Intl travel expo to leverage boom in Indian travel

The 25th edition of the India International Travel Mart (IITM), being held in Bangalore from July 15 to July 17, will seek to capitalise on the record number of Indians taking travel holidays.

The event, at the Kanteerava Indoor Stadium, will have over 200 participants from India and abroad and is likely to see 20,000 visitors during the three days.

"In recent years, India has emerged as the fastest growing market as far as outbound travel is concerned, especially to international destinations in the Asia-Pacific region. The trend is likely to be boosted further as travel trends indicate that nearly 8 million Indians will embark on overseas travel. With the advent of low-cost airlines and holiday packages international travel is no longer considered to be a luxury," IITM director Rohit Hangal said.

He told reporters here on Wednesday that IITM has grown to be a preferred mode of dissemination of information for international tour operators, tourism boards and corporations across the country and abroad.

This year, national participants at IITM include Rajasthan, Uttaranchal and Karnataka as partner states in addition to Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Chhattisgarh, Orissa and Gujarat.

Overseas participants include Tourism Malaysia, Dubai Tourism, Thailand Tourism, Sri Lanka Tourism, UK, Air Mauritius, Star Cruises among others.

Anurag Gupta, director, IITM said that the event will provide an ideal marketing opportunity and excellent backdrop to enhance the participant's brand equity in the eyes of the discerning end consumer and the travel-trade.

He said that the event will focus on medical tourism in India, which grew around 17 per cent last year. India had attracted around 5,000 travellers from abroad coming in for medical treatment. This year the number is likely to grow by over three times, he said.

"There is a shortage of 3,500 hotel rooms in Bangalore. If we can add so many rooms over the next two years, the tourism industry will get a big push," he said.

The travel expo is likely to generate a business of Rs 15 crore in three days, Gupta added.