Indian Tourists Happy As U.S. Hotels Offer Indian Cuisine and Entertainment to Attract Tourists
In a bid to attract Indian tourists, American hotels are introducing unique services tailored to their preferences. From offering tea and samosas in hotel lounges to providing popular Indian TV channels in guest rooms, hotels are going the extra mile to make Indian visitors feel at home.
According to data from the U.S. National Travel and Tourism Office (NTTO), approximately 1.9 million Indians visited the United States in 2024, marking a 48% increase compared to 2019. The surge in Indian tourists is attributed to a rise in business and visitor visas. Business visas saw a 50% increase, while visitor visas recorded a growth of 43.5%, enabling more Indians to travel to the U.S.
Recognizing this trend, U.S. hotels are capitalizing on the influx of Indian tourists. Speaking on the subject, Laura Lee Blake, CEO of the Asian American Hotel Owners Association, said, “Hotels are now offering tea and samosas in their lobbies and streaming popular Indian TV channels in guest rooms to cater to Indian tourists.”
Meanwhile, the NTTO data also revealed a decline in tourists from China, Japan, and South Korea, whose numbers dropped from 50% to 25%. Blake noted that the dip in tourists from these countries is being offset by the increase in Indian travelers.
Further, the travel booking platform Viator, a part of the TripAdvisor brand, stated that bookings from Indian travelers to the U.S. in 2024 grew by over 50%, which is three times the levels seen before the pandemic in 2019.
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