Travel News

Las Vegas picked for 2011 global travel summit

2010-04-15T05:25:00.000-07:00

LAS VEGAS – Las Vegas has been picked as next year's site for an international tourism summit expected to attract government and industry leaders from around the world.

The London-based World Travel & Tourism Council announced Tuesday that the American destination will host the 2011 Global Travel & Tourism Summit.

The announcement comes the same day the primary agency in charge of promoting Las Vegas, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, voted to spend $1.5 million to host the May 15-19 meeting. Officials say the summit will be held at the Aria Resort & Casino, the centerpiece of the $8.5 billion CityCenter complex that MGM Mirage opened on the Las Vegas Strip in December.

This year's summit is being held next month in Beijing.

World Travel & Tourism Council CEO Jean-Claude Baumgarten said the group selected Las Vegas in part because it's a symbol of tourism in the United States.

"We cannot choose a better place than Las Vegas," Baumgarten said. "The whole economy, all of what we are seeing, all the impacts of travel and tourism on the economy, on jobs, on the future and investment (make Las Vegas) a better choice."

Baumgarten said Las Vegas made a winning bid to host the summit, which was last held in the United States in Washington, D.C., in 2006.

Tourism and gambling are primary industries to Sin City, where some 244,000 people are employed in the leisure and hospitality industry — more than 30 percent of Las Vegas' total work force, according to the Nevada Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation.

Rossi Ralenkotter, CEO of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, said travel and tourism generates $30 billion annually for southern Nevada.

The World Travel & Tourism Council, a forum for travel industry leaders worldwide, estimates that about 235 million people worldwide are employed in travel and tourism jobs, with the industries generating more than 9 percent of the world's gross domestic product.

Baumgarten said the forum would bring together "substantive decision-makers" to discuss major tourism issues and promote the importance of travel.

He said the summit was created after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in New York and Washington, to help spur international travel again.

The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority estimates that about 1,000 people will take part in the summit, including top government leaders and business leaders from several countries.

Oraginal Post: Las Vegas picked for 2011 global travel summit

Volcanic ash gridlocks European airspace

2010-04-15T05:20:00.000-07:00

Tens of thousands of airline passengers across Northern Europe face travel chaos today after a mushroom cloud of volcanic debris from Iceland heads toward the continent.

The UK has been particularly badly disrupted as the huge ash cloud moves across a major flight path, causing gridlock for the thousand of families returning from their Easter holidays.

The ash cloud has been created by Eyjafjallajokull volcano, near Reykjavik, which erupted on Tuesday following several weeks of heightened activity.

UK airspace north of London has been closed and all flights to and from Scotland cancelled due to server visibility problems.

British Airways has cancelled all domestic flights today, and is offering its passengers alternative travel dates or refunds. Ryanair’s schedules have also been severely disrupted.
Heathrow and Gatwick airports have grounded more than 250 flights, whilst Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Newcastle and Belfast have been closed their runways.

All airports are urging travellers to check with their relevant airlines to see whether flights have been affected.

“Following advice from the Met Office, the National Air Traffic Service (NATS) has introduced restrictions to UK airspace this morning as a result of volcanic ash drifting across the United Kingdom from Iceland,” a spokeswoman for Stansted Airport said.

“These measures currently affect Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Glasgow airports which are closed but may also affect other parts of the UK later today,” she said.

The Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre has issued a forecast that the ash cloud from the volcanic eruption in Iceland will track over Europe tonight.

The ash cloud is expected to spread into continental Europe overnight, and could take several days to clear.

Extreme caution in the aftermath of a volcanic eruption is paramount. Not only does the ash severely hamper visibility, it can also cause engines to malfunction. In 1982 a BA 747 lost power on all four engines after flying through a volcanic ash cloud.

Real time updates of how flights are being affected at www.radarvirtuel.com

Low-Cost Accommodation Delhi, Paharganj, Karol Bagh

2010-03-30T00:41:00.000-07:00

Experts at the recently concluded Delhi Tourism Conclave said that hotels in the middle and upper segments have received a lot of attention for the Commonwealth Games 2010, but low-cost accommodation is required in order to cater to the domestic tourists.
K T Ravindran, Chairman, Delhi Urban Art Commission said, “There is a need to create low-cost hotels and re-look the existing hotel accommodation in Paharganj, Karol Bagh and other areas.”
Ravindran said, “The Commonwealth Games, besides attracting foreign tourists, will also attract domestic tourists, especially youngsters, from the various states. I suggest that at the entry point of Delhi, maybe at the highways, there could be temporary live-in facilities like dormitories with an eating area and toilets. There could be a park and ride facility to the city and to the games venues.”
According to a IANS report, V K Verma, Director General, Organising Committee of the Commonwealth Games, informed the conclave that they are in talks with hotels for ‘reasonably priced’ travel packages for the benefit of backpackers and other tourists during the games.

