Amid calls for boycott, how much do Indians contribute to Turkey and Azerbaijan's tourism? Explained
Turkey and Azerbaijan expressed support for Pakistan amid Operation Sindoor and the subsequent escalation of conflict with India. This has led to calls for tourism boycotts to both countries on social media. We look at how much impact this could have.
₹4,000 crore — that's how much Indian tourists spent in Turkey and Azerbaijan in 2024, according to industrialist Harsh Goenka. Travel company EaseMyTrip's Nishant Pitti noted a ₹3,000 crore spend the year prior. That's how much is at stake as social media calls for boycott Turkey and Azerbaijan gain steam.
Why the hullabaloo? Well, both Turkey and Azerbaijan expressed open support for Pakistan when India struck nine terrorist camps in the country and Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir (PoK) on May 7 under Operation Sindoor. The strikes came after a deadly terrorist attack in Pahalgam claimed 26 lives in April.
In response, many Indian travellers are cancelling trips to Turkey and Azerbaijan — the former being a favourite budget European destination, and both countries ranking high among those tourists opting in the ₹1-2 lakh per person travel packages.
Boycott Turkey, Azerbaijan: What's Happened So Far?
There is no official call for a boycott, but netizens have created a buzz on social media. And it has had some impact. According to a statememt from MakeMyTrip on May 14, flight bookings to these two nations have dropped by 60 per cent over the past week, while cancellations have jumped 250 per cent.
“Indian travellers have expressed strong sentiments over the past one week, with bookings for Azerbaijan and Türkiye decreasing by 60 per cent, while cancellations have surged by 250 per cent during the same period. In solidarity with our nation and out of deep respect for our armed forces, we strongly support this sentiment and advise all against all non-essential travel to Azerbaijan and Türkiye,” a company spokesperson said.
Further, MakeMyTrip has also removed all promotions and offers for these destinations from its on its platforms. They are not alone. Similar moves were made by EaseMyTrip, Cox & Kings, ixigo, and Travomint.
How Much Impact Can Indian Travellers Boycott Have?
Nishant Pitti, Founder and Chairman of EaseMyTrip in a post on social media platform X (former Twitter), made a case for Indian tourists buying power in these countries.
In his X post, Harsh Goenka noted that Indians gave over ₹4,000 crore to Turkey and Azerbaijan through tourism in 2024, which “created jobs, boosted their economy, hotels, weddings, flights (sic)”. He added that there are “plenty of beautiful places in India and the world. Please skip these two places (sic)”.
According to Pitti, more than 2.87 lakh Indian tourists visited Turkey in 2023, up 25 per cent year-on-year (YoY), from 2.3 lakh visitors in 2022. He also estimated the spend per Indian tourist in Turkey to be between $1,200–1,500 (approx ₹1,02,600-1,28,200). Further, the total estimated Indian tourist spend in Turkey in 2023, according to Pitti was between $350–400 million (approx ₹3,000 crore).
He added that 12 per cent of Turkey's GDP and 10 per cent of its employment depends on tourism, with India being one of the fastest-growing source markets.
“Why This Matters: Indian tourists have high spending power, making them key contributors to foreign economies. By consciously redirecting tourism flow, we reduce economic support to countries taking anti-India positions. India’s own tourism industry can benefit by retaining this spend within the country or redirecting it to nations aligned with Indian interests,” he added.
He added that more than 25 million (2.5 crore) Indians travel abroad each year, with outbound tourism expected to reach $44 billion by 2032. “If even 10 per cent of Indian tourists reconsider destinations based on national interest, it can shift thousands of crores in annual tourism spend,” Pitti added.
Another Maldives-style Boycott in the Making?
The numbers are indeed big. As per Azerbaijan Tourism Board, 2,43,589 Indians visited the country in 2024 — up from a mere 4,853 in 2014. It expects a 11 per cent growth over the next 10 years.
For Turkey, according to data from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, arrivals in 2024 numbered at 3,30,000 — compared to 119,503 in 2014.
Rikant Pittie, CEO for EaseMyTrip told Reuters the platform has seen 22 per cent rise in cancellations for Turkey, and 30 per cent for Azerbaijan, with travellers switching to Georgia, Serbia, Greece, Thailand and Vietnam.
Jyoti Mayal, former president of Travel Agents Association of India, also told ANI that up to 50 per cent of outbound bookings for Turkey and Azerbaijan have been cancelled. “We have helped and supported Turkey and Azerbaijan a lot in the tourism sector. We must show our displeasure over how they have behaved with India. We are not supporting travel to these countries,” she said.
(With inputs from Agencies)