MICE

ADITYA Tipirneni

(BHM, Switzerland. Masters in Food tech, Australia. HACCP & RSA certified)VICE-PRESIDENT KANDHARI HOTELS PVTLTD

A TRUMP CARD FOR INDIAN TOURSIM

What is MICE Tourism?

The term MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conventions and Exhibitions) represents a sector of tourism which includes business events and activities. Travelers attending MICE activities have a purpose beyond leisure tourism, and are mainly business travelers. These business travelers are connected to different sectors of the tourism and hospitality industry through their MICE activities. Think of business travelers who travel to a city to attend an exhibition. They will need food, drinks, shopping, and entertainment, transport, accommodation and more.

Why INDIA?

India is undoubtedly a unique conference destination as it offers cultural and heritage sites, excellent facilities of beach and adventure holidays which can be combined as pre and post conference tours. India is going the global way and MICE is fast becoming a major part of the Indian context, incentives is at present the largest component of MICE but in a maturing market, it’s only a matter of time before the entire gamut of MICE activities are undertaken by the Indian corporate world. The Indian sub-continent is emerging as one of the finest Incentive destinations in the world owing to the diverse culture and geography.

What’s the Scope?

As India continues to be the third fastest growing global economy and tenth largest economy, its travel industry thrives due to a phenomenal increase in the MICE (Meetings, incentives, conferencing, exhibitions) travel. According to the International Congress & Convention Association (ICCA) statistics, India’s share is pegged at US$4.8 billion worldwide and she currently ranks 27th in the global MICE market. The India Convention Promotion Bureau (ICPB) sponsored by the Ministry of Tourism, the Government of India aims at promoting India as a competent and credible MICE destination. The Indian inbound MICE segment is growing at the rate of 15 to 29% annually and the conventions/conference market is estimated at Rs 4,000-5,500 Cores annually. For instance, Hilton Worldwide is expanding rapidly in India. They launched six hotels in the country last year, and are anticipating on opening and another six hotels this year.