holidayiq.com insights: winter holidays prediction report 2013 · mandarmani, west bengal: a fast...

H o l i d a y I Q . c o m I n s i g h t s : W i n t e r H o l i d a y s P r e d i c t i o n R e p o r t 2 0 1 3 | 1

HolidayIQ.com Insights: Winter Holidays Prediction Report 2013

The HolidayIQ.com Insights: Winter Holidays Prediction Report 2013 is an analysis of travellers

planning trips from November 2013 – January 2014. Based on the information submitted

continuously by a traveller community of over 50 lakh Indians per month, the intelligence team at

HolidayIQ.com, collates data from multiple on site user actions, analyses and identifies trends

that have emerged in domestic vacations in India.

Winter 2013: An overview

Travellers are taking longer & more expensive holidays this winter however, they are

travelling in shorter groups.

Beach & hill station destinations are most popular this winter accounting for almost 78%

holidays planned

Holidays are becoming more activity driven – from jet skiing and surfing at beach

destinations to trekking, rock climbing, white water rafting or skiing at hill stations or even

wildlife safaris or coracle rides travellers are looking for experiences to make holidays

more memorable.

Travellers spend more on accommodation when they are travelling to a desert, beach or

jungle destination and spend the least on pilgrimage destinations. Also, holidays planned

by women have 8% higher budget/person/night than those planned by men

As a traveller category, couple travellers are becoming an important segment. This year,

couple travellers account for 50% of total winter holidays planned and had the highest

budgets.

Family vacations also forms a large share in and accounts for 1/4th of total winter holidays

planned this year

Holiday planning is done more on weekdays, with maximum number of holidays being

planned on a Wednesday. Interestingly, holidays planned on Wednesdays have a 15%

higher budget than holidays planned on any other day, something travel agents and hotels

should make a note of.

The report covers the following:

Topic Page No.

I. 2012 V/s 2013 2

II. Destination Insights

Popular & emerging Destinations

Large number of Winter Travellers travel outside their region

3

III. Holiday planning behaviour

Home v/s at office, Weekdays v/s weekends

6

IV. Traveller Insights

Emergence of couple travellers

Family holidays: 1/4th of winter holidays are planned with kids

City-wise insights

7

V. Trends in Travel Budget:

Highest budgets allocated for Desert, Beach & Jungle destinations

12


I. 2012 V/s 2013

Average holiday budgets per person per night have increased from Rs. 1564 in 2012 to

Rs. 2325 this winter, indicating a 48% rise

Compared to last year, trips have become longer by 36.3% with travellers taking an

average trip of 3.8 nights this year

However, people are planning trips in smaller groups with group size reducing by 16%.

Rs. 1,564

Rs. 2,325

Rs. 0

Rs. 500

Rs. 1,000

Rs. 1,500

Rs. 2,000

Rs. 2,500

2012 2013

Avg. budget/pers/night

2.8

3.8

0.0

1.0

2.0

3.0

4.0

2012 2013

Trip Length (Nights)4.7

3.9

3.4

3.6

3.8

4.0

4.2

4.4

4.6

4.8

2012 2013

Group Size


II. Destination Insights

This winter, Beach & Hill station destinations are the most popular accounting for nearly

77% of all holidays planned

More travellers are opting for destinations outside their regions of residence.

Beach Holidays:

Beach Holidays are most popular accounting for over 40% trips this winter

Beach holidays today are no longer limited to lazing in a hammock, but include a lot of

water sports from wind surfing to jet skiing to scuba diving & snorkelling

In addition to popular beach destinations such as Goa & the Andaman & Nicobar

islands, lesser known beaches & hill stations are attracting travellers

1. Tarkarli, Maharashtra : A beautiful seaside village, known for its white sandy beaches, marine life & water

sports like scuba diving & snorkelling.

2. Ganapatipule, Maharashtra: Traditionally a destination attracting pilgrims, Ganapatipule is now emerging as a

favourite for beach lovers.

3. Diu, Daman & Diu:

A tiny island in the Arabian Sea, Diu is known for its serene virgin beaches and

resplendent forts. It is also becoming a popular choice for water sports enthusiasts

interested in wind-surfing & para-sailing

42.2%

36.4%

6.1%

5.0%

5%3%

1.2%

1.2%

0.5%

Destination Themes

Beach

Hill

Heritage

Pilgrimage

Jungle

City

Desert

Waterfront

Other


4. Alibaug, Maharashtra: This 300-year old seaside town has something to offer for beachbums & heritage

seekers alike. In addition to its beautiful beaches, Alibaug attracts travellers to its

Portugese ruins, Buddhist caves & mughal baths

5. Mandarmani, West Bengal: a fast developing seaside village famous for water

sports such as surfing, jet skiing & parasailing. Mandarmani is known for its 13 km

long motorable stretch making it a must-visit spot for motorbiking & ATV rides.

