How Greece, with just 9 million people, draws 35 million tourists while India struggles despite its infrastructure boom

In my last conversation with Dimitris Manikis, president and managing director, EMEA, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, he was relatively buoyant about India's hospitality sector. While India is still one of Wyndham’s fastest growing markets globally, Manikis has a changed perspective today. 

India needs to improve how it presents itself to overseas travellers if it is to convert its infrastructure spending and economic growth into higher inbound tourism, Manikis tells me. Quite rightly so.

The country faces a clear disparity: overseas travel by Indians is surging, with more than 30 million departures, while foreign tourist arrivals are recovering more slowly. The World Travel & Tourism Council estimates that India welcomed 18.6 million international visitors last year, down 7.4% from the previous year. That figure also includes overseas Indians who travelled to the country during the period.

Manikis said India has the assets to emerge as a stronger global leisure destination, including expanding airports, rail and road networks, a young workforce, diverse cultural attractions, and a growing hotel market. However, he argued that the country’s tourism proposition is not reaching prospective travellers clearly enough.

“India is so happy with domestic that it doesn’t pay attention that much to the inbound. But I think this is a mistake,” he opined.

He contrasted India’s international visitor arrivals with those of Greece, arguing that the gap points to a marketing challenge rather than an infrastructure deficit. “Greece, nine million population, 35 million tourists. India, 1.4 billion population, 10 million or so tourists. And that includes business travellers as well. So, there is a disconnect somewhere.”

Greece welcomed a record 37.98 million inbound travelers in 2025, according to provisional data from the Bank of Greece.

Storytelling, not infrastructure, at fault

Manikis said India was already investing heavily in connectivity, as nearly 27 airports are under construction, alongside new railways, highways and ports. “I don’t think it’s infrastructure related. It’s more about storytelling,” he insisted.

In the Union Budget 2025-26, Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs, Nirmala Sitharaman announced plans to connect 120 new airports in 10 years, targeting four crore additional passengers. Moreover, according to Morgan Stanley India’s infrastructure investment is expected to rise from 5.3% of GDP in FY24 to 6.5% by FY29.

The key question then, he said, is why a holidaymaker in a European country like UK should choose destinations such as Udaipur, Jaipur or Kerala over another country. India needs to communicate that answer more visibly through international campaigns, trade events and digital content, he said.

He recalled the impact of the “Incredible India” campaign, but said the country needs to regain a stronger international profile. “I would like to see India featuring at the London buses,” he said, adding that he did not see the country represented prominently at major travel trade events in the way smaller destinations were.

For Wyndham, the opportunity is linked both to international arrivals and the rapid expansion of Indian outbound travel. The hotel company has 120 million Wyndham Rewards members globally and wants to continue introducing India to them, Manikis said.

At the same time, he expects 150 million Indian consumers to travel internationally over the next few years. “I want to capture that share of wallet as well,” he said.

He described Indian outbound travellers as experience-led and more likely to travel for culture, food and discovery rather than only beach holidays. They also often travel in the off-season, a pattern that can help destinations spread demand beyond peak periods.

Manikis pointed to the new IndiGo service to Athens as an indication of that potential. Around 45,000 Indians travelled to Greece in the first six months after the route was introduced.

India’s wellness, spirituality, pilgrimage and cultural heritage could provide a more distinctive tourism narrative, he said. “The Ayurveda, the well-being, the spiritual nature of India,” he said, are experiences that can appeal to international visitors if they are presented more effectively.

“India has so much going for them,” Manikis said. “You need to tell that story.”