India Rises to 31st in WEF Travel and Tourism Development Index 2026

According to the latest reposrt which published on September 25, 2026, India is at 31st place in WEF (World Economic Forum) Travel & Tourism Development Index (TTDI) 2026. The index, which is produced in partnership with Zurich Insurance Group, assesses the environment conducive for sustainable and resilient travel and tourism development as compared to just counting tourists. The 2026 index report considers 110 economies with Japan topping the list, followed by the US, Spain, Australia, and France.

Japan Leads in Travel and Tourism Development Index

Japan holds first place in TTDI 2026, improving its standing by two positions since the 2024 version. In second place is the US followed by Spain, Australia, and France.

Here are Top-10 Countries in TTDI-2026

Japan
United States
Spain
Australia
France
Germany
United Kingdom
China
Switzerland
Italy

Out of the top 10 places, nine belong to advanced economies, with China as an exception. Europe and Eurasia continue to hold the highest spot among all regions in terms of performance, while Asia-Pacific showed fastest progress from 2024 to 2026.

What Does Travel & Tourism Development Index Measure?

The TTDI is a benchmarking tool created by the World Economic Forum for evaluating the aspects and policies required for the sustainable and resilient development of tourism and travel industry.

TTDI does not rank the economies based on how many tourists the economy attracts or the tourism income generated. Instead, it measures the overall situation that facilitates the development of tourism. For instance, the 2026 edition evaluates economies based on 17 pillars, such as,

Business environment and enabling conditions
Safety and it’s security
Health and hygiene
Transport connectivity
Tourism infrastructure and services
Information and communications technology readiness
Natural resources
Cultural resources
Openness to the world
Business and non-leisure travel
Sustainability and resilience

The Travel & Tourism Development Index is a successor of the previous benchmarking tool by WEF called Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index (TTCI). The Travel & Tourism Development Index was introduced in 2022 as a successor framework. The 2024 edition had five dimensions, 17 pillars and 102 indicators for 119 economies.

India’s Ranking in 2026 and Tourism Attributes

The India’s position in 2026 is rated at 31st due to a number of factors including the presence of good tourism resources in the country as well as developments in the field of tourism infrastructure, services and tourism connectivity.

The performance of India in the previous TTDI index offers some indication. India was rated 39th out of 119 economies, with the country having an index value of 4.25. According to WEF, India was ranked as the highest ranked economy in South Asia in the 2024 TTDI index.

According to the NITI Aayog’s 2026 report on tourism sector, based on the findings of TTDI 2024, India’s rank is 6th for Natural Resources and 9th for the Cultural Resources. This highlights the difference between the tourism attributes of India and its enabling environment.

Improved Global Tourism Development Conditions

The TTDI 2026 highlights significant improvement in conditions for tourism development. Nearly 92% of 110 economies have seen an improvement in their TTDI scores from 2024 to 2026, while average TTDI scores have also witnessed a 2.1% increase, the highest rate of improvement since 2019. Improved TTDI scores are mainly attributed to improvements in cultural resources, tourism infrastructures and services, and air connectivity and business travel assets.

However, the report also highlights some concerns. Travel prices have become less competitive in about three-quarters of economies, while investment has lagged behind rising demand. There are other constraints to tourism development including workforce shortage, infrastructure pressure, climate change and geopolitics.

Resource Base of Tourism in India

India’s strength in the sector of tourism is due to its vast resource base both natural and cultural. As per the 2026 report of NITI Aayog, India has 44 UNESCO World Heritage Sites, 106 national parks, and 18 biosphere reserves. In 2024, India had 2.9 billion domestic tourism visits while 9.95 million foreign tourists.

According to the WEF’s 2026 study, there has been increasing importance of cultural and natural resource base worldwide. Scores on cultural resources have improved greatly during the period 2024 to 2026, while natural resource scores have also improved greatly for most countries.