Travel demand remains high in the final phase of Maha Kumbh as airfare doubles

Maha Kumbh Mela 2025

Devotees are rushing to the Maha Kumbh on February 26, which marks the final day of the world's biggest religious congregation and the last of the special 'snan' or holy dip on the auspicious day of Maha Shivratri. The six-week-long Maha Kumbh is culminating with two-fold rise in travel bookings as well as airfares in the last week of the spiritual gathering as compared to the previous week.

Flights from Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Mumbai and New Delhi have seen a 100 percent spike in airfare between February 15-24 compared to the February 10-14 week, data shared by Cleartrip has shown.

Airfare from Ahmedabad to Prayagraj stood at Rs 15,280 for a one-way trip when tickets were booked two-seven days in advance, which increased to Rs 25,600 when tickets were booked a day in advance, the most expensive among the top destinations.

Other expensive routes include Bengaluru, with fare at Rs 23,330, Jaipur at Rs 19,540 and Kolkata at Rs 17,430, when tickets were booked one day in advance.

Airfares from Bhubaneswar, Chennai and Guwahati were priced at Rs 13,430, 15,650 and 13,830, respectively when tickets were booked two to seven days in advance for Prayagraj. Fares from Hyderabad and Mangaluru were 14,060 and 14,230, respectively when booked a day in advance.

"Airfares for bookings made seven days in advance ranged between Rs 17,000 and 25,000. The closer proximity to the travel date and increased demand during the final phase of the Kumbh led to higher pricing," noted Bharatt Malik, Senior VP- Air and Hotel Business, Yatra Online.

Cleartrip data showed that when tickets to Prayagraj were booked 8-14 days in advance for travel between February 15-24, the airfare was lower versus spot booking from destinations like Ahmedabad, at Rs 4,500 and from Bengaluru at Rs 10,510 for a one-way trip.

From other routes like Chandigarh, Chennai, Goa, Jammu, Kolkata tickets were cheaper when booked in advance at Rs 3,400, Rs 6,030, Rs 3,800, Rs 3,860, and Rs 9,650 respectively.

However, airfare from Hyderabad to Prayagraj was expensive when booked in advance at Rs 17,590 versus spot booking which was around Rs 14,000.

Airfare was cheaper when booked 15-21 days in advance for travel during February 15-24, Cleartrip data showed.

Airfares from Bengaluru, Indore, Mumbai, Pune and Trivandrum were priced at Rs 6,830, Rs 3,040, Rs 5,700, Rs 4,070, and Rs 4,690 respectively.

Among the top source markets for travel to Prayagraj, New Delhi accounted for 30 percent of total bookings, followed by Mumbai at 25 percent and Bengaluru at 15 percent. The top three markets accounted for 70 percent of the total bookings. Other source cities like Hyderabad, Kolkata and Ahmedabad accounted for 13 percent, four percent and three percent respectively of the total flight bookings to Prayagraj.

Demand from destinations like Mumbai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad doubled last week, compared to a week ago period of February 10-14. In comparison to the initial week of the Maha Kumbh, demand is up two times from Mumbai and Bengaluru and seven times from Hyderabad in the last week.

"The travel industry experienced substantial growth during Maha Kumbh 2025, with booking volumes increasing by 25-40 percent compared to the pre-Kumbh period. This surge was not limited to flights alone but extended across all travel platforms, including buses, trains, and accommodations. Additionally, travel portals saw a significant increase in user traffic as people actively searched for travel options and packages," Malik said.

According to travel-tech platform Ixigo, travel demand for Maha Kumbh registered unprecedented growth across all transportation modes to Prayagraj.

Flight bookings surged 4-1/2 times on-year, with 61 percent growth in bookings to nearby airports, train bookings through ConfirmTkt and Ixigo Trains increased 3.74 times. Solo travellers comprised of 56 percent of bookings. Bus bookings through AbhiBus saw a 20-times surge, with 26 percent of bookings by young travellers aged 20-25.

"The demand for Mahakumbh has been exceptionally high and this includes both metro and regional source markets, led by Bengaluru, Ahmedabad, Pune, Delhi. Our search volumes saw a surge of over 31 times versus 2019. Consumer spending appetite for Mahakumbh is noteworthy and our premium tents and services saw overwhelming demand," said SD Nandakumar, President & Country Head - Holidays & Corporate Tours - SOTC Travel.

Private jet booking firm JetSetGo received three bookings for charter flights including one from Bengaluru and two from Delhi.

Premium tent stay during Maha Kumbh was priced as much as Rs 1 lakh per night, which were fully-booked on important dates. Options like IRCTC's Mahakumbh Gram and the UPSTDC Tent Colony offered a variety of rooms, from basic to deluxe, with prices ranging from Rs 1,500 to Rs 35,000 per night.

Luxury hotels in the area were charging between Rs 11,000 to Rs 30,000 per night, with some premium establishments going up to Rs 40,000.

Many airlines commenced new flights to Prayagraj, with SpiceJet launching Maha Kumbh 2025 special flights from Delhi, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Bengaluru, Guwahati, Chennai, Kolkata, and Hyderabad.