Soaring domestic and international airfares make travellers rethink year-end holidays

For Mumbai-based Soumi Pal, flying her parents down from Kolkata for their annual visit has become an expensive affair this year. She typically pays ₹30,000 for their combined return airfares, but this year, tickets are costing upwards of ₹20,000 per person. She has scrapped the flight journey and worked out an elaborate train itinerary instead.

Her parents will travel from Kolkata to Varanasi by overnight train, while she will join them from Mumbai. The three will spend two days holidaying in Varanasi before returning together to Mumbai by first-class AC train.

“Even with the holiday thrown in, I am paying considerably less for the train journeys than what I would have spent just flying them to Mumbai and back,” she said.

Like Pal, many travellers are reworking their plans this year, whether to visit family during the festive break or take a holiday in December, as airfares soar. According to data from Yatra Online, domestic airfares are currently 30-40% higher than a year ago. Rising aviation fuel prices amid the West Asia war have been a key driver of the increases, compounded by the rupee's consistent depreciation over the past year.

“The rupee crossed 90 to the dollar in early December last year, went past 93 in March and has been past 94 since. Airlines pay for fuel, aircraft leases and maintenance in dollars, so a weaker rupee feeds straight into the ticket,” said Prashant Daroch, founder of Atravelq, a travel company offering personalized international holidays.

Bharatt Malik, executive vice-president, consumer business, Yatra Online, said that several domestic airlines had reduced flight frequencies on certain routes to contain costs. The resulting capacity reductions contributed to higher fares. The combination of expensive fuel, fewer flights and a depreciating rupee has made the December holiday season particularly costly.

Fuel and fares

Aviation turbine fuel (ATF), which ordinarily accounts for around 35-40% of an airline's operating expenses, has become considerably more expensive amid the West Asia war. After repeated hikes in ATF prices, the Federation of Indian Airlines estimates that fuel now accounts for 55-60% of operating costs. Airlines have repeatedly revised fuel surcharges since April as a result.

The impact is being felt across domestic routes.

“The increase has been broadly similar across busy metro routes and those connecting cities such as Kolkata, Lucknow, Ahmedabad and Pune. Fares to leisure destinations such as Goa, Kerala and Rajasthan have also risen in line with the broader trend, with sharper spikes expected around peak travel dates during Christmas and New Year,” said Malik.

For example, direct return flights from Delhi to Goa for the second half of December are selling at around ₹25,000 per person, compared with ₹15,000-20,000 last year, an increase of up to 67%. Other popular winter destinations, including Kerala and Rajasthan, are also witnessing higher fares. For larger families, the difference can quickly run into tens of thousands of rupees and squeeze holiday budgets. A family of four flying from Delhi to Goa would spend roughly ₹1 lakh on return tickets alone, against ₹60,000 last year.

Higher operating costs are only part of the problem. Airlines cut flight frequencies on several routes earlier this year to manage expenses, and capacity has yet to fully recover.

“Airlines are gradually restoring frequencies reduced earlier this year, but limited seat availability continues to push up fares,” said Malik.

International squeeze

International travellers are facing an even sharper increase. Besides higher fuel surcharges and reduced flight capacity, disruptions at West Asia transit hubs have affected connections to Europe and the US.

Amar Kedia, founder of TravelBluez, a boutique travel agency that offers luxury packages, said airfares to European destinations, including Germany, Austria, the Netherlands and the Czech Republic, have risen 60-70%.

“The corollary is that demand from these routes is shifting towards Southeast Asian destinations, pushing up airfares and hotel tariffs there as well.”

Daroch added that, with West Asia disrupted by the war and airspace closures, much of the traffic that would have gone to Dubai or onward to Europe had swung to Southeast Asia.

“Delhi-Bangkok return fares are currently ₹28,000-48,000 for December, compared with around ₹25,300 last Christmas. Delhi-Ho Chi Minh City returns have increased from ₹43,800 to ₹55,000-90,000, with the highest airfares for connecting flights during peak dates,” he said.

For Bengaluru-based Devashish Sharma, 28, the cost of flying to Thailand has nearly tripled compared with his last trip. He paid ₹19,000 for non-stop return flights from Bengaluru last year during the off-season. This December, even flights involving stopovers are costing upwards of ₹55,000.

“I was budgeting for ₹25,000-35,000 given it is peak season, but the fares are actually double,” he said. “I have shelved my December holiday plans looking at the airfare. I will travel in the off-shoulder season again when the fares are lower at around ₹35,000.”

The soaring airfares may also change his travel habits beyond this holiday season.

“I typically plan two international holidays annually, but I may reduce that to one and prioritize shoulder season travel until airfares rationalize.”

A depreciating rupee makes overseas holidays costlier in two ways. First, travellers have to shell out more in rupee terms for local expenses such as food, transport, sightseeing and activities. Second, international tour packages are often contracted in dollars or euros, while hotel tariffs in many destinations are also denominated in foreign currencies. As a result, even if prices remain unchanged in local currency, travellers end up paying more in rupees.

Holidays get a rethink

With airfares climbing, being flexible about where and when to travel could make a substantial difference to holiday budgets.

Pune-based Rahul Dokania and his wife Nidhi had their sights set on Bali, but return airfares of around ₹60,000 per person, against their budget of ₹30,000-35,000 each, prompted a change of plans. The couple chose Kerala instead, booking Pune-Kochi return tickets for ₹30,000 combined. The switch saved them ₹90,000 on flights alone.

“The real difference is on airfare as hotels in India are similarly priced as many Southeast Asian countries,” said Dokania.

For travellers unwilling to change destinations, shifting travel dates could offer similar relief. Daroch's data shows Delhi-Bangkok return fares at ₹28,000-32,000 in early December, rising to ₹38,000-48,000 during Christmas week. Travelling a fortnight earlier could therefore save a couple as much as ₹32,000 on flights.

Malik advises booking early and avoiding departures immediately before Christmas and New Year. Destinations within driving distance of major cities are another option worth exploring, especially for families and groups that can split fuel and toll expenses.

However, a road trip isn't necessarily cheaper. Travellers should compare the total cost of driving with train and flight fares, factoring in tolls, parking, travel time and any additional overnight stays required.

If fuel prices remain elevated and the rupee stays under pressure, travellers may have to contend with higher fares for some time, according to Daroch. For those with fixed travel dates, particularly families travelling during school holidays, the higher cost of flying could mean fewer trips or a smaller holiday budget.