Patna: Air travel from Patna has become dramatically more expensive as the winter wedding season drives an unprecedented surge in demand. With thousands of people returning from cities such as Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Kolkata and Chennai to attend family ceremonies, airlines have sharply raised fares on almost all major routes.
On several sectors, ticket prices have risen to four or five times the usual rates. The most striking increase is on the Patna–Kolkata route, where fares have exceeded those of long-haul international flights. According to data from MakeMyTrip, an Air India connection via Mumbai (AI 2790, AI 2643) for 5 December is priced at Rs 66,000 — more than double the cost of an Air India flight from Delhi to London on the same day, which stands at Rs 27,026.
The Patna–Delhi sector, typically priced between Rs 5,000 and Rs 6,000, is now selling for over Rs 51,000 on Air India (AI 2790, AI 9487). Despite the steep rise, most flights continue to run near full capacity.
Travellers heading to Mumbai are also facing inflated fares. Tickets that normally cost Rs 8,000 to Rs 9,000 are now priced between Rs 40,000 and Rs 50,000, with some Air India services such as AI 9585 and AI 2451 reaching Rs 52,303. Non-stop and one-stop options have both become significantly more expensive.
💍✈️ Wedding season rush in Bihar = airfare explosion!
- ✈️📈 Patna Airport sees 4–5x jump in ticket prices across major routes.
- 😱💸 Patna → Kolkata = Rs 66,000 (Yes, more than Delhi–London!).
- 🌍✈️ Delhi → London costs just Rs 27,026, while Patna → Kolkata is double.
- 🛫🚨 Patna → Delhi fares up from Rs 5–6k to Rs 51k.
- 💼🎫 Patna → Mumbai now Rs 40k–50k, vs usual Rs 8k–9k.
- 🏷️🔥 Patna → Bengaluru crosses Rs 60k (normally around Rs 7k).
- ⚠️🛬 Chennai route also shoots past Rs 50k.
- 👨🏫📊 Experts: Wedding season + limited flights = massive fare surge.
- 📆⏳ Trend likely to continue till second week of December.
- 😩🧳 Passengers left with no option but to buy overpriced tickets.
Journeys from Patna to Bengaluru, which usually cost around Rs 7,000, have crossed Rs 60,000. Fares aboard Air India (AI 9585 and AI 2803) for 5 December were listed at Rs 60,666. The Patna–Chennai route has seen similar spikes, rising from Rs 7,000–8,000 to more than Rs 50,000, with Air India flights AI 2790 and AI 2827 priced at Rs 50,755.
Aviation analysts say November and December mark the peak wedding period in Bihar, when large numbers of migrant workers travel home for brief visits. With flight operations limited and demand surging over short windows, domestic fares climb rapidly.
This season, domestic fares have far exceeded international ones, leaving passengers with little choice but to pay the inflated rates. Experts expect prices to stabilise only after the second week of December, once wedding travel begins to taper off.
