Most Indians go abroad for work and not leisure

The total global outbound departures in 2016 were estimated to be 1.2 billion, but India’s share was just 1.3 percent, though it is home to nearly a fifth of the world’s population.

The study reveals that only 0.3 percent of India’s population holidays overseas in a given year.

Indians do not holiday abroad as much as other travellers do, reveals a study conducted by a Sydney-based aviation think tank ‘Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation (CAPA),’ in collaboration with online travel company Expedia. The study is titled ‘The Inflection Point on Indian Outbound Travel report.’

For instance, almost every Indian who travelled to Bahrain from India went there for work. In the case of Saudi Arabia, Indians either travelled to the Middle Eastern country either for employment or for pilgrimage. As far as the United States (US) was concerned, the traffic was driven by business, with only 18 percent Indians who went there, going for leisure.

The total global outbound departures in 2016 were estimated to be 1.2 billion, but India’s share was just 1.3 percent, though it is home to nearly a fifth of the world’s population.

The Ministry of Tourism says that 21.9 million Indian departures were recorded in 2016, out of which 5.8 million departures were made by Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) who travelled back to their country of residence after visiting India.

The most popular leisure destinations for Indians are Dubai, Thailand, France, Singapore and Malaysia, which account for over 50% of Indian leisure arrivals overseas.

“There will be large numbers of first time travellers entering the international holiday market every year. To cater to such a diverse market, there is a need for the airline industry, tourism boards and travel companies to invest much more in the travel industry,” said Binit Somaia, director, South Asia, CAPA.

Simon Fiquet, general manager, Southeast Asia and India, Expedia said, “By 2025, we expect 13.9 million leisure departures.”

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