flights, Indian aviation regulator DGCA had said there are restrictions in place for Indian nationals desiring to travel to Germany which was putting Indian carriers at a significant disadvantage resulting in inequitable distribution of traffic in favour of Lufthansa. "As against Indian carriers operating 3-4 flights a week, Lufthansa operated 20 flights a week. In spite of this disparity, we offered to clear 7 flights a week for Lufthansa which was not accepted by them. Negotiations continue," the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) noted. Asked to comment on DGCA's observation about "inequitable distribution of traffic", the BMVI said on Friday that the German authorities, like Indian authorities, have adopted special entry requirements due to the coronavirus pandemic and they are applicable regardless of which airline is carrying passengers into Germany. "German airlines and their passengers must also comply with the regulations. Even in the crisis situation, the German authorities have in principle not restricted the frequencies approved for the 2020 summer flight schedule," the BMVI added. Lufthansa said on Tuesday it had applied for continuation of the special flights it was allowed to operate until the end of September but would now have to cancel them because of the "unexpected rejection". The German carrier said it "sincerely urges" Indian authorities to work together with the German government to establish a temporary travel agreement between both countries.

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Hotels in Kullu-Manali reopen after a long break

After a break of six months, hotels in Kullu and Manali reopened on October 1. The Hoteliers Association Kullu-Manali had taken a decision to keep the properties closed till September 30 although the Himachal Pradesh government had relaxed ban on entry of tourists within the state borders. According to the reports, the reason behind delay in reopening the hotels was their demand for basic infrastructure like COVID testing facilities and a COVID care centre in Manali. Anup Thakur, president of Hoteliers Association Kullu-Manali, told a news website that about 50 percent hotels have reopened on October 1, and the remaining will also reopen very soon. He also said that inquiries for room booking are pouring in after the government reopened state borders for outsiders. Since the winter season is approaching, the hotels in Kullu-Manali are expecting increase in tourist bookings. Due to the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to inaugurate the Atal tunnel on Saturday, October 3, a lot of VIPs had been staying in Manali, Kullu and Lahaul town.

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Andaman tourism industry looks forward to upcoming festive season for revival

With the Andaman and Nicobar Islands’ administration opening up some parts of the archipelago for tourism after a gap of six months, stakeholders in the industry are looking forward to Durga Puja for the revival of the sector on which a large number of people in the Union Territory depend for livelihood. The Union Territory has been reporting fewer Covid-19 cases of late. It has registered 3,868 infections so far, of which 173 are active cases, health officials said. According to some estimates, a loss of Rs. 8,000 crore has been recorded and 35,000 families have been directly or indirectly affected due to the suspension of tourism activities in the islands from March due to the Covid-19 outbreak. Even though the administration has permitted some tourism activities in South Andaman district, barring the Little Andaman Island, from World Tourism Day on September 27 and said it will consider opening up more islands in a phased manner as part of the Centre’s ‘Unlock’ measures, the archipelago has hardly seen any visitor. “We are hardly receiving any tourists since the reopening of the sector. But we hope to get some bookings during the upcoming Durga Puja festive season. However, there are only two daily flights from Kolkata to Port Blair. The frequency needs to be increased,” Robert Johnson, the director of Mini India, a travel company, told PTI on Sunday. A large number of people from West Bengal used to visit the tropical destination during the Durga Puja holidays in the pre-Covid times. The five-day Durga Puja festivities are scheduled to begin on October 22 this year. In the first phase of the resumption of tourism activities in the archipelago, the Union Territory administration has allowed the reopening of beaches, museums and light and sound show at the Cellular Jail, besides permitting water sports, boat rides and snorkelling. Recommencement of other activities like scuba diving, sea walk and parasailing will be considered in subsequent phases, sources said. The Department of Tourism has issued a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for restarting these activities, asking all the stakeholders to follow it.

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Long weekend sees domestic tourists rushing to Goa

Panaji: After six months, Goa tourism is finally seeing its first busy long weekend. Gandhi Jayanti (Friday) coinciding with the weekend has led to the influx of domestic tourists in a big way. Most starred hotels—that have opened so far—have done well with many offering fantastic packages. Non-starred hotels too have made gains though not in a big way. Goa will do well with increased domestic tourists even as the footfalls will be lesser than past seasons, said Nilesh Shah, president of Travel and Tourism Association of Goa (TTAG). “Many of the hotels have sold out. In some cases, the occupancy has been 70-80% and some hotels have 100%,” the TTAG president said. Of a total of 3,870 hotels, Shah said, over 600 have resumed operations and more will follow suit in the coming days. A starred hotel in North Goa had a three-night package, including air travel, at Rs18,000. Former TTAG president Savio Messias said it is totally a buyers’ market and hotels will have to offer discounted packages. “All hotels are offering the best value packages and trying to attract tourists,” said Shah, adding that with more airlines resuming operations to Goa, the inflow of travellers will rise. “At the moment top-end hotels are benefiting the most. Gradually, smaller hotels too will get business. Even customers are calling seeking information,” he said. He said China is experiencing a boom in domestic tourism with international travel restrictions in place. India will also go through a similar experience once Covid cases dip and a vaccine is available in the market. “Goa will benefit being the country’s favoured holiday destination,” he said. He added that the key to success will be to follow all guidelines, standard operating procedures and safety norms. With the 7th season of the Indian Super League (ISL) set to commence in November in Goa, starred hotels have seen increased bookings. “Teams are already in Goa for training sessions. Besides the organisers, sports channel crew and officials are also camping in Goa,” said Messias.

