India’s outbound tourism is expected to reach $44.7 billion by 2032, a recently released report produced in association with the Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, has revealed. Between June and August 2023, international leisure flight bookings from India have increased by 40 per cent in comparison with the same period the year before, the highest recorded level of outbound leisure flight bookings from India in the post-COVID-19 era.
Singapore has received the highest flight bookings from India, followed by San Francisco (USA), Melbourne (Australia), Toronto (Canada), and Bali (Indonesia). In the period considered, the USA, the UK and Canada were the most booked destinations. Bali and Singapore were the most popular choices in the Asian region.
India’s foreign exchange earnings from tourism during January- April this year were at $8.667 billion compared with $3.115 billion in the same period in 2022, data from the Ministry of Tourism has revealed. For perspective, India earned a total of $25.6 billion in foreign exchange from tourism in 2019, an increase of 8.3 per cent.
In 2022, India generated Asia’s highest outbound travel volume, exceeding those of China, South Korea, and Japan. Moreover, foreign tourist arrivals in India stood at 31.3 lakh between January and April, up from 11.7 lakh arrivals in the year-ago period, as per the ministry.
India saw about 21.9 per cent of foreign tourist arrivals from neighouring nation Bangladesh, followed by the USA, from where 16.3 per cent of total travelers came, another 10.3 per cent from the UK, five per cent from Canada, and 4.5 per cent from Australia.
Interestingly, Madurai, Bhubaneswar and Varanasi were the most searched domestic destinations for flights, while Auckland, Jeddah and Colombo came out as the most searched overseas destinations.
Travellers from India are also eyeing destinations such as Hong Kong and Tokyo in the Asian region, which reduce their flight budget by up to one-fourth.
Surge in international traffic
The Ministry of Civil Aviation has reported an 88 per cent increase in the flow of international passengers during the first quarter of 2023, compared to the same period last year, indicating a robust recovery for the aviation sector. India has open sky arrangements with 23 countries, which has facilitated unlimited operations between India and these countries. Additionally, more than 1.23 crore people have travelled on Ude Desh ka Aam Naagrik (Udan) flights. A total of 148 airports, nine heliports and two water aerodromes have also been developed and operationalised to offer improved connectivity across the country.