Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Tourism has got a boost with readers of SmartTravelAsia.com placing the state as the best Asian holiday destination ahead of Bali, Phuket and the Maldives.

"This is a phenomenal recognition for Kerala and the people who are working in the tourism sector," said V Venu, secretary, Kerala Tourism.

The only other Indian destinations to be listed in the top 10 were Rajasthan and Goa- at eighth and 10th spot respectively.

Smart Travel Asia has over one million readers worldwide.

It held the 2010 Best in Travel Poll this week. At the previous poll, Kerala was voted as the third

Milan: Tourists spend a staggering 1 billion euros annually on shopping sprees in Italy’s fashion capital, Milan, according to a study by the city’s chamber of commerce.

The designer stores near the city’s gothic cathedral are the biggest draw, but the elegant Corso Vittorio Emanuele is also popular with tourist shoppers.

Stores in the less central but increasingly trendy via Torino and via Buenos Aires do good business. Also, 75 percent of tourists in Milan have come to the northern city to shop, and Germans and Spaniards are the most numerous, the study said.

American, Russian and Japanese shoppers have tightened their belts during the recession and

Nainital is touristy, no doubt, but that doesn't take away its perennial charms

IT was a particularly bad week in office. No-brainer stories, missed deadlines, dull editions, grumpy boss, frumpy colleagues... everything that could have gone wrong, went wrong.

Thiruvananthapuram: To clear the extra rush of passengers during the Onam festival, the Southern Railway (SR) will run special trains.

According to a railway release here today, train no 0653 Ernakulam Jn-Bangalore Special would leave Ernakulam Jn at 2130 hrs on August 19 and 26 and arrive at Bangalore at 1000 hrs, the next day respectively.

In the return direction, train no 0654 Bangalore-Ernakulam Jn Special would leave Bangalore city at 1850 hrs on August 20 and 27 and arrive at Ernakulam Jn at 0630 hrs the next day respectively.

New Delhi: Sebastian Wright, a junior attache in a European mission, and his Romanian wife Maria sip coffee and nibble at sandwiches at a cafe in south Delhi. The sun has long set, but they do not mind lingering for another hour.

"Security has never been an issue for the last two-and-a-half years that we have been here. We go out to parties that last till the wee hours of the morning. Our children go to school in the city," Wright (name changed) said at the Barista cafe located in a shopping enclosure in South Extension-I.

Shimla: Tourists visiting the Army Heritage Museum in Shimla have said that they are quite inspired by the ancient and modern artifacts lodged inside it.

“Before I came over here, I never thought that the Army could be so inspiring. But I have come over here and I can see by looking at the weapons and by looking at the uniform, it motivates you to do something for your country,” said Reema, a tourist.

Leh: Holidaying in Ladakh — known for its breathtaking natural beauty but seen as remote and inaccessible by many domestic tourists — has become slightly easier from this season.

A leading travel company had in May this year introduced a new concept, a special charter flights-cum-tour package to Leh—Ladakh touted as the first such initiative for the region, which has already been availed of by over 7,000 people.

Buoyed by the “great response”, as officials of the online travel agency, MakeMytrip.com, termed it,

Agra: If chatting up with former bandits or traversing terrain infested with alligators is your idea of adventure tourism, then the Chambal ravines in central India may be the place to go - especially if you are a Commonwealth Games visitor.

Madhya Pradesh is starting a special programme to attract tourists during the Games to the Chambal ravines in Bhind district in collaboration with Uttar Pradesh and a private player, Chambal Safari. The area, after all, was home to some of India’s most feared outlaws at one

Panaji: The hills of Sikkim can now sunbathe in Goa! To tap tourism synergies and boost business, the Goa Tourism Development Corporation (GTDC) and its Sikkim counterpart have signed an agreement to promote each other’s diverse tourism platters.
GTDC Managing Director Nikhil Desai said the arrangement would mutually benefit both states and that similar exchange of synergies was on cards with several states like Meghalaya, Rajasthan, West Bengal and Karnataka to beef up tourism in Goa.

Shimla: Milking cows, plucking apples, digging up potatoes and pitting your wits against the elusive trout... That's the idyllic holiday in a mountain village far from the madding crowd that Himachal Pradesh is offering tourists.

The 'home-stay scheme' launched by the state government in July 2008 has been getting an overwhelming response from the tourists - both domestic and overseas.