FINAL_SUPPLIMENT 2015-FINAL FILE:TT Layout 9/4/2015 4:36 PM Page 1
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TravTalkIndia.com
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Technology at the fore @PTM
As the PATA Travel Mart travels to Bengaluru,
catches up with Mario Hardy, CEO, PATA, about what ‘s new
at the mart this year. Hardy says the Technology Forum and the Investment Forum during the mart will be
some of the new elements that the attendees can look forward to.
PEDEN DOMA BHUTIA
now condensed in a much shorter
period of time.
How does it feel to be
Q
hosting PATA Travel Mart
How has the reaction to
in India?
Qthe
mart been so far?
It's good for PATA to be back in
India, a country that has so much to
offer as a tourism destination with
great potential.
How have you been
preparing for the mart?
Q
I must admit that organising an
event in India is a challenging and
The international response
has been good and plans are
moving along really well. The local
response had initially been slower,
but is now picking up. We
understand that traditionally local
organisations tend to plan at
the last minute, which is something
we have expected.
61 nationalities at PTM
PATA Travel Mart has changed the
format this year, so there will be three
major events — The Technology Forum,
the Investment Forum and the PATA
Travel Mart in itself. The registration numbers have been finalised, and 61 nationalities will be participating at the mart.
The enthusiasm to attend PTM is pretty
much on the lines of what was
expected, this is a good opportunity for
local players to get on to an international
platform and showcase their products
and services to the marketplace.
Runeep Sangha
Executive Director, PATA India Chapter
stressful experience. We are used to
long-term planning and tight preparation, but practices in India are different.
This means that all activities are
What are your expectaQ
tions from the mart?
What will be achieved by
hosting this mart in India?
The purpose of the mart is for
international buyers to get to know the
destination and help promote it. The
state of Karnataka and India in
general needs a tourism boost and
this is why destinations
host this event.
Mario Hardy
CEO, PATA
The purpose of the mart
is for international buyers to get
to know the destination and help
promote it. The state of Karnataka
and India in general needs a tourism
boost and this is why destinations
host this event.
What is
Qmart?
new at this
This year, we are co-organising
a Technology Forum with a
leading organisation specialising
in this area — Phocuswright. We are
also planning an Investment Forum
and we will soon announce a partnership with a leading event organiser
in this field.
How important a role will
Q
travel technology play at
this mart?
Bengaluru
is known as
the Silicon Valley of Asia and
we couldn't host an event in this
destination without having a
technology component.
The speaking panel organised
by Phocuswright will give everyone a
fantastic perspective on the start-up
opportunities in the country.
All eyes on PATA Travel Mart 2015
Extensive media publicity campaign has been launched in various national and international
media, towards the promotion of PATA across the globe by Karnataka Tourism department. A
host of brand new collaterals like launch of logos, delegate bags, T- shirts, gift boxes, stationary
items, post cards etc. have been created and were released during a curtain raiser media interaction of PATA 2015 at Hotel Lalit Ashok in Bengaluru on August 27. Over 1200 delegates and
international media representing 61 countries and almost all Indian States are participating in
the travel mart. Twelve hotels from the city are the “Official Hotels” as part of the PATA travel
mart, which will accommodate these delegates.
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EVENTTALK
PATA SPECIAL ISSUE 2015
TRAVTALK
3
Let’s make India incredible
India is abuzz with tourism activities, be it e-Tourist Visa, new aviation policy or Tourism Policy 2015.
finds
out from industry stakeholders what the tourism sector should focus on to encourage and promote travel to India,
and make the sector a money-spinner for the economy.
Creating bigger opportunities
Focus on technology
Suman Billa
Vikram Madhok
Joint Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, Govt of India
Managing Director, Abercrombie & Kent India
The tourism agenda in India has to be driven from the states, so the National
Tourism Advisory Board seeks to have the Union Tourism Minister as the
Chairman but it will have representatives from all the states,
the tourism ministers of all the states will be members
and we'll also get some experts into the board. The
experts will be stalwarts of the industry and connected areas. In essence it will be the highest advisory decision making body and it will have its own
secretariat and its own corpus of funds. It should
not be a platform where people will come and
talk and have no follow up, the idea is to have a
continuous engagement with the agenda whatever it is that is decided by the board which is why
it will have a dedicated Secretariat.
PATA Travel Mart is a very strong B2B activity. It gives an opportunity for our
service providers to meet PATA
members, who are among the
biggest buyers in the world. It’s
a good opportunity and it
needs to be promoted.
In today’s age, we truly need to see a new version
of Incredible India. The Tourism Policy should
work on safety-related Apps and helplines
on a pan-India basis in this technology age.
Indian Tourism has reached a stage
wherein we should be now talking
about ease of doing travel to the
country. On the experiential front to the ultimate spenders, we still are not responding
well enough to their aspirations. There should be a mechanism in place to improve it.
Making the most out of eTV
Arjun Sharma
Managing Director, Select Group
With the emergence of newer carriers and
eTV to many countries, there is potential to
create a huge competitive space. This is both
a challenge and an opportunity. We expect
overall positive development with correction in
pricing, rationalisation and a balanced perspective. Post eTV, there is a need for more government initiatives and relaxed taxation policies
on products and services.
Contd. on page 4 FINAL_SUPPLIMENT 2015-FINAL FILE:TT Layout 9/4/2015 4:36 PM Page 4
4
EVENTTALK
TRAVTALK PATA SPECIAL ISSUE 2015
PATA Travel Mart: Boon for India
Contd. from page 3
Outbound agents: India’s voice
Guldeep Singh Sahni
Managing Director, Weldon Tours & Travels
There was a time when the open sky policy was openly talked about and the other initiatives that the government needed to take. Now, we
need to deliver those. The world will then look at investing into India. The government must open the sky for everybody to come here and make
it more economical and viable for them. With so many airlines coming up India is already emerging as an aviation hub. The new Tourism Policy
will help numbers to grow, whether inbound or outbound, and things will get simpler for tour operators. The PATA Travel Mart brings new products
every time and we utilise them for the next two years and get value out of them. We are fortunate that this time it is happening in India and we
can benefit more from PATA. With eTV opening up, there is a long way to go. The duty of outbound tour operators is to become spokespersons
for India. eTV is a fantastic initiative taken by MOT but we should not stop at that. There are more steps that are to be taken like security and
knowledge of products that India has to offer.
Strengthening
tourism link
Scrap 5/20 rule
Karan Anand
Head (Relationships), Cox & Kings Ltd.
Li Qianguo
Deputy Director, China National Tourist
Office
PATA Travel Mart has a reputation of
being a very professionally-organised event. At this year’s mart being
held in Bengaluru, Chinese sellers
will find and meet qualified Indian
counterparts, so it’s a way to further
the bond of tourism between India
and China. This will also help
upgrade the tourism link between
the two countries.
In the present context, the way ahead would be to allow domestic carriers to expand globally irrespective of whether they have flown for five
years. In short, the government should scrap the 5/20 rule. This will
enable existing airlines and new carriers to forge partnerships with carriers
in the region and enable India to be the hub for such traffic.
Geographically, we are in a sweet spot as far as connectivity
between the East and West is concerned, and I am sure
we can become an aviation hub in the years to come. We
feel that we can expect good inbound numbers this year.
The new tourism policy should address key issues that
have been put forward by our associations and FAITH.
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6
EVENTTALK
TRAVTALK PATA SPECIAL ISSUE 2015
eTV: Perfect host to inbound tourism
Contd. from page 4
India-next aviation hub
Gauging the Indian market
Jaal Shah
Ashish Kishore
Group MD, Travel Designer Group, and Founder,
RezLive.com
We expect the new Tourism Policy to be fair and
should help in promoting tourism in India to a larger
extent. PATA Travel Mart (PTM) is the association’s
signature event and Asia Pacific’s leading travel
trade show, featuring unmatched networking and
contracting opportunities to help travel and tourism
organisations access decision makers, meet new
clients, expand their network and build or maintain
existing relationships. This year’s Mart will feature a technology pavilion providing a
business platform for travel technology professionals to feature their products and services to all. In order to boost inbound tourism, we need to make the appropriate changes
in the new tourism policy and promote India on a larger scale. Apart from that, aviation
and hospitality sector will also play an important role in order to boost the inbound numbers. The focus should be on developing the infrastructure of Tier II and III cities to be
on the scale of metros.
Country Head, dnata India
PATA represents a unique opportunity for dnata India
to showcase its products to visiting tour operators.
After establishing its operations in corporate travel,
visa facilitation, Airlines GSA operations and leisure
segments, dnata India is now venturing in the business of incoming travel. India has always been a
mystical market but with the growing economy, the
tourist arrivals are bound to grow in years to come.
dnata views this as a great opportunity and hence is investing in developing this business
segment. There are many areas to boost tourism besides improvement in infrastructure,
we believe there is a space for transparency and technology to build trust and scale. More
and more tour operators around the world are looking at partners to provide safe holidays
to their customers. dnata India aims to fill this gap with its cutting edge technology and
deep understanding to local Indian tourism market.
Consumer is King
Dhananjay Saliankar
Regional Director – South Asia, Starwood Hotels
eTV should definitely boost tourism into India. The trend is the change in consumer buying behavior. Technology and the Internet play a major role in decision
making. At the click of a button, you find multiple options for consumers to choose from. Hence reviews, great stories on destination, images and word-of-mouth
drives tourism. Consumers may not depend on the traditional tour operators to recommend holidays and itineraries but in-turn expect operators to be techsavvy and adapt to change. As a hospitality person, we expect to improve on infrastructure. While accommodation plays a vital role, it is important that
the government focuses on building roads, opening new airports and develop connectivity. Further, open new destinations in India and not depend
on the traditional tourist destinations such as the Golden Triangle, backwaters, etc. Moreover, the government should also focus on hygiene issues,
position India as clean, green and safe country to travel. PATA will be a platform for us to find new business, new contacts, network and strengthen
relationships with existing customers.
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8
EVENTTALK
TRAVTALK PATA SPECIAL ISSUE 2015
Put India on global tourism map
Contd. from page 6
An image change is necessary
Rohit Arora
Showcasing Ladakh and Kohima camps
Rajnish Sabharwal
Area GM, The Park New Delhi
Our country possesses countless opportunities to sell its charm.
After the eTV, we should raise the bar further. I suggest the following should be initiated – develop special experiential inbound
itineraries and presenting our exotic destination, climate, our hospitable nature coupled with our rich culture beautifully to the
world in order to further boost inbound tourism. Travel
from USA, UK, China and the Far East is stable.
ETA for 112 countries is helping with higher FIT
arrivals. This gives India a unique advantage in
the tourism sector. But unfortunately, due to the
global economic issues, inbound travel from
Europe is shrinking. With PATA being held in
Bengaluru this year, it opens avenues for The Park to attract FITs to its hotels specially
in Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Bengaluru and Delhi from Far East. This will also widen
opportunities for India from Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Indonesia group travel.
COO, The Ultimate Travelling Camp
In order to make India an aviation hub, connectivity needs to
be increased and fifth freedom rights to be allowed for flights
originating from the US, Europe to the Far East and Australia
and New Zealand. Secondly, the tax structure for Aviation
Turbine Fuel should be rationalised. Inbound tourists have many
more options on their finger tips with the growth of online travel
industry. New trends have come up like boutique hostels, new destinations and adventure tours. eTV will only grow with which
last minute booking requests will go higher. The government recognises the role of tourism in promoting inclusive growth and our industry associations
have given the government our wish list. TUTC
is present at PATA and we look forward to engage with international and local buyers to
showcase our camps in Ladakh and Kohima.
