72% of urban Indians planning domestic travel during festive season; Goa tops list: Survey

Three-quarters of urban Indians are planning to travel this festive season (between September and December), with millennials leading the trend at 80%, followed by GenZ at 70%, a survey conducted by YouGov revealed.

72% of the surveyed individuals are planning domestic travel while one in ten (9%) are leaning towards international destinations. As many as 19% are considering both domestic and international options, the survey added.

For domestic travel, Goa topped the list at 35%, followed by Kerala at 26% and Himachal Pradesh at 24%. Internationally, the Middle East stood as the most popular choice at 46%, followed by Europe (35%) and Southeast Asia (34%).

Half of those planning trips have identified potential destinations but have not yet booked (51%), while 32% have already made their arrangements.

Most individuals have expressed a preference for shorter vacations during this period, with 47% planning to travel for a week and 34% opting for long weekends of up to three days. About a fifth (19%) are looking at vacations lasting up to two weeks or more.

The surveyed individuals' most preferred platform for booking tickets and hotels was MakeMyTrip, favored by almost 50% of urban Indians. Booking.com stood as the second most popular platform for both flights (25%) and hotels (27%). While EaseMyTrip was the next most popular choice for booking flights, Goibibo was a preferred option for hotels.

According to the report, one in five also consider festive deals on flights and hotels a good reason to travel during this time (19%).

Despite the reliance on booking platforms, 55% of urban Indians have shown preference to make their own bookings. 30% opt for bundled packages through online travel agencies, while 17% use traditional travel agents.

Long weekends are expected to significantly influence travel plans for the upcoming festive season, with 27% of urban Indians considering the extended holidays from September to December as an ideal travel window.