World Tourism Day 2026: Digital Tourism Stack Launched

The Ministry of Tourism marked World Tourism Day 2026 at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi. Union Minister for Tourism and Culture Gajendra Singh Shekhawat used the occasion to launch two national initiatives and to exchange five agreements with travel industry partners.

This year's theme

The theme for the day was Digital Agenda and Artificial Intelligence to Redesign Tourism. The keynote on the theme was delivered by Dr Vivek Raghavan, Co-Founder of Sarvam AI, who spoke of technology reshaping every stage of a journey, from choosing a destination to booking and sharing the trip. Tourism Secretary Bhuvnesh Kumar said India's experience with Digital Public Infrastructure could now be applied to travel.

National Digital Tourism Stack

The first launch is a shared digital layer for tourism, being built with ONDC and supported by the International Centre for DPI Innovation and Advancement (ICDIA). It will let tourism providers list their offerings across participating platforms, with verified identities and supplier credentials, search and discovery, payments, ratings and grievance redressal. States, Union Territories and industry will be part of it, and a pilot is planned for January 2027.

Dekho Apna Desh Campaign 2.0

The second launch is the National Mission for Alternative Destinations, carried forward as Dekho Apna Desh Campaign 2.0. Its purpose is to spread visitor demand away from crowded places towards lesser-known but travel-ready ones. The first set will be drawn from hill and mountain spots, coastal and waterfront places, heritage and cultural towns, and regional pilgrimage centres, chosen for their appeal, infrastructure and capacity to host more visitors. Bookable itineraries covering stay, transport, meals and local experiences will be built with States and industry, promoted through a social media-first push, and monitored against each destination's assessed carrying capacity.

Five MoUs signed

• Airbnb India — homestay development and host skilling
• FlixBus India — intercity mobility and responsible travel
• Glance Digital Experience (InMobi Group) — digital tourism content
• Eicher Group Foundation — community-led heritage tourism in the Himalayan region
• MakeMyTrip (India) — unexplored villages and local shopping

All five partnerships are non-commercial, non-financial, non-binding and non-exclusive. Presentations on the two new initiatives were made by Bhuvnesh Kumar and by Suman Billa, Additional Secretary and Director General in the ministry. The event also saw the launch of a television campaign on Swachhta carrying the Prime Minister's appeal to keep pilgrimage, temple and heritage sites clean, and the release of the publication India Tourism Statistics 2026. Shekhawat said travellers today look for authentic experiences such as local food, art and traditions, and that the next phase of growth must reach communities, entrepreneurs, women and youth beyond the popular circuits.