Tourists

The German National Tourism Board (GNTB) expects the Indian tourists to clock one million (10 lakh) overnight stays in Germany this year itself

Occupancy in hotels and homestays has increased to about 80 per cent as tourists from the neighbouring states are making a beeline to Shimla to enjoy the long weekend under the bracing climate. The influx of tourists in the hill town is causing traffic jams on the main roads, including the Shimla-Kalka National Highway and long queues of vehicles moving at a snail's pace are causing inconvenience to both the locals and the vacationers. Vice President of Shimla Hotel and Restaurant Association Prince Kukreja told PTI that the hotel occupancy has increased to about 80 per cent in Shimla and the peak summer tourist season will start from April 15 onwards till June 15. As temperatures have started rising in the plains the visitor rush is picking up ahead of tourist season. Vehicles parked on the roads and in front of hotels by the tourists coming without advance booking coupled with construction going on under the Shimla Smart City project have become major traffic bottlenecks. A numb

An influx of tourists and e-rickshaws plying in the zero zone here led to a massive traffic jam here for the second consecutive day on Saturday, causing inconvenience to people. No vehicles are allowed in the nearly one-kilometre-long zero zone which stretches from the municipality building to the Chandrabhaga bridge. The town witnessed similar scenes on Friday as the long weekend began but the situation is worse today, said a shopkeeper in the Lakshman Jhoola area. The entry of e-rickshaws in the zero zone was prohibited after a meeting of the administration and transport department on Thursday. However, as droves of tourists arrived here, around 1,500 e-rickshaws entered the zero zone on Saturday, causing a traffic jam from Rishikesh to Shivpuri. The impact was also seen in Neelkanth and Lakshman Jhoola areas with vehicles moving at a snail's pace. Superintendent of Police, Dehradun (Rural), Kamlesh Upadhyay said the ban on the entry of e-rickshaws in the zero zone will be stri

India is looking to explore the full potential of adventure tourism keeping in mind sustainability and livelihood opportunities for local communities, Tourism Minister G Kishan Reddy said on Saturday. Addressing a side event of the second G20 Tourism Working Group Meeting on "tourism as a vehicle for achieving sustainable development goals", the minister hoped the discussions held at the meet will help countries around the world overcome the impact of COVID-19 on the tourism sector. He said India's topography provides for an ideal destination for sustainable adventure tourism. "We have a 7,000-km coastline, 70 per cent of the Himalayas, about 700 kilometres of rivers, sand desert and cold desert in Ladakh...all of which provide opportunities for a variety of adventure activities for both domestic and foreign tourists," Reddy said. "India is looking to explore the full potential of adventure tourism keeping in mind sustainability and opportunities for livelihood for local communitie

South Korea will temporarily exempt people from 22 visa-waiver nations from mandatory online travel permits and transit visa requirements as part of efforts to attract more foreign tourists

The Army has rescued more than 1,000 tourists, including women and children, who were stranded at Chhangu in the upper reaches of East Sikkim, following heavy snowfall, officals said. Severe snowfall in Natu La, Tsomgo (Chhangu) Lake and adjoining areas on Wednesday afternoon brought down the temperature to sub-zero levels and impacted the movement of travellers, they said. Due to the snow accumulation, driving became dangerous, resulting in over 1,000 tourists along with 200 vehicles getting stranded over a stretch of 15 km, they added. The Army personnel deployed in the area launched a rescue effort, and the tourists were shifted to safety following an over eight-hour operation, an official release said. "All the tourists were provided with accommodation, hot meals, warm clothing and critical medical support," it said.

The government hopes a hundred per cent recovery in foreign tourist arrivals by December-end

With recovery in international tourism, Kenya is expecting the tourist footfalls from India to cross the pre-pandemic level this year, Kenya Tourism Board has said. "India is important for us as it is the fifth largest source market in terms of footfalls as well as spending," Kenya Tourism Board acting director - market development, Fiona Ngesa told PTI here. In 2019, Kenya had hosted 1.22 lakh tourists from India and over 20 lakh overall international travellers, she said adding in 2020, there was a standstill due to the pandemic but thereafter from 2021 there has been a steady rise in visitors footfalls. In 2021, Kenya hosted 40,000 visitors from India followed by 83,000 in 2022, she said. "There is a steady increase in footfalls from India and this year we expect the visitor numbers to cross the pre-pandemic level. We are targeting 100 lakh footfalls of overall international travellers by 2027," she added. The African country's top source markets are North America, Uganda, ...

