According to travel agents, Independence Day long weekend has set a travel trend in August as compared to the previous one in May with high demand for various tourist destinations including Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Kerala, Leh, Andaman and Nicobar islands, etc. 

Speaking to LiveMint, Rajeev Kale, President and Country Head, Holidays, MICE, Visa – Thomas Cook (India) Limited said, “We are witnessing brisk demand of over 3x compared to the previous long weekend in May – for both domestic and closer to home locales.”

“Long weekends provide the much-needed short break opportunity and our customers have booked popular destinations like Kashmir, Himachal, Uttarakhand, Leh and Kerala; Goa and Andamans are popular beach destinations; also Nepal and Bhutan in the Indian subcontinent,” he said. 

Kale said that families and young professionals are also looking at drivecations or medications to nearby offbeat destinations such as Nainital, Dehradun, Mussoorie, Panchgani, Mahabaleshwar, Coorg, Ooty, Munnar, Wayanad and more.

“What is noteworthy is the trend of taking multiple holidays in a year – Indians are taking multiple short-duration holidays to short-haul and easy visa destinations. For the upcoming weekend, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and Dubai-Abu Dhabi are witnessing a surge with island destinations like Mauritius and Maldives continuing to see momentum,” Kale added. 

Apart from these places, cruises are also in high demand for the upcoming long weekend as they represent a unique value proposition for travelers, he said. 

Daniel D’Souza, President and Country Head of holidays at SOTC Travel said the company’s consumer data reveals high interest (87%) for multiple short breaks from Indian consumers. 

“We are witnessing a strong uptick in demand this year – over 200% vs. last year – indicative of appetite for holiday traffic and migrant working population traveling home for short breaks or long weekends,” he told LiveMint. 

“Our online search data indicates high interest for domestic locales like Kashmir, Andaman, Kerala, Ladakh, and Goa; also easy visa destinations like Singapore, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Thailand, Maldives, and Mauritius for the upcoming extended weekend,” D’Souza said. 

He also stated that the consumers are seeking drivecations and staycations to nearby offbeat destinations to get away from the city to nearby hill stations like Rajmachi, Lohagad, Igatpuri, Lonavala, Matheran, Mahabaleshwar and Panhala for customers from Mumbai.

“We are also witnessing indicates high demand for outdoor and adventure travel with biking trips, hiking, camping, and domestic cruises,” he said. 

Updated: 10 Aug 2023, 11:57 AM IST