As India marks its 77th Republic Day today, the first long weekend of 2026 turned into a strong travel trigger that nudged urban Indians to step out for short but high-spend getaways.

Travel platforms, hotels and airlines are reporting strong demand across leisure, spiritual and heritage destinations, with booking patterns pointing to last-minute decisions and experience-led travel rather than long-planned vacations.

The January 26 holiday falling on a Monday emerged as a key catalyst this year, unlike 2025 when Republic Day fell on a Sunday, limiting travel flexibility. According to Makemytrip's booking insights for travel between January 23 and 26, demand began building from Friday and peaked on Saturday, as travellers advanced their departures to maximise the extended break.

Hotels across popular leisure hubs are seeing a visible uptick in occupancies. Hospitality players say Indians are now increasingly favouring short, experience-led breaks over longer, heavily planned holidays. Nikhil Sharma, managing director and COO, South Asia, Radisson Hotel Group, said the Republic Day break emerged as a strong demand window across hotel portfolios, supported by leisure travel, event-led demand and steady corporate movement, with last-minute pick-ups expected closer to arrival.

Radisson Resort & Spa Lonavala already reached close to 40% occupancy nearly 10 days in advance, with an average room rate of ₹18,000, driven largely by demand from Mumbai and Pune. Guwahati is also seeing occupancies well above typical weekend averages, helped by the extended holiday period and sports tourism, with the India vs New Zealand T20 International scheduled for January 25 acting as a key demand driver.

Across markets, the average length of stay for the long weekend is trending at around two nights, reflecting travellers’ preference for compact, high-value getaways rather than extended vacations. City hotels, meanwhile, continue to see steady demand. Radisson Blu Pune Kharadi is tracking 82% occupancy, with month-to-date averages at 85% and an 11% year-on-year increase, while Radisson Blu Dwarka and Radisson Blu Plaza, Delhi Airport, remain in line with typical long-weekend booking patterns, with demand expected to firm up closer to arrival.

Domestic leisure destinations continued to dominate travel choices this Republic Day weekend. Goa remains the top draw across categories, followed closely by Jaipur, Udaipur, Manali and Pondicherry among leisure travellers. For holiday packages, Kerala, Andaman, Goa, Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu feature prominently, underscoring a preference for familiar, well-connected destinations that lend themselves to short stays.

Rajesh Magow, co-founder and Group CEO of MakeMyTrip, noted that the appetite for weekend travel remains strong, with the extended Republic Day break providing an opportunity for quick international trips. “There is a preference for nearby destinations, evident in the top travel choices from each metro. That said, Goa remains the favourite leisure destination within India. Internationally, the skew towards easy-visa destinations continues to gain traction. Countries with direct connectivity to multiple cities are leading demand, with Thailand at the forefront and Vietnam also performing strongly,” he added.  

Spiritual travel is also emerging as a strong theme this year. Destinations such as Puri, Varanasi, Amritsar, Ayodhya, Ujjain, Dwarka, Udupi and Tirupati are witnessing robust demand, as travellers combine the long weekend with faith-based travel. 

“With the Republic Day long weekend approaching, we are seeing strong momentum in domestic travel across leisure, spiritual and heritage circuits, with flight searches up 30% YoY,” said Rajnish Kumar, group co-CEO of ixigo. “Travellers are making the most of the first long weekend of the year, with destinations like Jodhpur, Jammu, Bagdogra and Dehradun emerging as popular choices, alongside increased interest in spiritual hubs such as Tirupati, Amritsar and Varanasi.”

International travel, while shorter in duration, also saw healthy traction, particularly towards destinations with easy visa regimes and direct air connectivity. Thailand, the UAE, Singapore, Malaysia and Vietnam feature among the most-booked international destinations this weekend. Vietnam has been a standout, climbing sharply in preference compared with last year.

Travel companies are also using the festive weekend to stimulate demand. Ixigo, for instance, said it launched its Tricolour Travel Sale from January 16 to 22 across flights and hotels to cater to the surge in last-minute planners, as travellers looked to lock in deals for the long weekend.