Rajasthan
Tourist Season, Offseason Gap Shrinks As Inflow Of Domestic Visitors Surges | Jaipur News
Jaipur: In recent years, domestic tourism has come of age, and it is changing market dynamics. Post-Covid, the trend has been more pronounced, shrinking further the gap between season and offseason that traditionally weighed on the hospitality industry.
For example, tourist arrivals to Rajasthan grew by 6% in 2017. But the growth during the offseason, which is considered by the industry to be April-August, was only 2%. Since then, the trend has taken a new turn. In 2018, the average annual growth in tourist arrivals clocked 9%, while the expansion was 13% for these offseason months.
Barring the Covid years of 2020 and 2021, the tourist arrival growth during the offseason has outstripped that of the annual growth rates. In 2019, the arrivals grew by 3%, which during the offseason increased 13%. In 2022 too, the offseason witnessed a growth of 137% against the whole year growth of 102%.
The hospitality industry in the state confirmed the new trend. They said earlier it used to be the braveheart tourists who would visit the desert state in the summer months. Representatives of the industry said though the gap still exists, it has reduced to a minimum, limited to the period around July or so.
Randhir Vikram Singh, president of Indian Heritage Hotels Association of India, said, “During the harsh summer months, the whole tourism sector, including the hospitality industry, would slip into barebones operations without the razzmatazz of the winter months. But over the past few years, the gap between season and offseason has been shrinking faster.”
They said availability of good properties at lower rates, school vacations, and conference activities are driving the surge of tourists in summer months. The trend has witnessed a sudden spike after the Covid pandemic.
“The trend was building up even before the Covid outbreak, but the pandemic lent a sudden, forceful push. Covid changed the behavior of a large number of people and introduced many to the fun of travelling. For them, summer is not a barrier but an opportunity,” said Kuldeep Singh Chandela, president of Hotel and Restaurants Association of Rajasthan (HRAR).
Summer vacations and lower room rates are major drivers of the growth in footfalls during the offseason. It is a combination that suited the domestic tourists well. In fact, despite the miniscule contribution from the foreign tourist arrivals, Rajasthan received double the number of tourists in 2022, compared to 2019, a non-Covid peak year.
Ranvijay Singh, joint secretary of HRAR, said, “Room rates are cheaper by 20-50% during summer months. People can find discounts even in marquee hotel chains. That’s why the occupancies are now higher in summer compared to 5-6 years back.”
Secondly, Singh said, the MICE segment (meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions) is another big contributor to the footfalls during the offseason.
“Those who cannot find rooms in the busy winter season, they hold the events in summers. The room rates are also very attractive for them,” added Singh.
However, IHHAI president said that the state needs to launch theme-based promotions for offseason to gain further. “Theme-based promotions are required to promote tourism during summer and monsoon months to support the trend,” he added.
For example, tourist arrivals to Rajasthan grew by 6% in 2017. But the growth during the offseason, which is considered by the industry to be April-August, was only 2%. Since then, the trend has taken a new turn. In 2018, the average annual growth in tourist arrivals clocked 9%, while the expansion was 13% for these offseason months.
Barring the Covid years of 2020 and 2021, the tourist arrival growth during the offseason has outstripped that of the annual growth rates. In 2019, the arrivals grew by 3%, which during the offseason increased 13%. In 2022 too, the offseason witnessed a growth of 137% against the whole year growth of 102%.
The hospitality industry in the state confirmed the new trend. They said earlier it used to be the braveheart tourists who would visit the desert state in the summer months. Representatives of the industry said though the gap still exists, it has reduced to a minimum, limited to the period around July or so.
Randhir Vikram Singh, president of Indian Heritage Hotels Association of India, said, “During the harsh summer months, the whole tourism sector, including the hospitality industry, would slip into barebones operations without the razzmatazz of the winter months. But over the past few years, the gap between season and offseason has been shrinking faster.”
They said availability of good properties at lower rates, school vacations, and conference activities are driving the surge of tourists in summer months. The trend has witnessed a sudden spike after the Covid pandemic.
“The trend was building up even before the Covid outbreak, but the pandemic lent a sudden, forceful push. Covid changed the behavior of a large number of people and introduced many to the fun of travelling. For them, summer is not a barrier but an opportunity,” said Kuldeep Singh Chandela, president of Hotel and Restaurants Association of Rajasthan (HRAR).
Summer vacations and lower room rates are major drivers of the growth in footfalls during the offseason. It is a combination that suited the domestic tourists well. In fact, despite the miniscule contribution from the foreign tourist arrivals, Rajasthan received double the number of tourists in 2022, compared to 2019, a non-Covid peak year.
Ranvijay Singh, joint secretary of HRAR, said, “Room rates are cheaper by 20-50% during summer months. People can find discounts even in marquee hotel chains. That’s why the occupancies are now higher in summer compared to 5-6 years back.”
Secondly, Singh said, the MICE segment (meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions) is another big contributor to the footfalls during the offseason.
“Those who cannot find rooms in the busy winter season, they hold the events in summers. The room rates are also very attractive for them,” added Singh.
However, IHHAI president said that the state needs to launch theme-based promotions for offseason to gain further. “Theme-based promotions are required to promote tourism during summer and monsoon months to support the trend,” he added.
