Tag Archives: India & Gulf

Tourism Australia has launched a new bespoke tourism promotion campaign in India and Southeast Asia. The latest chapter in Tourism Australia’s evolving There’s Nothing Like Australia campaign, UnDiscover Australia specifically targets high value travellers in India, Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia. The campaign challenges perceptions and stereotypes of what Australia offers as a tourism destination by showcasing unusual, unfamiliar and unexpected attractions and experiences. To sustain growth in arrivals and yield, the campaign seeks to entice Indian travellers by providing a multidimensional understanding of Australia’s high-quality experiences, showcasing the journey of renowned Bollywood actor Parineeti Chopra. The campaign plays on some of the prevalent misconceptions about Australia highlighted by research carried out in the region, showing that there is much more to Australia than the typical stereotypes of beaches, furry animals and popular icons. Nishant Kashikar, Country Manager – India & Gulf, Tourism Australia said, “This campaign will shine a spotlight on some of our undiscovered and hidden holiday gems, showing there’s much more to an Australian holiday for Indians in addition to experiencing our well-known icons. Yes, you can watch a game of cricket at the magnificent Adelaide Oval, but are people aware that they can also do an amazing rooftop climb offering 360 views of the city? Or that there are plentiful immersive experiences amidst untouched natural landscapes in close proximity to our vibrant cities,” he said. The campaign will be executed in two phases in India – September to November and January to April to coincide with the holiday planning periods for the peak travel season during the year-end and Indian summer respectively.

Tourism Australia, in partnership with Destination New South Wales, marked the 38th year of its annual travel and tourism business-to-business event – the Australian Tourism Exchange (ATE) at the brand new ICC (International Convention Centre) in Sydney. The event took place from May  15-18, witnessing an attendance of over 2,500 travel industry delegates from over 30 countries with participation from 20 Indian travel companies. This is also marked Tourism Australia’s 50th anniversary. Commenting on the occasion, Nishant Kashikar, Country Manager, India & Gulf, Tourism Australia, said, “ATE plays a critical role in facilitating productive links between Australia’s tourism providers and the global distribution network and has an enormous economic impact. Arrivals from India have seen a significant hike in the last few years and platforms such as the ATE play a huge role in making that happen. Over 20 buyers representing as many companies from India attended ATE17 providing them an incredible opportunity to connect with Australian tourism businesses. We believe this platform will help them curate the best of Australian holiday experiences for our Indian travel enthusiasts. We’re confident that ATE will continue to bolster Australia’s inbound tourism sector and grow visitor economy.” India is currently Australia’s ninth-largest inbound tourism market, with over 260,000 visitors spending A$ 1.24 bn as on December 2016. Companies such as Ascon Travels, Cox & Kings, Cutting Edge, Discover your World, FCM Travel Solutions, Grand Travel Planners, Pathfinders Holidays, Peekay Holidays, Pristine Travels, SOTC, Vibrant Holidays, Voyageur Lifestyles, among others, represented India at ATE17, a testimony to the growing popularity of Australia as a tourism destination for Indians. ATE is Australia’s annual business-to-business tourism travel trade event, focussed on building future tourism opportunities for …

Tourism Australia and Singapore Airlines have joined hands with the Australian States of Queensland, South Australia, Victoria and Northern Territory, to offer Indian travel enthusiasts subsidised airfares to Australia. The offer features an all-inclusive return economy fare from India starting at Rs. 60,000, with an additional S$20 Changi shopping voucher redeemable during transit, and an A$30 voucher redeemable at Brisbane airport for the first 150 passengers to fly into the city. Aimed at driving visitation to Australia, the campaign will be promoted across television, print and digital platforms. The tactical offer will be live until 15 March 2017 for travel between March 1, 2017 and February 15, 2018, subject to applicable terms and conditions. Nishant Kashikar, Country Manager, India & Gulf, Tourism Australia said “We at Tourism Australia have always perceived air connectivity as one of the strongest pillars for tourism growth, and this has led us to continually focus on our relationship with our airline partners. Singapore Airlines, one of our strongest long standing airline partners, with a significant market share, is indeed a strong partner to promote Australia as a preferred holiday destination, and the campaign devised with them successfully showcases Australia’s myriad of tourism offerings as well as Singapore Airline’s extensive flight network. This initiative is sure to entice Indian travellers to book their next trip Down Under.” Singapore Airlines connects India to key Australian gateways such as Adelaide, Brisbane, Canberra, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney. The campaign also involves a tie up with SilkAir, the regional wing of Singapore Airlines (SQ), which provides connectivity to Cairns and Darwin. Australia has witnessed a continued growth trajectory in tourist arrivals from India. For the year ended (YE) November 2016 …

