Foreign tours get 30% dearer

LUCKNOW: The weakening Indian rupee is bad news for itinerants and vacationers headed for a foreign destination as tour packages get exorbitant rather than exotic. Stay abroad will be costlier by at least 10-15% as also shopping and eating. In Lucknow, nearly 30% business will get affected by the rupee depreciation, say tour operators.

“At this point, people have either come back from a foreign trip or have already locked the dollar at the old rate for their future trip. The real impact will be seen this month. Nearly 30% drop in the number of overseas travelers will be seen,” says Vivek Pandey, president of a travel agency situated on Jopling road.

Managing director of a private travel agency Sukesh Bahadur says, “The fall in rupee will lead to minimum of 25% reductions in the foreign trips from now.” But those who had booked the holiday package in advance before the rupee fell are safe.

The outbound travel, at its peak in May and June, has definitely been hit. People are thinking to postpone their trips, or seek a non-dollar destination. There are certainly some changes in the travel patterns. Holidays are being cut short, while short-haul destinations are being preferred and people are opting for non-dollar destinations or are sticking to domestic travels. The most important is that families have to stay within budget.

Travelling to Europe on a family trip in July, Rajiva Srivastava says, “The escalation is mind-boggling. The rise in dollar will sure act as a dampener for shoppers and on-the-spot spenders who tend to take many local tours. Also, eating out and lodging will add to our expenses.” Tour operator Prateek Hira, however, says the rising dollar is going to benefit domestic travel.

“This could be boom time for domestic travel. We can attract global travelers to India projecting it as a new lost-cost destination. This in turn will get in good in-flow of foreign exchange to counter our adverse balance of payments and increase our foreign exchange coffers,” says Hira. He adds that even travelers are vexed with frequent fluctuations.

For Lucknowites, till last year, the most preferred destinations were Singapore, Malaysia, Europe, Thailand, Indonesia and Switzerland. But, with rupee depreciation, Bhutan, according to Pandey, has suddenly emerged as a desired tourist hub. “The country accepts Indian rupees and the overall expenditure is also less in Bhutan,” says Pandey.

Foreign tours get 30% dearer