While this will be a blow for domestic tour operators promoting overseas travel, it will be a shot in the arm for the stagnant hospitality sector
MUMBAI: The rupee's crash has swept away banker Nupur Sood's dream of a holiday in Venice: instead the 35-year-old will settle for cold beers on the beaches of Goa on India's west coast.
"We are pampering ourselves with a leisurely holiday but it will be domestic. I guess it is the only way to compensate," said Sood, who plans to stay next month at the plush Grand Hyatt hotel in Goa, managed by Hyatt Hotels Corp, as a consolation for missing her holiday of a lifetime in Italy.
Sood is among India's growing urban middle class, whose rising incomes over the past decade made holidays abroad affordable. However, the currency crisis in Asia's third-largest economy is taking foreign travel beyond their reach and many are planning vacations in their home country.
While this will be a blow for domestic tour operators promoting overseas travel, it will be a shot in the arm for India's stagnant hospitality sector, which is reeling as high inflation and rising import costs eat away at profit margins.
Hotel groups, including Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc, Marriott International Inc and Hotel Leelaventure Ltd are seeing a spike in bookings for the winter season from domestic tourists and from foreign travellers, who importantly bring in foreign exchange.
"There is a lot of optimism in the hotel industry that, for both these reasons - it being cheaper for inbound travellers and a substitute for outbound travellers - we expect to have a good winter," said Dilip Puri, managing director, India at Starwood Hotels.
The Indian rupee hit a record low of 68.85 against the dollar on Wednesday - down about 20 per cent for the year - despite multiple attempts by the government to calm investors' concerns. Emerging markets more broadly are being hit by capital outflows in anticipation of a reduction in US monetary stimulus. The rupee recovered some ground on Thursday.
Its slide has contributed to a 35 per cent surge in domestic tourism between January and June and a 15 to 20 per cent fall in outbound tourism over the same period, the Associated Chamber of Commerce and Industry of India says.
About 15 million Indians normally take vacations overseas each year, so the shift is keeping millions of them and their spending at home. It also means they will not be selling rupee for foreign currency, offering small relief for the beleaguered rupee.
Meanwhile, the number of foreign tourists arriving in India between January and June also rose, 2.6 per cent over the same period of last year, figures from the Ministry of Tourism show, and is expected to rise further over the holiday season starting in November.
GO GOA
For The Leela hotel in India's beach state of Goa, it has been one of the busiest summers in several years and it is gearing up for an even busier winter season, which attracts Indian holidaymakers during festivals and foreign tourists drawn by a relatively warm climate.
"India has become a lot cheaper," said Shridhar Nair, general manager at the Leelaventure group hotel in Goa, which saw a 10-12 per cent rise in revenues between April and June from domestic tourists, and foreign travellers are expected to push up its winter bookings by 12-14 per cent over last year, which would be one of the best seasons in years.
Nair said the highest demand in the summer was for 'The Club' rooms, which sell for 60,000 rupees a night ($890) and have plunge pools and butlers.
The most popular tourist destinations of Goa, Agra, Jaipur and Pune stand to benefit the most from the surge in domestic and foreign tourism.
"We are pampering ourselves with a leisurely holiday but it will be domestic. I guess it is the only way to compensate," said Sood, who plans to stay next month at the plush Grand Hyatt hotel in Goa, managed by Hyatt Hotels Corp, as a consolation for missing her holiday of a lifetime in Italy.
Sood is among India's growing urban middle class, whose rising incomes over the past decade made holidays abroad affordable. However, the currency crisis in Asia's third-largest economy is taking foreign travel beyond their reach and many are planning vacations in their home country.
While this will be a blow for domestic tour operators promoting overseas travel, it will be a shot in the arm for India's stagnant hospitality sector, which is reeling as high inflation and rising import costs eat away at profit margins.
Hotel groups, including Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc, Marriott International Inc and Hotel Leelaventure Ltd are seeing a spike in bookings for the winter season from domestic tourists and from foreign travellers, who importantly bring in foreign exchange.
"There is a lot of optimism in the hotel industry that, for both these reasons - it being cheaper for inbound travellers and a substitute for outbound travellers - we expect to have a good winter," said Dilip Puri, managing director, India at Starwood Hotels.
The Indian rupee hit a record low of 68.85 against the dollar on Wednesday - down about 20 per cent for the year - despite multiple attempts by the government to calm investors' concerns. Emerging markets more broadly are being hit by capital outflows in anticipation of a reduction in US monetary stimulus. The rupee recovered some ground on Thursday.
Its slide has contributed to a 35 per cent surge in domestic tourism between January and June and a 15 to 20 per cent fall in outbound tourism over the same period, the Associated Chamber of Commerce and Industry of India says.
About 15 million Indians normally take vacations overseas each year, so the shift is keeping millions of them and their spending at home. It also means they will not be selling rupee for foreign currency, offering small relief for the beleaguered rupee.
Meanwhile, the number of foreign tourists arriving in India between January and June also rose, 2.6 per cent over the same period of last year, figures from the Ministry of Tourism show, and is expected to rise further over the holiday season starting in November.
GO GOA
For The Leela hotel in India's beach state of Goa, it has been one of the busiest summers in several years and it is gearing up for an even busier winter season, which attracts Indian holidaymakers during festivals and foreign tourists drawn by a relatively warm climate.
"India has become a lot cheaper," said Shridhar Nair, general manager at the Leelaventure group hotel in Goa, which saw a 10-12 per cent rise in revenues between April and June from domestic tourists, and foreign travellers are expected to push up its winter bookings by 12-14 per cent over last year, which would be one of the best seasons in years.
Nair said the highest demand in the summer was for 'The Club' rooms, which sell for 60,000 rupees a night ($890) and have plunge pools and butlers.
The most popular tourist destinations of Goa, Agra, Jaipur and Pune stand to benefit the most from the surge in domestic and foreign tourism.
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