What is Revenge Travel?

Ground Report | New Delhi: What is Revenge Travel?; Visuals of roads jam-packed with tourists coming from Himalayan hill stations like Manali, Mussoorie, and Shimla have alerted the government. The Union Health Ministry has warned against a special event called "Badla Yatra". Over five lakh tourists visited Himachal Pradesh after the easing of Covid norms, while experts repeatedly reiterated that the second wave of Covid-19 is not over.

Responding to the visuals, Lav Agarwal, Joint Secretary, Health Ministry, referred to the event as the 'Badla Yatra' and said: "People are involved in the journey of revenge. Manali, Mussoorie, Sadar Bazar Delhi, Shimla, Laxmi Nagar Some pictures coming from Delhi, Dadar market show huge crowd walking around without masks. This is dangerous. People need to understand that this is an ongoing fight. The virus is not over, it is still there. Only COVID-appropriate behavior can control the virus.”

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What is Revenge Travel?

After more than a year in lockdown, many people are tired of the monotony and are looking for a change in the environment. With the arrival of the vaccine, many people are optimistic about traveling, despite the fact that not everyone has been vaccinated yet. This desire to travel after being in lockdown for more than a year, despite the dangers, is called the Badla Yatra.

Apart from the frustration of wanting to venture out, there is also disappointment due to the hot climate which has prompted tourists to pursue vacations in the nearby hill stations.

A study conducted by Booking.com said that 72 percent of people feel that traveling is more important for them this year than before the pandemic. It was also found that of those who could not travel in 2020, 68 percent yearn for the opportunity to travel this year.

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Travel website MakeMyTrip has also seen a nearly 200 percent jump in hotel bookings ever since restrictions were eased. Cleartrip VP Rajeev Subramaniam said, “We are hopeful that the immunization drive will pick up the pace and domestic travel will improve over the next two quarters as caseloads come down.”

In simple words, people are tired of following the same routine day by day, working from home, unable to step out due to the fear of contracting coronavirus. This has led to a sort of fatigue that makes them want to run to the hills or other tourist destinations, a concept also known as revenge travel.

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