India (Frommer's, 4th Edition) - Keith Bain [46]
From the U.K. Many reasonably priced direct flights are available, or you can take a connecting flight in continental Europe or the Middle East; the latter option hardly seems worth considering since the excellent Indian-owned Kingfisher Airlines began it’s daily services to Mumbai (with connections to Delhi), and Air India offers such affordable fares on this sector and on its nonstop flights between London and Delhi. Of course, you can also fly in with a host of other (pricier) airlines. Jet Airways has two daily nonstop flights between London and Mumbai and one a day to Delhi. Jet and Air India are both a lot more affordable than the other two airlines with nonstop flights: British Airways has two daily direct flights to both Delhi and Mumbai, daily flights to Bangalore, and occasional direct flights to Kolkata and Chennai; Virgin Atlantic operates nonstop flights to Mumbai and Delhi; and there are many more airlines that get you there with a change of planes in their respective hubs.
From Australia & New Zealand You can fly directly to India from Australia. From New Zealand you will more than likely be offered a flight package that incorporates more than one airline. The majority of touchdowns and changeovers are in Malaysia, Thailand, Hong Kong, and Singapore.
From South Africa South African Airways flies nonstop to Mumbai several times a week from Johannesburg. Or you can fly via Dubai to Delhi/Mumbai/Cochin on Emirates.
Note: Before you leave home, know what you can carry on and what you can’t. For the latest updates on items you are prohibited to bring in carry-on luggage, go to www.tsa.gov/travelers/airtravel.
FLYING FOR LESS: TIPS FOR GETTING THE BEST AIRFARE
* First, search the Internet for cheap fares. In the U.K., go to Travelsupermarket ( 0845/345-5708; www.travelsupermarket.com), a flight search engine that offers flight comparisons for the budget airlines whose seats often end up in bucket-shop sales. Other websites for booking airline tickets online include Cheapflights.com, SmarterTravel.com, Priceline.com, and Opodo (www.opodo.co.uk). Meta search sites (which find and then direct you to airline and hotel websites for booking) include Sidestep.com and Kayak.com—the latter includes fares for budget carriers like Jet Blue and Spirit as well as the major airlines. In addition, most airlines offer online-only fares that even their phone agents know nothing about.
* Consolidators, also known as bucket shops, are wholesale brokers in the airline-ticket game. Consolidators buy deeply discounted tickets (“distressed” inventories of unsold seats) from airlines and sell them to online ticket agencies, travel agents, tour operators, corporations, and, to a lesser degree, the general public. Consolidators advertise in Sunday newspaper travel sections (often in small ads with tiny type), both in the U.S. and the U.K. They can be great sources for cheap international tickets. On the down side, bucket shop tickets are often rigged with restrictions, such as stiff cancellation penalties (as high as 50%–75% of the ticket price). And keep in mind that most of what you see advertised is of limited availability. Several reliable consolidators are worldwide and available online. Flights.com has excellent fares worldwide, particularly to Europe. They also have “local” websites in 12 countries. Air Tickets Direct ( 888/858-8884; www.airticketsdirect.com) is based in Montreal and leverages the currently weak Canadian dollar for low fares; they also book trips to places that U.S. travel agents won’t touch, such as Cuba.
GETTING AROUND
You can research prices and deals on travel and hotels at reliable online travel companies based in India. Try www.makemytrip.com, www.yatra.com, www.cleartrip.com, www.tcindia.com, or www.travelmartindia.com.