Cities that started charging a daily tourist tax in 2024 & more travel news

Virgin Australia could soon operate pet-friendly flights. The service will have specific rules: pets limited to small cats and dogs will be allowed on designated domestic routes, in approved carriers. (Gustavo Fring/Pexels)

1. St Petersburg started levying a tourist tax of 100 rubles per person for each day of stay (1 Russian Ruble = INR 0.90), excluding the day of arrival, starting this financial year (April 1, 2024). The tourist tax applies to individuals aged 18 or above residing in a hotel for more than 24 hours. Visitors can pay upon check-in at their hotel. St Petersburg is the not the only city that charges a Tourist Tax. The Indonesian government began taxing travellers visiting Bali from February 14, 2024.  In January, Iceland reintroduced its tourist tax following a pandemic hiatus - depending on the city, tourist tax can be somewhere between $1 and $8 per night in Italy. Portugal charges nearly $2 per night as Tourist Tax in 13 cities, including Lisbon and Porto. In anticipation of the 2024 Olympics, French government has revealed plans to triple the tourist taxes on hotel rooms in Paris - depending on the type of lodging, the proposed increase in the current tourist tax will range from 0.75 to 15 euros per night. Amsterdam has decided to raise the  to 12.5% of the hotel room price. All cruise passengers, as well as overnight visitors, will be obliged to pay this tax. Last year, Manchester introduced a tourism tax on temporary lodgings — like hotels and other holiday accommodations — totalling just over $1 per night.

2. If you hate flying with bawling, grumpy kids on your flight, flying on a Sunday might be the best for you, especially if you are planning a holiday during Autumn. Another good idea is to avoid flying during summer months because summer is a popular time for kids to travel, with June, July and August seeing the highest share of bookings with children, according to the Hopper report. If weekend travel isn’t your thing, Thursday or Friday flights may be your next best bet.

3. Air India aircraft with Thales’s Avant Up inflight entertainment: Air India will place Thales’s Avant Up inflight entertainment (IFE) systems in 51 of its airliners. Under the agreement, 40 existing Boeing 777s and 787s, as well as 11 new-production 787s and Airbus A350s will get the new equipment in their cabins. The upgrades and retrofits to the in-service Air India aircraft will start this year. In 2025, Thales will provide the Avant Up IFE for the new airliners yet to be delivered by Boeing and Airbus.

4. Club Vistara Points Fest 2024: Club Vistara, the loyalty program of Vistara, announced Points Fest 2024 across its Bank/Hotel Point Transfer Partners. The campaign allowed Club Vistara members to earn up to 40 percent Bonus CV Points (up to 100,000 CV Points per partner and up to 11,00,000 CV Points with all Points Transfer Partners) on eligible Bank/Hotel reward programs with a minimum transfer of 5,000 CV Points.

5. Indigo started daily direct flight from Bengaluru to Denpasar in Bali, Indonesia, from March 29. IndiGo had started operations to Jakarta in 2023 and Bali is its second destination in Indonesia, making Denpasar the 33rd international and 119th overall destination to join IndiGo's flight network. Denpasar, the capital city of Bali, serves as the main gateway to Indonesia's most famous island. It is also home to some of Bali's best restaurants, serving delicious local dishes as well as international cuisines.

6. American Express opened its largest lounge in Atlanta: American Express (AmEx) has opened its largest-ever Centurion Lounge at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL), the busiest airport in the world.

7. Over 130,000 F-1 student visas were issued to Indian students in 2023. This is a 14 percent increase over F-1 student visas issued last year. For the second year running, Indian students were issued the most F-1 visas by a very wide margin (among countries with 1,000+ F-1 student visas issued), according to the US Department of State’s Monthly Data. The F-1 student visa is for students looking to study at a college or university, or to study English at an English language institute in the US. In 2023, 199,861 study permits (including F, M and J student visas) were issued to Indian students.

8. Cathay Pacific's new Hong Kong Flavours menu, created in collaboration with Michelin-starred Hong Kong restaurant Duddell’s for First and Business class passengers on select long-haul flights departing from Hong Kong, includes crystal pork terrine with black vinegar (cured, pressed and sliced pork knuckle topped with a sweet and tangy sauce made with aged Chinese black vinegar) and sautéed abalone and chicken with Sichuan pepper and crispy greens. The meal concludes with the black sesame tart with tofu ice creams.

