India's live events scene is hitting a high note. With global performers adding the country to their tour maps and the government aiming to double the concert economy, hotels in key metro cities are bracing for sold-out weekends. Travel operators, too, are curating packages built entirely around concerts.
Travellers are turning concerts into full-fledged weekend getaways, giving rise to the 'gigcation' -- a short, experience-led micro-holiday.
As many as 26 top e-commerce companies, including Zepto, BigBasket and Zomato, have given an undertaking that their platforms are free from misleading claims and unfair trade practices which constitute 'dark patterns', the government said on Thursday.
'Countries like Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos, and the Philippines have a 50 per cent increase in bookings.'
The primary drivers: Geopolitical disruptions inflating fuel and operational costs, and a surge in travel demand.
'...than by the calendar.' Indian travellers are no longer restricting their getaways to summer or winter holidays.
Flipkart will acquire 100 per cent of Cleartrip's shareholding as the company further enhances its investments to strengthen its digital commerce offerings for customers, a statement said.
Apart from air travel, Flipkart would also be able to offer train bookings through Cleartrip.
'It's clear that fans are eager to be part of the live stadium experience, reflecting a growing trend of travel driven by marquee sporting events.'
Travelocity accuses Cleartrip of data theft, but the latter terms it commercial dispute
Cleartrip acquired Saudi travel firm Flyin last July and it provides bilingual ground support service and itineraries for inbound tourists.
Cleartrip is one of the top three online travel agencies in India, with a 35 per cent market share.
Internet.org is a Facebook-led initiative
Concur and Cleartrip through their partnership will target the rapidly-burgeoning Indian corporate travel segment.
Online travel services provider Travelocity India on Tuesday said it has filed a civil suit against Cleartrip in the Bombay High Court claiming damages of $37.5 million (over Rs 165 crore) due to an alleged data theft by top executives of the rival.
Dhoni endorses 42 brands to Bachchan's 41 and SRK's 34.
The spot airfares on major routes, where Vistara cancelled flights on Tuesday, have surged by up to 38 per cent, according to data provided by Cleartrip. The spot airfares for Tuesday were compared with March 5. Vistara has cancelled 52 flights on routes such as Delhi-Indore, Delhi-Srinagar, Mumbai-Kochi, and Bengaluru-Udaipur as a certain section of pilots went on sick leave, reportedly protesting against the new salary structure that was introduced as part of the airline's merger with Air India.
As March draws to a close, two consecutive long weekend opportunities - Holi and Good Friday - are driving up hotel occupancy and airfares across major routes. According to travel platform Cleartrip, hotel bookings have seen a 3.5 times spike for the Holi weekend, while a 3.7 times spike has been visible in the Good Friday weekend.
The diplomatic rift between India and Maldives, coupled with the suspension of flight bookings on one of India's major travel portals, has sent jitters down the spine of tour operators in the island nation. The Maldivian Association of Travel Agents and Tour Operators (MATATO), a forum for travel agents, has stressed that the Indian market is important to the success of tourism in Maldives.
The government on Wednesday directed online travel aggregators to process pending refunds related to air ticket bookings during the coronavirus lockdown period by the third week of November. In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, there was a nationwide lockdown for varying periods starting from March 25, 2020, and scheduled commercial flight services were also suspended for a certain period. On Wednesday, the consumer affairs ministry held a meeting with online travel aggregators to discuss issues prejudicial to consumer interest in the travel sector.
Adani Enterprises, the flagship firm of billionaire Gautam Adani's group, has bought a close to 30 per cent stake in Start Enterprises Pvt Ltd, which owns the online train ticket booking platform Trainman. Adani Enterprises last month announced that it has signed a pact to acquire 100 per cent of SEPL In a stock exchange filing on Saturday, Adani Enterprises said Adani Digital Labs Pvt Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the company, has bought a 29.81 per cent stake in SEPL for Rs 3.56 crore.
'Rather than visiting famous monuments, travellers now prefer "experiential activities" such as biking, trekking/hiking, camping, river rafting, yachting, parasailing and zip lining; safaris and jungle adventures; and wellness holidays to rejuvenate themselves.'
From a surge in airfares to rattled aircraft lessors to thousands of employees staring at uncertainty, it has been a month of continued turbulence since cash-strapped Go First suspended flights from May 3. As the government and other stakeholders hope that Go First restarts operations at the earliest, plans are being worked out for the budget airline's revival. A section of Go First staff are optimistic about restarting of operations, another section are pessimistic about the airline's future course considering what had happened to erstwhile Kingfisher Airlines and Jet Airways, according to employees who spoke to PTI.
E-commerce major Flipkart has burnt cash of $3.7 billion (about Rs 30,000 crore) in about a year ending September 2022, according to regulatory filings. Flipkart had $1 billion in cash in July 2021, which came down to $887 million by September 2022. The company, in July 2021, raised $3.6 billion (about Rs 29,000 crore), which has been completely exhausted, according to regulatory filings of Flipkart and Walmart.
Flipkart has promoted several of its leaders into newer roles at a time when the Walmart-owned e-commerce giant has internally raised its IPO (initial public offering) valuation target to about $60 billion and aims for a US listing in 2023, according to the sources. "I am delighted to announce the promotion of some of our exemplary leaders," said Kalyan Krishnamurthy, chief executive officer, Flipkart Group, in an internal note, and which has been reviewed by Business Standard. "Each of them has been instrumental in delivering impact and creating long-term value for Flipkart.
After years of being sequestered by the pandemic, some intrepid travellers are planning to settle their score with the novel coronavirus. With fewer or no travel curbs, they are eager to get back on the road, again. Hotels and tour operators, too, are eager to shed excess Covid baggage. And this year's Diwali promises to add that extra layer sparkle with the introduction of new flights.
While the peak holiday season failed to bring in much business to the hotel industry, the online travel booking space has done reasonably well.
The new flights come against the backdrop of the Indian government's move to boost air connectivity with Central Asia and tap the interest of Russian investors in India.
Goa, Kerala, Maldives and Dubai are among the popular destinations.
The groups plan to take on well-entrenched players like Amazon, Flipkart, and Paytm by merging their offline businesses with e-commerce initiatives.
Analysts expect holiday fares to inch up further closer to the travel dates, but airlines may still not be able to fully recover higher costs as fuel costs remain elevated
Sandeep Murthy, the 30-year-old CEO of Cleartrip.com, shares the story of his career success and some career advice.
The facility will be available at four of Future Group's Big Bazaar outlets in Mumbai. Cleartrip will soon extend this tie-up to other Big Bazaar outlets in the city as well as other metros.
Sources at Mumbai airport said seat occupancy has declined from around 70-72 per cent to 60-64 per cent in last three-four days as passengers are postponing or cancelling trips.
Available on both Android and iOS, the company has partnered with Cleartrip and Yatra. Shameen Alauddin reports.
Holidayers, including those who would head overseas between April and June, are set to escape to the hills, beaches, and resorts in the country. This is to fend off the heat and beat the pandemic blues, indicates the initial bookings and online search trends.
Fares to key routes such as Delhi, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad may shoot up 80 per cent
About 1.2 crore passengers flew in November compared to 1.1 crore in October. While the industry opinion is divided over the sustainability of unprofitable growth, which is primarily led by low fare, some described it as the resilience of air travel against the economic slump.
Brent crude oil price surged 4 per cent on Friday, following tension between Iran and the US. Airlines, however, have been unable to pass on the price increase to customers due to the soft demand.
The increase in bookings has also meant a significant reduction in overall costs for the online travel agencies and a consequent narrowing of losses.
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