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Caravan tourism on the rise as states ease travel restrictions

With some states having resumed inter-state tourism, many are backing caravan tourism. While Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka have introduced caravan tourism in the state, allowing travellers to hire a fully-equipped van with convertible beds, a shower, modern toilet, smart TV, music system, and a kitchenette, others may follow suit soon. The rise in the number of people renting caravans is at 15 per cent this year and people from the tourism field predict that the number will further rise as other states ease travel restrictions. As far as safety is concerned, the owner of a caravan renting agency in Uttarakhand, Sunil Guha says, “We ensure that surfaces of the vans are sterilised, and the upholstery and linen are steamed. Travellers can also use an Android app to control most of the operations, so they don’t have to touch the surfaces.” He adds. Good option in the current crisis, say travellers In the first phase, the Karnataka govt has opened popular destinations like Hampi, Gokarna, Badami, Kudremukh and others for caravan tourism. Recently, Natasha Colacom CEO of a money exchange app, and her husband took a road trip to Hampi. She says, “It is always a good idea to travel within the state. The campers are so luxurious that I chose to be inside and cook. Once we parked in Hampi, we went out for sightseeing. We took all precautions after stepping out too.” Likewise, Mohit Verma, owner of a salon in Jabalpur, took his wife and kids on a two-day caravan road trip to Pachmarhi in MP recently. “Monsoon road trips are a regular feature for us. This time, we hired a caravan, camped on the hill station, lit a bonfire and had good food,” he says. #VanLife is one of the trending travel topics of 2020. For many, work-from-home has turned into work-from-caravan as well. PR professional Sonika Guhathakurta from Mumbai is travelling with her boyfriend on the coastlines of Konkan, with proper permissions, and both are working from their caravan, while enjoying a staycation. “Being locked down for months in a Bandra apartment almost ruined our relationship. But travelling together while working and being amidst nature has been therapeutic,” she says. Jeeshan Alam from Goa is doing the same with his boyfriend. “We don’t have to work from office. We have our workstation set inside the caravan and we are road tripping with our dogs. After months of lockdown, we needed this breather,” says Jeeshan. The cost factor: Costs for renting caravans depend on the state, and the amenities you choose. Madhya Pradesh: Rs 60 per kilometre plus taxes, with a minimum travel limit of 250 km Uttarakhand: Between Rs 25000 and Rs 40000 per day Karnataka: Between Rs 25000 and Rs 90000 a day

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Flight ticket prices may increase from next month

Air travel may be slightly costlier from next month as the Union Ministry of Civil Aviation on Thursday decided to charge a higher aviation security fee, or ASF, from domestic as well as international passengers from September 1. Airlines collect the ASF from passengers at the time of booking flight tickets and the amount then goes to the government. The fee is used by the central government to fund the security arrangement at airports across the country. As a result, ASF for domestic passengers will be increased to Rs 160 from Rs 150, while the fee for international flyers will be raised to 5.2 USD instead of 4.85 USD from September. This is the second year in a row the government has increased the aviation fee. Last year, the ministry had announced that domestic passengers would be charged Rs 150 instead of Rs 130 as the ASF and international passengers would have to pay 4.85 USD instead of USD 3.25 as the ASF from July 1, 2019. Aviation is among the worst-hit sectors due to the coronavirus pandemic. Air travel was completely shut for more than two months since the nationwide lockdown in March. Although domestic flights resumed from May 25, the average occupancy rate has been around just 50-60 per cent. Meanwhile, international commercial flights continue to be suspended, barring special repatriation flights in certain air bubbles – the USA, the UK, France, Germany, the UAE, Qatar and Maldives – under the Vande Bharat Mission. Earlier this week, Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri announced that India was establishing more bilateral air bubble arrangements with 13 countries.

