Wego reports a strong increase in airfare searches for tournament host cities across India and Sri Lanka, indicating that travel demand associated with the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 is picking up steam. As cricket fans prepare for the tournament, which is set for February 7–March 8, interest in visiting match locations peaked in late 2025 and has continued to be high into early 2026, according to data released by the online travel marketplace.

According to Wego, the cities hosting the tournament had a notable increase in searches and clicks in January and February 2026, accounting for roughly 45–55 per cent of all platform activity during that time. The pattern highlights the increasing contribution of event-driven travel to transient spikes in demand in the travel and hotel industries.

Searches for hotels and direct flights increased significantly in response to the India-Pakistan conflict in Colombo, indicating increased interest in cross-border travel. A combination of leisure travel and sports tourism was shown by the large number of tourists who chose to prolong their match trips into three-day weekend getaways.

India’s promotion to the Super 8 stage is anticipated to increase demand for travel and lodging in the host cities where India will compete. As game dates approach, travel websites expect booking enthusiasm to continue, especially for high-profile matches.

Chennai, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, and Colombo have also had high search volumes, but Delhi and Mumbai have emerged as the main demand generators among the major host cities. The spike in interest towards the end of 2025 indicates that supporters started organising their trips well in advance of games at the eight host locations, which include three in Sri Lanka and five in India.

Travel intent is still high as supporters follow India’s campaign, according to Bernard Corraya, general manager of Wego India. He pointed out that while internal metro routes continue to receive high search volumes, Colombo has attracted special attention for cross-border travel. In order to achieve competitive pricing when match dates draw near, he continued, consumers are increasingly checking rates across airlines and online travel companies.

According to industry watchers, the development demonstrates how sports tourism is increasingly influencing patterns of travel demand. Large-scale competitions are increasingly leading to multi-city itineraries, surges in last-minute reservations, and high airfare and lodging costs.

The T20 World Cup 2026 is anticipated to give the aviation and hospitality industries in India and Sri Lanka a quantifiable boost, especially in host cities with packed match schedules, since international athletic events serve as accelerators for visitor flows.