Friday’s terror attacks in Paris that killed over 140 people will likely push down outbound travel from India to France and Europe in the upcoming Christmas and New Year travel season. Paris is one of the must-visit destinations for tourists visiting Europe.
“This is worse than what happened in Mumbai in November 2008 and it sends out a signal that nobody is safe anywhere,” said Ajay Prakash, past president, Travel Agents' Federation of India (Tafi). “Tourism is a fragile industry. People skip travelling to a place when they are safety issues and the confidence is shaken. Paris is very popular with Indians during the Christmas and New Year period.”
The Christmas-New Year season, while popular with Indian tourists visiting Europe, is not the peak season for travellers from India. The peak travel period is summer, from April till July, part of which also coincides with summer vacation for school-going kids in India.
Sharat Dhall, president at travel portal Yatra, said he has not heard about airlines from India cancelling flights to Paris. Dhall said there will be an immediate impact on tourists who are currently in France. “A number of public monuments will be closed due to security reasons and movement of tourists will be restricted”.
Dhall also said people have not yet reacted by cancelling their trips, adding that it is too early for any reaction from travellers. “This is a significant incident. There will be a short-term impact as some people may reconsider a trip to Paris. It is one of the biggest travel destinations outside India”.
Prakash said he expects 40-50% of tourists to cancel their plans to visit Paris. “But business travel will see only a marginal impact as people cannot avoid work related visits for long”. Businessmen, especially garment manufacturers, travel to Europe around this time as Christmas happens to be a demand season.
