Youth Tourism – A Boon for India’s Economy

In a time of exceptional challenge for the travel industry, youth travel represents not just an integral market segment, but moreover a crucial asset for development, innovation and change. With 356 million 10–24-year-olds, India has the world's biggest youth populace in spite of having less population than China. Nowadays, young travelers (aged 16 to 25) represent more than 20% of universal visitor arrivals, according to statistics by the World Tourism Organization.

According to the WTO, “youth travel includes all independent trips for periods of less than one year by people aged 16-29 which are motivated, in part or in full, by a desire to experience other cultures, build life experience and/or benefit from formal and informal learning opportunities outside one’s usual environment”.

Youth tourism is an emerging concept in India, but it’s not yet recognized by the government policies as a calling market of travel industry. Today’s youth being autonomous cherishes to move around, see places, make modern companions, investigate modern goals, enjoy in physical exercises & pick up more information. The youth tourism industry is divided in two categories: the qualitative and quantitative aspects:

· The qualitative aspect concerns the aspects linked to quality, security, flexibility and access.

· The quantitative angle concerns the development in youth tourism, its significance in connection to tourism and the travel costs of youthful individuals.

It is quite interesting to learn that youth tourism spends more money than those in other tourism sectors as they spend 4 times longer travelling than an average visitor. The revenue thus generated is definitely an asset for India’s economy.

India was ranked 34th in the Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Report 2019 published by the World Economic Forum. Total contribution by travel and tourism sector to India's GDP is expected to increase from Rs 15,24,000 crore (US$ 234.03 billion) in 2017 to Rs 32,05,000 crore (US$ 492.21 billion) in 2028. Total earning from the sector in India stood at US$ 28.6 billion in 2018 and is targeted to reach US$ 50 billion by 2022. India improved its ranking by 6 places over the 2017 report which was the greatest improvement among the top 25% of countries ranked. Considering the stats of youth population in India, young adults do have a big hand in this.