- Brand USA organizes India Sales and Media Mission in Goa from January 22 to January 25 with 39 U.S. companies with 46 U.S. delegates, 11 media delegates from the US, and senior Indian buyers and media members.
- India ranks number 5 in the top arrival figures having 1.76 million Indian travelers visiting the United States in 2023 and this represents almost a 20% jump on pre-pandemic numbers in 2019 that stood to 1.4 million.
- The United States plans to open Hyderabad facility, expected to be Asia’s biggest visa-processing Consulate processing around 3500 visa applications daily. The United States also has plans to open Consulates in Ahmedabad and Bangalore.
Brand USA, dedicated to establishing the United States as a top-tier global travel destination, adopts an innovative and robust strategy to forge a stronger penetration into the potential segments of the Indian population. After experiencing a notable 20% growth in 2023 compared to pre-pandemic numbers, Brand USA is now poised to intensify its presence in the Indian market through various initiatives. The NTO expects the positive momentum to continue in 2024.
India: The Source Market
“2023 has been an incredible year, we have maintained a steady flow of Indian visitors through the pandemic, but 2023 marked a real recovery. Getting December 2023 numbers, we had 1.76 million Indian visitors to the United States and this represents almost a 20% jump on pre-pandemic numbers in 2019 that stood at 1.4 million. India goes from number 10 to number 5 in terms of top arrival numbers for the US, kicking Australia from the top 5 list, which is phenomenal considering Canada and Mexico border the neighboring markets, followed by UK and Germany. And it is interesting because India has not been previously in top 10 in terms of arrivals, but it was in top 10 for spending” mentions Jackie Ennis, VP, Global Trade Development, Brand USA.
In 2019 India entered the top 10 list with regards to visitors but it was number 6 for spending. There is a magnificent pent-up demand for Indian travelers coming to US, as India is the only market other than Canada which has preceded the pre-pandemic numbers, whereas Germany is on number 4, but it’s still 11% down compared to pre-pandemic, reveals Ennis. India is also the number 1 source of international students to the US, overtaking China, and also VFR.
Jackie Ennis also highlights a prime factor that plays a pivotal role in the growth story, which is the connectivity. “We have great connectivity via both non-stop and direct flights and also one-stop, almost 80% of the Indian visitation comes via one-stop, either by Europe, Middle East or Pacific. And we hope this gets only better and we are very anticipatory in 2024”, mentions Ennis.
According to Ennis, with the new configuration of India and aviation order, and also the partnerships in between IndiGo, Turkish Airlines and British Airways, it all together brings a great storm of great connectivity and pent-up demand. Currently, the United States have 49 direct non-stop flights from India and is looking at some positive announcements in 2024.
Talking about the visa situation, Ennis says, “We are still facing two-fold challenges. One is we are still recovering from pandemic in terms of staffing, and this situation is not confined to India. But over a year ago, the acknowledgement of the situation with the issuance of the visas has propelled India to number 1 status in terms of the response from the US government. So, everybody within the collective effort to issue new visas has been supporting India in a way that is unprecedented. In 2023, 1.25 million visas were issued in India for US which is more than any of the year before. And this also speaks for the demand to explore the US as a holiday destination.”
Way Forward in 2024
Adding to above, Ennis says that the visa processes also have been relaxed, people going for renewals no longer have to go to the Consulate or Embassy in person, instead it can be done through post. The United States is in the process of opening Hyderabad facility which is expected to be fully staffed and process around 3500 visa applications daily and is supposed to be Asia’s biggest visa-processing Consulate. The United States also has plans to open Consulates in Ahmedabad and Bangalore.
Mentioning on target segments, Ennis highlights that typically Brand USA focusses on leisure, but within the leisure segment, intergenerational is a focus area where it is looking at small group or a group of small families. Also, honeymoon or couple travel is another popular segment in focus, after the boom in Indian weddings post pandemic.
Brand USA is also looking at 2024 in terms of more person-to-person contact. In 2023, Brand USA has organized several events and visited India targeting cities like Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, and Bangalore. The idea was to be present in India and talk to agents in person by visiting major cities across India but also Tier II cities like Chandigarh, Lucknow, Hyderabad, and Ahmedabad.
In terms of fostering closer ties with India’s travel trade in 2024, Brand USA has organized India Sales and Media Mission in Goa from January 22 to January 25 with 39 U.S. companies with 46 U.S. delegates, 11 media delegates from the US, and senior Indian buyers and media members. “This sales mission is going to be the largest till date and for the first time we are doing it in one location which is a new concept for us”, adds Ennis.
“We have also conducted webinars to give more information to agents, on destinations that they are not familiar with or have no presence in Indian audience since Indian travelers are now looking at unique experiences. We also have USA Discover Program, which is an online platform that has been hugely successful in India and enable agents who want to be experts in United States. We have incredible participation from the agents using it, and in 2024 we are looking at revamping and relaunching this platform to make it more enhanced version with mobile applicability. We are certainly also looking at continuing product FAMs like last year”, says Ennis. The idea is to keep the Indian travel trade informed about the unexplored areas and keep the agents as well as the clients engaged throughout.
On the sidelines, Ennis adds that to strengthen the position of US as a destination, Brand USA has partnered with Tata Cliq. Brand USA is therefore working on a project with them to access a segment of Indian population who have the resources and the propensity to travel to the US. Also, Brand USA has run a campaign with Thrillophilia in the last quarter of 2023, which inspired the travelers to book over 800 tickets across 45+ attractions, which Ennis claims to be a great number for a first-time effort.
“We are really thankful to the Indian audience and travel agents for the growth experienced. We are trying very hard to keep the information fresh and new and offer different ideas of traveling in the US and are looking at another 20% increase in the coming year with your support”, concludes Ennis.
