Friday, December 19, 2014

Georgia-EU: Has Georgia made the grade?

19.12.2014. The European Parliament yesterday ratified the Association Agreement between the EU and Georgia. 490 deputies voted for the document, 76 were against, 57 deputies abstained. During the vote in the hall of the European Parliament were the current president of Georgia, Giorgi Margvelashvili, and ex-President Mikhail Saakashvili, who has been put on the wanted list in his country.

Economic expert Irakli Lekvinadze said what Georgia expects from the Association except the opening of borders. "This is a very important agreement for us, both politically and, of course, in economic terms. One of the points of the agreement is free trade, and for us this is very important. In the first place, of course, those companies that export their products from Georgia to Europe will benefit: before September 1, they paid customs tariff, from September 1 this tariff does not exist. This will affect those Georgian companies that export wine and various fruit concentrates to the EU, providing additional revenue. This is one of the benefits that we got in Georgia after ratification of the treaty," the expert said.

Wednesday, December 17, 2014

Georgia to launch e-visa scheme with 102 countries

17.12.2014. Georgia is preparing to launch an electronic visa (e-visa) facility in the near future, allowing tourists from 102 countries the possibility to apply for a Georgian visa in simple steps, say official Tbilisi.

E-visa’s would boost Georgia’s tourism sector and offer hassle-free travel to foreign nationals, in light of the country’s new visa rules which had created "some difficulties” for tourists, believed Giorgi Chogovadze, head of the National Tourism Administration, which is responsible for the tourism sector development in the country.

"The date of the service launch has not yet been defined. However we have to test the traffic of the users that will be able to use the electronic travel authorization scheme,” Chogovadze told industry insiders while presenting his vision and goals for developing the country’s tourism sector.

Chogovadze was confident the government was actively working to correct current deficiencies to simplify issues relating to the new visa regulations, which came into force on September 1, 2014.

Tuesday, December 16, 2014

Over 300 executives to meet for aviation event

16.12.2014. A decision by United Airports of Georgia to host the Routes Silk Road event for the second year running is largely due to the success of the 2014 event [read more here] and a number of key routes which were negotiated during Routes Silk Road 2014. Air Arabia and Aeroflot commenced new routes from Tbilisi International Airport in October 2014 (to Sharjah and Moscow respectively). Etihad Airways is due to begin flights from Tbilisi to Abu Dhabi in October 2015. Furthermore, UAG is currently in the process of active negotiations with two airlines to begin routes from Kutaisi International Airport.

Routes Silk Road is the route development forum that connects CIS, Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Asia and was held for the first time earlier this year. The event, which will once again take place in the beautiful and historic capital of Georgia, will offer attendees the perfect platform to do business and improve air transport networks to, from and within the region. Over 300 senior level executives from airlines, airports, tourism authorities and other aviation stakeholders are expected to attend to discuss air service development.

Friday, December 12, 2014

Georgian tourism companies join national airline in protest

12.12.2014 (Hvino News). A rally held by Georgian Airways in protest of the unlimited flow of Russian airlines to Georgia, was joined by Georgian tourism companies on December 11. The companies stated that the country lacks regulations that support the local industry.

Georgian Airways released an eight-point list of demands on December 10, out of which only one was met. Two Russian companies Aeroflot and S7 will be able to carry out 10 flights a week instead of 14.

However, Georgia Airways leadership claims that the decision will not solve the problem and insist that all their demands are fulfilled. These include the rejection of the July 8 decree that allows Russian companies to undertake unlimited flights to the Tbilisi-Moscow-Tbilisi route, restoration of flights between the two countries that existed in 2006, negotiations with Russian representatives in Georgia, separation of the National Aviation Agency from the Ministry of Economy and making it a separate entity, hiring qualified staff for the agency and resuming the status of a flagman to Georgian Airways. Otherwise the company threatens to block the airport.

“Georgia’s airport is owned by a Turkish company, while the sky is going to be possessed by Russian companies. There is no space left for Georgian companies,” General Director of Georgian Airways Iase Zautashvili said.

Georgian Airways strike gains momentum

12.12.2014. One of the country’s top tourism agencies is publicly supporting the Georgian Airways strike as airline officials threaten to "paralyze” Tbilisi International Airport if its demands are not met.

The Georgian Airways protest is gaining momentum and has affected flights in and out of Georgia’s capital city Tbilisi.

The founder of one of the top tourism company "All Tours” Maia Mchedlidze said her company and others were in solidarity with the demands of Georgian Airways, who today pledged to ramp up their strike if their demands remained unanswered.

Mchedlidze noted that local tourism companies operated in harsh conditions as there were no regulations to enable them to compete with foreign companies.

"We make charters through Georgian Airways therefore we are dependent on each other,” she said.

"Our problem is that foreign tourism companies are trying to swallow us. Egyptian and Turkish aviation companies are entering Georgia with very low prices, they decrease their prices and we are forced to do the same, which, due to our limited resources, causes great problems for Georgian tourism companies. Their resources however enable them to act like this,” Mchedlidze said.

Thursday, December 4, 2014

Georgia, World Bank to work out national tourism development strategy

04.12.2014. The Georgian Ministry of Economy and the National Tourism Administration jointly with the World Bank will begin working over the national tourism development strategy until 2025.

The consultations have been actively conducted for several months. The conference at the Expo Georgia exhibition center was dedicated to this topic. The representatives of the public and private sectors, international organizations and NGOs attended the conference.

The First Deputy Economy Minister Dmitry Kumsishvili delivered speech at the conference. He said that the tourism development is one of the priorities of the Georgian government.

"The income obtained from tourism in the country’s trade turnover amounts to $1.700 billion,” Kumsishvili said. “The work over the further document must be completed in March 2015. We must have a clear vision of the tourism development in Georgia until 2025. Afterwards, we will prepare a five-year action plan to be reconsidered."

A Solimar International representative delivered speech at the conference on behalf of the WB. He spoke about global experience in the field of tourism and tourism development strategies.

"The WB and the International Finance Corporation focused on the entrepreneurship development, the availability of funds, improvement of the investment sphere and the development of the tourism development strategy in Georgia."

Source

    Georgian Wine Catalogue      
 To add this Search Box to your website,  click  here. Many designs are available.

Wednesday, December 3, 2014

Georgia is the most popular New Year's destination for Russians among post-Soviet countries

03.12.2014. Tour operators, having in their selection proposals for Georgia and the CIS countries, have concluded that the demand for the New Year holidays here, unlike the vast majority of the areas visited, are resisting significant falls, and in some positions show positive dynamics.

Airzena-Georgian Airways operates seven flights and week between Tbilisi and Moscow, and S7 Airlines and Aeroflot operate 14 in total.

In winter, tourists are most interested in the excursion program, spa treatments and skiing. For outdoor enthusiasts, Georgia has a choice of two ski resorts - Gudauri and Bakuriani.

Source


    Georgian Wine Catalogue      
 To add this Search Box to your website,  click  here. Many designs are available.