New Delhi tops list of Asia's top cities for shopping: Survey

New Delhi has topped the list of Asia's top cities for shopping, offering a treasure trove of goods through its blend of charming traditional markets and glitzy shopping malls, according to a new survey.
New Delhi has topped the list for the best shopping city in Asia, followed by Bangkok and Singapore, according to a survey by TripAdvisor.
"Shopping in Asian cities can be a rich and colourful experience if you know exactly which spots to go to and how to maximise your dollar," TripAdvisor's Communications Director for Asia Pacific Janice Lee Fang said.
Most cities feature top quality malls, where one can find their favourite designer shops, but there are also the night markets or street shops that sell beautiful handicraft and other local gems unique to the culture, she added.

This ranking is based on the popularity of shopping activities in Asian cities and also includes highly-rated hotel recommendations, which are bookable on TripAdvisor, offering shoppers great value for their stay so they can save as much of their holiday budget.
The rank of the best cities for shopping is based on the total of commercial activities for shopping, the number of commercial activities for shopping with a good score, the frequency of mention for the word shopping in the reviews relative to the destination and the average score of reviews that talk about shopping in all the languages applicable on TripAdvisor.Com.

Bangkok (Thailand) is second with its huge variety of shopping options for every lifestyle and budget, from the very high-end to street shopping, wholesale and weekend markets.

Singapore, which ranked third in the list, is famous for its retail options across the city state, with a plethora of shopping malls that open till late.
"While they are clearly pushing the envelope to go beyond
'vanilla' holidays, traditional tick-box see-all-you-can package remains favourite for many even today. They like to plan their outings with family and children where place doesn't matter as long as it is a mini vacation," says Rajeev Kale, President & COO - Leisure Travel (Outbound) Thomas Cook (India) Ltd.

A number of corporate houses also use such weekends to plan their annual official tourist outings which enable them to bring together their entire workforce together on a relaxed outing and engage in some team building exercises along with leisure.
"Any extended weekend today sees a flurry of travel activity. Some youngsters today are so meticulous in planning their getaways that they plan for the entire year, book their tickets, pick their hotels and make their queries months in advance," says Goswamy.
"Most, however, plan on a short term basis. Ahead of the April 15 weekend, we have been flooded with queries from people around Delhi who are looking for a destination that can be covered within three days," he says.

Delhi is surrounded by historically and pictorially attractive destinations such as Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh and Uttrakhand, among others that seem attractive for those planing trips.
"While historical locations are more popular among the more discerning tourists, adventure spots such as Rishikesh, and hill stations nearby are more popular among the younger men and women," says Goswamy.
Better infrastructure in terms of road connectivity, availability of transport options such as cabs, taxis, self-driven cars and more travellers opting for driving holidays has increased the popularity of road trips.
"With international trips such as Myanmar, Thailand and Malaysia also now just a road trip away, this trend is slated to grow. Road trips will lead share of all holidays planned in 2016," says HolidayIQ.