Booking flights to India at the lowest price
To get the best price, book your flights 3 to 5 months in advance and use a VPN to check fares from different departure points. Avoid traveling during peak wedding season (November to February) and prioritize flying into major hubs like Delhi or Mumbai rather than smaller regional airports.
- Use aggregate search tools properly. Set up alerts on Google Flights for your specific dates. Toggle the 'Track Prices' button to receive emails when fares drop. Do not book immediately on the first search; check the price history chart to ensure you aren't paying a premium.
- Leverage regional flight hubs. If you are traveling to a specific city like Bengaluru or Chennai, check the price for a round trip to Delhi or Mumbai first. It is often cheaper to book a long-haul flight to a major hub and buy a separate domestic connection on an Indian carrier like IndiGo or Air India.
- Choose your travel window. Avoid the December holidays and the peak wedding/festival season. The cheapest months to fly to India are typically May, June, and September, despite the heat or humidity, as airlines lower prices to fill seats during the low season.
- Book direct from the airline. Once you find the lowest price on a third-party aggregator, go directly to the airline's website. If there is a delay or cancellation, you are much better off dealing directly with the carrier than with a third-party booking site's customer service department.
- Is it cheaper to buy a round trip or two one-way tickets?
- For international flights to India, a round-trip ticket is almost always significantly cheaper. Only buy one-ways if you are using frequent flyer miles for one leg of the journey.
- Does it matter which day of the week I fly?
- Yes. Flying on Tuesday or Wednesday is consistently 15-20% cheaper than flying on Friday or Sunday.