Let’s face it… Anjali from Kuch Kuch Hota Hai said it way before it was cool: ‘Hum ek baar jeetey hai, ek baar marte hai… (you only live once, you only die once)’. The rest of the dialogue is irrelevant. Those guys were trend setters, and maybe that’s why that thought has now been stuck in the minds of Gen Y, who idolised Rahul and Anjali at one point of time… or not.
Millennials work hard to travel more. The first thing that most of us do when we join a new workplace, is take a look at the list of holidays and plan our weekends. Some of us, even before we join a new work place, we tell them about the week long holiday on the cards, even if there is nothing planned. But did you know, there are some, who are now applying for loans to travel? Yep! Not for a luxury car, or a house, or to buy a yacht, but TRAVEL! Amazing right?
Have You Heard Of Leisure Consciousness?
We didn’t too, until we did some research on it. Leisure consciousness is a kind of an awakening or realisation among Indian millennials which has made them realise the importance of travel. It is now being considered as an important financial expenditure that is being factored in by this generation. Furthermore, in order to pursue this, they are now taking loans to travel, working on generating funds in order to gratify these goals.
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In a recent study conducted by IndiaLends on World Tourism Day, it was revealed that leisure consciousness is on the rise in India. The study’s focus groups were both salaried and self-employed millennials from six major cities – New Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai and Kolkata. Almost 85% of the individuals, who had applied for loans to travel ranging between ₹30,000 to ₹2.5 lakhs were millennials. Yep, you read that right!
What’s The ‘Loan’ Factor?
Three words, that every millennial wants to hear – ‘LAST MINUTE PLAN’. Nothing is unreachable for young Indians, except the mobile network when an important e-mail has been sent. But when it comes to travelling across the seven seas, we will take up jobs, projects, internships even, that will allow us to travel.
Also read: Croatia Is Looking For Travel Enthusiasts Who Can Look After Dolphins For A Summer
The travel bucket-list is becoming longer by the day. Be it the Yacht Week in Croatia, or New Year’s Eve at the Carribean Islands; the Ultra Music Festival in Miami or exploring Machu Picchu in South America, they want to do it all. And with great distance, comes great expenditure: hence, the loan.
The report revealed, that last minute plans and luxury travel stops is what is driving Gen Y to opt for these loans. Add to that 0% – 1% interest, sipping on fine wine in South African vineyards, or sky diving in New Zealand is just a few days away. The ease with which these loans for travel can be applied for online is another reason for its increasing demand. Nobody wants to get lost in a stack of papers and forms, so easy eligibility assessment and easy payout is another reason for more and more applicants.
There is nothing that can stop you from ticking things off your bucket list. Not that anything otherwise should, but if something can facilitate the process, the feel-good-factor definitely picks up. Fill a bowl with the names of all the places that you had been planning to visit but couldn’t afford to. Now, close your eyes, pick a chit, take a loan and take-off!
First Published: October 04, 2019 6:26 PM