Frown factor

New Delhi, June 8: India’s domestic tourism industry is expecting a slowdown in growth because of inflation — especially the air fare hike — though rising prices have not hit the summer business.

“While there are no booking cancellations right now, we do anticipate a slowdown in the next two months. Fresh bookings may get affected,” said Tarun Thukral, chief operating officer, Le Meridien Hotel.

Normally, the monsoon is the lean season for the trade, but tour operators and hoteliers expect the lean spell to last longer this time.

Travel agents and tour operators believe the hike in air fare, rising inflation and higher petrol prices will make travelling difficult. Hotel fares have already gone up 10-12 per cent and are expected to stiffen further on the back of rising costs. “The hotel rate hike can prove to be a deterrent in the future,” said C.V. Prasad, president, the Travel Agents Association of India.

“Tourists don’t put a complete halt to their travel plans. But rising inflation will result in lower disposable income in the hands of travellers. On top of it, if airfare and accommodation also remain expensive, it will only slow growth,” Prasad said.

With many airlines increasing the fuel surcharge, travel to popular destinations has become dearer by Rs 1,000 to Rs 5,000 in the last three months, he said.

According to Vishal Suri, chief operating officer (leisure travel), Thomas Cook, “The increase in air ticket prices has been passed on to consumers. Leisure travel will not be impacted much in summer months as it’s the peak period and most bookings have already been made, but tourist numbers will dip considerably in July and August.”

The industry is also apprehensive of the high room rates demanded by hotels. “Unless the country has adequate infrastructure to accommodate both domestic and foreign tourists, travel will always continue to be unreasonable for tourists,” said Subhash Goyal, chairman, Stic Travels.