9. iGA Istanbul Airport pilots therapy dog project to reduce flight stress: As part of the pilot project, specially trained therapy dogs interact with passengers at the airport and offer them support.

10. Washington Dulles was the world's most punctual airport in February, with an on-time departure rate of 89.95 percent. Taking the No. 2 spot was Vienna International Airport (VIE), with an average on-time departure performance of 89.39 percent.

11. AirAsia Malaysia’s maiden Airbus A321neo Kuala Lumpur-Perth flight has daily services between Malaysia’s and Western Australia’s capital cities. This doubles the number of flights from seven to 14 weekly or twice daily. The new services add over 3,000 additional visitor seats weekly through Perth Airport.

12. Business travellers picked Helsinki as the best airport in Europe. Helsinki Airport was also ranked fifth best in the world and is the only European airport on the list, according to the list of the best airports in the world picked by business travellers which was published by BusinessFinancing.co.uk at the end of February. In addition to Helsinki Airport, business travellers rated Noi Bai International Airport in Vietnam, Changi Airport in Singapore, Hong Kong International Airport in China, and Hamad International Airport in Qatar among the top five airports. Helsinki Airport has a total of five popular lounges, three of which will be renovated in the summer of 2024.

13. New menu and amenity kits for Singapore Airline’s Premium economy Class from March 31 include a glass of Charles de Cazanove Brut Tradition NV champagne shortly after take-off, appetisers like garlic roasted prawns with smoked aioli and Patatas Bravas (Spanish fried potatoes), and two premium main course options, either international or Asian cuisine, on every flight.

14. AnadoluJet, a successful brand of Turkish Airlines, has been conducting its operations under the name “AJet Air Transportation Inc.”, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Turkish Airlines, since the end of March 2024. Established in 2008 to meet the air transportation needs of Anatolia, AnadoluJet has flown over 150 million guests in 16 years. AJet will operate flights to 93 destinations, including 41 domestic and 52 international, with its fleet of 95 aircraft during the summer season of 2024. It plans to fly to a total of 44 countries with a fleet of 200 aircraft within the next 10 years as a global growth target.

15. Washington Dulles International Airport has a pre-departure interview facility. To complete your global entry interview, go towards gate B41 in the airport’s B concourse between noon and 8 pm. Global Entry allows participants to take advantage of expedited passport screening at participating airports around the country and pre-clearance facilities abroad. The program costs $100 for a five-year membership, and includes TSA Precheck.

16. An MSM Unify survey of 1,256-plus students and 250-plus education consultants found that most female respondents (71 percent) wanted to study abroad. Additionally, 67 percent female respondents said that finances could come in the way of their study abroad planning. Forty-nine percent of the Indian students who study abroad are women. Nearly 49 percent respondents of the inaugural survey by MSM Unify, a study abroad platform, said that better career prospects are the top reason for them to consider education overseas.

17. Atlys, an online platform for visa applications, has announced the launch of a new refund feature aimed at providing financial security to its users if their visa gets rejected. Under this new feature, every Atlys customer will automatically be eligible to receive a refund of up to INR 8,000 if their visa gets rejected. There are no eligibility criteria unless the user is debarred in the country.

18. Virgin Australia could soon operate pet-friendly flights. The service will have specific rules: pets limited to small cats and dogs will be allowed on designated domestic routes, in approved carriers. The airline hopes to launch the service within 12 months.

19. With Canada's new immigration pilot for rural and Francophone minority communities, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) aims to create a permanent rural immigration program. The pilot will launch in the fall of 2024, and will hope to address labour shortages and help local businesses find the workers they need. It will provide pathways to permanent residence for newcomers who can help to overcome critical labour job shortages and want to live long term in these smaller communities.

20. British Airways is set to fully refurbish all of its London Heathrow Airport lounges in the next five years, starting with the Terminal 5 Arrivals Lounge. Work on the project is set to start in late 2024, with the Terminal 5 Arrivals Lounge being the first in line to receive a makeover as part of the program. The layout of certain lounges in Terminal 5, including the Concorde Room, First Class, and Galleries Club South, will be completely reworked to offer better access.