Diwali travel bookings soar as Indians blend festivities with faith, getaways: Experts

India is witnessing a document surge in festive journey this Diwali, as travellers mix conventional celebrations and family reunions with luxury escapes and spiritual journeys, with on-line journey platforms reporting sturdy progress in home and worldwide bookings, in line with specialists.

MakeMyTrip co-founder and Group CEO Rajesh Magow stated visiting associates and family members (VFR) stays the most important driver of festive season travel, as many Indians head again to their hometowns to have a good time Diwali.

“Subsequently, of the highest 10 most booked locations, 5 are metros: Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Chennai. This yr, with the competition falling early within the week, many travellers are reserving their journeys as early because the previous Friday to take pleasure in prolonged festivities.

“We’re additionally observing an increase in demand for pilgrimage locations, reflecting how households are combining festive reunions with non secular journeys,” he famous.

By way of worldwide journey, short-haul locations, such because the UAE, Singapore, Thailand and an rising favorite, Vietnam, have turn into the go-to decisions this festive season for Indians, Magow added.

Thomas Cook dinner (India) President and Nation Head, Holidays, MICE, Visa – Rajeev Kale advised PTI that there is a rising development the place households, together with a number of generations, are selecting to have a good time festivals like Diwali – for bonding time and celebrations, whereas exploring favorite or new locations.”…notably attention-grabbing is the rise in common spends, with travellers choosing longer stays, shifting from conventional three-day breaks to 6-12 day holidays. Multi-generational households are maximising faculty holidays for Diwali, whereas millennial and dealing professionals are combining weekends with festive holidays for prolonged getaways,” he acknowledged.High worldwide favourites embrace Europe’s Switzerland, France, Italy, Austria, Spain and Portugal.

Quick-haul favourites embrace Vietnam, Oman, Maldives and Bali, with Cambodia rising strongly, Kale stated, including that visa-free and simple visa locations like Thailand, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, Dubai-Abu Dhabi, Indonesia and the Philippines proceed to drive demand.

On the home entrance, he stated, travellers are selecting Kerala, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Andamans, and non secular circuits like Char Dham, Kailash Mansarovar, Ayodhya, and Varanasi.

Ixigo Group CEO Aloke Bajpai stated that this Diwali, there’s a sturdy surge in flight bookings, with a median 60-65 per cent year-on-year improve, reflecting a mixture of journey demand that blends custom, spirituality, leisure, and experience-led getaways.

Non secular locations, corresponding to Varanasi and Ayodhya, are main the development, with Ayodhya, which has lengthy been identified for its vibrant and elaborate Diwali celebrations, recording greater than 100 per cent year-on-year progress in flight bookings – even outpacing main metros like Delhi, Mumbai, and Chennai, he added.

“Travellers are additionally returning to their hometowns like Patna (46 per cent) and Lucknow (23 per cent) to have a good time with household, whereas leisure locations, corresponding to Jaipur, Goa, and Srinagar, proceed to see sturdy demand as properly,” he identified.

SOTC Journey president and nation head – Holidays and Company Excursions, SD Nandakumar stated there’s a sturdy shift as households are more and more celebrating by travelling, mixing custom with exploration, leisure and high quality time.

“We’re witnessing a rising development amongst younger migrant professionals, who’re extending their weekend, travelling again residence to spend high quality time with household and have a good time the festive season collectively for a 5-6 day break,” he famous.

Cruises are additionally gaining reputation amongst millennials and Gen Z, {couples} and dealing professionals in search of a fast break, Nandakumar added.

Based on a Cleartrip spokesperson, this Diwali, the utmost progress was seen in 4 and 5-star resorts, notably 5-star bookings rising 2 instances, reflecting a robust shopper choice for indulging in a premium and experience-led getaway.

“Total, Cleartrip platform customers grew by 2.2 instances, with flight bookings rising 2 instances and lodge bookings witnessing a 3.5 instances rise in comparison with the pre-festive interval,” the spokesperson added.