Hill Station Holidays

Most popular hill station destinations

1) Ooty

2) Shimla

3) Manali

4) Darjeeling

5) Coorg

Emerging hill station destinations

1) Mahabaleshwar, Maharashtra: Mahabaleshwar is now emerging as a popular holiday

destination. Known for its picturesque settings, pleasant weather, sites of historic

significance & fresh local produce it is a favourite especially for travellers from

Mumbai & Pune.

2) Munnar, Kerala: one of the popular hill station getaways in Kerala, Munnar is an

idyllic destination with rolling hills, grasslands, dense forests, brooks and rivulets,

waterfalls, lakes, tea plantations and walking trails.

3) Pachmarhi, Madhya Pradesh: The pristine hill station surrounded by forests is a part

of the UNESCO Biosphere Reserves. The Satpura National Park, Jata Shankar cave,

Pandav caves, Fairy Pool, Victorian churches and Big Falls are few of the major

attractions here. It is also emerging as an adventure sports destination with activities

like parasailing, trekking and rock climbing becoming increasingly popular.

4) Matheran, Maharashtra: Matheran is one among the eco-sensitive regions in the

world where motored vehicles are not allowed and is frequented by nature lovers and

wildlife enthusiasts. Matheran offers sightseeing attractions such as Porcupine Point,

Panorama Point, Echo Point, Charlott Lake, King George Point, Louisa Point,

Paymaster Park, Panthers’ Caves, Hart Point, etc. It is also popular for activities such as

trekking, hiking and rock climbing.

5) Saputara, Gujarat: This little known hill station has a lot to offer for all sorts of

travellers like the museum of Saputara, many beautifully designed gardens, facilities for

boating & sailing, Gira waterfalls, the Vansda National Park and the Purna Sanctuary.


Travelling longer distances: 2/3rd

travellers are travelling outside their region:

Traditionally, it was observed that travellers prefer to travel within the region they reside

in. For instance, travellers from the north prefer holidaying in the north and travellers from

the west prefer holiday destinations in the west. However, in comparison to last year, this

winter there is a marked increase in travellers choosing holiday destinations outside the

region they reside in.

In 2012, only 41% of winter trips planned were outside the traveller’s region of residence

whereas this year such trips accounted for 66% of all trips planned

East and North East travellers travel outside their region more than others. However,

majority of South Indian travellers prefer travelling within their region.

41%

59%66%

34%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

Outside Region Within Region

Travellers travelling withing and outside their region

2012 2013

75.4% 72.8% 69.5% 66.4%

41.1%

0.0%

20.0%

40.0%

60.0%

80.0%

East North East North West South

% of travellers travelling outside their region

East

North East

North

West

South


III. Holiday planning behaviour:

73.2% holidays are planned on weekdays and only 26.8% on weekends.

Wednesday is the most popular day for planning holidays accounting for 16% of all

holidays planned. Further, holidays planned on Wednesdays have a budget 15% higher

than those planned on any other day.

Holidays planned by women have 8% higher budget/person/night than those planned by

men

2/3rd

of holiday planning was done from work


men

73.2%

26.8%

When are the Winter Holidays Planned

Weekday

Weekend

54.4%

45.6%

Where are the Winter Holidays Planned

Home

Office

Rs. 2,485 Rs. 2,304

Rs. 500

Rs. 1,500

Rs. 2,500

Rs. 3,500

Planned by Women Planned by Men

Accommodation budget/person/night

Planned by Women

Planned by Men


IV. Traveller Insights

Emergence of couple travellers: Couple travellers are emerging as an important

category of travellers accounting for 50% of all trips planned

Family vacations form a significant part of winter holidays, accounting for 26% of all

trips planned

North Indians spend more and go for longer holidays as compared to South Indians

Gujaratis have the highest average group size, travellers from Haryana have the lowest

Holidays by Couple travellers form 50% of total winter holidays –

During the rest of the year, holidays planned by couple travellers holidays account for

30-35% of total holidays, however during winter this share goes to 50%

Couple travellers plan longer & more expensive holidays allocating the highest average

budget of Rs.2611 per person per night, followed by family travellers at Rs.2137, group

travellers at Rs. 1974 & single travellers at Rs. 1693

Below is a comparison

50.1%

26.0%

21.9%

2.1%

Traveller Group Types

Couple

Family

Group

Single

Rs. 2,611

Rs. 2,137 Rs. 1,974Rs. 1,693

Rs. 0

Rs. 500

Rs. 1,000

Rs. 1,500

Rs. 2,000

Rs. 2,500

Rs. 3,000

Couple Family Group Single


Couple

Family

Group

Single


More than half the holidays taken by couple travellers is honeymoon travel.

