India's Surging Role in Global Tourism: Key Insights from Earnings Calls

12.08.2024 - 14:15 / skift.com / Peden Doma Bhutia / Ras Al-Khaimah / Chris Nassetta

India’s tourism industry is undergoing a significant transformation. The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) projects the outbound travel market to reach $55.4 billion by 2034. At the core of this boom is India’s expanding middle class, driving both domestic and international travel as disposable incomes rise.

Indian tour and travel operators are also expected to see a 15-17% revenue increase in fiscal 2025, according to credit ratings agency CRISIL, which attributes this growth to improved infrastructure, rising incomes, evolving travel behaviors, and government efforts to boost domestic tourism.

India’s growing prominence on the global travel stage is further evident, with 2024 projections already at $18.8 billion. The surge of first-time tourists, as highlighted by McKinsey & Company, is a key factor. In 2023, 28.2 million Indians traveled abroad, surpassing pre-pandemic levels, while overseas spending hit $31.7 billion, with 54% dedicated to travel.

Global travel and hospitality leaders also recognize the potential of this burgeoning market. Skift analyzed recent earnings calls from these industries to gauge their outlook on India’s evolving role in global tourism.

Accor: Sebastien Bazin, CEO of Accor, in the latest earnings call, highlighted the robust demand within India, noting the potential for Indian outbound travelers to double in the near future. “When it comes to the outbound of India, you have 40 million Indian people traveling abroad and 80% of them go Southeast Asia or they go to the Middle East. That 40 million could end up being 80 million in 1 year or 2 years from today,” he said at the latest earnings call.

This surge, he suggests, will have a profound impact on hotel markets in Southeast Asia and the Middle East, where a significant portion of Indian travelers head. “There’s no slowdown in demand in many of the airlines in the world and certainly not in India,” Bazin added.

Wynn Resorts: Talking about the Wynn Resorts coming up in UAE’s Ras Al Khaimah, CEO Craig Scott Billings said at the recent earnings call that while Europe is an important market for the UAE in general, India is also a huge market for this part of the world. “There’s a lot of folks there. There’s a lot of wealth in India, and that’s going to be an important market.”

Wizz Air: The aviation sector is similarly bullish on India’s potential. In its latest earnings call József Váradi CEO, Wizz Air, remarked on the “sparkling demand” from India, which is driving the need for more aircraft and infrastructure.

Hilton: Pointing out to the demand in Asia Pacific at the latest earnings call, Hilton CEO Chris Nassetta said the hotel company hasn’t seen any real signs of demand weakening in India.