Indians are the most fearless travellers in APAC — 4 in 5 are considering taking off in the next 12 months

• India has emerged as the most confident among 11 APAC markets, followed by Vietnam and China.
• Despite some COVID-19 restrictions, travel optimism continues to remain high, with 70% of Indian travellers being okay with anticipated travel disruptions.
• The insights have been drawn from Booking.com’s inaugural Asia-Pacific (APAC) Travel Confidence Index.

Indians are turning out to be intrepid travellers with four in five Indians considering travelling in the next 12 months, a recent report by online travel agency Booking.com has revealed.

The company, in a statement released on Wednesday, said that 86% of Indian travellers intended to travel in the next 12 months.

“Despite some COVID-19 restrictions, travel optimism continues to remain high, with 70% of Indian travellers (being) accepting of anticipated travel disruptions, and 78% considering leisure travel as important while keeping their overall health and safety in mind,” it added.

Meanwhile, 87% of Indian travellers are likely to travel domestically, even when international travel restrictions are completely lifted, the report said.

The insights have been drawn from Booking.com’s inaugural Asia-Pacific (APAC) Travel Confidence Index, which provides a glimpse of how confident users feel about exploring the world again. The survey — based on insights from 11,000 travellers from 11 countries — also looks into a customer’s motivation to travel.

India has emerged as the most confident among 11 APAC markets, followed by Vietnam and China. North Asian markets like Korea, Taiwan and Japan have ranked lower on the index in terms of overall confidence, even though the intent to travel was quite high.

“The findings highlight Indian travellers' love for travel and readiness to explore the world once again. And while travel optimism remains strong, it's inspiring to know that the intent to travel sustainably is also a key consideration for Indian travellers,” Ritu Mehrotra, Commercial Director of APAC region at Booking.com, said.

When asked about their top concerns and what would prevent them from booking a trip, ‘possibility of getting stuck because of frequently changing border regulations’ was listed as the top deterrent by 35% of Indian travellers.

Travel costs and fear of having to undergo quarantine came next on the list, each chosen by 33% of the Indian respondents.

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