Favorite destinations of couple travellers are below –

i. Andaman & Nicobar

ii. Goa

iii. Kerala

iv. Ooty

v. Shimla

Emerging destinations frequented by couple travellers

i. Matheran, Maharashtra Matheran is frequented by nature lovers and wildlife enthusiasts and offers

sightseeing attractions such as Porcupine Point, Panorama Point, Echo Point,

Charlott Lake, King George Point, Louisa Point, Paymaster Park, Panthers’

Caves, Hart Point, etc. It is also popular for activities such as trekking, hiking

and rock climbing.

ii. Pachmarhi, Madhya Pradesh The pristine hill station surrounded by forests is a part of the UNESCO

Biosphere Reserves. The Satpura National Park, Jata Shankar cave, Pandav

caves, Fairy Pool, Victorian churches and Big Falls are few of the major

attractions here. It is also emerging as an adventure sports destination with

activities like parasailing, trekking and rock climbing becoming increasingly

popular.

3.823.68 3.72

3.25

2.80

3.00

3.20

3.40

3.60

3.80

4.00

Couple Family Group Single

Average Trip Length (nights)

Couple

Family

Group

Single

54.4%37.3%

5.0%3.3%

Intent of Holidays

Honeymoon

Casual Vacation

Adventure

Others


iii. Wayanad, Kerala

Mist covered valleys, luxuriant forests, spice plantations, hill ranges, waterfalls,

wildlife sanctuaries and Stone Age sites are some of the popular attractions of

Wayanad.

iv. Araku Valley, Andhra Pradesh

Araku Valley is a scenic hill station famous for its coffee plantations, green

hills, trekking trails, waterfalls and dense forests. Borra caves, with its million-

year old stalactites and stalagmites attracts many travellers during winter.

v. Tarkarli, Maharashtra: A beautiful seaside village, known for its white sandy beaches, marine life &

water sports like scuba diving & snorkelling.

Family Vacations: 1/4th

of winter holidays are planned with kids

Due to winter holidays in schools, family vacations form a significant part of winter

holidays, accounting for 26% of all trips planned

Below are the popular destinations where travellers are holidaying with kids

i. Goa

ii. Puri

iii. Pachmarhi

iv. Kerala

v. Visakhapatnam

Lot of travellers are taking their kids to lesser know destinations. Below are the top 5 –

i. Chikhaldara, Maharashtra

A beautiful hill station replete with wildlife, lakes, waterfalls and viewpoints ,

Chikhaldara is known for the Gugamal National Park, Chikhaldara Wildlife

Sanctuary, Melghat Tiger Reserve and Semadoh Lake

ii. Matheran, Maharashtra

Matheran is frequented by nature lovers and wildlife enthusiasts and offers

sightseeing attractions such as Porcupine Point, Panorama Point, Echo Point,

Charlott Lake, King George Point, Louisa Point, Paymaster Park, Panthers’

Caves, Hart Point, etc. It is also popular for activities such as trekking, hiking

and rock climbing.

iii. Saputara, Gujarat

This little known hill station has a lot to offer for all sorts of travellers like the

museum of Saputara, many beautifully designed gardens, facilities for boating

& sailing, Gira waterfalls, the Vansda National Park and the Purna Sanctuary

iv. Jaldapara, West Bengal

is famous for one-horned rhinos, royal Bengal tigers, wild elephants, sambhar,

barking deer, spotted deer ,hog deer, wild pig, bisons and a number of birds and

peafowls. Elephants and Safari Jeeps are available to tour the entire sanctuary.

v. Kanha, Madhya Pradesh

Jungle safaris & animal spotting at Kanha can be an exciting experience as it

houses some rare species of tigers, leopards, wild dogs, wild cats, fox, jackals

and Indian Bison. Visiting hours are only in the early mornings and from late

afternoon to sunset. Other attractions in Kanha include the Kanha Museum,

displaying the culture of indigenous tribes.


North Indians spend more and go for longer holidays as compared to South Indians

Below is a comparison of average budget per person per night and average trip length

of North Indian and South Indian travellers.

30% of North Indians plan to travel to South India this winter holiday season. While

just 15% of South Indians are travelling to North India.

Below are the favorite destinations of North Indians –

i. Goa

ii. Andaman & Nicobar

iii. Kerala

iv. Manali

v. Shimla

Below are the favorite destinations of South Indians

i. Andaman & Nicobar

ii. Goa

iii. Ooty

iv. Coorg

v. Kerala

Rs. 2,692

Rs. 2,254

Rs. 500

Rs. 1,000

Rs. 1,500

Rs. 2,000

Rs. 2,500

Rs. 3,000

North South


North

South

3.93.3

1.0

2.0

3.0

4.0

5.0

North South

Average Trip Length (Nights)

North

South


Gujaratis have the highest average group size, travellers from Haryana have the lowest

Average group size of Gujaratis is 4.8 persons per trip. This figure for travellers from

Haryana is just 3 persons per trip

Overall, travellers from West India travel in larger groups. North Indians have the

smallest average group size.

