Travel firms pause Azerbaijan, Turkiye tours 

Travel trip planning hotel booking tablet computer search reservation
| Photo Credit:
alexsl

Travel firms have halted bookings to Azerbaijan and Turkiye for condemning India’s retaliatory strikes against nine terrorist sites in Pakistan earlier this week.

Turkey has also drawn the ire over the export of arms and drones to Pakistan which were used to target India in the conflict this week.

“Enough is Enough! Blood and Bookings wont flow together. We are suspending all flight and hotel bookings for Turkiye , China and Azerbaijan on ixigo, “ group CEO Aloke Bajpai said in a X post.

Cleartrip said it has suspended bookings to Azerbaijan and Turkiye  “in solidarity with India’s national interest and sovereignty.”

Around 2.7 lakh Indian tourists visited Turkey last year with footfalls growing by over 20 per cent on a year on year basis. Indian arrivals in Azerbaijan grew over a hundred per cent to 2.4 lakh in 2024. Non stop flights, easy visa norms and budget friendly options have also made the destinations popular for meetings, incentives, conference and exhibitions (MICE) tours.

But now tourists are pausing their trips to the two countries. “Clients who were discussing Turkiye and Azerbaijan for their MICE tours are now holding back their plans. Some have even cancelled their Azerbaijan trips due this week,” said Rajat Bagaria, Director of Srishti Tours &Travels. 

EaseMyTrip is advising its customers against travelling to Azerbaijan and Turkiye . “Travel is a powerful tool. Let’s not use it to empower those who don’t stand with us,” the company’s founder and chairman Nishant Pitti said in a X post.

“When national interest is at stake we stand with India,” said Chennai based travel tech start-up Pickyourtrail.

Social media platforms have been abuzz with calls to boycott Azerbaijan and Turkiye after two countries took pro-Pakistan line post India’s retaliatory action against terror sites. Both the countries had supported the call for an independent investigation into Pahalgam attack.

Published on May 10, 2025