A new research by travel search engine KAYAK has revealed that Domestic flight searches for the summer travel season has increased by around 208 per cent, despite about 42 per cent increase in prices compared to 2022. The company’s data also indicated that 80 per cent of Indian holidaymakers are planning to spend more or similar amounts of money on their summer travel this year as compared to last year.
Increased flight prices do not seem to pose a hindrance for eager travellers in India with searches significantly up despite the price increase, which is about 42 per cent for return economy domestic flights and about 19 per cent for return economy international flights.
Highlighting ‘Nostalgia’ as one of the most prominent travel trends among Indian travellers this Summer season, KAYAK’s through a consumer survey decoded that One-third who are planning travel this summer are being influenced by nostalgia and are leaning towards destinations they have already visited in the past, including their ancestral places. Interestingly, novelty is still important to them, with about half intending to make new memories in these previously visited destinations while only 39 per cent would relive past experiences.
KAYAK’s Summer 2023 travel intention survey was conducted by a third-party researcher, YouGov, who surveyed 1217 urban Indians of both genders aged 18+, from all regions of India. The survey also revealed that over half (56 per cent) of the respondents intend to travel for leisure this Summer.
Commenting on the findings Tarun Tahiliani, India Country Manager, KAYAK said, “With the significant increase in flight and hotel searches, Indians are in for a summer of family travel, meaningful experiences and return to simpler times as we emerge from the pandemic. Nostalgia travel is a trend gaining momentum as people revisit special places or explore destinations evoking a sense of the past.”
“What’s great news for the Indian tourism sector is that according to our consumer research, 80% of Indian summer holiday makers are planning to spend more money or similar amounts on their summer travel this year as compared to last year. This aligns with KAYAK search data which shows that Indian travellers seem willing to spend more to travel in style for long-haul flights, with business class searches up by 69 per cent and first-class searches by 109 per cent compared to 2022,” he added.
Sharing insights and data on travellers’ spending patterns, Mukul Sukhani, Senior Vice President – South Asia, Mastercard in conversation with ET TravelWorld revealed that travel is increasingly becoming focused around experiences and travellers have begun spending more on experiences than material things since July 2021. Considering the boom in experiential travel, Mastercard has been actively working on providing unique and exciting experiences to its cardholders.
Family travel gains momentum
KAYAK’s search data shows an uptick in family and group travel for the Summer season. Family flight searches are increasing by about 230 per cent compared to 2022, with 81 per cent of those planning a trip this Summer saying they’ll go with their families.
In terms of age groups, 25–34-year-olds are the most interested in visiting nostalgic destinations that they might have visited during their childhood or teen years, perhaps taking their own children to recreate these precious memories.
Top Destinations for Indian travellers this summer:
The most searched international destination for summer travel is Toronto followed by Dubai, London, and New York. Within Asia, Indian travellers are looking at ever-popular destinations like Bali, Bangkok, Singapore, and the Maldives. Further, New Delhi was the most searched domestic destination, followed by Goa, Srinagar, and Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
KAYAK flight search data shows the average planned duration of stay is about 35 days for long-haul intercontinental travel, about six days for domestic travel, and roughly eight days within Asia.
Hotel searches on the rise
Hotel searches have also seen an increase of 39 per cent for domestic hotels and 59 per cent increase in international hotels compared to 2022 for travel this summer. Puducherry, Delhi, and Mumbai are the most popular domestic destination for hotels searches with Dubai, London, Toronto, and Paris the most sought-after international destinations for hotel searches.
In a welcome development for Indians eager to travel this summer, prices decreased by around 32 per cent for domestic hotels and about 43 per cent for hotels within Asia compared to last year. There was a slight 3 per cent increase in prices for international hotels.
Indians have also shown an interest in car rentals with the top destinations for car hire being Delhi, Dubai, Bangkok, and London.
Search insights on origin airports
According to KAYAK, the most searched origin airports are Mumbai followed by New Delhi, and Bangalore. Chennai, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Kolkata, and Pune have also made the list of top-origin airports for Summer travel.
According to a recent report released by Airbnb, family travel is booming, and families are finding great value and more space when travelling. There has also been a newfound respect among travellers for conscious and responsible travel. People are exploring off-the-beaten-path destinations and supporting local communities with their travel behaviors.
- Published On Apr 7, 2023 at 01:12 AM IST