Indian travellers were busy indulging in ‘workcation’—working away from home in a scenic location—this year as they tried to adapt and make up for lost vacations while working remotely after the coronavirus pandemic upended travel and tourism sector in 2020, according to OYO Travelopedia 2021.
Around 65 percent of respondents in India have travelled in the past six months and a majority of them visited their loved ones, while some went for a getaway from their daily routines and travelled for leisure.
“Nearly 48 percent of Indians worked from home during the year, out of which a whopping 85 percent preferred taking workcations or working away from home in a scenic location. And out of these, 61 percent took a workcation,” according to OYO’s fourth year-end annual index—OYO Travelopedia 2021.
Interestingly, nearly 27 percent took a month-long workcation. Hill stations ranked top on the list of spots for these work and travel trips, followed by many who visited their hometowns and beach destinations.
The annual consumer survey by the hospitality platform to study travel intent and expectations among its user base across some of its core markets, including India, Indonesia and Europe, took responses of nearly 3,000 people this month.
The OYO Travelopedia 2021 found that with mass vaccination drives, travel intent and confidence among Indians is back with 60 percent of respondents have planned vacations for the winter holiday season. However, most seem to plan their trip closer to the date.
“Nearly 31 percent said they plan their trips a month in advance, whereas 26 percent prefer planning their travel only a week in advance. This is a stark contrast from pre-Covid days,” it said.
When it came to the type of destination, 35 percent of respondents preferred a trip to mountainous regions, whereas 24 percent opted for beach destinations and a good 53 percent said they were very likely to explore “offbeat domestic destinations”.
“Road trips still continue to be a big hit among Indians. Over half the respondents said they would travel by private or rental cars, 35 percent said they were just as fine to hop on a bus or a train, and a mere 14 percent were happy to take a flight,” as per the survey.
Hotels were the top choice of accommodation among users, with approximately 60 percent opting for it, followed by a preference for resorts and waterfront properties by a lakeside, river or beach, it added.
As far as ringing in the New Year 2022 is concerned, ‘family and friends’ are core to the plans for the celebration with 44 percent said they would enjoy the new year with family and friends, while another 44 percent said they would love to travel with family and friends, as per the survey.
However, around 9 percent of Indians also opted to go solo and travel—a soul searching this New Year, it added.
In terms of New Year resolutions, 30 percent said they would travel more in 2022, followed by 18 percent who would love to try to visit their family and friends who they haven’t been able to meet due to travel restrictions.
“Another 18 percent would love to try and explore a new destination every few months. 15 percent also said they would like to invest in travel by opening a savings account solely for travelling purposes,” as per the OYO Travelopedia 2021.