Travel News

A private island resort called Fairmont Maldives, Sirru Fen Fushi, located in the pristine Shaviyani Atoll, is a shining example of how luxury and sustainability can coexist together. With a new relationship with Global Green Journeys, the resort has increased its sustainability initiatives as part of its everlasting dedication to environmental responsibility and conservation. Global Green Journeys is an initiative that promotes scalable and sustainable methods for broad adoption while increasing awareness of effective global solutions. The team’s goal is to highlight various initiatives and actions that are catalysing progress towards social, environmental, and economic sustainability. The Fairmont Maldives can develop, promote, and put into action more effective sustainability programming for a greener future thanks to this exciting relationship, which perfectly complements the resort’s fundamental values and vision. The pilot project, which is a component of the cooperation, focuses on the epidemic of plastic pollution and the technology created by Precious Plastic to address plastic recycling and produce broader socioeconomic advantages for the nearby communities. The project will offer special insight into the property’s on-site Sustainability Lab, the first resort-based recycling facility in the Maldives, and eventually add to a global dialogue on the significance of sustainability. Two celebrities visited the island resort as part of the pilot project to create custom goods out of recycled plastic and take part in a variety of eco-inspired activities, including a trip to a nearby school that helps divert plastic waste to the lab and is a part of the resort’s CSR School Education programme, which aims to motivate the next generation to live more sustainably. As a result of its commitment to environmentally friendly operations and growth, Fairmont Maldives is the first Fairmont resort in the world to get the coveted Green Globe certification. The resort is the crowning glory of the idyllic island hideaway, and it has the longest infinity pool in the Maldives, which leads visitors to the Coralarium, which is home to a mesmerising underwater art installation by renowned eco-artist Jason deCaires Taylor and the nation’s first coral regeneration project in the form of a gallery. The resort’s 120 opulent villas offer a seamless fusion of stylish, understated, Maldivian rustic charm, whether on the white sand beach, amidst the lush island jungle, or perched above the shimmering seas of the Indian Ocean. Source-Travel daily

The midscale Novotel Rayong Star Convention Centre in Thailand, the premium Mövenpick Hotel Surabaya City in Indonesia, and the region’s largest international hospitality group, Accor, inaugurated three new hotels throughout Asia during the month of July. The buildings show Accor’s dedication to thoughtfully expanding into new areas under their well-known international brands while maintaining a local flavour. As of now in 2023, Accor has added 15 new hotels to Asia. Thailand’s Novotel Rayong Star Convention Centre The 234-key city hotel in Rayong, a well-known midscale brand, brings the company’s hallmark experiences to life with naturally intuitive design, roomy modular layouts, wholesome food, and a variety of satisfying experiences for both business travellers and families. The hotel’s 1,200-person capacity pillarless conference and event space features a flexible layout ideal for a variety of gatherings, including social and business functions. Until September 30th, 2023, guests are encouraged to take advantage of a special pricing starting at THB2,200++ per night for members of ALL – Accor Live Limitless, which includes a THB 500 per night food and beverage credit. Rayong has long been a popular weekend vacation spot for Thai citizens as it is about 2.5 hours by car from Bangkok and Suvarnabhumi International Airport. Visitors may access the industrial area, markets, dining establishments, beaches, and tourism destinations from the Novotel Rayong Star Convention Centre, including the 80-year-old Yom Jin Da Road Market, the distinctively curved Seang Chan Beach, the Floating Pagoda, Khao Laem Ya-Mu Ko Samet National Park, and fruit orchards. Indonesian hotel Mercure Pangkalan Bun Kalimantan The Central Kalimantan Province of Indonesia’s first Accor property, Mercure Pangkalan Bun, offers a genuine expression of the local culture. The renowned 4,150-square-kilometer Tanjung Puting National Park, designated as a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, is accessible from Pangkalan Bun, the regency seat of West Kotawaringin. The most significant orangutan conservation area in the world is this park. The interior design of Mercure Pangkalan Bun’s 150 chic and modern rooms, which range from Premium Superior Rooms to the Presidential Suite and embrace the area’s connection to nature, incorporates natural elements like woven rattan and wood. All of the different dining options at Mercure Pangkalan Bun, including the all-day dining restaurant Kelakai, the lobby lounge The Malining, and the Palapas Bar, use locally produced ingredients and feature a lively, modern atmosphere. Additionally, the hotel has the city’s largest pillarless ballroom, the beautiful Batuah Ballroom, which is outfitted with cutting-edge technology to host outstanding weddings, business meetings, and social events for up to 650 guests. A special opening rate of IDR 905.080 net per night, including breakfast for two guests, is available to ALL – Accor Live Limitless members as a way of celebrating the opening through August 31st, 2023. Source- Travel daily

