Priyanka Saxena Ray
Tourism across the globe is in its revival stage and recovering from pandemic. How, in your opinion, is India fairing on the tourism recovery path?
The travel industry is getting back on its feet and is witnessing a steady recovery. Demand for trips within India is also boosted by delays in securing visas to some overseas destinations and the surging cost of a holiday abroad.
Which vertical of tourism will be the first to recover –Inbound / Outbound / Hospitality / Aviation or MICE?
Aviation was the first to lead the revival of tourism since people started travelling to come back to their workplaces and return from their hometowns once the flights started. Slowly it has led to higher consumer confidence resulting in more demand for travel. There are now visible signs of recovery across all segments most notably leisure tourism.
Domestic Tourism emerged as a strong saviour for tourism in pandemic. Will it continue to be so for the Indian tourism sector?
In a country of 1.4 billion people, robust domestic tourism will continue to be a dominant factor in recovery of tourism in the coming years. The pandemic offered Indians an opportunity to explore their own country. There has been an uptick in demand for unexplored destinations – people are seeking ways to combine pilgrimages and spiritual trips with experiencing local food, cultural trails and adventure.
Indian traveller has evolved in the post-pandemic era. What are the new trends you are witnessing in the hospitality sector?
The travel industry has embraced new trends such as micro-holidays, staycations and workcations. There is a major shift in travel habits and sentiments as the annual break has now turned into shorter breaks with people increasingly taking frequent trips in the form of weekend getaways and seasonal holiday breaks.
When do you think India Tourism will go back to its 2019 figures?
As per UNWTO international travel will not recover before 2024. Inbound tourism in India will only be half by 2025 of what it used to be in 2019.While the business has picked up, Indian Tourism will not be back before 2026 to pre-pandemic levels.
Could you identify and enlist the top 3 travel trends that are going to dominate the tourism industry in the near future?
- Bleisure Travel is a growing tourism trend where people extend their business travel to leisure activities. There is also the “digital nomad” community among millennials – where online professionals and freelancers adopt the lifestyle of traveling as they work.
- Tech-Empowered Travel – existing and emerging technologies will be the key in building traveller confidence and increase their willingness to travel. Tech innovations like Mobile apps, self-service check-in, contactless mobile payments, automated and flexible cancellation policies etc will transform the guest travel experience.
- Sustainable Tourism practices and environmental initiatives is of utmost importance for the resilience of the sector. Travellers are more aware of this today and are making their travel decisions with the environment in mind. Sustainability is not only about the environment. It is also about making a positive impact on cultures, economies, and the people at the destinations that they visit.
How important a role, in your opinion, will GITB play in boosting tourism in the region? How has the response been to the show so far, in terms of exhibitors and participant confirmations?
The Great Indian Travel Bazaar (GITB) is India’s leading business networking platform for Inbound Tourism. GITB is organised by the Department of Tourism, Government of Rajasthan, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India and Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI). GITB receives participation from more than 280 foreign tour operators from all over the world and more than 290 Indian Exhibitors to showcase their products. Over the period of two days more than 11,000 pre-scheduled structured face-to-face business meetings take place between foreign buyers and Indian sellers. It has been playing a critical role in shaping the Tourism Ecosystem of the country and will continue to do so. Specially after a two-year lull due to the pandemic, this platform is crucial to ensure that we once again start receiving Foreign Tourists like before and even more. The 12th edition of GITB is from April 23-25, 2023 at Jaipur, India and as like every edition a lot of interest, enthusiasm and participation from the Indian Travel fraternity and their foreign counterparts across the world to meet and network with each other.
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