 "Its US calling for Gujarati travellers this summer")
With the US relaxing visa rules for Indians to apply, there has been a surge in tourists from the state wanting to visit the country during the summer holidays. Tour operators based in Gujarat said that number of bookings for US has gone up at least five fold this season. Organised players like Thomas Cook India too have witnessed a similar trend in rise in demand for US travel.
As Shibani Phadkar, senior vice president & head - leisure travel outbound, products, contracting, operations & tour management, Thomas Cook (India) Ltd said, "At Thomas Cook India our branch sales teams, especially from Gujarat, are indicating a significant increase to the US this summer- upward of 65 per cent." She added that, "Interestingly this year has seen strong growth from ad hoc groups (between 8-20 family members in a single group), also van tours across USA. Our Regional Gujarati Tours (Tier II & III) are also doing exceedingly well as these offer great value and are across a range of price points to suit every wallet."
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City-based tour operator Manish Sharma, owner of Akshar Travels and chairman of the Gujarat Tourism Development Society said that his agency has seen US bookings go up by almost 10 times this season. "We have 5,000 bookings for US this year, compared hardly 500-600 bookings last year. One of the main reasons behind the surge is relaxation of visa norms, making it easier for tourists to get visa. Especially, packages where we offer traditional Gujarati food to tourists during the overseas trip has seen significant rise," he said.
M Vakharia, head of Gujarat chapter of the Outbound Tour Operators of India (OTOI) too admitted that US definitely has been quite an active destination this season. "We have had several meetings with the US consulate and they have been very positive in their approach. They want more tourists to come to their country," he said. Usually, destinations like Dubai, Malaysia, Thailand, and even South Africa are popular during summers with some opting for snow-capped destinations in Europe. This year, however, tour operators across the state have seen a surge in demand for the US, indicating a gradual revival in demand for long-haul overseas holidays.
Interestingly, bulk of the travellers to the US are coming from semi-urban and rural areas. As Sharma points out, nearly 55-65 per cent of the travellers are from rural areas, especially from the cash-rich pockets in North Gujarat. Nilesh Barot of Disha Holidays that operates out of Mehsana too echoed the same. "Demand for the South East Asian countries has decreased, and US is the flavour of the season. Mehsana and its surroundings in northern Gujarat house many non-resident Indians, and of the overall bookings we have this summer, around 60-65 per cent are from rural pockets," he said.
Kamal C Vazirani of Centour Travel Services in Vadodara and Gopesh Sharma of Overseas Holidays in Vallabh Vidyanagar too confirmed the trend on tourists from rural areas opting for overseas holidays this season.