Tour plans to Turkey, Azerbaijan off the table as Indians mark their protest

Hotel bookings from India to Turkey fell 31% from a year earlier in the first fortnight of May, data from travel analytics firm RateGain shared exclusively with Mint showed, indicating a reshaping of travel intentions. This was driven by a complete halt in family leisure travel and a 65% decline in non-family leisure stays. Business travel bucked the trend slightly, rising 7%. Flight bookings plunged 61%, with business travel down 54%, leisure family trips 80%, and non-family leisure travel 56%.

“We are witnessing an increasing trend of travel being impacted due to social media chatter. Visa-free travel first made Azerbaijan and Turkey famous travel destinations, and now, the ongoing conflict has collectively created a negative impact on bookings. We saw this last year with Maldives as well and might see more instances of this in the future," said Ankit Chaturvedi, vice-president and global head of marketing at RateGain.

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At one of India's largest travel agencies, travel bookings to the two countries have plunged 90%. "The company is helping people opt for other destinations as costs associated with cancellations can be quite high. Since most travellers are aware of that, they are opting to change their plans to other destinations instead. So, while there is some impact, it’s not translating into widespread cancellations; instead rebookings to other countries," the company's managing director said on the condition of anonymity.

Stop go

Earlier this week, travel agencies including MakeMyTrip, EaseMyTrip and Cox & Kings paused holiday packages to Turkey, while Cox & Kings has offered Uzbekistan as a new destination. MakeMyTrip said it had seen a drop in bookings for Azerbaijan and Turkey by 60%, while cancellations jumped 250% during the same period. MakeMyTrip and EaseMyTrip, though, continue to offer tickets to Baku and Istanbul.

Turkey has supplied military equipment to Pakistan and condemned India's Operation Sindoor, while Azerbaijan has expressed solidarity with Pakistan, inflaming Indians seething over the massacre in Pahalgam. The two countries, which offer easy visas for Indians, are estimated to have received half a million Indian visitors in 2024.

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"The sentiments of people are such that we have put our impending visit to Turkey on hold," said Sayantan Sinha, who has suspended his plan to travel to Turkey with four friends in August. “The government has not issued any travel advisory and nor has it stopped trade with Turkey, but visiting the country at this juncture is certainly not going to make sense. It's more to do with respecting the current sentiments," he said.

Fare fall

As demand fell, air fares to these countries have fallen 30-40%, various industry executives said.

Delhi-based luxury travel agency Welgrow Travels said clients have cancelled all bookings to Turkey and Azerbaijan. Founder Radhika Khanijo said the agency is no longer promoting these destinations. "Alternatively, a lot of our clients are now choosing other destinations in Europe, which we are facilitating," she said.

Mint reached out to representatives of Turkey Tourism for comment but did not receive a response. Neither country has issued any official statement on the matter yet.

In Mumbai, the Shiv Sena demanded that India revoke permission for Turkish firm Celebi, which provides ground handling services at Indian airports. A Bloomberg report said Celebi handles around 70% of the ground operations at the Mumbai airport. The Eknath Shinde-led party also called for an inquiry into the ownership structure and controlling interests of Celebi.

Short-haul locales

According to a report by FICCI-Nangia Andersen, in 2024 alone, outbound tourist spending touched $18.82 billion, driven by rising disposable incomes, easier visa access, and improved connectivity. New destinations such as Egypt, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Vietnam had been gaining popularity, with 70% of Indians preferring short-haul travel under four hours to these locations. Mint reported in July  2024 that Indian travellers wre projected to spend $55 billion overseas by 2034, growing at a compounded annual rate of 11.4%.

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Subhash Goyal, chairperson of the Indian Chamber of Commerce’s expert committee on aviation and tourism, said, “The government understands India’s importance better and some countries like the Maldives, which went through a similar phase last year, struggled to respond effectively. We are a soft economic power now—with 25 million Indians travelling abroad and spending over $20 billion annually. While we may not be the largest outbound market by number of travellers, we are the biggest spenders, attracting tourism boards through weddings, Bollywood shoots, and more. Destinations like Thailand, Dubai, Singapore and Vietnam have been eager to welcome us."

Easy visas

He added, “Azerbaijan offers visa-on-arrival and Turkey e-visas, which helped attract around 500,000 Indian tourists last year collectively. This is a form of soft power we hold, and we hope other countries recognize it. We aren’t the only ones raising concerns — if terrorists can attack innocent tourists in India, how safe are Indians in countries that directly or indirectly support terrorism?"

Goyal’s travel agency STIC recently saw a group of 32 lawyers cancel their trip to Baku, and the agency has since recommended alternatives such as Georgia and Uzbekistan.

Delhi-based hotelier Himmat Anand, who runs Snowfox Escapes, said it was surprising that China was not facing boycott calls, despite the country supplying missiles and fighter jets to Pakistan. The reality of the tourism landscape is more sobering, he said.

“In 2024, Turkey received around 60 million international tourists, of which only about 3 to 3.5 lakh were from India—less than 1% of total arrivals. Indian tourists contributed just $500 million of Turkey’s $61 billion in tourism earnings. While Turkey may feel some temporary heat, it’s unlikely to match the hype within India. What’s more, a country of India’s size drawing only 12 million international tourists remains a worrying contrast," he said.