Travellers are back in Mountains - Long Weekend & Festive Season proving a surprise boost for tourism

There have been unexpected upsurges in the travel turnout and bookings all across the Northern mountain tourist destinations since last week. The travellers have been slowly reaching the popular destinations like Mussoorie, Nainial, Shimla, Manali etc since the restrictions have been eased and a covid negative is no longer required to enter the Himalayan states of Uttarkhand and Himachal, from October first week. But, the last couple of weeks have witnessed the hill stations are over flowing with travellers like any other years in the past. Places like Mussoorie , Nainital are found to be most favorites destinations among travelers.

Since entry restrictions have been eased and a COVID-19 negative report is no longer mandatory, the month of October has witnessed an increasing number of visitor footfalls over the extended weekend that began on October 2.

OYO’s latest travel forecast in the month of October revealed its top leisure destinations spanning the four zones of the country. For North India, the top leisure destinations are Jaipur, Agra and Mussoorie. The OYO blogpost also cites its latest consumer surveys which indicated that around 56 per cent prefer to travel in a private vehicle to close location with family members or with friends.

Also, the home stays have been the busiest among the preferred choice of stay among most of the travelers traveling these days. As per Shailza Sood Dasgupta , the co-founder of Homestaysofindia , “ most of the travelers these days prefer to book for longer duration compared to previous years. The concept of workation or work from mountains etc proved to be effective and far more popular among working travellers.”

Travellers based in Pune, Mumbai and Bangalore has been heading out to enjoy Goa’s beach vibes. For those in Bangalore, Kochi tops as the most popular destination.

Even many travel organizers have told TW that travelers are ready to pay premium in exchange of safer , cleaner and homely environment

Further, according to Booking.com, 64 per cent are likely to look for promotions and savings whereas 74 per cent expect travel companies to take a supportive stance on their travel plans through promotions and discounts. It is expected that with the festive season round the corner and winter setting in, there will be a further increase of travel in the coming months.