Tourism in India

Tourism in India

Every year, more than 3 million tourists visit the Taj Mahal in Agra.

With 34000 temples of centuries old, Tamil Nadu holds the credit of Top state in attracting the maximum number of foreign tourists in India. The above picture shows one of the five UNESCO Heritage sites in the state.

Tourism in India is the largest service industry, with a contribution of 6.23% to the national GDP and 8.78% of the total employment in India. India witnesses more than 5 million annual foreign tourist arrivals and 562 million domestic tourism visits. The tourism industry in India generated about US$100 billion in 2008 and that is expected to increase to US$275.5 billion by 2018 at a 9.4% annual growth rate. In the year 2009, 5.11 million foreign tourists visited India. Majority of foreign tourists come from USA and UK. Rajasthan (Land of Kings), Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh were the top four states to receive inbound tourists. Domestic tourism in the same year was massive at 650 million. Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu received the big share of these visitors. Ministry of Tourism is the nodal agency to formulate national policies and programmes for the development and promotion of tourism. In the process, the Ministry consults and collaborates with other stakeholders in the sector including various Central Ministries/agencies, the State Governments/ union Territories and the representatives of the private sector. Concerted efforts are being made to promote new forms of tourism such as rural, cruise, medical and eco-tourism. The Ministry of Tourism is the nodal agency for the development and promotion of tourism in India and maintains the Incredible India campaign.

According to World Travel and Tourism Council, India will be a tourism hotspot from 2009–2018, having the highest 10-year growth potential. The Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Report 2007 ranked tourism in India 6th in terms of price competitiveness and 39th in terms of safety and security. Despite short- and medium-term setbacks, such as shortage of hotel rooms, tourism revenues are expected to surge by 42% from 2007 to 2017. India's 5,000 years of history, its length, breadth and the variety of geographic features make its tourism basket large and varied. It presents heritage and cultural tourism along with medical, business and sports tourism. India has a growing medical tourism sector. The 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi are expected to significantly boost tourism in India.

Tourism by State 

• Andhra Pradesh
• Assam
• Bihar
• Chhattisgarh
• Delhi
• Goa
• Himachal Pradesh
• Jammu and Kashmir
• Karnataka
• Kerala
• Madhya Pradesh
• Maharashtra
• Manipur
• Meghalaya
• Orissa
• Puducherry
• Punjab
• Rajasthan
• Sikkim
• Tamil Nadu
• Uttarakhand
• Uttar Pradesh
• West Bengal

 Historic Monuments

 Nature Tourism 

• Wildlife in India
• Hill stations
• Beaches
• Adventure Tourism