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Travellers resume long weekend trips, travel portals see 40% increase in bookings

There has been around a 40% increase in bookings on travel portals ahead of the long weekend starting Friday and brought rare cheer to the industry that has been among the worst-hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, people aware of the matter said. Travellers have begun to opt for homestays and travelling to nearby places since the government began easing restrictions imposed on movement to check the pandemic spread, they added. This has reflected in the number of bookings made since September. More bookings were expected as people are slowly moving from essential to leisure travel. Over the years, long weekends have been the most lucrative for the travel industry. While 2020 has had more long weekends compared to 2019, travel had come to a standstill due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Also Read: India’s Covid-19 tally surges past 6.39 million, death toll nears 1 lakh According to online travel agency yatra.com, there has been a demand for homestays and cottages this weekend beginning with Gandhi Jayanti on Friday. Travellers are preferring holidaying in secluded areas at drivable distances. “In the Unlock [easing of restrictions] phase, more travellers are looking for short-haul destinations having proper safety and sanitisation,” said yatra.com co-founder Sabina Chopra. She added ahead of this weekend, they have seen a 32% increase in booking inquiries and growth in demand for accommodation like homestays, 4-star, 5-star hotels, cottages, etc. She added with customer confidence going up, they expect better demand. Travellers from Delhi were preferring to drive to places like Jaipur, Nainital, Rishikesh, Manesar, Mussoorie and Lansdowne while those from Mumbai were heading to Panchgani, Lonavala, Alibaug, Lavasa and Mahabaleshwar. Goibibo’s chief operating officer, Vipul Prakash, said over the past few weeks, they have noticed a significant increase in bookings for weekend getaways. “Over the coming long weekend, we expect over 40% higher check-ins in comparison to bookings made for weekend getaways in August. Within this segment, over 70% of the bookings are for drivable destinations or to places within 400 km.” Goibibo bookings suggest Goa, Shimla, Mussoorie, Nainital, Manali, Coorg and Rishikesh have been the most popular destinations this weekend. Cleartrip’s corporate strategy head, Aditya Agarwal, said since September, bookings are in the range of 20%-30% of last year levels for Rajasthan and Kerala and around 18% for Goa. “...which signal the return in confidence to travel.” Agarwal said Cleartrip expects this trend to continue over the last quarter. “We saw a substantial increase in traffic volumes on our platform two to seven days prior to the long weekend and therefore this duration contributes to a higher share of bookings. Additionally, we are also seeing an increase in metro to non-metro travel over the long weekend indicating that people have headed back home to spend time with their families.”

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Nepal issues new guidelines for tourists arriving for mountaineering amid Covid-19 pandemic

KATHMANDU: Nepal has issued new guidelines for foreign tourists arriving in the country for mountaineering, including carrying a PCR test report conducted not more than 72 hours ago, in order to minimise the possible spread of coronavirus infection, a media report said on Tuesday. According to the guidelines issued by the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation , the travellers must have a booking-document for the hotel wherein they will stay at least seven days in quarantine, the Himalayan Times reported. “The travellers must carry with themselves a PCR test report conducted not more than 72 hours ago, attesting that the person has tested negative for Covid-19. Along with the report, the traveller must have booking-documents for the hotel wherein they will stay for at least seven days in quarantine,” the paper said, citing the guidelines. Nepal, which has reported 74,745 Covid-19 cases and 481 deaths so far, resumed the mountaineering activities from July 30,five months after they were halted due to the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. The ministry said the tourists must secure an entry-visa, or an entry-permit in the absence of visa-provision in their countries in coordination with respective agencies. According to the new guidelines, the visitor must provide papers proving they have an insurance of $5,000. In addition, the traveller must also undergo a PCR test at their own expense on the fifth day of being quarantined. They may proceed for the purported activity at the end of the quarantine period only on testing negative for the disease. “If the test results in a positive, the person must stay in quarantine for as long as they do not test negative,” the paper said. The Ministry also stated that the trekking or mountaineering agency must insure travellers from Nepal against coronavirus for a sum of Rs 100,000 prior to applying for a permit. Travel enthusiasts must also abide by all the protocols laid out by the health ministry. Tourism and mountaineering are among the main sources of revenue for the Nepal government. Last year, Nepal issued a record 381 permits for Mount Everest costing $11,000 each.

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