Local travellers are high rollers at hotels, boosting domestic market

The rise of domestic leisure travel, helped by rising income levels, is helping the industry offset the sluggishness in business from foreign visitors

Indians are travelling more and their spending is not limited to only overseas travel. Domestic luxury and branded hotels are registering an increase in the share of revenue coming through domestic leisure travellers. These travellers are not only staying at top-end hotels but also spending a significant amount of money at the hotel during their stay.
 
Chinmai Sharma, chief revenue officer at Taj Hotels, told Business Standard that the domestic leisure travel business was the fastest growing category in the hospitality chain. The company's leisure segment (domestic and international) is growing at 10-11 per cent. Within this, however, the