From forgetting passports to carrying namkeen, research reveals the Indian travellers’ quirks and comforts

Each vacation guarantees postcard-perfect experiences, but the real memories come from the unplanned events. A new research by a leading travel booking platform, commissioned with YouGov, delves into these indelible moments of the Indian holiday experience, ranging from the chaos of a misplaced phone charger to the reassuring presence of home-cooked snacks.

Recent study uncovers Indian holiday travel quirks

The research explores the endearing eccentricities that define Indian travellers’ experiences, both their packing styles and the hilarious misadventures of the journey.

The packing predicament: What’s left behind (and what comes home)

Indian travellers are an interesting combination of careful planners and careless travellers. The most likely to be left behind while departing home is the phone charger/adaptor (35 percent), followed by toothbrushes/toothpaste (33 percent) and medication (29 percent). Remarkably, essential travel documents (21 percent) also tend to fall short.

On leaving, almost half (42 percent) of Indian travelers forget to take with them items of clothing such as shirts or socks. Other often left behind items at the destination are electronics (37 percent) and toiletries (36 percent). However, some items find their way back in the form of ‘accidental souvenirs’, and among these are toiletry packs (44 percent) and coffee or tea packets (41percent).

Jitters, joys and humorous hurdles

While travel challenges can dampen spirits, humour often prevails. The top spoilers for a getaway are transportation issues (37 percent) and unpredictable weather (34 percent). Finding suitable food options (30 percent) and packed itineraries (27 percent) also rank high.

However, Indian tourists have much to laugh about. The most frequent funny experience is trying out the local language with hilariously incorrect outcomes (52 percent). Walking into the wrong hotel room (42 percent) by accident and mixing up the bags (38 percent) also give much amusement. Surprisingly, a quarter of Indians owned up to showing up at the airport on the incorrect date.

Familiar flavours and local treasures

On the go, Indian travellers remain grounded with familiarity foods. Dry snacks like namkeen, khakhra and biscuits (54 percent) are among the favourites, followed by dry fruits (41 percent). Home foods like thepla or paratha (37 percent) and coffee/tea sachets (33 percent) are also favorite travel items.

Souvenirs tend to mirror cultural attachment, with most (64 percent) opting for attire specific to the location, followed by food snacks from street vendors (58 percent). Traditional trinkets such as fridge magnets (50 percent) are also popular.

The research has been conducted by Booking.com.

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