Despite Demonetisation, Foreign Tourist Arrival Grows By Over 9 Per Cent in November 2016

Despite demonetisation, the country observed a 9.3 per cent growth in foreign tourist arrivals in November 2016 over the same period in 2015. Around 9 lakh foreign tourists visited India in November this year, indicating that demonetisation did not impact the tourism industry adversely.

Around 8.16 lakh foreign tourists visited India during November 2015, while the number was around 7.65 lakh in November 2014. According to PBI, the United States accounted for highest share of tourist arrivals followed by the UK and Bangladesh in November 2016.

Foreign Exchange Earnings (FEEs) during the month of November 2016 stood at Rs. 14,474 crore as compared to Rs. 12,649 crore in November 2015 and Rs. 11,431 crore in November 2014. While the growth rate in FEEs in rupee terms during November 2016 over November 2015 was 14.4 per cent, the growth in November 2015 over November 2014 stood at 10.7 per cent