The Hindu Business Line : Rajasthan, Kerala top winter holiday spots

ARE you having trouble deciding on where to spend the coming winter holidays? Well, if you want to be in the happening domestic holiday destinations, then you could consider spending time in Rajasthan watching the sand dunes or enjoy the peace and tranquillity of the hills and valleys of Uttaranchal.

A cross-section of the travel and aviation industry leaders told Business Line that apart from Kerala - - especially Kochi - - Bangalore and Goa, several requests were being received for more information on Shimla in Himachal Pradesh and various destinations in Rajasthan, including Udaipur and Jodhpur.

"Kerala is definitely a huge favourite, especially as more and more sectors are opening up there. Besides, Goa, Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh are also popular destinations," a senior SOTC official said.

Similarly, a spokesperson for Jet Airways said that the airline was seeing huge demand for seats to several cities, including some in Rajasthan. "The flights to Udaipur, Jodhpur and Goa are completely booked. Besides, there is also huge demand for seats to Chandigarh from where people are travelling onwards to Shimla," an airline spokesperson said.

Air Sahara, apart from seeing demand to popular holiday destinations, was also seeing heavy demand for tickets to Allahabad during the winter vacation. "We are also planning to start a flight to Srinagar and are expecting a huge surge in demand when the flight commences in the next few days," the airline spokesperson said.

However, there was unanimity among the domestic airline officials that a clearer picture of what can truly be called a "hot" winter tourist destination will emerge in the third week of December. "At present, the airline booking system is accepting request for reservations for almost all tourist places. A decision on which routes need more flights based on passenger demand is likely to be taken closer to the time when the holiday season actually begins," airline officials said.

Sources indicated that going by passenger demand, there is likely to be a 10-12 per cent increase in domestic travel during December this year as compared to the same month last year.

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication

Stories in this Section
Desi dosas score over pizzas

Toyota mulls launch at `Maruti 800 price'

Move to hike motor vehicle premiums — Lack of data hampers PSU insurers

Nursing ambitions? The US beckons

SEBI nod necessary for IDR issue

Rajasthan, Kerala top winter holiday spots