Thanks to the long weekends, hospitality companies and travel agencies have already been witnessing a massive surge in demand for travel and accommodations. (Representative image)
After the Covid waves ebbed and travel resumed, popular destinations got busy, but the change brought about by the pandemic unfurled many new destinations that soon became go-to places for Indian travellers.
Travel operators say that if 2021 was the year of ‘work from anywhere’, then 2022 could be termed as the ‘bucket list’ year. Indians are showing a desire to experience new destinations and tick off places from their travel bucket lists that were on hold for a long time.
Moneycontrol takes a look at top emerging destinations that Indians are choosing the most after Covid.
Tirumala Venkateshwar is a landmark temple situated in the hill town of Tirumala at Tirupati in Chittoor district of Andhra Pradesh, India. Image: Wikimedia Commons
Spiritual hubs
Cultural destinations like Varanasi saw more than 50 percent rise in search queries for train travel this year as against 2021. Tirupati in Andhra Pradesh witnessed one of the highest comebacks with more than 200 percent increase in train search queries for summer travel this year, compared to last year.
Bus travel demand to destinations like Tirupati, Shirdi, and Vaishno Devi is on the rise and is expected to grow further this winter, said travel operators.
Taj Mahal in Agra. Image: Kayak, an online travel agency
Smaller markets getting popular
Tier II and III cities have been a popular choice for travellers in India after the pandemic and especially during the festivals when most people visit their hometown, said travel operators.
"There was a 20 percent increase in visits to tier II and III cities this festival season as compared to last year. Jaipur, Agra, Ooty, Lucknow, Nagpur, Madurai, Indore have been the preferred destinations of travellers," noted Rikant Pittie, Co-Founder EaseMyTrip.
Cities like Jaipur, Indore, and Lucknow have also emerged as educational hubs and have been attracting students to travel to these destinations from across India.
Some tier II and III destinations saw high traction through bus travel. Goa, Shirdi, Nagpur, Rajkot recorded a 100 percent increase in bus travel searches post-Covid versus pre-Covid, said Rohit Sharma, COO, AbhiBus, an online bus ticketing company.
Raipur. Image: Creative Commons
Offbeat destinations
Several offbeat places such as Prayagraj, Raipur, Puri, Nashik, Bareilly also emerged on the list of popular destinations of 2022 which signalled to Indian traveller’s inclination to explore less explored domestic destinations, said hospitality chain OYO.
Post-pandemic, exploration of local hidden gems is gaining momentum. Places like Kochi, Varanasi and Vishakhapatnam have emerged as top-ranked destinations among Indian travellers.
Anadaman & Nicobar. Image: Andaman tourism website
Popular pick for summer travel
Kashmir, Goa and Andaman and Nicobar Islands are popular picks for summer travel. Kashmir saw a record-breaking 23 lakh tourists in 2022 and was one of the most popular picks for summer travel this year, pointed out Rajnish Kumar, Group CPTO and Co-founder, ixigo, online travel aggregator.
Veitnam: Image: Travel Triangle, a holiday marketplace
Popular international picks
In international travel, the favorite picks were destinations that were not accessible to Indians last year due to Covid restrictions. Travelers have been keen on exploring international destinations like Vietnam, Bali, Turkey and Singapore due to borders fully re-opening this year.
Budget-friendly destinations like Vietnam are becoming a popular pick for Indians. Bali is another popular option this year with Indonesia opening up international travel after a long time.
Other sought-after overseas destinations include Netherlands, Denmark, Belgium, Austria and France.