As Indian travellers pack their bags to escape the scorching heat, there has been a 40 per cent on-year increase in summer travel this year, with hospitality and travel services providers noticing buoyant demand.

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Although the ongoing general elections have had a minor impact on corporate and Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions (MICE) business, hotels are finding increased retail business with beach destinations still fighting it out with hill stations for the favoured holiday site.

"Those in the Northern part of the country head to the hills to escape the heat. There is also movement from the cities to nearby tourist or leisure destinations. Industry sources estimate a 30 to 40 per cent increase in the summer travel this year as compared to last year," Hotel Association of India, President and Radisson Hotel Group Chairman-South Asia, KB Kachru told PTI.

MakeMyTrip Co-Founder & Group CEO Rajesh Magow said, "Summer is always one of the biggest quarters of the year in terms of travel intent, and this year too, the buoyancy in the sector continues. We are observing a healthy growth in searches over those recorded last year at this time." According to MakeMyTrip's summer travel trends, the family travel segment has grown by 20 per cent this year, as compared to the summer of 2023, while solo travel grew by 10 per cent over last year's numbers.

In terms of most booked holiday packages this summer, destinations with cool mountain terrains are the top picks with Himachal Pradesh, Kashmir, Goa, Kerala and the North East emerging as most sought after places.

"While elections might have a minor impact on corporate and MICE business, retail business has increased by 20 per cent compared to the same time last year at the group level," Royal Orchid Hotels Ltd Chairman and Managing Director, Chander K Baljee said.

The major locations benefiting from increased occupancy are hill hotels, resorts, and other leisure destinations, he added.

Baljee further said, "Mashobra's (in Himachal Pradesh) retail business has increased almost five-fold with slight price rationalisation, and Mussoorie's retail occupancy has doubled. Goa witnessed a 50 per cent increase in retail occupancy compared to last year." On the other hand, hospitality and travel-tech firm OYO said as per its bookings for May and June 2024, beach destinations are seeing a higher preference among travellers compared to mountains this summer.

"Beaches account for 53 per cent of the total leisure bookings, demonstrating a strong inclination towards coastal vacations even during the hot summer months. On the other hand, mountain destinations, which make up 47 per cent of the bookings, are also drawing considerable interest, particularly as we move into June," a spokesperson of OYO said.

Goa continues to be the most popular beach destination, followed by Varkala, Pondicherry, and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

However, the spokesperson said, "The early trends for June indicate that mountains will take over beaches. Among these, Nainital tops the list, followed by Rishikesh, Manali, Mussoorie, and Darjeeling. This indicates a growing trend of travellers seeking the serene and cool environment of the mountains as the summer progresses." Interestingly, Kachru said, "Air travel has seen immense growth because of the campaign of the Election Commission to celebrate the festival of democracy and a large number of citizens are travelling to cast their precious vote in their home towns."

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