By BW Hotelier BERGGRUEN HOTELS Pvt. Ltd. which operates in India under the brand, Keys Hotels has appointed Rajeev Thapa as the General Manager of Keys Resort Ronil, Goa. He will be responsible in ensuring smooth functioning of the hotel and building guest relations. Thapa joins Keys Resort Ronil, Goa with rich experience of over 18 years in the hospitality industry. He has worked with well-known hospitality brand such as Taj Hotels, The Leela Hotels, Le Meridien and The Park Hotels. Thapa holds a Diploma in ’Hotel Management and Catering Technology’ from the Institute of Advanced Management, Kolkata and a Diploma in Hospitality Management from American Hotel & Motel Association, Michigan.
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By BW Hotelier AIANA HOTELS & Resorts L.L.C has appointed Murlidhar Rao as Senior Vice President, Operations. A seasoned hospitality professional, Rao joined Aiana Hotels & Resorts with a broad knowledge in the luxury spectrum that complements the brand’s niche positioning and offers a deep knowledge and vision for quality that lends itself to creating a premium lifestyle experience. Rao stated, ’It is a privilege to be a part of a brand with a strong sense of being, honesty and above all innovation. I am here to evoke the true spirit of Aiana Hotels & Resorts and help position it as the brand of choice for the conscious traveller across all destinations.’ Based out of the Qatar Financial Centre in Doha, Qatar, Rao will utilize his 30 years of expertise in hotel operations, project development, renovation, pre-opening processes and owner relations to support the brand’s growth strategy. Rao holds a 1st class Honours Diploma in Hotel Management from Bombay’s Institute of Hotel Management, Catering Technology and Applied Nutrition and an Honours Certification for Intermediate Level of HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points). Rao brings with him extensive global hospitality experience ranging from pre-opening luxury resorts in the Maldives and Caribbean, to leading operations across South East Asia, to setting brand standards for a repositioning from mid-market to the premier segment in India across leading luxury hotel brands including Four Seasons, Kempinski, Mandarin Oriental and Alila. His last project was The Sanchaya in Bintan, Indonesia where he was instrumental in positioning the property as one of the best new luxury resorts in the world, garnering a host of industry accolades. Amruda Nair, Joint Managing Director and CEO, Aiana Hotels & Resorts, said, ’It is with great excitement that we welcome Murlidhar to Aiana. Murlidhar’s earnest passion for hospitality, keen eye for detail and extensive experience offers the ideal platform to build upon Aiana’s launch in the Middle East and South Asia. I am confident that Murlidhar is the right fit to lead the charge for defining the brand’s Indian service ethos and creating authentic travel experiences. We look forward to the journey ahead with Murlidhar in the lead to position Aiana as an industry leader for innovation, guest satisfaction and performance.’
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By BW Hotelier FAITH (FEDERATION of Associations in Indian Tourism & Hospitality) has expressed its delight on the announcement of the Government of India to add 36 more countries on e-Visa taking the total number of countries now to 113. Simultaneously, seven more Indian airports have been included in the list of airports where entry by e-Visa is allowed effective August 15 this year. Nakul Anand, Chairman, FAITH & Executive Director, ITC on behalf of all the member associations, complimented Prime Minister Narendra Modi; Tourism Minister Dr. Mahesh Sharma and Arun Jaitely, Rajnath Singh and Sushma Swaraj for supporting such a visionary step. Sarab Jit Singh, Vice Chairman, FAITH, said, ’Since the beginning of planning for e-Visa FAITH have partnered with the Government. We are extremely happy with the speed at which the Government has moved to implement this otherwise cumbersome process. This intensity shows the Government’s commitment to enhance Indian presence and create leadership in USD 2 trillion global tourism industry. According to FAITH, ’The Indian tourism is estimated to contribute around Rs 7 lakh crores to Indian economy, creating largest number of jobs and earning USD 18 billion plus forex. With this positive step, Indian economy is going to get a leg up on all socio economic parameters from tourism.’
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By BW Hotelier WONDERLA HOLIDAYS Limited, one of the largest operators of amusement parks in India that currently owns and operates amusement parks and resorts declared gross revenue for Q1 ending June 30 for fiscal year 2015-16 at Rs 7465.39 lakh, an increase of 12.80 per cent over corresponding period last financial year (Rs 6615.57 lakh). The Profit After Tax for the Q1 was Rs 2804.16 lakh, an increase of 12.90 per cent over corresponding period last financial year (Rs 2483.47 lakh). The revenue from the two amusement parks ’ Bengaluru and Kochi was Rs 7147.09 lakh for the quarter under review while the revenue from resort was Rs 318.30 lakh. Commenting on the company’s performance Arun K Chittilappilly, Managing Director, Wonderla Holidays Ltd., said, ’We are happy with the revenues that the company has achieved during the first quarter of the financial year. We continue to be optimistic about the performance of both the Bengaluru and the Kochi parks, although there are short term challenges in terms of footfall growth. This is due to the added service tax burden of 14 per cent to our customers from June 1, 2015. We are looking to bring an increase in the footfall by adding never-before-seen mega rides at both the parks. We look forward to commencing operations at the Hyderabad Park in the coming year’ Wonderla Resort has achieved 48 per cent occupancy during the quarter. Construction of Hyderabad Theme park project is going on according to plan and we hope to open the project during Q1 of FY 2017. Wonderla Hyderabad will be the first large-scale tourism project to open after the Formation of Telengana State, he added. Wonderla Holidays Ltd. currently owns and operates two amusement parks under the brand name ’Wonderla’, situated at Kochi and Bengaluru. It also owns and operates a resort besides its amusement park in Bengaluru under the brand name ’Wonderla Resort’, which has been operational since March 2012.
