The travel and tourism industry has fallen prey to the pandemic-induced lockdowns and curfews in the entire country. But with the passing of time, people are settling with the ‘new normal’ and moving towards travelling domestically as well as abroad. According to a research by Booking.com, Maharashtra’s Mumbai and Lonavala alongside Rajasthan’s Jaipur and Udaipur, are among the top 10 most searched domestic vacation destinations in India.
Jaipur, Mumbai & Lonavala rank as the top searched destinations
With mobility restrictions and COVID-19 looming large, Indians were rarely travelling but as the second wave of the pandemic is subsiding, people are searching for more travelling avenues. This detailed survey has also reported that people’s interest in travel has increased tremendously during August, with many of them expressing the desire to visit new places in the near future.
In another survey by Thomas Cook India and SOTC Travel, a consequential 69% of the participants, indicated a keen interest to travel in 2021 once there is an ease in restrictions, with about 18% ready to travel immediately and approximately 51% within the next 3-6 months.
Domestic travel remains ubiquitous as many Indians are planning to explore their own country and choosing destinations closer to home, reveals data by Booking.com. As many as 52% of Indian travellers are looking forward to domestic travel, this year.
The country’s capital city, Delhi, tops the list of the most searched vacation destinations, followed by Mumbai and Lonavala. Jaipur and Udaipur rank 7th and 10th, respectively, with Bengaluru, Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad and Leh, making it to the list of the top ten most searched destinations in August.
International travel restrictions to ease up, especially for fully vaccinated passengers
Since the restrictions have eased a little, Indians hope to travel abroad too, as per the survey by Booking.com. USA, Russia and Maldives have been listed as the top 3 most searched international destinations for August 2021. With a bank of accumulated holidays and restrictions finally easing a little in India and other parts of the world, Indian travellers are waiting to escape their enclosed surroundings.
Apart from these top 3 searched destinations for outbound travel as per the research, Switzerland, Qatar, Canada, UK, Mexico, Armenia and France, are also on the list. Further, international travel restrictions are about to ease up, especially for fully vaccinated passengers. However, there are precautions you can take to minimize your risk of being infected while travelling, so do follow the COVID guidelines, whenever you plan to head out.
-With inputs from IANS
