'Indians cancelling foreign vacation due to weak rupee'

About 20 percent of Indians intending to go abroad on vacation have cancelled their trips in the last two months due to the falling rupee, a survey revealed here Friday.

The report "Weak Rupee Makes Foreign Trips Unaffordable for Indians", released by the Associated Chamber of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham), said that tourists are instead choosing domestic destinations for their vacation.

"A decline of 15 to 20 percent has been witnessed in the last couple of months due to falling rupee. Indian tourists are not just restricting their vacation days, but are opting for holidays within the country rather than going abroad," said D.S. Rawat, secretary general of Assocham.

"Over the past three months, travel costs and accommodation have gone up by around 20 to 25 percent," he added.

"Indian travel companies are also reducing the number of days from packages to make it more affordable," Rawat said.

As per the report, domestic destinations like Kashmir, Ladakh, Goa, Himachal Pradesh etc. are being preferred by travellers.

In 2012, around 15 million Indians travelled abroad, an increase of 10 percent over 2011, said Assocham.

The battered rupee slumped to a record low of 60.76 against the dollar this week.