Trevolution Group, the global market leader operating Asap Tickets Skylux Travel, Dreamport, Oojo and other travel brands, reports selling over 86,780 airline tickets to and from India in 2023, thus reaching record volumes in airfare sales and indicating a stable 17% growth across the market compared to the previous year.
This amounted to 143 million USD in gross bookings, or over 12% of the group’s total gross profit during 2023, exceeding one billion USD for the first time. Reported business results rank India as one of the top four leading destinations for international airline passengers traveling across leisure and business tourism, as well as the rapidly growing visiting friends-and-relatives (VFR) segment.
Following the busy holiday season, Trevolution Group’s airfare sales results in India have exceeded pre-pandemic levels, marking 2023 as the most profitable year to date. India has historically been among the most popular travel destinations for American passengers, and along with the country’s tourism sector recovery, last year has seen a continuous increase of its inbound tourism volumes. However, the most significant growth of over 130% can be observed in India’s outbound travel sales,
indicating this market’s rapid growth and economic development. International businesses are booming, and India has become a major player in today’s global economy. As a result, the surging demand for regular transpacific flights shows a progressive pattern for 2024 and beyond.
| Total Gross Bookings | Change 2023 vs. 2022 |
| Outbound
Inbound |
132%
7% |
According to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), the Indian air travel market is one of the fastest-growing globally with approximately 152 million domestic passengers in 2023. And even though India’s global tourism promotion budget for 2024 has decreased, the country still aims to promote itself on the global stage and will put an even greater emphasis on the domestic travel sector, which Trevolution Group’s services also contribute to largely.
Next to Delhi and Mumbai, Hyderabad also played a crucial role in India’s regional development throughout 2023. Over the past years, it has evolved into a thriving technology industry center and tourism hub, and it is one of the fastest developing metropolitan cities in India. That is also reflected in Trevolution Group’s latest business results, where Hyderabad contributed to 13% of the total flight tickets booked to India and 20% of the total flights sold from the county’s largest airports. It is one of the strongest driving forces for India’s economic growth, and the emerging VFR segment constitutes a significant part of the national travel business, especially across inbound tourism.
| Top Destination Cities | % of All Tickets in 2023 |
| Mumbai
Delhi Hyderabad |
20.49%
29.86% 13.22% |
| Top Departure Cities | % of All Tickets in 2023 |
| Mumbai
Delhi Hyderabad |
19.96%
26.47% 19.92% |
Class of Travel
The growing demand for international travel to and from India is also reflected in the substantial increase in sales across both Economy and Business class flights. That resulted in a high 161% growth in flights booked from the largest airports across India in Economy class and an even more significant 276% increase in Business class compared to last year’s commercial results. Meanwhile, the demand for inbound Economy tickets has stayed stable at the same level as it was throughout 2023. However, Business class saw a major leap of 137%, indicating the return of the business travel, as well as the growing demand for a higher level of comfort among international air passengers.
| Inbound Ticket Type | Ticket Change 2023 vs. 2022 |
| Economy Class
Business Class |
1%
137% |
| Outbound Ticket Type | Ticket Change 2023 vs. 2022 |
| Economy Class
Business Class |
161%
276% |
Additionally, the majority, or 80.5%, of all tickets purchased to India in 2023 were round-trip tickets. With a 13% increase in the total number of return flights booked to India’s airports, this pattern has not changed since the previous year and is another indicator of the emerging VFR travel segment. It is especially popular among more than 4.4 million Indian Americans with strong ties to the homeland and who are booking most round-trip tickets from the US to India. Likewise, the share of one-way tickets has also stayed at nearly the same level and showed a 12% increase in the total inbound ticket sales compared to 2022.
| Inbound Trip Type | Ticket Change 2023 vs. 2022 |
| One Way
Round Trip |
12%
13% |
Meanwhile, the proportion of outbound return tickets was at 35.5% in 2023 compared to 28% in 2022, and the total number of round-trip flights sold last year went up by 245% (vs. 141% increase in one-
way flights), which accentuates a rapid market growth and highlights the ongoing return of international leisure travel among Indian customers.
| Outbound Trip Type | Ticket Change 2023 vs. 2022 |
| One Way
Round Trip |
141%
245% |
As the airline industry returns to its pre-pandemic capacity and the price of aviation fuel remains stable, the growing airfare prices had slowed down in 2023 making international travel more affordable and available. Thus, when it comes to the average ticket price, Business class tickets to India decreased by 46%, while economy class fares showed a 11% drop. A similar pattern was also observed across the airfare costs from India with 42% cheaper flights in Business class and -10% in Economy
class. As a result, air passengers had higher ability to purchase additional auxiliary products, in-flight services and upgrades with Ticket Protection being the top selection last year.
