India’s middle class reshaping Asia tourism as sector pivots to next big market: analysts

A growing appetite for overseas travel among India’s middle class is reshaping tourism trends in Asia, with destinations including Hong Kong and Central Asia seeing spikes in interest due to improved connectivity and affordable packages, industry analysts say.

Indian residents who took two or more trips in one year rose by 32 per cent from June 2023 to May 2024, according to a report published earlier this month by MakeMyTrip Limited, India’s leading online travel company.

The report, titled “How India Travels Abroad”, also found that Indians are increasingly exploring new destinations such as Kazakhstan’s capital of Almaty, and Baku, capital of Azerbaijan, with annual growth of 527 per cent and 395 per cent for online searches, respectively.

Interest in luxury travel has been rising, with online searches for Hong Kong surging by 131 per cent annually as Indian businessmen see the city as a gateway to mainland China to seal deals and explore the city’s clubs and restaurants. This was followed by searches to Sri Lanka, Japan, Saudi Arabia and Malaysia.

Hong Kong has attracted the attention of premium Indian travellers because they view the city “as a glamorous, multifaceted and experience-rich international city – a place worth splurging”, according to Gary Bowerman, director of Check-in Asia and co-host of travel podcast The Southeast Asia Travel Show.