Tourists made a beeline to resorts in Shimla, Manali and Kufri after a fresh snowfall, increasing the occupancy in hotels to almost 70 per cent. As many as 7,164 vehicles had entered Shimla through Shoghi border in 12 hours till 8 pm on Friday. The occupancy in hotels is expected to further rise by 10 per cent by the evening, vice president of Shimla Hotel and Restaurant Association Prince Kukreja said. The police have advised the tourists to keep in mind the heavy inflow of traffic to Shimla before planning their trip, drive safely at slippery points and call 0177-2812344 or 112 in case of emergency. Slippery road conditions after rain and sleet caused great inconvenience for pedestrians and people came out only after the snow was cleared. Manali received 23 cm of snow followed by 16 cm in Khadrala, 16 cm in Shillaro, 12 cm in Kufri, 10 cm in Bharmour, 6 cm each in Shimla and Gondla, 4 cm each in Dalhousie and Kalpa and 3 cm each in Hansa and Keylong. The meteorological station

Travellers whose package tours were ruined by the imposition of restrictions to combat the COVID-19 pandemic may be entitled to at least a partial refund, the European Union's highest court said Thursday. The European Court of Justice weighed in after being asked for its opinion by a court in Germany. The Munich court is considering the case of two people who bought a two-week package vacation on the Spanish island of Gran Canaria starting on March 13, 2020, just as the pandemic hit Europe. They are seeking a 70 per cent reduction in the price because of restrictions that were imposed there two days later and their early return. When the restrictions were imposed on March 15, beaches were closed, a curfew put in place and the plaintiffs were allowed to leave their hotel room only to eat, the EU court said. On March 18, they were told to be ready to leave at any moment, and two days after that they had to return to Germany. The tour operator refused the requested reduction on the ..

Joshimath subsidence is a warning sign

The November figure is even more than that of all months combined in 2021, during which only 801,700 tourist stays were registered in Israel

Altogether 66,133 tourists visited the picturesque Naga Heritage village Kisama till Monday, where the Hornbill festival is being held. The total includes 44,382 locals, 21,049 domestic tourists and 702 foreigners, Tourism Department Deputy Director Toka E Tuccumi said. Inaugurated by Vice President Jagdeep Dhankar on December 1, the 10-day festival has been showcasing Nagaland's deep-rooted traditions and its rich cultural heritage in all its ethnicity, diversity and grandeur, the official said. Tourists praised the state government in visitors' dairy at various locations within the vicinity of Kisama, some 12 kilometres from the state capital Kohima. Madhumita D from Karbi Anglong of Assam lauded the local administration and the state tourism department for very nice hospitality". "Thank you and I welcome and invite you all to Karbi Anglong," she said. Chennai's Sanjeev Bhola said he felt proud of Nagaland with "a state so diverse in culture as part of India". Kizystot and Dor

The Maldives received nearly 1.5 million tourists so far this year, with travellers from India topping the list, according to data from the country's Ministry of Tourism.

The biggest decline has been in foreign tourist arrivals

Traditional Goan music played out and flowers were given as tourists disembarked from an international cruise liner in Vasco town on Wednesday, setting the tone for an upbeat tourist season after a long gap as shadows of the COVID-19 pandemic receded. In Goa, where tourism is the mainstay of the economy, the arrival of Viking Mars, the first international cruise ship of the current tourist season, was an occasion to celebrate. As soon as the ship docked at Vasco and 650 tourists disembarked, Mormugao MLA Sankalp Amonkar moved forward to lead a traditional welcome. The tourists were given flowers by local women complemented by the beating of drums. "This is the first international cruise ship to arrive in Goa for the current tourist season," a senior state Tourism department official said. He said the state government has been promoting cruise tourism by organising road shows and participating in tourism marts to promote Goa. The peak tourism season in Goa typically stretches from

Room demand across business cities remained strong during the quarter, primarily driven by MICE and other business-related travel

Madhya Pradesh Home Minister Narottam Mishra on Wednesday instructed the state police to study the functioning of their counterpart in Goa to make proper security arrangements for tourists visiting the state. Mishra gave directions to the state officials in this regard during a high-level meeting that was attended by state Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Rajesh Rajora and Director General of Police (DGP) Sudhir Saxena, among other top officials, a government release said. "Mishra directed the MP Police to study Goa's policing system to provide proper security arrangements to the tourists visiting the state," it said. The home minister also instructed the officials to collect proper information about the number of tourists, their native countries, languages spoken by them to make a proper tourist policing system in Madhya Pradesh, it said. Mishra said that better arrangements can be made only after compiling this kind of information, it said.

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Stating that Goa faces challenges on tourism from Sindhudurg belt and from Karnataka border, Tourism Minister Rohan Khaunte said that his department is promoting water sports