THE government of India’s southern state, Karnataka, is looking to loosen Coastal Regulatory Zone (CRZ) regulations to promote the construction of beach resorts at the state’s 41 beaches and 11 islands.

At the recent Federation of Hotel and Restaurant Association of India (FHRAI) Annual Convention, Indian hoteliers have urged the government to revisit the CRZ guidelines, which currently permit the construction of a beach resort within 200m of the High Tide Line.

Sharing the development on the sidelines of the convention, Karnataka tourism minister, R V Deshpande, said: “We have already requested the central government to bring the restriction down to between 50m and 100m.”

The government has identified beaches and islands in Uttara Kannada, Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts for the purpose.

It also sent a six-member committee to the state last month to study the development of tourism in coastal areas.

FHRAI president, S M Shervani, said: “There is 7,000km of coastline in India and hotels will take up a small percentage of it. Hence, the argument that hotels will destroy the coastline of India doesn’t hold.

“If India has to compete internationally with markets like the Maldives, which has resorts so close to the beach, we have to change the existing CRZ guidelines.”

Karnataka is expected to unveil a new tourism policy next month with an emphasis on coastal tourism development.

INDIAN hoteliers have proposed to the central government to declare 2015 as Visit India Year, in view of the much-anticipated Electronic Travel Authorization scheme to be implemented this December.

The recommendation was made at the annual 49^th convention of Federation of Hotel & Restaurant Association of India (FHRAI), which concluded yesterday.

FHRAI president, S M Shervani, said: “With the new government’s pro-tourism approach, a list of festivals can be created for promotional purpose as part of the Visit India Year.

“The hospitality industry can also be given a boost with entertainment and luxury tax exemptions.”

Lemon Tree Hotels & Resorts president, Rahul Pandit, opined: “If 2015 is declared Visit India Year and all Indian states support the initiative, it will lead to the travel and tourism industry getting the same importance that other sectors like medicine have traditionally been getting.

“The economy of many countries, like Dubai and Sri Lanka, is being fuelled by tourism as it generates foreign exchange and is an employment generator.

“Hence, this industry has to be seen as having strategic importance, and declaring 2015 for the campaign will help in this respect.”

THE tribute show and concert Queen – It’s A Kinda Magic will perform at the MasterCard Theatres, Marina Bay Sands (MBS) in Singapore for two nights on October 31 and November 1, 2014, at 20.00.

The show recreates Queen’s 1986 World Tour concert, featuring over 20 of the band’s greatest hits such as ‘We Will Rock You’, ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’, ‘We Are the Champions’ and ‘Fat-Bottomed Girls’.

The coveted role of Freddie Mercury has been taken on by Canadian performer and multi-instrumentalist Giles Taylor, who will be joined by Richie Baker as Brian May on guitar, James Childs as John Deacon on bass and Kyle Thompson as Roger Taylor on drums.

State-of-the-art sound and lighting and an international cast will allow the audience to reminisce the iconic voice of Mercury, the amazing guitar solos of Brian May and the ground-breaking Rock harmonies.

Tickets are now on sale via www.BASEentertainmentasia.com, www.sistic.com.sg or www.MarinaBaySands.com/Ticketing. Prices start from S$55 (US$43) per ticket excluding a booking fee of S$3.

Corporate and group bookings are available at 15 per cent discount for 10 or more tickets (email: corporate@showbizasia.com).

For ticket package options including accommodation at MBS, visit www.marinabaysands.com/packages.

DUBBED as the City of Digital Lights, i-City’s 10ha theme park in Shah Alam, Selangor, has this month added three new attractions targeted at children.

The park Itsy Bitsy comprises a number of rides including Mini Pirate Ship, Rocking Chaise Car, and Fitness JR testing kids’ stamina and physical strength.

The soft-play Jungle Adventure helps in the discovery of wildlife.

Fun Drive is a mini township where children can go behind the wheels and explore a tiny city, serving as an introduction to road safety. Participants will receive a driver’s registration card and a briefing on basic safety rules and regulations.

Meanwhile, at the digital lightscapes park, new attractions that recently opened include Dancing Water and Mist Fountain.

Tang Soke Cheng, i-City’s information manager, said the new attractions aim to promote family bonding.

Last year, the theme park attracted 5.5 million visitors.

THE Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) has begun seeking partnerships with the Philippine travel trade for halal and pilgrimage tourism, offering new programmes for Maguindanao and the islands of Tawi-Tawi.

The Maguindanao programme showcases the highlands of Upi with its caves, waterfalls and Tiruray ethnic community, while Tawi-Tawi highlights its beaches and Muslim pilgrimage site Sheik Makhdum mosque built in 1380.

“The (Upi) culture is preserved. People behave the way they were doing one hundred years back, growing organic food like rice and corn,” said Marites Maguindra, DoT regional cabinet secretary for the ARMM.

Speaking at the Philippine Tour Operators Association’s 25^th Philippine Travel Mart held September 5-7, Maguindra said with the involvement of the private sector, these new programmes sold by three Maguindanao operators are ARMM’s way of using tourism as a “bridge of peace”.

She acknowledged that safety remains a concern in ARMM, known for intermittent clan warfare and kidnaps for ransom.

