Indians’ wanderlust to fuel spending
NEW DELHI : Indians will spend $410 billion on travel and accommodation by the end of the decade aided by a growing economy, swelling incomes and youthful population, a new study said. This is about three times the amount ($150 billion) spent in 2019, the last pre-covid year of normal consumption. Indians are keen on non-traditional accommodation such as hostels, campsites, vacation rentals and chalets, the study by Booking.com with knowledge partner McKinsey & Company said.
The average daily rate and the number of room nights booking in alternative accommodations is nearly twice that of hotels and managed chains, with the highest increase in average daily rates for niche alternative accommodation such as country houses and boats. But the figure is higher since alternative accommodations at present have a much smaller base. “A large part of the growth in travel will come in the form of alternative accommodations and the shift in the way people book from offline travel bookings to online will continue.
Today, we are very bullish on the ‘India opportunity’, largely because the country has one of the youngest populations around the world and the country’s GDP is one of the fastest growing," said Santosh Kumar, country head, Indian subcontinent and Indonesia of Booking.com, owned by the Netherlands-based Booking Holdings. One of the prime drivers is India’s growing middle-income population. The number of households earning $35,000 annually is expected to increase fivefold over the next 10 years, driving a boom in discretionary spending, the report said.
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