Indian travellers once again looking ahead to leisure travel

Mumbai: India seems to be coming out of the economic slump. With job security returning, Indian travellers are once again looking ahead to leisure travel instead of the weekend trips they restricted themselves to during the insecurity of 2008-09.
The leisure travel market has grown by more than 25% in the past six months. Nitin Sethi (name changed), managing director of a private firm, will be going with his family on a two-week holiday to Hong Kong this weekend. “We are really going to relax and indulge ourselves in the new year,” says the 35-year-old Sethi said.
“Before the slump, we used to go on vacations twice a year. But this year, because of the economic downturn, a weekend trip to Thailand was all we had.”
With quite a few like Sethi coming ahead to indulge themselves, the gloom that had surrounded the Indian travel industry is lifting. Things have started looking up since August.
“This holiday season has been robust for the travel industry. There has been a marked increase in demand for packages. There has been a 25% growth in both domestic and outbound travel over the past six months,” Karan Anand, head — relationships and suppliers, Cox & Kings (India) Ltd, said.
Ashish Kishore, head — hotel and retail business, Yatra.com, said that the renewed sense of job security has led to the spurt in travel.
“As the recession has ended in India, Indians are thinking beyond short-haul travel,” he said.
31/12/09 Naveeta Singh/Daily News & Analysis

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Categories: Indian Aviation- In General Dec 2009