Booking Window and Terms
Almost one-third, or 32.3%, of all global travelers flying to India in 2023 purchased their tickets over three months prior to the departure date. This number has increased slightly since the last year when 28% of Trevolution Group’s passengers would book their flights over 90 days ahead. Such a pattern indicates that the travel industry has now finally recovered to its pre-pandemic state, and people feel more confident again in making their travel plans further in advance, especially when it comes to VFR travel. Thus, only 13.7% of all inbound flight tickets were purchased up to 10 days before the trip in 2023, compared to 12.8% in 2022, while 8.8% (vs. 8.2%) were purchased up to 20 days in advance and 8.6% (vs. 8.4%) of all flights to India were booked up to a month ahead.
| Inbound Advance Purchase Days | % of Total Tickets in 2023 |
| 0-10
11-20 21-30 91+ |
13.7%
8.8% 8.6% 32.3% |
Meanwhile, according to the Group’s ticket sales from India, these passengers tend to make more last minute decisions and, therefore, only less than one-fifth or 19% of all travelers secure their tickets over 90 days in advance (compared to 21.5% in 2022), while 17.4% choose to do it up to 10 days in advance (compared to the previous 15.7%), 13% (vs. 13.5% in 2002) did it up to 20 days in advance and 10.7% (vs. 11%) of passengers would do it up to 30 days ahead of their upcoming trip. The growing number of tickets purchased only a week to a few weeks ahead also point to the returning travel confidence and the strong presence of business travel with more urgent flights.
| Outbound Advance Purchase Days | % of Total Tickets in 2023 |
| 0-10
11-20 21-30 91+ |
17.4%
13% 10.7% 19% |
In addition to that, the number of short-term bookings from India has decreased in both 2023 and 2022, and the average length of stay abroad is now almost three months or 87 days, and it is slightly higher for Economy class passengers with 92 days vs. 82 days for Business class. This indicates that travelers still tend to make up for the two pandemic years and thus feel more confident about spending more time abroad now that the industry has fully recovered, especially when visiting their friends and family or working remotely. Meanwhile, for the Group’s passengers coming to India, this period is three times lower, with 31 days or an average of one calendar month for Business and Economy class in both 2023 and 2022, which is an average length of stay abroad for leisure travel.
Destinations
Following the previous year’s pattern, the vast majority of visitors coming to India in 2023 originated from the United States, Canada, United Arab Emirates and United Kingdom and choosing Mumbai (20.5%) and Delhi (30%) as the main arrival airports. Similarly, the top five departure cities to India remained New York, San Francisco and Chicago, followed by Dallas and Washington, and most inbound passengers choose to fly with Qatar Airlines, Air India and Turkish Airlines and Emirates.
| Top Departure Countries % of change 2023 vs. 2022 |
| United States 10%
Canada 4% United Arab Emirates 135% United Kingdom 284% |
Meanwhile, the majority of air travelers starting their journey from India in 2023 preferred such popular global destinations as the United States, Canada, United Arab Emirates and Thailand, as well as flew domestically within the country. Thus, New York, San Francisco, Chicago, Washington and Dallasremained the top destination cities, with Air India, Emirates and Turkish Airlines as the top three air carriers of choice. As the proportion of the America-based Indian community is continuously growing, this pattern is again heavily influenced by VFR tourism being one of the main factors driving frequent flights to India and back to North American cities, as well as vice versa.
| Top Destination Countries % of change 2023 vs. 2022 |
| United States 171%
Canada 18% United Arab Emirates 295% Thailand 245% |
“India continues to be a cornerstone of Trevolution Group’s success with our record-breaking sales signalling a stable 17% growth in the market. Historically robust, this market is poised for further expansion, given an increasing Indian diaspora in the US and Canada that is the driving force behind the growth of the VFR sector. Recognizing the untapped potential in this market, we are diligently developing an all-inclusive travel app to better serve our clientele. Additionally, we are dedicated to establishing a new corporate travel vertical, called Triplicity, recognizing the need for tailored solutions in this sector.” Alex Weinstein, the Founder of Dyninno Group commented.
Trevolution Group, which operates International Travel Network, ASAP Tickets, Skylux Travel, Dreamport, Oojo, and other travel brands, has established itself as the global market leader in the travel business, specializing in the visiting friends and relatives’ (VFR) segment. Over 840,000 unique airline tickets and vacation packages were sold by the companies under the Trevolution Group brand in 2023, making it the fourth-largest travel consolidator in the US.