The last few years have witnessed an interesting new trend in the outbound travel segment – more and more Indians are travelling overseas for events that are as diverse geographically as thematically – from the Grand Prix in Malaysia to gourmet festival in Singapore to sporting events in Melbourne – India outbound seems to have discovered the benefits of packaging an exciting event to spice up a holiday or an incentive trip. For the inbound segment, the plethora of events, mostly festivals and fairs, that are celebrated across the country round the year is still an opportunity whose potential needs to be exploited. While the Kumbh Mela and Pushkar Fair have traditionally been a big fascination for overseas tourists, in recent years focused promotions have managed to attract them to events like Rann Utsav in Gujarat and the Hornbill Festival in Nagaland. A small segment of inbound tourists who are interested in experiencing a different slice of Indian culture have also been attending the IPL matches and events like the Sunburn music festival in Goa.
India Inbound: Unlimited potential
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| R H Khwaja |
The ministry of tourism promotes and publicises most of the traditional festivals through its India tourism offices in India and overseas. “The ministry also extends financial assistance to the state governments and Union Territory administrations for organising fairs, festivals and other tourism related events which have the potential of promoting tourism to and within the country,” says RH Khwaja, secretary, Ministry of Tourism. He reminds that in addition to these traditional fairs and festivals, in recent years major international events have been organised in the country, particularly in the field of sports, prominent amongst them being the Commonwealth Games, ICC Cricket World Cup and Formula 1. “The ministry of tourism has associated with these events by way of Incredible India branding, in view of the widespread reach and exposure provided by them the world over,” adds Khwaja.
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| Usha Sharma |
Many state governments are making concerted efforts to promote these events at all international platforms. The state of Rajasthan that has been at the forefront of inbound tourism for the last two decades hosts many colourful and vibrant events like the Pushkar Fair in Ajmer, Elephant Festival in Jaipur, Chandrabhaga Fair in Jhalrapatan, Desert Festival in Jaisalmer, among others. “The other important event is the Great Indian Travel Bazaar (GITB), which in a short period of five years has emerged as one of the most important B2B travel marts in South Asia,” says Usha Sharma, principal secretary tourism, Rajasthan. According to Sharma a recent interesting trend has been increasing number of interactions between ‘buyers’ (tour operators) and ‘sellers’ (property owners and state tourism departments) at GITB. “This year was remarkable in terms of the quality buyers who came for the fair and evinced tremendous interest in the tourism products of Rajasthan,” she added.
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| Rachhpal Singh |
The government of West Bengal is planning this year to attract tourists from England, Germany and from other European countries for the Durga Puja festivities. They have in fact approached the Indian embassies and diplomatic offices in Europe for this purpose. Besides, the print and electronic media, this year the West Bengal Tourism Department has found a novel way to attract tourists during the festival. The department has decided to upload Durga Puja videos on Facebook to depict the various colours and hues of the city and the state during the four-day long festival in October. Rachhpal Singh, minister-in-charge, Department of Tourism, government of West Bengal says, “Starting from the much hyped club-pujas to the century old pujas of famous households will be uploaded on Facebook. Our only aim is to attract more and more tourists towards the cultural heritage of Kolkata and other interesting places of Bengal.” The last few years have in fact seen a marked increase in tourist arrivals during the month of festivities. The conducted tour of the traditional family pujas of the city have become very popular, so has cruise over the Ganges during the immersion of idols. This year for the first time, Calcutta Tramways Company (CTC) will launch a totally revamped and refurbished tram services for tourists just before the pujas. These air-conditioned trams with in-house cafeteria will meander through the streets of Kolkata and provide a feel of the city’s rich history and heritage. Apart from the exclusive Puja-destinations of Kolkata, the department also plans to provide tourists an opportunity to visit different parts of the state during or after the festivities.
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The Hornbill Festival, the biggest cultural event of Nagaland organised in the first week of December, has made a mark by managing to attract many foreign tourists, specially from Europe. Nagaland Tourism is participating at major travel and tourism related events in the country and abroad and showcasing the Hornbill Festival as a major event in the state.
