India emerges as 5th largest source of tourists for US

India emerges as 5th largest source of tourists for US

NEW DELHI: A growing, affluent middle class and younger, intrepid Indians travelling to the United States have made India the fifth largest source for tourism to the US, projected to grow at 30% in 2024, Brand USA’s chief marketing officer Staci Mellman told TOI in an exclusive interview.

Mellman said Indian tourists spend significantly more on average than other international travellers to the US, accounting for a significant share of the $173.9 billion that international tourists spent on travel and tourism-related goods and services while travelling to the US.

The nearly 30% increase in spending in the period Jan to Oct 2023 when compared to the year before coincides with the easing of delays in processing visas, improved flight connectivity, and a wider cross-section of tourism product offerings, including culinary, sports, transformational and adventure activites.

“In 2023, US received 1.7 million Indian visitors. There is a lot more interest in exploring the landscape beyond the gateway and Indian travellers also spend significantly more on average than other international travellers,” she said.

Though delays in processing visas remains a challenge – wait time for a US visa in India is currently about 250 days – Mellman said. “We have seen visa wait time shorten though they are still not what what they were historically. In 2023, 1.2 million new visas were issued to Indians travelling to the US. The US has also opened 2.5 lakh new tourist visa appointments for Indians. To decrease wait time, the consulate in Hyderabad now sees 3,500 appointments a day, with processing done over weekends too,” Mellman said.

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