Category - Feature

At a press conference today in Buenos Aires at the ongoing WTTC Summit Sandra Howard, Vice Minister, Commerce Industry and Tourism of Colombia and Helen Marano, Executive Vice President External Affairs for WTTC today announced the International Summit on Child Protection in Bogota, Columbia 6-7 June 2018 The Summit will be hosted by the Government of Columbia, which has taken a number of innovative child protection measures in the travel and tourism sector. It will explore accelerated actions...

President Maurico Macri of Argentina was today recognised by the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) as its first World Leader for Travel & Tourism. The recognition was announced at the opening ceremony of the 2018 WTTC Global Summit which is taking place on 18 and 19 April in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The WTTC World Leaders for Travel & Tourism initiative recognises serving Heads of State or Government who have shown exceptional support for the sector during their term of office...

Christopher J. Nassetta, Chairman, WTTC and President & CEO, Hilton, announced this morning the investment of $1.9 billion USD in Argentina by WTTC members over the coming years. The announcement was made in front of Mauricio Macri, Argentine President, and more than 100 industry-leading CEOs at the WTTC Annual General Meeting in Buenos Aires, Argentina. “It’s an honour to be here in Argentina and, speaking on behalf of WTTC’s membership, we could not be more pleased to...

The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) joined the Ministers of Tourism of the G20 economies meeting in Buenos Aires in calling upon the G20 leaders to consider including tourism in their Agenda for its capacity to create more and better jobs. In his meeting with the President of Argentina, Mauricio Macri, and current G20 Chair, UNWTO Secretary-General, Zurab Pololikashvili, stressed the capacity of tourism to create jobs and the need to advance the adaptation of the sector to the digital...

The future of air transport will be driven by a digital transformation in the industry, according to Barbara Dalibard, CEO of global IT provider, SITA. Dalibard was speaking at the Asia Pacific Air Transport IT Summit which gathered C-level airline and airport executives from across the region to discuss the future in this dynamic growth region. Asia Pacific is leading the tremendous growth in the air travel industry. By 2036, the region is expected to handle over 4.1 billion passengers –...

Within Belgian Pride 2018, the Belgian Pride Festival, which will be held from 3 to 20 May, will this year address the theme “Your local power”. A wide range of activities, evenings, workshops, guided tours and events on this subject will be on offer during these two weeks. Like every year, the various PRIDE FESTIVAL events will take place in the month of May. It is a key moment in the life of the LGBTI+ communities in Brussels. That’s because, apart from being a festive...

The report indicates that the green travel trend continues to gain momentum with a large majority of global travelers (87%) stating that they want to travel sustainably, and nearly four in 10 (39%) confirming that they often or always manage to do so. However, 48% indicate they never, rarely or only sometimes manage to travel sustainably, suggesting that while promising strides are being made for a greener future, there is still plenty of room to turn intentions into action. Sustainability...

Lying on the laps of Mount Kilimanjaro, the Kilimanjaro Region is now an upcoming and unique safari destination in Africa, banking on the region’s diversified cultural and nature attractions other than climbing the Mountain. The region that is located in Tanzania’s premier Northern Tourist Circuit, is now ranking among the best African safari destination where visitors could enjoy rich African cultures blended with modern lifestyles of the communities living on the slopes of Mount...

Kauai County spokeswoman, Sarah Blane, reported that 212 people were airlifted from the Hawaiian island of Kauai – most of them were visitors. They had no running water or electricity since Saturday when the flooding began. In addition, county buses shuttled 121 people from the Hanalei Elementary School, which also included tourists, to Princeville today after crews finished repairs to Hanalei Bridge. Most of those rescued were lifted out by helicopter as the roads were impassable due to...

Tourism policies, the role of education, as well as ways to promote greater levels of leadership by women, were the topics addressed in the framework of the goal of achieving gender equality in tourism. The 63rd meeting of the UNWTO Regional Commission for the Americas, organized by the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) and the National Tourism Secretariat of Paraguay (Asunción, 12-13 April 2018), highlighted the importance of advancing towards greater gender equity in tourism so that...

