MakeMyTrip, India’s leading online travel company released its Summer and Monsoon Travel Trends Report indicating a notable increase in the number of Indians travelling to international destinations during the summer and monsoon season, in comparison to bookings done in the same period last year.

 

As the younger generation enters the workforce and millennials gain more purchasing power, another trend emerged strongly; travel spending patterns indicate that Indian travellers are willing to spend more on international travel. Outbound travellers spent 2X more during their summer travel and they are expected to spend 3X more than domestic travellers during the upcoming monsoon season.

 

This summer holiday season, travel bookings peaked with double-digit growth in transactions over last year; a testimony of increasing propensity amongst Indians to travel more frequently. Amongst the most sought-after domestic destinations, Goa continues to top the holiday travel list, followed by popular hill stations of Ooty and Shimla. On the other hand, outbound leisure travel witnessed a surge of 30% over last year. While short-haul east-bound travel witnessed a year-over-year uptick, London and Frankfurt emerged as the most travelled long-haul destinations during this period.

 

With monsoon season around the corner, travel enthusiasts have shown swiftness in planning and booking their travel 30-60 days in advance; with an increasing count of travellers taking off on trips between July 2019 and September 2019. In line with the spending patterns, this monsoon, travellers will be seen spending 20% more this monsoon season, with average per person spend for international travel ranging close to INR 1.1 Lakh compared to INR 34000 for domestic travel. In terms of holidays, 38% more Indians will travel to international destinations with many ticking off London, Toronto and romantic holiday spots in Paris, Seychelles and Ireland among others, from their bucket list.

 

Commenting on the trends, Mr. Vipul Prakash, Group COO, MakeMyTrip said, “The emerging trends from our Summer & Monsoon Travel report are encouraging and we are confident that we will continue to see robust upward growth trajectory in the coming months, overcoming the recent headwinds in the sector. What’s further motivating is to see the diverse travel base that is seeking ever-more travel choices and is experimenting more than before. From those who are choosing to travel for marquee sports events like the Cricket World Cup  to those taking Pilgrimage trips or the ones who are mixing their business with leisure travel – Indian Travellers are pushing the boundaries when it comes to seeking differentiated travel solutions. We are constantly evolving products and services to cater to their varied interests to ensure we can best serve their travel aspirations while taking their experience a notch higher.”

 

Here are some of the key findings of MakeMyTrip’s Summer & Monsoon Travel Report:

 

Indians are travelling more than ever before!

 

This summer there was a 12% increase in number of trips, compared to last year. With mercury soaring an all-time high, travellers were seen heading to cooler climes, waterfront retreats and natural pastures of Alibaug (3.8X), Alleppey (3.1X), Malshej (2.4X) and Cherapunjee (2.2X). 

 

Bookings on the platform indicate that the number of Indians traveling in the monsoon season is expected to increase between July and September 2019. While Goa and Udaipur are the most favoured domestic travel destinations, there is growing preference for offbeat greener destinations namely foothills of Saputara (3.1X), Pachmarhi (1.8X) and Shimoga (1.5X).

 

Indians exploring offbeat international destinations

 

As has been the trend over the past few years, Dubai continues to be most preferred outbound travel destination for Indians, followed by Thailand and Singapore. Surprisingly, the three destinations top the list for both, summer and monsoon season. Offbeat destinations like Geelong in Australia, Antalya and Kayseri in Turkey, Tashkent in Uzbekistan and Da Nang and Phu Quoc in Vietnam found an inclusion in itineraries of travellers this summer. Additionally, sports enthusiasts and ardent cricket fans travelled in large numbers to catch the ICC World Cup live –  resulting into two times increase in bookings to Manchester.

 

Love for island destinations increasing

 

Phuket (4X increase), Mahe (1.5X increase) and Male (1.2X increase) are topping the list of international travel destinations, this monsoon. For long haul destinations, travel lovers will be seen heading off to the Valley of the Sun aka Phoenix and architectural landscapes of Dublin. 

 

Indians splurging more on their travel accommodation

 

Indians have shown openess and comfort in upgrading their hotel preferences, be it domestic or international travel – choosing leisure over budget options. Domestic travellers preferred middle category hotels over budget properties, this summer. On the other hand, international travellers are seen opting for five-star category hotels instead of mid-segment and budget category properties. 

 

Booking ‘Smart’ anytime, anywhere

 

Travel lovers are increasingly searching and booking on-the-go. On MakeMyTrip, in the past few months, more than 74% of the transactions were conducted through the mobile app both, for the summer and monsoon season.

 

Methodology

The findings of this report are based on the bookings seen on MakeMyTrip and Goibibo during the summer season (April 2019 to June 2019) and the upcoming monsoon season (July 2019 to September 2019). Additionally, the data throws light on the change in trends in the travel space in comparison to the same period, last year.