The Indian tourist section has not recovered from the Covid-19 shock. India has 43 UNESCO World Heritage Sites, but in the last 2 years, the country’s tourism industry was not able to cope with the rebound in global tourism. Foreign tourist arrivals to India peaked in 2019 at 10.9 million visitors. In the first half of 2024, the arrivals to India had declined over 10 percent compared to 2019. Whereas, Dubai city with no UNESCO World Heritage Sites experienced over 11% growth over the same period.Â
The competition over attracting foreign visitors is getting tougher and having old cultural sites seems not to be enough. Tourism is a valuable export industry that generates foreign exchange, taxes, and employment. It accounts for about a tenth of global GDP and accounts for one in ten jobs.Â
To attract tourists, many countries offer Visa free visits or visa on arrivals, at list for the citizens of wealthy countries. India on the other hand offers an online-visa application which the website pages remind visitors of the dot-com bubble. The Indian government has projected a tourism arrival of over 100 million tourism arrivals in 2047, It means the number of visitors should grow around 15 % over the next two decades. It is well above growth over the past twenty years. It needs much effort to attract more visitors. Advertisement, in the traditional way such as television Ads and Festivals are helpful, but for teenagers and new generations, social media maybe more important.Â
Source: Economist
