Beyond Goa and Jaipur, new tourism corridors are reshaping property demand across hotels, resorts, wellness, events and specialised hospitality

India’s tourism landscape is undergoing a significant transformation as better highways, rail connectivity, regional airports and new tourism infrastructure make it easier for travellers to combine multiple destinations in a single journey. The shift is also broadening demand beyond traditional leisure and heritage tourism, creating new opportunities for real estate developers, hospitality operators and investors.

According to CBRE South Asia’s latest report, Reimagining Indian Tourism: Unlocking the Next Wave of Growth, the next phase of tourism growth is likely to be driven by a wider mix of spiritual travel, meetings and events, destination weddings, wellness, medical tourism, wildlife, rural tourism and cruises. The report was released on September 30 at the ASSOCHAM National Tourism Conclave in New Delhi.

Expressways Are Turning Destinations Into Tourism Corridors

One of the most important changes is the growing role of road connectivity in shaping travel patterns.

The Delhi-Mumbai Expressway is helping connect Jaipur, Ranthambore, Sariska and Ahmedabad into a broader tourism circuit. Similarly, the Samruddhi Mahamarg links destinations such as Shirdi, Nashik, Trimbakeshwar and the Ajanta-Ellora caves, while the Bundelkhand Expressway connects Khajuraho, Orchha, Chitrakoot and Jhansi.

Upcoming infrastructure projects, including the Char Dham Mahamarg, Shaktipeeth Expressway and Somnath-Dwarka Expressway, could further expand multi-destination tourism circuits.

Rail tourism, ropeways and river cruises are also improving access to destinations that were previously more difficult or time-consuming to reach.

Hotel Occupancy Has Moved Above Pre-Pandemic Levels

The improvement in tourism demand is already visible in India's organised hotel sector.

CBRE data shows that occupancy across India's organised hotel market increased to 64.1% in 2025 from 42% in 2021. Growth in average daily rates has also helped push revenue per available room above pre-pandemic levels.

Leisure destinations are benefiting alongside major gateway cities. Goa recorded occupancy of around 75-80%, while Jaipur reported occupancy of approximately 62-67%. Bengaluru was particularly notable for RevPAR growth, which increased by 20-25% year-on-year.

The improvement in occupancy and room pricing is important for real estate because stronger hotel operating performance can improve the economics of new hospitality projects and encourage fresh investment.

Midscale Hotels Could Be a Major Beneficiary

India's tourism expansion is not restricted to luxury resorts.

Economy, upper-midscale and midscale hotels account for nearly 60% of India's branded room inventory, according to CBRE. As domestic tourism expands into smaller cities and pilgrimage destinations, demand for affordable and mid-market accommodation could become increasingly important.

Uttar Pradesh provides an example of this trend. The state's hotel inventory has grown 18% since 2021, while the share of midscale hotels increased from 15% to 19%.

This trend could create opportunities for developers who can provide efficient, standardised accommodation in emerging tourism locations without the cost structure associated with luxury properties.

Spiritual Tourism Could Create a New Property Cycle

India's pilgrimage economy is emerging as an important driver of hospitality and real estate demand.

Improved road, rail and airport connectivity can allow pilgrimage destinations to attract visitors across a larger portion of the year rather than concentrating demand around specific religious periods.

This creates requirements for hotels, serviced accommodation, restaurants, retail outlets and other visitor infrastructure. CBRE's earlier market outlook had estimated that destinations of spiritual significance could see more than 9,000 additional hotel rooms by 2030.

For property developers, the opportunity therefore extends beyond conventional hotels to budget accommodation, serviced stays, retail and food-and-beverage properties.

Weddings and MICE Are Expanding the Hospitality Opportunity

Destination weddings and MICE — meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions — are creating another layer of demand.

These segments require substantially different infrastructure from conventional leisure tourism. Large banquet halls, conference facilities, business hotels, restaurants, parking and event-support infrastructure can all become important components of a tourism ecosystem.

The trend also opens opportunities in cities that may not traditionally have been viewed as major leisure destinations but have strong connectivity, corporate activity or cultural significance.

Wellness and Medical Tourism Create Specialised Demand

Wellness and medical tourism are also influencing the type of properties being developed.

Wellness tourism can support resorts, retreats and long-stay accommodation, while medical tourism can create demand for hotels and serviced apartments located near major hospitals.

