Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
GETTING AROUND
Air
Airlines in South India
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India has a competitive domestic airline industry. Well-established players are Air India (which now includes Indian
Airlines), GoAir, IndiGo, Jet Airways and Spicejet.
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Airline seats can be booked cheaply over the internet, through travel agencies or by telephone. In fact, private operators
- in a bid to reduce operational costs - are slowly doing away with city offices in favour of online or phone bookings.
Several authorised agents, however, still continue to book tickets on their behalf. Domestic airlines set rupee fares for In-
dian citizens, while foreigners may be charged US dollar fares (usually payable in rupees).
»
Apart from airline sites, bookings can be made through reliable ticketing portals such as
Cleartrip
(
www.cleartrip.com
)
,
Make My Trip
(
www.makemytrip.com
) and
Yatra
(
www.yatra.com
).
»
Security norms require you to produce your ticket and your passport at the time of entering an airport. Airline counters
at airports can issue you a printed copy of your ticket (if you don't have one) for ?50.
»
At the time of writing, the following airlines were operating across various destinations in India. Keep in mind,
however, that the competitive nature of the aviation industry means that fares fluctuate dramatically. Holidays, festivals
and seasons also have a serious effect on ticket prices so check for the latest fares online.
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Security at airports is generally stringent. In smaller airports, all hold baggage must be x-rayed prior to check-in (major
airports now have in-line baggage screening facilities). Every item of cabin baggage needs a label, which must be
stamped as part of the security check (don't forget to collect tags at the check-in counter).
»
Keeping peak hour congestion in mind, the recommended check-in time for domestic flights is two hours before depar-
ture - the deadline is 45 minutes. The usual baggage allowance is 20kg (10kg for smaller aircraft) in economy class.
Air India
(
1800 1801407;
www.airindia.com
) India's national carrier operates many domestic and international
flights.
GoAir
(
1800 222111;
www.goair.in
) Reliable low-cost carrier servicing Goa and Kochi among other destinations.
IndiGo
( 099-10383838;
www.goindigo.in
) The best and trendiest of the lot, with plenty of flights across India and to
select overseas destinations. Has an untarnished reputation for being on time.
Jet Airways
(
1800 225522;
www.jetairways.com
)
Operates flights across India and to select overseas destinations.
JetKonnect
(
1800 223020;
www.jetkonnect.com
) Jet Airways' budget carrier flies to numerous destinations.
Spicejet
( 1800 1803333;
www.spicejet.com
) Destinations include Bengaluru (India), Colombo (Sri Lanka) and Kath-
mandu (Nepal).
