Los Angeles is open for business

Seema Kadam, Regional Director – India, Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board, is excited to share on-ground updates now that movement between India and the US has begun. She shares Los Angeles’ #ComebackStory exclusively with TRAVTALK.

Los Angeles remains fully committed to Indian market, said Seema Kadam, Regional Director – India, Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board. “Throughout the pandemic we have continued our presence and are proud to be the only US destination marketing organisation with full-time staff overseas, including one team member based in Mumbai. In fact, prior to 2020, India represented one of the fastest growing international markets to Los Angeles,” she added.

In 2019 alone, 135,000 Indians visited LA injecting $301 million in visitor spending to the local economy. With borders open, LA staged its global comeback campaign in 2021, complete with a new look and branding for the Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board. It launched a global campaign inviting travellers to start their #Comeback- Story in LA, and are in the process of localising this campaign for India.

Kadam explained, “Our campaign in India will have two distinct legs – one targeted for the upcoming summer travel season for travellers with existing US visas who are seeking to travel immediately and just need a nudge. The second leg involves long-term efforts targeted at potential first-time or repeat travellers looking for reasons to travel internationally, starting with this year’s Diwali and year-end travel period. We have re-launched intensive communication efforts in India to support both these sets of strategic recovery efforts.”

Newer experience in LA She is very optimistic about the future of travel. “Our city has continued to push the envelope on creativity throughout the pandemic, bringing new experiences to travellers. A decade of unforgettable sporting events is underway with our state-of-theart venues, including the new SoFi Stadium,” Kadam shared. The arts and culture scene is also accelerating with new offerings. For travellers there are more accommodations options than ever, she added.

India-LA movement Indian travellers have started their comeback story in LA, says Kadam excitedly! “Given the ample number of flights available, we are already seeing bookings from India to the United States and Los Angeles is a choice city,” she said. The US is open to all fully-vaccinated Indian travellers; proof of vaccination status to be showen prior to boarding an airplane. Children under 18 are exempt.

Trade parternship To help Indian trade partners understand the destination, her office continues to offer a refreshed version of the LA Insider training programme. This B2B platform highlights Los Angeles with three chapters and educates the travel trade on selling and promoting Los Angeles. “We also have a dedicated B2B Facebook page to keep the travel trade updated on what’s new in the destination,” Kadam said.

The changing outbound Kadam believes that the Indian traveller is evolving from being a ‘touristy’ visitor, to one who is seeking nuanced experiential holidays. Wellnessfocused trips, drive-cations, culinary explorations, sportinspired travel and smaller destination weddings are here to stay, she said.

“From indoor dining and museums to theme parks and live performance venues, Los Angeles is open for business”