'India needs to woo first-time tourists'

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: Carmel Beattie

Group Manager International Markets

Sydney and New South Wales

Carmel Beattie is on a trip of her life. Trip to a country she has read in books and seen in theatres. Her varied impressions of India come from the tomes by Amitava Ghosh, Vikram Seth and Arundhanti Roy, to various shots of Bollywood films she has seen (with subtitles on). It’s business that has made her first trip to the country possible finally, “but, it would be wrong, if you would say it is riding on my mind all the time,” she puts.

Well-informed and cheerful, a conversation with this traveller to India could be different from many in transit. She would praise you as a good host and invite you to get the same sweet treatment when you visit her native land. In India to promote Sydney and New South Wales (NSW), Australia, the group manager, international markets, Sydney and NSW. But, hasn’t it been promoted enough already? Yes, she agrees, pointing at the flocks of tourists from India and films (Dil Chahta Hai, Heyy Babyy, Bachna Ae Haseeno, etc) shot in Sydney. “The visit is a platform to build on our existing relationship; to ensure that Indian tour operators are well-informed about the tourism experiences, products and itineraries we have,” she says.

As figures show, NSW attracts more tourists than any other Australian state, with 35% of all tourists (domestic and local) visiting the state. Among its 2.8 million international visitors last year, almost 56,000 were Indians. “We expect the figure to go up to 440,000 by 2017, with an annual growth rate of 16.5%,” she says, adding, “We would continue to focus on primary markets like Delhi and Mumbai, followed by other metros, with target segments like families, honeymooners and MICE travellers.”

Beyond the mundane, high-on-number market, how does she find India as a destination for vacations? “Well, amazing,” she says, trying to be politically correct. Already a success among the sophisticated travellers, with campaigns like ‘Incredible India’ doing well, it needs to catch the attention of first-time travellers,” she says.