Tourism Australia has yet again witnessed noteworthy growth statistics from Maharashtra, retaining the State’s position as a key tourism source market in India. As of year ended (YE) September 2016, Maharashtra has recorded an increase of 25 per cent in tourist arrivals, and a remarkable increase of 18 per cent in spend. The state witnessed 53,800 visitors to Australia, contributing A$232 mn (Rs. 1,160 crores) to the Australian economy, with an average spend of Rs 2.15 lacs per person. Total arrivals from India for the year ended November 2016 were recorded at 256,400, an increase of 11.5 per cent relative to the same period the previous year, making India the 9th largest inbound market for Australia. Nishant Kashikar, Country Manager, India & Gulf, Tourism Australia, said, “We are extremely delighted that all our focused consumer and distribution initiatives in Maharashtra have paid off, resulting in a stupendous increase in arrivals and spend from the state. Going forward, we are positive that our extensive analysis of the market, in tandem with our key distribution partners and airlines, will provide us with the requisite insights to modify and transform our approach to cater to the requirements of travellers from Maharashtra. We will continue to reach out to our audience through a mix of traditional and evolving communication platforms. Maharashtra has undoubtedly been our fastest growing market and we will put in our best efforts to keep up the momentum and further drive visitation to Australia.” Tourism Australia has undertaken several focused activities in Maharashtra. One such successful association was that with Veena World. As part of the collaboration, eminent Marathi television and film stars who travelled to Australia for MAAI (Marathi Achievers …

Travellers from India continue to be enticed by the diverse attractions and stunning tourism experiences on offer in Australia. In 2015, the destination achieved a milestone when it welcomed over 200,000 Indian travellers during the year. Adding another feather to it’s cap, Australia has now notched an impressive 253,100 arrivals from India as of year ended (YE) October 2016. This number reflected a growth of 11.3 per cent vis-a-vis the same period last year, making India the ninth largest inbound market for arrivals to Australia. The month of October 2016 alone saw 20,400 Indian arrivals to the destination, an impressive growth of 24 per cent over the same period in 2015. Most importantly, the holiday purpose of visit have driven the overall market growth with an impressive 20 per cent and 19 per cent increase in arrivals and spend respectively. Nishant Kashikar, Country Manager, India & Gulf, Tourism Australia, said, “Marketing activities, in collaboration with key distribution and airline partners, an increased thrust on digital initiatives, integration on leading television shows, and improved air connectivity between the two countries, have been key factors in boosting travel to Australia.” The Tourism Forecasting Committee (TFC) has predicted 265,000 visitors from India for the Jul 2016 – Jun 17 period, a 9.6 per cent increase over 2015-16. Arrivals from India are expected to perform well with an average annual financial year growth rate of 6.4 per cent through to the financial year 2021-22.

India is the eighth best source market for Tourism Australia, said Nishant Kashikar, Country Manager, India & Gulf, Tourism Australia. He added, “We crossed the 200,000 arrivals landmark in 2015, A$ 1 billion spend, and improved our ranking to be the eighth-largest inbound market for Australia from 11th rank in 2014. The Tourism Forecasting Committee (TFC) is predicting 245,000 visitors from India for 2015-16 and a 12 per cent increase over 2014-15.” There were 187,000 visitors from India in the first 10 months of 2015, bringing the total for the year-ended October 2015 to 2,27,000; an increase of 18 per cent relative to the same period last year. For the year ended September 2015, Indian visitors contributed A$ 1.1 billion to the Australian economy; an increase of solid 34% over the previous year. Tourism Australia has unveiled its latest advertising campaign in collaboration with its key distribution partners – Cox & Kings, Mercury Travels, Kesari, MakeMyTrip, Yatra, TUI, Vacations Exotica, Kulin Kumar Holidays and SOTC. The integrated advertising campaign will retain the brand theme ‘There’s Nothing like Australia’ and put the spotlight on the country’s attractions.