95% INDIANS SAY ROMANTIC HOLIDAYS ARE ‘ESSENTIAL’ IN TODAY’S RELATIONSHIPS, REVEALS TRIPADVISOR SURVEY
Beach holiday ‘top’ choice for a romantic getaway followed closely by ‘hill stations’
New Delhi, TripAdvisor®, the world’s largest travel site, today unveiled interesting trends from its ‘Romance on Holiday’ survey with 1682 respondents. The findings revealed that most Indians believe romantic holidays are the ‘nutritional supplement’ in today’s relationships. As many as 95% of the respondents are partial to romantic holidays – a majority, 65%, believe such holidays are a must to keep the spark in a relationship alive; another 30% say taken once in a while such holidays augur well for relationships. A negligible percentage of the respondents dismiss the notion of romantic holidays altogether as ‘over-hyped’ and ‘more of an indulgence’.
According to Nikhil Ganju, Country Manager, TripAdvisor India, “A romantic holiday by its definition is one which allows a couple to spend quality 1:1 time with each other. The fact that an overwhelming 82% of respondents undertook such a vacation at least once in a year augurs well for relationships in general. It also perhaps unveils a significant business opportunity for travel suppliers and the hospitality industry to tap into. Another interesting finding was the optimism expressed by 78% respondents about the possibility of finding love on a holiday – just goes to prove holidays aren’t just a time to unwind, but could be a serendipitous opportunity to find a significant other.”
Romancing on the mind
While a romantic holiday is on every couple’s mind the frequency of such holidays takes a dive with married couples versus when one is in a relationship.
|
Choices |
In a Relationship |
Married |
| Once in three months |
24.29% |
9.59% |
| Once in six months |
37.86% |
27.54% |
| Once in a year |
27.14% |
37.84% |
| Once in two years |
2.86% |
13.45% |
| Not at all |
7.86% |
11.59% |
Two to Tango
The Indian couple is living up this saying, as the survey reveals – they go for romantic holidays, including honeymoon, to destinations favoured and chosen by both.
Ø Among the married couples, nearly 66% respondents say they decided their honeymoon destination ‘together’, as against only 31% where either of the spouse’s decision was the decisive factor.
Ø An overwhelming 80% of those still in a relationship say they will decide where to travel for their honeymoon, along with their spouses. Here too, individual choices find favour among only about 18% of the respondents.
Ø For couples with children, they are most welcome – 66% of the respondents say they NEVER left their children back home for a romantic holiday but a significant 34% did go on a holiday without them.
Ø 58% of the respondents say they travelled or would like to travel with their partners on holiday before marriage. Among the female respondents, a majority 65% said they had or were open to travelling with their partners before marriage which is a healthy indicator of changing female mindset in the country.
Ø Although a staggering 78% say it is possible to find love on a holiday, only 24% (average of the married and single respondents) of those married or in a relationship say they met their spouses or partners while holidaying.
Romancing in the lap of Nature
Nature seems to be the biggest draw with the romantic Indian traveller.
Ø A beach holiday is an ideal romantic choice for 34% of the Romance on Holiday survey respondents, closely followed by hill stations (32%).
Ø For 14% of the respondents, cruises are ideal as romantic holidays; 12% opt for luxury hotels, while another 3% choose luxury camps, indicative of a growing market for luxury romantic holidays in India.
