This would be a 100 per cent jump over 2024, when the state had logged tourist inflow of 650 million.
Uttar Pradesh is expecting tourist arrivals to hit 1.3 billion in 2025, indicating a significant uptick in its tourism economy.
This would be a 100 per cent jump over 2024, when the state had logged tourist inflow of 650 million.
In 2023, it had recorded nearly 480 million domestic and international visitors.
Varanasi attracted more than 11 million tourists, an increase of 8.2 million from the previous year.
To accommodate the growing number of backpackers, about 100,000 new hotel rooms have been added to the existing inventory across UP.
The state's foreign tourist inflow has witnessed a notable rise, with the number of foreign visitors growing to 2.27 million in 2024 from 1.6 million in 2023, according to state officials.
Agra emerged as the top destination for foreign tourists, with 1.47 million international visitors in 2024.
UP, the chart topper in domestic tourist inflow, has received hospitality sector investment proposals of nearly Rs 1 trillion.
The proposed investments pertain to hotels, resorts, guesthouses, wellness centres, and home-stays across 75 districts of the state.
Most of these are proposed in religious and spiritual centres such as Varanasi, Ayodhya and Prayagraj apart from traditional tourism hotspots of Lucknow, Agra, Kanpur, and Noida among others.
Ayodhya, which saw the consecration of the Ram temple on January 22, 2024, is now among the state's top tourist destinations.
It welcomed 16.4 million pilgrims in 2024, up from 5.757 million in 2023.
On an average, a tourist staying overnight in UP spends Rs 5,400, while long-term visitors spend around Rs 7,500.
Hotel stays account for almost 41 per cent of accommodation, while inter-district travel within UP accounts for 80 per cent of all tourism activity.
Andhra Pradesh, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh account for most domestic arrivals.
Thailand, South Korea and Myanmar take the top spots respectively in terms of international backpackers.
Uttar Pradesh Minister of Tourism and Culture Jaiveer Singh has underlined the critical role of tourism in promoting the state's trillion-dollar economy goal.
He has directed officials to draft concrete plans for attracting fresh investment and generating employment through tourism projects.
The Yogi Adityanath government is also mulling over leveraging artificial intelligence to track tourist inflow.
The Eco Tourism Development Board has taken steps to improve connectivity and enhance tourist access and experience across the major destinations.
Feature Presentation: Ashish Narsale/Rediff
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