MMT to add over 10,000 alternative lodging in 2020

Online travel firm MakeMyTrip is looking to add over 10,000 alternative accommodation properties in India in 2020, with the company expecting to achieve double-digit growth in the segment during the period.

Currently, the company has 1,70,000 bookable properties in India and overseas in the alternative accommodation segment which includes villas, apartments, homestays, guesthouses and hostels, among others.

"As travel growth continues to beat market estimates, we aim to add more than 10,000 alternative accommodation properties in India in the coming year. Additionally, we are bullish on achieving double-digit growth in the segment in the next 12 months," MakeMyTrip COO Vipul Prakash told PTI.

With a great market opportunity on one side and over 44 million customers on the platform on the other, MakeMyTrip is confident of encouraging a shift in driving consideration for the segment amongst leisure and corporate consumers travelling in India who are looking for more choices, he added.

"At a time when customers, especially millennials, prefer experiential travel choices, alternative accommodations are offering quality yet economical, offbeat options and it is only set to grow more popular within Indian travellers," Prakash said.

As a platform, MakeMyTrip's endeavour is to empower its customer with more and more choices so that they always find the best fit on their one-stop travel shop, he added.

Currently, the company offers alternative accommodations across destinations including Goa, Coorg, Wayanad, Lonavala, Shimla, Darjeeling, Ooty, Alleppey and the metros.

Overseas, the company offers such booking options in Dubai, Singapore, Bali, Kuala Lumpur, London, Paris, Berlin, Amsterdam, Melbourne, Sydney, Las Vegas, New York, Ho-Chi-Minh City and Hanoi, among others, it added.

Out of 1,70,000 properties overall in the segment, the company has around 25,000 bookable properties in India.

As per a recent survey conducted by MakeMyTrip, about 48 per cent of Indian travellers are most likely to book alternative accommodation for their next trip.