India tourism spending rises on domestic demand as foreign visitor spend stalls
Domestic visitor spending reached Rs 17.7 lakh crore in 2025, 36.9% above 2019 levels, while international spending was only 0.3% higher. The government is targeting digital discovery and bookings, including potential ONDC integration for 23,000 tourism products.
What happened
India tourism sector · India's tourism economy is being driven by domestic travellers, while international visitor spending remained nearly flat versus 2019 and
Key facts
- Domestic visitor spending: Rs 17.7 lakh crore in 2025, 36.9% above 2019 in constant 2025 prices
- International visitor spending: Rs 2.9 lakh crore in 2025, 0.3% above 2019
- Domestic spending grew 10.3% in 2025; international spending fell 8%
- Domestic visitors accounted for 86% of 2025 tourism spending
- Travel and tourism contributed about Rs 23 lakh crore and supported 4.6 crore jobs in 2025
- Foreign exchange earnings from tourism fell 5.5% to Rs 2,76,831 crore in 2025
- International tourist arrivals exceeded 2.02 crore in 2025 versus 2.05 crore in 2024
- Foreign tourist arrivals fell 9.4% in 2025; excluding Bangladesh, they rose 4.3%
- Travel and tourism capital investment estimated at about $50 billion in 2025, up 15.1%
- Around 23,000 tourism products and experiences identified for potential ONDC integration
Why this matters
Target partnerships or acquisitions in domestic inventory aggregation, regional experiences and ONDC-ready booking infrastructure to gain access to a rapidly expanding Rs 17.7 lakh crore travel-spend pool.
What to watch
- Actual ONDC tourism-product launch timeline, transaction volumes and participation by major travel sellers.
- Monthly foreign tourist arrivals, inbound air-seat capacity, visa policy changes and international card-spend data.
- Growth in domestic hotel occupancy and ADR, especially in tier-2/3 leisure and pilgrimage markets.
- Digital booking penetration among small tourism suppliers and UPI/payment conversion rates.
- Government spending on destination infrastructure, digital cataloging and tourism marketing.
- Prioritize mobile-first vernacular discovery, instant booking and UPI-enabled checkout for domestic travelers.
- Onboard fragmented tourism inventory—homestays, guides, local transport, attractions and experiences—before ONDC or OTA distribution becomes table stakes.
- Create short-break, pilgrimage, family and regional bundles with dynamic pricing aligned to domestic holiday calendars.
- Reduce dependence on foreign visitor yield by building domestic loyalty, repeat-visit offers and ancillary revenue from experiences, food and local commerce.
- Track channel economics closely: ONDC participation may expand reach but can compress OTA commissions and supplier pricing power.