Domestic travellers have been crucial to the tourism sector

New Delhi: New research from Oxford Economics found Airbnb is an important pillar of India’s tourism industry, contributing over USD$920 million (INR 72 Billion) to Gross Domestic Product and supporting over 85,000 Indian jobs in 2022 alone.

The GDP contribution and jobs supported in India has more than doubled since 2019 despite the Covid-19 outbreak and international border restrictions.

The report also highlighted the powerful multiplier effect Airbnb guest spending has within local communities. In 2022, Airbnb guests spent a total of USD$815 million (INR 64 billion) in India in areas like purchases on transportation, restaurants, retail stores, and retail stores. The guests spent in 2022* more than doubled the 2019 levels.

In India, Airbnb’s presence was the highest in Goa, where Airbnb guests spending amounted to almost USD$190 million ( INR 14.8 billion), this was followed by Bangalore and Delhi, Mumbai and Manali.

It details the significant contribution made by Airbnb guests to domestic tourism across the nation. In 2022, domestic Airbnb guest spending totalled USD$670 million (INR 52.6 billion), and accounted for approximately 82 per cent of total Airbnb guest spend in India, around a three-fold increase from 2019.

The report also explores two profound changes in travel behaviour since the pandemic: the dispersal of tourism away from urban areas, and long-term stays driven by the emergence of flexible work arrangements.

James Lambert, Director for Economic Consulting in Asia for Oxford Economics said, Airbnb has clearly played a major role in the resilience and rebirth of the Indian travel and tourism sector in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.

“Airbnb has been at the heart of some of the trends reshaping the nation’s travel and tourism industry, including the shift in travel away from cities and towards more rural communities, and the increase in demand for long-stay trips, exemplified by the live and work anywhere phenomenon, Lambert said.

“Domestic travellers have been crucial to the tourism sector’s resilience over the past three years as Indian guests saw opportunities in domestic travel as a substitute for international holidays, with self-drive and regional trips increasing in popularity which led to a wider dispersion of tourism spend outside the traditional or ‘popular’ destinations in India.”

Amanpreet Bajaj, Airbnb’s General Manager for India, Southeast Asia, Hong Kong and Taiwan said, “The economic contribution to both GDP and jobs driven by travel on Airbnb in India has created powerful economic ripple effects that have enabled the growth of local businesses, such as shops, restaurants, bars, and cafes - which are often central to how travellers experience a destination - and created job opportunities for the locals.”

Travel is now more dispersed, and so the economic benefits are being shared across more destinations, enabling a valuable economic contribution to rural and regional areas. This dispersal is being driven by Hosts on Airbnb and in turn creating economic opportunities for various communities.”

“As destinations across India continue to recover, we are committed to partnering with governments and communities to rebuild their tourism economies in a way that is equitable, inclusive, and sustainable.”

This report explores the twelve months to March 2023 - representing a year since travel restrictions started to be removed across India.