Being locked behind doors for more than two years has led to a rebellious birth in everyone’s hearts. that they ‘I want liberation. God knows they want freedom…Traveling in general is about evoking positive emotions and experiences in travelers for reasons such as relieving stress or creating new experiences and memories.
Gradually as countries open their borders to travelers, a phenomenon fueled by frustrating social media has begun: revenge travel. Some may tell you that the best way to get revenge is cold, but what about a secluded island, in the middle of an untouched forest?
Vacations as we know it
Vacation is a period of time spent away from home or work, traveling or recreation to recover from the stress of everyday life. Vacations People often go on vacation for some festival, celebration or holiday celebration. Vacations are mostly taken with family and friends.
The idea of vacationing is a relatively new innovation that has developed over the past 200 years. In the past, the concept of vacation travel was a luxury that only those with money could enjoy. With the ease of transportation, and roads/highways becoming more affordable, people started to travel for leisure and not just for business.
Taking time off work for purposes other than the weekly observance of the Sabbath was resented in the early American Puritan community. However, a later religious movement that encouraged spiritual retreat and hedonism was the driving force behind the contemporary idea of the holiday. The working class and the middle class embraced the idea of taking breaks from work occasionally.
With the emergence of this trend on social media and the expansion of armchair travel to remote places, a new breed of travelers has arisen who are looking to get their share of travel and do justice to their wandering selves to make up for the time lost during the full lockdown.
The Federal Ministry of Health has issued a warning about this specific phenomenon known as ‘revenge tourism’, as hundreds of tourists flock to Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand in an attempt to escape the monotonous life brought about by the second wave of coronavirus-induced lockdown. Social distancing became a toss when people started ‘Running into the hills…“
Data from Himachal Pradesh indicates that in a typical holiday season, tourism has increased the state’s population by as much as 40 percent. Under those circumstances, the third wave peaked at as much as 47 percent during the holiday season.
According to information provided by Airports Authority of India, domestic travel in Goa increased by 14% between December 2020 and December 2021, from 715,293 to 815935 (before the pandemic). These numbers suggest that revenge tourism is real and gives hope to the air travel and hospitality sector, which has been hit hard by the pandemic.
revenge travel concept
The pent-up anger in individuals that had accumulated over two years at losing the opportunity to discover new places and embark on adventures eventually gave rise to the phrase “revenge travel”, and vacation revenge became something to make up for lost time.
We are going through strange times and we are still getting used to the new way of life brought about by this pandemic. Vacation travelers leave the surrounding locations to take revenge on travel, which indicates that the spirit of travel in India is very strong.
In recent years, the hybrid work and desire to travel model has paved the way for workstations, allowing people to strike a balance between pleasure and business travel. With the concept of accommodation and workplaces in place, travelers are increasingly looking for destinations that allow access to nature, fueling the demand for destinations that are rare, unexplored, isolated and distinct.
The usual trend of preferences among travelers who rent real estate includes flexible rental providers, followed by access to high-speed internet, office and office space, laptop-friendly surfaces, etc.
Traveler Evolution
Travelers and travel as an activity have changed over time. Back in the day, there were travelers made for the experience. This usually happens with children when you take them to a park or museum. The enjoyment and safety factor is under the control of the person who takes you to the sites.
There are times when travelers have certain experiences. For example, when riders sit on a roller coaster and this ride “happens” to passengers while they are in the back seat and experience it. The factor of enjoyment and safety is under the control of the person who operates the ride.
With the advent of the pandemic, travelers are leaning towards experiencing travel on their own. They go for a walk. They go on solo trips, making things “happen” for themselves with their safety and pleasure in their hands. Revenge travelers often want to make things happen for themselves to make up for the time they missed during the height of the pandemic.
The link between COVID and retaliation travel
Part of the difficulty is that there is no single effective way to determine the current state of global travel. Because the pandemic is still going strong in many countries, the term “post-pandemic travel” is misleading. Diverse countries and regions have different timelines for lifting all entry restrictions, with some still severely restricted or even closed to foreign tourists. According to one report, although 52% of the population has been vaccinated and most of the Indians are vaccinated so far, Azerbaijan has not opened its borders to travelers yet.
One thing is for sure: When vaccines become available and the doors reopen, people around the world will be eager to get back on the road.
After the second wave, after vaccinations worked their magic, the vengeful travelers set out on their adventures. Travelers around the world are now planning longer, more luxurious vacations in response to the bleak and prolonged coronavirus quarantine. According to a recent AltoVita analysis, the post-COVID-19 flexible rental market has found that 68 percent of the flexible rental segment is seeing a rise in demand for extended stays, while 59 percent is seeing an increase in demand for larger rooms.
The results also reveal another pattern. Religious sites were eagerly visited by many people. Air passenger numbers have exceeded pre-COVID-19 levels for the major sacred sites Tirupati in Andhra Pradesh and Shirdi in Maharashtra. Tirupati saw a growth of 15.7 percent, while Shirdi saw an increase of 28.8 percent.
The lower the number of COVID-19 cases in the country, the more people take the journey. There was nothing to spoil the deal for the traveler, not even an air bubble to the Maldives or Goa, immunization records, or evidence of negative test results. If we have to endure the epidemic for a long time, it is a reasonable indication of times to come on the other side of the epidemic or between waves.
One day adventure
Travelers who are overwhelmed with work while working from home often take the smallest opportunities to venture out and take a break. They wait for weekends or even festive weekends when they can take a trip out of town, away from the hustle and bustle of the city. The duration of these trips varies from one to two to three days. This getaway helps them let go of the frustrations of everyday life and the isolation of 5 days of non-stop work.
The one-day trek is very popular among the youngsters as they visit the nearby places which are yet to be explored by the tourists. Other than that, they also take trips to theme parks or national wildlife parks, hopping between restaurants, or hopping in bars. It generally depends on what helps them let off steam after a tiring week.
This is undoubtedly great news for the travel, tourism, hotel and aviation sectors. Signs of “out of stock” should appear again sooner than one might think.
The author is the managing director, Wonderla Holidays Ltd.