As Europe freezes, the sun seems to shine over India.
This year most European countries recorded some of their lowest recorded winter temperatures of all time. So when Europe went under a record-breaking snow cover, it’s party time for the domestic tourism industry in India.
India over the years has grown in importance as far as a world tourism destination is concerned and this winter the country has been kept warm by the rush of tourists turned away by the forbidding mercury in Europe.
As temperatures dip below freezing point all across Europe, including such popular tourist spots as Rome, Madrid, Barcelona, London and different haunts of eternal favourite Switzerland, international tourists were found making last-minute cancellations for continental tours.
India Tourism
The international tourists were found to be making a beeline to book tours to northern most part of India Kashmir, the southernmost state of Kerala, the sea resort of Goa and also India’s neighbouring country of Bhutan.
“Cancellations are on in full swing and tourists are opting for Indian destinations at the last moment. Kashmir, Leh and Ladakh are hot favourites. Demand for domestic tourist spots has gone up after almost all of Europe became snow-bound,” a happy Indian travel agent said.
These tours were all booked mainly for the month of February and March which were considered the busiest tourist seasons in India.
Most international tourists felt visiting Europe after snowfall meant unnecessary expenditure.
And, still even if one spends the extra bucks, most tourist attractions may either be closed, or worse, one can’t simply move out of the hotel in European cities.
Travellers feared that they have to shell out extra money, simply if they fail to catch a flight after being stranded in any spot in Europe. There was fear of flights being cancelled or disrupted in Europe too putting the tourists under problem.
India came in a perfect replacement for these Europe-bound travellers.
The tag line for Indian tourism industry is “Incredible India” and it remains one of the most fascinating places in the world. It has natural beauties, historical places and man-made wonders. And above all it is a country with rich cultural diversity which the European people find fascinating and enchanting.
Over the years, there has been a mark rise in the number of flights touching down at different cities of India from various destinations of Europe and America bringing in more and more foreign tourists into the country.
The Indian government too has taken notice of this increasing flow of foreign tourists over the years. It has also made special arrangements and facilities for these travellers.
In 2010, 25.8 million foreign tourists visited India. The country generated about 200 billion US dollars in 2008 from this tourism industry and that is expected to increase to US$375.5 billion by the year 2018.
According to World Travel and Tourism Council, India will be a tourism hot-spot from 2009–2018, having the highest 10-year growth potential.
And this year’s abnormal cold winter in Europe serves as a good starting point for India as more and more tourists cancelled their European tour packages to be in India in this and the coming months.
The world has opened up its door to India and now it’s the duty of the Indian government and people of the country to grab this opportunity with both hands and put up India as a major tourist destination in the world map.
Winter will come and go, but tourists will continue forever.
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