| Main national destinations | Increase in flight bookings for travel from August 14 to August 20 and August 24 to August 26, 2024 (year-on-year) |
| Dehradun | 69% |
| New Delhi | 60% |
| Calcutta | 58% |
| Bangalore | 33% |
| Hyderabad | 29% |
| Bombay | 20% |
| Goa | 18% |
Source: Ixigo
“With the arrival of the August long weekends, flight bookings have seen a 40-50% year-over-year increase for travel during the last two weeks of the month. National leisure destinations“Tourist destinations, particularly spiritual places like Varanasi and Amritsar, have gained popularity with flight bookings up 84% and 81% respectively,” Rajnish Kumar, co-CEO of Ixigo group, told CNBC-TV18.
LONG WEEKEND AUGUST 2024
| Main national destinations | Average one-way fare for non-stop flights departing between August 19 and August 31, 2024 *APD – 30 days | Increase/decrease (year-on-year) |
| Delhi-Bengaluru | ₹5437 | ⇧ 0.3% |
| Bengaluru-Mumbai | ₹3969 | ⇧ 38% |
| Bangalore-Hyderabad | ₹3063 | ⇧ 17% |
| From Bangalore to Kochi | ₹3446 | ⇧ 46% |
| Mumbai-Kochi | ₹4511 | ⇧ 6% |
| Mumbai-Hyderabad | ₹3508 | ⇧ 10% |
| Delhi-Pune | ₹5257 | ⇧ 23% |
| Delhi-Leh | ₹4929 | ⇧ 9% |
| Delhi-Goa | ₹6641 | ⇧ 37% |
| From Bombay to Varanasi | ₹5981 | ⇧ 8% |
| Bombay-Goa | ₹4452 | ⇧ 51% |
| Mumbai-Dehradun | ₹7196 | ⇩ 8% |
| Delhi-Mumbai | ₹4164 | ⇩ 19% |
| Delhi-Hyderabad | ₹5015 | ⇩ 2% |
| Delhi-Srinagar | ₹4755 | ⇩ 4% |
| Delhi-Ahmedabad | ₹2982 | ⇩ 3% |
| Kolkata-Bengaluru | ₹5311 | ⇩ 24% |
*Source: Ixigo
Another booking portal, EaseMyTrip, confirmed the trend. “Airfares have seen a year-on-year increase, with some key routes seeing hikes of up to 30%. Travellers who book tickets 7-15 days in advance usually get lower prices. But the Diwali period will attract more price gouging. Between October 30 and November 5, one-way fares on certain routes have gone up by up to Rs 30,000, even for bookings made three months in advance. Routes such as Mumbai-Patna, Bengaluru-Varanasi and Bengaluru-Patna are among the most expensive, highlighting the intense demand during this festive season,” Rikant Pittie, co-founder, EaseMyTrip, told CNBC-TV18.
Rising airfares are not unusual for Diwali. However, the surge in demand has come earlier than in previous years. This year, Diwali falls on November 1st, almost three months from now.
| Routes | Average one-way fare for non-stop economy class flights departing between October 30 and November 5, 2024 (₹) APD – 90 days | Increase/decrease |
| Mumbai-Bengaluru | ₹4631 | ⇧ 2% |
| Delhi-Hyderabad | ₹6219 | ⇧ 16% |
| Delhi-Ahmedabad | ₹4930 | ⇧ 19% |
| Calcutta-Delhi | ₹6839 | ⇧ 1% |
| From Mumbai to Chennai | ₹5083 | ⇧ 16% |
| Delhi-Chennai | ₹7618 | ⇧ 25% |
| Mumbai-Hyderabad | ₹5162 | ⇧ 21% |
| Delhi-Goa | ₹5999 | ⇧ 19% |
| Bombay-Jaipur | ₹6458 | ⇧ 16% |
| Bombay-Goa | ₹3812 | ⇧ 16% |
| Delhi-Shimla | ₹2849 | ⇧ 1% |
| Delhi-Jammu | ₹4846 | ⇧ 13% |
| Delhi-Cochin | ₹8666 | ⇧ 16% |
| Bengaluru-Kolkata | ₹7527 | ⇩ 17% |
| Delhi-Pune | ₹5964 | ⇩ 1% |
| Delhi-Mumbai | ₹5658 | ⇩ 4% |
| Delhi-Bengaluru | ₹7206 | ⇩ 3% |
| Mumbai-Ahmedabad | ₹2508 | ⇩ 27% |
| Delhi-Srinagar | ₹6395 | ⇩ 4% |
| Bangalore-Hyderabad | ₹3383 | ⇩ 23% |
| From Bangalore to Pune | ₹4055 | ⇩ 8% |
| Bombay-Jammu | ₹7826 | ⇩ 21% |
| Delhi-Dehradun | ₹4003 | ⇩ 8% |
| Mumbai-Udaipur | ₹4890 | ⇩ 25% |
Source: Ixigo
Demand for air tickets has increased on both domestic and international routes. Tickets from Indian cities to According to tour operator Thomas Cook, Vietnam, Azerbaijan and Georgia have seen an increase of between 6% and 26%. Demand for tickets has remained strong despite the rise in airfare prices.
““Indians are showing increasing interest in short breaks of two to four days to their favourite and nearest domestic destinations. Multiple travel opportunities like the August long weekend and the upcoming festive season like Diwali are demonstrating a strong desire to travel to domestic locations like Shimla, Leh-Ladakh, Goa, Andamans, Coorg and Jaipur,” said Indiver Rastogi, President & Group Head, Global Business Travel, Thomas Cook (India) and SOTC Travel.
| Top 5 international destinations booked in August |
| Bangkok |
| Kuwait |
| Kathmandu |
| Singapore |
| Bali |
| Dubai |
Source: Thomas Cook
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