Lifestyle Trend: Which countries Indians visited the most in 2024 and why they went You Should Know

The United Arab Emirates retained its position as the top international destination for Indian travellers in 2024, with Saudi Arabia, the United States, Thailand, Singapore, the United Kingdom, Qatar, Canada, Kuwait, and Oman following closely behind. Collectively, these ten nations accounted for 71.1% of overseas departures from India last year, according to the Ministry of Tourism’s India Tourism Data Compendium 2025.

Leisure holidays and recreational trips dominated outbound travel at 42.5%, while visits linked to the Indian diaspora formed 34.6%. Business and professional journeys represented 14.9%, with pilgrimage (3.9%), education (2.4%), and miscellaneous reasons (1.4%) making up the rest.

The report highlighted the long-term growth of outbound travel from India, which surged from 1.9 million in 1991 to 30.8 million in 2024, reflecting a compound annual growth rate of 8.7%. Although international departures dropped by 73% in 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic, the sector rebounded strongly, climbing 152.6% in 2022 and surpassing pre-pandemic levels in 2023 with 27.8 million trips. By 2024, overseas travel grew a further 10.7% year-on-year.

Stronger disposable incomes, improved air connectivity, and increasing global exposure played key roles in boosting outbound tourism. The majority of travellers came from the working-age bracket, with 25-34 year olds contributing 27.4% and those aged 35-44 accounting for 24.5%. Men represented 65.8% of outbound travellers, compared to 34.1% women.

The UAE welcomed 7.8 million Indian visitors in 2024, making up 25.2% of the total, rising from 7.2 million in 2023 and 6.3 million in 2019. Saudi Arabia followed with 3.4 million visitors, up from 3 million in 2023. The US recorded 2.1 million departures, though its share dropped slightly to 6.9% from 7.3% a year earlier. Thailand, meanwhile, saw a resurgence with 1.9 million Indian travellers in 2024, compared with 1.4 million the previous year.

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