One theme, many journeys: How India is marking World Tourism Day 2026

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From AI and creator economies to culinary heritage, tourism awards, investor meets and island experiences, states are giving World Tourism Day 2026 their own local flavour

On September 27, tourism departments across India will be speaking the same language — but not necessarily in the same way.

The global theme for World Tourism Day 2026, “Digital Agenda and Artificial Intelligence to Redesign Tourism,” puts technology at the centre of the conversation. The United Nations, however, has also framed the theme around a larger question: how can digital transformation remain open, inclusive and human, while ensuring that communities and tourism workers help shape the future?

India’s states appear to be answering that question in distinctly local ways.

For some, September 27 is an awards platform. For others, it is an opportunity to put food, heritage or hill tourism in the spotlight. Some are taking the conversation into AI and digital discovery, while others are bringing tourism closer to investors, young creators and local communities.

The result is less a single national celebration and more a patchwork of tourism stories unfolding across the country.

When the destination becomes the celebration

In Andhra Pradesh, the focus is moving towards Rajamahendravaram, where the state will host its World Tourism Day celebrations on September 27. The choice of location is significant: the city is being positioned as a cultural tourism centre, while the upcoming Godavari Pushkarams are giving the state another reason to think about tourism infrastructure, pilgrimage travel and visitor experience.

Discussions around the celebrations have included tent cities, homestays, improved facilities, new tourism packages and promotional campaigns, including roadshows in Indian and overseas markets.

In other words: World Tourism Day becomes a window into Andhra Pradesh’s next tourism cycle.

Assam is taking an equally destination-led approach, but moving the spotlight away from the usual urban centres.

For the first time, Dima Hasao will host Assam’s state-level World Tourism Day celebration, at Umrangso. The programme combines a marathon, cleanliness and plantation drives, an open session and cultural evening with discussions on AI and the future of hill tourism.

It is a particularly telling choice for a state trying to broaden the tourism map: the celebration itself becomes a destination showcase.

The AI conversation gets local

Technology is the common thread running through several celebrations — but states are interpreting it differently.

Madhya Pradesh Tourism is looking at what AI means for the traveller’s journey, from destination discovery and personalised itineraries to online ticketing, chatbots and GIS-based mapping. Its World Tourism Day communication examines how digital tools could change the way visitors discover and experience heritage sites.

Kerala, meanwhile, is taking a more human-centric route with its #GoBeyondTheAlgo World Tourism Day messaging. Its premise is simple: AI can make travel smarter and easier, but the journey still belongs to the people met along the way, the places where travellers linger and the unexpected detours that technology cannot completely script.

And in Andaman & Nicobar Islands, technology is moving from campaign messaging into participation. The Administration’s World Tourism Day programme combines AI and digital innovation with a promotional video and reels competition for creators, a Tourist Convenience App competition for students, bird tourism activities and wider responsible-tourism initiatives.

The Islands are also opening up the experience itself: tourists arriving at selected locations will receive traditional welcomes, while five major attractions — including Cellular Jail, Chatham Saw Mill and the museums at Samudrika, Anthropological and Fisheries — will offer free entry on September 27.

The message is clear: digital tourism does not necessarily mean digital-only tourism.

From tourism awards to tourism ecosystems

For Karnataka, World Tourism Day is about recognition.

The state will present its inaugural Karnataka Tourism Awards 2026 on September 27, with 35 awards across five categories, covering accommodation and hospitality; tour operators and travel agents; education, publications and individuals; events, venues and infrastructure; and sustainability and rural tourism. The awards span all 31 districts.

The approach effectively turns World Tourism Day into a statewide report card on the people and businesses behind the visitor experience.

Chhattisgarh is taking a similar route, but with entrepreneurship firmly in the frame.

Its World Tourism Day programme includes State Tourism Awards covering categories such as eco-tourism sites, homestays, tourism startups and entrepreneurship, district tourism promotion, resorts, tourist information centres, tour operators, adventure tourism, hotels and social-media influencers. The programme is also linked with the Central India Connect Marketplace 2026, bringing B2B networking and tourism business opportunities into the celebration.

Here, the message moves beyond “visit our destination” to “build the tourism ecosystem with us.”

When food becomes tourism infrastructure

In Himachal Pradesh, the celebration is coming out of the conventional conference room and into the kitchen.

The Himachal Culinary & Tourism Festival 2026, being organised at IHM Kufri on September 27, will bring together culinary competitions, traditional cuisine, local ingredients and young participants. Its five competitions include student cooking challenges, a millet-focused competition, a home-chef category and a home-baker competition themed around tourism in Himachal Pradesh.

The bigger tourism story here is food as cultural capital.

