New Delhi in top-10 fastest-growing cities for tourism in next decade

New Delhi: One Indian and five Chinese cities have made it to the top-10 fastest growing cities for tourism in the decade between 2016-2026, according to a study. While Chonging in south-west China took the top spot, New Delhi was placed seventh in a list dominated by Asian cities.

The study, conducted by World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), predicted tourism in New Delhi to grow by 10.8 per cent in the decade until 2016. It elaborated that Delhi, along with Mumbai, generates over 1 million tourism jobs and contribute to 10 per cent of India’s total tourism employment.

While the list also ranked Manila at sixth, Kuala Lumpur at ninth and Jakarta at tenth, the global list was completely dominated by as many as six Chinese cities in the top ten. Guangzhou, Shanghai, Beijing and Chengdu completed the top-five list while Shenzhen was placed eight. The study reported that with the world average growth rate at 4 per cent per year, and Asia Pacific at 5.8 per cent, these cities are significantly outpacing both the regional and global average.

While Chinese cities may indeed dominate the list, it is not the first time that New Delhi has been predicted to fare well. The Indian government has been trying to attract foreign tourists with a number of international campaigns. Recently, there were also reports of possibly reducing visa fee during lean seasons to make India a year-round destination. States, apart from Centre, are also pushing for a larger share of domestic as well as international tourism. Union tourism minister KJ Alphons said recently that he is focussed on bringing in 40 million foreign tourists to India in the next five years.