Akshay

Kingfisher is the Official Airline for Abba Concert

Press release from Business Wire India
Source: Kingfisher Airlines
Tuesday, August 22, 2006 06:12 PM IST (12:42 PM GMT)
Editors: General: Arts & culture, Entertainment, People, Travel & tourism;
Business: Advertising, PR & marketing, Automotives, Media & entertainment, Travel & tourism; Automotive Release no: 11561
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Kingfisher is the Official Airline for Abba Concert

Mumbai, Maharashtra, India, Tuesday, August 22, 2006 -- (Business Wire India) -- Kingfisher Airlines, India's fastest growing private airlines the official airline for the Abba Concert, has announced its participation in the upcoming ABBA concert. Kingfisher Airlines is the official Airline partner for the same.

Keeping in tune with Kingfisher Airlines strategy of alliance with leading
establishments, Kingfisher Airlines has struck an alliance with National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA), India's premier cultural institution. Down the decades the NCPA has played host to a number of leading international artistes, including the ABBA concert this season between August 23 and 27, 2006.

Commenting on this unique association Mr Girish Shah, Head Marketing of Kingfisher Airlines Limited said "Kingfisher Airlines is proud to partner with Abba during their Mumbai concerts as official travel partner . Our association with such events is our way of offering maximum delight to our target consumer, as music is an integral part of their life and indeed our marketing mix. As we expand our network of cities served, we will continue to innovate and present more such exciting marketing initiatives in the months ahead".

The cultural repast that the NCPA offers is considerable. It organizes
special programmes by legendary artistes in the fields of classical, traditional and modern dance, music and theatre, as well as a regular series of programmes to encourage young and promising talent. Workshops with accomplished arts professionals and master classes with seasoned artistes in various fields are held on a regular basis.


About Kingfisher Airlines

Kingfisher Airlines is India's first and only private airline to receive the
prestigious, 'Best New Airline of the Year' award in the Asia-Pacific and
Middle East region from Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation (CAPA). Kingfisher Airlines has also been voted as the 3rd Most Successful Brand Launch of the Year 2005, in the annual Brand Derby Survey conducted by India's leading business daily-Business Standard. In another Survey conducted by agencyfaqs.com and Brand Reporter, Kingfisher was voted as the 7th Buzziest Brand of 2005 amongst 2000 leading national and international brands. More recently, Kingfisher Airlines has bagged the "Service Excellence for a New Airline" award from Skytrax, a UK based specialist global air transport advisor.

The latest addition to the list of laurels is the "Best New Domestic Airline
for Excellent Services and Cuisine" award from Pacific Area Travel Writers Association (PATWA), the biggest travel writers' organization, representing members from 70 countries across the globe, that conducts independent annual surveys across various industries related with Travel and Tourism in order to select the best in each category. Kingfisher Airlines commenced operations on May 9th, 2005 with a brand new
fleet of aircraft. Kingfisher Airlines offers Full Service at True Value and
promises an unparalleled experience to the Indian air traveler. On offer are
extra-wide seats and spacious leg room, delicious gourmet meals, internat
The latest addition to the list of laurels is the "Best New Domestic Airline for Excellent Services and Cuisine" award from Pacific Area Travel Writers Association (PATWA), the biggest travel writers' organization, representing members from 70 countries across the globe, that conducts independent annual surveys across various industries related with Travel and Tourism in order to select the best in each category. Kingfisher Airlines commenced operations on May 9th, 2005 with a brand new fleet of aircraft. Kingfisher Airlines offers Full Service at True Value and promises an unparalleled experience to the Indian air traveler. On offer are extra-wide seats and spacious leg room, delicious gourmet meals, international-class cabin crew and a whole host of comforts and delights. Kingfisher Airlines also facilitates doorstep delivery of tickets on guest request. Kingfisher Airlines has further raised the bar by introducing the Indian business traveler to a premium product- Kingfisher First,
the finest experience in the Indian skies. For more information on Kingfisher Airlines log on to www.flykingfisher.com . Fly the Good Times with Kingfisher Airlines.

__________________
If at first you don't succeed, call it v1.0!

Akshay

Comfort tourism is new mantra in mini Kashmir

Jammu - There is adventure tourism, luxury tours and heritage trips… and now Jammu and Kashmir has started ‘comfort tourism’ in its beautiful but inaccessible Bhaderwah Valley, where households have opened their doors to visitors in the absence of hotels and guesthouses.

