Indian tourists visiting Australia up by 8 per cent

MELBOURNE: The number of Indian tourists visiting Australia has risen by nearly eight per cent annually from January to December last year, as the country remains a popular destination.

According to latest official data, there were 20,600 visitors from India during December 2013.

The total number of Indian tourists during twelve months of 2013 stood at 171,700, an increase of 7.9 per cent relative to the same period in the previous year.

The growing Indian overseas travel market has emerged as an area of focus for Australia's state governments individually as well.

States like New South Wales ( NSW) and Queensland have rolled out tourism projects to lure Indians. New South Wales recently launched an ambitious tourism campaign named " Jhappi Time" to attract Indians.

Launched by Destination NSW, the project used the concept of "jhappi" (Hug) to woo visitors from India by at least 10 per cent over the next 12 months.

The campaign would see four 60 to 30-second commercials showing Indian families hugging their loved ones living in Australia.

The commercials would be screened at various Indian cities promoting several tourism packages of NSW.

Last year, Queensland roped in cricket star Matthew Hayden for a new tourism campaign for the Indian market.

The "Go Beyond" campaign of the state showcased Queensland's rainforests, beaches and the Great Barrier Reef, which are popular with Indian tourists.

Industry estimates say that tourism from India has the potential to grow to between 1.85 billion Australian dollars and 2.25 billion Australian dollars in total expenditure by 2020.