As the nation gears up for the upcoming Independence Day celebrations, domestic airfares are once again soaring, especially on popular leisure travel and religious tourism routes.
The calm that had settled over airfares during the lean travel season has been replaced by a surge in prices, casting a shadow over the much-awaited long weekend.
With this year’s August 15 falling conveniently on a Tuesday, the possibility of an extended four-day getaway from August 11 (Friday) has ignited a rush in travel plans. The routes connecting major cities like Mumbai and Delhi to popular destinations such as Goa, Kochi, Agra, Madurai, Tirupati, and Shirdi are experiencing stratospheric price hikes between August 11 and 15.
Exciting opportunities to take a long vacation have caused prices to soar, especially on routes that cater to tourists and devotees. While some areas, like tranquil Srinagar, have been able to keep their prices low, the situation is still uncertain as the weekend approaches.
A prime example is the Mumbai-Srinagar route, where the airfare rollercoaster took passengers on a ride from Rs 9,500 to Rs 12,500 within a single day. An interesting factor contributing to this turbulence could be the recent addition of flights to Srinagar by airlines over the past two months.
Comparative analysis indicates that on several other key routes such as Mumbai-Ranchi, Delhi-Kolkata, and the ever-busy Mumbai-Delhi route, the current fares are below the levels witnessed last year when government-imposed airfare caps were in effect.
Religious tourism has emerged as a major magnet for this Independence Day weekend, pulling pilgrims and wanderers alike. The cost of the cheapest return fares from Mumbai and Delhi to Tirupati stand at Rs 18,000 and Rs 25,000 respectively. Industry insiders clarify that these figures represent 48-hour advance purchase fares, naturally setting the bar high. Travelers who secured their bookings back in June and July, however, enjoyed a price advantage of 20-25 percent.
Rikant Pittie, the visionary behind the popular online travel portal EaseMyTrip, noted that for August 15 journeys, the average fares demonstrated a reassuring 20 percent drop from the 2019 levels. A more in-depth comparison between 2022 and 2023 revealed an even more significant decrease of around 35 percent.
Diverse factors, such as changing demand, intensifying competition, and the ever varying price of fuel, are blamed for these fluctuations. However, Yatra, a well-known travel agency, reported a noticeable year-over-year increase of 10-12 percent in airfares, suggesting a different perspective.
The buzz around this year’s Independence Day fervor extends beyond just airfares. Yatra has witnessed an impressive surge of over 30 percent in both bookings and website traffic, accompanied by a notable upswing in average room rates per night, which have surged from Rs 7,300 to Rs 8,500. The spokesperson of the company pointed out that cities like Delhi, Mumbai, and Bengaluru have stood out as the frontrunners in the booking race.
In a comparative analysis with the pre-pandemic year of 2019, a Cleartrip spokesperson noted, “An average increase of 25 percent in hotel tariffs for 4-star properties and a 30 percent rise for 5-star properties is evident.”
Among the most popular destinations based on online searches are Goa, Pondicherry, New Delhi and NCR, Mumbai, and Lonavala, as revealed by Agoda, a reputable online travel agency. As the nation readies itself to mark another year of independence, the travel landscape is proving to be as vibrant and dynamic as ever.
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