Cheap airfares elude tourist destinations

MUMBAI: All through Wednesday, one could book a cheap air ticket on quite a number of flights, including those departing during peak morning and evening hours. But such fares were hardly to be found on flights to certain tourist destinations, like Goa.

On the Mumbai-Goa route, flights that land around noon are the most preferred; on the return journey, early morning flights are the most in demand. But on Wednesday, there were no cheap fares for any of these. Attractive rates were to be found only on late-evening flights. The cheapest, all-inclusive fare (available till Wednesday evening) for a one-way Mumbai-Goa flight was around Rs 2,000 for a 6.35pm landing—not a preferred time if one needs to book into a hotel for a holiday. The next cheapest fare was Rs 3,500, for a 5pm landing.

Fares for direct flights landing in Goa around noon, which coincides with hotel check-in timings, started at Rs 5,000. This cannot be regarded as cheap, considering that it is a 30-day advance purchase fare. For the return journey (Goa-Mumbai), the fare for an early morning flight was Rs 5,700.

"There is hardly any inventory on offer on flights to or from Goa, especially during the weekend around Holi, which falls on March 17, a Monday,'' said Anoop Kanuga of Bathija Travels.

Only 5-10% of the market would respond to the cheap fares as they are valid only till mid-April, said Jay Bhatia, co-chairman, airline council, Travel Agents Association of India. "Domestic air travel peaks after that, during school and college vacations."

Rajesh Rateria of Cirrus Travels said 20-25% of passengers who have booked cheap tickets will cancel or reschedule flights. "Unless they are going to attend a wedding or a conference, the possibility of cancelling or rescheduling is high. The cancellation charge per ticket is about Rs 1,700."

Suraj Nair of Thomas Cook said the discounted fares were a strategic move to fill up inventory during the lean season. "With increasing competition in the Indian aviation sector, such tactical offers will play an even more significant role in the near future," he said.

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