Travel trends from MakeMyTrip: Top destinations, vacation durations and more

MakeMyTrip is India's largest online travel company that provides services including flight tickets, domestic and international holiday packages, hotel reservations, rail and bus tickets. The company recently released some numbers from their data and it has some valuable insights for travel entrepreneurs.

image credit: Shutterstock

International Holidays: 2014

• Thailand continues to be the favorite overseas destination for Indian travellers followed by Singapore and Malaysia (both at Number 2 spot). This is due to decrease in air capacity and consequent increase in air prices to Thailand.
• Dubai was the third-most popular international destination for travellers from India, and it was also the fastest-growing with a 65% yoy growth.
• Witnessed a 400% YoY growth in winter bookings for Bhutan
• Must-visit destinations in 2015 - Turkey, Bali, Cambodia and Seychelles

Top 3 destinations in terms of passenger volume/most popular for 2014 year-end overall:

1)     Thailand

2)     Singapore + Malaysia

3)     Dubai

Top selling destinations- this is the passenger growth from last year to this year to the specific destination

* Anomalous growth due to launch of new products

Emerging Destinations

Traveller-group composition

Average trip-duration

Average trip budget- Rs 60,000 per person 

Domestic Holidays: 2014

• Short and quick getaways was popular among Indians this year
• South destinations like Kovalam and Munnar are the top selling destinations this year
• Goa slipping behind Andamans and Ooty this year

Top-selling destinations

Kovalam, Munnar, Udaipur, Manali, Andamans, Ooty, Goa (Goa slipping behind Andamans and Ooty this year)

Emerging Destinations

Coorg, Kutch, Wayanad, Dharamshala, Bhutan, Jaisalmer, wildlife parks like Kanha and Pench

Traveller-group composition

Families and couples, not many solo travellers

Average trip-duration

While the average trip duration for this period in 2013 was 3-4 nights, so far trends for the Christmas-New year period show average trip duration of 4-5 nights. This is based on transactions completed till the 10^th of December and may change , as we expect a lot of last-minute bookings for weekend breaks for these dates in the next few days.

Average trip-budget

Ranging from INR 25,000 to INR 80,000 for a couple or small family

Emerging trends:

• Although Goa is still a very popular destination for New Year , we also see some smaller/quieter destinations finding favour this year
• A number of people seem to have planned visits to spiritual destinations like Amritsar, Shirdi, Tirupati
• Couples from metros who are unable to take a long break are looking at nearby destinations for a quick getaway: Mahabaleshwar, Hampi, Manali, Pondicherry, Kovalam are some of the popular picks

Hotels: 2014 (basis data for already booked check-ins from 20 – 31st Dec)

• In 2014, we are witnessing good traction in Rajasthan (almost all cities) and even hill-stations in the North that are growing above the National Average (see data below). Customers should book early to avoid last minute rush
• Room Tariffs have almost been flat / or shown a marginal dip in the higher category due to good supply
• Hotel tariffs will witness a 10-15% price increase in places like Goa, Jaisalmer and Udaipur as we get closer to the end of the month
• Shortage of good quality hotels will hit Kerala, Pondicherry, Goa, and Hill Stations in South India like Coorg, Ooty and Kodaikanal
• The checks-in between Dec 20- 31, the tariffs are likely to increase by 10% every 15 days before peaking around Dec 20th, the reason being shortage of inventory
• Hotel tariffs will witness a 10-15% price increase in places like Goa, Jaisalmer and Udaipur as we get closer to the end of the month

Average Room Rent (December 20^th – 30^th)

City-wise bookings growth- the growth is year-on-year and the national average growth is 40%