Comfort tourism kick-started this year in Bhaderwah, dotted with mountains, thick forests, natural springs and brooks, south of the Pir Panjal range.

About 85 households in the town, 205 km from here, played host to devotees on their way to the three-day pilgrimage to the Kailash kund 14,000 feet high in the Himalayas. It was all free.

The idea of comfort tourism is to encourage development of infrastructure at places that are rich with tourism potential but are remote and inaccessible like Bhaderwah Valley that is often known as mini Kashmir.

Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, a native of Bhaderwah, told IANS: ‘I introduced this concept when I was the union tourism minister. The government was to provide help to households which were to construct three to four rooms to play hosts to tourists.’

‘The idea was to promote the infrastructure locally without waiting for a major investment from the government or private sector. Also, construction of big guest houses and hotels would have marred the environment.’

He said there should be 400-500 households involved by next year, translating to least 2,000 more rooms catering to the needs of pilgrims and tourists.

There is more on offer.

‘There is organic food available in Bhaderwah. This should be an added attraction for Indian and foreign tourists,’ Azad said.

Every year, the 22-km Kailash yatra begins from a temple in Bhaderwah town, which is 3,000 years old. Thirty percent of the pilgrims are Muslims.

‘This is much older than the Amarnath pilgrimage,’ Azad said, referring to the cave shrine dedicated to Lord Shiva.

Azad, who flagged off this year’s pilgrimage Aug 19, for the first time introduced a helicopter service and also invited travel agents from various states.

As the yatra is scheduled in August every year when the weather is rough, rains make the track slippery and even hamper operation of helicopter services, the government has proposed that ‘a fortnight-long Bhaderwah festival be held in June every year from next year’.

Akshay

Kerala’s infrastructure needs improvement: Tourism minister

Thiruvananthapuram - Koderi Balakrishnan, Kerala’s new tourism minister, said Saturday that improving the state’s infrastructure is necessary to promote tourism activities.

‘If more investment has to come in to the tourism sector, there has to be urgent infrastructure development and that is one area where I will lay more emphasis,’ Balakrishnan told reporters after taking charge.

He also stressed that it was equally important to promote domestic tourism in a big way.

‘Eco-tourism, pilgrim tourism and health tourism are other sectors which my department will give importance. Another significant aspect we will concentrate on is tackling pollution in the tourism sector,’ stated Balakrishnan.

Akshay

Jharkhand gears up to improve tourism infrastructure

Ranchi - Jharkhand has set up a high-powered committee to improve its tourism infrastructure in a bid to catch up with other states in attracting holiday-goers.

The committee, headed by Chief Minister Arjun Munda, will not only improve infrastructure but also keep a check on law and order at tourist spots.

The members of the committee include departmental ministers, secretaries of tourism, road construction, home and power, chairman of the Jharkhand State Electricity Board (JSEB) and the top brass of the police amongst others.

‘The high-powered committee will meet once a month. It will look at ways to improve infrastructure like roads, electricity, law and order to promote tourism,’ Tourism Secretary S.K Chaudhary told IANS.

‘The committee has been constituted because improving the infrastructure is a major task at tourist spots. We would have had to move from one department to another for the different tasks. Now everything can be decided in a meeting as officials and ministers of different departments will meet under the chairmanship of the chief minister,’ he said.

The committee will also review the progress and bottlenecks that come in the way of tourism on a regular basis.

Said Chaudhary: ‘Jharkhand has scores of spots which could be developed to woo tourists. Besides improving infrastructure and providing good accommodation, law and order is a must to promote tourism. The committee will look into all these aspects.’

The state government also plans to open high-class hotels at tourist spots and improve airline services for the comfort of the holidayers.

The state has several tourist locales, which need to be spruced up and promoted in the right manner. ‘We want to improve rural, eco, adventure and health tourism. We have also started work on the 800-metre ropeway at Trikut in Deoghar district,’ said Chaudhary.

Akshay

Private investors to put in Rs.10 bn on Kerala tourism

Thiruvananthapuram - The Kerala government Tuesday announced that private investors would put in a whopping Rs.10 billion ($213 million) this fiscal for promotion of tourism in the state.

