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The travel industry is seeing green shoots of recovery with leading online travel company MakeMyTrip reporting its highest ever bookings in FY23.
"We witnessed robust recovery in travel demand with significant improvement in consumer sentiment during the fiscal year ended March 31, 2023. We capitalized on this trend to deliver strong results with over 120% YoY constant currency growth in Gross Bookings." - Rajesh Magow, Group Chief Executive Officer, MakeMyTrip,
The surge in bookings signals that travel demand is rebounding sharply as COVID-19 recedes. With revenge travel taking off and pent-up leisure demand coming to the fore, people are flocking back to flights and hotels.
What it Means
The record bookings reported by MakeMyTrip reflect a broader travel rebound happening in India:
- Pent-up demand unleashed: After two years of restricted travel, Indians are now keen to make up for lost time and take vacations, fueling a huge spike in leisure travel demand.
- Revenge travel on the rise: Many Indians now have the means and urge to splurge on vacations as revenge travel gains traction after pandemic-related frustrations.
- Return of business travel: With economic activity and offices resuming, corporate travel is also starting to pick up boosting overall bookings.
- Resurgence of consumer confidence: Growing vaccination coverage and lower COVID-19 cases have restored people's faith in travel safety and readiness to book flights/hotels again.
- Industry recovery underway: The travel sector bore the brunt of the pandemic but MakeMyTrip's bookings indicate the segment is firmly on a recovery path.
- Huge growth potential ahead: With travel spending increasing, players like MakeMyTrip have significant headroom for growth and expansion in the coming years.
- Structural shifts forthcoming: Revenge travel and remote working could fundamentally alter travel patterns and destinations in the post-pandemic era.
In summary, surging bookings at MakeMyTrip underscore that Indian travel is regaining its vibrancy after the pandemic paralysis. This marks the start of an upcycle that can stimulate broader economic recovery.
