It’s that time of the year again. Travel companies are going all out to sell winter holidays. With the economic slowdown in Europe and the US negatively impacting the inbound travel market, it’s the domestic traveller who has given these companies a reason to cheer.
Travel companies are expecting a 20 per cent rise in the domestic and outbound travel business. “There was a minor decline in inbound tourism in November, but we will end up with 13 per cent growth over the previous year,” said Ashwini Kakkar, executive vice-chairman of Mercury Travels.
Apart from the all-time favourite haunt, Goa, Indian travellers are exploring hill stations to enjoy a white Christmas this season. “We are seeing a lot of demand for places like Srinagar, Auli and Gulmarg. There are a lot of bookings for tents and villas to bring in the New Year, which is a new trend,” said Sabina Chopra, co-founder of Yatra.
Industry experts say while it’s the early birds who get a better deal, it’s going to be all the more true this year, with fares expected to rise in the coming months. “Demand is softening and not much of additional capacity is getting added. People are paying more. Last-minute buyers are going to pay much more. This time, especially, there is a big incentive for those booking in advance,” said Keyur Joshi, chief operating officer, MakeMyTrip.
People are booking well in advance not just for the fear of cost of packages going up, but also because of the shortage of hotel capacity at many domestic tourist spots. “We are running packed for bookings in hill destinations, which don’t have a lot of room capacity,” Chopra added.
“We are seeing a significant increase in the traffic for Southeast Asia. Also, because of our tie-up with Air Asia, destinations like Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok are working out to be cheaper than many Indian destinations,” said Vikram Malhi, country head, Expedia.
Although people are travelling, they are cutting down on their overall expense. “We are receiving booking inquiries. But rather than opting for a five-star holiday, some of our customers are opting for three- and four-star hotel accommodation or even budget hotels,” said Nayan Marphatia, chief executive of Miloni Tours & Travels.
On the positive side, crisis in places like Egypt and Thailand has driven a lot of tourists to India, making up for some of the losses caused by the euro zone crisis.
The meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (MICE) segment is not expected to show high growth. “Corporate India has put the brakes on spending. They are cutting on domestic travel. There is a minor impact. Last year, the segment grew nine per cent. This year, it will be 6.5-7 per cent,” said Kakkar.
