India No. 2 source market in Asia

There has been a consistent growth from the Indian market to Scandinavian countries. Denmark’s capital Copenhagen has witnessed over 50,000 room nights from India every year.

According to Mohit Batra, India Representative, Scandinavian Tourist Board, India is the second important source market in Asia after China, for Scandinavian countries. Batra was speaking at the recently concluded roadshow in Delhi, hosted by the Scandinavian partners, Visit Denmark, Visit Copenhagen, Visit Norway and Visit Flam. “There has been a healthy growth in the number of Indians travelling to these destinations, primarily from Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai and Bengaluru. We have also witnessed a spurt in outbound travellers from Tier- II cities such as Pune and Ahmedabad,” he added.

He pointed out, “There has been a consistent growth from the Indian market to Scandinavian countries. Copenhagen has witnessed over 50,000 room nights from India every year. A lot of fixed departures to Norway are also earning good business. Currently, our only challenge is to increase awareness about the destinations.” The lack of direct connectivity from India to Scandinavia is also a huge roadblock. “Through Emirates, Qatar Airways, Turkish Airlines, KLM and Lufthansa, we hope to get direct connectivity from Delhi or Mumbai in future,” Batra added.

As per Ditte Furstrand Nytofte, Travel Trade and Media Manager - International Marketing, Visit Copenhagen, the city is looking at tapping the high-end leisure and MICE segment from India. “We eye both leisure and MICE travellers from India as we have the best environment to work and relax. Copenhagen is one of the happiest cities in the world. The city will appeal to India travellers as it is known for spa, wellness and shopping options with Indian restaurants,” Nytofte remarked.

Visit Denmark is also drawing long-haul clientele to Scandinavia. Flemming Bruhn, Director, Visit Denmark revealed, “We are aiming at 20 per cent growth this year. For the fourth year in a row, we are promoting both MICE and leisure segments. We feel MICE, specifically Incentive travel to Denmark from India is growing fast. We are combining itineraries to Denmark, Norway and Sweden for leisure travellers as well.”

Visit Denmark has been active in the Indian market and has assisted travel agents and tour operators to sell the destination effectively through FAMs. Flam Railway is looking at a ten per cent increase from India this year. “We had a total of 8,000 groups from all over the world travelling by the Flam Railway last year, making it one of Norway’s most spectacular tourist attractions,” Bengt Hammer, Sales and Marketing Manager, Visit Flam opined.