Learning Beyond Classrooms

The new focus on experiential learning in India's booming education sector provides extensive business opportunities to big and small tour operators in the education tourism segment.

- Sudipta Dev

The education market in India in FY 2015-16, was worth about US$ 100 billion, which is expected to increase to US$ 116.4 billion in FY 201617. It is also important to highlight that in the next five years the country will have the largest tertiary-age population in the world, giving a fillip to the education sector. Developing simultaneously is the education tourism segment, which is expected to be one of the fastest growing travel sectors in India, offering untapped business potential to tour operators across the country. With experiential education becoming the buzzword, parents and educational institutions consider it a necessity to send children on these trips so that they can learn much more beyond the traditional classrooms. The fact that the demand for these tours are not limited to the Tier I city schools has further given impetus to the sector. The tour packages are diversified and tailor-made for both schools and institutions of higher/professional education.

Opportunity for travel trade

The large number of IB, ICSE and CBSE schools that have mushroomed across the country have experiential learning as an inbuilt component in their curriculum. “The total number of students across these schools are in lakhs and provide an excellent opportunity for tour operators in the education space,” states Karan Anand - head, relationships, Cox & Kings.