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Kerala Tourism wins award for exemplary activities during Covid- 19

Kerala Tourism has been bestowed the coveted 'Highly Commended' Award by World Travel Mart London, as a recognition for its remarkable activities aimed at promoting Responsible Tourism amid pandemic. Kerala has been bestowed the coveted 'Highly Commended' Award by World Travel Mart London, as a recognition for its remarkable activities aimed at promoting Responsible Tourism (RT) during the challenging times of COVID-19 pandemic. Kerala's Responsible Tourism (RT) Mission received this recognition in the category of 'Meaningful Connections.' The RT Mission received the award for its innovative work on 'Wok at Home Videos' and storytelling audio and video series produced and presented by various Mission units in the state during the pandemic that has posed multiple challenges to the tourism sector, an official statement said here on Friday. The Work at Home Videos have been developed by RT Mission entrepreneurs with a message to stay home safely during the lockdown but not to despair and to adopt measures to effectively prevent the spread of the COVID-19. The videos also make an impassioned appeal to tourists visiting Kerala to see their activities as soon as the pandemic-triggered issues are brought under control. "The award proves that the RT Mission is becoming a driving force in sharing innovative ideas and ensuring public participation in the tourism sector," Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran said. Tourism Secretary Rani George said the Mission has played a significant role in the tourism sector during the pandemic. "This is a morale-boosting recognition that celebrates the best-in-class of the global travel and tourism industry," she added. Tourism Director P Bala Kiran congratulated all the RT Mission unit members in Kerala for this achievement and sustainable tourism activities in the most adverse circumstances. The RT Mission had instructed the members of various units to wash their hands with sanitizer or soap and start their work. They were presented as a video document to engage them during the lockdown period. Besides becoming a marketing tool, it also became an instant hit in national and international platforms. This was followed by storytelling audios about each area and its festivals, followed by the videos on various traditional musical instruments and other folk art forms. State RT Mission Coordinator K Rupeshkumar said the Mission received a total of 1,048 audios and videos, all of which were produced and edited by the unit members. These were viewed by thousands of people through various social media platforms. During World Folklore Day, these videos were aired at the 'Folkkathone' programme for 90 minutes. "The uniqueness of this recognition is that the RT Mission units are proving that life-affirming activities need to be presented live without exaggeration to be evaluated and recognised by the world," he added. The award jury said it was the most popular intervention in the world to give confidence to entrepreneurs and tourists who are reeling from the epidemic. "The move sends a message that any crisis can be overcome by working with one mind," it noted. This is the 5th International Award for the Responsible Tourism Mission since its formation in 2017. The Mission has also won three National Awards. There are currently 20,017 units operating in Kerala under the RT Mission with more than one lakh beneficiaries as part of its activities. The units under the mission earned revenue of Rs 35 crore in three years. One of its salient features is that 80 per cent of the total units are headed by women. The Mission, which also runs 140 experiential tour packages, has so far imparted training to 7,000 people. Also, 48 new tourism destinations have sprung up through the Mission's flagship projects Pepper and Model RT Village, the statement added.

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Mumbai to Hyderabad in less than 3.5 hours via bullet train!

This is incredible news for regular travellers between Mumbai and Hyderabad. In the coming years, travellers would be able to reach Hyderabad from Mumbai in less than 3.5 hours, thanks to the upcoming bullet trains in the country. As of now, it takes an overnight journey or more than 10 hours by existing trains to cover the 711 km distance between the two prime Indian cities. As reported by TOI, the National High Speed Rail Corporation Limited (NHSRCL) has issued tenders for preparation of Detailed Project Report (DPR) for the Mumbai-Pune-Hyderabad bullet train project. The project will cut down the travel time between the two destinations by 9.5 hours. The average speed of a bullet train is 320 km/hour while the existing trains run at an average speed of 80 km/hour to 120 km/hour. The incredible speed is going to save a lot of travelling time. According to news reports, there are several other bullet train projects underway and the Indian government is investing INR 10 lakh crore on seven other such corridors that will cover a distance of 4869 km. Achal Khare, managing director, NHSRCL informed the media, “The bullet train project will benefit the country and give a boost to the skill development sector. The government has asked for DPRs of all the seven new corridors. Capital costs can be decided only after taking into consideration things like terrains and route length.” The Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet rail corridor is another major project, which is expected to open in 2028. And among seven such corridors, Mumbai-Pune-Hyderabad, is another significant project and as per NHSRCL, the first pre-bid meeting for it will be held in November.

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Palampur’s famous picnic spot Saurabh Van Vihar opens for tourists

A famous nature park, Saurabh Van Vihar, which is based in Himachal Pradesh’s Palampur is ready to see tourists once again. The tourist attraction was washed away in flash floods about three years ago. According to the reports, the Van Vihar was rebuilt by the society that takes care of it, with cooperation from the Himachal Pradesh forest department. The first phase of restoration work will see a boating facility for tourists; other tourist offerings will also be kicked-off in the next phase. Saurabh Van Vihar was made in the memory of Captain Saurabh Kalia, a Kargil war martyr. It is located in the foothills of the Dhauladhars on the banks of snow-fed Neugel Khad in Kwat Village. It is flanked by lush green forests, which attract a wide variety of bird species to the location. Enthusiasts love visiting Saurabh Van Vihar for picnicking activities such as boating, birdwatching and bouldering due to its refreshing ambiance.