The broader implication is that tourism real estate is becoming increasingly specialised. Instead of developing properties around a single traditional hotel model, investors can increasingly design assets around specific traveller requirements and demand patterns.

Wildlife Lodges Could Become a High-Value Niche

Wildlife tourism represents another emerging segment.

Branded hospitality operators are entering destinations such as Ranthambore and Satpura, where demand for quality accommodation can coexist with limited availability of suitable properties.

Environmental regulations and restrictions around protected areas can constrain supply, potentially supporting premium accommodation models. However, these same regulations also make wildlife hospitality more location-specific and complex than conventional hotel development.

Rural Tourism Can Use Existing Housing Stock

Rural tourism presents a different investment model.

Rather than depending primarily on large new hotel projects, the segment can grow through the conversion and use of existing housing stock. This potentially allows homeowners, small businesses and local operators to participate in tourism without the capital expenditure required for a conventional hotel.

For smaller investors and local entrepreneurs, this could make tourism-related real estate more accessible.

Cruise Tourism Could Transform Port-Side Real Estate

India's developing cruise tourism ecosystem could generate opportunities well beyond cruise terminals themselves.

As cruise infrastructure expands, surrounding locations may see demand for hotels, restaurants, retail, entertainment and other visitor services. CBRE expects cruise tourism to support hospitality, retail and food-and-beverage development around port terminals.

This creates the possibility of new tourism-led commercial clusters around ports, particularly where connectivity to major cities and tourist destinations is strong.

The Investment Opportunity Is Broad — But So Are the Risks

The tourism real estate opportunity now extends across several distinct categories:

• Pilgrimage: hotels, budget accommodation, retail and food services

• MICE: convention centres, business hotels and event venues

• Destination weddings: resorts, banquet facilities and hospitality

• Wellness: retreats, resorts and long-stay properties

• Medical tourism: hotels and serviced accommodation near hospitals

• Wildlife: premium lodges and experiential hospitality

• Rural tourism: homestays and converted existing housing

• Cruise tourism: hotels, restaurants, retail and entertainment around ports

However, the investment characteristics of each segment are different. Location, seasonality, occupancy, connectivity, land availability, environmental restrictions, regulatory approvals and the ability to generate demand throughout the year can materially influence project economics.

Connectivity Has Solved One Problem — Destination Infrastructure Remains Critical

The rapid development of highways, railways and regional connectivity has reduced one of the major barriers to tourism growth: accessibility.

The next challenge is building sufficient infrastructure at the destinations themselves.

That includes hotel rooms, trained hospitality personnel, restaurants, entertainment facilities, event infrastructure and specialised assets suited to different traveller categories.

CBRE Chairman and CEO for India, South-East Asia, Middle East and Africa Anshuman Magazine said connectivity had significantly expanded the reach of destinations, while the next challenge lies at the destination level in providing rooms, skilled manpower and suitable assets for different traveller requirements.

Tourism Could Become a Wider Real Estate Theme

The changing tourism landscape suggests that India's property opportunity is gradually moving beyond conventional metropolitan residential and commercial real estate.

A new tourism corridor can potentially support multiple asset classes simultaneously — hotels, restaurants, retail, serviced accommodation, entertainment, event venues and local transportation infrastructure.

For investors and developers, this means that the quality of the underlying tourism ecosystem may matter as much as the destination's existing popularity.

The report also highlighted the importance of policy support, technology, sustainability, MSME participation and private-sector investment in converting India's tourism potential into a larger economic opportunity.

Real Estate Outlook

India's tourism expansion is creating a broader and more diversified opportunity set for hospitality and tourism-linked real estate. The combination of improving connectivity, rising hotel occupancy and the emergence of spiritual, wildlife, wellness, medical, MICE, rural and cruise tourism could support demand for specialised properties across both established and emerging destinations.

For developers and investors, however, the opportunity is highly location-specific. Strong connectivity alone does not guarantee sustained occupancy or attractive returns. Seasonality, regulatory restrictions, construction costs, land availability and the depth of year-round demand will remain important factors.

The emerging trend nevertheless points to a significant shift: India's next tourism cycle may be less about a handful of established destinations and more about interconnected tourism corridors, specialised experiences and the real estate infrastructure required to support them.