Domestic travellers made up 91% of Airbnb guests in India, reflecting rising local tourism demand
New research by Oxford Economics, commissioned by Airbnb, highlights a significant economic impact from the company’s activity in India during 2024. The study shows that it contributed INR 113 billion to India’s GDP and supported around 111,000 jobs, alongside INR 24 billion in wage income.
Domestic Travel Drives Growth
The report finds that domestic travellers accounted for approximately 91% of Airbnb guests in India during 2024, up from about 79% in 2019.
This reflects a sharp increase in domestic travel demand, particularly among younger travellers, which has positioned India as one of the brand’s fastest growing markets. Among international visitors, the largest inbound sources were the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia.
Guest spending in India reached INR 112 billion in 2024, including accommodation and non-accommodation expenses. On average, guests stayed two nights and spent INR 11,000 per day on non-accommodation needs such as dining, shopping, and transport. Of every INR 10,000 spent in-destination, INR 3,800 went to restaurants, INR 2,400 to transport, INR 2,100 to shopping, INR 900 to arts and entertainment, and INR 800 to groceries.
Economic and Employment Impact
The company’s footprint represented 0.5% of India’s travel and tourism GDP in 2024 and accounted for 0.2% of tourism-related employment — equal to one in every 417 tourism jobs.
Economic impact extended beyond front-line tourism sectors, contributing INR 31 billion to transport and storage, INR 15 billion to agriculture, INR 13 billion to real estate and INR 12 billion to manufacturing.
Employment supported by airbnb-related activity included about 38,000 jobs in transport and storage, 19,600 in food and beverage services, 16,800 in wholesale and retail trade, and 10,700 in manufacturing.
Wage benefits from this activity were also notable, contributing INR 8.1 billion in transport and storage wages, INR 2.9 billion in manufacturing wages, and INR 2.6 billion in real estate wages.
Tourism in India is expanding beyond major cities. The non-urban share of gross booking value (GBV) was 16.0% in 2024, and total non-urban GBV has tripled since 2019, signalling strong interest in rural and lesser-known destinations.
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