Durga Puja travel alert for Kolkata flyers

Airfares to Kolkata are showing an unusual spike ahead of Durga Puja, with tickets for October 16 costing substantially more than fares for several other travel dates. An analysis of airfares captured on the morning of September 16 across 53 domestic routes connecting Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and Pune found that flights into Kolkata on October 16 were significantly more expensive than flights on several other dates.The analysis compared fares for six departure dates on each route, the same day, one day ahead, seven days ahead, 30 days ahead, 60 days ahead and 90 days ahead.Read more - New Zealand route won’t help third-country goods claim India FTA benefits: Here’s what changesKolkata flight fares rise sharply ahead of Durga PujaAs per a TOI report, the median fare across the seven routes into Kolkata was Rs 8,712 for the next day and Rs 8,259 for the following week. The same-day fare stood at Rs 9,140.However, the median fare for October 16 was Rs 14,117. This means flying to Kolkata on October 16 costs about 71% more than travelling the following week and 54% more than flying on the same day.The pattern is particularly unusual because airline fares typically rise as the departure date approaches and seats become limited.Across the 40 routes that do not involve Kolkata, the median fare for October 16 was Rs 6,271, making it the cheapest of the six readings.Why October 16 matters for Durga Puja travelOctober 16 is significant because it coincides with the beginning of Durga Puja this year. Most Bengali calendars place Maha Shashthi, the first day of Durga Puja, on October 16, although some calendars mark it on October 17. Vijaya Dashami falls on October 21.The 60-day comparison date, November 15, comes several weeks after the festival and ahead of the December holiday rush, providing a reference point for a more typical travel period.Kolkata is an outlier in October flight faresThe data suggests that October itself is not driving the increase in domestic airfares. When the 53 routes were grouped according to their destination city, Kolkata recorded a 65.3% increase in fares on October 16 compared with November 15.Hyderabad was next, with fares 1.9% higher. The other six cities recorded lower fares on October 16 than on November 15.Among the 40 routes that do not connect to Kolkata, the median fare was 5.6% lower on October 16 than on November 15.Of the 53 routes studied, 17 had higher fares on October 16 than on November 15. Nine recorded increases of more than 20%, with six of those nine routes being flights into Kolkata.Durga Puja and Navratri show different airfare patternsThe fare spike is not seen in the same way across other major festivals.Navratri runs from October 11 to October 20 in Gujarat, coinciding with the period when the 30-day fare reading was taken. Yet flights into Ahmedabad for October 16 were 20.9% cheaper than the November 15 comparison fare.Ahmedabad recorded the lowest October 16 fares among the eight cities studied.One possible explanation is the difference in travel patterns. Navratri and Garba celebrations are largely concentrated among people living in Gujarat, whereas Durga Puja attracts people from different parts of the country back to Kolkata during the same period.Chennai, Mumbai and Bengaluru see steepest fare increasesAmong the seven routes into Kolkata, Chennai recorded the biggest increase, with fares 94.9% higher on October 16 than on November 15.Mumbai followed with a 78.1% increase, while Bengaluru recorded a 76.5% rise. Hyderabad was up 65.3%.Pune saw a 26.2% increase, Delhi 22.2% and Ahmedabad 6%.Flying into Kolkata fromOctober 16November 15ExtraBengaluruRs 16.9KRs 9.6KRs 7.3KChennaiRs 15.5KRs 7.9KRs 7.6KMumbaiRs 15.2KRs 8.6KRs 6.6KPuneRs 14.1KRs 11.2KRs 2.9KHyderabadRs 13.0KRs 7.9KRs 5.1KDelhiRs 12.3KRs 10.1KRs 2.2KAhmedabadRs 11.2KRs 10.6KRs 0.6KIn absolute terms, the additional one-way fare was around Rs 7,600 from Chennai, Rs 7,300 from Bengaluru and Rs 6,600 from Mumbai. The median additional cost across the seven routes was about Rs 5,100.Number of flights does not fully explain Kolkata airfare surgeA possible explanation for higher fares could be limited flight capacity on some routes. However, the data does not show a consistent relationship between the number of daily flights and the fare increase.Ahmedabad has four flights a day to Kolkata and recorded the smallest increase among the seven routes. Bengaluru has 11 flights a day but recorded the third-highest increase. Pune has three daily flights and ranked fifth for the fare increase.Delhi, which has 21 flights a day, recorded the second-smallest increase.The comparison therefore does not show a clear pattern in which routes with fewer flights consistently have larger fare increases.Flights to Kolkata cost more than flights from KolkataThe strongest difference appears when the incoming and outgoing flights are compared.For every city pair with data in both directions, the flight into Kolkata showed a larger increase between October 16 and November 15 than the corresponding flight out of Kolkata.Mumbai-Kolkata fares were up 78%, while Kolkata-Mumbai fares were up 5%. Similarly, Bengaluru-Kolkata fares increased 76%, while Kolkata-Bengaluru fares were 22% lower than the November comparison.Across all six city pairs included in the two-way comparison, the median increase for flights heading into Kolkata was 46%. For flights leaving Kolkata, fares were 8% lower than the November 15 fares.The data therefore points to a sharp increase specifically in demand for travel into Kolkata around the Durga Puja period, rather than a general premium on flights associated with Kolkata.Flying to Kolkata for Durga Puja? What the data suggestsTravellers planning a Durga Puja trip may want to consider their dates carefully.The data shows that fares for flying into Kolkata on November 15 are roughly one-third lower than those for October 16. Travelling a few weeks after the festival could therefore save around Rs 5,000 per person each way, based on the median comparison.The return journey also shows a different pattern. Much of the additional cost is concentrated on flights into Kolkata, rather than flights leaving the city.Travellers may therefore benefit from checking the two legs separately instead of assuming that both sides of a return ticket will carry the same festival-related premium.For those who need to travel on or around October 16, the analysis also provides no evidence that waiting to book will lead to lower fares. However, the data is based on a single fare capture and does not predict how prices will move in the days ahead.How the flight fare data was collectedThe figures are based on advertised fares captured on Google Flights on the morning of September 16, 2026.The analysis covers 53 domestic routes between Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and Pune. Fares were recorded for six fixed departure dates.The figures represent median advertised fares rather than the prices passengers ultimately paid. Airfares can change quickly, and prices visible during a single search may not remain available.The October 16 and November 15 comparisons also reflect different booking windows. The comparison with the 40 routes not connected to Kolkata was used to account for the normal effect of booking distance on airfares.October 16 represents one departure date and should not be interpreted as a measure of fares throughout the entire Durga Puja week.Fare data for Kolkata-Chennai was unavailable in the September 16 capture. Chennai-Kolkata was available and recorded the steepest increase among the routes studied.The data also identifies airlines operating on each route but does not establish which airline offered a particular fare. It therefore cannot determine which carrier was responsible for setting the prices observed in the analysis.Inputs from TOI & agencies

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