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Thailand to allow long-stay tourists in island of Phuket from October

Thailand will allow foreign tourists to visit for longer stays from October, a senior official said on Friday, as the government tries to revive a key economic sector that has been devastated by the coronavirus pandemic. Tourists will have to stay for at least 30 days, with the first 14 days in quarantine in a limited vicinity of their hotel, before they can visit other areas, Tourism Authority of Thailand governor Yuthasak Supasorn told Reuters. The announcement comes after authorities suspended plans to create ‘travel bubbles’ with partner countries as the number of coronavirus cases in Asia rose. Visitors will have to take two coronavirus tests during quarantine before they are able to travel to the rest of the island, Minister of Tourism and Sports Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn, said on Thursday. Staff will also have to remain in the hotel, he added. Visitors will have to take an additional test and remain within the province for another week before they can travel to other parts of the country. Thailand has gone nearly three months without a confirmed case of a local COVID-19 transmission. It has recorded over 3,300 cases. The government’s coronavirus taskforce on Friday extended a state of emergency for another month until the end of September to control the outbreak. The tourism-reliant economy has been battered by the collapse of global travel as infections spread. Southeast Asia's second-largest economy shrank 12.2% in the second quarter from a year earlier, the worst contraction since the 1998 Asian crisis due to the pandemic impact. The country expects to receive 8 million foreign tourists this year. By comparison, it had a record 39.8 million tourists in 2019.

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After hotels and monuments, banquet halls to be opened

The minister said the tourism sector has faced severe challenges due to the pandemic. However, this pandemic has also opened new opportunities for development and getting all stakeholders together to fight against this situation, Patel said. After hotels and monuments, banquet halls will soon be opened at half capacity, Union Tourism Minister Prahlad Patel said on Thursday, assuring the hospitality industry of his support to deal with the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Speaking at a webinar organized by the Ph.D. Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the minister said the tourism sector has faced severe challenges due to the pandemic. However, this pandemic has also opened new opportunities for development and getting all stakeholders together to fight against this situation, Patel said. “We have been able to give some help to the industry in the best way possible. We have been able to open all the monuments, hotels and soon we will be able to open the banquet halls in half capacity. We have been able to revive air travel to a certain extent and we will continue to increase it,” he said.

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Agra Monuments to reopen for tourism from September 1

Nearly six months have passed when India had imposed a lockdown to stop spread of coronavirus and since then most of the tourist places have remained closed. The district magistrate of Agra on Thursday ordered to reopen the historic monuments in the city, including Taj Mahal and Agra Fort, from September 1. "All monuments, except Taj Mahal and Agra Fort, have been excluded from the list of ‘Buffer Zones’; they will be re-opened for visitors from September 1, as per their scheduled timings," Agra District Magistrate PN Singh said. A review meeting was held by the district magistrate in this regard on Thursday. The district administration is planning to reopen the historic monuments in the city including Fatehpur Sikri and Sikanadara Tomb along with the Taj Mahal and Agra Fort in the first phase. he reopening of monuments comes after coronavirus situation in Agra is majorly under control. Meanwhile, the COVID-19 guidelines, including social distancing and use of masks, will be strictly implemented after the monuments are reopened for visitors. These historic monuments were supposed to reopen from July 6 but got delayed as coronavirus cases were high in this district of the state. Moreover, these monuments were coming under the COVID-19 buffer zones in July. The Central government had on July 2 announced that all monuments across the country will be reopened to tourists from July 6 after remaining closed for more than three months because of the corona situation.

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Inter-district bus travel to resume in Maharashtra from August 20: MSRTC

According to the state government's directive, passengers would not require an e-pass, permission or approval for inter-district travel in the MSRTC buses, but the transport undertaking will issue standard operating procedures for such travel. Nearly five months after it restricted all inter-district travel as part of the coronavirus-enforced lockdown, the Maharashtra government announced resumption of inter-district bus services on August 19. After the lockdown was enforced in the state following the outbreak of COVID-19 in March, inter-district bus operations of the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) were suspended. "The state government has allowed re-starting of inter-district bus operations, and we are planning resume services from tomorrow (August 20)," MSRTC's Vice Chairman and Managing Director Shekhar Channe told news agency PTI. Under the current lockdown rules, inter-district travel is not allowed barring a few exceptions. Inter-district travel without an e-pass is permitted within the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) districts of Mumbai, Thane, and Palghar. According to the state government's directive, passengers would not require an e-pass, permission or approval for inter-district travel in the MSRTC buses, but the transport undertaking will issue standard operating procedures for such travel. With a fleet of over 18,000 buses and nearly one lakh workforce, MSRTC is one of the biggest state road transport corporations in the country. Before the outbreak of COVID-19, over 65 lakh passengers used to travel daily in MSRTC buses. In July end, the Maharashtra government announced an extended lockdown in the state till August 31 in view of rising coronavirus cases.

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