As pandemic subsides, reviving tourism and source market development is top on the agenda of National Tourist Offices (NTOs) the world over. There are a few who opened early but most waited for the greater sense of normalcy to return and were watching the global progress on vaccinations and repeat Covid waves. But new Covid waves notwithstanding, things now seem to have moved in the direction of return to business, albeit with greater safety protocols.
Realising the situation, NTOs have started their marketing and promotional activities in their source markets. With India emerging as one of the fastest growing source markets, and one of the biggest too, NTOs are keen to tap into the potential of this market with strategic market development activities and initiatives. Thailand, Malaysia, Maldives, Indonesia, Mauritius, New Zealand, UAE among others, are some of the destinations that have been actively engaging with the Indian market in order to recoup the market share.
The skies have been opened up and every day there are reports of airlines connecting India to the global network and this will help to make travel affordable and accessible. It’s no longer about the destination but about immersive experiences. It’s about the food, culture, people and the growing bonds that they forge as people find new meaning in their travel experiences
Tourism Revival
Year 2019 was Maldives best year in terms of tourist arrival. The destination received 1.7 million international visitors prompting Maldives to set a target of 2 million tourists for 2020. Then Covid struck and by March 2020 global travel came to a total close. Maldives was one of the few destinations that opened early and managed to receive almost one-third of its arrival figures from 2019. Probably no other destination can boast of this figure for the year 2020. In 2021, it was able to recover over 75 per cent of its pre-pandemic arrival figures and looks on course to almost recover entirely, or at least 90 per cent, of its pre-pandemic market share by the end of 2022. The island nation is eyeing 1.6 million tourists this year and has already crossed the million mark in August.
Commenting on his country’s tourism revival efforts, Maldives’ Thoyyib Mohamed, CEO and MD, MMPRC, said, “At the onset of the pandemic, we made sure that destination momentum was maintained globally through virtual campaigns and marketing efforts. We also made sure not to stay closed for too long by ensuring that the highest safety measures were in place throughout the country. Our decision not only helped to revive tourism but also our economy. The pandemic changed travel trends and consumer sentiments. People wanted safer, more sustainable stays, and craved variety, luxury, adventure and unique experiences. We adapted accordingly. You could say our revival was not as challenging as some others, simply because of stringent measures and policies our government adopted during the pandemic and the combined efforts of industry partners, and tourism sector stakeholders, both local and international. How we addressed the issues cushioned our fall and helped us to revive the sector with minimal damages compared to other destinations.
However, Arvind Bundhun, Director, Mauritius Tourism Promotion Authority, points out that revival solutions differ from country to country, but almost all countries are focusing on creating a “new normal” for the tourism industry. The MTPA Director also points that Mauritius is witnessing “very good arrivals” from its main markets since the reopening.”
“After the unprecedented drop of 2020 and 2021, international tourism continues its gradual recovery in 2022. Since 24 March, destinations are easing or lifting travel restrictions, which is contributing to unleash pent-up demand. All destinations are shifting to more sustainable and responsible tourism models and investing in new technologies which are the only way to shape the recovery worldwide.
Today, Mauritius is welcoming all visitors, both vaccinated and unvaccinated. Testing on arrival has also been done away with. “These measures by the Government are helping the industry to meet the tourist arrival targets,” adds Bundhun.
Notwithstanding Bali’s destination popularity worldwide, Indonesia is keen to replicate Bali’s tourism success elsewhere in the country too and develop other destinations making tourism one of its key economic priority areas.
Commenting on Indonesia’s tourism revival, Wisnu Sindhutrisno, Director of Tourism Marketing for Regional I, Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy, Republic of Indonesia, says, “International visitor arrivals to Indonesia have shown an increase this year, especially since the reopening of borders and the re-enactment of Visa on Arrival (VoA). According to Statistics Indonesia, more than 1,3 million international visitors have arrived in Indonesia from January to July 2022. This number shows a 57.08 per cent improvement compared to the same period last year. Indeed, this is a good start for Indonesia’s tourism recovery.”
India Market
With India emerging as one of the fastest growing outbound tourism markets in the world, NTOs have accelerated their activities in the world’s second most populous country.
