The Department of Tourism in Bhutan has unveiled the Druk Neykor programme, an enriching tourism experience encompassing 108 sacred sites and monuments across the country. Designed to offer a profound exploration of Bhutan’s rich history, culture, and spirituality, the programme welcomes travelers of all ages seeking a deeper understanding of the nation’s unique heritage.
The Druk Neykor programme kicks off with tours to 16 significant sites within Thimphu, including the revered Wangditse Lhakhang, Tshelung Ney, and Talangkha Drugyel Goenpa. These sites are conveniently accessible either by road or through scenic hikes, with various accommodation options nearby such as hotels, guesthouses, and campsites ensuring a comfortable stay for visitors.
Chosen based on their sacredness, historical importance, easy accessibility, and popularity, the Druk Neykor sites offer a pilgrimage-like experience.
Travellers can opt for the Druk Neykor programme through authorised Bhutanese Tour Operators, although visiting the sites independently is also possible. What makes the experience truly immersive is the unique passport system of Druk Neykor, where travellers collect stamps at each spiritual site visited. From the iconic Tiger’s Nest monastery to the tranquil Druk Wangyel Chorten, Dochula, each stamp narrates a tale of spiritual awakening and cultural immersion. Moreover, the stamp book features QR codes, providing detailed information about each site upon scanning.
The Druk Neykor programme invites visitors to embark on a journey of spiritual discovery amidst Bhutan’s stunning landscapes and natural beauty. It offers a captivating opportunity to traverse ancient pilgrimage routes, engage with local communities, and partake in age-old rituals and traditions that have shaped Bhutan’s spiritual heritage for centuries.
Dorji Dhradhul, Director General, Department of Tourism-Bhutan, emphasised, “The spiritual legacy of Bhutan harmonises with its natural allure, and Druk Neykor presents a unique chance to explore both facets in unison. We extend a warm invitation to travellers worldwide seeking a genuinely spiritual and immersive travel encounter to participate in the Druk Neykor programme and contribute to promoting Bhutan’s pilgrimage sites and distinctive culture.”
The guide features a diverse range of tourist events, including iftar and suhoor offerings, as well as luxurious accommodation packages, ensuring an unforgettable experience for tourists during the holy month of Ramadan. From live performances to traditional bazaars, food and beverage vendors, and more, participants can immerse themselves in the essence of Ramadan in Bahrain.
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RCI, the trailblazing force behind the collaborative vacation ownership model, is commemorating its 50th anniversary with a series of ambitious initiatives aimed at enriching the travel experiences of its members worldwide. In an exclusive conversation with ET TravelWorld, William Hall, Vice-President of Marketing & Digital – EMEA, APAC & India, RCI shared insights into the company’s milestone celebration and its strategic roadmap for the Indian market.
Reflecting on the significance of RCI’s journey, Hall remarked, “Our 50th anniversary is a testament to our resilience and commitment to delivering unparalleled travel experiences. We are leveraging this milestone to not only celebrate our legacy but also to chart a course for the future, redefining the possibilities for our members.”
During the conversation, Hall explained that RCI’s anniversary celebrations are anchored around four key pillars: reflecting on the company’s legacy, delighting members with exclusive campaigns and discounts, honouring partners and employees, and outlining a vision for the future under the theme “Make More of It.” Hall emphasised that these initiatives underscore RCI’s evolution from a timeshare exchange business to a comprehensive travel membership platform.
In 2024, RCI will also pay homage to its network of over 4,000 affiliated resorts spanning 110 countries, acknowledging their unwavering support and collaboration since the company’s inception.
New products for the Indian market
In addition to its global initiatives, RCI is introducing new products tailored for the Indian market, aimed at enhancing value, rewards, and options for its members.
The company has introduced two innovative products tailored for the Indian market: RCI Plus and RCI Cruise Exchange. RCI Plus, launched in December, offers members enhanced flexibility, rewards, and value-added benefits, including complimentary ancillary products and exclusive discounts.
Set to launch by the end of Q1, RCI Cruise Exchange will enable members to leverage their timeshare ownership to access discounted rates on cruise bookings worldwide, further expanding their travel options and rewards.