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| Vishal Suri |
Nagaur Fair, Hemis Festival, Tarnetar Mela, Sonepur Fair and Surajkund Crafts Fair are the other key events that have been attracting inbound crowd. Vishal Suri, chief operating officer, Inbound, Thomas Cook (India) believes that given the increasing range of inbound target group and age groups, it would be of value to offer or create events that will interest tourists of all ages:
- Football league matches and sports events
- Fairs in unexplored destinations
- Cultural exchange programmes
- Art, Museum, Music and Literature Festivals
“Our customers are increasingly looking for fresh, unexplored destinations, and there is more and enough in India to offer. The Tulip Festival in Kashmir was unknown, but we at Travel Corporation (India) took the lead and have successfully introduced this in our programmes and were delighted when our group of 10 Russian consumers participated in the festival in February 2012,” says Suri. Events like Hola Mohala in Anandpur Sahib, Mahavir Rath Yatra in Karauli and Jazz festivals are also gaining popularity. Voluntary contributions at community workshops is another area which can be explored for young and old alike.
There is a lot that is still unexplored and has great potential for the inbound market. “Much of India is still a well kept secret. Together with the tourism ministry and state tourism boards, we need to showcase exciting and impactful new opportunities and experiences,” asserts Puri. Reinventing destination India is critical to keep pace with the ever evolving inbound customer.
Outbound: on the rise
While it is a known fact that a section of Indian cricket fans follow the national team across the world, the IPL in South Africa was the first major sporting extravaganza that saw a large number of Indian visitors going overseas for an event. It has somehow set the trend and today from the F1 in Malaysia to Volvo Ocean Racing in Abu Dhabi Indian tourists can be found everywhere.
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| Manoharan Periasamy |
Realising the potential of this segment most international tourism boards are now focused on promoting these events in the country. Events that attract many Indian travellers to Malaysia are Colours of Malaysia, Mega Sale Carnival, Rainforest Festival, F1 Malaysian Grand Prix, Malaysian GP Moto among many others. “To encourage the number of footfalls, we have created many affordable travel packages and tie-ups with airlines like Malaysia Airlines and Air Asia. These packages are very attractive and we expect to get a huge positive response for the same,” says Manoharan Periasamy, director, Tourism Malaysia. With an aim to reach a wider audience, Tourism Malaysia has plans for the tier II and tier III new markets too. “To achieve this, we will ensure that travel agents in the top 30 towns in India are equipped with all the relevant information they need to market Malaysia to their customers,” says Periasamy. He avers that today’s global travellers are evolving and traditional travel products no longer fascinate them. They are seeking niche or special interest tourism products. Hence, many destinations are focusing on offering specific tourism activities and events to attract travellers.
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| Nishant Kashikar |
It is not surprising that for a destination like Australia, the events that draw Indian visitors there are the sporting ones. “Sports activities are also a big draw for MICE programmes. India and Australia share a common passion for the game of cricket and during the recent tour of the Indian cricket team to Australia; we witnessed interest from corporates providing incentive trips to their top performers. The Australian Open Tennis Championship is also popular with sports enthusiasts who like to combine attending the event with a holiday,” says Nishant Kashikar, country manager – India, Tourism Australia. The New Year’s Eve firework celebrations on Sydney Harbour and Vivid Sydney – an annual festival of light, music and ideas are other interesting draws for the Indian market, besides culinary events like Noosa International Food & Wine Festival and The Margaret River Food and Wine Festival. The Indian Film Festival of Melbourne that is scheduled to be held in June 2012 will feature 40 films and activities from India and the sub-continent and will see some of India’s biggest film stars at the event. “We work closely with our travel trade partners to facilitate promotion of the different events to their customers through marketing collaborations, regular updates, trainings, etc that we conduct for them. Information about events form a part of the training modules used when we undertake training sessions for travel agents to enable them to advise their clients about various events which can be attended by visitors on holiday,” mentions Kashikar.
