Now, high life and holidays on a budget

ow about a 15-day trip to the US for less than a lakh, return air fare, hotel, sightseeing and most meals included ? The trip would take in Niagara Falls, Washington DC, New York, Orlando, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Las Vegas. Or how about six days and five nights in Kashmir's picturesque Srinagar, Sonmarg, Gulmarg and Pahalgam for little more than Rs 10,000?
Pick up any newspaper — huge advertisements invite customers to travel India or the globe with unmissable bargains. Some sound too good to be true. For instance, a Thai package that cost between Rs 25 and-28,000 last year is half-price now. Some packages offer free travel for the wife and one child below 12. Others offer 50% cashback. For those who can afford it, vacationing is part of the good life. But with the retrenching and resulting lost wages, travel companies know they need to offer incentives to go on holiday.
Sonam Singh of Carnation Holidays says that the turnout at travel fairs illustrates these new hard times. "Last year there were many new companies offering good deals and packages and trying to establish themselves. But the number of companies participating in the fair this year was just 25% compared to last year," she says.
Travel companies say they've created bargain packages for summer holidays by doing better deals with hotels and airlines. Vishal Suri of Thomas Cook says, "We have been able to effect a marginal 5-10% reduction in terms of price vis-a-vis last year in certain destinations or the prices have remained at the same levels as last year Our endeavour is to give the customer reason to travel even in these times".
Despite the discounts and cashback deals, not everyone can afford a luxury holiday to the US or Australia. So travel companies are rolling out small economy packages to neighbourhood destinations. Kashmira Commissariat of Kuoni India says, "This is the perfect opportunity to promote exotic places in India, theme based and experimental holidays." Suri agrees. "We are promoting more short-haul destinations. We are also coming out with weekend promotions to places which do not need a visa," he says.
But are travellers taking the bait? Commissariat says Kuoni gets as many enquiries as before. But Singh says they are not flooded with queries like last year. Management consultant Arvind K Singhal says the big picture is that urban India, which is the one that travels, is apprehensive "about the state of the economy and the elections. Can the Indian traveller overcome that fear? Only time and travel firms' balance sheets will tell.
Times Of India