Spectators cheer the ICC Men's T20 World Cup match between India vs Zimbabwe at MAC Stadium, Chepauk in Chennai
With the T20 World Cup 2026 in full swing, domestic travel has picked up pace as travel companies report significant surges in flight and stay bookings to locations that play host to the matches.
According to data from home sharing company Airbnb, searches for check-ins at several match-hosting cities during the cricket season rose nearly 2x compared to the same period last year.
Ahmedabad, a marquee venue with the largest stadium in the country, has posted a 170 per cent y-o-y rise in searches for stays between 7-10 March 2026, when the final of the World Cup is set to take place.
Interestingly, the demand has not been restricted to key metro hubs but also to smaller Tier 2 cities. Ranchi saw nearly a 120 per cent increase in searches while Thiruvananthapuram recorded over 110 per cent growth. Jaipur and Lucknow witnessed increases of over 70 per cent and 60 per cent respectively.
The surge can also be seen in flight and hotel bookings to match hosting cities.
As per data sourced by businessline from EaseMyTrip, air travel bookings to host cities across February and March have increased by around 25-30 per cent year on year as compared to non-cricket weeks last year. Similarly, hotel searches for match-day windows have seen an uptick of about 20-25 per cent
Rikant Pittie, CEO and Co-Founder of EaseMyTrip said that for tier 2 cities, the y-o-y search uptick on the platform has been more than 100 per cent, with some of them reaching ‘peak season’ volumes recurring or around match days.
Though short-term in nature compared to religious tourism or summer holidays, these trips typically extend beyond just the match day.
“Rather than short, single purpose visits, these trips are often built as longer stays as more than half the users extend trips beyond match days to explore local culture, cuisine and neighbourhoods,” said Amanpreet Singh Bajaj, Airbnb’s Country Head for India and Southeast Asia.
The demand for cricket tourism is also being driven by a younger traveller base.
Pittie said that the platform is nearly 60 per cent of sports-related bookings coming from travellers under 30.
Published on February 27, 2026
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