Almaty, Baku, Da Nang, Tbilisi... What's new on India's travel list

A general view of Baku, Azerbaijan. (Photo: Reuters)

Indians are travelling much more frequently and are increasingly showing interest in off-the-beaten locations for foreign travel, according to a report.

The MakeMyTrip India Travel Trends Report reveals that Indians are showing growing interest in newer locations like Hong Kong (China), Almaty (Kazakhstan), Paro (Bhutan), Baku (Azerbaijan), Da Nang (Vietnam), and Tbilisi (Georgia). The report said that all of these places witnessed significant growth in interest in 2023.

While these places have emerged as new attractions, Dubai (UAE), Bangkok (Thailand), and Singapore remain the top three most searched destinations. For long-haul travel, London, Toronto, and New York are the most sought-after.

The report studies travel behaviours based on insights from travel and hospitality giant MakeMyTrip’s base of over 100 million active annual users.

Since 2019, there has been a 25% increase in the number of people taking more than three trips a year, according to the report.

Within India, travel-related inquiries for spiritual destinations like Ayodhya, Ujjain, and Badrinath have soared, according to the report, which further said that spiritual tourism-related searches saw a 97% surge in 2023 compared to 2021. Such a surge is particularly visible in tier-2 and -3 cities.

Among the spiritual centres, searches for Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh soared by 585% in 2023 compared to 2022. In Hinduism, the city is considered to be the birthplace of Lord Rama, an incarnation of God Vishnu.

Similarly, Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh and Badrinath in Uttarakhand witnessed an increase of 359% and 343% respectively. While Ujjain is home to the Mahakaleshwar Temple, one the most significant temples of Hindu God Shiva, Badrinath has a key temple dedicated to Vishnu which is part of the ‘chaar dhaam’ pilgrimage. The other three sites part of the circuit are Yamunotri, Gangotri, and Kedarnath.

Among all the destinations, the report revealed that weekend getaways continued to be a favourite with Jim Corbett National Park in Uttarakhand witnessing a 131% year-on-year rise in searches in 2023. The report also found that hill stations like Ooty and Munnar also remain popular choices.