Maha Kumbh Impact: Airfares Stay Firm Amid Seasonally Weak Q4 Travel Demand

Airfares remained firm in the March quarter in otherwise a seasonally weak travel period, as airlines leveraged pricing power on one key destination where fares surged beyond Rs 50,000—a level that even flights to Asian international destinations typically do not reach during peak tourist seasons.

The surge was concentrated on flights to Prayagraj for the Maha Kumbh, a rare celestial event occurring after 144 years that drew more than 50 crore visitors. The event is set to conclude on Feb. 26, 2025.

That came even after the government directed airlines to add more flights to Prayagraj and lower fares as ticket prices had jumped about fivefold.

About 64.77 crore people visited Prayagraj since Jan. 13, PTI had reported on Wednesday citing Uttar Pradesh Government. That’s more than the population of any country except China and India.

As the event began, the airport had direct flights to 17 cities—up from eight last month—including new routes to Srinagar and Visakhapatnam. It had indirect links to 26 cities. Prayagraj airport, usually idle, handled 30,172 passengers and 226 flights in one week of the Maha Kumbh. Daily traffic crossed 5,000 for the first time.

This pricing trend, however, is not widespread, as ticket prices on most of India’s top-20 domestic routes have declined compared to the same period last year, according to data compiled by NDTV Profit.

Looking at forward bookings for April 25, 2025, seven routes are expected to see a decline of more than 10%, while five routes may experience price drops of 3% to 8%. Among the remaining eight routes, only one is projected to see a double-digit increase, while the others may see changes ranging from 1% to 9%.