To help travel industry professionals better understand the growing Indian outbound travel market, The Nielsen Company has joined forces with the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) to launch the first ever Nielsen Indian Outbound Travel Monitor 2008.

Based on a robust sample of 2,000 respondents across 10 cities in India and updated annually, the Indian Outbound Travel Monitor explores the behaviour and considerations of travel consumers when planning for, during and after a trip abroad, and will be an essential tool for any travel organisation doing business with India.

According to PATA, between 1996 and 2006, the Indian outbound market expanded by nearly 10 percent annually, with the number of trips taken by Indian travellers growing from 3.5 million in 1996 to 8.3 million during that time.

"The increasingly affluent middle-class, together with a consumption-driven economy and an increase in the number of business travellers, has contributed to the dynamic growth of outbound travel." said Ms Vatsala Pant, Associate Director, Client Solutions at The Nielsen Company, India.

The Nielsen Indian Outbound Travel Monitor will help tourism professionals identify and optimise growth opportunities in the Indian outbound travel market and thereby develop effective, targeted marketing strategies.

"There was a time when overseas holidays were restricted to only a select number of Indian residents. With the economy booming, travel is now within the grasp of millions of Indian consumers. The Nielsen India Outbound Travel Monitor will help organisations involved in the travel and tourism industry to gain insightful information about consumer holiday preferences," added Ms Pant.

"With India being one of the fastest growing markets globally, the eyes of travel and tourism industry are turning to this country of 1.1 billion residents. PATA is pleased to partner with Nielsen to produce the

Indian Outbound Travel Monitor which will be a must-have reference for tourism industry managers interested in tapping into the evolving Indian outbound travel market," said John Koldowski, Director - Strategic Intelligence Centre at PATA.

The Indian Outbound Monitor:
o Investigates the travel decision-making process of consumers;
o Tracks destination performance against competitors;
o Tracks those triggers that influence consumer destination choice;
o Provides insights into popular travel destinations;
o Explores consumer retail behaviours and satisfaction levels;
o And more?

Additionally, the Indian Outbound Travel Monitor includes an exclusive "Destination Performance Index" (DPI) that provides strategic information on various countries and regions visited by Indians. The Index is based on key factors that influence the choice of a destination, including travel motivators, consumer perceptions, the lead-time involved in making travel decisions, satisfaction levels in travel experiences and the possibility of repeat travel. The DPI is an essential tool for industry experts involved in product development.