Theme of destinations where travellers travel in the largest groups are below –

Below are the top 5 destinations with the largest average group size –

i. Vaishno Devi (Pilgrimage)

ii. Puri (Pilgrimage)

iii. Jaisalmer (Desert)

iv. Ranthambore (Jungle)

v. Rameshwaram(Pilgrimage)

3.33.7 3.8 3.9

4.3

1.0

2.0

3.0

4.0

5.0

North North East South East West


North

North East

South

East

West

5.3 5.0 4.9

1.0

2.0

3.0

4.0

5.0

6.0

Desert Jungle Pilgrimage


Desert

Jungle

Pilgrimage


V. Trends in Travel Budget

Travellers have the highest budget for holidays in Desert, Beach and Jungle

destinations

This winter, the most expensive holidays are being planned to the Agatti island in

Lakshadweep and the least expensive ones to Rameshwaram, Tamil Nadu


men

Travellers from Chandigarh have the highest average holiday budgets, whereas

travellers from Durgapur have the lowest

Travellers have the highest budget for holidays in Desert, Beach and Jungle destinations

Travellers spend more on accommodation when they are travelling a desert, beach or

jungle destination. They spend the lowest on Pilgrimage destinations.

Travellers spend the most on accommodation while travelling to the below destinations

Rs. 2,741Rs. 2,553

Rs. 2,365Rs. 2,202

Rs. 2,062Rs. 1,902 Rs. 1,874

Rs. 1,579

Rs. 1,213

Rs. 0

Rs. 500

Rs. 1,000

Rs. 1,500

Rs. 2,000

Rs. 2,500

Rs. 3,000Average budget/pers/night

Desert

Beach

Jungle

Hill

Honeymoon

Waterfront

Heritage

Rs. 3,724

Rs. 3,319

Rs. 2,974 Rs. 2,944 Rs. 2,887 Rs. 2,788

Rs. 0

Rs. 500

Rs. 1,000

Rs. 1,500

Rs. 2,000

Rs. 2,500

Rs. 3,000

Rs. 3,500

Rs. 4,000

Agatti Ranthambore Andaman & Nicobar

Coorg Kerala Jaisalmer

Average budget/pers/night


Travellers spend the least on accommodation while traveling to the below destinations

Below are the top 5 cities of travellers who have the highest budgets

Below are the top 5 cities of travellers who have the lowest budgets

HolidayIQ.com is not a travel agent but India's leading travel planning website powered by reviews

contributed by millions of Indian travellers. After finding all the information needed to plan holidays,

travellers can compare hotel availability and prices among all leading online travel agencies from within

HolidayIQ.com and proceed to book with the vendor of choice. Alternatively, they can search, find, connect

with & request for customized packages from over 1000 traditional (offline) Indian travel agents who

specialize in various tourism destinations in India and abroad. HolidayIQ.com also lists a large number of

standard & unique packages from various hotels & agents. These tools coupled with the large volume of

credible traveller community contributed content on the website provide Indian travellers with a

comprehensive set of options to book their next holiday.

Rs. 1,114Rs. 1,186 Rs. 1,187

Rs. 1,305 Rs. 1,341

Rs. 0

Rs. 200

Rs. 400

Rs. 600

Rs. 800

Rs. 1,000

Rs. 1,200

Rs. 1,400

Rs. 1,600

Rameshwaram Araku Valley Puri Vaishno Devi Visakhapatnam


Rs. 3,387

Rs. 3,081Rs. 3,006

Rs. 2,904 Rs. 2,891

Rs. 2,600

Rs. 2,800

Rs. 3,000

Rs. 3,200

Rs. 3,400

Rs. 3,600

Chandigarh Amritsar Allahabad Faridabad Ludhiana


Rs. 1,468Rs. 1,519

Rs. 1,613

Rs. 1,705 Rs. 1,711

Rs. 1,300

Rs. 1,400

Rs. 1,500

Rs. 1,600

Rs. 1,700

Rs. 1,800

Durgapur Kolkata Varanasi Vishakapatnam Jamshedpur



About HolidayIQ.com: HolidayIQ.com is India’s largest holiday information portal powered by India's first & biggest travel

community - its purpose is to unleash the power of user opinions to create a smarter Indian traveler.

HolidayIQ.com has about 30000 Indian hotels & 1300 Indian destinations listed on the website and is used

by 50 Lac Indian travellers every month for planning their trips.

HolidayIQ.com is not a travel agency and does not do bookings at all. HolidayIQ.com is also not partially

or fully owned by any travel agency or hotel chain or any other travel industry player. Therefore

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holidayiq.com insights: winter holidays prediction report 2013 · mandarmani, west bengal: a fast...

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