Growth of Tourism Industry in North East India with Special Reference to Sikkim

Abstract

North Eastern Region (NER) of India has immense resource potential to develop tourism Of late, tourism industry in North Eastern States (NESs) has taken a lead and has done fairly well in the last 12 years or so by attracting more tourists to the region. The study reveals that Assam is the leading state in terms of overall inflow of tourists' in the region while Sikkim proves to be preferred destination of foreign tourists among NESs. Present study also reveals that Sikkim is better prepared to host both domestic and foreign tourists in the NER. The paper makes an attempt to explore the reasons for Sikkim's popularity among foreign tourists visiting NESs and the effect of increased influx of visitors on tourism sustainability in the region.