Tourism Minister Koderi Balakrishnan said all investment above Rs.50 million would be approved through a special window clearance, thereby making it easier for the investors.

‘We would also like to ensure that the local community gets a share of the earnings. The locals would be involved for promoting the ethnic culture and heritage of the state,’ said Balakrishnan, adding that the policy of the government is to promote ‘responsible tourism’.

Tourism Secretary E.K. Bharat Bhushan said the last fiscal saw Kerala’s tourism revenue touch an all-time high of Rs.93 billion.

‘This season we expect to see our tourism revenue cross the Rs.10,000 crore (Rs.100 billion) mark and also to see that we double the growth rate in foreign tourist arrivals achieved in the last fiscal,’ said Bhushan.

In the last fiscal, a record 346,000 foreign and 5.9 million domestic tourists visited the state.

‘We would like to see that more infrastructure development in tourism takes place. Farm, health and home-stay tourism would be improved through new laws. New destinations in the state would be developed,’ he said.

In the last fiscal, the state government set aside Rs.760 million while the central government allocated Rs.480 million for various tourism projects.

Akshay

Bengal to woo foreign investment in tourism

Kolkata - The West Bengal government has decided to appoint a consultant to attract Indian and international investors to the state’s tourism sector.

‘We are in the final leg of appointing a consultant to attract both Indian and international investors to the state’s tourism sector. The decision will be announced over the next fortnight,’ said state Tourism Minister Manabendra Mukherjee.

‘The consultant will also help formulate the next tourism policy,’ he said.

According to Mukherjee, the concept of a success fee would be introduced for the first time, wherein the consultant’s payment would be made on the basis of the number of investors attracted.

A public relations organisation would also be appointed in connection with this new focus on tourism, being pegged as a sunrise sector.

‘We have identified 25-30 areas in tourism that can be developed in a big way. We are also in talks with various industries to attract private investment in tourism,’ Mukherjee said.

Tea tourism, river tourism, Raj-nostalgia tourism and eco-tourism are among the areas being looked at in a big way.

Mukherjee said he would be visiting Jalpaiguri in north Bengal to meet with the district administration and explore tourism potential in the area while a visit to Siliguri was slated later this month to meet tea-garden owners.

‘We have already received a proposal for a Rs.520 million ($11 million) tea tourism project in north Bengal,’ he added.

The tourism restructuring exercise also includes revamping tourist lodges under the West Bengal Tourism Development Corporation (WBTDC).

Of these, 14 lodges are already under private management.

Akshay

Bengal to woo Gulf tourists with monsoon package

Kolkata - The verdant rain-washed landscape of the northern parts of West Bengal may soon have admirers from the deserts of the Gulf, with the state planning a monsoon tourism package for holidayers from the Middle East.

Cashing in on the six-flights-a-week air service by Emirates airline between Dubai and Kolkata from Friday, the state government wants to woo Arabian tourists who often visit states like Maharashtra to witness the monsoon.

‘They cannot enjoy the rain in their country. So they often come to Maharashtra. With the direct flight service now a reality, we too want to draw tourists from the Gulf nations to West Bengal, especially the beautiful northern part of the state,’ West Bengal tourism secretary T.K. Burman told IANS.

‘The entire north Bengal (which has hills and vast stretches of tea gardens) would be our prime area of projection. We have already discussed it here and now will take it up with them (Emirates),’ Burman said.

‘We will work out on how to project West Bengal to tourists from the Gulf region,’ said Burman. ‘They (Emirates) have just come and so now we will hold talks with them.’

Ghaith Al Ghaith, executive vice-president, commercial operations worldwide, Emirates, told IANS: ‘It is the right idea and I hope it will be successful.’

Said Burman: ‘We wanted to start packages in collaboration with Malaysian Airlines as well but unfortunately they pulled out of the sector.’

Burman said with a makeover of the Bagdogra airport in north Bengal and the inauguration of the Cooch Behar airport, tourism would get boost in north Bengal.

Akshay

Kashmir team to allay tourists’ fears

Jammu - A Jammu and Kashmir government team led by Deputy Chief Minister Muzzaffar Hussain Baig will visit Gujarat, Maharashtra and West Bengal to allay fears of prospective tourists after militants targeted a number of visitors in recent weeks.

Official sources said the high-level team led by Baig, also the tourism minister, will visit these states some time next month.

