Ayodhya, which witnessed the consecration (Pran Pratishtha) of Lord Ram temple on January 22, has dislodged Agra’s Taj Mahal as the numero uno tourist destination of Uttar Pradesh in calendar 2024.
According to the Uttar Pradesh tourism department, Ayodhya clocked the arrival of 135.5 million domestic and 3,153 international visitors between January and September 2024.
In contrast, Agra logged a total of 125.1 million visitors comprising 115.9 million domestic and 924,000 international tourists.
Overall, UP welcomed a record 476.1 million tourists during the period.
UP tourism minister Jaiveer Singh said the state, which witnessed an inflow of 480 million tourists in 2023, bested the figure in just nine months of 2024.
The tourist upsurge is attributed to the growing popularity of religious, spiritual and heritage tourism in UP, and the focus of the Yogi Adityanath government in promoting tourism as a key element of its $trillion economy vision.
Varanasi recorded 62 million domestic and 184,000 international tourists, while Mathura, the birthplace of Lord Krishna, welcomed 68 million visitors, including 87,229 foreigners.
Prayagraj, where Maha Kumbh Mela will start on January 13, drew 48 million tourists, while Mirzapur saw 11.8 million visitors.
Even as foreign visitors still view the Taj Mahal as an unmissable icon, the domestic travellers are increasingly getting drawn to the spiritual experiences in Ayodhya, Varanasi, Prayagraj and the like.
Moreover, UP’s Buddhist circuit also posted growth with 1.62 million visitors, including 153,000 international backpackers.
At the 45-day Maha Kumbh between January 13 and February 26, more than 400 million visitors are expected to congregate at the Sangam tent city in Prayagraj.
During this period, Ayodhya is expected to welcome almost 30 million pilgrims arriving for the Maha Kumbh.