TravTalk India Online Magazine
The ever-optimistic Jay Bhatia, Director of Tulsidas Khimji Holidays, is upbeat about the approaching summer months and he foresees an increase in domestic travel with itineraries of around 15-18 days. He says that it is expected that from mid-February, there will be 15-20 per cent growth compared to the last few months.
As lockdown across the country was being lifted, we expected normalcy to commence from end of December, but this was deferred due to the restrictions and concerns of the new UK strand. The extension in lockdown is until January 31, 2021 as well as the mandate to do RT-PCR testing for travellers arriving from many states to Maharashtra has changed the sentiments of travellers.
Now, since the vaccination drive has commenced, it is expected that from mid-February we shall see 15-20 per cent growth as compared to the last few months. Until vaccination is not completed in India, which shall take at least eight to 10months, pre-COVID business is not in sight. Destinations such as Rann of Kutch in Gujarat are one of the popular seasonal winter destinations and we have done a couple of bookings for the sector. Kashmir, especially Gulmarg, Pahalgam and Srinagar have been witnessing high volumes, and months from December 2020 to mid-March 2021 are expected to see a boom with hotels being sold out completely. Skiing is the favourite developing winter sport in India and many are developing their skills.
National parks are popular
Further, local driveable destinations of about three to four hours have also gained momentum, since many prefer to stay in private or rented villas. Goa is evergreen and is now seeing traffic from across the country, too. Additionally, destinations like Udaipur, Jodhpur, Kabini, Pench, Tadoba, Ranthambore, Rishikesh and Puducherry have been on the action scene. Travellers are now preferring to travel into regions which are more open, landscaped with natural beauty and with a bit of adventure.
We have seen more travellers venturing with family and friends in groups of around 10-12 persons, including kids. The age group of 60 years and above is not yet venturing out beyond a few hours’ drivable destinations. These travellers, which constitute around 60-65 per cent, prefer to book resorts or individual villas which have all facilities. Others are frequenting luxury hotels, which are following appropriate safety protocols. Corporate movements are not yet seen beyond a night or two. Most are visits to factories in other locations or for an utmost emergency trip only.
As the summer months approach, we are seeing trends in queries for domestic travel increase until international sectors open up completely. Ideally, summer itineraries expected this year shall be around 15-18 days, to destinations in the Northeast, Kullu, Manali, Shimla, Coorg, Ooty, Kerala and Munnar. Many flights connecting to Odisha have commenced, so we are sure of a tilt towards developing tourism there. With the new Caravan Tourism Policy being set in, we are hopeful that many mature travellers will want to experiment this new holiday concept.