Hall explained that these initiatives underscore RCI’s evolution from a timeshare exchange business to a comprehensive travel membership platform, catering to the evolving needs and preferences of modern travellers.
Outlook for the Indian market
Hall expressed optimism about RCI’s prospects in the Indian market, citing a robust growth trajectory and a commitment to expanding the company’s footprint. He highlighted recent affiliations, such as the Forest Vines Resort near Jim Corbett National Park, as evidence of RCI’s commitment to providing members with diverse travel options. He further elaborated on RCI’s role in catalysing growth in the Indian travel sector and its focus on simplifying the travel experience for members.
Global expansion & future roadmap
Looking ahead, RCI aims to capitalise on growth opportunities in emerging markets, particularly in Latin America and North America, by leveraging adjacent business models such as all-inclusive resorts. Hall mentioned about RCI’s global perspective and its ability to adapt to local market dynamics, citing the company’s agile approach to innovation and expansion. “Despite geopolitical challenges, RCI remains committed to driving growth and innovation,” he added.
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South Korea is set to launch a new workcation visa, officially named the F-1-D visa, allowing remote workers from overseas companies to stay in the country for an extended period. The move is a part of South Korea‘s tourism strategy, aiming to attract 30 million visitors annually and generate $3 billion in tourism revenue by 2027.
The new visa allows qualifying remote workers to apply for visas for their dependent family members to stay in Korea during the visa validity period.
Although the workation visa encourages remote work, it explicitly prohibits visa holders from being employed or conducting profit work in Korea. Any income generated must be from a non-Korean employer, business, or entity.
South Korea aims to double its tourism target by attracting 30 million visitors annually by 2027, with a revenue goal of USD 3 billion. The workation visa aligns with this vision, aiming to not only attract high-earning foreigners but also to vitalise local economies across various regions in South Korea.
As part of the Visit Korea Year 2023–2024 initiative, the country is introducing measures to enhance the overall tourist experience. These include expanding group electronic visa fee waivers, increasing limits for immediate tax refunds on duty-free purchases, and improving transportation reservation services and payment methods.
The workation visa is launching as a trial period, and its success will determine its permanence. The Korean justice ministry expressed hope that the new visa category would encourage foreigners to explore various regions of Korea, contributing to the local economies.
The changes come into effect as a response to the evolving cost of living and are designed to ensure that travellers have adequate financial resources to cover their expenses during their stay in Finland. These modifications aim to strike a balance between facilitating tourism and addressing the practical aspects of financial support for short-term visitors.
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After the introduction of rooms and new host pricing tools in May and updates on lower prices and verified listings this September, homestays and short-term rental platform, Airbnb has announced major upgrades and new features to address top suggestions from its community. Breaking the news, Tara Bunch, Global Head of Operations, Airbnb shared details on the three big upgrade areas being rolled out by the platform for the winter release.
The new upgrades
“The first big upgrade is the guest favorites, which is a new category,” said Bunch. “We have taken 2 million of our most loved Airbnb listings (the most dynamic ones from among 7 million listings) based on ratings, reviews, reliability, quality of the listing and highlighted the top guest favorites. These listings will have a badge that would indicate that they are a guest favorite, so other guests can easily find them when searching for a listing,” said Bunch.
“We are also revamping our ratings and review pages to include a number of new features that now allow guests to sort reviews and be able to see more relevant information,” shared Bunch on the second upgrade. The feature includes reviews based on distribution, star ratings, user and host behaviour and suggestions based on comparison of similar amenities, among others. “The idea is to make the listings more relevant and helpful for guests. We would like to give them much more visibility and a lot more information before they book,” she said.
The second Pullman hotel after the one in Delhi will be opened in Amritsar and is set to open its doors in 2027. Accor’s portfolio in India already boasts 61 properties under brands like Raffles, Fairmont, Sofitel, Pullman, Grand Mercure, Novotel, Mercure, and ibis. With a strong pipeline of 30 properties under development in India, Pullman Amritsar adds to the diverse range of options available to travellers across the country.
