Indian Visitors to the U.S. Rise 6 Percent in 2017

The number of Indians visiting the U.S. has seen an increase of six percent in 2017, over previous years, according to official data.

Indians were also one of the highest spenders in the U.S.

According to a revised report by International Trade Administration’s National Travel and Tourism Office (NTTO), Indians also spent $1.3 million while traveling in the U.S. The highest spending was by Canadian tourists who spent $1.5 billion while the Chinese came second with $1.4 billion. Closely following India were Korean tourists who came fourth with spending of $1.2 billion and Mexicans were ranked fifth with a total spending of $0.9 billion.

The NTTO in its report revealed the data of 2016 and 2017 overseas arrivals and the count of visitors traveling to the U.S. for personal or business reasons. The report was previously published on April 9, 2018, which was suspended soon after due to errors in data.

The revised data shows that nearly 77 million international travelers came to the U.S. for personal travel (including travel for leisure, education, and medical purposes) or business travel, an increase of 0.7% over 2016. These travelers spent a record $251.4 billion, an increase of nearly $5.2 billion, a two percent rise when compared to 2016.

According to NTTO data, travelers from Argentina, China, India, Mexico, and South Korea set records in 2017 in terms of visitor spending in the United States.

According to a report in the Times of India, in 2017, 13.54 lakh Indians visited the U.S. whereas, in the previous year, the total number of Indian visitors stood at 12.8 lakh.

Sharat Dhall, COO of Indian travel portal Yatra said, “The increased Indian footfall to the U.S. may be because many direct flights have started operating between the two countries. Also, the U.S. issues visas for a longer duration as compared to other nations. This allows travelers to visit the U.S. multiple times without hassle,” the publication reported.

According to an earlier report by global timesharing exchange company, RCI, love for travel has been on the rise among Indians. International travel by Indians increased by 13 percent in 2017 against 2016 while domestic travel grew 8 percent, according to a report by the firm.

The U.S. was the most traveled destination in 2016 and 2017, while Malaysia and Indonesia were the favorites in South East Asia. In Europe, Switzerland and Spain were the most preferred.