Once rated as unseen players in the tourist industry, Indian women are currently rising up to take their roles in India’s tourism business and management.
Raising their voices through a webinar discussion organized and screened alongside World Tourism Day last month, Indian women took the stage to discuss their experiences and roles in the tourism business through active participation in management and business.
Indian women have undertaken leadership and decision-making roles for the development of local and domestic tourism in India, which was once dominated by men.
Through their virtual discussion as part of events to mark the 2025 World Tourism Day last month, Indian women discussed and exchanged views on the roles they play in the development of tourism in India through active participation in business, management, and leadership.
The Virtual Summit that was organized and screened by the Institute of Tourism brought together Indian women speakers from various Indian universities, colleges, and other recognized tourism institutions in India, Canada, and other states recognized for their tourism development.
Community Homestays, Eco-Tourism projects, wildlife and nature conservation programmes are among the key tourism business enterprises which Indian women are currently eyeing for enterprise development, said Dr Adyasha Das, Professor at the Indian Institute of Tourism and Travel Management
She said that Indian women were catalysts for change and key market players in tourism through tourist business projects, skills development, travelling, community homestays and tour companies.
Dr Sunita Tanwar said that women have been unseen architects of tourism in India who need recognition for the noble role they play in tourism development.
She said that women could play a crucial role in cultural preservation and safeguarding with the development of a new matrix that would determine the women’s role in tourism with the formulation of a policy recognition that would value the women’s role in tourism development.
Women entrepreneurs could stand as job creators, community tourism builders and leaders in tourism management. Women entrepreneurs in domestic tourism have further played a pivotal role in the development of tourism in India, she said.
Dr Vanessa Gowreesunkar said that tourism empowers women socially as a platform for raising women’s incomes for families.
“We are powerful. Women in India have their own hotels, homestays, and guest houses”, she said.
From unseen to visibility, Indian women are the future tourism leaders in India’s tourism industry, she added.
Other panelists at the webinar noted that women could enhance India’s tourism development through active participation in the tourism industry, while generating income for their families.
Women entrepreneurs in tourism, through community homestays, could generate income for rural communities, thereby reducing rural-to-urban migrations in search of employment and income.
Anita Mendiratta, the Special Advisor to the Secretary General of the UN Tourism, said through her recorded voice that when women rise in tourism, the community rises with them.
She stated that tourism employs one in every ten people worldwide through nature conservation, tour guiding, and entrepreneurship.
“Women are invisible contributors in the tourist economy. They are storytellers, ambassadors and leaders in tourism. When women rise in tourism, the community rises with them”, she said.
The Webinar that brought together Indian women from higher learning and research institutions was part of events to mark the 2025 World Tourism Day through voices from Indian women whose experience and knowledge in tourism could transform India’s tourism through the active participation of women entrepreneurs.
Indian women travelers are stepping into 2025 with a clear vision defined by independence, exploration, and a strong emphasis on safety and comfort.
There has been a remarkable shift in how women from India are shaping global travel trends, making thoughtful, empowered choices driven by their desire for meaningful and secure experiences.
Leave a Comment