On August 14, 2023, Samae San Island, Chonburi will play host to the first-ever “Garbage Hunter: Scuba Project,” a continuation of the environmental initiative “Garbage Hunter,” as part of Thai Vietjet’s ongoing dedication to environmental preservation through the “Fly Green Fund.” Early in 2022, the “Garbage Hunter” squad was established with the goals of removing rubbish from various locations throughout Thailand, increasing environmental awareness among airline employees and members, promoting sustainability, and lowering waste and trash in the environment. In Thailand, including Phuket, Chiang Rai, Chiang Mai, Krabi, Udon Thani, and other locations, Thai Vietjet has successfully hosted more than 10 iterations of Garbage Hunter events since its founding. The most recent episode of Garbage Hunter extends beyond attempts to clean up the land, concentrating on the crucial job of eliminating rubbish from both beaches and even deeper this time, in the ocean, protecting marine life, and maintaining the environment. This will be a great chance for participants to engage in a variety of cleanup initiatives at Samaesan Island dive sites. “Thai Vietjet considers that as a provider of air transportation services, we are also accountable for environmental sustainability. Pinyot Pibulsonggram, Director of Commercial, Thai Vietjet, stated, “We have made a significant effort to reduce pollution from our everyday operations and have taken various efforts to safeguard the environment, lowering the cause of the global warming challenge that humanity has been suffering. The airline anticipates that by organising a variety of environmental activities and working with numerous organisations all year long, the Garbage Hunter events will be able to collect at least five tonnes of trash from locations in Thailand annually. The airline anticipates that in the following stage, in addition to the staff members themselves, the public and foreign tourists visiting Thailand will be invited to participate. Source- Travel daily

In response to increased demand, dnata Travel, the longest-running travel company in the UAE, has launched a second location in Sharjah to better serve its expanding community. The largest mall in the Northern Emirates, City Centre Al Zahia, is home to dnata Travel’s newest one-stop travel shop, which is open for business and where consumers can meet its knowledgeable, multilingual staff. Shoppers may reserve everything they require for a trip here, including flights, hotels, vacation packages, insurance, tours, attractions, transfers, and more, as well as staycations or more intricate itineraries. “We are seeing an increased demand for bookings within our travel stores, as UAE travellers seek to enhance the booking process with the insider knowledge and inspiration from our travel experts,” said Meerah Ketait, Head of Retail and Leisure UAE at dnata Travel. We offer the ability to conveniently book every step of a customer’s journey at our locations around the UAE. We can customise a trip to suit their preferences and make sure they are aware of our most recent, special offers and value additions across a variety of fantastic resorts throughout the world. Following the opening of its travel shop in Dubai Hills Mall, dnata Travel Sharjah Al Zahia represents the next stage in the expansion of its retail footprint for the UAE. A pipeline of new retail locations is preparing to offer a wide variety of travel options to both established and expanding UAE towns. “We are enhancing dnata Travel’s long-standing presence in Sharjah, where many of our longest-serving employees and most devoted clients are located,” Meerah Ketait continued. As we strive to improve our retail network, it has been a consistent request over the years for our staff to further increase our presence in the Northern Emirates. We are excited to welcome clients to our brand-new store, where we have special deals and freebies planned to mark the occasion. For the opening of the Al Zahia store, dnata Travel is collaborating with Air Arabia to operate a number of special promotions based on the direct routes offered by the Sharjah-based airline throughout the summer. Source- Travel daily

