Pune: Travel companies in the city have reported a significant drop in enquiries for travel to the UK in the last couple of days. A spate of far-right riots in the UK have resulted in travel warnings being issued ahead of the peak holiday season in Diwali and Christmas. The High Commission of India in London also recently advised Indian travellers to “exercise caution” while visiting the UK.
Pawan Sachdeva, director of Pacific Travels, told TOI, “We have seen a slowdown in enquiries from students interested in pursuing education in the UK because of the political situation. Overall, people are hesitant about finalising their travel plans.” He said that parents who had planned to visit the UK along with their children have also changed their plans to tour colleges.
“Parents who wanted to visit their children studying in the UK have also decided to cancel their trips because of the current situation and are concerned,” Sachdeva added. Santosh Gupta, the owner of Shree Vinayak Holidays, said, “July to December period is typically a good time for people to travel to the UK. Travellers planning their Diwali and Christmas vacations usually start their trip planning and visa process by August.
But we have stopped receiving enquiries in the past two days. Perhaps people are unsure about travelling between August and October.” Vijay Thakkar, director, Hasmukh Travels, told TOI, “Inquiries for UK travel have dropped significantly for Diwali and Christmas period as people start planning well in advance.
We have seen a nearly 50% drop in inquiries for destinations in the UK in the last few days as compared to the same period in the last couple of years.” Deepak Singh, convenor, NRI Welfare Society of India, said, “The High Commission of India has also issued an advisory in this regard so that Indians going to the UK do not become victims of recent disturbances. This is one of the reasons parents of those staying in the UK are either cancelling or postponing their trips to the UK.
Once they apply for a visa, they get this advisory from the embassy as a precaution. After reading the advisory, people do not want to take any chance.” Singh added that there have been several instances of parents cancelling their UK plans in the last few days.
“The travel advisories and the volatile political climate have dampened enthusiasm of not only these parents but also Indian travellers who typically make holiday plans during the festive season of Diwali and Christmas.”.
