BENGALURU: Travel plans of Bengalureans have taken a major beating with airfares being hiked by 15 to 20 per cent in the next two months. Grounding of 50 planes across the country, due to various reasons, has resulted in the spike, observe those in the travel industry. Those travelling to and from Bengaluru are resorting to different tactics to ensure they do not burn a hole in their monthly budget.
Alan Joseph, a software engineer in Pune, had to compulsorily visit the city on March 26 for an interview. “The cost of a round trip came to nearly Rs 18,000, for day flights. Hence, I opted for the red eye (late night) ones and ended up spending Rs 6,500. Even this money has not been refunded by the company. If I had to spend Rs 18,000 it would have really affected my budget for a few months.”
Mokhshad Ali, who is in the shuttering business at Kannur adopted a different strategy. “The flight from Kannur to Guwahati came to Rs 12,000. So, I took a bus and spent around Rs 600 to reach Bengaluru. I am spending Rs 7,000 to reach Guwahati from here but still I have managed to save Rs 5,000, which is a big sum for me,” he said.
Rana Patel, who takes his school-going son and daughter to Surat for their annual vacation is now adopting a wait-and-watch policy. “Unless fares come down, the family vacation stands cancelled,” he said. There has been a rise in airfares due to the grounding of Boeing MAX 8 planes and cancellations of flights by Indigo and Jet Airways, said a statement by travel e-commerce website ixigo.
Aloke Bajpai, CEO and co-founder of ixigo, said, “With around 50 planes grounded, reduction in seat capacity has led to an increase in fares overnight. Average domestic airfares are higher by 15-20 per cent in March as compared to same time last year. Last minute airfares have been impacted the most, with more than 100 per cent increase on key routes.”