Good news for vacationers, airlines cut domestic, international fares

With summer vacations round the corner, airlines are rolling out attractive offers on both domestic and international flights.

A number of airlines like AirAsia, Malindo Air and IndiGo are offering discounts on domestic and international flights from Bengaluru and other cities. While Malindo Air is offering tickets starting at Rs 9,000 for a round trip to Indonesia, the Malaysian low-cost airline Air Asia is offering 50% off on Bengaluru-Kuala Lumpur tickets.

A staffer from outbound tour operator Thomas Cook India told DH, “The demand for flights to Singapore and Indonesia particularly has increased owing to cheap fares and attractive tour packages offered by a few international travel agents. The fares are slashed by more than 25%. Europe, Bali and Andaman Islands are the other places that are preferred by city tourists this summer.”

For citizens travelling within India, Indigo has announced fares starting at Rs 899 and Vistara is offering domestic fares at Rs 999 all-inclusive on select routes. Tour operators and air ticketing agents said that with reduced prices, people who were previously opting for buses are now preferring air.

Branch manager, Trinity Air Travels and Tours, Wilson Tom said the trend of tourists from south touring north India in summer has declined. He added, "Air tickets are affordable and huge deals are available now on booking sites as well."

Vikram Balu, an IT professional from Rajajinagar said he will tour Kuala Lumpur in the first week of April with his family. "We managed to book tickets online at around Rs 9,000 each (one-way by AirAsia) which is quite reasonable," he said. 

In Karnataka, Mysuru and Kodagu are most preferred destinations according to tour operators and air ticketing agents. Across the North, places like Himachal Pradesh, Kashmir and Mussorie are in demand.

Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation (KSTDC) officials said they receive peak bookings from April till May particularly to places like Ooty, Madikeri and Kodaikanal.