Monsoon advance travel bookings surges by 2.8 times: MakeMyTrip

Even as rains create havoc in many parts of the country, travellers are stepping out to explore new destinations across domestic and international locations with 2.8 times increase reported in advance bookings this year compared to 2015.

"Last few years witnessed a dip in bookings as July- September period is considered a lean season. However, this year, based on the bookings received so far, it can be said that rains and monsoon have not been a deterrent," MakeMyTrip, co-founder and chief executive officer, Rajesh Magow said quoting 'The Monsoon Vacations Travel Trend India' report.

"We have seen a 2.8 times increase in advance bookings on our portal in this period with a 85 per cent growth for international holidays compared to last year," Magow said.

For bookings, he said, mobile phones have become the preferred platform with 72 per cent of the international travel accommodation bookings happening through it against the 34 per cent last year.

Similarly, 41 per cent of the domestic flights have been booked on mobile this year compared to 29 per cent last year during the monsoon period, the report showed.

The report is based on actual bookings for the monsoon quarter (July-September) on online travel major MakeMyTrip.

For domestic locations, the average days of bookings are 5-7 days, while for international destinations they are 7-11 days, it said.

Among domestic destinations, Goa continues to top the charts as a monsoon destination, Leh (Jammu & Kashmir) and Munnar (Kerala) are also being preferred for vacation.

Internationally, Thailand and Dubai are the most preferred destinations followed by Bali and Paris.

The report also found that Indian globetrotters were keen to travel to offbeat locations like Russia, internationally, and Sikkim for domestic holidays.