Safety, infrastructure a priority
Shaiby James
Director Projects, Somatheeram Ayurveda Resort
With the popularity of the internet and online travel portals, travellers prefer destinations that are not very popular. But finding proper accommodation
in these places is the biggest challenge. As per our experience, health tourism will have huge demand. We have been working with the European
countries but in the recent years Australian tourists are increasingly choosing India. Since the eTV facility will no doubt boost inbound, the next
focus should definitely be safety, hygiene and improvement of infrastructure in India. Moreover, the existing visa procedures are not customer
friendly. Many tourists do not understand why they have to answer so many questions. For eg, the visa procedure for Sri Lanka is easy. Also, we
have repeatedly received feedback from clients that the staff at the consulate was impolite. Being the initial point of contact for Indian arrivals the
attitude and service has to be improved as well. At PATA, he hopes to be able to connect with South East Asia, Middle East and countries such
as Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.
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10
STATES
TRAVTALK PATA SPECIAL ISSUE 2015
Bengaluru gears up for PATA Mart
Buoyant about hosting the PATA Travel Mart in Bengaluru, RV Deshpande, Higher Education and Tourism Minister, Karnataka
Government, says they are the first state in the country to appoint a consultant to rate their hotels and homestays.
P EDEN D OMA B HUTIA
How
has
the
Q
tourism scenario
changed lately on a
central level as well as
the state level?
Tourism is the top agenda of the Government of India
as well as the state government. We are trying to build
infrastructure and we are trying to address concerns like
security and cleanliness. After
UNWTO and WTTC, PATA is
one of the three biggest
travel associations of the
world and Karnataka is glad
to have won the bid to host
PATA Travel Mart.
From September 6-8
this meet will happen in
Bengaluru. Delegates have
started registering, and more
than Karnataka this will help
the country to grow. In many
countries tourism contributes
to more than 15-18 per cent of
the GDP, some such countries
are Cambodia, Malaysia and
Singapore; in India tourism
contribution has not been
more than 6.3 per cent to the
GDP and that is because
tourism has not been tapped
at the national or state levels.
We want to do it very aggressively. I met the Prime Minister
and the Tourism Minster
Dr Mahesh Sharma is also
very interested.
We are the first state in the
country to appoint a consult-
What is the state
government doing
specifically to promote
tourism in Karnataka?
Q
Tourism is of top-most
priority of the Karnataka
Government. We are now
concentrating more on infrastructure and cleanliness, the
Tourist
Mitra
concept
(Tourism Police) is also going
to be implemented in the
state and the idea of this is
give security to the tourists.
RV Deshpande
Higher Education and Tourism Minister
Government of Karnataka
ant to rate our hotels and
homestays. Our new tourism
policy is almost ready, it has
We are now concentrating more on
infrastructure and cleanliness, the
Tourist Mitra concept (Tourism Police)
is also going to be implemented in the
state and the idea of this is give security
to the tourists. We are the first state in
the country to appoint a consultant to
rate our hotels and homestays.
been cleared by the Cabinet;
we'll release it soon. We
have also come up with an
infrastructure corporation.
Karnataka is one state in
which, except snow, you’ll
find everything, be it
beach, wellness, heritage,
adventure, eco-tourism, or
religious tourism, we have
everything, but we also need
to do a lot and we are working on that.
Which
tourists
Q
have a greater share
in the tourist arrivals
of Karnataka — domestic or international?
The figures are difficult
to understand, we are working
on a system where we want to
know exactly how many
tourists visited the state —
domestic or international.
Domestic travel has also
grown a lot. Our Chief
Minister is also keen that
we aggressively market
tourism. The PATA Travel Mart
will add to the growth of
tourism in the country, more
so in Karnataka.
How will PATA Travel
QMart
help to further
the cause of tourism in
Karnataka?
Our Chief Minister is
committed to the growth of
tourism in the state. This is the
third PTM in India, and we
have a big responsibility.
However, even though the
event is
happening in
Karnataka, this event is for the
entire country. PATA will also
be hosting an Investors’ Meet
for the first time during PTM.
This will give us an immense
opportunity to promote the
state at a global level.
How are you involvQ
ing private entrepreneurs for tourism development?
Tourism is our thrust
area and we understand that
we need to address various
concerns. We have initiated
many programmes in
Karnataka to promote
tourism, we have started a
programme for corporates to
adopt tourist destinations, to
keep them neat and clean
and provide toilet and water
facilities and many corporate
have come forward to
participate in this. If
tourism has to grow we need
to approach professionals to
build tourism.
How do you plan to
Q
encourage corporates to invest in the
tourism sector?
Investment in the tourism
sector is absolutely necessary;
we have highly skilled manpower, which is key to the travel and
tourism industry. We have
brought out an investmentfriendly tourism policy where
incentives and concessions are
being made available across 17
tourism products. The state will
promote and encourage
hotels and resorts to come
up with wayside amenities,
museums and galleries and will
also promote agro and
adventure tourism.
State of affairs
Karnataka’s new tourism
policy will be unveiled
soon
The state will promote
wayside amenities,
museums and galleries
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EXHIBITIONS
PATA SPECIAL ISSUE 2015
TRAVTALK
11
Architectural wonders of Karnataka
Sanjay Soni, Chief Knowledge Director, Incredible Design, the official show builder of the PATA Travel Mart being
held at BIEC, talks about the design and space created at the venue of the mart.
T T B U R E AU
his year PATA is being
organised at the state
-of-the-art convention in
Bangalore.
Bangalore
International Exhibition Center
(BIEC) has been beautifully
landscaped over 34 acres. This
multi-purpose convention centre is a common ground for
industry exhibitions, conferences, product demonstrations
and training programmes.
BIEC’s aesthetically designed
venue with a peaceful atmosphere, large exhibition space,
food court, conference center,
large parking space together
with unmatched customer rela-
T
Sanjay Soni
Chief Knowledge Director
Incredible Design
We have seen
positive growth
in PATA and at
BIEC, we have
had huge
support from
the venue
providers
tionship management makes it
a perfect match for organizing
shows like PATA.
“Since last PATA held in
2011 in Pragati Maidan, there
have been many inclusions in
the exhibition programme. A
distinctive B2B show, PATA has
introduced technology forum,
technology pavilion, and
investment forum that is sure
to support the travel industry.”
There are sessions with senior
Inspiration
The entrance to Hall
Number 1 right from the
registration counter has
been designed as a marvelous walk through the
architectural wonders of
Karnataka and very much
identified as icons of the
state like Hampi, Gol
Gumbaz, Deccan Queen
and Temple complexes
travel industry experts to foster
smart strategic planning and
tactical decision-making.
“Being the official show
builder at PATA, the entrance
to Hall Number 1 right from the
registration counter has been
designed as a marvelous walk
through the architectural wonders of Karnataka and very
much identified as icons of the
state like Hampi, Gol Gumbaz,
Deccan Queen and Temple
complexes cut out from fiberglass. This time the venue is
better, much more compact for
the participants especially all
the concurrent sessions are
happening in one venue close
to the exhibition hall and is next
to the food court. The venue
has positivity in departure
because of one large hall
where everyone is housed at
one level and this can assist
buyers to reach on time. The
biggest advantage for PATA
buyers and sellers is that all the
events and session are closely
housed next to the main exhibition hall,” he said.
In terms of participation,
there are huge state
pavilions like Karnataka,
Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat,
Uttarakhand, Maharashtra,
Orissa, Madhya Pradesh to
name a few. From the international pavilion, we have seen
participation from China,
Macao, Kazakhstan, Nepal,
Indonesia,
Philippines,
Thailand, Malaysia, Korea
and Taiwan.
“The major participation
in terms of buyers and sellers,
about 50 percent, is from India
as people have shown interest
this time and have seen
growth in their business too.
There is enough raw space
given to the participants to
customize their booth which
makes the exhibition space
more realistic and the exhibitor
more enthusiastic about their
stall. We have seen positive
growth in PATA and at BIEC,
we have had huge support
from the venue providers in
terms of space and facilities,”
he added.
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12
AGENTS
TRAVTALK PATA SPECIAL ISSUE 2015
11.3% growth in
inbound during
July 2015
Foreign Tourist Arrivals (FTAs)
during July 2015 were 6.33 lakh
as compared to FTAs of 5.69 lakh
during the month of July 2014 and
5.06 lakh in July 2013. There has
been a growth of 11.3 per cent in
July 2015 over July 2014. FTAs
during the period January-July
2015 were 44.78 lakh as compared to FTAs of 42.75 lakh during
the period January-July 2014.
FTAs during January-July 2015
registered a growth of 4.8 per cent
over the period January-July2014.
The percentage share of Foreign
Tourist Arrivals (FTAs) in India during July2015 among the top 15
source countries was highest from
USA (16.51%) followed by
Bangladesh (16.44%), UK
(12.29%), France (3.43%), Sri
Lanka (3.36%), Malaysia (3.32%),
Canada (2.75%), Germany
(2.45%), China (2.33%), Japan
(2.25%), Australia (2.21%), Nepal
(2.16%), Singapore (1.71%),
Oman (1.57%) and Saudi Arabia
(1.55%) . These top 15 countries
account for 74.33 per cent of total
FTAs during July 2015. Foreign
Exchange Earnings (FEEs) from
Tourism in India during July 2015
were `11,452 crore as compared
to `10,336 crore in July 2014 and
`8,620 crore in July 2013. FEEs
from tourism in rupee terms in
January-July 2015 were ` 71,754
crore as compared to the FEEs
of ` 67,096 crore during JanuaryJuly 2014.
Customised holidays for you
With ‘customised’ travel as their forte, Toral H Vithalani, Executive Director, JTB Travels, says that
with airline connectivity increasing steadily and the visa policy now being relaxed, this may also
attract more international and domestic investors in the hotel sector.
T T B U R E AU
Q
How has business been for
JTB Travels this year so far?
Q
How is inbound tourism faring
this year?
From the airlines perspective,
there is an increase in the footfall of
people coming into India (visiting relations, friends, medical treatment,
studies). However from the tour
operator’s perspective, largely
inbound tourism seems to be on
a par with last year. With the US dollar
gaining momentum, the situation is
wait and watch.
Q
What do you make of the government’s move to grant eTV
to so many nations?
It is a very good move by the present government to boost inbound
tourism, as visa is one of the factors
which contributes to holding back the
development of the tourism sector in
India. As of August 2015, with 113 countries under the purview of eTV covering
approximately 16 or more airports in
India, the country has become more
accessible and it encourages more frequent travel and travel at short notice.
With airlines connectivity increasing
steadily and the visa policy now being
relaxed, this may also attract more inter-
Toral H Vithalani
Executive Director
JTB Travels
For 2015-16, at JTB Travels we
project a substantial growth. We have a
healthy increase in our outbound &
domestic market in summer 2015. For
the upcoming winter, we see the trend
of many domestic and international
repeat clientele now exploring newer
regions in India & internationally,
beyond popular established tourist circuits. Travellers are also taking more frequent holidays.
With PATA Travel Mart coming to
India this year, the India inbound
travel segment will definitely get a boost,
as it provides a platform to more local
players to showcase the products and
services available in India
national and domestic investors in the
hotel sector. This could open opportunities to develop new regions in India
which are still not on the mainstream
tourism map.
Q
What is your USP, which sets
you apart from competition?
