Expanding routes to Maldives

In the winter of 2018, Indian Airlines experienced a renaissance of sorts. SpiceJet was recovering from the brink of bankruptcy in 2014, Go Air had just ventured into international operations, and IndiGo was growing stronger with every new addition to its fleet. It was the perfect time for airlines to seek out new destinations, and they had their sights set on the Maldives.

Go Air and IndiGo made quick work of announcing flights to the Maldives, significantly increasing the limited number of direct flights between the two countries. IndiGo, true to its nature, outperformed its competitors in terms of the number of flights offered.

The people of India embraced this newfound accessibility to the Maldives, and Instagram was inundated with picturesque holiday photos and videos. Before this, Air India's flights from Bengaluru and SpiceJet's from Trivandrum were the primary connections to the Maldives. However, the new flights started pouring in from major Indian cities, including Mumbai, Delhi, Hyderabad, and Bengaluru. The Maldives had become not only accessible but also affordable for Indian tourists.

As the Maldives remained a favourite destination, the second boom is now beginning, and it promises to be even bigger. Vistara and IndiGo are the first airlines to announce new flights, with IndiGo once again taking the lead with the most flights. The planned routes will connect Delhi, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Kochi, and Mumbai to the Maldives.

Travellers from India can now conveniently access Maldives with nearly 500 additional seats each day in both directions. Looking at the numbers, it's clear that the Maldives is on the rise as a favoured travel destination. In the October-December quarter of 2018, following the first wave of expansion to the Maldives, 51,000 passengers travelled between India and the Maldives on direct flights. In the same quarter the following year, this number increased to 60,000 passengers. To put it in perspective, this amounts to nearly 700 passengers travelling each way daily.