Market – India

The 6 team members are based in the vibrant and commercial city of Mumbai. We cover the entire Indian market with our trade, media, marketing and business travel departments.

Media and Campaign Activation

Display content aboutMedia and Campaign Activation

	Ritu Sharma, Deputy Director and Marketing Head – India
Contact LinkedIn	+91 (0)22 2168 2502 ritu.sharma@switzerland.com https://www.linkedin.com/in/ritu-sharma-b05b556/

	Anaha Thakur, Project Manager Marketing
Contact LinkedIn	+91 (0) 22 6128 2506 anaha.thakur@switzerland.com https://www.linkedin.com/in/anaha-thakur-32b0a29a/

Trade

Display content aboutTrade

	Ameya Kamath, Business Development Manager – Leisure
Contact LinkedIn	+91 (0) 22 6128 2503 ameya.kamath@switzerland.com https://www.linkedin.com/in/ameya-kamath/

SCIB

Display content aboutSCIB

	Aishvarya Guhagarkar, Head of SCIB India
Contact LinkedIn	+91 (0) 22 6128 2504 aishvarya.guhagarkar@switzerland.com https://www.linkedin.com/in/aishvarya-guhagarkar-1865062b/

Swiss Travel System

Display content aboutSwiss Travel System

	Lyandra DSouza, STS Sales & Marketing Manager
Contact LinkedIn	+91 (0) 22 6128 2505 lyandra.dsouza@switzerland.com https://www.linkedin.com/in/lyandra-dsouza-4a39728/

• ST market research page –– here
• ST Research Report 2023 –– Download here
• ST TMS 2017 –– Download here

In 2024, overnights from Indian travelers almost fully recovered to pre-pandemic levels. The year was definitely characterized by the phenomenon of extended seasons with the highest increase of hotel overnights in September 2024 with around +30% and December +29.1% comparing to 2023. Interest in the autumn and winter months is growing year on year, however the high peak season of Indian travelers stays between April and June. The visa situation is very smooth at the moment, comparing to the years right after Covid. The travel destination Switzerland experienced a shift from group to individual travelers, which are now becoming more accustomed to traveling and more adventurous. This target group is getting more important for tourism in Switzerland. There is also a growing trend of returning travelers looking for new destinations or attractions in addition to those already visited during their first experience of Switzerland. The Tier II and Tier III cities, where there is a lot of economic activity and development in general, and therefore a lot of potential for tourism, are also geographically important for the future.

Switzerland Tourism India ran promotional campaigns in collaboration with Olympic champion and ambassador Neeraj Chopra to raise awareness in the Indian market. The focus was on steering the guest flow and hotel occupancy in cities during the less traditional travel seasons. In addition, Switzerland Tourism continued to support tour operators throughout India with training, special events, and webinars to ensure the presence of Switzerland as a travel destination to these important partners, as most Indian travelers still book their holidays through tour operators.

Thanks to the daily flights from SWISS from Mumbai and Delhi to Zurich, the flight connections are really good for our Indian guests. In addition, Air India started its four weekly flights from Delhi to Zurich in June 2024, which gives us even more capacity to Switzerland.

India is one of the fastest growing economies in the world and has been experiencing robust growth. In FY24, India’s GDP grew by 8.2%, driven by strong performance in the manufacturing and services sectors. Public infrastructure investments and a rise in household investments in real estate have also contributed significantly to this growth. Despite global economic challenges, India has maintained a positive outlook, with the World Bank forecasting continued strong growth in the coming years.

India is currently the fifth-largest economy in the world by nominal GDP. It has surpassed countries like the UK and France in recent years. While it is not the largest economy, India’s rapid growth and significant contributions to global GDP highlight its increasing economic influence. This is also shown in its significant investments in infrastructure, including roads, railways, and urban development, which are driving economic growth. These projects are expected to enhance connectivity and boost economic activities across the country.

Over the past decade, India has made remarkable progress in reducing extreme poverty. However, the pace of poverty reduction has slowed, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.

And despite the positive outlook, India faces challenges such as high unemployment rates, income inequality, and a need for more inclusive growth. Addressing these issues is crucial for sustaining long-term economic development.

In 2023, India issued the highest number of passports in its history. However, only around 9% of the entire population in India has a passport. India’s outbound tourism has been experiencing remarkable growth. In 2024, over 15 million Indians traveled overseas, marking a 12% increase compared to pre-pandemic figures. This surge is driven by rising affluence, a growing middle class, and a strong desire for unique international experiences. Additionally, there has been a noticeable shift towards personalized and high-value travel experiences, with many Indians opting for adventure tourism, cultural trips, and event-based travel.

For Switzerland, Indian citizens need a Schengen visa. Our visa section in Delhi is the largest in the world for Switzerland. In 2024, the visa process worked very smoothly, thanks to the great job of the Embassy/visa section.

India’s aviation sector is rapidly expanding, making it the third-largest domestic aviation market globally. The sector aims to increase its fleet size to 2,000 aircraft by 2030, supported by significant investments in airport infrastructure. Despite challenges like high fuel costs and regulatory complexities, the outlook remains positive.

We see a shift from group travelers to more individual travelers from India to Switzerland after the pandemic. That might be one of the reasons we’re still seeing an increase in hotel overnights from Indian guests compared to 2023, but at the moment, we’re not back to pre-pandemic levels. However, the length of stay is increasing for individual guests, and more and more group tour operators are selling mono-Switzerland tours. Most Indian guests are traveling between April and June, but we also see an extension of the season towards autumn and winter.

There is also, increasingly present, and numerous, the whole part of the younger generation (let us not forget that India’s population is more than 50 percent under 25 and more than 65 percent under 35) who are increasingly used to traveling internationally, are more independent and have traveling among their first priorities. Since the pandemic, we had expected a greater retreat to apartments and vacation homes, but the trend is not being confirmed, and although there will always be a share of Indians opting for these accommodations, the most important TOs confirm to us a strong upswing in requests for hotels, and medium/superior category. Having a growing young target audience, the type of vacation is also changing much more related to (soft) adventure, activities to do even in winter, and destinations or attractions that go beyond the usual clichés. In terms of the food aspect, too, this target group is much more flexible, used to a more international diet and therefore less tied to Indian food. However, it remains relevant on the part of the Indian market, group travelers. These are more attached to their habits (including food) and more oriented to the classic vacation.

Switzerland’s reputation since the pandemic has strengthened. The association made between Switzerland and a clean, safe, and people-friendly country has increased in value. Aspects that are particularly important in the post-pandemic and help us in promoting our destination. With better results to any expectation, the MICE (mainly Incentives) sector had a great upswing in terms of requests and groups confirmed for Switzerland in 2024. Again, the reputation, accessibility of Switzerland (although an expensive destination) remains extraordinarily strong. Some sectors such as insurance, pharmaceuticals, and real estate are growing strongly, breathing life into the sector that was thought to have taken longer to recover. For both Leisure and MICE, expectations for 2025 are remarkably high.

The Indian market focuses primarily on the personas Max, Lou, Quinn, Kris. Find more information about the personas here.