India and Germany Climb in World Economic Forum’s Travel & Tourism Development Index 2024

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In the latest rankings released by the World Economic Forum (WEF), India has ascended to the 39th position, while Germany has secured the 6th spot in the “Travel & Tourism Development Index 2024.” This marks a significant improvement for India as global travel begins to recover post-pandemic.

India’s Leap in Rankings

India’s advancement from the 54th position in 2021 highlights its strong performance in South Asia and among lower-middle-income nations. The WEF’s annual report notes that changes in the index criteria make direct comparisons with 2022 and 2023 challenging.

However, India’s current standing reflects significant progress in several areas. According to the index, compiled in collaboration with the University of Surrey, UK, India excels in price competitiveness (ranked 18th) and has robust air transport (26th) and ground and port (25th) infrastructure.

Additionally, India’s rich natural (6th), cultural (9th), and non-leisure (9th) resources bolster its appeal as a travel destination. Remarkably, India is one of only three countries to achieve a top 10 ranking across all resource pillars.

Impact of Global Trends

Despite these strengths, India’s overall Travel and Tourism Development Index (TTDI) score is 2.1 percent lower than in 2019. This decline is partly due to the impacts of global inflationary supply-side trends, which have affected price competitiveness and hindered the full recovery of air transport and tourism services infrastructure to pre-pandemic levels.

The WEF report highlighted, “International tourist arrivals and the travel and tourism sector’s contribution to global gross domestic product (GDP) are expected to return to pre-pandemic levels this year, driven by the lifting of Covid-19-related travel restrictions and strong pent-up demand.”

Germany’s Stable Position

Germany maintains a solid presence in the top ten, positioned at 6th place. This achievement underscores Germany’s favorable conditions for travel and tourism development, supported by a conducive business environment, dynamic labor markets, open travel policies, and robust transport and tourism infrastructure.

High-income economies like Germany typically benefit from well-developed natural, cultural, and non-leisure attractions.

Global Trends in Tourism Recovery

The index, which assesses 119 countries, shows that the travel and tourism sector’s post-pandemic recovery has been uneven. While 71 of the 119 TTDI-ranked economies improved their scores between 2019 and 2024, the average index score is only 0.7 percent above pre-pandemic levels.

Regions such as West Asia have shown remarkable recovery rates, with international tourist arrivals surpassing 2019 levels by 20 percent. Europe, Africa, and the Americas have also demonstrated robust recovery, reaching approximately 90 percent of their pre-pandemic tourist arrival figures in 2023.

The biennial index provides a comprehensive overview of the travel and tourism sectors, highlighting the performance of various countries across multiple factors and policies. The findings emphasize that high-income economies generally maintain more favorable conditions for travel and tourism development, contributing to their higher rankings.

As the travel and tourism industry continues its recovery, countries like India and Germany exemplify the diverse paths and strategies nations employ to enhance their tourism sectors and navigate the challenges posed by the global economic landscape.