The ‘11th edition of The Great Indian Travel Bazaar (GITB) 2019 kicked-off in Jaipur, Rajasthan. The first day of GITB had 5,600 pre-scheduled meetings between major inbound foreign buyers and 300 exhibitors from the hospitality and travel trade. In all, there will be over 11,000 structured meetings at GITB 2019 over the two days.
As many as 10 States apart from the host State of Rajasthan are participating this year; Gujarat, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Karnataka, Odisha, Goa, Punjab and Chandigarh.
The Chief Secretary of Rajasthan D B Gupta graced the inaugural event took place on April 28th at The Lalit Jaipur while the GITB Exhibition was inaugurated by Joint Secretary, Tourism, Government of India, Suman Billa on April 29th at Jaipur Exhibition and Convention Center (JECC). Sreya Guha, Principal Secretary – Tourism, Art & Culture, Government of Rajasthan were also present on the occasion.
Dr Jyotsna Suri, Past President, FICCI; Chairperson, FICCI Tourism Committee & CMD, The Lalit Suri Hospitality Group said that a total of 291 foreign trade operators (FTOs) from 47 countries and 260 Indian exhibitors with 300 booths are participating in this colossal bazaar. Dr Suri said, “GITB 2019 will witness 11,236 pre-scheduled, structured B2B meetings in the next
two days.
FICCI-Yes Bank Knowledge Report ‘India Inbound Tourism: Unlocking the Opportunity’ was also released by the Chief Guest and the dignitaries including the President & Head Strategic Government Advisory, Yes Bank Ltd.
Rajasthan’s luxury train, Palace on Wheels (POW) bagged deal worth Rs. 5.2 crores during the GITB 2019 on account of 20% advance bookings for the next two seasons of 2019-2020 and 2020-2021.
GITB is organized by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) jointly with the Department of Tourism, Government of Rajasthan, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India. It is supported by leading national and regional associations like Hotel & Restaurant Association of Rajasthan (HRAR), Indian Heritage Hotels Association (IHHA) and Rajasthan Association of Tour Operators (RATO).
Co-Chairman, FICCI Tourism Committee, Dipak Deva; Co-Chairman, FICCI Rajasthan State Council and Joint Managing Director, Mandawa Hotels, Randhir Vikram Singh; Director, Tourism, Government of Rajasthan, Dr Bhanwar Lal; Secretary General, FICCI, Dilip Chenoy; Ambassador of Japan to India, Kenji Hiramatsu and Commissioner of Japan Tourism Agency, Hiroshi Tabata were also present at the occasion.
