For us in the Creative Travel family, 2017 brings in our 40th year of being amongst India’s most respected and largest family owned DMC. This is a milestone we are so proud of. In the next few weeks we will move into our new home, a 50,000+ sq.ft space for work and play for the over 150 dedicated professionals who make up the Creative family. With more work space, more meeting space, more relaxation space, 60,000 feet of green vertical walls, a barista and cafeteria, this three-year project is almost at its end and we are very excited. 2016 was also another record breaking year when it came to winning global accolades. Creative Travel was proud to have been awarded as "India's Leading Destination Management Company" (our 6th) and "India's Leading Luxury Travel Agency" (our 3rd) and the first “India’s Most Experiential Holiday Company” for our team at JungleSutra Wildlife Journeys at the 2016 World Travel Awards Ceremony.

The last two months of 2016 also saw a major upheaval when the Indian government demonetized two of our currency notes. That threw the entire banking system out of synch as the Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes, which were affected, constituted 85% of the nation’s currency in circulation. The move was an attempt to do a strategic strike against hoarding in the black money / parallel economy. This is an anti-tax evasion strategy. There has been no currency devaluation or affect to the position of the economy. It’s simply a physical note swap of only these two bills. We need to point out that India is essentially a cash driven economy and the government has been working towards bringing more under the electronic transaction systems (credit cards, wire transfers etc) as that allows for better tracking and tax controls.

We’re happy to report that things are more or less back to normal and we have moved on with new bills in circulation. The temporary limits of weekly withdrawals from ATMs has also been increased and we expect that in the next few weeks things will be back where they were before. Apart from a few bruised egos and many inconvenienced citizens and travellers, we have moved on to other discussions.

The Indian tourism industry was hit by a major jolt a week ago when the Finance Ministry announced a doubling of service taxes on tourism. More on that is below.

Many in the world entered 2017 with uncertainties and concerns. Many were worried on what lies ahead of us. One can get consumed by looking backwards to what happened in the past. One can spend endless hours in pondering of what should have been. But we Indians don't believe in looking back. As a nation fascinated by what the stars and the moon hold for our future, we remain positive that tomorrow will always be better than yesterday. That is the Indian way of taking on life. If there is one thing history has shown, out of every adversity the world has always emerged stronger, smarter and better. We wish one and all the confidence, the strength and the perseverance to take on the new year with gusto and smiles on your face.

We look forward to showcasing in this new year some of the most amazing experiences across this region to our guests and partners form all over the world.

Rajeev Kohli
Joint Managing Director

Effective January 22, 2017, service taxes on all tourism products have been increased form the 4.5% rate to 9%. This was a move announced with just 5 days notice and was done that has sent shock waves through the entire Indian tourism industry. The Indian travel industry is already the most heavily taxed in the region and that has a serious impact on our competitiveness as a destination.