JTB Travels’ forte is ‘customised’
travel, be it for FITs, leisure, corporate
travel or specialised groups. We service
the entire spectrum of travel, for
outbound, inbound & domestic
segments, through our pan-India offices
covering 12 cities.
Q
How does an event like PATA
help your business?
With PATA Travel Mart coming to
India this year, the India inbound travel
segment will definitely get a boost, as
it provides a platform to more local
players to showcase the products
and services available in India. It
also provides us a platform for networking with counterparts across the
region in an offer to exchange tourism
into, and out of India.
Growth Story
JTB Travels’ forte is ‘customised’ travel, be it for FITs,
leisure, corporate travel or
specialised groups
JTB Travels projected a substantial growth for 2015-16 and an
increase in its outbound &
domestic market
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AGENTS
PATA SPECIAL ISSUE 2015
Wish for a safer, secure India
Hygiene, cleanliness and security, especially for women around the tourist
sites are key concerns for foreign tourists. This needs to be worked upon
to attract more inbound tourists to the country.
T T B U R E AU
here’s undoubtedly now a
sincere effort to understand what tourists in India
want. This indicates a gradual
maturation of the travel industry, feels Rishi Khandelwal,
Managing Partner, Wish Bone
India. “The primary issue in
the tourism industry is infrastructure. The government
seems determined to address
T
Rishi Khandelwal
Managing Partner
Wish Bone India
The primary
issue in the
tourism industry
is infrastructure.
The government
looks determined
to address the
same in a timebound manner
the same in a time-bound
manner,” he says. Talking
about the various challenges
in promoting India as a destination, he adds, “Destination
connectivity, wayside amenities and security are very
important issues. Hygiene,
cleanliness and security
(particularly for women) in
and around the tourist
sites are key concerns for
foreign tourists.”
According to Khandelwal,
top regions and destinations
that are doing well for the company are Rajasthan, the
Medical Tourism
Indian healthcare institutions are in a position to
offer quality medical
services at one-tenth of
the cost compared to
other countries in the
west as it offers yoga,
meditation, Ayurveda,
allopathy, etc.
Golden Triangle, Kerala, Uttar
Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.
There is an opportunity in
medical tourism because Indian
healthcare institutions are in a
position to offer quality medical
services at one-tenth of the cost
compared to other countries in
the west, he feels. “Moreover,
India is unique as it offers holistic
medicinal services with yoga,
meditation, Ayurveda, allopathy
and other medical facilities. We
offer a unique basket of services
to an individual that will be difficult to match in other countries.
The group is also looking at
the affordable and accessible
luxury segment in a big way,”
he points out.
The group is participating
in the PATA Travel Mart in
Bengaluru. “PATA India focuses
directly on issues that concern
the industry in India. PATA
2015 would be a remarkable
platform to showcase travel
products and services. It will
bring together hundreds of
international buyers and
sellers in the industry. Thus, it
is an excellent opportunity to
secure business opportunities,”
he states.
TRAVTALK
13
PATA-India Tourism B2B
Meet from Oct 20
PATA India Chapter, in collabo-
Rome and Milan (Italy).
ration with Ministry of Tourism, has
decided to conduct a India Tourism
B2B Meet to Western Europe from
October 20-28, 2015. The proposal
for this initiative was approved at
the PATA Executive Committee
Meeting. This was revealed by
Runeep Sangha, Executive
Director, PATA India Chapter. The
event is aimed at promoting
inbound tourism from important
source markets for India. These
meetings are proposed to be held
with travel agents & tours operators
in Frankfurt (Germany), Zurich
(Switzerland), Vienna (Austria),
The dates finalised for these
meetings are Frankfurt (Oct 20),
Zurich (Oct 21), Vienna (Oct 23),
Rome (Oct 27), and Milan (Oct 28).
PATA has secured the support of
Air India for preferred air fares.
Participants will enjoy 100 per cent
waiver of the basic fare in class of
travel of their choice but will be
charged all applicable taxes, fuel
surcharge and government levies
if any. This facility will only be available on the Air India flights, DelhiFrankfurt & Milan/Rome-Delhi and
tickets will be valid for travel from
October 15-31, 2015.
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14
AVIATION
TRAVTALK PATA SPECIAL ISSUE 2015
A smart ticketing expert AirAsia rolls out Red Carpet
More than 95,000 travel agencies in 190 markets and over With Tata Sons recently raising its stake in AirAsia India, the
300 air and rail partners trust in Hahn Air’s services. 40% airline does not expect any significant strategic changes but
of travel agencies in India already use its ticketing solutions. it is clear about the direction it is heading in – growth.
TT B U R E AU
ith Hahn Air’s HR-169
document, travel agents
can issue tickets for many airlines in their Global Distribution
System (GDS); including those
which are not in their local
billing and settlement plan
(BSP). Moreover, Hahn Air
offers additional content of
non-GDS airlines and railway
companies under the codes
H1 and 5W.
W
“Our services create a winwin situation for all parties
involved: the airline benefits from
additional passengers and additional revenue; the travel agents
have access to additional carriers
which they would otherwise not
be able to sell; and the customer
has a larger choice of routes and
destinations,” says Kimberley
Long-Urbanetz, Vice President
Sales and Agency Distribution,
Hahn Air. “We are pleased to see
our airline partner network grow
and to be able to constantly offer
more ticketing options to travel
agencies. In 2015 alone, we have
already added 21 interline
partners who are available on
Kimberley Long-Urbanetz
Vice President Sales and Agency
Distribution, Hahn Air
Our services
create a win-win
situation for all
parties involved:
the airline benefits
from additional
passengers and
additional revenue
the HR-169 ticket and 10
non-GDS airlines bookable
under the code H1.”
As another great benefit
for travel agents, airlines and
passengers, Hahn Air is the
only provider in the industry to
offer complimentary insolvency
insurance, Securtix®. It guarantees passengers a refund in
the event that a service issued
on an HR-169 document with
any of Hahn Air’s partners is
cancelled due to insolvency.
Additionally, stranded passengers who have already started
their journey before the insolvency occurred receive a
refund for the unused part of
the ticket plus the difference
between the original and the
new ticket up to a total amount
of € 125. The insurance also
covers the costs for meals and
hotel accommodation (up to €
75) and other extra expenses
like transfers and phone calls
(up to € 50).
“Our insolvency insurance is unparalleled in the
industry”, says Long-Urbanetz.
“We are proud that Securtix®
has proven to be such a valuable service to our travel
agency partners. Since 2010,
over 21 Million insolvency-safe
HR-169 tickets have been
issued with Hahn Air.”
also slowly changing to induce
progress,” he adds.
TT B U R E AU
ecently given the responsibility of CEO in addition to
the role of Managing Director
he was handling at AirAsia
India, Mittu Chandilya appears
relaxed and in control. He is
excited about the recent development with Tata Sons raising
its stake in AirAsia India to
41.06 per cent from 30 per cent.
R
To this he says, “This reaffirms the faith in the venture,
management and positive
direction that we are trending
towards. There will be no significant strategic changes as
all shareholders are happy
with the progress. There may
be changes on the administrative side.” Revealing the airline’s roadmap succinctly in a
single word, Chandilya, MD
and CEO, AirAsia India, says
growth is the priority for the airline at the moment. “We had
always planned for an aggressive growth and so it’s all about
timing. Hopefully the market
will continue to be on an
upswing and our policies would
reflect optimism amongst all
Mittu Chandilya
ITA winner, and MD & CEO,
AirAsia India
There will be new
routes but we
would be
consolidating and
building on our
existing hubs and
routes first
our shareholders. The market
is evolving. Now innovative
products and services, commercially and operationally are
being introduced. Competition
increases and that is a good
thing. Regulatory policies are
On the horizon are new
products and services. “Most
definitely. We are always testing and creating new ways to
satisfy our guests. There will be
new routes but we would be
consolidating and building on
our existing hubs and routes
first,” Chandilya says. AirAsia
India recently announced its
latest service, Red Carpet
which is aimed to offer further
convenience and comfort
options to passengers. Guests
travelling on AirAsia India
flights from Bengaluru and
Delhi airports can avail the Red
Carpet experience. “We have
seen that more and more travelers are willing to consider
customized options to save
time and reduce other hassles
while traveling. The launch of
Red Carpet Service signifies
our brand’s testament towards
innovating our products and
services at every stage of the
airline’s growth. We are confident that this service will help
strengthen the brand promise
at AirAsia India.”
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16
TECHNOLOGY
TRAVTALK PATA SPECIAL ISSUE 2015
An evolution that won’t slow down
The competitive edge will go to the travel agents who capitalise on travel technology to provide their clients with the
most up-to-date communications and customised services. In a bid to reflect the changing times, the PATA Travel Mart
this year is introducing a new pavilion on travel technology.
speaks to experts on the changing trends.
M E G H A PAU L
hat is interesting is a convergence of ‘search’ and ‘commerce’ that
we see happening in the travel industry today. This convergence is
creating new opportunities for online travel agencies and travel brands.
Traditionally, commerce sites have prioritised maximising transaction revenue by offering thoughtfully merchandised products and a seamless
shopping experience, while search sites have focused on organising information and making it available to visitors in a relevant and comprehensible
way. Today a convergence business model, blending commerce and
search functions, is ascendant. Convergence is visible across the travel
industry: metasearch sites now offer facilitated booking functionality that
allows shoppers to transact without having to click away to a direct-booking or OTA site; meanwhile
various OTAs are creating metasearch experiences for their site shoppers right in the transaction path.
Throughout the 1990s and 2000s, the travel industry was generally split into two camps. In the
first camp were the search engines, home to shopper research and discovery, dealing with issues
such as data indexing, neutrality, relevance and speed. In the second were the commerce providers:
the OTA and brand sites where transactions occurred, driven by metrics such as traffic acquisition
cost, conversion rates, average order value (AOV) and so forth. We’ve observed over the past few
years is that travel shoppers do not see this divide, and that a distinction held dear by an entire
industry is, to that industry’s customers, meaningless.
W
There's a broad realisation that what travel shoppers care
most about is finding and booking the trip that’s right for
them — and they don’t really care where the research or
purchase happens.
According to a Google Travel study cited by Evercore, the average travel shopper visits a
staggering 17 websites to book a hotel and flight, suggesting that no one site is providing the
magic-bullet customer experience.
Richard Harris
CEO, Intent Media
he GDS in general have improved work flow and efficiencies in many
ways but only within flight product. In the other GDS traditional product
such as hotels, car rentals etc, the GDS has remained very stagnant and
in my view very much out of touch in these ancillary revenue areas. For
GDS, flights have always been the big prize and they have missed the
boat on the other products
T
More people are travelling more often so short term, yes flights visà-vis GDS are up but in the longer term, the airlines are forging new relationships with the other online travel agents (OTAs) tech companies of
which there are many and therefore unless the GDS adapt, perhaps via acquisition, their future looks
very much in danger.
Profiling your clients and utilising "big data" to present tailor made offers, the right flight class, the
grade of hotel and type of destination together with even more personalised touches will make your
clients feel really special and that you understand them and their needs. This plus efficient and attractive
loyalty schemes makes for a compelling offering for most consumers and this is the trend in play.
Technology won't replace a great travel agent; it will
merely assist them to do a great job a little more quickly
and with ease.
As many point to point holidays become mere commodities in the online world, travel agents
have a great opportunity to excite their clients by demonstrating their incredible wealth of knowledge
in producing the more complex, multiple element itineraries which become "unique" product to the
travel agent and their clients.
