Independence Day 2023: Hotel bookings jump 2.5 times as long I-Day weekend boosts travels

Independence Day is boosting travel demand in 2023

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26 Aug, 2025 12:21

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The extended weekend with the Independence Day holiday falling on a Tuesday has led to a 2.5-times increase in travel bookings.

"Independence Day is making the weekend longer this year and that has led to a boost in the travel industry," said Nishant Pitti, CEO and Co-Founder, EaseMyTrip. "We have seen a rise of 70 percent in searches on our platform."

Compared to long weekends last seen in May, Rajeev Kale, President and Country Head for Holidays, MICE, Visa, Thomas Cook, noted that there has been a three-fold increase in the long August weekend.

Spiritual destinations 

"Travellers are opting for a 4-5-day break," said Aloke Bajpai,Group CEO and Co-founder of Ixigo, an online travel aggregator. "Short-haul destinations like Dubai, Singapore, Maldives and Bali are some popular international picks this year."

On the domestic front, many people have chosen spiritual destinations for the extended August 15 holiday. Varanasi saw a 102 percent increase in flight searches, despite a 7 percent rise in flight prices over last year, according to data by travel app Kayak.

Madurai recorded a 97 percent increase in flight searches with a 22 percent price increase from the last year. Varanasi and Madurai emerged as the top trending destinations for the extended August 15 weekend. Other places  that saw the largest increase in flight searches as compared to the previous year include Bhubaneswar, Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi.

Demand surge

There has been a 30 percent uptick in individuals booking flights within seven days of the scheduled departure for the Independence Day extended weekend this year as compared to the same weekend in 2022, noted Rajesh Magow, Co-Founder and Group CEO of MakeMyTrip.

Ixigo's Bajpai said that due to high travel demand, spot fares for flights from Bengaluru, Mumbai and Delhi to Goa, Jaipur and Kochi have gone up. "Fares booked 48 hours in advance for travel have gone up by 15-20 percent. A Mumbai-Jaipur one-way flight is costing around Rs 7,400 for August 11 and 12. Same flight when booked a week or two in advance will cost a traveller Rs 5,490. Spot fares for Bengaluru-Mumbai for the same dates have gone up by more than 100 percent."

Train travel has also seen a surge this year for the extended long weekend. Online train discovery and booking platform ConfirmTkt recorded a 10 percent increase in bookings in August for Independence Day and Raksha Bandan holiday period compared to last year.

The platform has received maximum traction from Mumbai to Pune, Mumbai to Ahmedabad, Bangalore to Chennai, Chennai to Coimbatore, Hyderabad to Visakhapatnam routes.

Hotels sold out

Hotel bookings are also 2.6 times higher than last year during the Independence Day period, said Prahlad Krishnamurthi, Chief Business Officer at Cleartrip.

"Our occupancy levels for the period from August 12 to 15 is very high. This year's booking surge for the Independence Day long weekend has soared by 50 percent over the same period last year," said Vishal Gupta, General Manager, Novotel Mumbai Juhu Beach.

"Despite a 50 percent increase in inventory from last year, we are sold out," said Devendra Parulekar , Founder at SaffronStays, a network of private villas. "The average rates are 10 percent higher this year than they were last year."

For premium hotels, the average surge in room rates across destinations is around 20-30 percent, said Indiver Rastogi, President and Group Head for Global Business Travel at Thomas Cook (India) and SOTC Travel.

Rooms that typically go for Rs 5,000 to Rs 15,000 have been sold for Rs 20,000 for the long weekend.

Rastogi said that occupancy levels are estimated to be at 80-100 percent for the Independence Day extended weekend.

Magow pointed out that there has been a 22 percent increase in bookings for premium and luxury properties for the duration compared to the same period last year.

Booking inquiries have recorded a double-digit surge, said Zubin Saxena, Managing Director and Area Senior Vice President for South Asia at Radisson Hotel Group.

"As the luxury travel trend is shaping the industry, there is a significant inclination of consumers who are opting for luxury and upscale accommodations during this period. With travellers keen on making the most out of this extended weekend break, we are anticipating last-minute bookings for drivable destinations from metros. We have recorded strong demand trends for key locations in Western and Southern India like Lonavala, Mamallapuram, Chennai, Goa, among others for the long August 15 weekend,” he said.