Rajasthan tourism to beat Kochi and Goa in MICE tourism

Rajasthan tourism department is going to have a new tourism policy with priority to Destination Weddings and MICE activities (meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions). It also focuses on encouraging film shooting in the state. The state expects to have improved private participation in its tourism projects.

As per a recent report, wedding and MICE activities contribute around Rs 5,000 crores to the tourism industry in a year and have become major factors for increased hotel occupancy.

By the new tourism policy, Rajasthan tourism aims at providing an atmosphere suitable for destination wedding and MICE activities, to surpass the existing competition from Kochi and Goa.

Jaipur and other heritage cities of Rajasthan are already in the MICE tourism map of the country. The tourism department is trying to improve the facilities and exploit its potential to the maximum. The state plan to give tax and no-tax incentives to the tour operators and those engaged in the tourism activities, to attract more in to the bussiness.

In the draft policy, the tourism department urges the PWD and other local authorities to set aside at least 10 per cent of their budget for enhancement of tourism infrastructure.

Planning to showcase Jaipur, Udaipur and Jodhpur as MICE destinations, the tourism department expect to have PPP model infrastructure development projects, including convention centers of international standards.