Many Indians are trading crackers and sweets for boarding passes and short getaways this Diwali, with travel and accommodation providers reporting a sharp uptick in bookings for short-haul international holidays and luxury domestic escapes.
“This year’s Diwali is shaping up to be one of the biggest festive travel seasons we’ve seen in recent years,” said Abhishek Daga, cofounder at travel platform Thrillophilia.
“Outbound travel is seeing the strongest surge, up by 24% year-on-year, especially to short-haul Asia-Pacific destinations such as Thailand, Singapore, and Vietnam, which have become the new Goa for many Indian families,” he said.
Domestically, Jaipur, Udaipur and Jaisalmer are seeing some of the highest advance bookings ever, he said.
Holiday booking platform Pickyourtrail’s cofounder Hari Ganapathy said Gen Z and millennials are driving the rush. “The festival of lights has turned into a festival of journeys,” he said. “Couples are picking romantic breaks, families are using the holiday for quality time, and groups of friends are chasing shared adventures.”
According to Ganapathy, leisure travel is making up 46% of festive trips, with Vietnam stealing the spotlight. Bengaluru, Chennai, and Delhi are leading the bookings, he added.
SOTC Travel said it has partnered with Disney Cruise Line for exclusive sailings from Australia-New Zealand, as cruises gain popularity.
“We have designed our Diwali festive packages curated specially for families and multi-generational groups,” said SD Nandakumar, president and country head for holidays and corporate tours at SOTC Travel. “We are seeing interest not only from India’s metros, but also from regional India’s tier-2 and -3 markets, reflecting a strong, nationwide aspiration to travel.”
According to him, spiritual tourism is a strong trend this festive season, with a spike in bookings to destinations like Kashi, Ayodhya, Rameswaram, Tirupati, Amritsar, Varanasi, Prayagraj, Dwarka, Bodh Gaya and Sri Lanka.
Many are opting for special themed tours, such as ‘ Ramayan Anant Yatra’ and ‘Ramayan Trails’ in Sri Lanka, with VIP darshans with guided tour managers, Ganga-aarti in Rishikesh and Varanasi, and Deepotsav celebration in Ayodhya, Nandakumar said.
Industry insiders said travellers are planning early and spending more.
“What’s really interesting is how people are travelling, not just how many,” Thrillophilia’s Daga said. “Travellers are planning earlier, choosing shorter but smarter getaways. What we call the ‘smart luxury’ trend: high-quality, well-curated breaks that balance comfort, experience, and value.”
He said Diwali bookings started coming in by mid-September, and the average spend has also gone up from around Rs 25,000 to Rs 45,000 for domestic trips and from Rs 60,000 to Rs 95,000 for short-haul international holidays.
“Travellers are spending more, but they’re also spending smarter, opting for experience-led travel: sunset desert safaris, yacht cruises, hot air balloon rides, or vineyard picnics,” Daga said.
Manjari Singhal, chief growth and business officer at Cleartrip, said average airfares increased by 36% prior to the pre-festive period, with some routes like Bengaluru to Kanpur soaring up to Rs 40,000 one way.
“Flight bookings are up by over 28%, with Delhi, Bengaluru, Mumbai, Kolkata, Hyderabad, and Pune emerging as the busiest routes,” she said. “On the international front, destinations like Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Saudi, Bangkok, Bali, Karratha, and Kuala Lumpur continue to top travellers’ wish lists.”
Varun Chadha, CEO, TIRUN Travel Marketing said with more Indians than ever choosing to travel during the festive season, Diwali 2025 has seen a 24% spike in bookings thereby signalling how celebration and exploration are increasingly going hand in hand.
"While Singapore remains the top choice, there’s also rising curiosity for Rest of the World cruises, with more Indians venturing to destinations such as Europe, Antarctica, the Bahamas, Australia, and New Zealand," he added.
For Thomas Cook (India), top international destinations include Europe’s Switzerland, France, Italy, Austria, Spain, and Portugal, with growing interest in Scandinavia for unique experiences like chasing the Northern Lights on husky safaris in Norway.
“Short-haul favourites include Vietnam, Oman, Maldives and Bali, with Cambodia emerging strongly,” said Rajeev Kale, president and country head for holidays, MICE and visa at Thomas Cook (India). “On the domestic front, Kerala, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Andamans, and spiritual circuits like Char Dham and Varanasi are in demand,” he added.
Hotels such as Fairmont Jaipur have curated special Diwali packages with evening wine or beer toasts as complimentary services and savings across hotel services, said Rajat Sethi, cluster general manager at Fairmont & Raffles Jaipur.
“This year’s Diwali is shaping up to be one of the biggest festive travel seasons we’ve seen in recent years,” said Abhishek Daga, cofounder at travel platform Thrillophilia.
