Award-winning restaurateur Harjit Singh opened the Royal Indian Bistro in the Rio Las Vegas Casino.
Las Vegas Strip casinos are marketing to Indian tourists these days. The Nevada Division of Tourism said India is now in the Top 10 of countries for Vegas visitors. The NDT sees Indian tourism peaking in the Top 5 in the not-so-distant future. India has the world’s second-largest population and a growing middle class with the cash to take foreign tours. Indian nationals often works for American corporations or sub-contractors who work with U.S. multinationals.
Nevada officials see many parallels with the growing Chinese presence on the Vegas Strip. A dozen years ago, tourism officials began to market to the growing middle class in China. These days, Chinese tourists place in the Top 5 countries contributing to the 41 million visitors (including Americans) the city had last year.
63k Tourists in 2015
The State of Nevada welcomed over 63,000 Indians last year. That represents about 10% of the Indians who visited the United States in 2015, as well as a 33% increase over the previous year. The State Department says roughly 50 million Indians hold a U.S. passport, so the number of potential visitors from India is massive.
The sheer number of Indians is not the only compelling statistic. Another reason Nevada’s Tourism Division sees the Indian demographic as a major source of revenue growth is the growth of Hindustan’s middle class. As China invested in an industrial economy, India invested in the information economy.
That focus has allowed India to become a hub of the global information industry. American and European corporations can hire Indians to staff call centers for a fraction of the price it would cost in their own home countries. With India’s lower cost of living, that income is raising Indians into middle class.
Cheap Las Vegas Hotel Rooms
Not every Hindi in that demographic saves the money to visit a tourist destination like Las Vegas. Many can, though. When those who want to see the United States plan a visit, they often find Las Vegas Strip hotels have the cheapest rates of any glamour city in the US. They get to see a quintessential American city known for its glitz and gambling.
Las Vegas is taking a cue from Macau, the world’s largest casino gaming destination. The Macau Gaming Tourist Office says that 1.67 million Indians visited their city last year, mainly to gamble. India only has 3 legal casinos, so gamblers often prefer to travel overseas for a gambling opportunity. Along with Singapore, Macau is the natural destination, because it is closer in proximity to Las Vegas.
Vegas Strip’s Amenities
That does not mean Las Vegas is unrealistic in its expectations. Unlike Macau, Las Vegas has diversified its economy in the past 15 to 20 years. Non-gaming revenues now comprises 65% of the revenues on the Las Vegas Strip.
Vegas has pulled off that feat by building integrated resort-casino which offer fine dining, nightclubs, and shopping at global retail chains. Las Vegas casinos also offer music, comedy, and performance shows that are famous worldwide.
Indians who’ve always wanted to see Cirque de Soleil, Celine Dion, or Lord of the Dance can visit. Or they can have the experience of watching comics like Terry Fator and Jeff Dunham, or watch (by Indian standards) odd shows like La Reve or the Blue Man Group. Gambling is not the only attraction which attracts tourists from the subcontinent.
Mark Hutchinson Visits India
Nevada is taking proactive steps to build ties to India. In October 2015, Nevada opened a representative office in Mumbai (Bombay), the country’s financial, entertainment, and media capital.
At this moment, current Tourism Division director and Lt. Governor Mark Hutchinson is visiting the political, religious, and culture capital of the country: New Delhi. Lt. Gov. Hutchinson is attending the SATTE 2016 Travel Trade Show.
Hutchinson told IANS this month his agency was “ready to help Indians with everything when they visit Nevada“. With the current presidential hubbub about US immigration, Nevada will not be able to offer Indians the equivalent of Macau’s “on-arrival-visa” policy. Still, the Silver State is a likely to increase its Indian tourism two-fold in the next 5 years.
