With many travel writers marking Delhi as one of the top 10 hottest destinations for year 2010, the industry is hoping to achieve a 10 per cent growth next year.
Last 5 quarters have been very difficult for the industry with things starting to look better at the beginning of 3rd quarter this year.
In order to stimulate inbound traffic for 2010, Indian Tourism Minister Kumari Selja said at the World Travel Market that a number of initiatives and events have been put in place to reach this goal, including special packages for the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi, which is expected to attract up to 100,000 international tourists in October next year.
"We are already in the initial stages of planning extended holidays into India for those travelers who are flying down to attend the Commonwealth Games," Shakir Kantawala, General Manager of Jet Airways, Dubai and Northern Emirates, told Emirates Business. "We are positive it will turn out to be a huge draw for tourists."
Karkaria said: "Our team has already started working on creating special packages for the Commonwealth Games, which will be rolled out to international travel agencies by January 2010."
India's tourism woes began in Q3 last year, when the full impact of the global recession reared its ugly head. Adding to that was the terrorist attack on Mumbai's iconic hotels, Taj and Trident, along with Leopold Café - a popular hangout with foreign tourists.
Statistics revealed a sharp fall in foreign tourists in the immediate aftermath of the attacks, which persisted well into this year. In Dec 2009, arrivals fell 12.5 per cent on the previous year.
The latest available figures by the country's tourism board indicate that 2.4 million foreigners visited India in the Jan-Sep period - down 3.3 per cent on the same period in 2008. However, independent studies reveal a grimmer picture of nearly an eight per cent decline in tourism.
Room Occupancy rates were at 60.9 per cent in 2008-2009, down 18.4 per cent on the previous year.
Nationally, tourism contributed 6.1 per cent to India's GDP - down 0.7 per cent on 2007-08.
To make the matters worse, the second quarter of 2009 the H1N1 pandemic had spread its tentacles into India, providing yet another setback for the tourism industry.
"The Swine flu scare was even more lethal than the attacks on Mumbai," said Al Rais' Rahmany. "Almost 30 to 40 per cent of our business comes through the summer travel. But this year's panic brought that percentage down by nearly 10 points."
Rahmany, however, believes the worst for India's tourism sector is finally behind us. "Christmas and New Year travel to India is gaining momentum, with flights to the metros almost booked out, along with airfares increasing with high demand," he said.
Next year's 10 per cent growth in tourism is definitely achievable with the government even developing 150 rural sites to generate more revenue.
Last 5 quarters have been very difficult for the industry with things starting to look better at the beginning of 3rd quarter this year.
In order to stimulate inbound traffic for 2010, Indian Tourism Minister Kumari Selja said at the World Travel Market that a number of initiatives and events have been put in place to reach this goal, including special packages for the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi, which is expected to attract up to 100,000 international tourists in October next year.
"We are already in the initial stages of planning extended holidays into India for those travelers who are flying down to attend the Commonwealth Games," Shakir Kantawala, General Manager of Jet Airways, Dubai and Northern Emirates, told Emirates Business. "We are positive it will turn out to be a huge draw for tourists."
Karkaria said: "Our team has already started working on creating special packages for the Commonwealth Games, which will be rolled out to international travel agencies by January 2010."
India's tourism woes began in Q3 last year, when the full impact of the global recession reared its ugly head. Adding to that was the terrorist attack on Mumbai's iconic hotels, Taj and Trident, along with Leopold Café - a popular hangout with foreign tourists.
Statistics revealed a sharp fall in foreign tourists in the immediate aftermath of the attacks, which persisted well into this year. In Dec 2009, arrivals fell 12.5 per cent on the previous year.
The latest available figures by the country's tourism board indicate that 2.4 million foreigners visited India in the Jan-Sep period - down 3.3 per cent on the same period in 2008. However, independent studies reveal a grimmer picture of nearly an eight per cent decline in tourism.
Room Occupancy rates were at 60.9 per cent in 2008-2009, down 18.4 per cent on the previous year.
Nationally, tourism contributed 6.1 per cent to India's GDP - down 0.7 per cent on 2007-08.
To make the matters worse, the second quarter of 2009 the H1N1 pandemic had spread its tentacles into India, providing yet another setback for the tourism industry.
"The Swine flu scare was even more lethal than the attacks on Mumbai," said Al Rais' Rahmany. "Almost 30 to 40 per cent of our business comes through the summer travel. But this year's panic brought that percentage down by nearly 10 points."
Rahmany, however, believes the worst for India's tourism sector is finally behind us. "Christmas and New Year travel to India is gaining momentum, with flights to the metros almost booked out, along with airfares increasing with high demand," he said.
Next year's 10 per cent growth in tourism is definitely achievable with the government even developing 150 rural sites to generate more revenue.
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