And, the third big upgrade is the listings tab. “This is for hosts,” said Bunch. “It essentially is a part of the host application where you check out the amenities in the listing,” she said. The upgrade has these amenities organised into groups (like bathroom amenities, bedroom amenities outside amenities, kitchen amenities, living room amenities) and allows the host to go through – room by room – and look at a smaller list and click the ones that are relevant for them.“What has us excited is that not only will there be more information about the listing, it would also allow current hosts to go back and play with this new listings tab. This would help guests find all the amenities in the listing, and at the same time, help the host to highlight just how many amenities their listing has,” said Bunch.
The other upgrades feature improved competitive pricing and feature comparison tools for hosts for more visibility. “The hosts would now be able to compare service fees, cleaning fees being charged by similar facilities. And the guests would be able to see which listing would give them the best deal in the same neighbourhood with similar size and amenities. “We think this will really help hosts to ensure that they remain competitive from a pricing standpoint,” she said.
Wilson explained that over 50 per cent of Sabre’s business is outside of North America, with India being a significant part of the company’s portfolio. Sabre works with a variety of partners in India and takes an open approach by using open APIs to integrate with providers of travel and tourism services. This approach allows for flexibility in adopting technology solutions, making it accessible to a broad range of hotels.
“The other improvements for the host include an earnings dashboard and some new features around co-host messaging and co-host payouts being able to split them between, a host and a co-host,” added Bunch.
While the Guest Favorites, revamped ratings and reviews, the new Listings tab, and additional upgrades for hosts will begin rolling out this week, hosts can try new features today by enrolling in Airbnb Early Access, AirBnb said.
Smart lock integration will be coming to Early Access for listings in the US and Canada later this year. Pricing visibility and compare prices will be available next year, it added.
“Pricing is a big deal for guests and hosts. The leaning in on those pricing tools as well as pricing transparency has been a focus and as the platform has grown and become bigger, a lot more options are now available to guests. We just want to make it easier for them to find that perfect listing for them,” said Bunch.
The India market
“India is one of our most important highest growth markets – both from a guest and host standpoint – and we are incredibly committed to this market. It is also an important market to us from a talent standpoint. We recently opened up the India hub tech hub in Bangalore and we continue to invest heavily there,” said Bunch.
“From a growth standpoint, Asia Pacific as a region has fully recovered to pre pandemic levels. We are seeing great growth, gross nights growing 23% in Q3 of 2023 compared to 2019. That’s massive growth in such a large region. Nights and experiences booked grew 27% in Q3 compared to 2022 so that’s another big, large growth and impact,” she said.
Under the new policies, the first 100 homestays will get INR 2L grant and up to 20L for caravan infra. Additionally, the initial 100 Bed & Breakfast establishments that have successfully completed one year and are registered with the tourism department can claim reimbursement of INR 1,000 registration fee. Property and road taxes will also be subject to reimbursement. The new Carvan policy allows the private operators to establish standalone caravan parks at scenic locations.
“In addition to it being one of our biggest growth markets, it is a market that – looking at the Oxford Economics report – showed that we supported over 85,000 jobs and contributed over 920 million dollars to India’s GDP between April of 2022 and March of 2023. We are making a big impact in the economy,” Bunch said.
According to Bunch, the new travel culture among the middle class has played a big role in its growth. “In India, millennials are leading the chart when it comes to bookings on Airbnb, followed by GenZs and GenXs. India is eager to travel and explore the world. So we think it’s a huge opportunity for us to grow,” said Bunch.
Building partnerships
“On our part, we have been working closely with the local governments to highlight India and properties in India,” said Bunch. Airbnb recently signed a MoU with the Ministry of Tourism to showcase India’s rich cultural heritage through a spotlight on heritage stays across the country. At the state level, over the last year, it signed MoUs with Goa, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra, among others, to promote lesser-known destinations, conduct capacity-building workshops and raise awareness amongst communities on how to leverage their homes to reap economic benefits.
“There’s a lot of work happening in these areas. We are looking at these government partnerships as one of a critical approach to building the tourism ecosystem in India and through that also promoting more homestays,” she said.