Driven by some of its key source markets, Thailand tourism is steadily scripting its revival with initiatives such as Sandbox programme that it launched in July 2021 starting with Phuket. Back to near normal now and with no restrictions in hotels, malls or anywhere, the Kingdome is expecting to welcome 10 million international visitors in 2022. Malaysia (6.4 lakhs), India (4.4 lakhs), Singapore (2.4 lakhs), Vietnam (2 lakhs) and UK (2 lakhs) have been the top five source markets so far this year and Thailand is expecting the visitor numbers to climb much faster in the remainder of the year, driven by its top source markets like India.
According to Vachirachai Sirisumpan, Director – TAT New Delhi, “India is very important to us and we received a lot of support from our travel trade partners here. And not only that, but we also see the Thai suppliers like hotels and others, equally looking forward to welcoming guests from Indian market. Indians can now apply for visa on arrival. There is good flight connectivity between the two countries. And we expect, starting fourth quarter, that is starting from October, more flights and new connectivity between India and Thailand as well, so that we increase more travel from India to Thailand by the end of this year.”
Furthermore, he informed that from October 1, 2022, till March 31, 2023, Thailand has planned to extend the length of stay on the Visa. “That means that normally Indians applying for visa on arrival, get 15 days of stay tenure, but now they can extend to 30 days,” he said.
Malaysia reopened its borders on April 1 and removed all entry restrictions. Since then, there has been a steady influx of visitors, with more than 3.21 million arrivals and RM 9.35 billion in tourism revenue recorded during the first seven months of the year. This surge has led the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture of Malaysia to revise its target to attract 9.2 million tourists this year from an earlier 4.5 million visitors.
As for the Indian market, Muhammad Akmal Hafiz Abdul Aziz, Deputy Director, Tourism Malaysia, North & East India, says, “Malaysia is among the top choices for Indians to travel, especially because we offer hassle-free entry SOP and due to factors, such as easy accessibility, low fares, and the liberalization of entry formalities. This was proven when 2,477 Indians, the highest among the non-ASEAN countries visited Malaysia in the first few days after the reopening of the border. There has been a massive upsurge in travel, travel-related inquiries and forward bookings to Malaysia. We have also seen heightened interest in the MICE and destination wedding segments. More than 30 groups totalling more than 10,000 pax have already travelled to Malaysia, while many more are lined up for the last quarter.”
Pre-Covid, India was one of the largest markets for the Indonesian tourism industry. And this has not changed in the new normal either. Sindhutrisno says, “After the border reopening, Indian travelers’ enthusiasm for visiting Indonesia is very high. In Bali itself, India has recorded as the second highest arrivals after Australia. As of July 2022, the total number of Indian tourist arrivals in Indonesia has reached 80,655, which shows an increase of 2678% from the same period last year with only 2.903 arrivals.”
According to Bundhun, with Air Mauritius now operating six flights a week on the Mauritius – Mumbai route and their tie ups with Vistara and Air India to cater to through traffic from other cities in India, we can see increased number of queries and footfalls from Indian market from all segments leisure, MICE, Weddings, solo travellers and more.
For Maldives, Mohamed admits that in the post-pandemic period, India’s importance has grown multi-fold. “If we look at the numbers for this year, as of 24th August, India is the leading source market for the Maldives with over 150,228 tourists. India contributed 14.2% to the market share from the total of 1,056,851 arrivals recorded to the Maldives during this period. India was also the largest market in 2021 with over 278,740 travellers and a market share of 22.6%. Similarly, India was the largest market in 2020 with an arrival figure of 62,960 and a market share of 11.3%.
Travellers’ Profile
In the post-Covid normal, safety and comfort are on everybody’s mind, but have had little impact in terms of changes in travelers’ profile. People are more conscious about health and safety, environment and sustainability, even showing greater interest in engaging with the local community while exploring a destination, but the travel market segments, or profile have remained largely the same.
Mohamed says that travellers’ profiles remain largely the same, but post-Covid people are seeking more extended stays, which provide them safety, privacy, and equal parts of peace, adventure, and unique experiences. One of the major shifts was that travellers have now become more environmentally conscious, looking for resorts/guest houses which have sustainability at their core.
According to Bundhun, “The coronavirus crisis has moved the world towards responsible, sustainable, socially innovative tourism ….a slower pace, and greater personal interaction with the locals and their culture is the new trend. Post pandemic majority of Indians want to have a positive impact on the community they are visiting and want to travel to destinations where they can immerse themselves in the local culture along with hygiene.”
