Air Travel In India

[amelia88]

I watched a video today about air travel in India - it was talking about the increase of domestic flights within India in the past decade. In saying that though, the majority of domestic travel within India is still done by train since quite a large number of areas simply aren't connected by air.

How do you prefer to get around if you're traveling domestically from place to place in a country? I actually quite enjoy trains as I feel they give me a better chance to view the landscape and see things I wouldn't get to if I was traveling by plane. However, sometimes when you're on a limited time schedule it can be nice to just hop on a plane and be at your destination quickly.

Do you think there are ways to encourage more air travel in India?

 

[pwarbi]

I'd imagine that the train will be the most popular form of travel for a number of years to come, as like you say there's not that many parts of India that you can fly into, but also the cost might be a factor aswell.

To get to a place by air, you'd have to fly to the local nearest airport, then probably catch a train to your destination aswell, so I think people will just rather catch the train in the first place and be taken straight there.

 

[amelia88]

I'd imagine that the train will be the most popular form of travel for a number of years to come, as like you say there's not that many parts of India that you can fly into, but also the cost might be a factor aswell.

To get to a place by air, you'd have to fly to the local nearest airport, then probably catch a train to your destination aswell, so I think people will just rather catch the train in the first place and be taken straight there.

You're right about that - in a lot of places I've travelled to, the airports have been quite outside the city centers - I'm talking in some cases around an hour away from the city area or tourist spots I've wanted to see. Which either means a train or some other form of transport to get to where I needed to be anyway. Trains are absolutely easier in circumstances like those, and a lot more cost effective too most of the time!

 

[pwarbi]

Come to think of it, I've been to quite a few countries around the world and while the domestic flights and schedule is becoming more popular, I'm still not convinced it's going to be as popular as train travel.

I think there's only the US that use internal flights more than other forms of transport but that's probably just down to the sheer size of the country.

 

[Ashwin Mahesh]

In India train travel is for the masses, the number of people using normal trains for the purpose of tourism is extremely low. There are special trains like The Golden Chariot which caters specifically to tourists, but it doesn't really paint the right picture of train travel in India.

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[amelia88]

Come to think of it, I've been to quite a few countries around the world and while the domestic flights and schedule is becoming more popular, I'm still not convinced it's going to be as popular as train travel.

I think there's only the US that use internal flights more than other forms of transport but that's probably just down to the sheer size of the country.

Here where I live I would say flights have become a lot more popular recently with the introduction of more and more budget carriers. If it's affordable I think it appeals to more people. And yes, of course size plays into it as well. You'd prefer to get somewhere on a plane within couple of hours rather than be sitting on a train for the better portion of a day.

I wonder if more countries will incorporate trains like Japan has, the bullet trains. I've ridden them before and they're so fast and run so frequently - it's probably a little longer than catching a plane but honestly way more convenient!

 

[travelguide]

I think train travel would be boring if it includes a night travel too. But it is a convenient way to travel to places which has medium distance to cover. The main advantage is that you will never feel exhausted and you can enjoy landscapes throughout your journey. For air travel Indian States are not connected well and you have to travel to airports which are far off in most of the areas. Obviously if you have a tight schedule, air travel is the way to go.

 

[pwarbi]

Here where I live I would say flights have become a lot more popular recently with the introduction of more and more budget carriers. If it's affordable I think it appeals to more people. And yes, of course size plays into it as well. You'd prefer to get somewhere on a plane within couple of hours rather than be sitting on a train for the better portion of a day.

I wonder if more countries will incorporate trains like Japan has, the bullet trains. I've ridden them before and they're so fast and run so frequently - it's probably a little longer than catching a plane but honestly way more convenient!

I know the UK are already planning an high speed rail link so I would imagine that most other countries would be looking in to it aswell.

Of course the airline companies won't be to pleased to hear about that although I still think the bulk of their revenue still comes from international flights rather than domestic ones.

 

[amelia88]

I think train travel would be boring if it includes a night travel too. But it is a convenient way to travel to places which has medium distance to cover. The main advantage is that you will never feel exhausted and you can enjoy landscapes throughout your journey. For air travel Indian States are not connected well and you have to travel to airports which are far off in most of the areas. Obviously if you have a tight schedule, air travel is the way to go.

I actually have on my bucket list that I would love to take an overnight train somewhere! I think the concept is cool and with the increase in air travel to a lot of places, overnight trains seem to be dying out more and more. I think I would like a luxury overnight train though rather than something uncomfortable and cramped!!

 

[pwarbi]

I think when people think about travelling by train, especially overnight, they often have a romantic impression of trains like the orient express, and think it will be like it is in the films.

In reality, unless you can afford five star, fist class tickets with your own section of a carriage, it's more often than not very cramped, and by the end of it you can't wait to get off.

 

[amelia88]

I think you're right - my idea is that overnight train travel would be the lap of luxury (in reality there's no way I could afford those fancy trains on my backpacker-esque budget!)

I would love to save up for a luxury overnight train experience one of these days, but right now I just don't think my budget will allow it. And your description of cramped train carriages and being super eager to get off definitely de-romanticized my view on them!