Kenny Picken
President & Group Managing Director, Traveltek Group
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18
HOTELS
TRAVTALK PATA SPECIAL ISSUE 2015
st
Chilika’s
1
eco luxury resort
Jodhpur: New wedding hub
After strengthening its portfolio in Rajasthan with the Swosti Group is bringing up a resort matching international
opening of its recent property in Jodhpur, Lords Hotels & standards to cater to the needs of the high-end domestic
Resorts is looking at hosting more weddings at the property. and international tourists visiting Chilika Lake in Odisha.
May this year to add on to our
Rajasthan portfolio. The
response so far has been
phenomenal and gives us
encouragement to mark our
presence further in the state.”
T T B U R E AU
remier mid-market hotel
chain, Lords Hotels &
Resorts is betting big on
Rajasthan being a major
tourist and business centre in
the country. Throwing light on
its Rajasthan properties,
Rishi Puri, Vice President,
Lords Hotels & Resorts, says,
“One needs to have good
number of properties to make
the presence felt. With that
objective in mind, our compa-
P
New Horizons
Lords Plaza and Jagrati
Lords Inn in Jaipur
Lords Inn Jodhpur Lords
Hotels & Resorts opened
in May 2015
Jodhpur has now turned
into one of the most
important domestic
and international
tourist centres
Rishi Puri
Vice President
Lords Hotels & Resorts
We look forward
to promoting
destination
weddings at our
property. We are
tying up with
wedding
planners too
ny already has two properties
-- Lords Plaza and Jagrati
Lords Inn in Jaipur. We also
opened Lords Inn Jodhpur
Lords Hotels & Resorts in
Talking about the potential of Jodhpur hospitality sector, he informs, “Jodhpur has
now turned into one of the
most important domestic and
international tourist centres.
With the opening of this property in Jodhpur, the company
is now serving this important
market as well. Just as in other
properties, the Jodhpur Hotel
Lords Inn is also based on our
group motto of ‘True Value
Hotels’. It has well-furnished
50 rooms with all the modern
facilities,” he adds. “In terms of
positioning, we term ourselves
to be truly ‘glocal’ — having a
global concept with local best
practices. We look forward to
promote maximum destination
weddings at our property as
well. With that as objective, we
are in the process of tying up
with the high-end wedding
planners too.”
T T B U R E AU
wosti Group is set to further
expand its hospitality presence in Odisha with the launch
of a luxury resort, Swosti Chilika
Resort at the Chilika Lake. The
company has also acquired
land parcels for hotel and resort
projects in Puri, Satpada and
Bhitarkanika and other coastal
areas within the state.
nine acres land located on the
bank of Chilika Lake. The work
at the site started in April this
year and is scheduled to open
in early 2017.
S
A large number of tourists
and bird lovers come to this area
to enjoy the natural beauty but
there is no such star category
hotel at this tourist hotspot. JK
Mohanty, Managing Director,
Swosti Group of HotelsResorts-Travels-Education,
says, “Being in the travel trade
for the past 30 years, we are fully
aware of the tourism potential of
Chilika Lake and a resort of
international standard is essentially required to cater to both
high-end domestic and foreign
tourists visiting the area. We are
confident that this resort at
Chilika Lake will suffice the
requirements with its high standard food quality and services
JK Mohanty
Managing Director, Swosti Group of
Hotels-Resorts-Travels-Education
We are fully
aware of the
tourism potential
of Chilika Lake
and a resort of
international
standard is
required
and will also boost the brand
image of Odisha.”
Swosti Chilika Resort is
being developed on a massive
Swosti Group has
engaged one of the most
renowned
International
Architectural Firm from Thailand
for putting up this resort with 70
keys (presidential suite, villas,
quad villas, hotel block, SPA villas, pool villas), houseboats,
spas, yoga centre, herbal gardens, international standard
green landscaping of around
nine acres land, amphitheatre,
business centre, library, handicrafts souvenir shop, water
sports, water scooters, facilities
for water surfing, boating facilities around 26 islands, horse
riding, kennel for dogs, badminton and tennis court, mini
golf course, bird watching tower,
bicycle tours for foreign tourists,
village tours, basic cooking
classes for housewives, boat
restaurants, lake side open-air
tandoor restaurant, sports bar,
facilities for conference and
lawns for weddings.
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STATES
PATA SPECIAL ISSUE 2015
TRAVTALK
19
On the growth trajectory
Karnataka is gearing up for a steady growth in the travel and tourism sector by attracting private investors to develop
tourism assets in Karnataka. The State recently unveiled its Tourism Policy.
speaks to industry stalwarts in the
region to understand recent challenges, growth opportunities and roadmap for the future.
M E G H A PAU L
With 250+ tourism destinations, 21 wildlife sanctuaries, five natural reserves and two World
Heritage Sites – Hampi & Pattadakkal, Karnataka has rich potential to carve a niche for itself in
tourism. With this as a background the Karnataka Tourism Ministry has just released the Karnataka
Tourism Policy 2015-2020 – one that aims to position Karnataka as a visible global band in tourism
for visitors as well as investors by encouraging development of infrastructure through partnerships.
Going forward, a competitive tax on ATF would be extremely beneficial for the state. With the State
now actively promoting tourism and a focus on investment in infrastructure and accelerating the
vision of the “ease of doing business”, engagement across all platforms can now move to a higher
level in the aviation sector. At the Bengaluru airport, we have seen a very healthy trend in increase
of annual passenger traffic at about 10 per cent average over the last five years and the air traffic
movements (ATMs) grew at an average of 5.5 per cent during the same period.
Raj Andrade
Vice President-Business Development, Marketing & Strategy
Bangalore International Airport Limited and ITA winner
In Karnataka, the hotel
industry carries a heavy tax
structure with luxury taxes,
sales taxes, etc. which
directly affects the catering
and banquet business. This
places the hotels under
tremendous pressure to offer
competitive prices for guests
booking their social occasions with the hotels.
Another challenge being
faced are the impending city
infrastructure issues which
is faced by every traveller. Going forward, the Karnataka government has recently provided positive signs of incentive models and
subsidies under tourism policies for the state by offering new developments to partner with private entrepreneurs and adopt city landmarks and tourist spots.
KTF, in its own small way, helps in marketing Karnataka as a destination. This year we plan
to take our roadshow overseas to attract inbound tourism into the state. We are also planning instituting an annual B2B event in Bengaluru from 2016. From the government side, several initiatives
have been launched in the recent past, notably, the formation of Karnataka Tourism Vision Group
(KTVG) that has recommended a road map of growth of tourism in Karnataka over the next decade.
Karnataka has also identified 41 beaches and 11 islands for redefining CRZ norms and ` 50 crore
has been sanctioned for developing coastal circuits. Earlier this year an eco-tourism project was
launched, which opened up camps and trails for the traveller. Recognising the importance of involving
non-government organisation to actively take part in development and maintenance, the government
has launched ‘Adopt a Tourist Destination’ programme, roping in the corporates. In a first of its kind,
the government has also empanelled a rating agency to rate tourism products across 21 categories.
There are also plans to set up a world-class MICE facility of 600,000 sq. ft. with up to 6,000-seater
conference hall.
Royal Orchid Hotels offers nine hotels in Karnataka with a
uniquely defined circuit of heritage locations in Mysore and Hampi,
partnered with centrally located hotels in Mysore, Shimoga and
Bengaluru to ensure the travelers are given the best of both worlds
– leisure and business purposes. After having established itself
as a market leader in inventory across Karnataka with over 1000
room inventory in the state only, we are targeting occupancy of
around 70 per cent round-the- year.
Sanjar Imam
President, Karnataka Tourism Forum (KTF)
Shekhar Bhargava
Executive Director, Royal Orchid Hotels
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20
AGENTS
TRAVTALK PATA SPECIAL ISSUE 2015
An al fresco dinner cruise
Water sports at Konark camp
With a rise in demand for river cruises, Brahmaputra Cruise
has introduced an al fresco dinner cruise along with its
regular sunset cruises which has gained popularity among
tourists as well as the locals.
Eastern Treasure India Tours is looking to include water
sports for its clients along with the existing village trips in
Odisha. Sanghamitra Jena, Founder Director, Eastern
Treasure India Tours, elaborates the new initiatives.
T T B U R E AU
ruising on the Brahmaputra
is showing a continuous
increase in demand particularly
for middle-sized river cruisers
with around six cabins for small
groups. This new demand is
mostly from domestic tourists,
informs Debajit Kr Borah,
Director, Brahmaputra Cruise
Private Limited (BCPL).
“Presently, we have small and
large cruisers with three and 12
cabins onwards, respectively
on the Brahmaputra. But with
this new demand for a new segment, we hope to come up with
new river cruisers very soon.
There is also a demand for larger cruisers to cater to the corporate and MICE groups of 60
or more pax. But this will need
a lot of investment and hopefully, the Assam government will
be able to take some initiative
in this regard,” he reveals.
Commissioner and Secretary
for Tourism for this aggressive
marketing of Assam Tourism,”
Borah says.
C
In order to promote its
products, BCPL participates in
various roadshows that are
organised by the government
Debajit Kr Borah
Director
BCPL
of Assam. “This year till the
month of August, we already
did five roadshows in major
cities of India, namely
Ahmedabad,
Hyderabad,
Bengaluru, Pune and Mumbai
and more roadshows are in the
pipeline. We are also participating in major trade fairs and travel marts individually as well as
with the Tourism Department.
Assam Tourism is also planning
roadshows during WTM
London in November. I would
hereby like to thank the Tourism
Department, Govt. of Assam,
and specially our Additional
Chief Secretary along with the
Regarding new products,
he is glad to inform that along
with their regular ‘Sunset
Cruises’, BCPL has introduced
‘Alfresco Grand Dinner
Cruises’ this year which has
become quite popular among
tourists as well as the locals.
As far as foreign and Indian
tourists are concerned, he
reveals that both show equal
interest for cruising on the
Brahmaputra. “Only itineraries
need to be designed as per the
taste of the tourists. Almost an
equal number of queries come
from Indian and foreign tourists.
The only challenge is marketing
the product with proper information,” Borah adds.
He goes on to reveal that
though Indians like cruising
outside India, mainly ocean
cruising, they also look forward
to doing a river cruise on the
Brahmaputra.
T T B U R E AU
tourism. Earlier I have received
a lot of complains from
my clients on the troubles and
long time taken at the
embassy for the visa. E-Tourist
Visa is a big support to
inbound tourism in India.
Q
What is the USP of the
company?
Our USP is tailor-made
tours exclusively for the travellers who are interested in
knowing real India. Village
trips, meeting new people,
learning their life style and
enjoying it to the fullest is the
main aim of all our trips
planned for our clients.
Q
What are the new initiatives that you are
taking this year?
We are planning to introduce exclusive water sports
activities on the river side
camp at Konark for all our
clients visiting this heritage site
Sanghamitra Jena
Founder Director
Eastern Treasure India Tours
Q
What are the new
trends in the travel
industry?
just for a day. Activities with
nature will allow them to spend
more time in this area.
Portal business is
taking over and clients are
now
demanding
more
concept tourism.
Q
Q
How do you think the
e-Tourist Visa is going
to help increase inbound
tourism in India?
This is the best possible
way to increase inbound
One can have the real experience of
local culture as Odisha has more than
50,000 villages. This state holds all
tourism aspects that people come to
India for, except deserts
Anything else that you
would like to share
with us.
Odisha should be visited
by more tourists where rural
tourism is promoted in the best
way. One can have the real
experience of the local culture
as this state has more than
50,000 villages. This state
holds all tourism aspects that
people come to India for,
except deserts. Government
policies should be tourist
friendly to receive more and
more tourists into this state.
