Category Archives: Trade News

IndiGo resumes flights to Singapore under Vaccinated Travel Lane

IndiGo announced the resumption of flights to Singapore under Vaccinated Travel Lane (VTL) from November 29, 2021. Following incorporation of air bubble between India and Singapore, IndiGo has been allocated a total of 3618 seats per week, of which 1624 seats will be operated on the Chennai – Singapore route under Vaccinated Travel Lane (VTL). The rest of the capacity will be utilised under non-VTL conditions for travel to and from Singapore.

Ronojoy Dutta, Chief Executive Officer, IndiGo, said, “As we eventually come out of the pandemic, we are happy to resume flights to Singapore under the air bubble agreement. International connectivity under air bubble arrangement has been helpful in slowly bringing back the international travel demand. The situation is improving rapidly, and we are hopeful that this will further help citizens of India and Singapore to travel with ease for various purposes.”

VTL Guidelines 

  • VTL travellers must be fully vaccinated and present a digital proof of vaccination
    Travellers will have to undergo two Covid-19 tests – a pre-departure test within two days (e.g., test taken any time on 8 Nov is valid till 10 Nov 2359 hrs) before departing for Singapore while another test on-arrival at Changi airport
  • After tests travellers will have to remain self-isolated until the result is confirmed to be negative
  • Children aged 12 years and below who are not vaccinated will be allowed to travel under the VTL into Singapore if they are accompanied by a VTL traveller who meets all VTL requirements
  • Travellers are also advised to check the entry requirements imposed by the respective VTL countries
    Short-term visitors must purchase travel insurance, with a minimum coverage of S$30,000 for
  • Covid-19-related medical treatment and hospitalisation costs, prior to travel to Singapore.
  • All visitors must use the Trace Together app in Singapore to facilitate contact tracing. After leaving Singapore, the Trace Together app data must be kept for 21 days.
  • If any VTL requirements are not met, Singapore citizens and permanent residents must serve a seven or 10-day Stay Home Notice (SHN) upon arrival, depending on their travel history.
  • All travellers aged between 12 to 18 years shall not be allowed to travel on VTL flights

Non-VTL Guidelines –

Non-VTL flights into Singapore will be subject to the prevailing public health requirements based on the Singapore Ministry of Health (MOH)’s Country/Region Classification for Border Measures

Hyatt Regency Dehradun appoints Harkaran Singh as General Manager

Hyatt Regency Dehradun appoints Harkaran Singh as General Manager

Harkaran Singh has been appointed as the General Manager for Hyatt Regency Dehradun (Pre-opening). Nestled amidst picturesque 4.25 acres, adjacent to the serene Malsi Forest and majestic Himalayan range, on the Dehradun-Mussoorie Road in Uttarakhand, Hyatt Regency Dehradun will be the first 5-star hotel in Dehradun and the largest luxury hotel in the state of Uttarakhand.

Harkaran brings with him 15 years of varied experience across Marriott & Hyatt hotels in India. He began his journey with the Hyatt family 12 years back and has worked across Hyatt Pune in 2010 to Hyatt Hyderabad Gachibowli, Hyatt Regency Kolkata and was General Manager at Hyatt Raipur, before taking on his latest role at Hyatt Regency Dehradun.

Passionate about delivering above-and-beyond moments for guests & colleagues, Harkaran is strategically aligned, financially disciplined and result-oriented with a repertoire of exceeding expectations of all stakeholders. In his role as the General Manager, he is leading the multi-cultural team of this stunning 263 keys hotel across all disciplines.

IRCTC, pvt operators allowed to operate theme-based trains under ‘Bharat Gaurav’ scheme

According to a HT report, Railways minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said that the Bharat Gaurav trains, launched to boost tourism in the country, can be operated by private operators as well as the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC).

“We have allocated over 180 trains for Bharat Gaurav trains and 3,033 coaches identified. We will start taking applications from today. We have received a good response. The stakeholders will modify and run the train and the railways will help in maintenance, parking and other facilities,” Vaishnaw said.

“After passenger and goods segments, we will start the tourism segment to run Bharat Gaurav trains. These trains will show India’s culture and heritage,” Vaishnaw said.

“For example, if an operator wants to do a ‘Safari’ tour, the operator can decide at which station they want the train parked. They can also decide on a flexible itinerary. We have made provisions for operators so that they can enable these features when they take people out for a tour,” the railways minister added.

Vaishnaw also explained that any tour operator or departments, for example, MakeMyTrip or state tourism departments can take as many trains as they want, as per their business plan and they can then modify it accordingly depending on the tour plan or them.

He further said that the Indian Railways will offer assistance related to maintenance, parking, water supply and raw materials for food as and when required.

Speaking about fares, he said that tour operators will decide on fares but the Indian Railways will ensure that abnormal fees are not charged to travellers. Vaishnaw pointed out that all kinds of coaches – Vistadome, Vande Bharat or Tejas etc – can be used for these trains and the Indian Railways will try to cater to these demands as much as possible.

Bharat Gaurav trains are a segment of trains that aims to give people an authentic way to experience India’s culture, heritage, diversity, the railway minister said earlier this month.

Singapore Airlines announces the resumption of scheduled passenger services between Singapore and India from November 29

The Singapore Airlines (SIA) Group will restart passenger services across its Indian network from 29 November 2021, marking the resumption of operations from India for the first time since March 2020.

