As India moves closer to the Union Budget 2026, stakeholders across the hospitality and travel-tech ecosystem are calling for structural reforms to sustain domestic travel growth and strengthen tourism-led development. With improving hotel occupancies and rising demand for alternative accommodations such as homestays and BnBs, the sector believes consistent policy support can help maintain momentum across emerging destinations.

Highlighting the growing role of digital booking platforms, Vinesh Gupta noted that online hotel and alternative accommodation platforms are becoming key enablers of destination-led tourism, particularly in Tier II and Tier III cities. He emphasised the need for further GST rationalisation on hotel rooms, especially in the mid-scale segment, to ensure affordability for travellers and price consistency across hotels and alternative accommodation providers.

“As we look ahead to the Union Budget 2026, the online hotel and alternative accommodation booking ecosystem is playing an important role in supporting India's domestic and destination-led travel growth. With hotel occupancies improving and demand for homestays and BnBs rising across Tier-II and Tier-III cities, continued policy support can help sustain this momentum,” Gupta said.

He added that GST reforms would not only benefit consumers but also encourage better quality stays across destinations. As a travel-tech platform preparing to expand into flight bookings, Gupta said government support for digital travel platforms, integrated booking experiences, and skill development across tourism services would improve transparency, customer choice, and overall travel accessibility for Indian travellers.

Echoing similar concerns from the broader hospitality investment perspective, Vinesh Gupta pointed out that despite strong operating performance driven by robust travel demand, returns on investment continue to face pressure due to the sector’s capital-intensive nature and high acquisition costs.

“Introducing tax incentives on capital expenditure and granting the long-awaited infrastructure status would provide a significant boost. This would unlock access to long-term institutional credit at competitive repo-linked or international benchmark rates, thereby easing the cost of capital and fuelling sustainable growth,” he said.

He further highlighted the need for stronger government-led manpower development and training initiatives to address the widening skills gap within hospitality. In addition, strengthening aviation connectivity and expanding the domestic airline network were cited as critical factors in opening new travel corridors and reinforcing India’s position as a leading global tourism destination.

With domestic tourism continuing to grow and digital platforms reshaping how Indians travel, industry leaders believe Budget 2026 presents a timely opportunity to align policy reforms with the sector’s long-term growth potential.