Festive Season Demand: Travel and hospitality sectors hope for a take-off

Airlines, hotels and travel companies say they are seeing an increase in bookings after a Covid-induced slump over the past two years

By Anubhuti Matta Forbes India Staff

Published: Sep 5, 2022 02:04:00 PM IST

Updated: Sep 5, 2022 02:46:12 PM IST

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“This time around, festive travel feels like pre-pandemic normal,” says Vipul Prakash, COO at MakeMyTrip. Image: Creative Touch Imaging Ltd./NurPhoto via Getty Images

While relaxation in lockdown gave rise to revenge travel, propelling further growth for the tourism sector, the hospitality industry is also witnessing a revival, thanks to the upcoming holiday and festive season.

“This festive season is extremely crucial for us and everyone in the hospitality industry. We need to capitalise on this pocket, on the post-Covid-19 rush,” says Frans Westraadt, general manager, Six Senses Fort Barwara. “The demand is heavy, the domestic market continues to drive in more customers.”

Conrad Bengaluru is clocking in north of 75 percent occupancies. “Especially after the last two years of Covid-19, this is a very pivotal season for hotels as it presents an opportunity for us to attract travelers and retain their loyalty,” says Srijan Vadhera, general manager.

Similarly, occupancy at the InterContinental Hotels Group increased from 60 percent in Q1 to 74 percent in Q2 of this year. Their hotels in Mumbai, New Delhi, Chandigarh, and Kolkata have recorded over 75 percent occupancy levels. “For the rest of the year, we expect business to continue at a good pace across our hotels and brands in the region,” says Sudeep Jain, managing director-South West Asia.

While a busy summer and monsoon season has helped the hospitality industry streamline operations and gear up for a strong winter run, players are also maintaining a cautious stance. “We believe India cannot stay fully immune to global trends,” says Amruda Nair, founder and director, Araiya Hotels & Resorts. “Domestic demand recovery remains patchy, however, in the short term, with a strong monsoon and solid corporate earnings, the festive season is expected to see an uptick driven further by the depreciating rupee.”

The travel industry too might be set to take off.

“This time around, festive travel feels like pre-pandemic normal,” says Vipul Prakash, COO at MakeMyTrip. “We are definitely bullish about the growth prospects on the domestic and international travel front.”

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In July, with a domestic market share of 10.4 percent, Vistara became the second largest airline in India, and surpassed the one million domestic passengers mark for the first time since its inception. “We have been witnessing a consistent growth in passenger traffic and we are hopeful that the momentum will continue with the upcoming festive season that is likely to create a surge in demand for air travel,” says a spokesperson from Vistara.

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Rikant Pittie, co-founder of EaseMyTrip, informs that during the sale around Independence Day this year, in the first 10 days, the company sold tickets worth Rs300 crore. “We also saw an increase up to 40 percent in hotel and air ticket bookings as compared to the previous year. And until October, we are expecting a rise by 40 percent more,” he says.

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Car rental company, Avis India, struggled in the first year of Covid-19, says Managing Director and CEO Sunil Gupta. “We started to stabilise, and since August. We’ve seen an increase in bookings by 30 percent, and as we enter the festive third quarter, we anticipate that the threshold will be crossed in October.”