In case of Thailand, Sirisumpan also points that the length of stay for FIT and families have gotten longer. “Normally they came for 3-4 days but now they are staying longer, for 6-7 days. Also, now most of the Indian guests stay in four- and five-star hotels, I think because of concern on health and safety reasons also because of pent up demands. However, as for the incentives group, what we see is that the travelling pattern is quite similar to what it was before COVID. But we do see a lot of them travelling in small as well. But now many people are travelling for different things also. For example, some Indian tourists are interested in travelling to Thailand, to places like Bangkok, to experience food and Michelin star restaurants. And many are interested in visiting new places,” he added.
“There is a rise in solo and VFR traveller segments to Malaysia. The removal of all entry restrictions has triggered a boost in honeymooners, senior citizens and religious group travellers. Besides, we are noticing a phenomenal increment in return visitors. More and more people are now opting for eco-tourism hotspots in Malaysia such as Taman Negara National Park, Langkawi Island and the states of Sabah and Sarawak,” said, Malaysia’s Aziz.
Marketing strategy
New Zealand has fully reopened its borders only now, in August. And given New Zealand’s size and location, the NTO will have to work hard to encourage visitation post-Covid. It could take years for the international visitor numbers to build up to pre-Covid level. According to New Zealand spokesperson, “Our marketing strategy in India for FY 22-23 is to grow travel intent for New Zealand among our active considerer audience which predominantly includes independent professionals and support conversions through trade partnerships. New Zealand is a niche destination, so our marketing activity needs to work hard to target select audiences of people who already have New Zealand on their radar and convert that interest into action.”
New Zealand recently launched its first global campaign in two years, ‘If You Seek’ with the aim of tapping into the minds of curious travelers who wish to seek more, experience something beyond the usual travel experiences and embark on a journey of a lifetime. “We want to showcase New Zealand via our warm and friendly people, stunning wildlife, scrumptious food & wine offerings among the many other jewels this country have to offer. We will also support our partners by providing information and references that facilitate ease of travel planning with information around health and safety, destination readiness and travel protocols when it comes to its tourists. Tourism New Zealand will focus on working with select trade partners in India to convert our target audience into New Zealand arrivals,” the spokesperson added.
As part of market development strategy, Tourism Malaysia will continue to work closely and aggressively on strategic joint collaboration agreements with travel agents, OTAs and airlines to explore mutually beneficial initiatives that will drive Indian tourists to Malaysia. Aziz informs, “We have concluded two series of multi-city travel trade roadshows and participated in tourism fares such as SATTE and OTM to reconnect and engage with trade friends, fostering new partnerships with other tourism stakeholders. There will also be other opportunities that include familiarisation trips, product presentations, digital campaigns and other marketing programs.” The NTO is also promoting golf this year. “To highlight Malaysia as a golf destination, we are partnering with golf associations and organizations to sponsor their golfing events and conduct promotions,” Aziz added.
Driven by its top source market, which is India, Maldives may see it’s market recovery sooner than most other destinations. Mohamed says, “Our marketing strategy for India is focused on catering to couples, honeymooners, and families and further tapping and broadening into the USD 93 billion outbound business travel, or MICE travel, market as well. We have been holding several activities targeted for this market, including participation in major fairs and exhibitions, joint marketing campaigns with travel agents, tour operators, airlines, media publications and broadcasters, participating and organising hybrid webinars, interviews with media outlets, organising familiarisation trips for influencers, celebrities, tour operators and travel agents from this market. There are many such activities in the pipeline for the Indian market to maintain destination presence and visibility.”
Mauritius’ Bundhun, said, “MTPA will continue promoting the destination with a focus on digital platforms and social media along with other platforms to reach the target group directly and maintain the presence in the mind of the travellers. There is also an advertising plan, B2B generated joint campaigns and campaigns with airlines in place which we had to put on hold due to the pandemic. To increase the level of engagement with the Trade, MTPA is planning to conduct roadshows and workshops. MTPA plans for conducting more familiarisation trips for tour operators, MICE agents, wedding planners, golfers, film and television production houses and media.”
Keen to rebuild its tourism at the earliest, Sindhutrisno, informs that the marketing strategy implemented for the Indian market by Indonesia tourism next year “will prioritize Collaborative Marketing scheme.” “This scheme will implement through Joint Promotion program, MoTCE will cooperate with appointed partners to carry out promotional activities with a certain target. MoTCE will collaborate with tourism industries in organizing promotional activities, including sharing cost of promotion with partners,” he added.
