We are the third most travelling segment in the Asia-Pacific region, says a survey
Indians are taking off and how. In an annual survey on flight and hotel behaviour of travellers across 23 countries in the world, it was revealed that Indians were the third most frequent travellers in the Asia- Pacific region. The survey revealed the results of the Expedia flight and hotel etiquette study 2018.
Given our gift for striking up friendships, it is not surprising that Indians are globally number one in engaging in a conversation, when sitting next to someone they don’t know (59 per cent) and probably the reason why 70 per cent Indian travellers also dread sitting next to someone who talks too much. Indians find seat kicker/bumper/grabbers (32 per cent), inattentive parents (30 per cent) and audio insensitive passengers (30 per cent), most annoying in a flight or at the airport. Despite these factors, Indians agree that generally, airline travel is fun and exciting (89 per cent), and for most part, fellow passengers are considerate of other passengers (80 per cent).
Indian travellers prefer big chain hotel (29 per cent) followed by vacation/holiday rental (22 per cent), boutique hotel (15 per cent) and short-term room rental (11 per cent) the most. The least preferred accommodations include hostels (39 per cent) and bed and breakfasts with shared bathrooms (29 per cent).
Manmeet Ahluwalia, marketing head, brand Expedia in India says, “The findings are a testimony of the growth in traffic being experienced by the aviation industry, as Indians are the third most frequent travellers in Asia-Pacific region, with average 7.6 flights per year after Thailand and Japan. Indians are also increasing shifting to technology as 67 per cent Indians check-in online while 18 per cent check-in on mobile and the country stands at second position in number of people using the boarding pass on a mobile device after Thailand”. He also added, “The study also highlights that there is a higher preference of booking the flight first followed by the hotel (37 per cent) while 36 per cent book a flight and hotel together as a package. Only 15 per cent Indians are driven by the hotel properties as they book a hotel first followed by the flight.”