Diwali gift for flyers! Airfares drop by 20-25% YoY over low global crude prices; Check fares, routes, other details
Average airfares on several domestic routes have declined by nearly 20 to 25 per cent in this Diwali season compared to a year ago, according to a study.
The reasons for the drop in airfares are the rising capacity of airlines and the latest fall in oil prices, according to a PTI report citing an analysis by travel portal Ixigo.
The 20 to 25 per cent change in airfares is for a one-way average fare on a 30 days advanced purchase date (APD) basis, which is the number of days before departure the ticket is bought to get the best fare.
The analysis has considered the Diwali season for 2023 and 2024. In 2023, dates from November 10 to 16 are taken into account, and for this year, a period from October 28 to November 3 is taken into account.
“Last year, airfares around Diwali had surged due to limited capacity, primarily driven by the suspension of Go First airline. However, this year we’ve seen some relief as additional capacity has been added since then, leading to a 20-25 per cent YoY (year-on-year) dip in average airfares across key routes for the last week of October,” Ixigo Group CEO Aloke Bajpai told PTI.
New airfares
Flights from Bengaluru to Kolkata have recorded a maximum drop in airfares, to ₹6,319 from ₹10,195, a 38 per cent decline from the previous year, the report said.
The airfares from Chennai to Kolkata route have decreased by 36 per cent, to ₹5,604 from ₹8,725.
Airfares for the Mumbai to Delhi route have dropped 34 per cent to ₹5,762 from ₹8,788. Even the Delhi to Udaipur route has reported a 34 per cent drop in airfares to ₹7,469 from ₹11,296.
Several other routes such as Delhi to Kolkata, Hyderabad to Delhi and Delhi to Srinagar have recorded a 32 per cent decline in airfares.
Oil prices have declined by 15 per cent this year, which may contribute to this trend by providing travellers with more affordable options during this festive season, according to Bajpai.
However, there has been a hike in certain routes too. The airfares rose to 34 per cent on the Ahmedabad-Delhi route to ₹8,758 from ₹6,533.
Meanwhile, the Mumbai to Dehradun route has recorded a rise of 33 per cent to ₹15,527 from ₹11,710, according to the report.