Sport is a really great tourism driver, avers Chris Foy, head of 2012 Games Unit at VisitBritain. Studies show that while the average spend of a normal visitor is 500 pound sterling, that of a sports tourist is 900 pound sterling. Which is why Great Britain is using the Olympic Games to drive tourism to the country. Combine that with Premier League Football, tennis (with Wimbledon just around the corner) and golf – Great Britain is all set to clock the tourist numbers it is expecting. The sports divisions of a few leading travel companies in India have launched special packages for all these events.
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| Motonari Adachi |
Japan that recently started focusing on the Indian market is keen to attract the leisure segment in the country. Some of the key events that would appeal to the Indian travellers include Sapporo Snow Festival (February); Three major festivals in Tohoku Region – Aomori Nebuta Matsuri, Sendai Tanabata Festival and Akita Kanto Festival (all in August); Takayama Festival (April and October); Cherry Blossom Festival and others. “Currently, majority of the Indian visitors who visit Japan are business travellers. We are continuously trying to increase the share of Indian leisure travellers and aim to leverage on these interesting events and festivals to lure this segment,” says Motonari Adachi, executive director- Singapore Office, Japan National Tourism Organisation (JNTO). JNTO is quite upbeat about the Indian market and is looking forward to welcoming more Indian visitors to Japan. “Our strategy is to increase the market share of leisure travellers – and focusing on building relationships with our travel trade and media partners in the Indian market,” avers Adachi. JNTO is also putting in place a sustained promotional campaign for Japan in India via travel trade and media partners by organising many activities. There is also an exclusive Facebook page for the Indian market with regular updates on events and festivals.
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| Sunil Puri |
Yet another recent entrant in the India market, Flanders, is promoting its colorful festivals, which happens all through the year in cities like Brussels, Bruges, Antwerp and Ghent. “Every year millions of people gather for their annual piece of happiness in Flanders. More than 280 festivals, 16,500km² of festival ground, the biggest bands, the most original sceneries make Flanders top of the bill as a music destination. Numerous historical sites, exquisite gastronomy and excellent shopping possibilities give your festival experience that extra punch,” says Sunil Puri, director- Tourism Flanders and Brussels, India Office. Some of the interesting events are Cat Festival, Ghent Festival, Beer Festival, Brusselicious 2012 – Food Festival, Flower Carpet Festival, MusicFestivals, Brosella Folk and Jazz, etc. He points out that the promotional campaigns for Tourism Flanders and Brussels in India are strategically planned with a three pronged strategy – educating the trade on the destination Flanders, building awareness of the destination in the mind of potential consumers, and advertising campaigns in print and online media.
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| Srithar G B |
Closer home some of the notable events in Singapore that have been drawing Indians include the Great Singapore Sale, Singapore Food Festival and F1 Singapore Grand Prix. “Travellers are slowly moving away from the run-of-the-mill ‘sit and see’ and demand a more ‘touch, see and do’ approach that have a higher emotional quotient and sense of personal achievement by integrating simple activities like authentic encounters with locals/accompanying travellers or picking up soft skills like learning to surf a wave barrel or doing a culinary workshop as part of the experience,” states Srithar GB, area director, South Asia, Marketing, Singapore Tourism Board.
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| Mubarak Al Nuaimi |
From trade exhibitions to sporting extravaganzas like Formula 1 and Volvo Ocean Race, events have been attracting a sizable percentage of Indian arrivals to Abu Dhabi. While some of the events are for niche segments others can draw in wider crowds. “The wide ranging events vary from concerts by headline artists – Madonna appearing on Yas Island – to an annual PGA European Tour-backed golf tournament,” says Mubarak Al Nuaimi, international promotions manager, Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority. The following events would appeal to the Indian market: Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Champions, F1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Gourmet Abu Dhabi – a culinary festival, Abu Dhabi Yacht Show, the Abu Dhabi International Book Fairand the Abu Dhabi Festival – a celebration of the best in music and the performing arts.
With geography and season not being a constraint for the new age Indian traveller, these events around the world are being packaged and promoted as experiences that go much beyond the typical sights that a destination offers.
(With inputs from Heena Mahajan, Steena Joy, Joy Roy Choudhury)