Original News here:-
http://www.indiatravelnews.com/main_news.asp?id=3148

Swiss Tourism Plans For More Direct Flights From India

2010-01-19T02:10:00.000-08:00

Swiss tourism plans for more direct flights from India.

New Delhi, Jan 13 (PTI) Aiming at a 40 per cent rise in Indian tourist arrivals in the next three years, Switzerland Tourism today said it is evaluating starting more direct flights from Indian cities to the European country in tie-up with the Swiss International Airlines. The Swiss tourism body said it hopes to start direct services from Bangalore and Chennai in partnership with the Swiss International Airlines after ascertaining the potential of the market.

"One of the challenges for us is that there are less number of direct flights from India. There''s only Swiss International Airlines which operates from Delhi and Mumbai.

We would like to increase the number destinations," Switzer- land Tourism Director Markets India Joerg Krebs told PTI. "We will start studying the market. We would like to know the potential cities and places where we can start direct flights," he said.

As a result of the global economic slowdown, the country saw a decline of around one to two per cent in the the number of Indian tourist arrivals in the eight months period from January to August 2009 compared to the previous year. Krebs said the country hopes to increase the number of Indian tourists to five lakh by 2013.
Switzerland had around 3.5 lakh Indians visiting the country in 2008. "Our aim is to have around 500,000 Indians visiting Switzerland by 2013.

Original News here:- http://in.news.yahoo.com/20/20100113/372/tbs-swiss-tourism-plans-for-more-direct.html

Bangkok Hotels

2009-12-02T04:15:00.000-08:00

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2009-11-30T02:31:00.000-08:00

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VLCC to set up residential ‘medical spa’ in Gurgaon, Haryana

2009-11-17T05:18:00.000-08:00

According to a Projects Today report, VLCC, the beauty and wellness company is developing a residential ‘medical spa’ in Gurgaon, Haryana, at an investment of around Rs 100 crore. VLCC has acquired a 40-acre property on the Gurgaon-Sohna highway for its first centre and has tied up with a Miami-based medical spa for R&D and technical support. The spa is likely to start its operations by March 2010.

The centre is expected to have 60 villas and 40 rooms. The spa will engage services of doctors, nutritionists, cosmetologists and physiotherapists to help patients with different lifestyle diseases manage their health.

Bangkok Airways Has Reduced The Fare

2009-11-17T05:05:00.000-08:00

Bangkok Airways has reduced the fare of its Bangkok-Samui’s Early Bird and Night Owl promotion down to 2,000 Baht per sector.

The airline has also added 7 other flights to the promotion in an attempt to boost tourism during what is now traditionally peak season in Thailand.

The “Early Bird and Night Owl” was launched to offer a special rate to passengers who chose to fly between Bangkok and Samui on either the first or the last flight of the day.

The new fare of 2,000 Baht per sector is exclusive of airport tax, fuel surcharge and travel insurance.

The associated flights from Bangkok include PG103 which leaves at 06.00 hrs, PG119 leaves at 07:00 hrs, PG121 leaves at 07:30 hrs, PG169 leaves at 16:30 hrs and PG199 leaves at 21:00 hrs.

From Samui PG100 leaves at 06.00 hrs, PG104 leaves at 07:45 hrs, PG108 leaves at 08:20 hrs, PG122 leaves at 09:15 hrs, PG168 leaves at 17:15 hrs and PG962 leaves at 22:00 hrs.

Marriott Signs Two New Hotels in India

2009-11-10T02:56:00.000-08:00

Marriott has signed management agreements with Phoenix Hospitality, that will add two more hotels to its lodging portfolio in India in 2012. The hotels are the circa 300-room Mumbai Marriott Hotel Kurla and circa 165-room Courtyard by Marriott Agra.

When opened, the two hotels will result in the Marriott International lodging system being represented in India by 36 properties spanning six lodging brands serving guests in the luxury, upscale, upper-moderate and extended-stay segments by the end of 2012.

“We are thrilled to add these two exciting hotels to our Indian portfolio,” said Ed Fuller, president and managing director of international lodging for Marriott International. “The Indian travel market is exploding as India’s middle class continues to expand and an increasing number of international visitors come to India for business or tourism or to attend conferences. We are confident that both properties will fill consumer demand for consistent quality and comfort, great service and value and will surpass traveler expectations in their respective markets.”

1.) Mumbai Marriott Hotel Kurla

The Mumbai Marriott Hotel Kurla will be part of a mixed-use development that will also include extensive office and retail space in the central suburb of North Mumbai approximately six kilometers east of Mumbai’s international airport.

2.) Courtyard by Marriott Agra

The Courtyard by Marriott Agra will be situated in a stand-alone building as part of a mixed-used development in Taj Nagri off the Fatehabad Road and will be one of the first internationally-branded hotels in the upper-moderate-tier segment in Agra.