According to the Nepal Department of Immigration, a total of 288,918 international tourists visited Nepal in the first three months (January, February and March) of 2018, with a healthy increment of 14.20%. The arrivals from India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Pakistan recorded positive growths of 15.2 %, 35.3%, 3.6% and 20.5 % respectively in January 2018 in comparison to the figure of same month in 2017. Similarly, the overall arrivals from the SAARC countries registered a positive growth of 18...

According to the U.S. Travel Association, U.S. residents logged 1.7 billion trips for leisure purposes in 2016, and 457 million trips for business purposes. They also report that the direct spending by resident and international travelers in the U.S. averages $2.7 billion a day, $113 million per hour, $1.9 million a minute, and $31,400 a second. The travel industry is huge. Whether you are traveling for business or pleasure, your health and fitness level can take a big hit if you are not taking...

Non-Muslim countries especially those in the western world, can do more if they want to attract increasing numbers of global Muslim travellers, according to a new halal tourism survey, which was created to coincide with Arabian Travel Market 2018, which takes place in Dubai from April 22-25. A total of 35,000 Muslim travellers participated in the survey which was arranged by Sociable Earth, an organisation that provides practical travel information to Muslim travellers, which through associate...

Vicee President Djaffar AHMED SAID HASSNI of Comoros also holds the tourism portfolio for his island nation. Since assuming office, he has been working hard to reposition the island’s tourism industry and has been impressing many tourism ministers with his novel ideas. “Comoros by Night” is set to be held on the 21st and 22 April at the “Lac Sale”, an inland saltwater lake often described as the prettiest lake of the Indian Ocean. “It is a dream evening at...

The cruise industry remains the fastest growing tourism sector worldwide, and Seychelles and the Indian Ocean appear to be along for that ride. By the close of the 2017-2018 cruise season this month, Mason’s Travel would have handled over 20,000 cruise passengers, a 33 percent increase over the previous season. The additional traffic is good news for the local tourism industry, though the extra volume does present its share of challenges as well, says Lenny Alvis, General Manager...

Looking to attract more travelers from within the Africa and other continents, Zanzibar President had advocated for quick development of the African skies for African airlines. The Zanzibar President Dr. Ali Mohamed Shein said that non-African airlines have dominated the continent’s skies and its aviation market for a long time. He sought more efforts to make African air carriers more vibrant to compete with foreign airlines. “It is clear that 80 percent of the African air travel...

In 2018 – French Quarter Festival celebrates its 35th Anniversary; Christmas New Orleans Style celebrates its 34rd anniversary; and Satchmo SummerFest celebrates its 18th anniversary. French Quarter Festival was first produced in 1984 as a way to bring residents back to the Quarter; following the World’s Fair and extensive sidewalk repairs in the French Quarter. More than 1,500 community volunteers help to make the festival a success. Chief sources of funding are: Sponsorships...

Responsible tourists should look to travel to and support Honduras, El Salvador, Dominican Republic and Guatemala through tourism. Responsible tourists should check carefully when supporting other Caribbean and Latin American Countries. This message becomes timely with the start of the WTTC (World Travel and Tourism Summit) about to start in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Except for Honduras, El Salvador, Dominican Republic and Guatemala, other Latin American and Caribbean countries are struggling to...

Seven nightlife venues of Barcelona, Spain, have obtained 2 distinctive international safety and acoustic quality seals – the first in the world to obtain the Double Excellence Distinction for Nightlife granted by the International Nightlife Association. Now, locals and tourists have this added peace of mind when enjoying these safe venues. The distinguished venues are: Pacha Barcelona, Shôko, Bestial, Carpe Diem Lounge Club, Opium Mar, Ice Bar and Agua. All the internationally...

