nationalities amongst the independent travellers in India

Kanbe · Feb 17th, 2005, 22:58

i know people from all different parts of the world come to travel India. Im curious though, what proportions of which nationalities do you say make up the independent travellers (so not talking about those tourist group tours that frequent Delhi, Agra and Jaipur).

I seem to see a lot Israelis and Japanese travellers.

What are your opinions, Im-ers?

Idli · Feb 17th, 2005, 23:28

Why don't you start a poll

Jorge Reverter · Feb 17th, 2005, 23:30

Hi Kanbe,

I have read I don't know where, few weeks ago, than french, followed by spanishs and italians were the nationalities you are asking for (travellers to India, independents or not). I think is not true. From Spain we don't even have direct flights to India, and when traveling through India I found out people from Australia, British etc, and very few french and spaniards.

The best way to know it is with a new poll.

crvlvr · Feb 18th, 2005, 00:07

Indian Tourism Statistics

Some Highlights

- tourist arrivals in India: 1995: 2.12 million -- 1999: 2.48 million -- 2000: 2.64 million -- 2002: 2.36 million

- number of Britons visiting India: about 300,000 per year

- number of domestic tourists or travellers in 2002: 270 million (acc. to Department
of Tourism)

- number of tourists visiting the Taj Mahal in 2003: over 3 million
(most visited Indian tourist attraction) [BBC Sep 04]

Goa tourism statistics
- number of tourists (domestic & foreign) visiting Goa: about 2 million every year
- number of foreign tourists visiting Goa: about 200,000 every year
- number of British backpackers visiting Goa: about 20,000 every year

pooch · Feb 18th, 2005, 00:09

I think it would go something like

British
Israelis
Germans
French/Dutch/Japanese/Koreans
Italians
Aussies
Spanish

and the rest in just about equal numbers with Americans being a slight majority.

Karma Queen · Feb 18th, 2005, 01:30

definately israelis

also a huge amount of british, but that maybe because i'm british and perhaps noticed them more than the others.

how come there are so many people in india from israel?

gs_uppal · Feb 18th, 2005, 01:36

i was told the reason for so many israelis being there to be -
that israelis have to compulsorily work in their military/army for a couple of years after their studies, and then they are given 1 year break, during which they have to go abroad, and they are given some 20k USD or so which they have to exhaust in travelling allowances (something like that figures may be wrong/absurd), so they end up in india , stay here for a few months , travel all over from manali to goa to kerala, stay on monthly basis, even enjoy hash etc.
just let me know whether this reason is true or not

Karma Queen · Feb 18th, 2005, 01:41

wow the travelling allowance thing sounds fantastic if it is true! wish i was israeli...

pooch · Feb 18th, 2005, 02:03

lol karmaqueen it ain't true. Their mandatory army time in most cases is before uni and they take off to latin america and the east in large numbers soon after, the rest go to north america and Oz. One reason could perhaps be that India was not that easy a place for them to obtain a visa to until 1993 or so (no diplomatic relations). Some of them got killed trying to crossover to Jordan illegally when they had no relations

crvlvr · Feb 18th, 2005, 02:16

Israel is surrounded by muslim countries (usually antisemitic) and european countries are too expensive. India's is the cheapest country to travel in that has a congenial relationship with Israel.

Tigr · Feb 18th, 2005, 03:41

India is cheap, and India does not have a history of antisemiticism....like they have in Europe. India is a perfect place to unwind...go slow after hectic army life.

nickooji · Feb 18th, 2005, 06:41

it's not the numbers of the israeli's it's the fact that they are so in your face that they don't blend into the background. I guess some may be kind and considerate, but after the first wave hit me i kept clear of them. But then again alow for the size of the groups, perhaps there are more than i realised!!

machadinha · Feb 18th, 2005, 08:43

Quote:

Originally Posted by crvlvr

Israel is surrounded by muslim countries (usually antisemitic) and european countries are too expensive. India's is the cheapest country to travel in that has a congenial relationship with Israel.

Sorry but that's just complete bollocks I think. Did you ever visit the Sinai?

Most Israelis -- men and women -- have to go through the army at a young age. It's not so surprising that between that experience and "settling down" they feel the urge to get on the road so to speak. (A not unsignificant number I met are actually draft dodgers, though probably not many in India.) It also helps explain why a number of them have severe issues to deal with that maybe have earnt them a bad reputation both on this forum and on the ground in India. Think what a couple of years being actively engaged in a civil war at age 18 would do to you.

lostinasia · Feb 18th, 2005, 10:18

A semantic point: aren't Arabs Semites too?

A poll would be rather self-selecting for native English speakers, wouldn't it?! I don't think there are that many Japanese or Koreans or Israelis on the message board--a few, I'm sure, but they'd certainly be under represented in any poll compared to numbers in India.

It's hard to judge overall nationality numbers because the different language groups often go to slightly different places. For example, I have a vague and totally false impression that Udaipur is filled with French tourists, simply because the guesthouse where I stayed isn't in Lonely Planet but is highly recommended in one of the main French guidebooks. Stumbling into little parallel worlds like that is always entertaining!

I think groups/ packs of ANY nationality can be overwhelming, whether it's a dozen Israelis in Varanasi, a dozen Americans in the Taj Mahal, or a dozen Chinese in Jaipur.

Don't underestimate the number of Koreans. I think a lot of the Koreans are mistaken for Japanese, even though in India I saw far more Koreans than Japanese (I could tell by the language on the guidebooks). Orchha for some reason had a huge number of Koreans, and lots of Korean menus in resturants!

nomadelmundo · Feb 18th, 2005, 10:49

Quote:

Originally Posted by pooch

I think it would go something like

British
Israelis
Germans
French/Dutch/Japanese/Koreans
Italians
Aussies
Spanish

and the rest in just about equal numbers with Americans being a slight majority.

hey! don't forget about chinese (1/5 of the world's population!)

