New Delhi, Aug 14 (PTI) A significant increase in travel is expected during the Independence Day long weekend beginning Thursday, according to industry experts.

According to hotel booking platform Booking.com, the top 10 most searched domestic getaways during the long weekends in August are Udaipur, Lonavala, Jaipur, Ooty, Kodaikanal, Munnar, Goa, Mahabaleshwar, Varanasi and Puri.

Moreover, the top five most searched metros in India during the long weekends in August are Bengaluru, Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai and Hyderabad.

The booking platform looked at search sessions between 28 July-31-July, with check-in dates between 15 August-19 August and 24 August-26 August.

“The surge in searches for both domestic and short-haul destinations during August’s long weekends reflects this trend. While popular tourist hotspots remain attractive, we are also seeing rising interest in some destinations such as Hampi, Madikeri, Ujjain and Gokarna,” Santosh Kumar, Country Manager for India, Sri Lanka, Maldives and Indonesia at Booking.com said.

Indiver Rastogi, President & Group Head, Global Business Travel, Thomas Cook (India) and SOTC Travel, said with public holidays like Parsi New Year/Independence Day, Raksha Bandhan and Janmashtami – falling on weekdays, India’s migrant working population is also leveraging the opportunity to create extended breaks of 3-5 days to travel home and celebrate with their families.

“Given the high demand for travel during such extended weekends, our data highlights that customers are booking in advance to avoid high fares closer to departure,” Rastogi said.

According to search data analysed by Booking.com, while Dubai with its luxury offerings tops the list of the most popular international destinations, the allure of Southeast Asia is also captivating Indians with destinations like Singapore, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Bali and Phuket on the travel bucket list.

It is forward-looking data based on searches made by travellers and is subject to changes from actual booked data.