The post-pandemic recovery in India’s inbound tourism is lagging the global trend. In the first half of calendar 2024, foreign tourist arrivals (FTAs) in the country stood at 4.78 million, about 90% of that in the first half of calendar 2019.

In comparison, globally, FTAs in the first seven months of 2024 were at 96% of the pre-Covid levels of 2019, implying India is behind the curve.

Forex earnings surge

The picture is rosier when it comes to foreign exchange earnings (FEE), which rose 23% in the first half of 2024 over the same period in 2019.

This suggests tourists are spending more during their visits, which can be linked to several factors, including a 20% rise in five-star hotel rates between 2019 and 2024, increasing tourist preference for luxury experiences and higher disposable incomes with travellers indulging in premium services such as fine dining, high-end accommodations and distinctive cultural experiences.

Outbound travel surges

India's outbound tourism is, meanwhile, seeing a divergent trend.

With a notable 12% increase in Indian national departures over pre-Covid levels in the first half of 2024, Indian tourists are rapidly emerging as a significant growth engine for global tourism (India accounted for 2.4% of the global outbound market as of 2019).

Steps that can boost the GDP share of tourism

India needs a two-prong action plan to enhance the contribution of tourism to GDP – first, position itself as a top global tourist destination and, second, woo its potential outbound travellers to prefer domestic destinations instead.