● Indian travellers expressed high travel intent for intercity roadtrips, especially surrounded by nature with a majority of respondents opting for hotel rooms with mountain & lake views

● Hill stations emerged as the preferred destination type with Ooty, Lonavala, Munnar, Shillong and Coorg raking in maximum consumer intent for travel

New Delhi, July 20, 2022: Most years, summer is one of the highest travel seasons in India and traveller sentiment tapers off as the monsoons arrive, owing to the reopening of schools, traffic and driving conditions due to rain, among other factors. However, post-pandemic, travel trends have shifted — travellers are now looking to make up for lost vacations. As per global hospitality technology company, OYO’s Monsoon Travel Report 2022, Indian travellers expressed high travel intent for intercity roadtrips, especially ones surrounded by nature, with a majority of respondents opting for hotel rooms with mountain & lake views. This indicates the rise in monsoon tourism across the country with a strong consumer preference to spend holidays closer to nature.

As per the hospitality technology platform’s domestic travel study, Indians have a mixed bag of preferred destinations for monsoon. Among preference for state, with nearly 18% respondents opting for Uttarakhand, the famous pilgrimage & leisure destination becomes the top monsoon destination of choice, followed by Goa, Kerala, and Maharashtra. Interestingly, among cities, the hill destinations of Ooty (20%), Lonavala (16%), Munnar (11%), Shillong (11%) and Coorg (8%) raked in maximum consumer intent for travel.

While short trips are usually popular during the monsoon season, with 54% saying they would take a trip between 1-3 days, a significantly high 33% also expressed interest to head out for a week-long monsoon trip. The trend to head out on longer vacations can be attributed to flexible remote and hybrid work policies popularised by corporate India during the pandemic. Approx. 84% consumers prefer booking their travel and stay closer to the date.

As experiential travel becomes one of the top trends for the travel and tourism economy, consumers are looking at serene locations to spend quality time with family and friends. As per the survey insights, a majority of consumers (40%) were inclined towards booking hotels with a view, followed by unique stays such as tree houses and cottages in the woods, stays surrounded by scenic lush hills and/or by the beach. This indicates consumer desire for “ecotherapy”, a rising trend among today’s evolved travellers since the pandemic restricted travellers within the periphery of their residence due to lockdowns.

When it comes to go-to travel essentials for monsoon trips, an astounding 48% of respondents picked earphones as their top choice, while raincoats were a far second with nearly 30% votes, followed by umbrellas, zip-lock bags for electronic devices, warm shawls, sunglasses, books and mosquito repellents.

Commenting on these consumer insights from the report, Shreerang Godbole, SVP – Product & Chief Service Officer – OYO said, “In 2022, we’re seeing a shift in traveller mindset to pre-lockdown times. We’re observing more and more consumer demand to travel throughout the year, for shorter trips. This monsoon, as per our findings, consumers are looking forward to traveling to scenic destinations and making the most of the rains, closer to nature. As a majority of travellers look to book their stays closer to the date,

our app level features such as ‘Pay at Hotel’, easy cancellation and refund policies, 3-click booking process, and Nearby stays enable travellers to make their travel choice on-the-go without any hassle.”

Some more interesting monsoon travel trivia

● Every 1 in 4 respondents would like to experience their dreamy Bollywood rain moment with Kiara Advani. Among Bollywood actors, Hritik Roshan was the top choice among respondents

● Social media plays a huge part in influencing travel decisions today. This monsoon, travellers are looking forward to some serious rainy travel inspiration from travel influencers Brinda Sharma, Anunay Sood, and Larissa Dsa

Sample size: 1500 respondents

About OYO

OYO is a global platform that empowers entrepreneurs and small businesses who operate hotels and homes by providing them with full-stack technology products and services that increase revenue and ease operations; bringing easy-to-book, affordable, and trusted accommodation to customers around the world. OYO offers 40+ integrated products and solutions to patrons who operate over 157,000 hotel and home storefronts in more than 35 countries including India and those in Europe and Southeast Asia, as of March 31, 2021. For more information, visit www.oyorooms.com.

Unless otherwise stated, the industry related information included in this press release has been derived from consumer surveys conducted by us to study travel intent and expectations among our user base across India in July 2022 which included 1500 participants.

Disclaimer: Oravel Stays Limited is proposing, subject to applicable statutory and regulatory requirements, receipt of requisite approvals, market conditions and other considerations, to make an initial public offering of its equity shares (the “Equity Shares”) and has filed the Draft Red Herring Prospectus (“DRHP”) with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (“SEBI”). The DRHP is available on the website of SEBI at www.sebi.gov.in, websites of the Stock Exchanges, i.e., BSE Limited and National Stock Exchange of India Limited at www.bseindia.com and www.nseindia.com, respectively, and is available on the websites of the Global Coordinators and Book Running Lead Managers, i.e., Kotak Mahindra Capital Company Limited, J.P. Morgan India Private Limited and Citigroup Global Markets India Private Limited at www.investmentbank.kotak.com, www.jpmipl.com and www.online.citibank.co.in/rhtm/citigroupglobalscreen1.htm; the websites of the Book Running Lead Managers, i.e., ICICI Securities Limited, Nomura Financial Advisory and Securities (India) Private Limited, JM Financial Limited and Deutsche Equities India Private Limited at www.icicisecurities.com, www.nomuraholdings.com/company/group/asia/india/index.html, www.jmfl.com and www.db.com/India, respectively. Investors should note that investment in equity shares involves a high degree of risk and for details relating to the same, refer to the Red Herring Prospectus which may be filed with the Registrar of Companies in the future, including the section titled “Risk Factors”. Potential investors should not rely on the DRHP filed with SEBI for making any investment decision. The Equity Shares offered in the Fresh Issue (as defined in the DRHP) and the Offer for Sale (as defined in the DRHP) have not been and will not be registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”) and, may not be offered or sold within the United States except pursuant to an exemption from, or in a transaction not subject to, the registration requirements of the Securities Act and applicable state securities laws. Accordingly, the Equity Shares are only being offered and sold (i) within the United States only to “qualified institutional buyers” (as defined in Rule 144A under the Securities Act) in transactions exempt from, or not subject to, the registration requirements under the Securities Act, and (ii) outside the United States in offshore transactions in reliance on Regulation S under the Securities Act and pursuant to the applicable laws of the jurisdictions where those offers and sales are made. There will be no public offering of the Equity Shares in the United States.