Carrying out an online search to learn more about a destination is usually the first step that one takes when planning a holiday.

 

Tapping into that data, a travel portal study released recently stated that Chinese tourists' interest in India grew 134% in 2017 from the year before.

 

According to their findings, the fastest growing market for inbound tourists were those from Asia, with China leading the list, and Asian countries accounted for six of the top 10 markets showing an increase in the share of visitor sessions looking at Indian destinations.

 

Nikhil Ganju, country manager, TripAdvisor India, said, "The data shows that travellers are also keen on exploring places that are not the usual for the international market, and they are looking for a wide variety of experiences on their visit which bodes well for our tourism industry." He added that more travellers are writing reviews on places to stay, eat as well as see in India and most of these are positive.

 

"This is a great indication of the rising standard of the Indian hospitality industry and an endorsement at a global level," he added.

 

Kerala (7%) was the fifth Indian states that saw the highest year-on-year growth in search sessions, following Andaman and Nicobar at 25%, followed by Mizoram 17%, Bihar 12%,  and Arunachal Pradesh 9%.