Chandigarh: Himachal households travel more and spend more on overnight domestic trips than those in neighbouring Punjab and Haryana, according to the National Statistics Office’s (NSO) Domestic Tourism Expenditure Survey (July 2025-June 2026).The survey, conducted by NSO under the ministry of statistics and programme implementation (MoSPI), captured various aspects of domestic tourism among rural and urban households, including the number of visitors and households undertaking tourism activities, the number and purpose of trips, and expenditure incurred by households.Across India, 58.2% of households reported at least one same-day trip in the 30 days before the survey — 65.1% in rural areas and 46.2% in urban areas.Among the three states, Himachal had the highest household participation at 77.9%, followed by Punjab (65.4%) and Haryana (55.4%). Rural participation was 79% in Himachal, 76.2% in Punjab and 58.3% in Haryana, while urban participation stood at 72.5%, 52.2% and 52.5%, respectively.Himachal also recorded the highest estimated number of overnight trips (generated per 100 household) during the last 365 days for leading purposes such as holidaying, leisure and recreation, pilgrimage and religious activities, health and medical purposes, and shopping.The estimated number of such trips stood at 6.03 in rural Himachal Pradesh and 13.83 in urban areas. Punjab recorded 3.87 trips in rural areas and 4.93 in urban areas, while Haryana recorded 3.80 and 5.65 trips, respectively. The all-India figures stood at 0.76 trips in rural areas and 1.96 in urban areas.For overnight trips undertaken during the last 30 days for leading purposes such as business, social activities, education and training and other purposes, Himachal again tops the chart among the three states. The estimated number of such trips stood at 5.43 in rural Himachal and 12.53 in urban areas. Punjab recorded 4.04 trips in rural areas and 4.64 in urban areas, while Haryana recorded 3.91 and 4.62 trips, respectively. At the all-India level, the corresponding figures were 0.74 for rural areas and 1.34 for urban areas.The hill state also recorded the highest average expenditure per overnight trip in urban areas for these purposes.
