NEW DELHI, 13 October 2021: India has now formally announced that it would begin reissuing tourist visas starting 15 October, Creative Travel reported in its latest newsletters to travel customers.
The 15 October start date for the visa issue applies for tourists arriving on charter flights followed by independent travellers on 15 November.
Creative Travel says specific details on vaccination and test requirements have still to be announced. Commenting on the move, Creative Travel managing director Rajeev Kohli said: “This is a tremendous move forward for all of us who have been waiting for months for India to welcome back its fans.
The official announcement was made by the Ministry of Home Affairs, 8 October, after consultations with the Ministry of Health, Civil Aviation and the Ministry of Tourism.
Creative Travel’s team has waited 19 months to reach the point where the country can reopen its borders to international travellers again.
Kohli says the downtime was spent conducting intensive training on new and old destinations and creating new experiences and products across “our vast and diverse destinations of India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, Tibet and the Maldives.”
While India was closed, the travel firm continued to operate trips to the Maldives mainly for honeymooners and small incentive travel groups. In addition, Nepal and Sri Lanka have also opened.
