Backpackers across the country decided to take to the road alone, with the year witnessing a rise in the number of "new age" travellers who believe in "experiencing the unknown, encountering different people and cultures, and testing new limits".
According to a recent survey conducted by travelling portal Yatra.Com, "11 per cent travelers opted to be their own travel companion on their next holiday".
The year also saw globetrotters choosing short haul travel concentrated around long weekends and holiday seasons, rather than going for customary yearly vacations.
"Approximately 40 per cent of our domestic holiday bookings this year happened for the shorter breaks. Most of our weekend packages to destinations close to metros were sold out during the long weekends, leading us to increase our inventory and provide more options to last minute travelers," the study said.
Also Read
Travel, both domestic and international, became easier in 2016, particularly because of low and discounted air fares.
"Singapore draws the attention of travellers from across India, thanks to relaxed visa regulations, diverse culture, and its multitude of tourist attractions.
While destinations like Europe, the US, Dubai and South East Asia continue to attract the bulk of tourists from across the country, Australia, New Zealand, Mauritius are some more niche destinations that have seen excellent traction.
Travel was encouraged in 2016, due to the convenience rendered by online and mobile bookings. The year saw large number of travellers adopting the emerging trends in technology, indicating that a majority of bookings in the next few years will be made on mobile phones.
"We have seen close to 40 per cent of our bookings and 67 per cent of our traffic is coming via the mobile website and mobile applications," Yatra.Com said.
Yatra.Com said that the trend of Indian travellers to use credit or debit card over cash, is likely to continue in 2017, with the portal witnessing 37.4 per cent travellers choosing plastic money for making bookings as well as while travelling in 2016.
Howver, the portal noted that demonetisation had a slightly downward impact on inbound travel initially, but things bounced back with an inbound growth at over 9 per cent this year.