The festive season makes everyone plan a vacation to new places and explore the beauty of other destinations. Where do people want to travel to celebrate the New Year? Like most years, this year too Indians, especially locals are heading to diverse locations such as New York, Finland, Austria, Budapest, Norway and Canada, as the winter carnivals are exciting options to celebrate New Years Eve with a bang.
Christmas maybe over but in many countries the Xmas markets continue into the New Year. Karan Anand, head relationships, Cox and Kings says, “Germany, France and Croatia are the most popular places where markets start in mid-November and continue till the New Year. During this period, the shops and iconic structures are decorated for Christmas celebrations. Rovaniemi, home to Santa Clause Village is the main attraction this year along with Santa Park which interests children more and also features ice sculptures and quaint shops.”
But for those who are seeking slighter warmer climes and a closer destination, Dubai appears to be another hot favaourite. Abu Issac, owner of Seaman Tours, says, “Dubai is one of the most sought out destinations to visit during New Years. There is a lot to do there like enjoying the shopping festival and the main attraction of Dubai is its amazing fireworks, which you get to witness during this time of the year.”
For travel enthusiasts from Bengaluru, year-end travel has become a priority and the end of the year holiday season comes like a blessing. Daniel D’souza, head sales at SOTC Travels mentions, “With an increasing number of Indians investing in unique holiday experiences, there has been a significant rise in queries and bookings for winter season. South East Asia has always been a winter favorite, given that this is the best time to travel to tropical destinations. Australian cities — Sydney and Melbourne which are celebration hubs as well as European countries are very popular. We have observed that most of the travelers during this time not only look for the basic travel itineraries but they are interested in booking a bouquet of experiences.”
While Europe has traditionally been a summer market, travelers are showing increasing interest in “Winter Travel”. Mr Rajeev Kale, president and country head at Thomas Cook says, “While short hauls like South-east Asia’s Singapore, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, and Dubai-Abu Dhabi continue to head the leader-board, visa on arrival and easy visa regime destinations like Bali, Maldives, Mauritius, and Thailand are also seeing strong momentum. We have seen increasing holiday appetite not just from family segment, but increasingly from millennial and young working professionals too.”