According to the ARM index Programme, Aer Lingus has received “Airline Retailing Maturity” accreditation from the International Air Transport Association (IATA). This status acknowledges that Aer Lingus and our travel agency partners share the purpose of contemporary retailing. By increasing its options to customers who make their reservations through travel partners, the airline has taken a key step towards confirming its dedication to and ongoing investment in boosting the customer experience. The New Distribution Capability (NDC) is an essential enabler for streamlining processes for airlines to create and distribute relevant offers to customers regardless of how they choose to book, and the IATA’s ARM index programme supports airlines and their partners on this journey towards digital selling. Travel sellers can sell and modify travel ancillary products for customers thanks to expanded capabilities supported by NDC, which also streamlines and enhances communication between airlines and travel agencies. Airlines, vendors, and technology providers who can demonstrate technical prowess, collaborative relationships, and potential value realised while moving towards airline retailing are recognised by IATA on the Airline Retailing Maturity (ARM) index. “Receiving IATA’s recognition is another key milestone for the airline as we continue to improve customer experience for all who choose to fly with Aer Lingus,” said Susanne Carberry, Chief Customer Officer. We look forward to collaborating with more global travel merchants to increase our product offers to their clients. Travel partners can learn more about NDC via the Aer Lingus website, which has been set up as an NDC portal. Additionally, our travel partners can register for NDC through this centralised platform. Source- Travel daily

According to Georg Enzweiler, the German Embassy’s Deputy Head of Mission, the wait time for a visa appointment has been shortened to eight weeks. “We have significantly increased our staff in Mumbai, and I believe the waiting time has significantly decreased,” Enzwiler added. Regarding the substantial volume of visa requests from India to Germany, he stated, “We are working to further reduce the waiting time for visa applicants from India.” “Roughly eight weeks have passed. We aim to improve in that area; we don’t want to bring you to this event in order to encourage Indian tourists to visit Germany, only to ask them to apply for a visa three years in advance in order to have a good chance of getting one,” Enzweiler added. Source- Travel biz

For the first time, the Hockenheimring will host the GLÜCKSGEFÜHLE Festival. In keeping with the tagline “The Happiness is coming home,” for four days, everything centred on music to rejoice, fresh experiences, and joyful people. As a sponsor, AIDA Cruises will pull a few rabbits out of its hat both at the festival stand on-site and in the lead-up to the event. According to AIDA Cruises’ Senior Vice President of Marketing & Sales, Alexander Ewig, “We were immediately moved by the festival message. Our goal on board the kissing ships is to provide guests with the best time of the year and unforgettable happy experiences. AIDA is a symbol of amazing experiences, explorations, and unending joy. Visitors to the event will hear this message from us, and we hope it will motivate them to embark on their own travels. We are honoured to support this wonderful event and delight thousands of festival-goers with the distinctive AIDA atmosphere. Whether it is Cro, Materia, Nico Santos, Felix Jaehn, Robin Schulz, or Sarah Connor. Pop, rock, hip hop, or electronic dance music—the line-up only offers positive vibes. Additionally, open-air theatre, an E-go-kart track, a XXL chairoplane, Germany’s largest mobile zip line, and many other features are available to festival attendees. The Hockenheimring is intended to grow into the biggest and happiest festival in Germany, with up to 100,000 attendees on 1 million square metres, according to ambitious goals set by festival organisers Lukas Podolski and Markus Krampe for their inaugural event. AIDA Cruises is a sponsor and is distributing special festival tickets. The winners will hopefully be able to enjoy a party at the Hockenheimring. AIDA is giving away 2 tickets, each of which includes an overnight stay from September 14 to September 17, as well as 2 tickets, each of which includes admission to the festivities on September 15 and 16, 2023. AIDA will be present at the festival with cutting-edge interactive installations and events in unorthodox settings. The AIDAradio Aftershow Party, a relaxing massage, and a fun selfie spot on the Kissing Sofa are all available. The two-story AIDA booth, which has its own roof terrace, provides a stunning view of the main stage and delights with water projections, a sea of bubbles, and the show booth to give the festival grounds a more oceanic atmosphere. Source- Travel daily

