As India and Pakistan reached an understanding to stop cross-border armed conflict, as many as 32 airports in India are open for civil aircraft operations, Indian airports regulator Airports Authority of India said on Monday. In line with this, airlines are resuming operations at these airports.
In a statement, IndiGo said it will “progressively” commence operations on the previously closed routes. On Monday, it resumed operations on routes from Delhi to Chandigarh, Jammu, and Amritsar, adding that more flights will resume over the next few days. “As services gradually return to normal, there may still be a few delays and last-minute adjustments. We recommend checking your flight status regularly for the latest updates,” it added.
SpiceJet also said that it is working to resume normal operations. Air India said it is working towards progressively commencing flights to and from Jammu, Srinagar, Leh, Jodhpur, Amritsar, Bhuj, Jamnagar, Chandigarh, and Rajkot.
Air India’s low-cost arm Air India Express said it will resume flights on Hindon-Bengaluru, Jammu-Delhi, Jammu-Srinagar, and Srinagar-Delhi routes on Tuesday, followed by Hindon-Mumbai route on Wednesday. All other flights, including international operations from Amritsar are expected to resume on May 15, it added.
Delhi Airport also issued a statement early on Monday, saying that all operations continued as normal. “However, due to changing airspace conditions and increased security measures, some flight schedules and security checkpoint processing times may be affected,” it said.
Increased Security, Longer Wait Times: Over the past few days, as the conflict continued, passengers were advised to arrive at airports three hours before the scheduled departure of their domestic flights to allow more time for security checks. The government also expanded the role of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) at civil airports for security checks on cargo and checked in baggage as safety procedures were heightened.
Before this, CISF was not directly involved in direct security and screening of cargo operations and check-in baggage.
Amid the closure of airspace in the North India, Mumbai also witnessed a surge in traffic from northern India and Southeast Asia as carriers were avoiding Pakistan’s airspace.
Disruptions in Global Travel: Last week, United and American Airlines both canceled their flights to Delhi on Wednesday with United saying that it would monitor the situation and take calls on future flights as more information becomes available.
Carriers such as Emirates and Qatar Airways, along with those from Southeast Asia, rerouted their flights to other airports.
Meanwhile, several Indian travel companies suspended new bookings to Turkey and Azerbaijan on Friday. This was in response to Turkey and Azerbaijan’s moves to condemn India’s recent strikes on terror bases in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
Pickyoutrail, Cox & Kings India, and EaseMyTrip all suspended bookings to Turkey and Azerbaijan, which were emerging preferred destinations for outbound Indian travelers. Travel accommodation brand Go Homestays also announced an end to its partnership with Turkish Airlines, citing the airline’s “unsupportive stance towards India,” while vacation rental company Goa Villas said it would no longer accept Turkish citizens as guests in its properties.
Tourists in Goa Surge Over 10% in First 3 Months
In the first three months of 2025, Goa has registered a 10.5% year-on-year increase in tourist arrivals, the state’s tourism board said on Monday. More than 2.8 million tourists visited the state from January 1 to March 31.
According to Goa Tourism, this is due to the state’s efforts to strengthen promotion in core and emerging markets, expand international air connectivity, and diversify tourism offerings. As part of this, Air India Express now has routes from Goa to Dubai, Kuwait, and Abu Dhabi, it said.
The state’s key challenge of taxis due to lack of presence of cab aggregators in Goa led to exorbitant pricing and exploitation. While Uber and its Indian counterpart Ola had attempted to enter the market, they had to exit because of widespread protests from local cab drivers.
In response to this, the government in 2023 started an aggregator platform called Goa Taxi App to allow online ride hailing services. The app has now onboarded over 1,000 cab drivers and has completed 70,000 rides, the tourism board said.
Abu Dhabi Expands Partnership With India
As part of Abu Dhabi’s Tourism Strategy 2030, the emirate aims to receive 39.3 million visitors by the end of this decade. To drive this growth, it is expanding its international partnerships, including those with India, Europe, and Saudi Arabia.
In 2024, over 360,000 Indian tourists visited Abu Dhabi, marking a 43% surge. The country was also the top contributor in terms of international arrivals. Now, Abu Dhabi has partnered with travel company Holiday Tribe to send over 5,500 Indian visitors to Abu Dhabi over the next 18 months.
For this, the emirate is looking at tailored campaigns to highlight various experiences that it offers.
SpiceJet Commences Flights to Kathmandu
Low-cost airline SpiceJet has announced daily direct flights between Delhi and Kathmandu in Nepal. The carrier is hoping to strengthen its international network through this new offering.
Nepal is a popular destination for Indian travelers, and Indians continue to be its biggest source market. In 2023, the birthplace of Gautam Buddha, Lumbini, alone received close to 1 million tourists, including Nepal nationals, according to data from the Lumbini Development Trust. Among these, India was the biggest foreign source market at over 266,000 visitors, accounting for close to 27% of the total tourist flow.
CGH Earth Saha Opens Hibiscus Villa
CGH Earth’s boutique collection CGH Earth Saha has opened a lakeside retreat called Hibiscus Villa. The 3-bedroom property is located on the shore of Vembanad Lake in Kerala. The property aims to cater to families and small groups, CGH Earth said in a statement.
CGH Earth Saha is the company’s effort to cater to the growing trend of travelers seeking smaller and more personalized spaces for travel with families. In line with CGH Earth’s sustainability focus, these properties are luxurious but also reflective of local traditions, tapping into the growing demand for experiential travel.
IndiGo to Fly Direct to Abu Dhabi From Two More Indian Cities
Budget airline IndiGo has announced its plans to commence direct flights to Abu Dhabi from Visakhapatnam and Bhubaneswar. The flights will commence in June, the airline said in a statement on Monday.
With this, IndiGo will operate over 100 weekly flights to the emirate, and 275 flights a week overall to the United Arab Emirates. The move is in response to a growing demand for travel to the UAE and Abu Dhabi.
Speaking at the Skift India Forum earlier this year, IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers said that a lot of international air travel in India was catered to by non-Indian airlines for a long time, and this gap increases as distance between India and the destination grows. “There is an opportunity for us to offer a product that is operated by an Indian operator and address that market.”
