Summer's cheapest deals

AIR DISCOUNTS

Now is the best time to plan your long dreamt-of vacation if you want to pick the lowest fares available in the market.

Everybody has a summer holiday, sang Cliff Richard. And if you've decided on where you're going this year, you could also start checking out how to get there without burning a hole in your pocket.

Even if you're busy with your children's exams, take some time off to plan your holiday "" if you don't want to miss out on some good deals.

For those of you planning an Easter break, Jet Airways is offering special fares across 74 sectors. These are priced slightly lower than the Check Fares but there's a caveat: you need to buy your tickets before February 24.

That's if the airline doesn't run out of tickets by then because there are only 1,50,000 tickets to go. A Bangalore-Delhi flight would set you back by just Rs 3,720, while the damage for a Coimbatore-Mumbai trip would be Rs 2,220.

Gaurang Shetty, VP, marketing at Jet Airways, says it's early days yet for summer schemes. "We will come out with attractive packages for the leisure traveller," he says, though he refuses to divulge whether they would be cheaper than the Check Fares currently available.

Shetty is also promising "even more attractive packages" as part of the schemes where hotel rooms are bundled with air trips with more destinations.

If you're likely to set off before end-April, take a look at Indian's "Unchecked Fares" because they do come cheap. Sample this: if you're flying from Mumbai to Kolkata, on your way to the cooler climes of Shillong, the fare drops to Rs 3,600 from Rs 11,000-plus.

As for the summer break, cheak out Indian's Easy Fares, which according to a spokesperson can be bought anytime and used anytime and are available on 101 routes.

Kingfisher Airlines has not yet reduced fares for the summer season. Says Girish Shah , head of marketing, "We may come up with specific offers depending on how the season unfolds and may take a relook at some sectors such as Bombay-Goa."

In the meantime, Kingfisher has two packages on offer which could save you some money. The first deal comes at Rs 26,999 for which one person can fly six times on any route that Kingfisher operates on. That works out to about Rs 4,500 per flight.

The second package, Shah explains, is for families in which for Rs 29,999 you have a choice of six flights on any route which can be used by more than one person. "So a family of three," says Shah, "can do a return trip for around Rs 10,000 per member."

The best part of this deal is that if you don't fly during the summer, you can always use the tickets later since they are valid till end-December. Of course, you need to have bought them by March end.

Air Deccan too has plans catering for families priced from about Rs 24,000 to Rs 1 lakh for 12-36 tickets respectively. The best part of this deal: the tickets can be used till February 2006.

The schemes are meant for a family of four and are available for routes such as Hyderabad-Delhi-Jammu or Bangalore-Delhi-Dehradun.

Says John Kuruvilla, chief revenue officer, Air Deccan, "The family can travel on any of our routes. These packages work out cheaper than buying tickets separately for each of the routes."

Air Deccan is also working on packages that include hotel stays. "We're looking to team up with around 150 hotels this time," he says. For example, a couple could fly to Goa and back, staying at the Leela for two nights and three days for Rs 16,700.

So whether you're headed north to Mussoorie or south to Coonoor, or simply plan to visit relatives in the plains, flying has never been so cheap!