By TRN Online, Kathmandu, Sept.12: Passengers have started booking advance air tickets for Dashain even though the festival is still about a month away, however, advance ticket bookings in buses will start from the second half of September.
People choose to reserve air seats in advance to avoid setbacks as it is tough to get tickets to travel during the Dashain festival along with high chances of air fares becoming expensive.
According to the Airlines Operators Association of Nepal, booking tickets for most air destinations has already started as tickets are easily available online.
Spokesperson of the Association Muralidhar Joshi said that the rush to book air tickets is observed more for remote destinations rather than accessible destinations.
Domestic airlines generally open bookings for the Dashain festival from mid-August. Such is the demand for air seats during the festival that flights to some destinations are already fully booked.
He said, "Passengers returning to the village from cities and international destinations have already started booking air tickets for their respective destinations. Although the flight volume remains normal for accessible destinations, air tickets to places such as Tumlingtar and Surkhet, which are considered important routes for domestic flights, have started to spike."
No discussions have been made to companies add flights in any destinations based on number of lights and status of airplanes.
Information officer for Buddha Air Dipendra Kumar Karna said that 60 per cent of bookings for Dashain have been made and there is currently a rush for tickets around for the 1st day of Dashain and the 7th of Dashain.
Corporate Manager at Shree Airlines Private Ltd said that 80 per cent of the aircraft are flying and targeted bookings for Dashain have started.