THE depreciation of the rupee that has blunted outbound travel from India has given the country an edge in the inbound medical tourism sector, where medical procedures are now even cheaper than before.

An Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) study has revealed that inbound medical tourists have shot up by 40 per cent over the last six months, with New Delhi, Hyderabad, Chennai, Bengaluru and Mumbai emerging as front runners for this market.

S Rawat, secretary general of ASSOCHAM, said in a statement that the weakened rupee has made complex surgeries 35 to 45 per cent cheaper for patients from the Middle East, Africa and South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation countries.

According to the study, a medical procedure that would have cost US$10,000 in 2012 is now priced US$7,000. Tourists paying in Australian dollars pay 45 per cent less today, while prices are 30 per cent cheaper than before when paid in euros.

RN Banerjee, consultant at the New Delhi-based Longfield management, which facilitates medical tourism, said: “Indian medical care is as good as anywhere in the world and was already cheap – some as much as 60 to 80 per cent less – compared to countries like the UK, the US and Singapore.

“Now the treatment packages are immensely more attractive and we are getting medical tourists even from the UK and US who wish to spend less and do not wish to wait or queue for surgeries in the UK’s National Health Service.”

He added that for countries in Africa, the Middle East and south Asia without good medical treatment, India was the “obvious” choice, providing “immediate attention, fluency in English and internationally accredited hospitals”.

Devi Shetty, founder and chairman of Narayana Hrudayalaya as well as cardiac surgeon, commented: “(India’s) greatest asset is our ability to produce the largest number of technically-skilled individuals. We also have the highest number of US Food and Drugs Administration-approved drug manufacturing outside the US.”

A separate Yes Bank-Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry study has projected medical tourist numbers in India to hit four million by 2015, with a yearly growth rate of 71 per cent.

DMC Asia World is hoping to capture a larger slice of the luxury travel market through the release of its The Ultimate To Do List South East Asia and Beyond online publication, which can be white labelled for market distribution.

Designed by Asia World to present clients with a selection of luxurious experiences coupled with suggested itineraries in South-east Asia, product selection was driven by the high-end market and features popular destinations with proven demand rather new products.

“This is a chance for tour companies around the world to white label a unique deluxe products brochure,” remarked Stephen McEvoy, managing director of Asia World Enterprise.

Alongside the publication will be supporting online content and access to tablet applications. A key element of the campaign is the ability for clients to white label the marketing collateral and online content for their own market distribution.

Asia World is hoping the new technology will connect with high-end travellers and convert bookings.

The services have been provided by Australian company Koolivoo, which aims to connect suppliers targeting travellers through niche trade channels where luxury services are an essential requirement in the purchasing cycle.

“The significant presentation drives new revenues and better yields through targeting traveller’s aspirations rather than commodity groupings where prices are driven down,” said Matt McKinley, managing director of Koolivoo.

FIJI’S growing tourism industry will receive a boost in the form of Fijian Tourism Expo (FTE), a new major international tourism industry event.

Slated to take place at Sheraton Conference Centre in Denarau from May 5 to 8, 2014, the trade event will showcase local tourism operators, Fijian-made products and Fijian culture.

Rick Hamilton, CEO of Tourism Fiji, said: “It is the role of Tourism Fiji to provide a platform for our local industry to market itself to the world…Our focus will be to more effectively engage the Australian and New Zealand markets and to attract quality longhaul buyers from Asia, UK, Europe and the US.

“The FTE programme will be tailored to cater for the needs of local industry and deliver a unique Fijian experience. We will look after all service providers, big and small, and provide a more effective way of promoting Fiji as an international visitor destination of choice.”

The NTO has also appointed Sally Coopers as Tourism Fiji’s events and MICE director. One of her primary responsibilities will be to organise and run FTE.

SMOOTHING out visa policies for inbound tourists could pave the way for up to 2.6 million additional jobs by 2016, 57 million more inbound travellers and an extra US$89 billion in international tourism receipts for Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) economies.

These findings are presented in The Impact of Visa Facilitation in APEC Economies study jointly produced by the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) and the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC).

According to the report, although countries have successfully collaborated and improved visa policies regionally, 21 per cent of expected arrivals to the region between 2014 and 2016 will still need to obtain a traditional visa.

The following have been singled out as areas to work on: the delivery of information, facilitating current processes to obtain visas, differentiated treatment to facilitate tourist travel, instituting eVisa programmes and establishing regional agreements for visa facilitation.

Addressing the APEC High Level Policy Dialogue on Travel Facilitation, UNWTO secretary-general, Taleb Rifai, said that “placing visa facilitation as a national priority can translate into significant socio-economic benefits in terms of income and jobs generated by the growth of tourism demand”.

“APEC has been a leading organisation in terms of regional integration and we believe that visa facilitation can contribute significantly to advance APEC’s objectives and the balanced growth of its economies,” he shared.

Indonesia’s minister of tourism and creative economy and host of the meeting, Mari Elka Pangestu, said: “The challenge now is to establish cooperation between officials working in tourism, finance, customs, immigration, security, transportation and airport authorities which are in different working groups.

“In 2013, through this High Level Policy Dialogue on Travel Facilitation held in Bali, for the first time, there is an attempt of coordination across fora and we hope to end up with some action plans on visa and travel facilitation.”

CENTRAL Vietnam’s hotels and resorts have already bounced back in the wake of Typhoon Wutip, which hit Vietnam on Monday with sustained winds of up to 117kmh.

The typhoon killed at least three, left dozens of fishermen missing and damaged thousands of houses as it swept over Vietnam this week, according to AFP. It also caused minor floods in many of the streets around the Thu Bon River in Hoi An, although the main tourist districts were not affected.

Seafront hotels in the area advised guests from going outside due to the risk of falling tree limbs and reduced visibility from airborne sand.

Shyn Rose, client services manager at Golden Sand Resort and Spa in Hoi An reported a number of guests leaving early on September 28-29 to avoid the typhoon, but there are no cancellations of present bookings.

“We have closed the swimming pool due to sand being blown into our garden area from the beach, however all the rooms are okay and we are still operating as normal,” Rose commented.

There was also partial flooding along Highway No. 1 linking north and south Vietnam in the Ky Anh district of Vietnam’s central Ha Tinh Province.

Le Tat Thuong, operations manager at Destination Asia said the disruptions had been minimal owing to the fact it is the low season and the main affected area of Hoi An was easy to bypass. “Some guests decided to leave early on September 28, choosing to head north to Hanoi or simply stay in Danang.”

Lang Co Town in the Phu Loc district of Thua Thien – Hue Province, where Banyan Tree Hotels & Resorts operates the Laguna Lang Co integrated development, was also lashed by the typhoon.

Said a Banyan Tree spokesperson: “On September 30, Typhoon Wutip passed through the area where Banyan Tree Lang Co and Angsana Lang Co are situated. The property implemented the typhoon procedure and made all the necessary precautions to manage the impact of the storm.

“The safety of our guests and associates was our primary concern and we are happy to report that everyone is safe. There has been minimal damage and the resort has resumed full operations. The typhoon has passed by the resort and the weather is now clear.”