Srinagar and Port Blair have seen the steepest drop in airfares, while Bangkok has replaced Dubai as the top trending holiday destination amongst Indian travellers, according to online travel marketplace, Kayak. These findings are part of Kayak’s recently launched tool, Travel Hacker Guide, which provides rankings of the popular and top trending destinations, the most affordable cities to fly to, the best times to book flights as well as travel tips.
The Guide has analysed over 1.5 billion annual search queries to collect information for travellers. According to the Guide, destinations such as Port Blair and Srinagar have seen a drop in average flight price of up to 24%, making them most wallet-friendly options for holidaymakers. Other destinations like Jammu, Muscat and Kochi, too, saw airfares decrease by 23%, 22% and 19%, respectively. The ranking on biggest price drop reflects flight destinations with the highest year-on-year percentage drop in median air fares.
The best month for travel to destinations such as Srinagar, Port Blair and Amritsar is August, whereas November is the least expensive time to travel to Kochi, Madurai and Mangalore, as per the travel portal. Bangkok has replaced Dubai as the most popular destination amongst Indian travellers, while New York retains its spot at number two on the list.
Dubai, last year’s most popular destination, has moved down two places to third. Goa follows closely in fourth place, three spots up from last year. Holiday spots are ranked as popular based on the greatest number of searches throughout 2017. The data collected by the portal is based on travel dates from January 1, 2017, to December 31, 2017, and compared with data from the same period from the year before. The Guide also has a ‘When to Book’ feature allowing users to find the best deals for their desired destinations.