Indian travellers cost-conscious, eager for new ways to pay

Indian travellers are the world's biggest holiday bargain hunters and they want more ways to pay when buying travel online, according to new research from payments processor Worldpay. For its Why Do They Pay That Way? report, Worldpay polled 2,000 travellers in each of the six markets studied.

In India, the survey revealed that over 76 per cent selected their travel destinations because of a sale of cheap flights and holidays. What's more, although 49 per cent of Indian travellers planned to use a credit card to book their next holiday, 96 per cent of Indian credit and debit card users said they would, in reality, prefer to book their package holiday using Net banking.
 
According to Phil Pomford, general manager Asia Pacific, global e-commerce, Worldpay, online travel sales are forecast to experience a significant rise in the coming years in India.

"To gain the loyalty of Indian shoppers, online travel agents must recognise that travellers in India are on the lookout for both bargains and new ways to pay online." It's also important for online travel agents to recognise that Indian travellers are the world's most likely to save for a holiday, with 67 per cent respondents saying they had paid for the last holiday out of savings.