Delhi’s Air Pollution Clouds India’s Inbound Tourism Revival

Despite a strong domestic and outbound market, India’s inbound tourism has been lagging behind. The country’s inbound arrivals of a little less than 10 million tourists last year was only 90% of the 2019 high of almost 11 million arrivals. 

October to March is the peak season for inbound tourists to arrive in the country and the main ports of entry are usually the Indian metros of Delhi and Mumbai. However, the Indian capital of Delhi and neighboring north Indian states are currently grappling with severe air pollution.

The pollution situation is ill timed as this is usually the period when travelers visit Delhi before heading to destinations like Agra, Jaipur, and Varanasi.

“Tour cancellations, shorter itineraries, and reduced bookings are becoming common, affecting the revenue streams of inbound operators,” said Rama Mahendru, country general manager for India at Intrepid Travel.

Parts of Delhi have an Air