Pushing the age bar: Seniors catch the travel bug

Of late, the 69-yearold Govindan Naganathan and his 60-year-old wife Lakshmi have been globetrotting every quarter. They trek to Bhutan's Tiger's Nest monastery located 10,000 feet over the Paro Valley, set off to the hilly terrains of Kandy and beaches of Bentota and admire at the architectural marvels of Colombo in Sri Lanka or drive down to Wayanad for a quiet week among tea plantations, backwaters, rivers, and waterfalls.

“We want to make up for what we missed all these years due to work and parental pressures,“ the retired engineer says. The couple is now planning a seven-day trip to Chitwan national park, Kathmandu, and Pokhara in Nepal in October.

The travel bug, clearly , does not bite just the millennial. Having independent children, greater spending capacities, travel communities providing likeminded company and access to information on social media are fuelling the travel ambitions of senior citizens. A report by Frost & Sullivan suggests that the number of senior travellers in India is expected to increase sevenfold to 7.3 million by 2030. Elders in Bengaluru are not far behind.

City-based startup Byond Travel has seen a 120% increase in inquiries by senior citizens over the past year. “The phenomenon of `ticking off the bucket list' is big. With seniors living longer, healthier lives, the eagerness to experience a lifelong desire is pushing this trend to new heights of popularity,“ said founder Vikram Ahuja. “Seniors are typically well-read and are keen to indulge in local experiences beyond usual sight-seeing. This includes visiting homes of locals, local food experiences, cooking classes and privately guided shopping tours.“


When 11 ladies travelled beyond ordinary boundaries to magical lands of Vietnam & Cambodia (Image: Byond Travel)

Thomas Cook (India) has seen a 21% demand growth from Bengaluru's Gen S travellers.“We have largely seen senior citizens travelling in groups with similar age-group travellers or together with family,“ said Rajeev Kale, president, leisure travel, Thomas Cook (India). Last year, 27% of the travel firm's overall holiday business was covered by senior travellers.

Raju Nadig, who retired as vice president of IBM, said that travelling with people of the same age group sets the right pace for the trip. After all, while seniors can be open to adventure, they cannot afford a conventional, fast-paced backpacking trip that drains out their energy . “With only seniors in the group, we can customise the trip to even visit unconventional, adventurous destinations like Leh, Ladakh,“ said Nadig, who has travelled to almost 30 countries. His next trip, to Kenya, is also with a citybased travel community called 50+ Voyagers that has over 750 members from Bengaluru.

Sangita Bhattacharyya, CEO, 50+ Voyagers, said that seniors make for loyal customers as they form emotional bonds with fellow travellers.

“Logistically, we arrange for comfortable transportation, cater to individual dietary needs and allow them enough time for leisure and rest,“ she said.