chandigarh this year the local travel industry has seen a shift in its clientele more people from the citys upper middleincome segment are now opting for holidays through travel agencies the holiday packages giving them a feel of being organised its a new pragmatism among the people being organised are the catchwords of the millennium travel is a part of it and thanks the extensive research work people do via the internet they get value for money invested in a holiday package offered by a travel agency says mohinder s bajaj director bajaj travels chandigarh the travel industry this year faced a big slump after the september 11 terrorist attacks on the us and though the slump continues things look set for a recovery the trend however through the year has favoured budget travellers looking for good deal today theres a change as more and more people are drawn to the idea of a readymade package which tells you if the trip will fit in your budget or not things are transparent and all the expenses are worked out in advance says bajaj earlier the clientele of travel agencies was limited to the business segment for their yearly trip abroad but as travel agents stress the trend may be no reflection on the purchasing power of working couples here even though they could have afforded spending a similar amount earlier they seemed to have a mental block against a travel agency w h i c h w a s seen as catering to only the business segment the only option travelling on their own to nainital or mussoorie for an annual holiday and figuring out the expenses after the holiday was over the preference for d e s t i n a tions has also seen a major shift in these 12 months as far as both inbound indian and outbound abroad travel is concerned the affordable south asian destinations like singapore malaysia and thailand have been a hit with city people us is a nono at the moment for obvious reasons says kapil malhotra gm sales and marketing ekido holiday tours in fact agencies are selling more packages for these countries than the indian destinations as they offer better value for money at the same cost the air fares are so high that travel expenses in india if one is flying come to nearly the same as travelling to singapore or malaysia says ravi barua of sotc tours sector 17 rather than spending rs 22000 for an indian destination including rs 14000 for air fare alone people have preferred trips to these countries this year he adds among indian destinations goa is the only package that was popular in the city the reason the affordability airfares had been reduced because of the tieups between the hotels and sahara airlines the popularity of nepal till last year the destination for every second honeymooner from here particularly nosedived in 2001 if