“Outbound travel is seeing the strongest surge, up by 24% year-on-year, especially to short-haul Asia-Pacific destinations such as Thailand, Singapore, and Vietnam, which have become the new Goa for many Indian families,” he said.
Domestically, Jaipur, Udaipur and Jaisalmer are seeing some of the highest advance bookings ever, he said.
Holiday booking platform Pickyourtrail’s cofounder Hari Ganapathy said Gen Z and millennials are driving the rush. “The festival of lights has turned into a festival of journeys,” he said. “Couples are picking romantic breaks, families are using the holiday for quality time, and groups of friends are chasing shared adventures.”
According to Ganapathy, leisure travel is making up 46% of festive trips, with Vietnam stealing the spotlight. Bengaluru, Chennai, and Delhi are leading the bookings, he added.
SOTC Travel said it has partnered with Disney Cruise Line for exclusive sailings from Australia-New Zealand, as cruises gain popularity.
“We have designed our Diwali festive packages curated specially for families and multi-generational groups,” said SD Nandakumar, president and country head for holidays and corporate tours at SOTC Travel. “We are seeing interest not only from India’s metros, but also from regional India’s tier-2 and -3 markets, reflecting a strong, nationwide aspiration to travel.”
According to him, spiritual tourism is a strong trend this festive season, with a spike in bookings to destinations like Kashi, Ayodhya, Rameswaram, Tirupati, Amritsar, Varanasi, Prayagraj, Dwarka, Bodh Gaya and Sri Lanka.
Many are opting for special themed tours, such as ‘ Ramayan Anant Yatra’ and ‘Ramayan Trails’ in Sri Lanka, with VIP darshans with guided tour managers, Ganga-aarti in Rishikesh and Varanasi, and Deepotsav celebration in Ayodhya, Nandakumar said.
Industry insiders said travellers are planning early and spending more.
“What’s really interesting is how people are travelling, not just how many,” Thrillophilia’s Daga said. “Travellers are planning earlier, choosing shorter but smarter getaways. What we call the ‘smart luxury’ trend: high-quality, well-curated breaks that balance comfort, experience, and value.”
He said Diwali bookings started coming in by mid-September, and the average spend has also gone up from around Rs 25,000 to Rs 45,000 for domestic trips and from Rs 60,000 to Rs 95,000 for short-haul international holidays.
“Travellers are spending more, but they’re also spending smarter, opting for experience-led travel: sunset desert safaris, yacht cruises, hot air balloon rides, or vineyard picnics,” Daga said.
Manjari Singhal, chief growth and business officer at Cleartrip, said average airfares increased by 36% prior to the pre-festive period, with some routes like Bengaluru to Kanpur soaring up to Rs 40,000 one way.
“Flight bookings are up by over 28%, with Delhi, Bengaluru, Mumbai, Kolkata, Hyderabad, and Pune emerging as the busiest routes,” she said. “On the international front, destinations like Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Saudi, Bangkok, Bali, Karratha, and Kuala Lumpur continue to top travellers’ wish lists.”
Varun Chadha, CEO, TIRUN Travel Marketing said with more Indians than ever choosing to travel during the festive season, Diwali 2025 has seen a 24% spike in bookings thereby signalling how celebration and exploration are increasingly going hand in hand.
"While Singapore remains the top choice, there’s also rising curiosity for Rest of the World cruises, with more Indians venturing to destinations such as Europe, Antarctica, the Bahamas, Australia, and New Zealand," he added.
For Thomas Cook (India), top international destinations include Europe’s Switzerland, France, Italy, Austria, Spain, and Portugal, with growing interest in Scandinavia for unique experiences like chasing the Northern Lights on husky safaris in Norway.
“Short-haul favourites include Vietnam, Oman, Maldives and Bali, with Cambodia emerging strongly,” said Rajeev Kale, president and country head for holidays, MICE and visa at Thomas Cook (India). “On the domestic front, Kerala, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Andamans, and spiritual circuits like Char Dham and Varanasi are in demand,” he added.
Hotels such as Fairmont Jaipur have curated special Diwali packages with evening wine or beer toasts as complimentary services and savings across hotel services, said Rajat Sethi, cluster general manager at Fairmont & Raffles Jaipur.
You may also like
85-year-old woman cries bitterly as tree she cared for 20 years is illegally cut, even Kiren Rijiju shares the "heart-wrenching" video
Households urged to put cotton wool on windowsills in October
Telangana: EC announces nomination schedule for Jubilee Hills assembly bypoll
"Our govt is fully committed to ensuring safety and security of journalists": Uttarakhand CM
Croatia begins implementing new border system for non-EU travellers
