In an effort to attract more business from India, Nevada is opening a tourism office in New Delhi. State Lt. Governor Mark Hutchison headed to India this week on an official visit. He will return Feb. 1.
“Opening an office in India will provide Nevada with greater opportunities to promote international travel and tourism to our state,” Hutchison said in a statement. “With a new office in New Delhi, I am confident that our increased presence will encourage even more tourists from India to visit the Silver State.”
Indian Travel Market is Strong
The most common reasons cited by Indians for overseas travel are to visit family in the United States, shop at big malls, view wildlife, go camping and visit historical monuments. The Associated Press reports that Nevada currently has a 6.5 percent share of the India travel market.
According to an article in the Las Vegas Review-Journal, 19 percent of Indian immigrants to the U.S. live in California. The majority have settled in the Bay Area, which Nevada actively targets for tourism.
The individuals representing Nevada in India are not employed by the state of Nevada. The newspaper quotes an email from Bethany Drysdale, public relations director for TravelNevda, who writes, “We have approximately four people who will work directly with us to represent Nevada in India, but they are not employees of the state of Nevada, they are employees of the representative firm, Sartha Global. They were officially contracted with us late last year, but this is the first public event announcing our presence in India.”
Drysdale notes that in addition to India, Nevada has travel and tourism representative offices in Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Mexico, the U.K. and South Korea. The offices provide media outreach, press releases, sales calls, in-market websites and collateral. They also conduct familiarization tours in Nevada and coordinate sales and marketing campaigns.
State of the International Traveler Study
The 2015 State of the International Traveler study surveyed 829 international travelers in India, learning that Indian travelers take an average of 9.1 overnight trips and 2.5 international trips annually. More than half of those queried (59 percent) anticipate more international travel in the coming year, and they expect to spend more money. On average, Indian travelers budget $5,451 annually for overseas travel. They tend to stay in mid-priced hotels.
The Las Vegas Review-Journal notes that:
–India has a population of around 1.2 billion; roughly 65 percent are under the age of 35.
–More than 50 million people have passports.
–The percentage of Indian residents with disposable income has grown 14 percent in the last three years.
