Archive · 1 Oct 2026
India Expands Tourism Network With Ropeways, Cruises and Seaplanes
India is building more ways for tourists to travel around the country.
New ropeways are planned for mountain and pilgrimage destinations.
A ropeway to Kedarnath could make a journey that takes 8–9 hours last about 36 minutes.
Another planned ropeway could shorten trips to Hemkund Sahib.
River tourism is also growing, with more boats and cruise routes on India’s waterways.
The country plans to add 51 river cruise circuits by 2047.
Seaplanes may connect islands and coastal areas through more than 28 water aerodromes.
These projects are intended to make important tourist places easier to reach.
The Parvatmala programme includes ropeway projects estimated to require Rs 1.25 lakh crore in investment.
The proposed Kedarnath ropeway could reduce travel from Sonprayag from 8–9 hours to about 36 minutes.
India’s river cruise fleet grew to 25 vessels operating across 17 circuits in FY2025.
The Inland Waterways Authority of India plans 51 new river cruise circuits across 47 waterways by 2047.
More than 28 water aerodromes have been awarded or identified for seaplane connectivity across several Indian destinations.
- Who
- The Indian government, the Inland Waterways Authority of India, and tourism and transport operators including Skyhop Aviation.
- What
- India is expanding tourism infrastructure through more than 250 planned ropeways, new river cruise circuits, and over 28 water aerodromes.
- When
- The reported figures cover FY2024–FY2025, while several expansion targets extend to 2030 and 2047.
- Where
- Across India, including pilgrimage and hill destinations, the Ganga, Brahmaputra and Yamuna regions, Jammu and Kashmir, islands, and coastal states.
- Why
- The projects aim to improve access to tourist destinations, reduce travel times, and ease pressure on environmentally sensitive hill regions.
- Ropeway investment
- Planned Parvatmala ropeway projects represent an estimated Rs 1.25 lakh crore investment.
- Kedarnath project
- The proposed 12.9-km ropeway could reduce travel from Sonprayag to Kedarnath to about 36 minutes.
- Hemkund Sahib project
- The proposed 12.4-km ropeway could reduce the round trip from about three days to nearly three hours.
- River passenger traffic
- Inland waterway passenger traffic increased from 1.61 crore in FY2024 to 7.6 crore in FY2025.
- River cruise vessels
- The number of river cruise vessels rose from three in FY2014 to 25 in FY2025.
- Cruise expansion plan
- The Inland Waterways Authority of India plans 51 new river cruise circuits across 47 waterways by 2047.
- Water aerodromes
- More than 28 water aerodromes have been awarded or identified under UDAN-3 and later rounds.