OYO releases mid-season Global Holiday Trends 2021 Report

The report reveals Gandhi Jayanti in India, Ascension Day in Europe, Labour Day in USA and Summer Holidays in UK top charts as the most popular holidays among travellers

With a steady rise in vaccination coverage across geographies, combined with the easing of restrictions across regions, travellers have embraced the spirit of travel wholeheartedly, especially during holidays and festive long weekends in India, the US, the UK and Europe. As per OYO’s booking analysis, consumers across the world are increasingly opting for short-haul destinations and making last-minute bookings over planned trips. Across Europe, summer travel saw the highest bounce back in demand. Whereas Americans travelled the most during the Labour Day long weekend of September 4 to September 6, 2021, in India, the long weekends of Gandhi Jayanti and Dussehra ranked as the topmost holidays for travellers in 2021.

In India, some of the most popular holidays for travellers took place in the second half of this year, starting with Janmashtami in August, followed by Ganesh Chaturthi and Dussehra which saw a spike in the bookings. This optimism around travel can be attributed to higher vaccination coverage and the opening up of several states for tourism in comparison to early 2021.

Indian travellers preferred spending their holidays in Jaipur, Goa, Visakhapatnam, Kochi and Udaipur during the festive season. Interestingly, short-haul destinations continue to be the go-to option for travellers across the country over long weekends. Some of the top short-haul destinations are Lonavala, Puducherry, Shimla and Mysore. All these destinations sit close to mainstream cities of Mumbai, Chennai, Chandigarh, Delhi and Bangalore, indicating that city folks are looking for respite closer to home. 

Last-minute bookings continue to be on the rise. Not surprisingly, Indians travel to destinations known for their festive cheer. During a festival, the preference for destinations well-known to celebrate the festival with great vigour witnessed a spike in bookings. For instance, during Ganesh Chaturthi, locals preferred going on short-haul trips to locations like Mahabaleshwar, Panchgani and Lonavala. The most recent long weekend of Guru Nanak Jayanti saw the majority of bookings for Varanasi, Jaipur, Goa, Puri and Alibag.

Some of the favourite holidays of destinations across the world are as follows:

Europe

In 2021, Ascension Day, Halloween, Pentecost, Easter emerged as Europe’s favourite holidays to travel. Denmark, Netherlands, Germany, Belgium and France are the top 5 destinations for the holidays of Ascension Day, Halloween and Pentecost. However, a majority of these were last minute bookings considering the evolving local restrictions across European countries. 

USA

Labor Day, New Year’s, Martin Luther King Jr Day, Memorial Day and Thanksgiving are America’s most travelled holidays. Coastal hotspots such as Seattle and Miami have been wildly popular during public holidays, followed by California’s Nevada City, Houston and Dallas.

UK

In the UK, May and August bank holidays are usually considered as the peak holiday season. Summer and Spring school holidays respectively have topped the UK's most travelled holiday’s list. London, Bath, Blackpool, Scotland and Great Yarmouth were the most travelled destinations during these holidays. London, Bath, Blackpool, Scotland and Great Yarmouth remain the top 5 destinations for travellers throughout all holidays.


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Oyo Report Mid-Season Global Holiday Trends 2021

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