Reykjavik, Iceland
PROMOTE Iceland last week held its first roadshow in India, covering the cities of New Delhi, Bengaluru and Mumbai in a bid to better promote destination Iceland to the Indian market.
The series of roadshows, which drew about 250 Indian travel agents and seven Icelandic suppliers, came on the heels of increased interest in the destination after a part of Dilwale, a Bollywood movie, was shot in Iceland.
“We have not been very active in the Indian market in the past. But now we think that Iceland has gained interest in India with the movie and we want to build on the momentum through our maiden B2B roadshows,” said Thorleifur Thor Jonsson, manager, trade delegations, Promote Iceland.
Promote Iceland is expecting to spur tourist arrivals from India, which is presently very minimal. Iceland registered a little over 1000 Indian tourist arrivals last year while tourist arrivals from China numbered 40,000 and from Japan 30,000.
The focus on the Indian market is part of Promote Iceland’s strategy to push for tourist arrivals during the shoulder season between November to April, added Jonsson.They will also leverage on internet marketing to reach out to the Indian market.
Promote Iceland is a public-private partnership that some years ago subsumed the overseas marketing department of the Icelandic Tourist Board, among other agencies focused on promoting international trade from Iceland.
