Hotels in Australia are installing satellite dishes to pick up Indian TV channels, offering Masala Chai tea and introducing vegetarian dishes including upma (a thick porridge made from dry-roasted semolina) and puri bhaji (flat bread and potato) to breakfast menus to make their hotels more friendlier to the rising Indian tourists.

The number of Indian visitors to Australia rose by nearly eight per cent to 164,000 in the last financial year according to ABS figures and is expected to rise further when Air India begins direct flights to Sydney and Melbourne this week on Dreamliner planes.

Mantra hotel group's human resources director Cherie McGill said it was important for staff to be aware of cultural and religious differences.

"Indians are very well-known for nodding their head but it doesn't mean that they're agreeing - they're just acknowledging that they're listening to you," she said. "That can be very confusing.

"If we have honeymooners we don't put a bottle of champagne in the room for them because they don't drink alcohol, we give them a fruit platter. "Vegetarian food also has to be served in a completely different area to meat dishes.

"Most Indians also have their main meal at lunch and a light meal at dinner and they generally eat a little later than we would - lunch tends to be around 2pm and dinner around 8pm or 9pm, so we're making sure our restaurants adapt to these aspects."

New Tourism Australia research shows Australia ranks equal third with Switzerland as the country Indians are considering for a holiday in the next two years, after Singapore and the US.

It found Australia's strongest appeal was its natural landscapes and wildlife, but most Indians had little detailed knowledge of the country beyond Sydney, kangaroos and cricket as per a report in the Australian.

Australia was also viewed as a luxury destination - a long way away and expensive but good value.

Tourism Australia managing director Andrew McEvoy said the new non-stop direct flights from Delhi would make a difference to perceptions Australia was too far.

While he admitted tourism from India had "taken a bit of a hit" in 2009 after violence against Indian students in Melbourne it was bouncing back.

"Language is not really an issue because India has the biggest population of English-speaking people on earth - it's more about cultural understanding," he said.

Khorshed Poacha, who is director at Travel Maestro Inbound, said her groups of Indian tourists mostly dined in Indian restaurants.

"Australian food is not exciting at all - it's just boiled or steamed and they really can't stomach that for a long time," she said.

"They may try one or two dishes at a gala dinner but they will choose Thai or Italian dishes because they are the ones that give the best vegetarian options."

The Mercure Sydney Central was the first Accor hotel in Australia accredited for India Optimum Service Standards.

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