Travel on recovery road as war cloud clears and oil dips: MakeMyTrip group CEO

The travel industry could be on the path to recovery, with falling crude prices easing pressure on airlines and demand remaining resilient despite continuing uncertainty around the US-Iran conflict, MakeMyTrip group chief executive Rajesh Magow said.

"I don't want to speak too soon, but it seems like now we are on our way to recovery in terms of factors like oil flow," Magow told ET in an interview. "I did not anticipate such a dramatic drop in the prices of Brent crude to below $75 per barrel. Within a week of the announcement of the truce arrangement, the prices dropped. I see that as a very big silver lining."

He said the optimism level among airlines is improving, and noted that commercial LPG supply in the country is being restored. "The US looks like it wants to get out of the conflict one way or the other. There is hope now," Magow said. "The recovery for long-haul and westward flights should be faster. It is a function of oil prices coming down, which is happening and the Indian Rupee appreciating."


He said the inherent demand for travel continues to be there, with most leisure travellers opting for alternatives as westward travel "has been impacted with flight cuts and airspace restrictions." "But we continue to see consistent growth in international accommodation bookings on our platform," he said.

The Philippines, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Mauritius, Vietnam and Nepal are among the best-performing destinations in terms of percentage growth in hotel and homestay bookings in the April-June quarter on MakeMyTrip, Magow said. The Nasdaq-listed company, which saw a record $10.4-billion worth of gross bookings in financial year 2026, does not see a slowdown in corporate, domestic and pilgrimage travel which is now a "year round opportunity," Magow said.

Accommodation bookings in FY26 across 78 pilgrimage destinations grew by over 16% year-on-year on MakeMyTrip.

He said the air growth numbers could take some time to recover and should get better once the macro headwinds are over, but road transport, and the hotels segment should see encouraging growth.

On the company's India IPO plans, Magow said it is a slow-moving process and a "work in progress." He said on revenue terms, flight bookings used to contribute overwhelmingly to the business, but now it's a more even split between accommodation and ground transport. "Improvements in infrastructure and travel to nearby destinations is driving the ground transport growth for us," Magow said.

"We now have over 100,000 accommodation options available on the platform covering over 2,050 cities in the country," he added.