Chennai: Their advertisement blitzkrieg often gives one the impression that God’s Own Country – Kerala and foreigners’ haven – Goa are the most sought after states in the country. But for the second time in a row Tamil Nadu proved that it is the topmost state in the country in terms of attracting domestic tourists and now the first in receiving foreign tourists in 2014.
The state has been silently working its way up the ladder and being a comparatively peaceful state with varied attractions have also caused the numbers of visitors to swell. “Tamil Nadu tourism department has been improving the basic infrastructure for the benefit of tourists, including improvement of last mile connectivity in all tourist destinations. We have been marketing our destinations in various states and in prominent exhibitions abroad,” a senior tourism official said.
This apart, the state continues to attract heritage lovers and adventure buffs. The Mamallapuram, Chennai, Madurai, Rameswaram and Kanyakumari are among the prominent destinations that have attracted tourists by the drove.
In 2013, TN emerged first in India in domestic tourist arrivals for the first time (receiving 24.42 crore arrivals) and second in foreign tourist arrivals (39.9 lakh). The state was ranked second in the country in the domestic tourist arrivals (18.42 crore) next to Andhra Pradesh and also second in foreign tourist arrivals (35.62 lakh) next to Maharashtra in 2012.
In 2014, TN retained its first rank in rolling out the red carpet to 32.76 crore domestic tourists while UP trailed behind with 18.28 crore tourists, according to date compiled by the Market Research Division of the Union ministry of tourism. With regard foreign tourists arrival, the state received 4.66 lakh footfalls while Maharashtra received 4.39 lakh.