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Travel Booking Platforms See a Surge of 40 Per cent in Daily Check-ins For This Year’s Diwali Season

Travelling is innate to humans; and the young Indian travel enthusiasts are eyeing the upcoming festive season to step out to celebrate the festive time at home or home away from home, according to new data. Travel bookings on the Goibibo platform indicate an uptick of 40 percent in daily check-ins for this year’s Diwali season when compared to the average bookings made in October this year. With significant week-on-week travel booking growth, travellers including young couples and group of friends are set to take leisure trips during this year’s Diwali break, the platform shared. For the young Indians, the one thing that tops the wishlist is to hit the road or the sky or the trail or the waves again. It’s an overpowering sentiment that is seeing people especially young Indians venturing out while being mindful of their own safety and also that of the others, it said. As travellers’ sentiment shifts before the year ends, the travel platform shared some pertinent travel trends it observed – that gives a good glimpse into the shape of emerging travel trends: Yearning for Just Us’ time Having being deprived of taking a leisure break over the past seven months or more, one in every two young Indian is now actively considering travelling in the coming weeks, as revealed a survey conducted by Consumer Insights team at Goibibo. This trend is largely driven by millennials and couples who are eager to break away from the lockdown monotony and are looking to spend “Just Us” time with their partners or close friends away from home. Since unlock 4.0, there has been a significant uptick in bookings for long weekends and a proportionate spike in staycations during the week days. Booking trends indicate that the long-weekend in October saw 30-40 percent higher check-ins than other weekends with many making compulsive bookings within 72 hours of travel or less. Also, with people gradually getting comfortable with the idea of taking their first leisure flight for that much-deserved break post the pandemic there is a growing preference for bookings to distant destinations across Goa, Kerala, Coorg and Darjeeling among others.

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Vistara to operate Delhi-Doha flights from November 19

As part of the air bubble arrangement between India and Qatar, Vistara will be operating non-stop flights between Delhi and Doha, the capital city of Qatar, from November 19, 2020. The airline will operate its Airbus A320neo twice a week between the two cities, on Thursdays and Sundays. Bookings are being progressively opened on all channels, including Vistara’s website, mobile app, and through travel agents. Leslie Thng, Chief Executive Officer, Vistara, said, “We are pleased to strengthen our presence in the Middle East by adding another global city to our steadily growing network, albeit for special flights under the ‘transport bubble’. As an economic hub of the region, Doha continues to draw business travellers and is home to a large number of Indian expatriates.” The all-inclusive roundtrip fares in economy class have been priced at INR 15,499, while a premium economy ticket comes for INR 26000 and business class fares are INR 52,000 Vistara will accept all eligible customers meeting the visa and entry requirements of both India and Qatar, as specified by the authorities from both countries.

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Passengers are more confident to fly: Vistara survey

While witnessing a steady increase in domestic traffic, at present, business travel continues to lead the traffic for Vistara, along with a segment of travellers who are returning homes or to places of work. This is followed by an expected rise in the number of people visiting friends and relatives starting in October 2020 and a spike in leisure travel in 2021. Announcing the results of the second wave of its customer survey to gauge passenger sentiment about flying in the current times, the airline observed that the responses indicate an increased passenger confidence since the first survey in June 2020. Conducted between August 17 and September 2, 2020, over 4,500 customers responded to the survey. Vistara’s Chief Commercial Officer, Vinod Kannan, noted, “We have been seeing a steady rise in demand for domestic travel since the resumption of operations in May 2020, and the increased passenger confidence further makes us hopeful of better times to return soon. Our customer survey findings concur with the current trend we are observing in air traffic. We take great inspiration from the survey findings that reflect the trust our customers place in us and our thorough measures to ensure their health and safety.” Here are a few insights from the survey: Nature of travels over the next six months Around 41 per cent of respondents said they plan to take their next flight by November 2020, and 63 per cent expect to take their next flight by February 2021. Flying for business and returning to a place of work/home continues to be the main purpose of travel in the last few weeks for nearly 45 per cent of the respondents. Visiting friends and relatives (VFR) is expected to pick up during the festive season and is likely to continue through February 2021 for an average of 25 percent of the respondents. Domestic and international travel 84 per cent of Vistara customers are likely to fly within India on their next flight, and only 16 per cent would fly outside of the country. However, 26 per cent of Vistara’s business class customers expected their next flight to be international. The top five most preferred international destinations amongst the respondents that they are likely to travel to by August 2021 (in order of preference): Singapore, Dubai, US, UK, and Thailand. Greater Confidence in Flying Two out of every three customers thought that flying is the safest mode of travel. 71 per cent of the customers rated Vistara 8/10 or higher for their confidence in Vistara ensuring their health and safety. This is an increase of 2pp from the first wave of the survey, despite a significant rise in Covid-19 numbers in India. The overall customer confidence rating for Vistara stands at 7.9/10. There has also been a significant increase in the number of people who do not fear exposure onboard an aircraft - from 32 per cent in the first wave to 49 per cent in the second wave. The percentage of people who do not fear any exposure at all also increased from 5 per cent to 19 per cent. Top concerns about flying again The findings of the survey’s second leg highlighted three top concerns for passengers in flying again: quarantine requirements/other restrictions implemented across states, higher fares, and fear of exposure to contracting the coronavirus. Customer Communication 85 per cent of Vistara customers feel sufficiently informed about the health and safety measures taken by the airline. The survey recorded an increase of 8pp in customers saying they were ‘very well informed’ – from 36 per cent in the first wave to 44 per cent in the second wave. With Vistara having rolled out several initiatives to inform and sensitise passengers about travel during Covid-19, Kannan commends the move, saying, “We are glad to see the results of our efforts, including continuous communication to create greater awareness among all flyers and build a sense of shared responsibility to make flying feel safe again.” Vistara’s customer survey was conducted online, covering various demographics of its customer base including Club Vistara members from all tier levels as well as non-members. The majority of respondents were salaried professionals and self-employed/business owners aged between 18 and 55+. The results were analysed by the airline’s in-house team.

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