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IndiGo to start Mumbai – Colombo direct flights from April 12

IndiGo has announced new direct flights between Mumbai and Colombo starting April 12, 2024. These flights will operate three times a week on Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday, and play a key role in enhancing connectivity between the financial capital of India – Mumbai, and the capital of Sri Lanka. With this new connection, Mumbai has become the fourth destination in India with direct connectivity to Colombo, after Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Chennai.

Speaking on the development, Vinay Malhotra, Head of Global Sales, IndiGo, said, “We are pleased to launch new direct flights between Mumbai and Colombo, which would serve as a catalyst in enhancing travel, trade and tourism, between India and Sri Lanka. With the addition of these flights, IndiGo will operate 37 weekly flights to Colombo from 4 cities in India. We are continuously working towards providing our customers with superior connectivity and enhanced accessibility to explore new horizons with our ever-expanding range of travel options. IndiGo remains committed to delivering on its promise of affordable, on-time, courteous, and hassle-free travel experience across an unparalleled network.”

India and Sri Lanka share a rich legacy of intellectual, cultural, religious and trade relations spanning over 2,500 years. Colombo serves as a bustling hub for both business and tourism. The city is well-connected to the international airport and offers easy access to the island nation. Colombo itself is a city of contrasts, where modern skyscrapers stand alongside colonial-era architecture. Travellers can explore a wealth of cultural and historical landmarks, including the Gangaramaya Temple and the National Museum. For culinary adventure lovers, Colombo’s diverse food scene offers a tempting array of flavours, from spicy curries to fresh seafood.

Flight Schedule:

Flight No.

Origin

Destination

Frequency

Effective

Departure

Arrival

6E 1185

Mumbai

Colombo

Tue,Thu and Fri

Apr 12, 2024

6:55

9:35

6E 1186

Colombo

Mumbai

Tue,Thu and Fri

Apr 12, 2024

10:35

13:10

WTTC calls for greater integration of AI to revolutionise travel & tourism

The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) has unveiled its latest report, in conjunction with Microsoft, which highlights the transformative power of AI for travel and tourism, marking a commitment to a digital future with unparalleled customer experiences.

The report which is the first in a series of AI reports, was announced at FITUR Madrid recently and calls on the sector for greater integration of such technologies.

To promote sustainability and excellent customer experiences, WTTC acknowledges the crucial importance of AI in revolutionising the sector.

Throughout the traveller’s journey, WTTC believes AI can play a pivotal role in delivering a tailored and enhanced experience now and in the future.

This technology can empower personalised recommendations and marketing strategies by analysing traveller data, optimising pricing strategies through real-time adjustments, and offering instant responses and fine-tuned interactions via sophisticated AI powered chatbots.

The report also highlighted AI’s capabilities extend to predicting future demand patterns, efficiently allocating resources, and providing valuable insights for governments and Travel & Tourism stakeholders.
This contribution can be “pivotal” in promoting sustainability with efficient resource management by monitoring and minimising environmental impacts, ensuring a more responsible and sustainable sector.

Julia Simpson, President and CEO, WTTC, said, “As we navigate the ever-evolving landscape of Travel & Tourism, AI emerges as a catalyst for positive change.

“The transformative capabilities highlighted in this report demonstrate that AI is not just a technological advancement, it is a strategic tool that can personalise the customer experience, drive sustainable improvements, and create real time pricing models.”

Julie Shainock, Managing Director – Travel, Transport & Logistics, Microsoft, added, “Using Microsoft’s Azure OpenAI Models across the travel sector allows greater productivity for companies and drive a more personalised consumer experience.”

“For travellers, the ability to drive more inspiration and personalised offers at booking to providing tools to consumers to proactively assist them while in destination to anticipate their needs with relevant information to improve their journey.

“For travel companies, GenAI is there to increase productivity, automate the predictable, and allow our human centric approach to the high value moments in travel to shine more.”

Despite the increasing examples of AI applications in travel and tourism, the report reveals the sector lags other consumer-facing industries in AI adoption.

AI’s surge across various sector’s last year is now a relevant force, and the Travel & Tourism sector must act now to leverage its impact.

Challenges that must be overcome by travel and tourism businesses include a shortage of AI-skilled workers, limited AI infrastructure, and the absence of a formal AI strategy in many business plans.

WTTC and Microsoft therefore urge travel and tourism businesses to embrace AI as a strategic priority, investing heavily in talent to foster collaboration between humans and AI.

Amidst concerns about AI’s impact on jobs, the report addresses the potential for job creation, recognising that although AI will be disruptive, it will in turn generate new opportunities.

In the quest for sustainable AI practices within the travel and tourism sector, responsible data management emerges as a crucial strategy.

Implementing measures such as data minimisation, efficient storage, and responsible data disposal, becomes pivotal for organisations seeking to minimise their carbon emissions when using new digital technologies, and reduce their AI environmental footprint significantly.

The report explores AI applications in society and business, emphasising the need for safe and responsible AI system design, signifying a milestone in the sector’s commitment to innovation and sustainability, and showcasing AI’s potential to shape the future for the industry.

Mammoth Lakes Tourism redesigns website

After months of preparation and planning, Mammoth Lakes Tourism (MLT) has launched the new Visit Mammoth website. While a redesign has long been on the table, the launch of the Real Unreal campaign acted as the ultimate catalyst for completely rebuilding the site to meet the needs of both visitors and locals. After partnering with Tempest in March of this year, the overhaul began in earnest.

The website’s design leans on the ethos of the Real Unreal campaign, placing stewardship at the forefront. The whole site offers a more “unreal” user experience, creating an immersive feel and highlighting the stunning seasonal shifts throughout Mammoth Lakes.

Following the theme of immersion, visitors can use the “Plan Your Trip” tool to discover content and build customised itineraries that fit their interests, creating and identifying unique visitor personas based on the users’ submissions. Mapping tools further support the ease of trip planning, allowing web visitors to plan their trip and daily itineraries while in Mammoth Lakes.

While the new website features an elevated visual experience, business and event listings underwent the most critical rebuild. With the improved user experience design, it will be easier than ever for visitors to find relevant businesses, pertinent information, and click-through to external sites. Geolocation technology also allows users to locate business listings (hotels, dining, shopping, etc.) and a calendar of events “near” them in real time. The new website’s integration with the iDSS CRM (Customer Relationship Management system) makes it simple for local community and business owners to submit their own events and manage listings.

John Urdi, Executive Director, Mammoth Lakes Tourism, remarked on the finished product, “Our new website has been a long time coming and the user experience will be greatly enhanced by cutting edge technological advancements. Our goal is to provide our visitors easy access and to provide traffic through to our community businesses to help drive increased awareness and revenues.”