The stories of young, dynamic and hardworking businessmen are a valuable source of inspiration for those looking to turn their innovative ideas into a fruitful venture. Today, we have for you the story of such a startup and a personality who made it big in the travel and hospitality sector without any previous experience and background in the industry. Yes, read on to get motivated by the successful journey of Rayna Tours and Travels and its CEO, Manoj Tulsani.

Rayna Tours Start and Flourish

Rayna Tours was founded back in 2006 after Manoj resigned from his position as the Marketing Head at Time Machine Group of Companies. Rayna Tours kicked off mainly with the idea to fill the gap of organizing hassle-free activities and tours for hotel guests. Although its start was from a small outlet in Flora Grand Hotel in Dubai and the idea was simple, it received unanimous praise from every quarter for the inventiveness and effectiveness of this concept. In less than two years, Rayna Tours expanded its presence by opening 15 more outlets across Dubai’s major hotels and resorts.

Ongoing Success

Rayna Tours became one of the industry leaders by 2009 as it transformed itself into a full-suite Destination Management Company. For more than a decade now, the company continues to evolve and expand through its offerings that cater to every traveler’s distinct travel expectations and requirements.

Does Rayna Tours come this far without any challenges?

Rayna Tours is the brainchild of Manoj Tulsani and Kamlesh Ramchandani, Manoj’s friend and co-founder of the company. Its opening was the result of quite a spontaneous decision that mainly stemmed from Manoj’s passion for travel and Kamlesh’s interest in entrepreneurship. In fact, it had its flaws in the beginning, especially because of the duo’s absolute lack of experience in the service industry. Both came from the trading industry where they started their career off in Dubai at Safeer Group of Companies. While their business idea was effective, they found it hard to take it off without any proper business plan or the presence of a strong mentor or an experienced team. The tough competition worsened the situation.

So, how Rayna Tours made it big?

“All aspects of our business were in chaos when we embarked on this journey. It wasn’t easy for us to win the confidence and trust of our targeted audience who were mainly hotel guests in the initial stage. But, over the time, we took time to analyze our mistakes and made it a point to take lessons from every challenge and failure that came our way,” says Manoj Tulsani.

According to its founders, one of the major turning points in their journey came when they decided to sell their offerings directly to customers. As an outcome, they strengthened their products and service portfolio by investing in their own desert camp and an all-encompassing line-up of cruise inventories, coaches, buses, luxury vehicles, sightseeing tours, holiday packages and more.

This saw the elimination of unpleasant intermediaries that led to the cut down of unnecessary and hidden costs. Not to mention, the majority of Rayna Tours’ services continue to have the industry’s best rates.

In 2018, Arabian Explorers, one of the Arabian world’s top travel companies, became part of Rayna Tours. This has made Rayna Tours the largest as well as the number one destination management company in the region. Arabian Explorer’s CEO, Mr Yasser Noman, is the Executive Chairman of Rayna Tours. Himanshu Laul – a graduate from IIT (Indian Institute of Technology), Roorkee, is the company’s Managing Director who has been responsible for implementing more integrated and innovative marketing solutions to accelerate the company’s growth.

What does Rayna Tours specialize in?

Rayna Tours and Travel is a one-stop Destination Management Company where you will find all aspects of putting together an activity, tour or a holiday under one roof. It has exclusive sections plus an expert team for the successful implementation of your travel, from international visa, global hotel booking and convenient transfer options to MICE, cruises, safaris, and sightseeing tours.

Furthermore, the business is active in both B2B and B2C sectors. While its portal on B2C (www.raynatours.com) is an incredible platform to compare, compile and book your favourite tour program, its B2B portal (www.raynab2b.com) is one of the ultimate sources on the web for small and mid-size travel companies and tour operators to grow and boost their travel business.

International Presence & Diversification

Rayna Tours and Travels has its main office at Dubai’s ACICO Business Park Building, at Port Saeed. Apart from this, it has its branches in more than ten countries across the world. Rayna Tours is now a part of Rayna Group which specializes in cost-effective construction and transport solutions.

From a Humble Travel Boutique to an Award-Winning Travel Business

The company has now come a long way from a single travel outlet that started off with just two of them to an internationally recognized travel service provider staffed by over 500 employees worldwide (that are multilingual and come from different cultural backgrounds.) This magnanimous growth has fetched them several prestigious accolades and recognitions in the process.

Rayna Tours was the proud winner of Travelers’ Choice Award consecutively for two years in 2020 and 2021 – it is one of the greatest honors bestowed by TripAdvisor to the top performing businesses in the travel and hospitality sector. Reviews and ratings from real users or travelers were the main criteria for winning this TripAdvisor Award.

In 2017, it became the recipient of the Best Partner Award for Dubai Parks and Resorts. It also received other sought-after industry awards such as Arabian Travel Awards in two categories (Best Destination Management Company and Best B2B Portal) and Best Performer Award / Customer Service from some of the UAE’s top attractions such as Dubai Dolphinarium, Global Village and Yas Island (Ferrari World Abu Dhabi and Yas Waterworld) to name a few.

Words of Inspiration

According to Manoj, one of the fundamental elements of growing a business is to being true to yourself and your innovative ideas. “It may not be certainly easy in the beginning but don’t be afraid to fail or more precisely leave your comfort space. After all, a business is all about risks and how well you manage them largely determines the success of your business. Also, be flexible and never turn away from what your customers have to say as they can be your most trusted source of business empowerment. Finally, always remain positive to changes and be prepared to roll with the punches.”