As many as 230 overseas travel industry professionals engaged in business-oriented meetings with 220 Indian counterparts during the two-day Great India Traval Bazar 2011 (GTTB) fair that concluded here today.

“The fair has emerged as the biggest travel mart of South Asia ... The demand of Indian Tour Operators (ITOs) for an additional day at the fair from next year will be considered,” the Principal Secretary and Commissioner of Rajasthan Tourism, Ms Usha Sharma, said.

Ms Sharma said that Rajasthan Tourism proactively promoted rural tourism at the event.

Participation

The GTTB witnessed foreign buyers from 55 countries doing business at 7,000-plus prefixed meetings during event.

This marks a huge increase compared with 2010 event, which saw the participation of FTOs from 49 countiries, 176 Indian sellers and 5,000 B2B meeting, an official said.

Among the 230 FTOs at GTTB 2011, the US had the largest contingent of 20 FTOs, followed by the UK (14 FTOs), Canada and Poland (12 each) and italy (11), France and the Netherlands (9 each), Russia and Japan (7 each), Singapore, Australia and Thailand (6 each) and Belgium, Malaysia, Mexico, Spain the Philippines and Vietnam (4 each) and Argentina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Finland, Portugal, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey and UAE (3 FTOs each).

Heritage properties

The General Secretary of the Indian Heritage Hotels Association (IHHA0), Mr Randhir Singh Mandawa, said that the heritage properties of the State as well as the country found in GTTB an ideal platform.