Diwali travel costs spike as airfares rise 52% on weak rupee, capacity cut

Airfares for Diwali week 2025 are up to 52 per cent higher year-on-year, with rupee weakness raising costs and aircraft shortages cutting flight capacity across routes

Average economy airfares on major routes across the country for Diwali week have risen by as much as 52 per cent from last year, driven by a weaker rupee and shrinking network capacity amid aircraft shortages. 

According to Ixigo data, economy-class fares on the Mumbai-Patna route for the Diwali week travel this year (October 19-25) are averaging about ₹14,540, compared with ₹9,584 last year — a 52 per cent increase. Bengaluru-Lucknow fares are at around ₹9,899, against ₹6,720 a year ago, an increase of 47 per cent. These fares are for tickets purchased 50-60 days in advance.  Diwali fell on October 31 in 2024; this year it would be on October 20. 

Ixigo Group CEO Aloke Bajpai said: “This festival season, advance airfares for major metros are up 20–25 per cent from last year, driven by strong demand. Travellers are booking earlier, with October reservations already more than double last year’s levels in Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, and Chennai.” 

This Diwali, fewer flights will take to the skies than last year. Aviation analytics firm Cirium estimates Indian carriers will operate 22,709 domestic flights per week in October 2025, down from 23,437 a year ago — a 3.1 per cent decline. That compares with a 13.5 per cent year-on-year increase in October 2024. 

Air India, the main airline to scale back services, is undertaking a $400 million retrofit programme across 26 Boeing 787-8s, 13 Boeing 777-300ERs, and 27 Airbus A320neos — a project that has constrained capacity and led to route cuts. 

According to Cirium, IndiGo — India’s largest carrier — is scheduled to run 13,628 domestic flights per week in October 2025, only 1.4 per cent more than a year earlier. 

Ameya Joshi, aviation researcher and founder of the blog Network Thoughts, said fares on some routes during Diwali week were significantly higher than last year, reflecting the demand-supply gap. Even within the week, fares vary by day. “The fare for Diwali day and the day before is quite high, but prices are comparatively low on the other days that week,” he said. 

He pointed out that traffic is often unidirectional, prompting airlines to recover the cost of both legs during peak periods, which further pushes fares up. 

“Airlines are also under pressure from a weaker rupee and aviation turbine fuel (ATF) prices, which remain at last year’s levels. Since a large share of airline costs are dollar-denominated, any strengthening of the dollar pushes expenses up. On high-demand days, higher fares help recover these costs, though this comes at the expense of passengers.”

 

Indian carriers are particularly vulnerable to high ATF prices, which make up 30-45 per cent of their operating costs — well above the global average due to steep state taxes. With aircraft leases and maintenance also dollar-denominated, any rise in the dollar further drives up expenses.

 

The Indian rupee fell to a record low of 88 against the US dollar on Friday amid concerns that punitive US tariffs could slow growth and weigh on portfolio inflows. The currency had stood at 88.04 on Wednesday, compared with 83.95 a year earlier.