Feb 17th, 2005, 22:58	#1
Kanbe la la laa Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: lala land Posts: 350	nationalities amongst the independent travellers in India i know people from all different parts of the world come to travel India. Im curious though, what proportions of which nationalities do you say make up the independent travellers (so not talking about those tourist group tours that frequent Delhi, Agra and Jaipur). I seem to see a lot Israelis and Japanese travellers. What are your opinions, Im-ers?

Feb 18th, 2005, 02:16	#10
crvlvr Guru Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Hollywood Posts: 4,667	Israel is surrounded by muslim countries (usually antisemitic) and european countries are too expensive. India's is the cheapest country to travel in that has a congenial relationship with Israel. Last edited by crvlvr : Feb 18th, 2005 at 04:38.

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Feb 17th, 2005, 23:28	#2
Idli Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: USA Posts: 41	Why don't you start a poll

Feb 17th, 2005, 23:30	#3
Jorge Reverter Maha Guru Member Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Murcia - Spain Posts: 1,464	Hi Kanbe, I have read I don't know where, few weeks ago, than french, followed by spanishs and italians were the nationalities you are asking for (travellers to India, independents or not). I think is not true. From Spain we don't even have direct flights to India, and when traveling through India I found out people from Australia, British etc, and very few french and spaniards. The best way to know it is with a new poll.

Feb 18th, 2005, 00:07	#4
crvlvr Guru Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Hollywood Posts: 4,667	Indian Tourism Statistics Some Highlights - tourist arrivals in India: 1995: 2.12 million -- 1999: 2.48 million -- 2000: 2.64 million -- 2002: 2.36 million - number of Britons visiting India: about 300,000 per year - number of domestic tourists or travellers in 2002: 270 million (acc. to Department of Tourism) - number of tourists visiting the Taj Mahal in 2003: over 3 million (most visited Indian tourist attraction) [BBC Sep 04] Goa tourism statistics - number of tourists (domestic & foreign) visiting Goa: about 2 million every year - number of foreign tourists visiting Goa: about 200,000 every year - number of British backpackers visiting Goa: about 20,000 every year

Feb 18th, 2005, 00:09	#5
pooch Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Middle East <---->India Posts: 384	I think it would go something like British Israelis Germans French/Dutch/Japanese/Koreans Italians Aussies Spanish and the rest in just about equal numbers with Americans being a slight majority.

Feb 18th, 2005, 01:30	#6
Karma Queen Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: England Posts: 365	definately israelis also a huge amount of british, but that maybe because i'm british and perhaps noticed them more than the others. how come there are so many people in india from israel?

Feb 18th, 2005, 01:36	#7
gs_uppal Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Mumbai Posts: 391	i was told the reason for so many israelis being there to be - that israelis have to compulsorily work in their military/army for a couple of years after their studies, and then they are given 1 year break, during which they have to go abroad, and they are given some 20k USD or so which they have to exhaust in travelling allowances (something like that figures may be wrong/absurd), so they end up in india , stay here for a few months , travel all over from manali to goa to kerala, stay on monthly basis, even enjoy hash etc. just let me know whether this reason is true or not

Feb 18th, 2005, 01:41	#8
Karma Queen Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: England Posts: 365	wow the travelling allowance thing sounds fantastic if it is true! wish i was israeli...

Feb 18th, 2005, 02:03	#9
pooch Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Middle East <---->India Posts: 384	lol karmaqueen it ain't true. Their mandatory army time in most cases is before uni and they take off to latin america and the east in large numbers soon after, the rest go to north america and Oz. One reason could perhaps be that India was not that easy a place for them to obtain a visa to until 1993 or so (no diplomatic relations). Some of them got killed trying to crossover to Jordan illegally when they had no relations

Feb 18th, 2005, 03:41	#11
Tigr Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: US Posts: 19	India is cheap, and India does not have a history of antisemiticism....like they have in Europe. India is a perfect place to unwind...go slow after hectic army life.

Feb 18th, 2005, 06:41	#12
nickooji X-Walah Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: England Posts: 39	it's not the numbers of the israeli's it's the fact that they are so in your face that they don't blend into the background. I guess some may be kind and considerate, but after the first wave hit me i kept clear of them. But then again alow for the size of the groups, perhaps there are more than i realised!!

Feb 18th, 2005, 10:18	#14
lostinasia Lost In Asia Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Taiwan Posts: 46	A semantic point: aren't Arabs Semites too? A poll would be rather self-selecting for native English speakers, wouldn't it?! I don't think there are that many Japanese or Koreans or Israelis on the message board--a few, I'm sure, but they'd certainly be under represented in any poll compared to numbers in India. It's hard to judge overall nationality numbers because the different language groups often go to slightly different places. For example, I have a vague and totally false impression that Udaipur is filled with French tourists, simply because the guesthouse where I stayed isn't in Lonely Planet but is highly recommended in one of the main French guidebooks. Stumbling into little parallel worlds like that is always entertaining! I think groups/ packs of ANY nationality can be overwhelming, whether it's a dozen Israelis in Varanasi, a dozen Americans in the Taj Mahal, or a dozen Chinese in Jaipur. Don't underestimate the number of Koreans. I think a lot of the Koreans are mistaken for Japanese, even though in India I saw far more Koreans than Japanese (I could tell by the language on the guidebooks). Orchha for some reason had a huge number of Koreans, and lots of Korean menus in resturants!