As we embark on a fresh start to orient our tourism fortunes, it is important to recall what transpired in 2025. The beginning of the year saw the country on a record-breaking spree. With the Maha Kumbh Mela held from January 13 to February 26 drawing over 66 crore pilgrims over 45 days marking the biggest congregation of people for a single event.
The bigger takeaway in my view was the employment it generated; both in the temporary sector to the more formal ones. Today, Uttar Pradesh, which hardly had a travel agent eco-system apart from the one at Agra, has a buzzing network of travel agents, guides, home-stays and hotels catering to the religious travel domain.
As the year rolled on, foreign arrivals slowly inched towards pre-Covid levels. With a mere Rs. 3 crore earmarked for international marketing, amid closing of all our international tourism offices is tough.
The Incredible India campaign needs a reboot, and the ministry will do well to bring in the heft of being a 4 trillion-dollar economy! India Tourism has to increase its marketing footprint across different global markets and it cannot happen in a ‘Atma Nirbhar’ mode. Inbound tourism is heavily relationship-driven and takes years to nurture travel partners across the world. Out of sight is out of mind; surely!
Domestic tourism continues to be the mainstay for the travel and tourism sector. Leisure hotels, which were once were chasing international tourists, today has found the humble domestic holidaymaker more discerning and remunerative. With a fine-line dividing key holiday seasons, most holiday destinations in India are today season agnostic!
Globally, there have been several instances, where leading global destinations have taken initiatives to encourage domestic travel and get their citizens to spend their money within their borders. Some interesting marketing campaigns by such as the one by Tourism Australia which created the No Leave, No Life campaign to encourage workers to take their annual leave and see their country.
Australians have been brilliant in creating campaigns to capture the hearts of locals hoping more Aussies choosing to holiday in their own backyard. New Zealand for instance still considers domestic tourists as their mainstay and make up about two thirds of the tourism industry.
If marriages are ‘made in heaven’ and bills are being paid on earth, it is a no-brainer that what goes around in between is the ‘traversing hell’ part of the deal! The scale and spectacle of the recent Ambani wedding just proved that. Destination weddings have also pushed hotel rates to a new high, which the inbound players now find themselves to be the preliminary collateral damage!
The Indian hospitality sector this year marked entry of several international and new desi Indian brands making a beeline. With over 1,00,000 rooms in the 3-5 star being added in the next five years, the market for branded hotels has heated up.
With brands targeting Tier-2, Tier-3 and even Tier-4 cities for leave their footprint, the time has never been so good for the employment market. For hotel brands, investing on brand-building is almost like an after-thought and will do so, only on gun-point. Though Indian hotel brands have been a late starter in the hotel-branding enterprise, but it is never too late to elevate your game in what might just be the world’s second fastest growing hotel market!
The Indian aviation industry never seems to be on a dull mode with a last couple of weeks adding to the drama. India being the world’s third largest domestic aviation market handling 241 million passengers, with nearly 800 aircrafts and with now having 163 airports needs to get on to steroid mode. China in comparison has nearly 3,500 aircrafts serving over 730 million passengers and over 25 airlines. Do we need more competition in the skies? It is a big yes, indeed!
As someone once said “In a country where every mile tells a story, Indian tourism is not just moving people—it is about creating memories, while the tourism economy quietly checks in!”