Rupee fall, spurt in airfares make Indians opt for cheaper and closer travel destinations

New Delhi: The freefall of the rupee and pilots' strike in national carrier Air India are making middle class Indians cut short their summer vacations or opt for cheaper and closer destinations.
While the fall in the rupee's valuation has made outbound travel 15-20% more expensive, domestic airfares have sharply increased due to pilots' strikes and cancellation of several Air India and Kingfisher Airlines flights, travel industry officials say. Many travellers, especially those in the middle class, are now opting for 8-9 days trips instead of 12-13 days and for short-haul destinations in the Far East instead of Europe and America to stay within their budgets.
"Outbound travel is having a severe impact as it has become more expensive for people to travel abroad," says Dhruv Shringi, chief executive officer of travel and ticketing portal Yatra.com.
The rupee slumped 6.5% this quarter to Rs 54.42 against the dollar on Friday, becoming Asia's worst performing currency. Since August 2011, the rupee has fallen by about 21%.
21/05/12 Ravi Teja Sharma/Economic Times

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Categories: Foreign May 2012, Indian Aviation- In General May 2012