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22
TECHNOLOGY
TRAVTALK PATA SPECIAL ISSUE 2015
The ‘e’ of e-invoices
Taxi bookings get uplift
In its 25th year now, Excel Software Consultancy introduced
the travel industry to e-invoices. Today, it boasts of more
than 2,000 agents who have been using its products.
TaxiVaxi, India’s first market place for booking Radio Taxis,
Tour Taxis, Self Drive cars and carpooling, is ensuring a
hassle-free, smooth experience when booking a ride.
TT B U R E AU
xcel Software Consultancy
is a software development
company that introduced einvoices to the travel industry.
It has been providing accounting solutions to travel agencies
since 1991. Today, it has
more than 2,000 agents from
India, Afghanistan, Kuwait,
Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan,
Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the
UAE using its software.
E
Muffazzal
Hafiji,
Chairman and MD, Excel
Software Consultancy, who
promotes the company, says,
“We first introduced the concept of ‘BDR’ which was then
adopted by BSP. We first introduced e-invoice and later the
agents got e-tickets.”
“To give our products an
edge, we develop and migrate
upwards using the best available resources from time to
time. We started development
in Clipper, followed by Visual
Basic and xBase. Our latest
product
[commercially
launched in 2011] is xLWebPro
Muffazzal Hafiji
Chairman and MD
Excel Software Consultancy
Ver 6.0 which is developed in
Visual Studio C# and is today
used by over 375 agencies,”
Hafiji says.
Hafiji credits its popularity
to its simplicity and user-friendliness. “Due to these
features, xLWebPro has
among the highest number of
owners who are using their
accounting software hands-on.
Owners who work on their
accounts software are less
dependent on their accountants,
and also accountants are more
careful and prompt in their
entries,” he says.
Excel Software has
trained staff based in major
cities in India who provide all
services like product demonstration,
implementation
and training. They also
handle minor trouble-shooting.
It also has a dedicated
helpdesk at its Mumbai
office and instant support is provided via Teamviewer. “Our software is used not only in major
cities but also in remote locations. Our clients who are satisfied with our products and services promote our software to
other agencies at various
forums and this positive feedback convinces prospective
agents to start using our software,” Hafiji adds.
He says, “Whatever it
may be, one thing is certain
that they can always expect the
unexpected. We never copy or
imitate any other software. We
have reached this position
solely on our hard work, imagination and passion. We largely
believe that our clients deserve
something that is better than
the best, and we strive hard to
achieve it.”
whereby they can bring their
business model online and
make their presence felt to 700
million Smartphone users
which is poised to go north only.
TT B U R E AU
ccording to Vinod Kumar
Sah, Co-founder & Chief
Technical Officer (CTO),
TaxiVaxi, individuals have to
spend a lot of time and undergo
a lot of confusion in finding the
most economical ride/service,
and often there is the added
hassle of calling multiple vendors to check availability, fares
and comparing them all.
TaxiVaxi ensures that you have
options to choose compare and
book from the list of the reputed
operators/ vendors available in
the vicinity on one App.
A
It aims to make travel easy,
convenient and fun for the users.
The services also include Wi-Fi
cabs and a magazine for holiday
and/or eating plans. The technology will bring all the players viz.
users, operators, corporate, tour
package operators on one website and App. Now the user can
book all the rides with one login
ID through multiple operators/
vendors/ service providers.
But that’s not all, TaxiVaxi
is working towards improving
Vinod Kumar Sah
Co-founder & Chief Technical Officer
(CTO), TaxiVaxi
The company has the
vision to enable every
operator in the
country to bring their
services online and
enable every user to
book all kinds of rides
through one App
the efficiency and technology
for all its vendors. The company
is committed to streamline and
automate their booking process
and provide them with technology, platform and support
“The company has the
vision to enable every operator
in the country to bring their services online and enable every
user to book all kinds of rides
through one App,” Vinod says.
Bringing all the taxi
operators on one single platform and enabling the smartphone users to compare and
book will also enable taxi
operators to grow their customer base and business.
TaxiVaxi app will be launched
by the end of September
2015. The company has
already partnered with more
than 50 vendors with more
than 2000 cabs in 5 cities and
has provided them with a
complete end-to-end technology solution to the operators.
With the increasing competition and entry of so many
players, TaxiVaxi app seems
to ease the way user selects
and books the ride.
FINAL_SUPPLIMENT 2015-FINAL FILE:TT Layout 9/4/2015 4:37 PM Page 23
TECHNOLOGY
PATA SPECIAL ISSUE 2015
TRAVTALK
23
Technology: A need for travel 10 reasons to embrace tech
Gyanesh Kumar and Devesh Kumar Thakur, Directors, Sudheer Reddy, Co-founder, Iween Software Solutions,
Axis Softech, say that their technology helps agents grow says travel technology is sine qua non for an agent today
their business by leaps and bounds.
and talks about their product NEXTRA which is
comprehensive, cost effective & adaptable.
and cater to all travel needs
and also into their budget and
TT B U R E AU
How important a
mart is PATA Travel
Mart for you?
Q
Gyanesh: PATA Travel
Mart is a signature event and
an essential trade show in the
Asia-Pacific region. It offers a
dynamic and remarkable platform to present your travel
products and services and
brings together a market where
a lot of international buyers and
sellers participate. Travel and
Tourism is vital for the economy of Asia-Pacific countries.
PATA is an important event for
Axis Softech as we are a technology provider company to
the travel industry and today
there is a vital requirement of
technology in this industry
where agents are busy in their
ticketing business, we try to
make domestic and international agents aware of our travel products.
How do you plan to
leverage
PTM
Technology Forum for
business?
Q
Devesh: PATA has an
extensive membership of over
3000 travel organisations,
including the best-known travel
brands. It’s a very big platform
to present our company and
our travel products to them.
Axis Softech also plans to
attend the technology forum.
What is the USP of
Axis Softech?
Q
Gyanesh: Travel Portals
with all integrated APIs which
provide cheapest fare, best
commissions in the industry,
convenient & user friendly portals and best support for our
clients is our USP. There are
few players in travel portal
development, but the USP of
Axis Softech has always been
different, which has pushed us
far ahead of our competition.
Axis Softech has been performing because we have
exclusive products for clients,
which fit to their requirement
gives them best commission
and lowest price when compared with their peer portals.
We are different from our competitors because we provide
range of products which fits to
the budget and requirement of
which fit into budget of every
Travel Agent.
How important is
Tell us about the
Q
technology for travQ
USP of the company.
el agents?
W
e are a young organisation
with high energy levels.
Our platform ‘NEXTRA’ is the
most comprehensive travel tech-
Gyanesh Kumar
Devesh Kumar Thakur
Director
Axis Softech
Director
Axis Softech
PATA is an
important event
for Axis Softech
as we are a
technology
provider
company to the
travel industry
our customers, also we guarantee cheapest fare for tickets
to travel agents and agencies
of flight, hotels, buses and
cars. We have highest number
of clients than any travel portal
development company in India.
How helpful are your
Q
products for travel
agents?
Devesh: We have six
B2C products, one B2B and
one B2E products rolled under
the name of “Safari”. Each
product has its distinct advantage in its category. Our travel
products are very convenient
to use. Our products provide
instant and highest commission to travel agents and travel
agencies industry wide. The
products are easily scalable
TT B U R E AU
Our products
provide instant
and highest
commission to
agents and
agencies. The
products are
easily scalable
Gyanesh: Online Travel
Agency is the best model of
eCommerce which has no pain
of delivery as it happens on runtime basis. In this model, agents
need not run behind, and sales
and commissions come directly
in his/her account. Travel portals
with all integrated APIs provide
cheapest fare to travel agents.
We also provide customization
from our specific product called
SAFARI – MID by which a customer can use many APIS on
single platform of portals
according to their preferences.
Our technology helps them to
find best APIs with the products.
We are proud that Axis Softech
provides them with a technology which helps them to grow
their travel business by leaps
and bounds.
Technology has drastically changed the face
of tourism. Today travellers
are tech-savvy and expect a
great user experience.
With the advent of smartphones and penetration
of the Internet into every
nook and corner of the
country, travellers have all
the information they need to
book their travel.
This is the reason why a
travel agent should be
equipped with a world-class
technology.
Technology
was once a luxury for a
travel agent, today it has
Sudhir Reddy
Co-Founder, Iween Software Solutions
nology in India which is an outcome of a unification of cuttingedge technology, industry
experts inputs and extensive
research built over a period
of four years. We are a lean
company and we leverage
open-source technologies.
This gives us the ability to
provide world-class platform at
an affordable price.
What are the main
Q
markets for you and
the special products
O
O
O
O
O
NEXTRA B2B, B2C
NEXTRA
Corporate[CBT/SBT]
NEXTRA Mobile
NEXTRA Extranet &
NEXTRA SAAS
How do you think
technology
has
changed the face of
tourism?
Q
Tell
us
about
Q
the competition you
are facing in the
industry?
Competition inspires,
encourages and pushes us to
build greater and more innovative products. Having said
that we have the edge over
other technology providers in
many ways, be it the comprehensiveness or the pricing or
the innovation, we always try
to be ahead.
10 reasons why you should
choose technology
O
Save time searching on multiple platforms [GDS,
LCCS, Aggregators etc].
O
Sending quotations with rules, markups and discounts.
O
Profiling your customers: CRM
O
Managing Markups, Discounts, Fees, Service Tax
O
Restricting your staff to handle only certain functions,
tracking the staffs’ productivity and safeguarding your
credentials from misuse.
O
Offering your clients to login, search and book themselves using a payment gateway at the same time collecting the handling charges/service fees from them
O
Create Subagents/Franchisees to distribute your
content, multiple sales channels.
O
Offer all services [Flights, Hotels, Cabs, Buses, Visa,
Rail, Sightseeings, Transfers] in a single window.
O
Complete control on receivables, credit limit, invoices
etc, perform all invoices in a single platform without
going to your accounting system. End of Day sync to
your favorite accounting system like [Tally, Winyatra,
Excelsoft, SAP, Oracle, Etravel etc]
O
Complete visibility on your day to day operations
and comprehensive MIS to assist you in making
better decisions and to show your P/L accurately
and on demand.
that you provide them?
We empower 100+ customers across the globe
including small, medium,
large and government organisations. Our diverse product
portfolio caters to everyone in
the travel industry.
become a necessity and we
are trying to bridge the gap
between an OTA and an
offline travel agent.
FINAL_SUPPLIMENT 2015-FINAL FILE:TT Layout 9/4/2015 4:37 PM Page 24
AGENTS
Global journeys for Indians
The evolving mind-set of Indian travellers that is changing their idea of a
holiday, which is the reason why offbeat and exotic destinations that offer experiential
travel are gaining importance in India.
Destinations, that represents
Fiji Tourism in India, says,
“South India is a growing market for us especially for products such as Greece, Spain
New Zealand and the US. The
main source markets for us
from the south are Bengaluru
and Chennai.
TT B U R E AU
s a travel marketing company, Global Destinations
represents destination management companies, hotel
chains, online portals and a
tourism board and focuses
heavily on education and
trainings for travel agents and
tour operators.
A
It has recently signed up
a handful of new and interesting products in the last
one year, namely Eden
Incoming Italy, UTS Russia,
Threeland Travel Indochina,
Ezeerooms.com, Swiss Bel
International Hotels, Bhutan
Journeys, Coral Strand Hotel
and Savoy Resort & Spa
Seychelles with a few more in
the pipeline.