Two European bird-watching tourists visiting Tawi-Tawi were kidnapped in 2012 and have not been freed to date.

However, ARMM has been developing a Top Cop programme similar to that already in place in Boracay and Bohol for the safety of tourists, Maguindra assured, adding that the region is already seeing Malaysian visitors.

“There is a real demand for halal products and services. Look at Malacca, which has seen Arab investments and tourism growth. Their products and services are compliant with the halal standard,” she noted.

Standard economy accommodations are available in ARMM, which has seen 45 per cent growth in tourism investments in the last two years. Tawi-Tawi now has 12 beach resorts in Bongao and another on the way.

ARMM is in a period of transition as the Philippine government moves to promulgate a Bangsamoro Basic Law, which creates a new bangsamoro (Muslim people) state, a measure aimed at quelling longstanding unrest in the region.

TRAVEL solutions provider Travelport has kicked off its IPO with 30 million of its common shares and applied to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol TVPT.

Funds raised through the IPO will be used to repay debt and “certain other liabilities”, said Travelport in a media statement.

The estimated price range for the IPO is US$14 to US$16 per common share.

Morgan Stanley, UBS Investment Bank, Credit Suisse and Deutsche Bank Securities are serving as joint book-running managers for the IPO, with Cowen and Company, Evercore, Jefferies, Sandford C Bernstein, and William Blair serving as co-managers.

INTERISLAND Airlines will commence its first route from Romblon to Boracay on November 8, having recently launched at the annual Philippine Travel Mart as a brand new light aircraft air taxi service.

With its hub in Romblon province, the airline will initially focus on a triangle route covering Sibuyan Island in Romblon, Kalibo and Caticlan.

However, it will fly wherever customers request as well. “We are a charter service available for the whole country,” said vice president John Batacan.

“We are aiming to feature Sibuyan as a destination for tourists. Then we will be looking to expand (into) Boracay-Busuanga,” he added.

Vince Reyes, head of sales and marketing at Elite Aviation, which is handling marketing for the air taxi service, said that Interisland is adopting a hub-and-spoke programme that complements routes already covered by major carriers, and plans to use the provinces of Romblon, Bicol, Palawan, Batanes, Baler and Aurora as hubs.

The services will employ six single- or twin-engine aircraft that can carry three, and five to 11 passengers respectively.

Elite’s tours division is selling a 6D5N itinerary to Coron and Boracay at 27,888 pesos (US$635) including Coron-Caticlan airfares and tours at both destinations. The package is on offer between November 2014 and May 2015.

HILTON Worldwide this week announced that it will open in 2018 a third Waldorf Astoria on Indonesian soil, again on the Island of Gods.

Owned by Sharandy Land, the 100-key Waldorf Astoria Bali, Ubud will be the fourth Waldorf Astoria property in South-east Asia following the planned openings in Bangkok, Bukit-Pandawa Bali in 2017 and Jakarta in 2018.

Situated along the Ayung River in the Balinese village of Sayan, the resort is 5km away from central Ubud and 31.4km from the island’s international airport.

The resort spans 8ha, accommodating 100 luxe suites and villas built on the slopes of a terraced rice paddy for views of its surroundings and river. Villas will come in one- to five-room configurations, all with a private pool each.

Dining experiences at the resort come in the form of two restaurants and a destination bar, while event facilities include three meetings and event rooms, a wedding chapel, an outdoor event lawn and a business centre.

An outdoor pool and a health club and spa will also be available for guests’ use.

INDIA-based MakeMyTrip is on the lookout for start-up companies to invest in, announcing yesterday that it has set up a new US$15 million Innovation Fund.

Funds will go especially towards supporting mobile and IP-based companies that deal in travel technology.

MakeMyTrip’s board has greenlighted the formation of an Investment Committee to decide which firms to invest in, comprising six directors including founder Deep Kalra and co-founders Rajesh Magow and Keyur Joshi.

Kalra, who is also group CEO of MakeMyTrip.com, said of the fund: “This is an additional prong of our inorganic growth strategy by pursuing merger and acquisition opportunities in the travel technology space. We intend to purposefully go out and look for such companies and take early-stage positions.”

THE Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) has teamed up with Etihad Airways to launch a competition for Italian travel consultants.

With the aim of boosting Italian arrivals during the upcoming winter season, the TAT/Etihad Travel Agent Contest will see Italian travel consultants compete in the number of air tickets and packages to Thailand sold for the period September 2014 to January 2015.

They will need to submit the figures alongside a short article about Thailand, and 10 best entries will be picked.

Winners will earn a fam trip to Phuket and Krabi in March next year, with accommodations and a gala dinner provided by Kata Group, TAT’s Thai partner for the competition.

TAT expects submissions from roughly 500 travel consultants.

Italy was Thailand’s eighth largest European source market last year, with 207,192 arrivals in 2013 or a 3.2 per cent increase year-on-year.

Between January and August this year, Thailand welcomed 145,456 Italian tourists for an increase of 6.7 per cent over the corresponding period in 2013. The NTO expects a total of 193,939 Italian visitors for 2014.

Last year, visitors from Italy spent a total of 394 million baht (US$12.1 billion) or 3,841 baht per day on average, and stayed an average of 16 days.