Delving into the pace of Hyderabad’s travel scene and India’s growing passion, Rajeev Kale, President & Country Head of Holidays, MICE, Visa at Thomas Cook (India) Limited, shares exclusive insights with Deccan Chronicle. From the rise of domestic and international travel preferences to the rise of “Pilgrimage Plus” experiences, Kale unveils the dynamic changes and emerging trends shaping the travel industry. It also gives a list of the most instagrammable tourist spots in the world.
How is Hyderabad as a travel market? Can you give us some statistics on the travel scene in Telangana, especially Hyderabad?
Hyderabad is a key source market for us and our data reflects uptick of 29% YoY from Telangana and Hyderabad. This increased demand is emerging from customers in the segments of families, couples, millennials of Young India and Gen Z. While Hyderabad is a key market, Warangal, Karimnagar and Khammam are emerging strongly.
What Hyderabadis prefer—national or international travel? Could you tell us the most popular points of tourists who visit? Name the most traveled destinations in India
Customers from Hyderabad and Telengana are traveling like never before and demand for domestic and international destinations is equally high. Domestic and short-haul destinations are preferred for weekends, mini-cations; Long Haul destinations are chosen for summer holidays, festive season like Dushera, Diwali and year end. Our customers show a strong appetite for European Switzerland, France, Hungary, Spain; also Finland and the Scandics; Australia-New Zealand, and USA despite visa challenges. Short-haul destinations that are witnessing great interest include Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, Singapore, Malaysia; Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan.
What is worth noting is that we have relaunched our flagship European Extravaganza holidays offering our customers a range of exclusive experiences that are worthy of sharing on social media.
To address this demand, we have introduced special Telugu and Southern departures from Hyderabad to meet the growing demand. On the domestic front, in addition to the cooler climates of Kashmir, Himachal, Uttarakhand, Ladakh, Northeast, we have observed a demand for beach destinations including Kerala and Goa.
Spiritual tourism has gained momentum in the recent past. What are the main pilgrim countries?
We are witnessing a growing preference for spiritual tours to Char Dham, Ayodhya-Prayagraj-Varanasi, Tamil Nadu, etc. from not only the senior segment of Telengana but also from families, couples and millennials. What is worth noting, is the trend of “Pilgrimage Plus” where customers combine darshans while exploring the surrounding destination.
What about Instagrammable places? Can you give us 5 most traveled places?
From Scandinavian countries such as Finland with Iceland and the inclusion of husky-safari, stay in igloos / glass bubbles or traditional wooden cabins with spectacular views of the northern lights, to panoramic views of rice terraces of Tegallalang in Bali, the Cherry Blossom / Sakura season of Japan, are some examples.
What are the unexplored places in India that have the potential to become tourist hotspots
Hyderabadis are showing increased interest in offbeat destinations with a high preference for hidden gems, including the hot sulfur springs of Panamik in Ladakh’s Nubra Valley; Yusmarg and Doodhpathri in Kashmir – exquisite hill stations in Kashmir with lush green landscape and snow-capped mountain ranges, Damro – the longest enchanted suspension bridge in Arunachal Pradesh, and Vantawng falls – the highest and most spectacular waterfalls in Mizoram.
Beach destinations like North Kerala’s Kappad Beach, Andhra’s Rushikonda Beach and Andaman’s Radhanagar Beach in Havelock Island have emerged as favorite beach choices.
What about Lakshadweep? Did the booking go up after the PM’s tweet?
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent visit to Lakshadweep and the encouragement to Indians to explore the islands in the country, we have witnessed a surge in our searches for domestic islands and beach destinations. Our search data for Lakshadweep indicates a significant jump of more than 950% compared to December, followed by destinations such as, Goa – a clear catalyst for Domestic Tourism.
What trends have you noticed in the travel industry during long weekends and seasonal holidays like Navratri or Summer?
Our consumer trends indicate that customers from the state of Telangana use their extended weekends and public holidays, taking multiple vacations in a year, mostly to visa-free and visa-friendly destinations; even drive-cations. The announcement of visa-free entry has changed the game for destinations such as Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Thailand, resulting in a significant increase of approx. 35% What is interesting, is that Indian consumers have changed from being a Saver to a Spender, and this changed mindset has had a cascading impact on holidays; customers are willing to increase spending on their vacations by 20-30% compared to pre-pandemic levels and stay in premium properties while traveling for a longer duration from 7-10 days to more than 15 days.
