Goa: Airfares soar as King Momo’s reign begins
Newton Sequeira | TNN | Updated: Mar 2, 2019, 06:35 IST
Representative imagePANAJI: Last minute plans to celebrate carnival in Goa may come a cropper with flight fares heading for the ceiling from this weekend. Tickets to Goa cost nearly three times more than the regular fare, making it cheaper to fly to Kerala and other places, shows data from major flight aggregators.
Flight tickets from Mumbai to Goa on March 2 were priced between 7,000 to Rs 17,000 with return fares increasing to twice this amount. The same route a fortnight later costs just Rs 6,000 for a round trip. Goa will celebrate carnival, a one-of-its-kind festival in the country, which is filled with music, fun, drink and dance from Saturday to March 5.
Return airfare to Delhi currently way cheaper than Mumbai-Goa round trip
“I spoke to a couple of hoteliers a few days ago and they said that hotel bookings had increased for Sunburn Klassique last weekend, but the bookings are much more for carnival,” president travel and tourism association of Goa (TTAG) Savio Messias.
Interestingly, the fare for a round trip between Delhi and Goa was priced at Rs 14,000, much cheaper compared to the rates for the Mumbai-Goa fare. “Prices are decided based on demand for tickets on a particular route,” a representative with a full-service airline said.
Fares for the weekend between Mumbai and Cochin also stood at Rs 14,000, thus making it cheaper to travel to Cochin for a short holiday.
Compared to an average fare of Rs 6,500 for a round trip between Bengaluru and Goa, the fare between the two locations for the Carnival season is Rs 13,500.
From March 5 onwards, ticket prices show a sharp drop.
Tourists are expected to throng Goa for the underway wine festival hosted by GTDC and the carnival celebrations. However, tourism stakeholders rue the lack of sufficient promotion outside the state about the wine festival. Hoteliers recommended that such festivals should be promoted at least two months in advance.
“Domestic tourists come for the party and the dances. This period is popular with the party crowd,” Messias said.
Flight tickets from Mumbai to Goa on March 2 were priced between 7,000 to Rs 17,000 with return fares increasing to twice this amount. The same route a fortnight later costs just Rs 6,000 for a round trip. Goa will celebrate carnival, a one-of-its-kind festival in the country, which is filled with music, fun, drink and dance from Saturday to March 5.
Return airfare to Delhi currently way cheaper than Mumbai-Goa round trip
“I spoke to a couple of hoteliers a few days ago and they said that hotel bookings had increased for Sunburn Klassique last weekend, but the bookings are much more for carnival,” president travel and tourism association of Goa (TTAG) Savio Messias.
Interestingly, the fare for a round trip between Delhi and Goa was priced at Rs 14,000, much cheaper compared to the rates for the Mumbai-Goa fare. “Prices are decided based on demand for tickets on a particular route,” a representative with a full-service airline said.
Fares for the weekend between Mumbai and Cochin also stood at Rs 14,000, thus making it cheaper to travel to Cochin for a short holiday.
Compared to an average fare of Rs 6,500 for a round trip between Bengaluru and Goa, the fare between the two locations for the Carnival season is Rs 13,500.
From March 5 onwards, ticket prices show a sharp drop.
Tourists are expected to throng Goa for the underway wine festival hosted by GTDC and the carnival celebrations. However, tourism stakeholders rue the lack of sufficient promotion outside the state about the wine festival. Hoteliers recommended that such festivals should be promoted at least two months in advance.
“Domestic tourists come for the party and the dances. This period is popular with the party crowd,” Messias said.
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