Indian outbound travel is booming, yet itineraries remain unchanged. At the latest TRAVTALK ThinkTank held at Radisson Blu Plaza Hotel, Delhi Airport, industry leaders discussed why familiar routes still dominate and what the travel ecosystem must do to create deeper experiences.
Nisha Verma
Indian outbound travel has entered a period of remarkable momentum. Demand has surged across markets, airlines are expanding connectivity, and destinations around the world are actively courting Indian travellers. Yet amid this growth lies a curious paradox. Despite a rapidly evolving traveller base, itineraries remain largely predictable. Whether it is Southeast Asia, the Middle East, or Europe, the same attractions continue to dominate Indian outbound packages.
Product diversity vs market growth
This question formed the centrepiece of the fourth edition of the TRAVTALK ThinkTank, held at Radisson Blu Plaza Delhi Airport, where leaders from destinations, tour operators, OTAs, and attractions came together to debate a critical theme: “How Indian outbound travel can move towards greater product diversity and longer stays.”
Moderated by Nikhil Jeet, Director, Buzz Travel Marketing, the session brought together perspectives from across the ecosystem. The panel included Vishal Bhatia, Director – Destination Tourism Development (India), Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority; Deepti Mehta, Vice President – Holidays, Product & Supply, MakeMyTrip; Neeraj Singh Dev, Executive Vice President – eCommerce & Short Haul Holidays & Digital Transformation, Thomas Cook India, and Gaurav Seth, Head of Trade Sales, Merlin Entertainments.
The conversation revealed a simple but powerful insight — the lack of product diversity is not the responsibility of one stakeholder alone. It is a shared challenge across the entire travel ecosystem.
Big market, yet familiar itineraries
Setting the context, Nikhil Jeet highlighted a paradox that many in the industry quietly acknowledge but rarely discuss. Indian outbound travel has grown exponentially in recent years, but the structure of itineraries remains almost identical to what was sold decades ago. “Even by demographic, the itinerary for destinations seems fairly similar year on year,” he observed. Whether the traveller is young or senior, travelling with family, or as a couple, the itinerary template often remains unchanged. This raises an important question: where does the challenge really lie? Is it the consumer’s comfort with familiar destinations? Is it the trade’s reliance on easy-to-sell itineraries? Or is it the way destinations present themselves to the Indian market? The panel agreed the answer lies somewhere in between. When asked where the challenge sits, Deepti Mehta responded simply — “All of the above.”
Traveller curious but value-driven
According to Mehta, one of the biggest shifts in Indian outbound travel has been the growing curiosity of travellers since the pandemic. “I think there is definitely an appetite for new experiences, and that trend has come around after COVID in a big way,” she said.
Interestingly, this appetite cuts across demographics. It is not limited to millennials or younger travellers. Instead, travellers across age groups are showing greater willingness to explore unfamiliar destinations. However, curiosity alone does not drive bookings. Indian travellers remain highly value conscious. “If you show the value that the destination has, customers will latch on to it,” she explained.
At the same time, she cautioned that entirely unfamiliar itineraries can feel overwhelming, saying, “There has to be a mix of familiar and unfamiliar. It cannot be everything new.” She added that for tour operators and destinations, this balance between novelty and familiarity is critical.
From a tour operator’s perspective, Neeraj Singh Dev offered a practical way to understand Indian traveller behaviour. “There are two sets of customers. The first group arrives with fixed expectations. They know exactly where they want to go and what they want to see. They already have the programme in their mind — the number of days, the cities and the attractions. These travellers are difficult to convert to new experiences. Then there are customers who would ask for opinions, who are open for suggestions. And as a B2C, as a consumer brand, our job is to facilitate what customer thinks and, of course, add value wherever needed,” he explained.
Dev also pushed back against the perception that Indians avoid new experiences. “If the attraction has value and it is unique, Indians will flood that place,” he said. Social influence plays a major role here. “If it is Instagrammable, has bragging value, and people are talking about it, Indians will go,” he claimed.
Price versus exclusivity
While Indian travellers are often labelled price-sensitive, Dev argued that behaviour is more complex. “If something is widely available, price plays a big role. But when the experience is scarce or exclusive, price becomes secondary. If it has extreme shortage, you can put the price at $500 and people will still go.” In such cases, the key driver becomes access rather than affordability. “Nobody talks about price. Everyone asks — can you get me the seat?” he claimed.
