Onam, a harvest festival celebrated with great pomp and glory in Kerala is just a month away. However, Malayalis in Bengaluru have already started making their travel bookings. Skyrocketing luxury bus fares from Bengaluru to Kerala, during Onam, has prompted Malayalis to opt for air travel instead. Here’s more to it.
Bengaluru-Kochi Flight Tickets During Onam Cheaper Than Bus Fares
As per a report by The New Indian Express, ahead of Onam— on September 18— Malayalis working in the IT hub of Bengaluru are making their travel plans and bookings to Kerala already. With train tickets, especially night trains already fully booked, it leaves them with two options— bus or air travel. And while you may assume the more budget-friendly of the two would be bus travel, this is not the case.
Ticket prices for AC luxury buses from Bengaluru on September 12 (Thursday), the eve of Onam to Kochi, the following morning, range from ₹2500 to ₹5200. Ticket booking apps like MakeMyTrip reveal to The New Indian Express that these prices will rise on September 13. So, in this case, flight tickets seem like the cheaper option.
One can book advance flight tickets from Bengaluru to Kochi starting from ₹2500 instead of travelling by road with a ₹3000 bus ticket. Flights like IndiGo are offering tickets from ₹2515 for around a one-hour flight on September 12. Other airlines like Alliance Air and Air India Express advance air tickets for September 12 are ₹3195 and ₹3298 respectively.
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KSRTC Non-AC Bus Tickets Another Option Amid Fully Booked Trains
Biji Eapen, National President, of the IATA Agents Association of India (IAAI) shared further details of this with TNIE. He stated that flight charges are lower when compared to AC luxury buses during the Onam holidays. But there’s a caveat, they need to be booked now as these prices may go up with each passing day.
For those with tight finances, there are KSRTC non-AC Super Deluxe buses available from Bengaluru to Kerala from September 9 to September 20. However, these additional services come with flexible charges and End-to-End fare system is applicable.
With no tickets left on night trains from Bengaluru to Kochi with waiting lists leading up to “235”, air and bus travel remain the only options. At this point in time, air travel could be the cheaper one for your Onam holiday.
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