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Outbound
San Francisco regards India as an emerging market
Chetan Kapoor - Mumbai
Sheema Vohra |
With Bengaluru and San Francisco being sister cities, the
San Francisco Convention & Visitors Bureau has regarded India as one of
its emerging markets and a 'powerhouse of growth', besides China and Korea.
Says Sheema Vohra, director, Sartha Marketing Consultants, Representative -
San Francisco Convention & Visitors Bureau and San Francisco International
Airport, "The trade community and hoteliers in San Francisco are interested
in the Indian market and we want to focus on creating visibility and educating
the Indian trade about the destination as there is a lot of potential for growth
in both, leisure and business travel."
The city of San Francisco is a year-round destination offering
unique excursions, venues for events, theme parks, golfing, arts, wine tasting,
helicopter tours, bay tours and culinary tours. "The city presents various
options for travellers and is a walking city like Paris, where one can move
along comfortably," she adds. Few attractions in and around the city include
Union Square, Napa Valley, Nob Hill, Fisherman's Wharf, Alcatraz, Civic Centre,
etc.
Furthermore, the weakening of the dollar has provided Indians
with additional spending power. "This is a great opportunity for the travel
trade to jump onto the American bandwagon and San Francisco is a gateway to
the United States. Jet Airways will now fly via Shanghai, and Air India too
will soon begin non-stop operations along with Kingfisher Airlines (once it
is eligible to fly overseas)," remarked Vohra. Besides these Indian carriers,
Cathay Pacific also offers two flights via Hong Kong, while Lufthansa and British
Airways offer direct flights from Europe to San Francisco.
In addition, the US Embassy has also shown keen interest
in the business. Says the representative, "We have had a discussion with
the embassy which will now reduce the waiting time to two days for issuing visas
post interviews, and it is also working with the tour operators to have interviews
for groups at the same time, so long as the letter comes from the clients."
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