Nasir Shah, Chairman – IATO Jammu & Kashmir Chapter shared, “In January, there was nearly a 50% dip in tourism due to the absence of snowfall. However, by the end of January, when snowfall resumed, we witnessed a surge in both domestic and international tourists, particularly for adventure activities. As a result of this influx, the winter games, which were postponed earlier, are now scheduled to be held around the second week of February.” 

According to CAPA, the ‘State of the art’ Navi Mumbai Airport is 60% completed and scheduled to open by the end of March 2025. Once operational, it is projected to host 90 million passengers annually. The facility is designed to be state-of-the-art, multimodal transport-oriented, aesthetically attractive, and environmentally focused. 

GRNconnect.com expands its reach with a new UAE DMC to cater to both Indian and international markets more effectively. Gaurav Khandelwal, Director Sales, GRNconnect.com said, “With an established office and dedicated team in Dubai, GRN has been promoting its online hotel portal from the UAE to overseas markets. The addition of the UAE DMC aligns with our strategy to enhance services for agents in India and abroad, with plans for more enticing packages and offerings soon.” 

Tourism department of Government of Goa has launched, the Tourist Trade Support (Working Capital Interest Subvention) Scheme 2021, to support the MSME’s in tourism industry which has been adversely affected due to pandemic by subsidizing the working capital loans for 6-month period. Under the said scheme, there is a provision of reimbursement of interest up to maximum of 5% on working capital loans amounting to a maximum of INR 25 Lakhs for 6 months in one single claim wherein the maximum burden on Government per eligible entity shall be Rs.62,500/- and maximum number of beneficiaries covered under the scheme are 800. All registered B, C, D category hotels/accommodation and Travel & Tour Operators are eligible for benefit of the said scheme.    

As per the India Hotel Market Review 2023 by Horwath HTL, all-India hotel occupancy grew by 4 percent to reach 63.6%. Demand has risen from 94k RPD (Number of Rooms sold Per Day) in 2019 to 112k in 2023, representing a 4.4% compound annual growth rate (CAGR). However, occupancy levels remain below those of 2016-2019, with the widening supply across tier II, III, and leisure markets being a contributing factor; some major markets are still underperforming. 

According to latest GBTA poll, nearly 60% of travel buyers expect more travel in the coming year, with two-thirds anticipating increases in business travel spending. And almost half of travel buyers say the adoption of remote and hybrid workplace models has prompted them to revamp their employee travel policies and programs. 

Singapore received 1.1 million tourists from India last year as the city state’s top dollar-earning sector recorded a 115 per cent increase in the number of visitors in 2023 at 13.6 million from 6.3 million during the COVID-hit 2022, said report. The number of tourists in 2023 met the Singapore Tourism Board’s (STB) forecast of between 12 million and 14 million visitors. 

Rajiv Mehra, President, IATO said, “Every nook and corner in India is covered with foreign tourists; they bring in more foreign exchange and employment. One foreign tourist, directly or indirectly, generates 9 jobs. With the current allocation for overseas promotion, we will lose all that. IATO has written to the Ministry of Tourism to take up this matter with the Finance Minister, highlighting the issue in the overseas budget allocation that needs rectification.” 

According to Naveen Kundu, Managing Director of Ebixcash Travel Services, the allocation of a mere Rs 3 crores for overseas promotion raises concerns. He questions, “Are we doing justice to tourism by only allocating 3 crores for overseas promotion, especially at a time when we are urging every Indian to encourage five tourists to visit India? If we aim to promote cultural, spiritual, and heritage tourism, the budget should be at least in the range of 5 to 7 million dollars. A mediocre tour operator offering tourism products to foreign operators often spends more than this.” 

Pradeep Shetty, President, FHRAI said, “The room rates in India right now are not the problem, it is the high GST levied. This price will not be available anywhere else given the quality of service and amenities India offers. We need reforms in the GST regime to make it affordable. The 18% bracket must be done away and bring everybody into 12%.”