The Outbound Tour Operators Association of India (OTOAI) organised its third Annual Conference in Ras Al Khaimah this week. Around 170 travel partners from India participated in the event, which took place from September 13-16, 2017 at Hilton Al Hamra, Convention Centre.
OTOAI is a national, not-for-profit organisation comprising India’s outbound tour operators and travel agents as its members. A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed by Haitham Mattar, CEO of Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority and Guldeep Singh Sahni, President of OTOAI, during the press conference held in Delhi in April, 2017.
Mattar commented, “India is currently our fourth largest international source market with year-on-year growth of 22 per cent in the first half of 2017. It will be an important contributor to our vision and Destination 2019 tourism strategy. Following the UAE Cabinet’s approval for visa on arrival for Indian passport holders with a UK or EU residency visa, we anticipate further growth from Indian inbound tourism for short leisure stays, MICE, and weddings.
“Our aim is to promote the full breadth of unique activities and events that can be enjoyed in the emirate, with a view to encourage Indian travellers to lengthen their stay in the destination. We are optimistic that through focused efforts and participation in various MICE and trade events, tourism from India will continue to develop in the coming years.”
Commenting on the success of the convention, Guldeep Singh Sahni, President of OTOAI, said: "The convention received a full house and people gained lot of value out of their participation. RAKTDA put their best foot forward to showcase their products to our members and we cannot thank them enough for the arrangements to provide everyone a firsthand experience of what Ras Al Khaimah can offer."
OTOAI’s annual conference provided the opportunity for travel partners to meet potential sellers from a wide range of Ras Al Khaimah hotels and destination management companies who took part in the prestigious event. It will further stimulate the emirate’s potential in attracting further growth from the Indian outbound market as it reaches closer to its target of one million visitors by the end of 2018.
