Data Insights: India Emerges As A Favored Tourist Destination In The Asia Pacific Region

India is included in the list of top 10 nations in the Asia Pacific region in terms of International Tourist Arrivals (ITA). In the year 2020, India secured the third position in the region by accounting for 10.71 per cent of the total ITAs, and 33.82 per cent in 2021. This indicates that India is a favored tourist destination in the region, attracting a significant number of international visitors, showing the latest data of India Tourism Statistics at a Glance 2022. 

Looking at the global picture, India accounted for 1.64 per cent of the total worldwide International Tourist Arrivals (ITA) in 2021, with 7 million visits. In 2020, India secured the 19th rank with 6.33 million visits, which accounted for a 1.56 per cent share of overall ITAs.

      Chart-01 (source: Ministry of Tourism)

Top 10 source countries for Foreign Tourist Arrivals In India:

In 2021, the United States was the largest source country for Foreign Tourist Arrivals (FTAs) in India with 4.2986 lakh arrivals, accounting for a significant 28.15 per cent share of the total FTAs. Following the US, Bangladesh and the United Kingdom were the second and third-largest source countries, accounting for 15.75 per cent and 10.75 per cent shares, respectively, according to the data provided by the report. 

       Chart-02 (source: Ministry of Tourism)

Top 8 International check posts for FTAs in India in 2021:

Delhi is the major international check post for Foreign Tourist Arrivals in India in 2021 with 60.62 lakh arrivals accounting for a share of 39.70 of overall FTAS. While Mumbai and Haridaspur stood at 2nd and 3rd position with a share of 31.91 per cent and  8.37 per cent respectively. The other top check posts are Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Cochin and Kolkata. See chart-3 to know the rank-wise share of top 8 check posts. 

                                chart-3

Purpose-wise Foreign Tourist Arrivals during 2021:

The primary reason for Foreign Tourist Arrivals (FTAs) in India during 2021 was the Indian diaspora, accounting for a significant share of 57.51 lakh arrivals, which amounted to 37.70per cent of the overall FTAs. The remaining share of FTAs, 21.90 per cent, was attributed to 'other' reasons. The major purposes of FTAs were Medical, Business & Professional, and Leisure Holiday & Recreation, as detailed in chart-4.

       Chart-04: (Source: Ministry of Tourism)