As a part of its expansion
plans,
Global
Destinations has recently
formed a new associate company called ‘Wanderlust’ which
focuses on PR and marketing
for international destinations
and luxury hotels, resorts,
lodges, etc. The new company
will operate independently
with no conflict of interest to
the current or future partners
Pranav Kapadia
Director, Global Destinations
South India is a
growing market for us
especially for
products such as
Greece, Spain New
Zealand and the US.
The main source
markets for us from
the south are
Bengaluru & Chennai
of Global Destinations and
Wanderlust.
Speaking about the
south India market, Pranav
Kapadia, Director, Global
Travellers in South India
are well-read and wellinformed. They are very clear
about their choice of destination and the budget they have
at their disposal for their holiday which makes it easier and
faster to close bookings as
compared to other source
markets in India.”
Being the face of Fiji in
India for many years, Kapadia
states that even though it is
still an exotic product for India,
it is still very popular. “Fiji is
positioned as an exotic island
destination which is a very
popular choice with honeymooners and couples. It is
becoming increasingly popular with families now, affluent
members of Indian society
and divers. Unlike some of its
competing destinations, Fiji is
not just a sun, sand and sea
destination and has a host of
activities and experiences to
offer. We have seen a stable
growth of 15 to 20 per cent
year-on-year growth in Indian
arrivals with the upcoming
winter and honeymoon season looking very promising,”
he adds.
This, he credits, to the
evolving mind-set of Indian
travellers which is leading to a
change in their preferences
and their idea of a holiday with
experiential travel gaining
importance. “Indian FITs
would like to break away from
the usual trend and explore
new and exotic destinations.
This trend will definitely continue because Indians are
looking for newer, more exotic
destinations and the idea of a
holiday for this segment of
travellers is all about the experience. Indian travellers today
want to try out new experiences like local cuisine, taking
a self-driven road trip, setting
off on a wine trail or truffle
hunt, chasing the Northern
Lights, becoming PADI-certified divers, sailing in a private
yacht or indulge in adventurous activities like scuba-diving
and sky-diving, to name a
few,” Kapadia says.
Leh must be smart city
Naveen C. Nautiyal, Owner, Connecting Horizons, writes about his experience
of taking treks to Leh in Ladakh, the challenges faced in terms of infrastructure,
and what a traveller can expect from the mighty Himalayas.
he first time I came across
the high altitude destination - Leh Ladakh-was through
my textbooks in school.
Growing up in Uttarakhand, I
have witnessed a lack of
basic infrastructure like proper
roads and electricity in the
mountainous regions of India.
This paucity of necessary
infrastructure has often
affected tourism inflow to this
part of the country.
T
In the mid 1990s, I was
lucky to take a flight for the first
time from Delhi to Leh. The
hour-long flight to Leh airport,
the highest airport in India situated at an altitude of about 3000
metres, was full of adventure.
Houses with thatched roofs,
spinning wheels in monasteries,
colourful prayer flags and its
warm people makes Leh a must
visit destination for Indian and
international tourists alike. We
began our 21 day-long trek from
Lamayuru to Darcha, which
helped us in understanding the
ecology and locals practices.
Inspired by this trek, I
along with my colleague
Tsewang Dorje started
Connecting Horizons Travel
Services in 1994 and
Discover Ladakh Adventure
Tours and Travel in 1995, with
Leh and Ladakh as prime
destinations for us.
Two decades have
passed since and the infrastructure in that region has
changed drastically. Proper
roads connect nearly each village around Leh Ladakh, more
flights have started operating
to the region, even more
tourists visit the state now via
road owing to National
Highway form Leh to Manali
and Leh to Srinagar. Internet
facilities and telecom services
are available in all the villages,
helping them connect to the
modern world.
Leh needs to be developed and tourism has to be
encouraged through advertisements and marketing, creating
more awareness about the
region. There is still a need to
strongly sell the destination to
international and domestic
tourists, which would in turn help
small scale industries to develop
in the region. The Ministry of
Tourism, Government of India
should offer special packages to
the region, provide better air fare
deals and more air connectivity
to the region.
Some steps that government should take to encourage
locals to support tourism inflow
in the region is make it a plastic free zone, develop sanitation related projects, keep
water treatment plants instead
of bottled water for tourist, pure
water kiosks at each corner of
the main city, mandatory water
purifiers at each hotel and
guest house so that clients can
take the water at each place
and maintain the heritage and
culture of the region.
Prime Minister Narendra
Modi must declare Leh as a
smart city. This will encourage
more and more domestic and
international tourist which will
strengthen the economy of the
region and create employment
for the locals. Substantial funds
for tourism development can
help preserve their centuries
old culture.
Naveen C. Nautiyal
Owner
Connecting Horizons
FINAL_SUPPLIMENT 2015-FINAL FILE:TT Layout 9/4/2015 4:37 PM Page 25
HOTELS
PATA SPECIAL ISSUE 2015
TRAVTALK
25
Masterclass in hospitality management
After a collaboration with NCHMCT, Anup K Chatterji, GM, HRD, ITDC and Principal AIH&TM, says in view of
the future requirement and huge gap in the demand and supply of trained manpower in the hospitality industry,
they are focusing more on job-oriented short-term courses.
PEDEN DOMA BHUTIA
Q
Can you tell us about the collaboration between AIH&TM
and NCHMCT?
National Council for Hotel
Management & Catering Technology
(NCHMCT) has affiliated with Ashok
Institute of Hospitality & Tourism
Management (AIH&TM), run under
the HRD division of India Tourism
Development Corporation (ITDC) to
conduct a three-year BSc Degree
course in Hospitality & Hotel
Administration (H&HA) from the academic session 2015-16. With this affiliation AIH&TM is now on a par with
all existing IHMs under the umbrella
which is an autonomous body under
Ministry of Tourism. The present
strength of students at AIH&TM
under this programme is 53. At present one batch is being conducted
under this course.
Q
ITDC aims to provide innovative, dependable and value
for money solutions to the needs
of tourism development. How do
you plan to achieve that through
education?
Ashok Institute of Hospitality
& Tourism Management, ITDC, has four
decades of experience in hospitalityrelated training for various categories
of students and employees. ITDC has
As part of its contribution towards supplying
trained manpower to the Hospitality Industry,
ITDC has envisioned to set up its new campus
as a Centre of Excellence in Hospitality
Education at Hotel Samrat, New Delhi
of NCHMCT. However, AIH&TM is the
first and the only IHM falling under a
PSU. The intake to this course is done
through all India Joint Entrance
Examination conducted by NCHMCT
always strived towards excellence in
training and development in the hospitality industry through its HRD division,
AIH&TM. The training methods adopted
by AIH&TM are innovative and are in
Anup K Chatterji
GM, HRD, ITDC and Principal
AIH&TM
tandem with the latest trends
followed widely in the industry.
AIH&TM is providing quality education
and training to the students under
various categories.
Q
How urgent is the need for
skilled labour in the Indian
hospitality industry? How do you
plan to address that?
As per the report of National
Skill Development Corporation
(NSDC) on Human Resource and
Skill Requirement in Tourism, Travel,
Hospitality & Trade, an investment of
` 10 lakh creates 78 jobs in the
tourism sector while the same gener-
ates just 18 jobs in manufacturing and
45 in the agriculture sector. Being
employment intensive, travel &
tourism provides employment to
approximately 31 million (both direct
& indirect) people throughout the
country and is one of the largest
employers in the country; this number
is expected to rise to over 40 million
by 2019 and over 43 million by 2022.
Looking at the future requirement and
huge gap in the demand and supply
of trained manpower to the hospitality
industry we are focusing more on joboriented short-term courses. Apart
from imparting skill development training in areas of food production, F&B
service, accommodation operations
and front office, we have added new
areas such as event management,
travel agency management etc., and
intend to add a few more courses of
tourism and allied areas in the
near future.
Q
What are the roadblocks to
promote hospitality education in the industry?
Lack of proper infrastructure and
shortage of skilled trainers in rural
areas are roadblocks in spreading
tourism awareness and tourism-relat-
ed service providers in remote parts
of the country. Also the mushrooming
of institutes with below standard infrastructure and teaching facilities are
resulting in poor placement records
and are thus discouraging the segment of students wanting to take up a
career in the hospitality industry. The
turnover rate and attrition rate of manpower is comparatively high vis-a-vis
other sectors. The entry-level salary
in the hospitality industry is fairly low
as compared to the counterparts in
other industries.
Q
What is essential for a wellrounded hospitality management education?
A well-rounded hospitality management education must include and
customise the curriculum and teaching methodology as per the need and
changing requirements of the industry.
The teaching methodology adopted
by the institutes must reflect the
industry needs and the learning
should be student oriented. At
AIH&TM we have made an effort to
maintain a balance between the
course curriculum as well as overall
development of the students. As we
call it, “It is just the beginning.”
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26
HOTELS
TRAVTALK PATA SPECIAL ISSUE 2015
Call of the wild
MICE comes to Mysore
Unique in many ways, Namah on the banks of River The first five-star hotel in Mysore, Country Inn & Suites
Kosi offers culinary expertise of a chef and informed By Carlson is betting big on the emerging MICE
guidance of the onsite naturalist.
industry in the city.
TT B U R E AU
amah, surrounded by natural beauty and lush
greenery, is located on the
bank of the River Kosi at
Corbett National Park, close to
the wild life sanctuary. Namah,
Jim Corbett National Park is
currently the only luxury desti-
N
USP of the property, he says,
“Unique in many ways, the
Namah, Corbett National Park
experience has won many
plaudits, both from guests and
travel forums alike. We have
the legendary service of attentive staff, culinary expertise of
the chef and informed
guidance of the onsite natural-
is proving to be the icing on the
cake.” The hotel is betting big on
the weekend getaway segment.
“The weekend getaway which
has appeared in the past few
years has come due to added
work pressures, shrinking holidays, personal and social commitments and attractive offers by
various airlines, etc.”
Both the hotels are close
to the NCR region, which is
considered ideal for the smaller
weekend getaways. In fact,
Corbett is a typical weekend
destination that tends to do
higher ARRs and occupancies
than the rest of the week and
this trend continues round the
year, Vahi adds.
nation in Corbett area that
offers you international luxury
and service coupled with culinary excellence comparable to
any hotel in a metropolis,
says Nikhil Vahi, Senior
Vice President-Hospitality
Operations & Development,
Dharampal Satyapal Limited.
According to Vahi, all this luxury is offered in the serene lap
of nature and majestic views
and wildlife. Talking about the
ist. At Namah, Corbett National
Park, ‘Straight from the
Heart’ is not just a statement.
It’s our way of life.”
Regarding the new initiatives to promote MICE and
leisure in India, he informs, “We
offer well-designed jungle safari
packages. We host weddings
and social functions in the backdrop of lush green mountain
ranges and a flowing Kosi river
Regarding new plans and
hotels, he points out, “We are
just about to launch our property in Jaipur, The Crowne
Plaza Tonk Road Jaipur in the
next few months. We are also
developing a hotel at the airport
in Kolkata. We also have sites
in Noida, Goa, Ranthambore
and Shimla amongst others
which we will develop in the
coming years.”
TT B U R E AU
ountry Inn & Suites By
Carlson, Mysore has
emerged as a brand with a reputation of contemporary modern
hotel. Convenient location, competitive pricing and the right
combination of product/service
design are essentially the main
factors that make this property
a worthwhile stay, says Pankaj
Saxena, GM, Country Inn &
Suites By Carlson, Mysore.
