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Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day is no longer limited to just flowers, chocolates and dinner. This year, Indian couples are spending lavishly on travel and getaways to make this occasion of love special. Statistics from hotel and travel companies show that there has been a tremendous increase in bookings on Valentine's Day weekend. According to Cleartrip, hotel bookings for Valentine's Day have increased by 175% year-on-year this year.

Growing preference for short but memorable trips

According to Manjari Singhal, Chief Growth Officer, Cleartrip, couples are preferring short and experience-based trips. There has been an increase of more than 60% in bookings for Guwahati and more than 65% for Colombo, which clearly shows that people are also planning short international getaways.

Resorts and leisure destinations near full

Amaruda Nair, CEO of Araiya Hotels & Resorts, said that Valentine's Day bookings in their resort portfolio have increased from 58% to 110%. According to data company RateGain, there has been a 58% year-on-year increase in hotel bookings on Valentine's weekend. This means that couples are now choosing destination style holidays instead of one night celebrations.

Couples are giving preference to more expenditure and more customization

Clarissa Group is seeing up to 7080% more demand in tourist destinations like Jim Corbett, Goa and Mukteshwar. ITC Hotels is also getting strong bookings in Agra, Jaipur, Gurugram and Goa. The hotel industry says couples are not only staying longer, but are also spending on personalized dining, private setups and special romantic experiences.

Foreign travel and room rates also increased

According to Pickyourtrail, the international travel budget has increased by 2033% on an annual basis. At the same time, bookings for Valentine's holidays have increased by 50% on Cox & Kings. Hotels say that room rates are about 10% higher than last year, but demand still remains strong. Overall, Valentine's Day is no longer just a one-day celebration but is becoming a complete travel and experience festival for couples.