Over 90% Indian women feel safe travelling in India: Survey | Latest News & Updates at Daily News & Analysis
"This year is the seminal year for solo women travellers. We have been tracking a fair rise in this segment in the last four years, but the big spurt up to 10 per cent, will be witnessed in 2015, for the first time. This jump will significantly alter the tourism in India," HolidayIQ Founder and CEO Hari Nair said.
Even as the incidents of
crime against women are on the rise in India, around 94% young
Indian women feel safe to travel in the country, a recent survey showed.
"Around 94 per cent of young women in the age group of 18-24 in India feel that travelling in India is safe," according to a survey by HolidayIQ.
The sense of
security was also 92%, among women in age bracket of 25-34 years, followed by 79% among women between 35-44 years, 87 per cent in age group of 45-54 and 47 per cent in 55-64 years, it said.
HolidayIQ conducted the survey among 20,000 women across the country.
"This year is the seminal year for solo women travellers. We have been tracking a fair rise in this segment in the last four years, but the big spurt up to 10 per cent, will be witnessed in 2015, for the first time. This jump will significantly alter the tourism in India," HolidayIQ Founder and CEO Hari Nair said.
He said women travelling solo will boost the domestic tourism industry just as couple travellers did in the last decade through the concept of weekend getaways and jungle lodges across.
"Meanwhile, the tourism industry must note, when women plan a holiday, they spend 15 per cent more than men. Not wanting travel to be an extension of the family, independence and the exposure that comes with it, has led to the rise of the solo woman traveller," he added.
When it comes to location, 92 per cent respondents said Mumbai is the safest among all cities to travel solo, followed by by Bangalore (83%), Kolkata (76%), Hyderabad (75%) and Chennai where 74 per cent women responded said it is safe for women to travel alone.
About 71 per cent women feel safe travelling in Delhi, the survey showed.
Beaches and hill stations are mostly considered safe destinations by women, with 60 per cent preferring beach and hill station holidays.
Oh consider yourself civilized do you? Nice delusion you have there.
Rise in Solo Travel Amongst Indian Women: TripAdvisor Survey 2015
New Delhi, Delhi, India
- Delhi tops the chart third year in a row as the most unsafe city for women travellers with 95% votes
- Ahmedabad retains the title of the ‘safest city’ for women travelers with 91% votes followed by Pune (90%). Mumbai dislodges Bangalore to claim #3 spot with 88% votes
- 47% respondents said travelling solo gave them the freedom of doing whatever they wanted; 39% said they liked theindependence and challenge of travelling on their own
- Indian solo women travellers rank higher than their global peers on the sense of adventure (22% India vs 9% globally) and confidence (22% India vs 15% globally) they get from their travel
Just ahead of the International Women’s Day,
TripAdvisor®, the world's largest travel site revealed the findings from its annual
Women Traveller Survey 2015, collected from
1300 female respondents in India1. The survey, now in its third year is aimed at understanding the travel sentiment and preferences of Indian women while travelling
solo or as part of an
all-women group. For the first time this year, the survey draws comparison across 9 other geographies apart from India that include
Australia, US, UK, France, Italy, Germany, Spain, Russia and Southeast Asia. 10,481 female travellers participated in the survey globally (including India).
According to Nikhil Ganju, Country Manager, TripAdvisor India “
It is encouraging to see an increasing number of Indian women travellers planning solo travel despite the challenges that confront them. Also, it appears that lesser Indian women now perceive travelling alone in India as unsafe (only 11% this year versus 33% last year). However, foreign destinations are still perceived to be safer with only 1% of Indian women indicating nervousness about travelling alone abroad. Clearly, much needs to be done by way of perception management as well as actual safety measures on the ground, for Indian women to feel safer in their own country, and for them to continue to pursue their desires to travel solo freely and confidently.
