Record-breaking India tour operators convention

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Written by Linda Hohnholz

The 30th annual convention of the Indian Association of Tour Operators (IATO) held at the Kempinski Ambience Delhi attracted a record number of over 1,200 delegates, who celebrated upon the theme of t

The 30th annual convention of the Indian Association of Tour Operators (IATO) held at the Kempinski Ambience Delhi attracted a record number of over 1,200 delegates, who celebrated upon the theme of the convention – New Beginnings, Fresh Ideas and Vibrant Future.

The meeting attracted many new ideas and also emphasized that while old problems of infrastructure and connectivity will need greater attention, some rethinking on the direction Indian tourism has to take, will need to be examined and followed.

In this context, the keynote speaker, Subramanian Swamy, former Minister, and now a member of Parliament of the ruling BJP, and who has taught at Harvard for long, raised the subject of deeper significance, saying that marketing would need to be more focused, and focus should be on promotion of culture, yoga, heritage, and other traditional things, for which India has been known, rather than other things. Also, money and attention should be given to selected markets.

Experience rather than just seeing monuments was what travel was all about, said the economist.

And this point kept coming up throughout the convention, even as IATO President Subhash Goyal and Convention Chairman Rajeev Kohli talked of the need to reduce taxes, and working with all stakeholders and public-private partnerships.

Civil Aviation Minister A. Raju and others spoke of the need for better air and rail connectivity.

Regulating air fares, as demanded by some, would be considered a retrograde step by some and progressive by others, he said.

Suggestions were made to have direct flights from Norrh East cities to Thailand and other countries in the region.

The failure to create hubs was lamented by many. Madan Kak, COO, Minar Travels, called for better air connectivity to places in Himachal Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.

A point which came up repeatedly was that the e-visa and visa on landing should be expanded soon to increase arrivals, but this should be accompanied by greater capacity to handle the tourists at the destinations.

The question of no-frill airports also came up, but the federal structure of the country, with powers to the states, also made this a not-so-easy solution.

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Avatar of Linda Hohnholz

Linda Hohnholz

Editor in chief for eTurboNews based in the eTN HQ.

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