On Sunday, August 13, when Chelsea FC plays Liverpool FC in its season-opening match, Oman Air’s ground-breaking collaboration with the English Premier League (EPL) club will officially begin. A series of commercials showing some of the nation’s most well-known locations will convey the beauty of Oman to spectators at Stamford Bridge Stadium and those watching from home. Around the pitch, Oman Air’s striking logo and cabin staff personnel will be visible. It’s a huge milestone for the airline as its first formal event with the team since finalising the contract last month, with over seven million people expected to watch the game globally. Oman Air will engage in a variety of interesting promotional activities over the next three years as Chelsea’s official worldwide airline partner, utilising the club’s extensive global reach as one of the top EPL clubs. In the meantime, the airline continues to seize opportunities to promote Oman to new markets throughout the world, underlining its appeal as a premier tourist destination, as part of its commitment to supporting Oman’s 2040 Vision. Source- Travel daily

The most well-liked summer vacation spots this year, according to data from Cirium, are recovering to pre-pandemic levels. Analysis of summer travel by Cirium Data departures in August: 92,549 flights, or more than 16.5 million seats, are scheduled to leave UK airports in August 2023. As the post-pandemic recovery progresses, this August is expected to witness the biggest number of UK departures since October 2019. Pre-pandemic departures from the UK were 104,007 this month, and departures this month are anticipated to reach 89% of August 2019 levels. As passengers resume their business and vacation travel, scheduled UK departures are up 11% compared to August 2022 and up 101% compared to August 2021. Dublin continues to be the most often flown to from the UK, followed by Amsterdam, Palma, Malaga, and Faro. Hotspots in Europe Using data from Cirium, the following top summer vacation destinations are examined to see how each market has rebounded in appeal since the pandemic: Source- Travel daily

According to recent study, Norway is the cruise location that Brits choose the most frequently. Medical Travel Insurance experts at AllClear Travel used a list of phrases, such as “cruise to X” and “X cruise holidays,” and combined them with various places to analyse data to find the most frequently Googled cruise-related queries. To produce the rankings, the most popular search phrases were divided by continents, countries, regions, and coastal states. With an average monthly search volume of 134,018, Norway tops the list of popular nations for cruise vacations. The nation, which is a part of Scandinavia, is home to several stunning scenery, including the Kjenndalen glaciers, the Jostedal Glacier National Park, and the UNESCO-protected fjords. With a monthly search volume of 41,378 on average, Greece comes in second on the list. In addition to opulent islands like Mykonos, which is well-known for its vibrant nightlife, mainland Greece also has Athens, a city rich in historical landmarks including the Acropolis Museum, Tower of Winds, Pantheon, and others. The third-placed country is Italy, which saw an average of 29,889 searches every month. Italy has several beautiful cities where you can visit to enjoy the coastline views and Italian cuisine, including ports in Naples, the Amalfi Coast, and Sorrento. Iceland, with an average monthly search volume of 18,036, came in fourth. The Blue Lagoon, the Glymur Waterfall, and not to forget the Aurora Reykjavik to watch the Northern Lights are just a few of the attractions in or close to Reykjavik, which is the stunning capital of Iceland. Australia is ranked fifth, with 10,921 searches each month on average. Sydney, Brisbane, and the Gold Coast are just a few of Australia’s coastal towns where you can enjoy both the city and the beach life. There are also many thrilling activities for thrill-seekers, such snorkelling at the Great Barrier Reef or scaling the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Source- Travel daily