Travel sentiment rebounds as travellers seek to make most of long Independence Day weekend
Destinations like Goa, Coimbatore, Dehradun, and Port Blair are trending this year.
"We planned our holidays well in advance. We will be driving to Goa and Gokarna next weekend. We are taking a road trip because airfares are high, and hotel bookings are also 20-25% more expensive for this long weekend," said Rita Sharma, a resident of NIBM.
Ved Khanna, president, Association of Domestic Tour Operators of India (ADTOI), said that despite the Pahalgam attacks and Air India tragedy, travel is seeing a rebound in terms of demand.
"While larger trends of state-centric travel are playing out, we are seeing good demand for travellers to the Northeast as well. Even Kashmir is seeing a revival in tourism this season," he said.
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Rajnish Kumar, group co-CEO, ixigo, said that with Aug 15 falling on a Friday this year, many travellers are taking Thursday off to enjoy an extended four-day weekend. "We're seeing that reflected in a sharp uptick in flight bookings.
Travel to popular leisure destinations is up by 25–30% year-on-year. Goa, in particular, has seen a surge in demand for beach getaways, pushing airfares to Goa from Delhi and Mumbai up by over 100% week-on-week.
Among the most booked domestic destinations this season are Dehradun, Port Blair, Goa, and Coimbatore."
Rikant Pittie, CEO & co-founder, EaseMyTrip, said destinations like Udaipur, Goa, Mysuru, Kerala, and Hyderabad are trending, while there is also strong traction for Andaman, Himachal Pradesh, and Kashmir.
"If a travel package includes experiences like organised tours, travellers are paying significantly, up to 25-30%. We've seen around a 35% year-on-year surge in hotel bookings on our platform, with travellers spending more on better accommodations and curated experiences," said Pittie.
Drivecations to nearby offbeat destinations are also witnessing an uptick. Customers in and around Mumbai and Maharashtra are keen on short, driveable holidays to Rajmachi, Lohagad, Igatpuri, Lonavala, Mahabaleshwar, Bhandardara, Amboli, Sindhudurg, Kolad, Kamshet, Kaas Plateau, and Panhala, said Rajeev Kale, president & country head, holidays, MICE, Visa, Thomas Cook (India).
At Booking.com, data shows 58% of Indian travellers are choosing short domestic trips. "During this long weekend, destinations within a few hours' drive from major metros, such as Alibaug, Karjat, Igatpuri, Rishikesh, and Mussoorie are seeing a 40%-80% surge in accommodation searches. Lonavala and Jaipur, along with Mahabaleshwar and Chikmagalur, continue to draw interest," said Santosh Kumar, regional manager, South Asia at Booking.com.
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