Music has quietly become one of the most powerful forces shaping travel choices among young Indians. The country’s Gen Z are increasingly planning trips around live concerts and festivals, turning gigs into gateways for discovering new cities, extending stays, and spending time exploring local neighbourhoods well beyond the main event. For this generation, travel decisions are being driven less by calendars and more by culture. Live events and experiences influence where they go, who they travel with, and how deeply they engage with the destination. These interesting insights were revealed by Airbnb’s new Experience-Led Travel Insights. It further states that music is defining the way young India travels and discovers.
The Airbnb Experience-Led Travel Insights report was conducted by YouGov in November 2025 and surveyed 1,102 Gen Z (aged 18–28) respondents across Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Pune, Chandigarh, and Guwahati using YouGov’s proprietary online panel and quota-based sampling.
The report further observes that this year, 2026, music is set to play an even bigger role in shaping travel behaviour, with 62 per cent of Gen Z planning trips around concerts and music festivals. This intent is already reflected in their current behaviour: more than one in three start planning their trip as soon as they hear of an event. Unlike traditional travel patterns driven by seasonality, holidays, or long weekends, young travellers are prioritising experiences. Gen Z’s top motivations include the chance to explore a new destination and the excitement of being part of a once-in-a-lifetime cultural moment.
The Airbnb report says that Gen Z are willing to travel even abroad to watch their favourite artists perform live. The majority of them are willing to travel internationally for an event, with destinations across the USA, Europe, and the rest of Asia featuring equally in their consideration.
Concert-led travel boosts local economies and tourism dispersion. While concerts and festivals may be the anchor, their impact extends far beyond the venue.
The report says that more than half of Gen Z travellers prefer staying close to event locations, which often become starting points for deeper exploration. More than half of them also extend their trip, spending time and money in local cafés, nightlife, cultural spaces, gigs, and neighbourhoods, supporting local businesses and communities. This effect is amplified by social travel patterns, with 70 per cent of them attending concerts with friends or groups.
The report says that their spending patterns also reflect the importance of these experiences. Six in ten young travellers are willing to allocate 21–40 per cent of their monthly income to music-led travel and experiences, with one in ten willing to spend up to half their monthly income. On average, Gen Z spent Rs 51,000 on their most recent event-led trip.
The Airbnb report observes that concert tourism is also a significant avenue for dispersing tourism, with 76 per cent of respondents saying they had visited a city for the first time because of a concert or music festival, highlighting how live events are introducing young Indians to new cities, neighbourhoods, and cultural districts.
“Growing interest in music concerts and festivals has paved the way for a new kind of traveller – someone who sees music as a gateway to discovering new destinations. We have seen how concert tourism is opening up entire neighbourhoods and communities to young travellers, and the meaningful impact this creates. This emerging form of exploration is reshaping traveller behaviour, driving a rising demand for stays that allow groups to spend time together, gather comfortably, and create memorable shared experiences, which is perfectly aligned with what Airbnb offers,” remarked Amanpreet Singh Bajaj, Airbnb’s Country Head for India and Southeast Asia.
The study says that concert tourism has also become a deliberate lifestyle choice. What was once an occasional indulgence is now a planned part of young India’s lifestyle. Concert-led trips are being budgeted for, planned in advance, and designed to maximise both experience and exploration.
Large-format festivals like Lollapalooza India illustrate this shift, with tens of thousands of fans travelling to Mumbai for previous editions. Many attendees say the festival’s atmosphere keeps them coming back and have expressed their intent to return, signalling how music-led travel is fast becoming a mainstream cultural behaviour.
