What is Revenge travel: Will it lead to fourth wave of Covid?

Summer vacations are here. However, this is not any ordinary summer. It's the first one since Covid pandemic-led travel restrictions have been lifted completely across most parts of the country. This means travel aspirations are at an all-time high this summer. When people suffer from a pent-up demand to travel again and break free of 'lockdown fatigue' once the restrictions are lifted, it is called revenge travel. This phenomenon is continuously on the rise with an increasing number of bookings of flights, hotels, villas, cottages and others.

People are breaking out of their homes to escape the heatwave and planning long vacations. While India has returned to some levels of travel normalcy, it is threatening to see thousands of tourists crowding a place amid growing cases of Covid again. Will this lead to the fourth wave of Covid? It is already predicted that the world will witness another horrifying Covid wave in a couple of months.

Over 61% of Indian travellers plan to take vacations this summer

As per OYO's Mid-Summer Vacation Index 2022, over 61% of Indian travellers plan to take vacations this summer, out of which a whopping 94% showed a strong preference to travel domestically. This shows that despite the opening of international air travel, exploring local destinations is here to stay in 2022.

With about 65% votes, a majority of travellers are keen on leisure trips, for a much-needed break from the routine. In December 2021, as travel opened domestically, most respondents preferred travelling mostly to meet their family & friends after a long time due to the pandemic. While there are certain trend shifts, short trips continue to be the top choice among travellers. Nearly 55% of respondents still prefer shorter trips of about 1-3 days. As per OYO’s survey, over 50% of Indians opted to travel with friends, while 26.5% said they would love to spend their vacation with family. 13% of respondents also wished to go solo this summer.

Where is India heading this summer?

While some love to spend their summer amid quaint hillside towns, many also love spending this season soaking in the sun alongside white sandy beaches. As per OYO’s consumer survey, with 1/4th of the votes, hill stations emerged as the clear winner. However, that’s not it. Nearly 22% said they would love the best of both worlds - with a mix of hill stations and beaches. This was followed by preferences for seaside towns, staycations, adventure sports destinations, riverside stays, among others. 

When it comes to the hills, over 1/3rd of Indians opted for Manali as their cooling destination of choice, followed by approx. 20% who wish to visit Kashmir this summer. Sikkim, Ooty and McLeodganj were also popular choices among vacationers. Among beach lovers, 58% said that hands down Goa is their dream beach destination in India. This was closely followed by the Andaman & Nicobar Islands, and Kerala with 12% and 11% respectively

International and Domestic Bookings

With the resumption of international flights and traveler confidence returning, domestic flight bookings increased by 85%, as per the stats by Yatra. On the other hand, it witnessed 95% increase in international flight bookings. Delving further into this, friends and family comprise a majority part of domestic travel with 40% booking enquires from that particular group. With an increasing interest of travelers in exploring places like, Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Northeast, and Kashmir are the leading domestic destinations people are preferring to travel and explore.

Additionally, as the international borders have reopened, Paris, Switzerland, Thailand, Singapore, Bali, Dubai, and Mauritius are the top international destinations for this summer. Moreover, for international travel, 70% of booking inquiries are from honeymooners and leisure travelers. Domestic and international locations are providing interesting offerings and the travel and hospitality industry has been gearing up with customized services and packages among others to attract more travelers.