“This 130-room hotel property
has branded restaurants, modern décor and convenient service design to cater to different
categories of guests. In addition,
we offer good conferencing facilities, state-of-the-art technology
C
Pankaj Saxena
GM, Country Inn & Suites
By Carlson Mysore
and professional support to
ensure that each details of every
business event is seamlessly
created,” Saxena adds. Talking
about the emergence of Mysore
as a MICE destination, he points
out, “The city is casually shifting
towards being a perfect destination for MICE business because
of an impressive combination of
accommodation and other conference support facilities.”
Mysore city will always dominate
the contribution, in terms of different segments like corporates,
MICE and domestic packages.
However, the GM expects guest
arrivals
from
Chennai,
Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and
Mumbai to increase as well. He
anticipates some inbound private charters, too.
Talking about how the
hotel is cashing in on the developing MICE in the city, Saxena
points out, “Seeing the greater
demand for MICE movements
in Mysore, we have created a
package which exclusively promotes and encourages MICE
bookings to our hotel. The package has the benefits of using
the Conference Hall with the
option of Lunch layout at the
Pre-Function area. The package provides accommodation
in Superior Room on Twin sharing along with has the options
of all the three meals.”
FINAL_SUPPLIMENT 2015-FINAL FILE:TT Layout 9/4/2015 4:37 PM Page 27
FINAL_SUPPLIMENT 2015-FINAL FILE:TT Layout 9/4/2015 4:37 PM Page 28
28
AGENTS
TRAVTALK PATA SPECIAL ISSUE 2015
In quest of greener pastures OTAs are good competition
The company is promoting India in new markets such Kunwarjeet Singh, Director, Sales & Marketing, Green
as Latin America, East and Central Europe as it sees Chilli Holidays, talks about new plans and says that they
more profits from the region.
face a healthy competition with the OTAs.
TT B U R E AU
stablished over almost 16
years ago, Erco Travels is
reaching out to the discerning
travellers from continents
across the globe. Personalised
service, luxurious accommodation at attractive prices and
informed guidance are the
company’s USP, says Ravi
Gosain, MD, Erco Travels.
Talking about the evolution of
the leading inbound travel
management company, he
says, “With a humble beginning in the first few years of its
operations, the clientele has
E
Ravi Gosain
Managing Director
Erco Travels
all challenges. In fact, two
years ago, we also launched
another vertical for internation-
Two years ago, we launched another
vertical under the brand name Tourism Enterprises. We have now
consolidated our foothold in this
competitive market as well
now grown impressively to over
8,000 international guest base
annually. We have completed
16 years in business as
inbound tour operator and are
cruising successfully through
al DMC representation in
India under the brand
name - Tourism Enterprises.
We have now consolidated our
foothold in this competitive
market as well.”
The company is promoting India in new markets, which
are not exposed to India.
Talking about the potential of
alternative markets, he adds,
“We are targeting lesserknown countries such as Latin
America, East and Central
Europe. We are also looking at
strengthening our position in
the traditional markets such as
the US, France, Spain, the
Netherlands, Australia, etc. It’s
a difficult task and requires lot
of time, energy and investment
but looking at new source markets is the need of the hour. It
will give higher returns compared to the traditional markets
where competition is huge. We
are focusing on social networking sites to create a positive
image of India, so that demand
for India can be increased
among end consumers.”
Regarding new recent
trends in inbound, Gosain
feels, “These days most of the
FTOs are asking for tours to
new places. Inbound travellers
are also looking at tours and
itineraries with a spiritual, yoga
and meditation aspect.”
TT B U R E AU
Q
What are the services
that you offer?
We provide India tour
packages which cover itinerary
planning, transport, tour guide
and food. The most popular
Q
What is the USP of the
company?
Our company is a onestop shop for all kinds of travellers. One can get all sorts of
things under one roof. We provide personalised services to
our clients, whether they are
leisure travellers, FITs or
groups. They go back with a
smile on their faces and contentment in their hearts.
Q
Which are the new
products that you are
planning to bring up?
Kunwarjeet Singh
Director, Sales & Marketing
Green Chilli Holidays
destinations for the leisure travellers are Agra, Delhi, Jaipur
and Goa, of course. We also
plan tour packages for MICE
travellers. Goa, Kerala and
Rajasthan are the most popular destinations for MICE. We
also do international conferences. We also do wildlife
safari to Ranthambhore.
We are soon planning to
start day itineraries for business
travellers. When they get time
amidst their conferences, they
can have a good time exploring
the place with our special day
tours which include tour guides
and local food. Travellers can
also visit our website and
choose from the options of
tours that suit their time slot.
Q
What kind of competition are you facing?
We are facing competition with the online travel
agents (OTAs) coming up in
the market. But, I think the
OTAs don’t have as huge margins as we do. So, even though
there is competition, we deal
with it in a healthy way.
According to me we will reach
their level by improving our
infrastructure and services.
Q
What is your opinion
about PATA Travel
Mart happening in India
this year?
We are glad that this time
PATA Travel Mart is happening
in India. These marts help
us to know different people
in the travel industry. We get to
do business and exchange
ideas with our contemporaries
in the market. It is a great place
for us to network as well as
grow our business.
In the offing
Green Chilli Holidays
will soon start day
itineraries for business
travellers. Customers
can login and choose
in time slot
Try it before you buy it
Vivek Sanghi, Co-Founder & VP-Business
Development, ecare Technology Labs, says customers
get a free trial of two weeks to test their software.
How can people
Q
from the industry
embrace technology?
TT B U R E AU
How
has
the
Q
response been to
the
Pay-as-you-Go
model for SME Travel
Businesses?
We are receiving good
feedback on the new model
and the partnership approach
is being appreciated, specially
because we stand along with
the business and help the portal come to life.
Most importantly, cost
points are attractive while
keeping the service quality
intact. In today’s world, for
majority of the products customers buy, they have an
option to Try before they Buy;
be it a car, clothes, shoes or
equipment so why not the software Application which is
going to power their business
and be the backbone. We feel
pride in offering “Two-week no
obligation trial” and being the
only company to offer this facility, to test the application in production with live ticket issuance
and hotel bookings, before
deciding to move ahead.
Vivek Sanghi
Founder & VP-Business Development
ecare Technology Labs
How does technoloQ
gy help travel
business become more
efficient?
Technology helps businesses in process automation,
reducing error, eliminating clerical
errors,
measuring
and improving productivity
hence resulting in increased
revenue and profits, which
is what is expected from an
efficient business. One of
the facts we stress upon is
that with such automation,
agency can focus on areas
which needs more attention
and intelligence.
A collaborative approach
and information exchange by
creating an ecosystem around
travel tech, may be an event
similar to WTM London or
Travel Technology Europe,
allowing free flow of information. With limited knowledge, it
seems to be rocket science to
travel agencies and they are
afraid of making any investments of time, effort and
money. We have to help them
understand the nitty-gritty, offer
consultation, provide education
and handhold them to be able
to make use of technology.
Any new products
Q
that you will be
launching?
The major developments
planned are Corporate Travel
Module, Travel Planning
Modules and mobile Apps for
iOS and Android platform in the
current year. These additional
sales channels will not only help
travel agencies to sell more but
more travel agencies can adopt
our solution going forward.
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30
TRAVTALK PATA SPECIAL ISSUE 2015
FAMILY ALBUM
When PTM visited Cambodia
The PATA Travel
Mart of 2014 was
organised in Phnom
Penh, Cambodia,
with over 1,000
delegates from close
to 60 countries
joining the event
organised by the
Pacific Asia Travel
Association (PATA)
and hosted by the
Ministry of Tourism
of Cambodia.
GIA
NOSTAL
FINAL_SUPPLIMENT 2015-FINAL FILE:TT Layout 9/4/2015 4:37 PM Page 31
HOTELS
PATA SPECIAL ISSUE 2015
Play ‘brilliant hosts’
TRAVTALK
31
Promoting India in Philippines
Even as more and more people start to travel, one way for Leading DMC in the Philippines, Shroff Travel
a hotel to stand out is through its people and how they can specialises in leisure and MICE arrangements in
the Philippines and worldwide.
help create a memorable experience for their guests.
T T B U R E AU
ocated less than an hour
outside of the city centre
and close to top corporate
hubs like General Electric and
Tesco,
five-star
rated
Bengaluru Marriott Hotel
Whitefield offers a convenient
location for business and
leisure travellers alike. Each of
its 324 guest rooms and suites
offers spa-like marble bathrooms, 40-inch flat-screen
LCD TVs, and luxury bedding.
breaks. Thanks to social media
platforms, offbeat locations
offering experiential holidays
are also picking up pace.”
L
The hotel targets business corporate guests both
domestic and international.
Pratima Badhwar, Director
(Sales & Marketing), Bengaluru
Marriott Hotel Whitefield, says,
“Our aim always is to reach out
to new set-ups first as they
have higher travel prospects.
We drive a large chunk of business from the US, Europe and
UK markets. Within the country,
Delhi is a stronger source market aside of Bengaluru.”
Since it is a business
hotel, Badhwar says that South
India is not too strong as a
source market but it does see
Pratima Badhwar
Director (Sales & Marketing)
Bengaluru Marriott Hotel Whitefield
At our hotel,
our aim is to
create a
personal connect
with the guests
and create a
memorable
experience
a good amount of travellers
from Chennai. Speaking about
the growing domestic market in
India, she says, “Domestic
tourism in India is on the rise as
Indians are now taking more
and more shorter weekend
She adds that short
breaks and experiential vacations are on the rise because
one wants to get away from the
madness of the cities to quiet,
quaint places. “For example,
people are now exploring
homestays in coffee plantations and getting involved in
the coffee-making process,”
Badhwar opines.
In such a scenario, hotels
need to stand put of the crowd.
“I believe a hotel is unique by its
people and what they can do for
their guests. At our hotel, our
aim is to create a personal connect with the guests and create
a memorable experience for a
traveller. To sum it up, more
than promoting a hotel externally, the internal behavior and
service standards offered by
the staff, or as we refer to
them as ‘brilliant hosts’, creates
a much deeper impact in a
guests overall experience
there by positioning the hotel up
top,” she says.
T T B U R E AU
hroff Travel is the only
Indian-Filipino
Travel
Agency in Philippines specialising as a Destination
Management Company (DMC).
“Being Indians ourselves and
operating for more than 21
years in the Philippines, Shroff
Travel promises personalised
and premium quality of service,
guaranteeing customer delight.
We are proud to have repeat
customers, who are handled by
our professional team for
inbound and outbound travel.
Our presence in international
travel events to increase our
promotion, gives us our extensive international connection
and in-depth product knowledge. Other markets we cater to
are the Asia Pacific Region,
India and Indian subcontinent
and as well as the Middle East
markets,” says Kristine L
Shroff, Marketing Director,
Shroff International Travel Care.
S
She says Shroff Travel
specialises in leisure and MICE
arrangements in the Philippines
and worldwide. “We are IATA
certified travel agency, duly
Arjun Shroff
Founder & Managing Director
Shroff International Travel Care
recognised and accredited with
the DOT Philippines,” she adds.
“For inbound tourism,
one of the new trends that
exist is rise in MICE groups
travelling to the Asia Pacific
and specifically to the
Philippines. Aside from this,
there is a need to produce tailor-made products and experience based programs that
engage travellers in a unique
way. This also gives rise to
‘Millenial travellers’ who are
highly dependent on travelling
using technology. Thus the
company has adapted by providing an online platform
where clients may choose
from the various products
Kristine L Shroff
Marketing Director
Shroff International Travel Care
available,” he adds. The company is aggressively participating in all the international trade
shows, including this PTM in
Bengaluru. “We also have
roadshows organised by the
DOT Philippines and we participate in those shows in Asean,
India, Europe, the US and
Canada. We have also
launched an Experience Life
campaign where we would like
travellers to travel to the
Philippines and experience
great adventures that they
can check off their bucket list,”
she informs.