Safety – Not Such a Bitter Pill Anymore
- Among the 59% respondents who have never travelled alone, only a 10% felt it was unsafe to travel in India. Other reasons include:
- They prefer having a companion (42%)
- 22% have not had the opportunity to travel alone so far
- 10% felt it was outside their comfort zone
- However, one cannot completely negate the safety aspect. 41% female travellers who have travelled alone polled:
- Delhi/NCR as the most unsafe city amongst the top 10 Indian cities polled* followed by Jaipur and Kolkata
- Among the safest cities polled, Ahmedabad leadsthe wayfollowed by Pune and Mumbai. Bangalore drops to #5 spot this year from #3 last year
- When asked about the precautions Indian women take when travelling alone, majority of women avoid going out late at night (79%), they tell or text someone where they are going (45%) and avoid quiet streets (41%)
- They also want to feel safe with their choice of accommodation (72%) with hotel chains being the most popular choice when travelling on their own (63%)
Travel Sentiment Of The Solo Women Travellers
The majority of Indian women travellers say that they travel alone because it gives them the
freedom of doing whatever they want (47%), they like the
independence and challenge of travelling on their own (39%) and their
family or friends do not have the time or resource to travel with them (28%).
Travelling alone has helped them to be more independent and self-reliant (59%), to be more confident (42%) and to learn something about others or other cultures (39%).
Exploring Their Own Backyard Is On Top Of The List
Of the 41% Indian women travellers who have travelled alone:
- 70% plan to take up to 4 solo holidays in 2015
- 79% are planning to travel alone in their own country i.e. India is the favorite, followed by Europe (38%) and Asia (28%)
More The Merrier – Travelling In A Group
In addition to solo travel, women’s getaways i.e. women travelling in groups are also popular amongst Indian women. Out of the 40% who polled that they travel in a group, majority say they have been on such trips because
“they want to re-connect with their friends” (56%) and
“they enjoy visiting cultural, arts attractions and doing the same things on a holiday” (51%).
36% disclosed such trips gave them
“a break from family life”.
When holidaying with friends, staying in hotel chains is the most popular choice of accommodation (67%) for such trips.
Indian women are also seeking luxurious holidays with close to half (47%) of women admitting that they indulge themselves by - going to an international or exotic location (61%), taking customized tours and experiences (58%) or staying in hotel suites with their female counterparts (27%).
Favourite Activities For Women Travellers: Solo vs Group
How Indian Women Travellers Match-Up To Their Global Peers
- The sense of adventure (22%) and confidence (22%) is much higher amongst Indian women solo travellers as compared to the global averages for both. Only 9% global solo women travellers said their trips gave them a sense of adventure and confidence(15%)
- 18% Indian women travellers polled that travelling solo helped them save money v/s the global average of just 3%
- 29% Indian and 22% South-East Asian women travellers polled that travelling solo has changed the way they think about life as compared to the global average of 15%
- 16% of Indian and South-East Asian solo women travelers also feel that their journeys have changed the way they live their life v/s just 11% globally
- Indian solo women travellers love their shopping (59%) way more than their global peers (43%)
- Indians solo women travellers are way more cautious than their global peers on their journey with 79% saying they avoid going out late at night v/s the global average of 64%
- Among the top international destinations for solo women travellers globally (according to TripAdvisor review data), India ranks a dismal # 53 behind countries such as Argentina, Brazil, Peru, China etc.
Hotel Reviews Influence Female Travel Bookings
When it comes to researching the hotels to book for their holidays, Indian women are a savvy bunch with the most popular method being
reading online hotel reviews (92%), followed by
comparing hotel prices from travel websites (62%) and
researching hotel websites (50%).
Good user reviews (86%) are the biggest influence on their choice of hotels, followed by best value (69%) and convenience (47%).
NOTE TO MEDIA
1The survey was conducted online in February 2015 among TripAdvisor’s survey panels across India, Australia, US, UK, France, Italy, Germany, Spain, Russia and Southeast Asia. 10,481 female travellers responded to the survey globally with 1300 from India.
*The cities included in this particular question were Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Chennai, Kolkata, Surat, Pune, Jaipur – according to population.
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