Winter Holidays 2025–26: Favourite International Destinations for Indians

India’s outbound travel landscape is undergoing a noticeable shift, with multi-country itineraries becoming the new winter trend. Travellers are increasingly using a single Schengen visa to hop across European borders, often adding the United Kingdom as their final stop. This style of seamless, multi-nation travel is gaining momentum just as the winter holiday season kicks in—a period widely regarded as India’s busiest time for vacations abroad.

Fresh insights shared by visa-processing platform Atlys reveal an impressive spike in visa applications for trips scheduled between November 2025 and February 2026. The surge highlights that winter remains the most preferred season for Indians to travel internationally, thanks to pleasant weather worldwide and a stacked festive calendar at home.

Winter Travel Boom Backed by Rising Visa Applications

Fresh data from the visa-processing platform Atlys reveals a substantial rise in visa applications for trips scheduled between November 2025 and February 2026. The spike further confirms that winter continues to be India’s most preferred season for international travel, thanks to pleasant global weather, snow destinations, and a festive calendar packed with Christmas, New Year, and year-end holidays.

End-of-Year Travel: A Window India Looks Forward To

The period from Christmas to New Year, along with school winter vacations across cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Kolkata, traditionally marks the peak of outbound tourism. Families reunite, NRIs return home from destinations such as Dubai, London, Singapore, Toronto, and Sydney, and domestic travellers seize the opportunity to explore international hotspots.

This season’s trends show that millennials—representing 54% of all winter visa applicants—remain at the forefront of this demand. Guided by their interest in experience-driven travel, they are choosing itineraries that combine adventure in Swiss Alps, gastronomy in Italy, culture in France, and festive charm in Germany. Meanwhile, Gen Z, now making up nearly 25% of applicants, is growing rapidly, drawn by Instagram-famous winter destinations and content-driven travel inspiration.

Europe Tops the Charts: The Heart of Winter Wanderlust

Europe remains the undisputed favourite. Nearly half of all millennial travellers applying for visas are choosing Schengen countries for their winter holidays. The continent’s exceptional transport links—high-speed rail networks, short flights, and open-border movement—allow tourists to cover multiple countries with ease.

Popular winter itineraries now include combinations like:

Paris (France) ➝ Amsterdam (Netherlands) Vienna (Austria) ➝ Budapest (Hungary) Zurich (Switzerland) ➝ Milan & Venice (Italy) Munich (Germany) ➝ Prague (Czech Republic)

Travellers are drawn to Christmas markets in Germany, the snowy landscapes of Switzerland, the Northern Lights in Finland, and global New Year parties in cities like Paris, Berlin, and Barcelona.

A new trend is emerging where travellers end their trip with a stopover in the UK, especially in London, Manchester, and Edinburgh, taking advantage of excellent connectivity from European hubs.

Why Indians Are Travelling More This Winter: Key Drivers

Several factors are shaping India’s winter travel boom for 2025–26:

1. Higher Affordability

Growing incomes among urban populations in cities such as Mumbai, Delhi, Pune, Chennai, Hyderabad, and Bengaluru are fuelling international vacations.

2. Festive Season Appeal

Christmas and New Year celebrations across cities like London, Paris, Vienna, and New York attract families and young travellers alike.

3. Hybrid & Remote Work Culture

Workers are extending short trips into longer holidays, using flexible schedules to stay in destinations such as Lisbon, Dubai, Phuket, Bali, and Istanbul.

4. Rise of Multi-Country Experiences

Travellers prefer richer, more diverse itineraries—like mixing Swiss mountains with Italian cities, or pairing Scandinavian winter adventures with Central European markets.

5. Social Media Influence

Younger travellers are drawn to trending winter destinations such as:

Lapland, Finland Hallstatt, Austria Interlaken & Lucerne, Switzerland Bruges, Belgium Reykjavik, Iceland

As prices and visa processing times are expected to rise closer to the holiday season, industry experts advise travellers to plan ahead and apply early, especially for multi-country Schengen routes.

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