Performance over presence: Travel brands rethink media strategy for peak season

As India heads into the peak summer travel season, brands across airlines, online travel aggregators and hospitality are stepping up marketing intensity with a sharper focus on performance, dynamic pricing and always-on engagement strategies.

The seasonal spike in travel intent is prompting marketers to move beyond burst-led campaigns toward more continuous, data-driven outreach aimed at capturing high-intent consumers during critical booking windows. Industry executives say the emphasis is increasingly on converting demand in real time rather than building broad awareness.

Performance-led media is at the centre of this shift. Travel brands are allocating a larger share of budgets to search, programmatic and app-based channels, where user intent signals such as destination searches, fare tracking and browsing behaviour can be leveraged to deliver targeted messaging. The goal is to intercept consumers closer to the point of purchase, where conversion likelihood is highest. 

Manmeet Ahluwalia, CMO, EaseMyTrip said, “Summer is one of the most significant travel periods for us, and our marketing activity typically scales up in line with heightened consumer demand and booking intent during this season. Compared to the rest of the year, we adopt a more amplified and agile approach, balancing brand-building initiatives with tactical, demand-led interventions.”

He added that this year’s push is led by the EaseMyTrip Great Indian Summer Travel Sale, aimed at tapping seasonal demand through targeted offers and stronger engagement. Rather than increasing budgets, the focus is on sharper allocation, prioritising performance-led, high-intent channels during peak booking windows, while continuing upper-funnel investments to maintain brand salience. The media mix, he noted, is increasingly driven by real-time demand signals and consumer behaviour for better optimisation. 

This performance-first yet balanced approach is echoed across the category. Pallavi Chopra, Chief Marketing Officer, RedBus, who noted that summer is one of the brand’s most critical seasons, driven by vacations and weddings, accounting for over a third of its annual marketing spends. She added that the company significantly scales up investments during this period while maintaining a strong performance layer to capture high-intent demand. “We also increase brand spends to drive cohort-led acquisition, building preference in segments like pilgrimage travellers and strengthening top-of-mind recall,” she said. 

For Agoda too, summer is a key travel period in India, marked by a sharp rise in intent. The company said its strategy is less about scaling spends and more about delivering the right message at the right moment, focusing on driving awareness of its value-led deals during trip planning. This year, it launched the ‘What a Save’ campaign, supported by creator-led social extensions, while continuing to optimise media across OTT, YouTube and Meta based on ongoing experimentation. It added that its 21st Birthday Sale in May further strengthens engagement during the peak season. 

Matteo Frigerio, Chief Marketing Officer at Agoda, said the brand is prioritising effectiveness over higher spends this summer, backed by greater creative volume across campaigns like ‘What a Save’, creator-led content and AI-led initiatives. “AI has become an important enabler in helping us generate and test more creative variations at speed, while maintaining quality and consistency. This feeds directly into our ability to optimize faster and deliver better results through sharper execution,” he noted. 

Cleartrip positioned summer as a marquee travel phase led by its #NationOnVacation sale, with marketing becoming more campaign-led and culturally rooted. The brand said its storytelling, from nostalgia-led films like ‘Chidhiya Udd’ to “Cleartrip pe Bachao, Trip pe Udao!”, is aimed at moving beyond discounts to highlight value and experiences, driving both intent and action. 

Govind Bansal, Head of Marketing, Cleartrip added, “Our approach to spending remains sharply focused on digital, where we can reach high-intent audiences more effectively. We prioritise channels that allow us to engage users who are already showing travel affinity, rather than spreading spends broadly.” He added that the focus is on ensuring investments not only drive visibility but also convert into bookings, while reinforcing the larger narrative of value unlocking better travel experiences. 

Alongside marketing strategy, dynamic pricing is playing a critical role in aligning demand and communication. With fluctuating demand across routes and destinations, brands are syncing messaging with real-time price changes, using urgency cues such as limited-time fares and inventory scarcity to accelerate decision-making. This is increasingly visible in digital campaigns that integrate live pricing into creatives. 

Agencies point out that the summer window is not just about higher spends, but smarter orchestration. Sajid Khan, Founder & Creative Head, AdVinciCode said, “Typically, travel brands ramp up marketing activity by 2x to 4x during peak summer months compared to off-season. For some segments like international travel or premium stays, this can go even higher.”

However, he noted that the real shift lies in allocation, with higher top-of-funnel spends to capture early planners, followed by retargeting and conversion closer to travel dates, and increased investment in historically high-performing channels. In an increasingly saturated landscape, he added, brands are moving away from generic discount-led messaging toward differentiated narratives such as experience-first storytelling, creator-led content and moment-based marketing tied to holidays and seasonal triggers. 

“The most sophisticated travel marketers we know aren't waiting for summer to start their engines. They're already running lightweight, low-CPM campaigns from as early as Dec, previous year… when people are casually Googling ‘places to go in May’ at 11:47 pm. Because by June, that same user costs three times as much to reach,” said Porus Jose, Content Head, Wife. 

He added that while travel brands typically scale marketing spends by 1.5x to 3x during the summer peak, costs rise in tandem, making reach more expensive. As a result, the shift is not just in higher spends but in more precise allocation. He noted that success depends less on budget size and more on how well brands understand and act on the “inventory clock.” 

As strategies evolve, differentiation is increasingly being driven by content and contextual relevance. Destination-led storytelling, influencer collaborations and vernacular content are helping brands connect with younger audiences and emerging markets, while first-party data, loyalty programmes and app ecosystems are enabling deeper relationships and repeat usage. 

Media channels

This shift toward intent and precision is also reflected in channel strategies, with digital continuing to lead the mix. Brands are prioritising platforms and formats that align closely with consumer intent signals, enabling sharper targeting and faster optimisation, while high-impact moments and integrated touchpoints help balance performance with scale and recall. 

Cleartrip said digital remains central, led by video-first storytelling and short-form, platform-native content, with static formats supporting performance. Agoda added that while India is already digital-first, summer creates high-attention moments around events like the Indian Premier League, supported by continuous experimentation across OTT, YouTube, Meta and select offline channels, with a focus on engaging, fun-led creatives. 

EaseMyTrip noted that digital sees the strongest push during summer across search, social, app and affiliate channels that capture high-intent demand, complemented by integrated campaigns combining offers with destination discovery. Meanwhile, RedBus said its mix expands to include high-impact TV and digital formats, leveraging properties like the Indian Premier League for scale, alongside large-scale regional initiatives such as auto branding across 30,000+ autos in 55+ cities and campaigns tied to seasonal and regional travel moments. 

With multiple players vying for a share of the summer travel wallet, the marketing playbook is becoming more precise, performance-driven and responsive. The shift signals a broader evolution in the category, where success is increasingly defined by the ability to act on intent signals in real time rather than outspend competitors on mass visibility.