90% Indian travellers' book via credit,debit card: Survey

After demonetisation, the travel sector witnessed over 90 per cent Indians using plastic money to book their holidays, according to a survey.

"It is heartening to note that demonetisation did not have a major impact on the peak travel season. The surge in international travel highlights that things are back to normal and also underlines that millennials are relatively intrepid and unlikely to be phased by economic problems or political unrest," Yatra.Com President Sharat Dhall said quoting the survey.

"Post demonetisation, 90 per cent of Indian travellers book by debit or credit card," Dhall added.

The survey was conducted via email amongst 5,000 Yatra customers.
 

It revealed that as an alternate solution to minimise the impact of demonetisation on vacations over 80 per cent Indians have opted to reduce the number of days to travel and compromise on accommodation.

It said, while nearly 80 per cent Indians are looking to stay in hotels this summer, only 4 per cent prefer staying with friends or relatives.

Homestays has seen an increase in preference by over 100 per cent this summer, said the report.

Helped by relatively low airfares, Dhall said, there has been a shift in the passengers from rail to air.

"This is on account of the continued low oil prices and an increase in the capacity by both new entrants and the incumbent players," he added.

Further, the survey said, while desktops and laptops continue to be the preferred medium of booking, about 40 per cent prefer booking via mobile indicating the increased smart phone and internet penetration across the country.

The survey also showed that more than 50 per cent Indian travellers read online reviews before planning their vacations followed by 30 per cent seeking recommendation from friends.

Meanwhile, it said, hill stations are the most popular summer holiday destination this year followed by Kerala and Goa.

While 24 per cent believed that relaxation during holidays is the key reason to travel, 72 per cent of the respondents said that they do not switch off from work even during vacation.