Mumbai: Indians are reporting mass cancellations during India’s “Operation Sindoor” to boycott travel to Turkey and Azerbaijan, and their support, leading online travel agencies MakemyTrip and EasemyTrip reported mass cancellations and booked in both countries.
MakemyTrip reported bookings at both destinations fell 60% over the past week, and 250% of cancellations rose 250%. Similarly, EasemyTrip has canceled 22% of Türkiye’s travel and cancelled more than 30% of Azerbaijan.
Travel Summary Ixigo also suspended flight and hotel bookings in Turkey, Azerbaijan and China and said in a social media post: “With our country united, Ixigo is suspending flight and hotel bookings for Turkey, Azerbaijan and China. When it comes to Bharat, we don’t think it’s twice.”
Additionally, Indian travel brand Go Homestays ended its partnership with Turkish Airlines, accusing airlines of supporting a country that is not friendly to India. They said they will no longer offer Turkish Airlines flights on international packages.
Both countries openly support Pakistan after India launched air strikes under nine terrorist sites in Pakistan and nine terrorist sites in Pakistan occupied Kashmir (POK).
“In the past week, Indian travelers have expressed strong sentiment, with bookings for Azerbaijan and Turkey down 60%, while cancellations during the same period soaring by 250%.
While the MMT platform has not stopped offering flight bookings to Turkey and Azerbaijan, it said it “is consistent with our country and is not respected by armed forces, and we strongly support this view and recommend that you have any non-essential travel to Azerbaijan and Turkey that is not necessary.
On the same line, Nishant Pitti, founder and former chairman of online travel agency EasemyTrip, said his travel agency has cancelled 22% of Turkey’s travel, and after the portal released its travel advisory on May 9, it canceled more than 30% of it to Azerbaijan, unless both countries have restricted travel, the travel advisory will be provided. Pitti added that the platform chose not to cancel or boycott existing bookings to avoid widespread inconvenience.
As many as 243,589 Indian tourists visited the country in 2024, according to the Azerbaijan Tourism Commission. The Tourism Bureau expects an increase of 11% from now to the next 10 years. Türkiye saw Indians reach 3,30,000 passengers in 2024, while the 2014 figure was 119,503, according to the Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism.
There are about 13,000 seats per week between India and Türkiye, while Azerbaijan and India have more than 3,000 seats per week.
