More urban Indians want to escape pollution during festivals

Eco-tourism is gaining popularity with a 25 per cent year-on-year growth as people look to escape to offbeat locations in search of fresh air, especially during festivals, says a study.

Owing to the increasing pollution levels in metro cities, during the festive season, more and more people are planning 'green getaways', according to online travel platform Ixigo's study.

Ixigo data reveals that queries for ecotourism are on the rise, witnessing y-o-y spike of 25 per cent.

The data for this study was taken from bookings and searches for travel during the festival season beginning October 1 till November 7, on ixigo platform.

The data also showed that 38 per cent people are travelling alone, while 32 per cent are travelling with family to escape the festive season pollution.

There has also been a growing demand in queries for eco-lodges, jungle lodges, natural habitats, eco-friendly accommodation as well as offbeat destinations, it said.

Destinations such as Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, north-east states, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu have witnessed the maximum growth in eco-friendly lodging and accommodations.

Travellers have also shown interest in coastal and outback adventures to places like Australia.

Dubai, Singapore, Colombo and Bali were also some of the most popular international destinations for this period.

"About two years ago, the demand for experiential stays, ecotourism and staycations was increasing mainly among expats and foreign tourists. But, the scenario has now changed completely," ixigo CEO and co-founder Aloke Bajpai said.

"An average of about 35 per cent of the total queries received around these escapes now come from people residing in cities such as Delhi, Gurugram, Kolkata, Bangaluru and Mumbai," Bajpai added.