MakeMyTrip sees revival in student bookings. After almost a gap of two years, students are returning to schools and universities. Online travel agency MakeMyTrip said there has been a 60% increase in searches and bookings from and for students in the first two weeks of February over the previous weeks.
It said nearly 80% of these searches are for travel within the next fortnight signaling a gradual increase in bookings for immediate travel. Air routes from tier two cities to bigger metros has seen a rise. Trips from Guwahati to Delhi, Kolkata to Bengaluru, Kochi to Delhi, etc. have seen a 100% or more growth in bookings in February, the company said.
Routes like Lucknow to Bengaluru, Bhubaneswar to Delhi, Kolkata to Chennai, Guwahati to Bengaluru, and Lucknow to Delhi have also been growing at the same rate.
MakeMyTrip Profits From Students Plan To Goa
With students migrating back to their educational base, the Nasdaq-listed travel major said it has observed a significant surge in air travel from non-metros to metros. Flight bookings by students between non-metro to metro, on the platform, has seen a 2x increase from 1-15 February this year.
To be sure, student travel does not happen during this time as this is considered a mid-semester period. But as the omicron wave has subsided, the company expects this number to increase further in the coming days. This data maps travel for the present fortnight till the end of February.
Another trend it has noticed that is gradually emerging as students regroup after a long period is rising interest in group travel to leisure destinations too, especially to Goa.
Student bookings from Mumbai to Goa are seeing a 2x jump for the coming weeks. Bangalore to Goa is also witnessing an almost 100% growth in bookings for the same period.
MakeMyTrip, the travel platform said it also incentivises students with referral discounts.
Research firm Technavio in a report it put out in December 2020 said the travel services market will grow by $56 billion during 2020-2024, progressing at a CAGR of about 19% during the forecast period. The largest growth contributor to this (82%) will be online bookings.
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