It's that time of the year when the majority of people will start scouting for options to take advantage of their children's school holidays and exhaust their pending leave from the previous year as well.
Though the planning for these trips is done well in advance, if you are one of those who is still working out the nitty-gritties, take a look at some of these planning tips.
WHAT IS POPULAR?
Kashmir has been a popular destination historically. But over the years, it had lost its sheen because of apprehensions about terrorism. However, this summer, Kashmir has made a comeback.
"The problems of targeting tourists have come down as tourism is a source of income in many parts of the state," says Sandeep Srivastava, head, domestic travel, Thomas Cook.
The other preferred destinations include Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttaranchal, Leh and Ladakh, Ooty and Munnar.
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Travel companies have come up with aggressively-priced packages for this season. For instance, Thomas Cook is offering a 5-day package at Rs 8,000 per person for Kashmir.
This includes accommodation, meals and sightseeing, but does not include train or flight costs. In Uttaranchal, one can visit the four pilgrimage sites or take a multiple tour of Corbett National Park, Mussoorie and Nainital. The basic package per person for this multiple location tours starts at Rs 13,000 per person, excluding the airfare.
Other areas where aggressively priced packages are available include multiple destination packages for Himachal Pradesh that includes the hill stations, Manali, Shimla, Dharamshala and Dalhousie.
Besides hill stations, another destination that is witnessing rising interest is the Sundarbans in West Bengal that is only accessible through waterways. Only a private cruise operator and government ships take visitors to the forests. "One of lures in this delta is that there is a weather change every three hours," says a tour operator.
If you looking for adventure, there are difficult Himalayan treks that can be pursued. These treks last for about 11 days and there are a large number of travel packages that are offered by tour operators. These packages start at Rs 14,000 per person.
For the super rich, there are options of travelling to resorts such as Ananda in the Himalayas, where a range of spas and meditation packages are available. These tours are typically for three days and start from Rs 15,000 per person per day.
Other similar luxury areas include Udayvilas, Ram Bagh and Shiv Vilas in Rajasthan and Amanbagh and Brunton Boatyard in Kerala. The packages to these places could go up to Rs 50,000 a night per person.
PLANNING THE VACATION
Okay, enough of luring you to luxurious places, but the business end of it requires you to have the funds and take a call on the different packages on offer. Here's a "how to do it" guide for the newbies
Budget: For starters, you need to create a budget for travelling. This would imply savings for that cause. "Typically, a tourist should be able to manage his stay within a budget of Rs 2,000
