Indian outbound MICE demand remains active, with corporates continuing to invest in international incentive travel while placing greater emphasis on connectivity, visa access and ease of travel.
“Indian corporates have become noticeably cautious in their travel planning. Decisions now revolve around three critical pillars: destination safety, carrier reliability, and visa feasibility,” says Zelam Chaubal, Director – MICE, Kesari Tours.
This is creating opportunities for destinations that can combine strong experiences with reliable access. Chaubal says Southeast Asia and Nepal are seeing increased interest, while Kesari successfully delivered three major corporate group movements to Europe in March, demonstrating continued appetite for long-haul programmes when travel logistics are workable.
At Traaexplore Private Limited, Director & Founder Rajat Saran says planners are looking beyond the destination itself to assess routing, connectivity and contingency options.
“The conversation has shifted from ‘Where do we want to take the group?’ to ‘Where can we take the group with confidence and predictability?’” he says.
Singapore and other Asian destinations are benefiting from strong connectivity, transportation infrastructure and established MICE ecosystems, while Bali and Vietnam are also seeing stronger consideration.
For Reema Sanghavi, Managing Director & Founder, Maximus MICE & Media Solutions, Southeast Asia’s proximity, manageable travel times, hotel infrastructure and connectivity continue to make it attractive.
“Southeast Asia has a natural advantage because of its proximity to India, relatively manageable travel times, strong hotel infrastructure and excellent connectivity,” she says.
Europe, meanwhile, continues to hold strong aspirational appeal for premium incentive programmes.
The opportunity for destinations is clear: strong experiences remain important, but destinations that can also offer seamless connectivity, accessible visas, reliable infrastructure and flexible planning are increasingly well positioned to capture Indian MICE demand.
