5 travel platforms share the Big Shift in Travel Trends for Indian Travellers
The travel sector, especially domestic travel, appears to be making a comeback. Indian travellers are looking for quick getaways through road trips, weekend breaks and staycations.
Some of the prominent travel platforms share their views on anticipated trends for 2021 showing Indian travellers are looking for more local experiences and nature travel as a way of fostering personal connections.
A survey by Booking.com on the future of travel shows that 77 percent of Indians mentioned they would only book accommodations if it was clear what health and hygiene policies a destination had in place, with 71 percent saying they would avoid certain destinations altogether due to safety concerns.
Confirmtkt:
Confirmtkt is India’s 2nd largest online train ticket discovery and booking platform delivering a seamless search and booking experience to travellers. The platform has recently witnessed a new trend, “Revenge Travel” wherein people wish to break free from the mundane routine that has caused the “new normal”. They are experiencing almost double the bookings in comparison to pre-covid levels in spite of only 70% of trains being functional/running. Due to the upcoming festive season, the platform has witnessed a surge in bookings in the cities like Hyderabad, New Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai, Kolkata, Pune, Vijayawada, Ahmedabad, Mumbai and Vishakhapatnam as compared to last year.
Sankash:
Aiming to make holiday trips a part of the simple and accessible pleasures of life, SanKash comes as a revolutionary travel fintech company that focuses on helping Travel Agents and Tour Operators (online & offline), provide pay-in-parts/monthly solutions for their customers. Sankash shared that luxurious domestic destinations/properties have been gaining popularity in the past 3-4 months considering restrictions on international travel and customers are opting for such properties assuming the highest level of safety standards. Domestic destinations like Udaipur, Ladakh, Kashmir, Northeast are witnessing a surge considering they are offering luxurious and safe accommodations. With the festive season in sight, we are seeing 70% increase in queries and almost 50% increase in bookings.
Make My Trip:
Make my trip is one of the oldest Indian travel companies that helps in easy bookings which includes flight tickets, bus tickets, rail tickets, hotel reservations and holiday packages. Be it a workcation, staycation or a weekend getaway, travellers are gravitating towards fuller and richer immersive experiences that allow them to connect, explore and unwind. More and more people therefore, will prefer travel that balances their itinerary with a languid pace affording them the time to explore more while eliminating the stress of rushing around many places to tick the boxes The platform is offering discount deals that can be availed via a special deal code. Apart from this the platform is offering instant discount vouchers for INR 15,000 for domestic flights, INR 20,000 discount coupons on villas and independent stays.
Airbnb:
Airbnb is a travel app that helps in ease rental of apartments, villas and homes. It maintains and hosts a marketplace that is accessible to the consumers. They provide well furnished accommodation along with a kitchen that feels like home. The platform recently revealed people are eager to book weekend getaways, from Delhi to the hills and Jaipur or from Mumbai to Lonavala, Mahabaleshwar and Alibag. A recent AIrbnb survey found that 69% of Indians were particularly interested in unique accommodation such as heritage homes, farmstays, villas and unique havelis. People are keen to explore short getaways that are a drive away from their homes, and there is an increasing interest in travel experiences that are off-the-beaten-track and offer affordability and adventure while benefiting local communities.
Booking.com:
As per Booking.com, the leading digital travel brand, the solo travel trend is likely to gather even greater momentum; travel was stymied by the pandemic, which will likely nudge travellers to take the plunge on their own in 2021. According to the data, pre-pandemic saw only 18 percent of Indian travellers planning a trip on their own while 54 percent of travellers now say that they will be planning a solo trip in the future. With 49 percent of travellers saying that they would want to travel more to make up for the time lost in 2020, this sentiment is encouraging travellers to plan the solo trip of a lifetime to get back out in the world.