Tourism in Pakistan is considered as the tourism industry’s “next big thing”. Pakistan, with its diverse cultures, hospitable people and breathtaking landscapes, has attracted 90 million tourists to the country in the past decade. The country has seen a decline due to increased terrorism activities. However, the current security situation in Pakistan has not only improved but positively impacted the tourism sector.
There had been a time when local people stopped traveling within their home country due to security threats and various other negative reasons. The pattern has significantly changed as locals are more interested in traveling within Pakistan to the beautiful places they have only heard of. To trust the local travelers, Pakistan is immensely gifted with natural beauty and tourist spots that are equally attractive, if not better than, as any other foreign tourist destination.
We can’t deny the fact that tourism has and can add major value to our economy. Spectacular sites in the northern areas, hill stations, extremely charmingvalleys and mountain ranges, cultural heritage sites, monuments and landmarks are just a few places to must visit.
According to the World Travel and Tourism Council, the total contribution of travel & tourism to the GDP of Pakistan was 6.9% in the year 2014 and is expected to rise by 5.6% per annum by 2025. Apart from upgrading the economy, travel and tourism will help increase employment as well as attract both local and foreign investments. The more foreign tourists arrive, the more foreign money will be spent in the country.
The different components of tourism will independently play a vital role towards improving the economy. Be itleisure travel, business travel, foreign or local travel, the economy will benefit by all. With the increasing traveling opportunities in Pakistan, easy access to places and knowledge about making travel easy and affordable, people are indulging more in domestic tourism before they head out abroad.
We can already experience a lot of investments taking place. The government has invested in various establishments like ‘Metro Bus’, ‘Sightseeing Lahore’, ‘See Islamabad’ and ‘Karachi-Gwadar Ferry Service’ that are all set to boost the tourism industry. Private organizations have also taken certain steps. For example, Jovago.com is the pioneer organization to launch online hotel booking platform for tourists with an objective to promote domestic tourism in Pakistan.
