More women read fiction than men. In the US, the UK and Canada, women account for 80 percent of fiction sales. “When women stop reading, the novel will be dead,” said British novelist Ian McEwan in an interview with The Guardian. Over the past decade, editors and publishers have become highly aware of these numbers and are making editorial decisions based on what the majority of their readers want to buy.
In the case of travel the same thing is happening. Thomas Cook India and its group company, SOTC Travel, have launched women-only tours to India and Dubai, after results from a poll showed that women are specially eager to go on holiday.
According to Travel Weekly Asia, 65% of India’s women respondents would like to travel in the next six months, with 72% of them displaying confidence in air travel. Besides safe destinations and shopping, the palette of interest has broadened and it not only included safe destinations and shopping but also “offbeat travel experiences across outdoor or adventure, wildlife and ecotourism, local experiences, culture-cuisine-art and health-wellness,” said Rajeev Kale, president & country head holidays, MICE, visa, Thomas Cook India. The poll showed that demand is also coming from a different kind of traveler: the solo woman traveler. Millennials are also appearing high on the demand scale.
With International Women’s Day around the corner, Thomas Cook India is offering a wide variety of options and for all kinds of pockets. There are women-only tours to Dubai for US$673 with departures on either the 5th or 6th of March. There are also women-only packages to local destinations such as Kerala, Jaipur, Udaipur and Goa.
The packages are varied and rich in excitement. Some of the adventures include vintage car drives around Udaipur’s picturesque lake, backwater cruises and martial arts in Kerala, casino and pub hopping in Goa, a jeep safari amidst the lush plantations in Munnar, as well as sand surfing, and stays in forts and unusual locations, according to Travel Weekly Asia.
Bearing the current situation in mind, the packages are robust. They offer an Assured-Insured-Secured policy that includes 24-7 access to a doctor, Covid-negative certification services, and a helpline service offering expert guidance and assistance for safe trip planning.