‘Tourists should not abandon Kashmir, as that would only help the terrorists who want to spoil the relations between the people of the state and the rest of the country,’ said an official.

This year, more than 300,000 tourists visited the Kashmir Valley in the first six months. However, it is feared that a spate of terror attacks killing 17 tourists and wounding more than 50 - mainly from the three states - may reduce the number of tourists from these states.

The team will comprise ministers, government officials, tour operators, hoteliers and houseboat owners.

Akshay

Chhattisgarh sets up tourism centre in Maharashtra

Raipur - A Chhattisgarh tourism information centre was set up Sunday in Nagpur with the aim of attracting tourists visiting Maharashtra’s Vidarbha region.

Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh formally opened the centre and said the state, which is endowed with natural beauty, is fast becoming a ‘dream destination’ for tourists.

The Nagpur centre is the first centre of the Chhattisgarh Tourism Board (CTB) in Maharashtra. CTB has so far set up similar centres at Visakhapatnam, Kolkata, Delhi, Ahmedabad and Bhopal.

State Tourism Minister Brijmohan Agrawal had earlier said that the government has identified as many as 105 tourist locations in the state which were of cultural, religious and historical importance, apart from being gifted with natural beauty.

Among the major tourist attractions in Chhattisgarh are the Indravati river falls in Bastar, the Kanger valley national park, caves and rocks that are reportedly 3,000-3,300 million years old and the Buddhist religious centre at Sirpur in Mahasamund district.

According to state officials, private firms have made proposals to invest over Rs.400 billion in the tourism sector. These investments are mainly in eco-tourism for infrastructure development, besides the construction of over 100 hotels and motels on roads connecting popular tourist sites.

The state government has offered sales tax and state tax concessions for the next 10 years to woo investors in the fields of tourism and infrastructure development.

Akshay

Gujarat allocates Rs.500 mn for tourism

Gandhinagar - In an unexplained flip-flop, the Gujarat government Wednesday allocated Rs.500 million for tourism development - just a month after saying it would sell off 26 properties belonging to the tourism department.

The new allocation will be used to create and improve infrastructure and tourism facilities in the state, an official statement said.

The state will allocate Rs.100 million for developing eco-tourism, with each district getting Rs.15 to Rs.30 million to create facilities like electricity, roads, drinking water and drainage at important tourist spots.

District collectors will supervise the utilisation of funds by district-level tourism committees.

Citing losses, the Tourism Corporation of Gujarat Ltd May 17 announced it would sell off its 26 properties across the state at market rates.

Ironically, Gujarat is celebrating 2006 as Tourism Year.

Akshay

Gujarat to sell hotels to private players

Gandhinagar - The Gujarat government Wednesday decided to sell 26 hotels and palaces situated at tourist sites to private players to boost tourism.

‘The property will be sold on market rates for which we will soon issue tenders. The decision has been taken to promote tourism,’ state urban development minister I.K. Jadeja said.

In a statement, the minister said the property would be sold on condition that the buyer used it solely for tourism purposes.

Jadeja said the state cabinet had cleared the proposal and an empowered committee to oversee the process would soon be set up.

The government is celebrating 2006 as the ‘Tourism Year’.

It had earlier proposed to invite private players to invest in the celebration of festivals like the kite festival, ‘Ranotsav’ near Kharaghoda in the Little Rann of Kutch and ‘Sharadotsav’ in the border district of Kutch, to boost tourism.

Akshay

Railways to built hotels in four Rajasthan cities

Jaipur - Indian Railways will open hotels in four Rajasthan cities to meet the growing tourist demand.

These hotels, to be called Rail Ratan Hotels, are to be opened near stations at Jaipur, Jodhpur, Udaipur and Jaisalmer, the four prime tourist destinations. Rajasthan received over a million of foreign and two million domestic tourists in 2005.

The railways will provide only the land for the hotels, which would then be operated by private firms. These firms are to be chosen through tender.

Akshay

Kerala resort to host jungle carnival

Thiruvananthapuram - A resort owned by non-resident Keralites is to hold a jungle carnival that would have tribal cultural programmes, handicrafts and astrologers apart from the usual trekking and safaris.

The carnival organised by Contour Holidays Resort (CHR), a tourism venture project in Konni in the state’s Pathanamthitta district, will be a month-long affair starting Aug 25.

