MakeMyTrip opens bookings for 350+ guided tours across 60+ Indian cities
MakeMyTrip and India’s Tourism Ministry will launch bookings for 350-plus guided tours across 60-plus cities from August 15, expanding the travel platform’s domestic experiences catalogue. Separately, Unified Bharat eCharge launches interoperable UPI-based EV charging payments.
Read the source at YourStoryNewer MakeMyTrip signal · — may update this storyMakeMyTrip adds guided tours in 60+ cities as Independence Day travel demand rises
The numbers
Figures in the source Prices start at Rs 500
Why it matters to operators and investors
The Ministry of Tourism partnership gives MakeMyTrip an early distribution advantage in fragmented local tours, making destination operators, experience platforms and regional supply aggregators potential partnership or acquisition targets.
What to watch next
- Number of cities, tours and operators added after the August 15 launch.
- Attach rate of experiences to hotel, rail and holiday bookings.
- Average booking value, repeat purchase rate and contribution margin after discounts.
- Customer ratings, cancellation rates, refund volumes and support complaints.
- Whether tours appear in MakeMyTrip loyalty, package and last-minute booking funnels.
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- Competing experience launches or partnerships from other Indian OTAs, state tourism bodies and hotel chains.
Likely next moves
The desk's read of what comes next — analysis, not reported by the source.
- Bundle tours into hotel, rail and holiday-package checkout flows with targeted discounts.
- Build verified reviews, guide ratings, live availability and cancellation/refund standards to establish trust.
- Use Tourism Ministry partnerships to onboard state tourism boards, licensed guides and operators in additional destinations.
- Create festival, heritage, food, adventure and weekend itineraries rather than relying on generic sightseeing products.
- Use demand data to identify under-served domestic destinations and negotiate hotel and transport inventory around emerging tour clusters.
The counter-case
This may be more of a catalogue partnership than a durable platform expansion. Guided tours are operationally fragmented, low-margin and dependent on guide quality, availability and local execution—areas where MakeMyTrip may have limited control. Starting prices of Rs 500 suggest modest ticket values, so meaningful revenue requires high booking volumes or strong attach rates to existing travel reservations. A Ministry of Tourism tie-up can accelerate supply, but it does not by itself establish consumer demand, exclusive inventory or repeatable unit economics. The offer could also dilute the brand if inconsistent tour quality produces poor reviews.