With sky-high airfares for travel within India, there is a quantum jump in the number of leisure tourists from the city to Kuala Lumpur, Dubai, and Singapore.
The launch of low-cost flight service by Malindo Air and Air Asia to KL, and connecting the biggest Malaysian city to popular destinations like Singapore, Dubai, and Bangkok, has made the difference in attracting regular flow of visitors on foreign trips.
“Our largest clientele, almost half, is from public sectors and banks, as they have leave travel concession facility. The availability of low-cost travel option has come in handy for many of them,” UAE Exchange Managing Director V. George Antony told The Hindu on Wednesday.
Mr. Antony, who was here to inaugurate the new premises of their city branch near Hotel Bez Krishna, said they were booking 300 to 400 tickets per month from the city, mostly for a vacation in Malaysia, Singapore, Dubai, and parts of the United States.
Stating that foreign exchange was their mainstay, he said the UAE Exchange, with a turnover of Rs.2,800 crore per annum, was expecting a good business from Visakhapatnam. The firm, which also offers share trading, loans, and other services, since its establishment in Kochi in 1999, has seen a phenomenal growth with 400 branches across the country — 19 in Andhra Pradesh and 38 in Telangana. Branches will be opened at Madhurawada and Gajuwaka in the next six months. Stating that before introduction of flights by low-cost carriers to the city, many were opting for travel on specific packages to Thailand.
“Now, people want to explore new wallet-friendly destinations with foreign travel becoming cheaper than domestic travel,” Mr. Antony said.
Being No. 1 in money transfer and forex, and among top 10 in tours and travel, the UAE Exchange is expecting an annual growth rate of 15 to 18 per cent, he said.
