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AIRLINES
SpiceJet appoints Jetwing as GSA in Sri Lanka
In a recent development, SpiceJet has
announced the appointment of its first General Sales Agent (GSA) in Sri
Lanka, Jetwing, based in Colombo with immediate effect. The move marks the
expansion of SpiceJet’s distribution footprints in Sri Lanka. As per an
exclusive agreement, Jetwing will promote, advertise and sell SpiceJet
products and services to people residing in Sri Lanka.
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Bahrain Air starts Mumbai-Bahrain daily
non-stop flight
Bahrain Air, the privately-owned national
carrier of Bahrain, commenced the direct daily flights on Mumbai-Bahrain
sector recently. The airline will operate as a low cost carrier and cater to
business class travellers. This is the third destination that Bahrain Air is
operating from India. It is positioning itself as a low-cost airline and is
looking at starting flights from more Indian destinations to the Middle
East.
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ASSOCIATIONS
IATO reiterates demand for being granted an export status for
tourism
IATO has reiterated its demand for being
granted an export status for tourism. “None of our recommendations has got a
place in the budget, but we are still optimistic. We will continue our
efforts with the guidance from ministry of tourism (MOT),” said Vijay Thakur,
president, IATO. IATO’s three-point agenda includes export status to tourism
and full service tax relief to tour operators duly approved by the MOT on
their foreign exchange earnings and to revive 80 HHD for tourism sector.
Thakur heaved a sigh of relief as no new tax has been imposed on tourism
industry. According to him, the withdrawal of Fringe Benefit Tax and full
exemption on customs duty on imports of water sports and ski equipment will
help in boosting the trade.
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Kerala to host Association of Independent Tour Operators annual
conference in November
The Association of Independent Tour
Operators (AITO) that represents some of Britain’s best specialist tour
operators, has selected Cochin as the venue for its annual conference that
will be held from November 18-22, 2009. The conference is expected to bring
significant gains for the host destination, as it will bring together the
business owners, key decision makers and reputed operators from the UK, the
biggest inbound market for Kerala. UK contributed over 1,40,000 tourists in
2008, with a nearly 25% market share of the total international arrivals to
the state.
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HOTELS
Best Western India opens hotel at Baddi, near
Chandigarh, in HP
Best Western India, represented by Cabana
Hotel Management, Best Western International’s master franchisee for India,
recently forayed into the management sphere of operations with the opening
of Best Western Royal Park at Baddi, situated 40 km ahead of Chandigarh, in
Himachal Pradesh. The 51-room hotel spread over 2.1 acres is located in the
industrial township of Baddi and will cater to business travellers. The
hotel offers different category of rooms across various price points.
Besides, its pillar-less banquet hall along with the adjoining open space
can accommodate over 1,000 guests.
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NTOs
JTB to organise B2B presentations in five
Indian cities from July 17-26
The Jordan Tourism Board (JTB) is
organising Business to Business (B2B) presentation for the Indian travel
trade in five cities across South India to focus on Jordan’s potential in
religious, leisure and MICE products for the Indian market from July 17-26.
These five cities are Mumbai, Bengaluru, Ernakulam, Hyderabad and Chennai.
JTB will invite a total of 80-100 travel and tour operators from each city
and is aiming to develop tie-ups with Indian travel trade partners.
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STATES
The 24-hour Metro Taxi Service begins in
Bhopal
The Metro Taxi Service was recently
launched in Bhopal by Ashwani Lohani, managing director, Madhya Pradesh
State Tourism Development Corporation (MPSTDC). The taxis will charge an
amount of Rs 12 per km. MPSTDC has launched 30 such cars, which are fitted
with the GPS system. “Bhopal is fast catching up with other metros in terms
of services and the metro taxi is yet another facility made available to
people for seamless travel,” said Lohani.
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TECHNOLOGY
IRISS introduces booking and invoicing
settlement system for small agents
With a focus on small travel agents across the country, IRISS Electronic
Travel Distribution launched its Phase I of Integrated Reservation Invoicing
Settlement System in New Delhi on July 8. According to C V Prasad, chairman
and managing director, IRISS, the company’s role would go beyond the
traditional GDS system. In addition to air ticketing, it would also offer an
array of non-air services from the same platform. Initially, the solution
will target the LCC segment of India. With an investment of Rs 110 crore,
IRISS, by 2010, plans to tap the Rs 8000-10,000 crore domestic air ticketing
market per month. The company has signed MoUs with 35 travel agents who are
prominent in domestic air ticketing market. Almost all domestic airlines in
India are likely to use IRISS as their distribution channel. IndiGo and
SpiceJet have been fully integrated with the system while some other
airlines are following suit.
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