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Many Indians give the traditional diyas and dynamic rangoli to miss this Diwali, the festival of lights.
According to a report from the online travel company MakeMyTrip, more and more people are now open to the idea of moving Diwali out of their homes. Compared to last year, 18% more people will visit international tourist destinations during this festival season, the report says.
The results are based on bookings made on MakeMyTrip for trips around Diwali (November 7th) compared to the same period last year.
Thailand is the most popular international destination this season, with bookings in Southeast Asia posting a 25% increase over the same period last year. Bookings to other popular destinations have also increased slightly.
Domestic travel bookings on the MakeMyTrip portal also increased by 22% over Diwali. According to the data, the mountain resort of Coorg (Kodagu), in the state of Karnataka, in southern India, was the most popular national retreat.
Travelers also tend to loosen the cords of their purse due to the increasing number of people choosing luxury hotels. According to the data, about 4% of this year's travelers have upgraded their mid-range hotel bookings to four- or five-star hotels.
And as if they were almost at the right time, airlines have also aligned Diwali sales to make travel more attractive.
Raining discounts
Although the Indian aviation sector has bled heavily due to macroeconomic and sector-related factors, airlines are waging discount wars to attract more customers.
India's largest private airline, IndiGo, announced a special sale on 24 October in Diwali, offering all-inclusive fares from Rs 899 (US $ 12.34).
Jet Airways, the second-largest passenger airline, also announced a seven-day international fare sale. As of October 30, the sale had saved up to 30% on economy and premium class fares on the airline's network.
Low-cost carriers have also aggressively participated in the price war. SpiceJet offered domestic air tickets at an all – inclusive price of 888 rupees as part of its end – of – year holiday sales. AirAsia India also offered a discount of up to 70% on bookings until October 28th.
However, for a sector facing headwinds, discounts and price wars would be the only way to earn more money. "With crude prices leaving very little room for maneuver for airlines, softer cuts would be the only way to earn extra money for aerospace companies," said Ashish Nainan, an industry analyst. aviation at CARE Ratings.
