A depreciating rupee and the recent spurt of flight cancellations have dealt a double blow to the outbound leisure travel segment. Usually such bookings pick up by early April. However, travel agents that Business Line spoke to said that this year the bookings started only from end April. Travel agents from across India reported a loss in demand and business was sluggish with a drop of 30 per cent in booking enquiries as compared to last year.

A dollar, which was at Rs 45 a year ago, is now at Rs 54.51 , reflecting a 20 per cent depreciation of the rupee. The rupee is at about Rs 70 to a Euro now, down from Rs 64 in last May, making an Europe tour costlier too. Simply put, every thing bought abroad is now 10 to 20 per cent more expensive. Destinations such as London, France, Italy and Switzerland have seen a dip in bookings due to rupee depreciation. “In a family of 4, if one package gets more expensive by Rs 10,000, one ends up paying an extra 40,000,” said Raja Natesan, Chief Operating Officer, TUI India. The negative effect on outbound business has been compounded by the situation brought about by Kingfisher Airlines and Air India, tour operators say.

“There has been a combined hit on the pockets of anywhere between 18 and 40 per cent as compared to last year. This is not good news for the travel industry,” Natesan added.

Trends in the outbound leisure travel also indicate that the travellers from India prefer shorter trips to destinations in Europe, the UK and Australia as compared to last year's bookings. “Shorter duration of tours and higher number of bookings in budget-category hotels are the trends observed this year. Travellers have become extremely conscious about the prices and are engaged in extensive online research to get the best deals this season,” said Manmeet Ahluwalia, Marketing Head, Expedia India.

To offset the soaring prices of holiday packages, travel operators and online travel portals are offering various deals and offers to add volume in the bookings. “Tour operators are offering heavy discounts to attract the customer back. But that simply means that the already thin profit margins will get further eroded,” Natesan added.

> niveditag@thehindu.co.in

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