India has a great potential to be a world leader in tourism. It got great culture, history and beautiful places that could pull a lot of foreign tourists but it’s lagging behind.
There are that is creating obstacles and it had made a huge decline of the yearly footfall of foreigners in recent years where other countries had seen a sharp rise. I am going to address the issues that are holding India back in tourism.
In spite of being one of the cheapest travel destinations, why isn’t India as popular as Thailand, China, the USA, and European countries?
Top reasons that are the obstacles for India to be a world tourist capital
- India has an image problem. It is considered as 3rd world country among most foreigners. Foreigners don’t feel India safe when it comes to health and personal safety due to some incidents highlighted by the media.
- If we Indians see any foreign wearing bikini on beaches, we lose it. We stare at those ladies like they are criminals or angels from heaven. one way or another we endup making them uncomfortable often. This is just one example, you can find tons of those here.
- India is too fuckin Crowded. Normally people want to go to places where they can chill out and relax but when you have millions of people at every popular destination, it’s hard to chill out.
- We often brag about our cultural and historical heritage but how many of us actually try to maintain them. Most of the famous historical heritages are on the verge of collapse.
- The Indian government and people don’t put enough effort to attract foreigners to visit India. India charges foreigners triple the amount at most heritage sites. When you go to Taj maha, the main tourist destination, Indians pay 500 RS for the visit while foreigners are made to pay 1500 RS. Imagine yourself visiting destiny world and paying triple the amount the locals pay and then tell me how you feel.
- Bad air quality, parasites in the water, and locals cheating foreigners mindsets are pushing India back when it comes to tourism. You go to any places and see these Auto-walls and all pulling stunts to get the most out of tourists. Who would like to go to a place where everyone is trying to loot them.
- People love to go to places with clean beaches and Indian beaches are poorly maintained. I have been to most Indian beaches and except few beaches in Goa and Pondicherry, most of them are in the worst condition.
- Let’s be honest, Indians are not the most welcoming people when it comes to foreigners. Tourists often find themselves in uncomfortable situations on various occasions.
- It’s hard to have fun in India in most places unless you go to few specific places. People find excuses not to let others have fun here.
- India is not the cheapest tourist destination. flights connecting India to most countries are expensive. Normal hotels are in bad condition so tourists have to stay at 5-star hotels and they cost hell a lot.
Most foreigners come to India for spirituality and to see the great Taj Mahal. I wish India had put effort to encourage more visitors from different countries. It’s not just the responsibility of the government, it’s for the people of India to understand it and put effort so more tourists can visit and we can generate some revenue from it that will benefit India.
Conclusion
India got a lot to offer and it’s not all bad. There are some great places to visit and all Indians are not bad at treating foreigners. I have just pointed out things that could improve in order to attract more people to visit India. This answer is not written in intention to defame my own country.
