India’s trajectory towards becoming a significant global golf tourism destination gained considerable momentum at the recent Golf Industry Association (GIA) Golf & Turf Summit 2025, held from October 29–31 at the Boulder Hills Golf & Country Club, Hyderabad. In order to create a unified national strategy, the summit brought together important players from the travel, tourism, and golf industries, acting as a vital platform for collaboration. The GIA President, Mr. Anirudha Seolekar, emphasized during a focused panel discussion on “Golf Tourism in India” that the nation’s combination of top-notch courses, opulent hospitality, and varied natural landscapes provides an unmatched value proposition for foreign golf tourists. He emphasized the urgent need for an industry-wide strategy and persistent, regular international marketing initiatives to raise India’s profile internationally.
Under the direction of Mr. Hari Natarajan of Teetime Ventures, the panel of experts, which included well-known figures from the industry such as Arun Iyer of My Golf Tours, Lokesh Bettiah of Triway Travels, and Nikhil Jeet of Buzz Travel Marketing, provided a thorough framework for gaining a larger portion of the estimated 30 million international golf tourists that travel each year. The integration of the travel and golf industries was the main focus of the suggested actionable strategies. These included creating high-end, immersive golf courses across the country and reaching out to specific international audiences with annual familiarization tours for international operators and tourism attachés at Indian consulates overseas.
Additionally, to promote vital cross-border collaborations between the Indian supply side and foreign buyers, the panel promoted government assistance, including prolonged Marketing Development Assistance (MDA) and the opening of a specific Global Golf Tourism B2B Expo in India. Beyond strategic planning, the summit reaffirmed India’s dedication to embracing technological excellence and international standards. In order to show how prepared the nation’s golf infrastructure is, a comprehensive exhibition featured state-of-the-art developments in turf management, precision irrigation, and environmentally friendly equipment.
Stakeholders at the GIA Golf & Turf Summit 2025 ultimately agreed to fortify public-private partnerships, encourage grassroots involvement through state-led festivals, and designate professional and famous golfers as brand ambassadors. India is solidly establishing itself as one of the most dynamic and rapidly expanding markets for inbound golf tourism worldwide by coordinating these initiatives across the tourism, hospitality, and sports sectors.
