Belgium, France use World War-I to woo Indian tourists

Both countries to honour 70,000 India soldfiers who died in the war, at centennial commemoration next year

Nearly 70,000 Indian soldiers who died in the battlefields of Western Europe during World War-I will be hounoured in the centennial commemoration in Belgium and France next year. The tourism boards of both the countries are making a pitch to attract Indian tourists for the occasion.

Apart from official ceremonies, a series of exhibitions and events is being organised in both the countries. Museums have been renovated with new objects and documents kept on display. The 2014 edition of Tour de France will pass through several sites where the war was fought, as a mark of homage.

"We are expecting at least two million extra visitors to the sites and cultural events in remembrance of the Great War in the coming years from all over the world. We hope to receive a large number of visitors from India for the commemoration of World War-I in Flanders and Brussels. Indian soldiers played a major role during World War-I. Around 72,000 fought in Flanders as members of the British army (Indian Army Corps) and 7,000 of them lost their lives," said Sunil Puri, managing director, Visit Flanders, in India.

Visit Flanders is the tourism office of Flanders region of Belgium. Recently it organised a tourism seminar on The Great War Centenary focussing on enhancing the awareness of the Indian travel trade on activities being planned from 2014-2018 on World War-I remembrance in the region.

Recently it organised a tourism seminar on The Great War Centenary focussing on enhancing the awareness of the Indian travel trade on activities being planned from 2014- 2018 on World War I remembrance in the region.

"Besides this, through our regular product update workshops conducted in various cities for the travel agents, we have been educating them about itineraries they could develop related to the World War I. Several travel agents have mentioned that this will be of interest to their  clients, especially for the ones who look for cultural tours,'' he added.  Similarly Atout France (France Tourism Development Agency) too is drawing up plans to raise awareness in India about the World War I commemoration events.

"Indians have a fascination for historical and world heritage sites in Europe. Most of our tours include UNESCO World Heritage sites such as Westminister Palace in UK, Piazza Del Duomo in Pisa or the Le Grand-Place in Brussels, among others. These are quite significant stops in the itinerary of an Indian traveller. I believe both France and Belgium are planning to jointly promote sites and museums to commemorate the centenary of World War I which to my mind will help garner more visitor arrivals from India as the new age traveller is in search of destinations that seek to educate and empower with knowledge," said  Karan Anand---head, relationships, Cox and Kings Ltd.