More than five million tourists visit India annually and the Union ministry of tourism has a plan to raise that number to 25 million. However, in 2007 alone, around 14 million tourists visited Thailand, while about 28 million visited Hong Kong.
One observation advanced for the differences is the sheer difference in airfares to the peer cities of Bangkok, Hong Kong and Singapore as compared to Mumbai. A British Airways round-trip ticket from London to Mumbai costs Rs 1,68,041, while a ticket from London to Hong Kong costs the equivalent of Rs 99,446 (prices quoted, here and later, as of April 23 on the website). Yet, while the distance between London and Mumbai is 4,480 miles, that between London and Hong Kong is 5,991 miles.
France and Germany, which contribute a substantial number of tourists to India, also have more expensive fares to Mumbai. An Air France round trip ticket from Paris to Mumbai costs Rs +1,46,721, while Paris to Singapore costs Rs 1,20, 578. The distance between Paris and Mumbai is 4,367 miles and to Singapore, 6,667 miles.
Similarly, a Lufthansa round trip ticket from Frankfurt to Mumbai would set you back by Rs 1,12,459, while a trip from Frankfurt to Singapore would be cheaper at Rs 68,990. The distance between Frankfurt and Mumbai is 4,093 miles, while Frankfurt-Singapore is 6,378 miles.
The high price of Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF) in India could be one reason for the high airfares. A comparative study of ATF prices in March 2007 showed that while the price in India was Rs 36,100 per kilolitre, it was Rs 21,272 in Bangkok and Rs 20,779 in Singapore.
While airfares are typically more expensive on routes with more traffic, a study by the Ministry of Tourism has quoted foreign airline representatives as saying that if allowed to increase flight frequencies and seat capacities into India, a reduction in fares would be possible, as airlines would be able to achieve volumes of scale.
The Study titled, ‘Impact of Civil Aviation Policies on Tourism in India’, says unit costs go down when airlines add seat capacity on existing routes.
International airline operators are required to pay landing, parking and housing charges directly to the Delhi International Airport Ltd and Mumbai International Airport Ltd, which together account for 45 per cent of total international traffic.
The Terminal Navigational Landing Charges and the Route Navigational Facilities Charges are payable to the Airports Authority of India. The charges for a non-upgraded Boeing 747-400 per landing would be roughly Rs 1.25 lakh. By contrast, Airports of Thailand Plc (AoT) charges roughly Rs 96,892 for each Boeing 747-400 landing at the Suvarnabhumi airport at Bangkok.
However, tour operators believe it is a combination of factors that decide tourism numbers and don’t see cheaper airfares alone as a threat to tourism in the country. “Airfares are definitely one of the factors affecting tourism. But, cheap hotel rates and visa on arrival for more nationalities also makes a difference to the overall number in a big way,” says Nalini Gupta, MD, Lotus Destinations.
“I don’t think that airfares can have much of an impact on tourism. India is a very unique destination, so travellers coming here are ready to spend that extra buck. Unlike Dubai or Singapore, which are primarily single-destination countries, India is a multi-destination country,” says Keyur Joshi, Co-founder and COO, MakeMyTrip.
(All the prices quoted above are round-trip fares, at the lowest prices available on April 23 on the airline’s website. The departure date was taken as April 25 and the return date as May 3. Fares were compared only with Mumbai for ease of analysis.)