Besides Gwalior, the UNESCO Creative Cities Network welcomed a diverse array of new members, including another Indian city, Kozhikode. Each of these contributed their unique cultural strengths to the global stage. These cities, representing seven fields including Crafts and Folk Art, Design, Film, Gastronomy, Literature, Media Arts and Music, were recognised for their commitment to integrating culture and creativity into their development strategies.
Women and economic empowerment
“Hosting, a home or a room in your home in one of those areas, can create a lot of economic empowerment in smaller, maybe non-urban communities where this is an excellent opportunity to make some extra money for your family. In particular, it’s a great opportunity for women,” said Bunch.
“Women hosts in India earned over 1.6 billion Indian rupees in the first 3 quarters of this year. In fact, a third of guest favorites in India are hosted by women. It’s a huge opportunity for economic empowerment of women. And more broadly, all Indians are particularly helpful in terms of spreading tourism to more rural communities, low density urban communities, and empowering local people who are looking for that extra money and can really help them make ends meet,” she added.
Growing preference for hosted accommodations
According to Airbnb, most popular outbound destinations for Indian travellers (based on nights booked data in India when comparing January 1 to September 30 2023, with the same period last year) were UK, US, Canada, UAE, France, Italy, Germany, Indonesia and Thailand.
“North America and Western Europe have long been popular outbound destinations for travellers from India. These destinations also factor into the popular psyche by featuring in Bollywood films,” she shared.
“Post pandemic we have seen different countries open up at different rates. But in Southeast Asia, we have seen a lot of growth in Korea and Japan. Travel and visas have become easier and people are feeling safe travelling. We saw domestic travel continue to remain pretty strong. And now we are seeing cross border travel increasing. It is exciting to see a really positive upside in our markets in Asia,” she concluded.
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In a significant move to enhance the travel experience for flyers, Vistara, has unveiled a complimentary Wi-Fi service for passengers on international flights. This service sets Vistara apart as the first Indian airline to offer free unlimited in-flight Wi-Fi to all of its customers.
The service is exclusively available for members of airline’s loyalty program, Club Vistara. The complimentary internet connectivity is now available to all Club Vistara members, regardless of their membership tier, accumulated points, or tenure of membership. Notably, enrollment in Club Vistara is free of charge, making it accessible to a wide range of travellers.
This offering includes unlimited data, primarily designed for popular messaging apps like WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, iMessage, and similar services. In addition, Platinum members and Business Class travellers will enjoy an additional 50MB of data, which can be utilised for web browsing, engaging on social media, and staying connected via messaging and email services. Platinum members should activate the 50MB surf package before enabling the unlimited messaging service to enjoy both benefits.
Here’s a breakdown of the services based on membership levels:
Club Vistara Base: Unlimited messaging apps without attachments.
Club Vistara Silver: Unlimited messaging apps without attachments.
Club Vistara Gold: Unlimited messaging apps without attachments.
Club Vistara Platinum: 50MB data package for browsing, social media, messaging, and email, along with unlimited messaging apps without attachments.
Business Class (if not a Club Vistara member): 50MB data package for browsing, social media, messaging, and email, along with unlimited messaging apps without attachments.
Commenting on the development, Deepak Rajawat, Chief Commercial Officer, Vistara, said, “At Vistara, we recognise that staying connected is an essential aspect of modern-day life. We are delighted to offer complimentary Wi-Fi to our loyal Club Vistara members on select international flights. This initiative also reiterates our unwavering commitment to continuously enhance the proposition of our loyalty program. We are confident that this will significantly add to the world-class experience we offer onboard.”
To activate the complimentary Wi-Fi, members need to ensure that their contact numbers and email addresses are verified in their Club Vistara account. Furthermore, they should add their Club Vistara ID to their booking either during check-in or before boarding the flight. For members enrolling after booking or at the airport, providing their ticket number/PNR will associate the Club Vistara ID with their booking. It’s important to note that this service can be accessed on a single device.
According to the Hong Kong Immigration Department, Indian nationals must complete a pre-arrival registration online before their visit. This online registration is an essential prerequisite for Indian travellers heading to Hong Kong. It is advised to complete this process well in advance of before intended travel date. Vistara has also issued a notification.
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