The council has recommended conversion of the loss-making Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) into a tourism development board on the lines of similar outfits in the United Kingdom and Singapore and the launch of extensive tourism marketing to attract more tourists.

The MEDC report said the private sector should be offered various tax incentives. The Government should relax land acquisition processes and provide quality infrastructure to promote tourist attractions across the state.

In addition to this, the government should provide assured supply of water and power, besides ensuring enough number of adequate roads, to the private sector in the proposed tourism zones and forego its stake in hotels and resorts situated in the vicinity of Mumbai, Pune and the coastal Konkan region.

Restoration and development of world heritage monuments such as Ajanta-Ellora and Elephanta caves should be given to private investors.

As far as tourism marketing is concerned, the MEDC said creation of consortia as done by travel agents in Thailand could be planned to open new avenues. The MTDC needs to pool in adequate resources to increase its buying power in campaigns and advertisements at international travel marts and regional travel fairs.

It welcomed the state government's decision to launch a luxury train on the lines the Palace on Wheels of Rajasthan and the Royal Orient of Gujarat. It has suggested that such a venture should be launched along the Konkan Railway route which would open up less-explored coastal districts to the upper class clientele.

The MTDC and private operators should explore the avenues for opening up of innovative travel experiences along the western coast. These could include sea cruises along the 720-km Konkan coast and day trips in ancient fishing vessels.

The MEDC called for a massive expansion of room capacity in quality budget hotels for the provision of reasonably priced accommodation facilities for the increasing number of middle- and lower-income tourists visiting the state. More concessions should be offered to budget hotels, to enable them to compete with five-star and deluxe hotels.

Further, the sales tax rates on food and beverages need to be rationalised. ST rates in the state are much higher (between eight per cent and 13 per cent) as compared with states such as TN, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka (where these rates are around 6 per cent).

To cater to the accommodation demands of a rising number of restricted-budget foreign tourists visiting Maharashtra, avenues for the popularisation of environment-friendly accommodation such as Konkani tents, tree-top huts and log cabins should be explored in Konkan and wildlife sanctuaries of the Vidarbha region. The MEDC has recommended that the Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation should develop and maintain a software and networking system to provide online information on booking related to tourist attractions, tour operators, shopping and transportation for the various destinations.