DOHA, 24 March 2022: Qatar Tourism presented its latest promotions for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 and made a pitch to revive the wedding business from the Indian market during last week’s OTM travel show hosted in Mumbai.
“India is and will continue to be a significant and rapidly growing market for us at Qatar Tourism. Pre-pandemic, we have witnessed a significant rise in arrivals from India and look forward to accelerating our efforts to fully unlock the potential of travellers across segments of leisure, MICE and weddings, “ said Qatar Tourism chief operating officer Berthold Trenkel.
India’s Outbound Travel Mart made a comeback after a two-year pandemic-induced hiatus, drawing delegations from Asia and the Middle who were keen to reconnect with travel trade partners and media in the Indian outbound travel market.
Trenkel added: “We were pleased to be part of OTM 2022 and to re-establish our presence in the Indian market. The objective was to highlight the various facets that Qatar offers not just in the lead up to the FIFA World Cup but also beyond”.
Looking beyond 2022, the Qatar Tourism chief forecast Qatar will welcome more than 6 million visitors a year by 2030. The country welcomed 2.14 million visitors in 2019, and that dropped to just 580,000 in 2020.
“India will play a pivotal role in bringing that vision to life. With strategic trade partnerships incentive programmes backed by robust PR and marketing campaigns, we are positive that the market will see a quick turnaround,” he noted.
Qatar extends visa-free status to Indians, which helped to boost holiday and business travel significantly pre-Covid-19.
To reaffirm trade partnerships, Qatar’s national carrier, Qatar Airways in association with Qatar Tourism, hosted a networking dinner at The St. Regis Mumbai for travel trade partners and media representatives.
The Qatar Tourism delegation to OTM was led by Philip Dickinson, Vice President International Markets, Qatar Tourism, along with Sandeep Shevale – Tourism Marketing & Promotions and Deveekaa Nijhawan – International Public Relations & Communications. The delegation’s DMC participants covered Discover Qatar, Al Tawfeeq Travel and Travel Designer. The team was also supported by BRANDit, India Representative of Qatar Tourism.
(Source: Qatar Tourism)
