An “Impulse Planning” paradox is the emerging trend amongst Indian travelers

●     61% of OYO bookings in 2016 were from impulse travelers yet predictability, standardisation and affordability remain their key priorities

●     Paharganj is the go-to spot for backpackers in Delhi while Arambol is the most affordable locality in Goa despite ranking high on popularity

●     Chennai and Goa highest-growing cities for same-day  and overall bookings

29 December 2016, New Delhi: OYO’s year-end analysis of hotel-bookings in 2016 confirms that a majority of Indian travellers are increasingly driven by impulse.  Impulsively planned trips emerged as the top driver for outstation trips both in business and leisure travel segment. 61% of all the bookings made on OYO platform were made within 24 hours prior to check-in.

The research further highlights that despite the last-minute bookings, travellers’ expectations in terms of service, facilities and experience are pre-determined and non-negotiable. WiFi, Breakfast and Hygienic rooms are the three biggest priorities for guests. With 7000 hotels in over 200 cities, OYO is India’s largest hotel-network and has effected over 5 million check-ins to date.

Commenting on the insights, Kavikrut, Chief Growth Officer, OYO, said, “We are witnessing a travel awakening in India. Along with the surge in bookings from impulse travelers both within leisure and business segments, we see an emerging paradox in that even as travel-planning cycle reduces further, the expectations from on-ground suppliers and agents is of delivering a non-negotiable and predetermined experience. Thus the onus on travel partners such as hoteliers and those offering travel-related services is to ensure consistent, high-quality service delivery. We, at OYO, employ tech-enabled solutions to deliver standardized user experiences.”

OYO’s research identified

●     Chennai, Goa and Gurgaon as the top-contributors to hotel-booking via app.

●     Shillong, Coorg, Darjeeling, Vishakhapatnam, and Munnar as most popular winter-holiday destinations in 2016

Using its cutting-edge data science and pricing technology, OYO also identified the most-expensive and most-affordable localities for budget hotels in top travel destinations.

City	Most Expensive Locality	Average tariff (in INR)	Most Affordable Locality	Average tariff (in INR)
Ahmedabad	Vastrapur	2023	GIDC Vatva	607
Bangalore	Bangalore Airport	2137	Indiranagar Extension	1181
Chennai	Vadapalani	3008	Egmore	770
Delhi	Pragati Maidan	3800	Paharganj	1292
Goa	Candolim	3172	Arambol	2238
Gurgaon	Manesar	2711	Sohna Road	979
Hyderabad	Kondapur	2380	Abids-Nampally	1436
Jaipur	Amer	1608	Sindhi Camp	1194
Kolkata	Ballygunge	2014	Ruby Hospital Kolkata	1324
Mumbai	South Mumbai	5276	Thane	2231

Paharganj continues to cement its reputation as the go-to spot for backpackers in the nation's capital while Arambol is the most affordable locality in Goa despite ranking high on popularity.