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By BW Hotelier KOCHI BECAME the first Indian city to be granted membership of Beijing-headquartered World Tourism Cities Federation (WTCF) Council with Kerala’s Tourism Department accepting the invitation to join its league of leading tourism cities across the world. Kochi Mayor Tony Chammany handed over the membership acceptance document to Chinese Ambassador to India Le Yucheng at a function held at Kochi in the presence of Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy; Chief Secretary Jiji Thomson; Kerala Tourism Secretary G Kamala Vardhana Rao and Tourism Director P I Sheik Pareeth. State Principal Secretary for IT and Industries P H Kurian and former Secretary T Balakrishnan also attended the function. Speaking on the occasion, Yucheng said the two regions need to explore the possibilities for partnerships in culture, sports and tourism as there are many striking similarities between the cultures of China and Kerala, especially the cuisine, martial arts and snake and dragon boat races. The Chinese ambassador also expressed interest in bringing investments from his country to Kerala’s tourism sector, particularly for construction of an entertainment city and an oceanarium. He also urged the government to convene a meeting of tour operators of both the countries while agreeing to support Kerala’s efforts to increase inflow of Chinese tourists to the state. He also responded positively to Kerala’s request to facilitate chartered flights from China to Kerala. Chandy said the state government would send a detailed proposal to Beijing on various investment possibilities in Kerala, including the tourism sector. Thomson noted that Kochi’s membership of WTCF, which has 135 members the world over, is a new milestone for the Kerala government and the Tourism Department. ’The new partnership offers tremendous growth opportunities to Kerala’s tourism sector,’ he pointed out. Rao said, ’The membership would enable the state to explore new tourism markets abroad.’ Pareeth noted that the invitation is a big endorsement for Kerala Tourism and recognition to the state government’s efforts to reach out to the global tourism sector. The government sought Yucheng’s support to bring in Chinese film production companies to India, especially to Kerala, given the state’s scenic locations, good connectivity and hotel room density. It also raised the issue of lack of Chinese language guides in Kerala and also suggested possible cooperation in training Indian guides in Chinese language. WTCF is a non-profit, non-governmental international organisation voluntarily formed by tourism cities and organizations of various countries and regions from around the world. The WTCF was founded in Beijing on September I5, 2012, and is the first international tourism organisation to focus on cities in the world. Photo: Chief Minister Oommen Chandy with the Chinese Ambassador to India Le Yucheng and others during the handover of the membership acceptance document in Kochi.-
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By BW Hotelier SINCLAIRS HOTELS and Resorts, the Kolkata-based hotel chain with six properties in Darjeeling, Ooty, Kalimpong, Andaman, Dooars and Siliguri announced their first quarter results-ended June 30, 2015. The groups total income from operations increased by 42% to Rs.1137.63 lakh (Rs.798.73 lakh last year) and Profit Before Tax increased by 69% to Rs.451.29 lakh (Rs.267.61 lakh last year). The Profit after Tax for the period stood at Rs.310.74 lakh (Rs.267.61 lakh last year). The earnings per share of Rs 10 for the quarter stood at Rs 5.58 (Rs 4.80 last year). The Company has strong fundamentals and its Reserves as at 31st March, 2015 stood at Rs 6187.95 lakh on an Equity Share Capital of Rs 557 lakh. All the six properties of the company are performing well and have become the preferred choice of business and leisure travellers to those destinations. The company has embarked on aggressive marketing through channels as well as online to further boost occupancy for these properties, according to a press release. The 7th property of the company located at Burdwan in West Bengal, is expected to be commissioned shortly and would give a further boost to the company’s overall performance this year. Photo: The Sinclairs Property in Ooty.
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By BW Hotelier VISHAL BAID has been appointed as General Manager of Majestic Court Sarovar Portico Navi Mumbai ’ Mahape. With over 12 years of experience in leading and managing all aspects of hotel operations. He was associated with Goldfinch Hotel, Mangalore as General Manager before joining Sarovar. He has worked with Ginger Hotel Mangalore; Royal Orchid Resort, Bangalore; ITC Sonar Kolkata and ITC Sheraton Rajputana Hotel, Jaipur.-Baid completed his MBA in Hospitality Management from Norton Institute of Management and Technology.
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By BW Hotelier THE LEELA Palaces, Hotels, and Resorts has announced the appointment of Sameer Sud as the General Manager of The Leela Mumbai, the flagship hotel of the The Leela Group. Sud has enjoyed a long association of over 20 years with The Leela Group holding varied positions and has ably led teams within the Leela properties in Mumbai, Goa and Bangalore. He was previously the Resident Manager at The Leela Palace Bangalore. Having graduated from the Institute of Hotel Management, Mumbai, Sud will now oversee the overall operations and management of The Leela Mumbai. He started his career in hospitality with The Leela Group as a part of the Leela Management Training Programme. Commenting on the appointment, Rajiv Kaul, President, The Leela Palaces, Hotels and Resorts said, ’We are delighted to have somebody of Sameer’s calibre and depth of experience leading The Leela Mumbai team and helping the hotel with its continued leadership in the North Mumbai market.’ Taking charge at The Leela Mumbai, Sud said, ’It is an absolute honour to lead The Leela Group’s flagship property in what is known as the cultural capital of India. The Leela Mumbai spells traditional luxury in the midst of the bustling metropolis and I and my team are committed to ensure that our guests continue enjoying luxurious and unforgettable experiences at our hotel.’ Sud hails Himachal Pradesh where he spent his formative years. He is an avid fan of fitness and enjoys jogging and cycling in his spare time.- He is married with one child.
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