Arjun Shroff is the
Founder and Managing Director
of
Shroff
International
Travel Care.
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AGENTS
Scaling new high points
When
asked Sanjiv Saran, President, High Points –
Expeditions & Tours, what got him into the tourism business, he said
he literally “walked into it!”
mountaineering and trekking
expeditions each year. Since
then, High Points has provided
trips to several thousand visitors. The firm caters to tourists
from the Americas, most
European countries, Japan
and Australia. Today, approximately 50 per cent of High
Points’ customers enjoy the
classic “sight-seeing” trips.
TT B UREAU
aran says: "In my student
days, over a period of 6-7
years I trekked and hitch-hiked
across many parts of India.
These were long, slow journeys, usually solo. Trip by trip,
I trudged up the Himalayas,
crossed them east to west,
then across large swathes of
Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar,
Bengal, Assam and later, the
southern states. The way I
travelled, there was plenty of
time to mix with local people
everywhere, and I developed
a fondness for local colors and
cultures. Around the time I finished college, in the midst of
one such trip, I was recalled
back to Delhi for a job interview
by a reputed travel house that
had been managing logistics
and travel since the days of the
East India Company. I travelled
a day and a night hitching rides
on a series of trucks, and
arrived at their offices just in
time, wearing my backpack
and a pair of scruffy jeans.
They appointed me as a management trainee in their
Expeditions department, and I
started my first job the next
day. That was 38 years ago…
.August 1977… well, I just
S
Sanjiv Saran
President, High Points –
Expeditions & Tours
We ensure that visitors
don’t just go back with
photos of the famous
sights. We include time
and opportunity to
interact with Indian
people at various
levels, to experience
and understand the
essence of India
never stopped exploring India
since… got paid for it too!”
In 1984, Saran established his own company “High
Points – Expeditions & Tours”.
It was a small beginning, a few
The other 50 per cent
take a mix of Classic Sights
with Adventure and Soft
Adventure, from Himalayan
treks and full-scale climbing
expeditions to deluxe AirSafaris by private aircraft.
The firm specialises in
mixing classic sights with
exposure to the vibrant and
colorful living cultures of India.
“We try to ensure that visitors
don’t just see India’s historic
monuments. We include time
and opportunity to interact with
Indian people at various levels,
to experience and understand
the essence of India," Saran
says. “This approach, and our
experience in providing it, is
now helping us to flourish
despite the competition from
all the travel portals, as portals
can at best offer standard
packages with air travel, a
hotel room and classic sightseeing.”
High Points’ customers
have ranged from the Spanish
Army to Hollywood crews with
extensive logistical requirements in remote areas, to
celebrities like Oliver Stone, to
regular tourists in large groups
or individual couples on a
quest to discover India."
He concludes, “All our
customers avail an extensive
infrastructure geared for personalised yet immediate
response, even in remote
areas. For this reason, over the
years High Points has also
been entrusted by international travel insurance companies
to provide emergency medical
assistance and evacuation
services to their clients.”
Kathmandu-Bengaluru from Sept
With Nepal Airlines starting operations from Mumbai and Bengaluru in September,
Anil Ghimire, Manager, New Delhi, Nepal Airlines Corporation, gives an update on
the situation in Kathmandu and increasing the airline’s frequency from Delhi.
TT B U R E AU
Q
How's Nepal recovering after the earthquake?
After a devastating
earthquake, Nepal is in the
phase of reconstruction. After
the earthquake a summit was
held in Nepal for reconstruction, where almost all bilateral
and multilateral agencies
along with other countries
joined the summit and have
committed a help of more than
$50 billion. A Reconstruction
Authority has already been
formed and has started its
work of reconstruction so now
everything is going well and
people are back in business.
Anil Ghimire
Manager, New Delhi
Nepal Airlines Corporation
so there are still a lot of
tourists coming and they are
surprised after visiting
the tourist spots as media
has exaggerated some
things. We can say that the
response of the tourists has
been very good.
Q
Q
Only a few historical
places and tourist areas have
been affected among many,
A few years ago Nepal
Airlines used to fly from
What
has
the
response of the
tourists been so far to
the Valley?
Nepal Airlines will
now
fly
from
Bengaluru and Mumbai
to Kathmandu, what
prompted this move?
Mumbai and Bengaluru too
but due to some technical reasons we had to withdraw the
flight from these sectors. We
have witnessed a good traffic
from these two cities and the
people from Nepal are equally
keen to visit these two cities.
Many Nepalese students are
in Bengaluru but lack of direct
flights makes them take a
detour and fly in transit.
So, Nepal Airlines has
once again started flying from
these destinations for the convenience of its passengers
and to promote Nepal as well
as Mumbai and Bengaluru.
Q
How has the response
to Nepal Airlines been
so far from India?
Nepal Airlines has started its operation in Delhi from
February 27, after two years.
Now we have daily flights to
Delhi from Kathmandu and
very soon we are going to
make it twice a day. The fact
that we are flying twice a day
means that we are getting a
good response from India.
Q
What are the new destinations that you are
looking to fly?
From September we will
be starting our Mumbai and
Bengaluru operations, and
very soon we are going to
start flying to Dubai and
Guangzhou from Kathmandu.
Q
How closely do you
work with Indian
agents?
I have recently been
transferred to Delhi and
I am planning to visit Indian
agents to be able to work
closely with each other.
My colleagues are already
working in cooperation
with the agents and I intent
to take this relationship
forward. We always give
high value to the agents we
work with.
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CLIPBOARD
PATA SPECIAL ISSUE 2015
TRAVTALK
33
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34
HOTELS
TRAVTALK PATA SPECIAL ISSUE 2015
A perfect hideout
Fulfilling a responsibility
Rajdeep Bhalerao, General Manager, Mana Hotel, Clarks Inn Group of Hotels, as part of its CSR
Ranakpur, discusses new attractions introduced by the Programme, visited Anand Niketan Vridh Sewa Ashram,
hotel for travellers.
an old age home devoted to needy senior citizens.
TT B U R E AU
What is the USP of
Qthe
hotel?
The hotel has two pools.
It has a modern structure and
a huge conference hall. It also
has a mini-theatre. We provide
in house activities like billiards,
table tennis, badminton, volley
ball, board games like carom
and chess. One can also experience camel, horse and bullock cart rides.
What is the occupancy of the hotel?
Q
Presently we are doing
40 per cent.
We
are
located
at the base of Aravalli
Hills next to a river with
beautiful scenic views, cool
weather and a pollution free
atmosphere. Our hotel is a
perfect hideout for travellers
who look for peaceful
environment.
The hotel has tourist
attraction sites in its vicinity like
Ranakpur Jain Temple,
Muchhala Mahavir Temple and
Parshuram Mahadev Temple.
Other attractions include
dams, jungle safaris, leopard
safari, NGO bases and local
wood craft shops.
How do you think
Q
the location of
What are the new
the hotel helps grow Qinitiatives
you
business?
have taken?
TT B U R E AU
hat is life is hard to
define. But a life lived
with dignity and accomplishment, bonding and care of
friends and family, is a life lived
well. However, and unfortu-
W
cheers in the life of its elderly
residents who gave their best
years to the development of
the larger society that we are
part of today.
In a first such initiative,
Clarks Inn organised a colour-
The game show was followed by singing competition.
To everybody’s utter surprise
some of the voices heard during the competition were
exceptionally melodious and
enthralling, spellbinding everyone present in the audience.
The elderly residents
were also served a
variety of snacks and
beverages throughout
the duration of event.
Rajdeep Bhalerao
General Manager
Mana Hotel, Ranakpur
One of the new services
is live cooking and ‘Make your
own dish’. We also provide jungle dinner with candle light and
open gypsy and vehicle rides.
We do maximum use of solar
power machines.
nately so, the dawn of the dusk
of life does not augur well for
everyone as family grows and
children travel far and away in
their pursuit of better life.
Clarks Inn Group of
Hotels, as part of its
expanding Corporate Social
Responsibility
(CSR)
Programme, recently visited
Noida-based Anand Niketan
Vridh Sewa Ashram, an old
age home devoted to the service of needy citizen aged over
60 and managed by Jan
Kalyan Trust, in order to bring
ful programme at Anand
Niketan Vridh Sewa Ashram
organising a quiz show based
on the format of Kaun
Banega Crorepati, the famous
Indian television game
show aired on Sony. The
elderly in the audience
were divided into four teams
and vied against each
other to be the first
to answer every question
thrown upon them with
childlike enthusiasm with
some amongst them displaying outstanding general
knowledge skill.
Clarks
Inn
Co-founder
and
President, S N
Srivastava, who took
keen interest in making the event happen
and was himself present throughout the
duration of event
was jubilant to see
the overwhelming
response that the
event attracted from the elderly
residents of Anand Niketan.
“For those in the dusk of
their life, days and wait
could be painstakingly
endless. Today was a very
emotional experience. We
are glad to be able to
bring cheers and joy to the
residents of the Ashram.
Everyone present immensely
enjoyed this afternoon.
We would like to come back
soon and organise more
such events at other places as
well,” he said.
Expanding into Tier-II, III cities
Hotel Park Ocean has just opened doors in Jaipur and is looking forward to setting foot in Agra. Sandeep Jain, Director,
Hotel Park Ocean, discusses their business plans for the future.
from city centre on Sikar
Road which is connected to
Jaipur Delhi expressway.
T T B U R E AU
What is the USP of
Qthe
hotel?
What is the occuQpancy
of the hotel?
Hotel Park Ocean is an
upcoming brand. The rooms
are big and spacious. There
are ample of restaurant
options available like a
rooftop and Five Senses
multi-cuisine restaurant. We
offer free Wi-Fi. The hotel is
located hardly four kms away
We have an average
occupancy of 40 per cent as
the hotel is newly launched.
best available rates and we are
doing fam trips for our business partners. We will soon
add two more hotels in Jaipur
and Agra. The Jaipur project
will be resort-themed and Agra
will be a business class hotel.
To market our brand we will
participate in all domestic and
international travel trade fairs.
What are your new
Qinitiatives?
What are the new
Q
trends in the hospitality industry?
We are offering an inaugural discount of 30 per cent at
Vikramajit
Chairman
SanJeet
Editor & Publisher
Deepa Sethi
Editor-in-Chief
Editorial
Megha Paul
Devika Jeet
Hazel Jain
Kanchan Nath
Samapti Das
News Editor
Peden Doma Bhutia
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Ruchi J. Singh
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Shivani Kaul
Marketing
Gunjan Sabikhi
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Design
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Advertisement Design
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Nitin Kumar
Production Manager
Anil Kharbanda
Circulation
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CIN: U22210DL2012PTC230432
Photographers
Simran Kaur-Delhi
Nowadays
services
include enabling guests to be
self-sufficient, by receiving
information through their
smartphones, on hotel app or
website. The Indian hotel
market has matured. About a
decade ago, there were only
a handful of major hotel
markets in India, namely the
four metros and possibly
Bengaluru or Goa. But in the
last decade, companies have
started looking at other cities
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avenues for expansion of
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previously dependent on
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Sandeep Jain
Director
Hotel Park Ocean
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