Taking place in Puerto Vallarta from May 20 to 27, Vallarta Pride has grown yearly, with its 2017 edition attracting more than 17,000 visitors. The event has become a staple in the international Pride calendar, and now drives a considerable influx of visitors during what used to be the end of Puerto Vallarta’s traditional high season for tourism. Puerto Vallarta’s annual LGBTQ cultural celebration, Vallarta Pride, will bring a new level of camp to the city’s celebration of the...

In line with the terrible news of the malicious killing of 11 lions in Queen Elizabeth National Park (8 cubs and 3 females), confirmed by the Uganda Wildlife Association (UWA), the Association of Uganda Tour Operators (AUTO) issued the following statement condemning this act. A UWA official said that it is suspected that the lions were poisoned, but that an investigation would establish the actual cause of death. “Reference to various social media messages confirmed by the newspaper...

Little mosquito bites from your summer vacation may bring back memories of pleasantly balmy summer nights by the sea. But little insect bites in your own home are a rather less pleasant reminder that you may have brought some little stowaways back home with you: bed bugs are an unwelcome holiday souvenir, but not a rare one! Since 2016, the Bed Bugs team at Frankfurt Airport (FRA) has therefore been offering a special service. To avoid unwelcome pests in tourist travel, the sniffer dogs...

Forget privacy, money talks here. How would you feel if a salesman you’re talking to already knows your answer and knows your mood? Although facial recognition software is being trialed by two leading travel companies in a bid to use emotional responses to provide personalized holiday recommendations, there remains significant scope to develop the technology in order to increase customer conversion rates. Elena Mogoş, an Associate Analyst of a Digital Travel & Tourism...

Being gay means being you are a criminal. There 400 million of these criminals, some may face death. These criminals are in countries, where LGBT is a crime. The crime is loving a same-sex partner. Tourists travel to those countries and some of these tourists love same sex partner and may become criminals. For example, the Uganda’s government has vowed to bring back a bill that would punish homosexuality and the promotion of LGBTI issues with jail time. Speaker Rebecca Kadaga, who wished...

The Zimbabwe government-owned Boeing 777 aircraft — should now be flown to Zimbabwe and be parked under government control until the situation is clarified and settled. ZimAirways, associated with former president Robert Mugabe’s son-in-law and ex-AirZim chief operations officer Simba Chikore, negotiated a consignment of four Boeing 777 long-haul passenger jets from Malaysia but had paid only for two of the aircraft. The company was also in the process of purchasing two Embraer...

After many years of negative State audits, the 2018 audit of the Hawaii Tourism Authority (HTA) was described as “scathing” and highlighted specific insider deals, favoritism, non-bid contracts and a glaring lack of board oversight at the Hawaii Tourism Authority. Push finally come to shove with the introduction of companion House and Senate bills with the House version becoming the vehicle. A recent Senate Draft 2 was heard and passed today (Tuesday) by the full Senate and makes...

eTN yesterday reported about the appointment of Spanish football star Lionel Messi as a UNWTO Ambassador for Responsible Tourism by UNWTO Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili after a football match between FC Barcelona and Leganés. The new UNWTO Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili has a true passion for football, and it shows. On Saturday, the UNWTO Secretary General of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) and FC Barcelona signed an agreement, opening...

The recently concluded International Conference on Accessible Adventure (ICAA) 2018 at Pokhara heralds a new chapter in diversifying the enormous potential that Nepal’s tourism industry harbours. Worldwide the market potential for accessible tourism that caters primarily to travelers with disabilities, the elderly, and people with limited mobility is huge. Pankaj Pradhananga, Director at Four Season Traval and Tours, has been at the forefront of initiatives for inclusive and accessible...

Egypt is one of the most popular tourist destinations not only for Ukrainian visitors. Diving in the Red Sea is a must when exploring the Sinai part of Egypt. One of the most popular bus-tours in Sinai is a tour from Sharm El Sheik to Jerusalem with a stop at the Dead Sea in Israel. The day trip costs $100.00. Yuriy Mamay is a 38 year old Ukrainian citizen. He is also a freelance writer for eTurboNews based in Kiev. Yurly has traveled all over the world including Europe, Thailand, Mexico and...