‘This is the first jungle resort in south Kerala and is spread over a 120-acre area bordering the dense forests in the Western Ghats. The jungle carnival would go on for a month from Aug 25 onwards,’ A.R. Ajithkumar, general manager of the resort, said Wednesday.

During the carnival, there will be tribal cultural programmes, exhibition and sale of tribal handicrafts, a tribal astrologer and a magician.

Built recently at a cost of Rs.10 million, CHR has 14 cottages and a variety of activities lined up for its guests including jungle trekking, jeep safari, bird watching and many similar activities.

The resort is owned by a group of five Kerala businessmen based in Dubai, UAE and is led by N. Suresh Kondoor.

CHR also owns an exotic Rs.10 million resort having seven exquisite rooms on top of a cliff at Varkala, 40 km from here.

‘Our third project is nearing completion near Kidangara in Alappuzha district which is a Rs.40 million state of the art backwater resort and has been named Contour Backwaters,’ Kumar told IANS.

Akshay

Ayurveda boosts monsoon tourism in Kerala

Thiruvananthapuram - Despite dull and dreary rains during the monsoon season in Kerala, numerous tourists visit the state to savour ayurveda packages.

It is believed that the months of June and July are best suited for administering ayurvedic treatment.

‘In the last five years the number of tourist places offering ayurveda-related services in Kerala has more than doubled. Capital investment for a cottage in a resort now ranges from Rs.500,000 to Rs.5 million,’ said Jose Dominic, chief of CGH Earth, one of the leading players in Kerala’s tourism industry.

According to a World Travel and Tourism Council report, tourism in Kerala is expected to grow at the rate of 11.40 percent per annum till 2013.

‘Monsoon tourism has come to stay in Kerala. We have an increase of 30 percent in business this season,’ said Dominic.

‘Ayurvedic tourism is going to be the selling point for Kerala because strong undercurrents indicate that this has put the state on the tourism map of the world,’ said Dominic, who owns half a dozen premium properties in the state.

John Muthoot, managing director of Muthoot Hotels, said: ‘This season we are inviting corporate houses to hold their annual conferences. Four groups have come and gone. This month we expect four more groups and each will have around 40 executives.

‘After their routine meetings, they (conference delegates) head for our spa aroma therapy. This has come as a bonus and we have already started receiving inquiries for next year’s monsoon season,’ said Muthoot.

Most resorts in Kerala offer attractive ayurveda packages to the tourists. These packages include body massages with different herbal oils and powders.

While the tariff varies from resort to resort, it starts from 50 euros a day, including for food, accommodation and treatment protocols.

The most preferred treatment protocol is the rejuvenation package, which consists of different kinds of massages. Packages for slimming, stress management and beauty care are also in high demand. The duration of these packages ranges from one week to three weeks.

Most resorts have a special ayurveda kitchen with customized menu. To add colour to the ayurveda season, resorts also conduct cooking classes.

Akshay

Ayurveda massage centres to be regulated

Kochi - Ayurvedic massage parlours in Kerala, which are immensely popular with foreign and domestic tourists, will soon come under the government scanner, Health Minister P.K. Sreemathy said Saturday.

While tourist resorts offering ayurveda massage do roaring business during the peak monsoon season, Sreemathy said the government would see to it that no exploitation takes place at such centres.

‘We have reports that certain undesirable activities do take place in the name of ayurveda in certain places. At no cost will we tolerate this,’ he said here, while releasing a new publication on ayurveda.

Ayurveda is most effective during the rainy months of June, July and early August. It is the best season for administering the treatment, as the human body is best suited for ayurveda during this time.

The most popular packages on offer at resorts are the one-week, two-week and three-week packages.

Most of these packages include body massages with different types of herbal oils and powders.

The minister said that her department is working out rules and regulations that would have to be adhered to by all those engaged in ayurveda tourism.

‘We just can’t spoil the huge advantage that we have as far as ayurvedic tourism is concerned. No other state has this advantage and if we do not have proper checks and balances things could go out of hand,’ Sreemathy told IANS.

The current rate for a simple rejuvenating body massage is as low as Rs.250 while an intensive four-week package could be priced as high as Rs.350,000.

‘We intend to classify all tourists resorts depending on the facilities being offered in ayurveda. There would be clear bench-marking allowing the tourist a fair deal,’ said the minister.