India to Launch 51 Cruise Circuits by 2027

New Delhi, Jul 21 (PTI) The Union government has planned 51 new cruise circuits across 14 states and three Union Territories by 2027 under the Cruise Bharat Mission, an official statement said on Monday.

Viking Cruises has announced its entry into India's river cruise market with Viking Brahmaputra, an 80-guest vessel scheduled to begin operations in late 2027, signalling heightened interest and investment in India's river cruise tourism sector, it added.

Viking Brahmaputra, to be indigenously developed by Hooghly Cochin Shipyard Limited in Kolkata, will operate on National Waterway-2, the statement said.

The river cruise tourism sector in India has witnessed notable growth, with the number of river cruise voyages on National Waterways increasing from 371 in 2023-24 to 443 in 2024-25.

This 19.4 per cent growth underscores the rising appeal and operational efficiency of river cruises in India's inland waterways, it said.

From just five vessels on three waterways in 2013-14, river cruise operations have expanded to 25 vessels across 13 national waterways in 2024-25.

The Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) is developing dedicated cruise terminals on the Ganga and Brahmaputra rivers, with three cruise terminals planned in Varanasi, Guwahati, Kolkata, and Patna.

In the northeast, four more cruise terminals at Silghat, Biswanath Ghat, Neamati, and Guijan are proposed to be developed by 2027.