Millets, wild ingredients, food preservation and traditional cooking techniques are being connected to heritage, biodiversity and responsible tourism.

It is a reminder that a destination’s tourism product can sometimes begin long before the traveller reaches the sightseeing circuit — at the dining table.

Walk it. Photograph it. Play it.

Odisha is making World Tourism Day experiential, with heritage walks, guided tours, cultural performances, photography competitions, cleanliness drives and awareness campaigns. Stakeholder interactions and recognition of tourism contributors are also part of the state’s programme.

Maharashtra is similarly spreading activities across its tourism network, with programmes at regional offices, tourist residences, restaurants, boat clubs and Kalagram. Visitors can take part in nature walks, jungle trails, heritage walks, birdwatching and traditional games, while students are being brought into the celebration through essay and painting competitions.

The state is also using the occasion for an inclusion-led traveller offer: eligible senior citizens, government employees, persons with disabilities and ex-servicemen can avail themselves of a 20% accommodation concession at MTDC tourist residences from Monday to Thursday.

And Arunachal Pradesh is putting the camera and heritage trail together. Its Tourism Department has issued an RFP for World Tourism Day event management and is running the NTD Photography Contest 2026, themed “Capture Arunachal. Celebrate Tourism”.

Meanwhile, a 5.5-km Salt Trek in Tawang has recreated part of an old salt-trading route, drawing more than 100 participants including students, young people, Army personnel and trekking enthusiasts. The heritage trek has been organised as part of activities marking World Tourism Day.

Tourism, in these states, is something to walk through rather than simply watch.

Goa puts the spotlight on the next generation

Goa’s World Tourism Day plans point towards a different constituency: young tourism voices and creators.

The Department of Tourism has initiated the process for organising World Tourism Day 2026 celebrations, Goa Yuva Tourism Meet 2026 and Goa Creator Circle 2026 under one programme.

The combination is revealing. Tourism promotion is no longer only about traditional campaigns; it is increasingly about the people creating destination narratives on digital platforms.

For Goa, the World Tourism Day conversation is therefore as much about who tells the destination story as what that story contains.

Telangana turns tourism into a festival

In Telangana, World Tourism Day takes a distinctly celebratory route.

The state is organising its September 27 programme in Hyderabad with cultural programmes, workshops, tourism-film screenings, a concert, food stalls and handloom and handicraft stalls. The occasion will also feature the Telangana State Tourism Awards, recognising contributors across the travel and hospitality ecosystem.

Technology may be the global theme, but Telangana is surrounding it with culture, cuisine, craft and entertainment.

That combination perhaps says something important about digital tourism itself: technology may change how travellers discover a destination, but the reasons they remember it can remain deeply physical and cultural.

West Bengal asks a different question

And then there is West Bengal, where World Tourism Day is becoming an investment conversation.

The state Tourism Department is hosting an Investors’ Meet at Taj Bengal, Kolkata, on September 27, bringing tourism and investment stakeholders together. The state has said it expects investment proposals for tourism infrastructure and is looking at hospitality, heritage and other tourism opportunities.

The emphasis shifts from celebrating tourism’s existing footprint to asking what needs to be built next.

For West Bengal, the tourism question is not simply “Where will visitors go?” but “What will the next tourism economy look like?”

One theme. Many tourism priorities.

Put these celebrations on a map and a pattern emerges.

• Andhra Pradesh is looking towards pilgrimage and destination development.
• Assam is using the occasion to put hill tourism on the stage.
• Arunachal Pradesh is turning heritage into an experience worth photographing.
• Chhattisgarh is recognising entrepreneurs and tourism businesses.
• Goa is bringing young creators into the tourism narrative.
• Haryana is taking World Tourism Day into its tourist complexes with special programmes and a three-day 10% food and room tariff offer from September 26–28.
• Himachal Pradesh is putting culinary heritage at the centre.
• Karnataka is recognising tourism across its 31 districts.
• Kerala is asking travellers to go beyond the algorithm.
• Madhya Pradesh is examining AI’s role in destination discovery.
• Maharashtra is making tourism participatory and inclusive.
• Odisha is inviting people to walk into its heritage.
• Telangana is blending technology with culture and celebration.
• West Bengal is turning the occasion towards investment.
• Andaman & Nicobar Islands are combining AI, creators, responsible tourism, sport, conservation and public access.

That is perhaps the most interesting story about World Tourism Day 2026.

India is not celebrating tourism in one voice.

It is celebrating the many things tourism has become — an economic opportunity, a technology platform, a cultural archive, a livelihood generator, a food story, a creator economy, a community activity and, ultimately, an experience that still has to be lived beyond the screen.

One global theme. Many Indian interpretations.