Dear Reader,

The year 2017 saw a lot of landmark changes for the MICE industry. Through our year-ender cover story we bring in some insights on the year gone by and the expectations for 2018 from the industry. The government through the new National Tourism Policy, aims to provide single window clearance for organisation of meetings and conferences. The e-visa enhancement gathered cheers from the corporate travel segment. India’s e-visa now generates three components — e-tourist visa, e-medical visa and e-business visa.

In the aviation sector, there were some positive changes as well. As per the DGCA (Director General for Civil Aviation) report passengers carried by domestic airlines during Jan-Oct 2017 were 954.45 lakhs as against 813.70 lakhs during the corresponding period previous year thereby registering a growth of 17.30 per cent. This bodes well for the domestic MICE sector. As per CAPA India, the next financial year is expected to be the third consecutive year of domestic growth, registering above 20 per cent. With better connectivity and infrastructure, MICE shall surge in India.

With the magical “brag factor” and aspirational value, international MICE trips have always been a great motivator for employees and dealers. Travellers these days are looking for more experiences while travelling within and outside the country, and travel agencies are evolving and upgrading its MICE facilities in response to these demands.

The initial impact of the Government’s economic policies such as GST and demonetisation is also settling down now and MICE clients are looking ahead to a good season. The key segments expected to grow are: corporate MICE travel, incentive groups and destination weddings.

Referral programmes in an organisation can iniate new talent, shares our counsellor Shivani Misri Sadhoo.

We wish you happy reading and a prosperous New Year, with more MICE business coming your way!

Keep reading and giving your feedback to us at: micetalk@ddppl.com