How attractions drive travel decisions
From the attractions perspective, Gaurav Seth pointed out that in some cases experiences themselves become the reason for travel. A strong example is theme parks or family attractions that influence where families choose to travel. “For certain attractions, the product decides the destination,” he said.
However, Seth acknowledged that global attractions face a growing challenge — repetition. Similar experiences exist across multiple destinations, making differentiation increasingly difficult. To address this, attractions are redesigning experiences to make them locally relevant. “We are trying to create elements in each product to differentiate them,” he underlined.
Another shift shaping travel decisions is the change in family dynamics. “In the past, the man decided where the family holiday would be. Then it became the lady. Today, whoever has kids will agree — the kids decide,” Seth shared. Destinations and attractions are increasingly designing experiences with this shift in mind.
Stories beyond icons
For destinations, the challenge begins with creating a strong hook. According to Vishal Bhatia, iconic attractions are often necessary to bring travellers to a destination. But long-term growth requires moving beyond those icons.
“One of the priorities is to get people to spend more time outside the main cities,” he said. This transition often happens gradually. Destinations begin with flagship attractions and then introduce travellers to secondary regions.
Word-of-mouth becomes a powerful driver in this process. “When friends and family talk about their experiences, it becomes easier for agents to sell those places,” underlined Bhatia. Collaboration with tour operators is also crucial in building these expanded itineraries.
The Vietnam lesson
Vietnam emerged repeatedly in the discussion as a compelling case study. Unlike many destinations, Vietnam’s rise in the Indian market happened without a large tourism office presence. Instead, a combination of factors created the perfect conditions for growth. Affordable pricing, easy visas, new airline connectivity and improving infrastructure all played a role.
“The price of hotels and land packages was almost one-third of other destinations,” Mehta noted.
At the same time, social media amplified awareness. Indian restaurants quickly appeared across major cities, removing food barriers. Dev pointed out, the destination still has enormous scope to expand. This depth allows the destination to keep extending itineraries. “What Indians are visiting today is only about 50 per cent of what Vietnam has,” he said.
Training the trade
A major barrier to product diversification lies within the travel trade itself. Agents tend to sell what they know. “If they’ve been somewhere, they will keep selling that,” Bhatia said.
Training therefore becomes essential. However, Dev argued that the best training is firsthand experience. “Unless you have been there, what value can you add?” However, large-scale familiarisation trips are not always possible. Destinations are therefore increasingly using hybrid training models.Online training platforms, virtual sessions and targeted workshops are helping educate frontline sales teams.
Risk of innovation
Product diversification also involves risk. Selling a new destination often requires significantly more effort than selling a familiar one. As Seth pointed out, a salesperson could spend hours convincing a traveller to try something new — or sell a standard itinerary within minutes. “There is always a risk involved,” he said.
For operators managing large volumes, this risk becomes even more pronounced. Yet the panel agreed that innovation does not always require radical changes. Small adjustments within existing itineraries can gradually shift behaviour. Adding a new attraction, extending a stay by one night or introducing a different experience can all make a difference.
The invisible trigger
Air connectivity plays a crucial role in shaping travel demand. Direct flights can instantly transform the visibility and accessibility of a destination.
“Access plays a big role,” Bhatia explained. Visa policies and infrastructure development also influence how quickly destinations gain traction in the Indian market. Often, connectivity becomes the catalyst that unlocks demand.
Destination marketing formula
Towards the end of the discussion, Bhatia summarised what he sees as the modern marketing journey for destinations. “Reels to reviews to retail,” he said.
Digital content first creates awareness. Reviews build credibility and consideration. Finally, retail channels convert interest into bookings. Without the first two stages, destinations rarely reach the third, he explained.
Industry opportunity
Despite the challenges, the conversation ended on an optimistic note. Indian travellers today are travelling more frequently than ever before. “What used to be one holiday a year has now become multiple trips,” Mehta said.
Celebration travel, long weekends, solo travel and experiential trips are all expanding the outbound market. For the industry, the opportunity lies in matching this enthusiasm with innovation. Because the destinations that succeeds in the Indian market will not be the ones selling the most attractions — but the ones creating the most compelling travel stories.
