Representative image of international travel.
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New Delhi: The number of Indians travelling abroad in a year twice or more has gone up 32 per cent, according to a report released on Tuesday.
Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Delhi lead the charts for international travel searches, as per the How India Travels Abroad Report by travel booking platform MakeMyTrip. The report covered the period between June 2023 and May 2024.
Popular destinations such as the UAE, Thailand, and the US, top the chart of the destinations that Indians love to travelling to, with Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, and Bhutan leading the emerging destinations chart.
A key finding from the report suggests that international travel search volumes remain relatively steady across all seasons, with December being the most active month for international travel searches.
Rajesh Magow, Co-founder and Group CEO, MakeMyTrip, said, "With rising disposable incomes, greater exposure to global cultures, and the increasing ease of travel, more Indians are exploring both domestic and international destinations for leisure as well as business."
"While domestic tourism remains buoyant, as noted in our previous report, our latest findings highlight the notable changes in international travel behaviour driven by macroeconomic factors that are fuelling the surge in travel among Indians," he said.
According to the report, there has been a 70 per cent increase in the combined search volume for the top 10 emerging destinations.
Almaty and Baku have seen phenomenal growth rates of 527 per cent and 395 per cent, respectively.
Moreover, interest in luxury travel is rising among Indians, with a 10 per cent growth in searches for business class flights in the international segment.
Hong Kong shows the highest growth with a 131 per cent increase in searches followed by Sri Lanka, Japan, Saudi Arabia, and Malaysia.
Notably, nearly half of the international hotel bookings fall in the above Rs 7,000 per night tariff bracket. With New York being the most expensive place to book a hotel, South Asian destinations such as Pokhara, Pattaya, and Kuala Lumpur emerge as the top destinations for budget-friendly stay options.