The airline will launch daily Vaccinated Travel Lane (VTL) services from Chennai, Delhi, and Mumbai on 29 November 2021, subject to regulatory approvals, providing eligible customers with quarantine-free entry into Singapore. Details of Singapore’s VTL arrangements are in Annexe E.

In addition, SIA will progressively operate non-VTL services from Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kolkata, and Kochi from 29 November 2021. Customers on these flights must meet entry requirements into Singapore, and will face prevailing health control measures including seven days of quarantine in Singapore.

Scoot, SIA’s low-cost subsidiary, will operate non-VTL services from Amritsar, Hyderabad, and Tiruchirappalli.

To celebrate the occasion, Singapore Airlines will offer up to 50% off on selected fares to Singapore from all SIA points across India. Round trip fares start from INR 13,100 all inclusive, and customers can avail of this sale from 23-30 November 2021 for travel before 31 December 2021. The special Celebration offer fares will be available through various distribution channels from today, 23 November 2021.

Commenting on this, Sy Yen Chen, General Manager India, Singapore Airlines, said, “This is a momentous occasion for us as we will be resuming passenger flights to India after a 20-month long hiatus. With the resumption of flights from India, including daily VTL flights from Chennai, Delhi, and Mumbai, eligible SIA customers can finally enjoy seamless quarantine-free travel and reunite with their friends and family in Singapore.”

“We are grateful to the governments of both Singapore and India, for launching the Air Travel Bubble and the Vaccinated Travel Lane. The Celebration Offer is a gesture of thanks to our customers in India who have waited so long for Singapore Airlines to resume flights, and we look forward to welcoming our passengers back on board soon,” he added.

Customers who are not Singapore citizens or permanent residents and wish to travel on the VTL services, need to apply for a Vaccinated Travel Pass (VTP) prior to their visa application. VTP applications must be made between seven and 60 calendar days before the intended date of entry into Singapore. Customers must also ensure that they are eligible to travel under the VTL arrangements before their flight.

Sayaji Hotels Limited announces strategic partnership with a majority stake in Intellistay Hotels

Sayaji Hotels Ltd. announced a strategic partnership with a majority stake in Intellistay Hotels, an integrated asset-light hotel management company with a unique collection of 5 distinctive brands namely Apodis Collection, Mango Suites, Mango Select, Mango Hotels and i-Stay Hotels. The partnership will add 27 Hotels in 15 cities to Sayaji Hotels’ current collection of 14 properties with its existing brands ‘Sayaji Hotels’, ‘Effotel by Sayaji’, and ‘Enrise by Sayaji’.

Intellistay Hotels presently operates 1350 rooms and plans to add 1000 rooms with 20 hotels across the country by H2 of 2022. With this move, Sayaji Group of Hotels will now operate 2772 rooms across 41 operational hotels with a series of new hotel launches in the pipeline. The transaction will make Sayaji Hotels a prominent player in the key metros and leisure markets.

Announcing the development Mr. Raoof Dhanani, Managing Director, Sayaji Hotels Limited, said, “We are delighted to welcome Intellistay Hotels with its portfolio of highly successful brands to the Sayaji Hotel family. This strategic alliance gives us a significant presence in key leisure and metro markets where Intellistay Hotels have already established their footprints”.

Mr. Rakshit Sharma, Vice President Operations & People Sayaji Hotels Limited, said, “we will leverage our shared expertise to enhance our market share, expand our product portfolio and provide best-in-class offerings for the guests. We believe this partnership will create new avenues for growth and reinforce Sayaji Group of Hotels as one of the fastest-growing hotel chains in the country”.

Sayaji Hotels is India’s premier upscale lifestyle hospitality brand, renowned for its bespoke experiences, signature hospitality, and ushering new standards of opulence in the 4-star and 5-star hotels category. The group currently operates 14 hotels in the cities of Indore, Vadodara, Kolhapur, Bhopal, Pune, Raipur, Rajkot, Nashik, and Sasan Gir. Intellistay Hotels has a strong presence in the mid-market leisure and tier-one hotel markets across India in the cities of Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Bhubaneshwar, Davengere, Jaisalmer, Hyderabad, Vijayawada, Mahableshwar, Nagpur, Udaipur, Navi Mumbai, Jodhpur, and Vadodara among others.

MakeMyTrip to partner with civil aviation ministry to promote regional air connectivity

Online travel services firm MakeMyTrip said it will partner with the Ministry of Civil Aviation to promote regional air connectivity through the UDAN scheme. As the UDAN scheme completes four years of connecting major cities with regional hubs, MakeMyTrip will now power UDAN flights on the AirSewa portal and market them on its platform to promote its visibility and product discovery to provide air connectivity to underserved destinations, the company said in a statement.

MakeMyTrip will also market UDAN flights offline through its large network of franchisee retail stores for offline booking, it added.

Quoting Minister for Civil Aviation, Jyotiraditya M Scindia, the statement said, “As the RCS-UDAN scheme completes four successful years – our enabling policies, incentives and partnerships with leading travel players will only improve air connectivity for the common man at affordable airfares on regional and remote routes”.
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Commenting on the partnership, MakeMyTrip Founder and Executive Chairman Deep Kalra said, “UDAN is a first of its kind scheme globally and has immensely contributed to domestic aviation market growth. We are privileged to work closely with the government to promote regional air connectivity through online and offline travel channels and contribute towards Indian Aviation’s transformation under the dynamic and bold leadership of Hon’ble minister”.

At present 62 unserved and underserved airports, including five heliports, with 389 routes have been added under the UDAN scheme across the length and breadth of India, the statement added. (Source ET)