Yes, most tourist attractions in China are very far from China's biggest cities. That's definitely a big minus for them.

The biggest plus for India's local tourism is its interrelation with religion. People from South of India travel to my location for Lord Krishna and end up visiting to other attractions including the Himalayas and other important locations. The people from North also travel to the South - to Rameshwaram - to see the God made bridge between India and Sri Lanka and they end up visiting other attractions as well.

There's a huge railway network - fourth in the world - in India that helps managing all this very cheaply. Can you believe if I tell you that a peeson from my place can travel to rameshwaram which is 2500 kms (approax 1500 miles) and it only costs around $25 in AC cabin one side.

India's tourism industry is thriving and growing at around 10%/year. This chart can explain more.