India moves up nine places in the 2026 World Economic Forum’s Travel and Tourism Development Index, highlighting significant growth in infrastructure, cultural assets, and international appeal, though challenges remain for sustainable expansion.
India has climbed to 31st place in the World Economic Forum’s 2026 Travel and Tourism Development Index, moving up nine places from its 2024 ranking as the country’s travel sector continues to strengthen. The improvement reflects gains in tourism infrastructure, cultural assets and business travel resources, alongside India’s relatively low-cost travel environment and its large stock of heritage and natural attractions, according to the World Economic Forum.
The forum said India remains one of the world’s most culturally rich destinations, pointing out that it is among the top 10 economies by number of World Heritage cultural sites, alongside China and Mexico. Even so, the report warned that there is still work to do in areas such as workforce skills, environmental sustainability and parts of the tourism infrastructure if the sector is to cope with rising demand.
Japan took the top spot in the 2026 index after rising two places, with the United States, Spain, Australia and France rounding out the top five. Germany, the UK, China, Switzerland and Italy completed the top 10. The World Economic Forum said Japan’s ascent came as international visitor numbers reached 42.7 million in 2025, while visitor spending rose to about $59.7 billion.
The broader picture across global tourism was also more positive. According to the forum, 92% of the 110 economies covered in the 2026 index improved their scores between 2024 and 2026, while average scores rose by about 2%, the fastest pace since 2019. The report said gains were driven by stronger cultural resources, better tourism infrastructure and services, improved air connectivity and greater digital readiness, suggesting the sector has moved well beyond the post-pandemic recovery phase.
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