Tourism picks up as more countries reopen their borders

India’s leisure tourists have more choices with wider acceptance of Indian vaccines and easing of restrictions by nations, Business Standard reported on Monday. Since last year, Dubai and Maldives have been the favourites for many. However, Indians are now planning trips to Oman, Sri Lanka, Thailand, UK and the US.

According to data from MakeMyTrip, November is leading with the maximum travel bookings during the quarter. There has been a significant increase in searches and bookings to the UK. There has been a similar traction building up for searches to the US.

The UK in October withdrew the quarantine requirement for Indians vaccinated with Covishield, while the US has opened its doors for fully vaccinated tourists from Monday.

MakeMyTrip and IndiGo charter services

From November 1, Thailand began welcoming vaccinated tourists from 60 countries including India. Indonesia has cut down the quarantine time for tourists visiting Bali to three days from existing five. Due to the easy connectivity and affordable prices, Sri Lanka too is luring visitors, especially from South India.

According to Thomas Cook India, customer interest for travel to Thailand, Mauritius and Bali increased.  These countries recently opened doors to Indian tourists. However, limited access due to lack of air travel bubbles is impacting travel plans.

Currently, there are no passenger flights between India and Mauritius and Air Mauritius has sought government approval to resume flights to India. Those travelling to Bali are looking for flight options through West Asia or Colombo.

MakeMyTrip and IndiGo have collaborated to offer air charter and holiday packages to Phuket in December and January, to tap demand.

Also, wider recognition of Covaxin has opened up travel opportunities for those vaccinated with the Bharat Biotech-Manufactured jabs. The World Health Organisation (WHO) granted emergency use listing for Covaxin. This would have paved the way for recognising the vaccine.