Average distance Indians travelled falls 56 pc in Jun-Aug: Survey

Further, the survey showed that domestic travel is the new normal, as 67 per cent of the respondents travelled the total distance between June 1 and August 30 within the country, compared with only 34 per cent a year ago. Travellers may not be able to take that distant trip they had previously hoped for, but the current scenario has given them the opportunity to discover heaps of wonderful experiences closer to home, it added.

With a change in travel pattern due to the pandemic, a recent survey has showed that the average distance covered by Indian travellers dropped 56 per cent to 780 km in June-August as compared to last year, indicating that destinations closer to home are becoming popular. Digital travel company Booking.com calculated that the average distance of the Indian participants who travelled between June and August 2020 is down 56 per cent compared with the year-ago period.

Indian travellers journeyed on an average 780 km per booking compared with 1,786 km per booking during June to August 2019, as per the company. This is slightly lower than the global average of 63 per cent, the survey by Booking.com said.

This research was commissioned by Booking.com among a sample of 50,688 respondents, including 1,997 from India, across 29 markets with respondents who were 18 years or older and had travelled at least once in the past 12 months. Further, the survey showed that domestic travel is the new normal, as 67 per cent of the respondents travelled the total distance between June 1 and August 30 within the country, compared with only 34 per cent a year ago.

Travellers may not be able to take that distant trip they had previously hoped for, but the current scenario has given them the opportunity to discover heaps of wonderful experiences closer to home, it added. Meanwhile, when it came to accommodation, motels, villas and hotels were the top-three trending accommodation types for Indian travellers, it said.

The survey also showed that while the events of the year have led to seismic shifts in travel behaviours and destination choices, 51 per cent of the Indians respondents said they were dreaming of beautiful beaches. About 42 per cent expected bustling city trips and 40 per cent even dreamt of traveling to visit family and friends before they knew their contact with them would have been limited this year, it showed. Many of those travel desires would typically have been met with far-flung destinations but this year, they have discovered these simple pleasures next door, it said.

So, whether it is exploring the pink city of Jaipur or soaking in the Nawabi culture of Hyderabad, the travel desires of many destinations have still been explored this year but just a little closer to home, it added. "During these unprecedented times, it's reassuring to see that while our plans and priorities may have changed, our passion for travel has not. Whether it's the memories captured, relationships strengthened or smiles made, the summer of 2020 proved that the happiness travel can bring is not simply measured in kilometres," Booking.com Country Manager (India, Sri Lanka and Maldives) Ritu Mehrotra said.

Malhotra added that there are plenty of adventures to be explored and comfort to be found right next door and enjoy all kinds of travel experiences, whenever it's safe to do so and whether that's near or far..