Travel preferences shift amid Middle East crisis; Asia destinations gain traction: Report

Mumbai: Amid disruptions in the Middle East, a report on Monday has revealed that travel preferences have shifted in recent weeks, with more travellers opting for alternate international and domestic destinations, while Asian locations see a surge in bookings this month.

Travel platform Ixigo said it is seeing a shift in preferences, with more travellers opting for alternate international destinations and domestic getaways in recent weeks.

This trend is being driven by evolving global dynamics, including flight disruptions and airspace constraints in the Middle East, prompting holidaymakers to favour more familiar and easy-to-reach locations, added the report.

For travel this month, Asian destinations have recorded a strong surge in flight bookings with Vietnam emerging as the top international destination with a 130 per cent year-on-year increase in bookings, said the report.

It was followed by Nepal (88 per cent), Sri Lanka (68 per cent), Indonesia (33 per cent), Singapore (32 per cent), and Thailand (22 per cent), it stated.

The report by ixigo is based on flight bookings on its platform from the beginning of this month and was compared with booking data during the corresponding period of last year.

It further revealed that domestic leisure travel is also gaining strong momentum, with Udaipur seeing a 69 per cent year-on-year rise in flight bookings, followed by Jodhpur (47 per cent), Bagdogra (44 per cent), Srinagar (41 per cent), and Agartala (38 per cent).

"While the Middle East has traditionally been among the top international destinations for Indian travellers this time of the year, recent weeks have seen preferences shift towards a broader set of markets amid evolving global dynamics. We're seeing a tilt towards closer Southeast Asian markets, with flight bookings rising significantly," ixigo Co-Founder and Group CEO Aloke Bajpai added.