Growth in foreign tourist arrivals at 3-year low

Industry officials struggle to explain low figures in period of weak rupee, airline discounts; say safety, infra could be factors

The National Democratic alliance government's move to hardsell India as a hot tourism destination is yet to show results. According to Union tourism ministry statistics, the growth in inbound travel (foreign tourists coming to India) is a modest four per cent this calendar year (till October), compared to the previous year. This is the slowest pace of growth in the past three years. In 2014, foreign tourist arrivals grew by 10.2 per cent over 2013.

Data for the month of October, considered to be the start of the peak travel season in India thanks to the pleasant weather, is an indicator of India not being a favoured destination for international travellers at this point. In the month, inbound travel grew a mere 1.7 per cent against the same month last year - the lowest pace of growth in the past six months. In comparison, the growth in foreign tourist arrivals in October last year was 9.6 per cent.

Experts struggle to suggest a prominent reason behind the trend. Factors such as a weak rupee and a trend of discounts on airfare and hotels should have worked to increase the inbound tourism, they point out.

“A lot of visitors from Europe, the UK and the US come to India. It is not that their economy is not doing well. The industry is doing what it has been doing in the past to market India as a tourist destination. We need a campaign that aggressively targets a foreign country that shows growth potential. As a tourist destination, we compete with at least 10-15 countries across the world. There has to be a clear thought-out plan”, said Sharat Dhall, president at online travel portal Yatra.

Inbound tourism is a major generator of foreign exchange earnings for the country. The earning in rupee terms during the January-October period of 2015 stood at Rs 1,01,348 crore, growing a mere 2.5 per cent over the same period last year. In November 2014, the government had launched e-Tourist Visa facility for citizens of 113 countries at 16 Indian airports to draw foreign tourists.

According to travel company executives, the safety angle could be one factor holding back inbound travellers. Also, the problems of infrastructure have not been addressed, they add.

Ajay Prakash, former president of Travel Agents' Federation of India who runs Nomad Travels, says the inbound tourist arrival is not looking bright this year. “It is not that the sentiment is negative. But general enquiries are much lower this year. The weak rupee should have been a positive factor. The growth of low single digit is not a growth worth talking about.”