India vs Australia: Hotels, flights notch up bigger numbers than players in World Cup final
Ahmedabad and airfares to the city have surged manifold ahead of Sunday's World Cup cricket final between India and Australia, forcing many fans to either cough up the staggering rates or alter their travel plans.
The chief executive of a Mumbai-based company, for instance, said he has decided to drive more than 500 km to Ahmedabad for the match.
«It's crazy out there,» said the CEO, who did not wish to be identified.
«I paid ₹65,000 for the match ticket alone and have decided to drive down now, due to the non-availability of quality rooms and high rates.»
On Saturday afternoon, the ITC Narmada hotel in Ahmedabad, which is hosting the Indian cricket team, had very limited accommodation available and was charging ₹4 lakh a night, plus ₹72,000 in taxes, for one of the rooms for Sunday night on Booking.com. In comparison, rooms in the hotel were available on the portal for ₹11,000 plus ₹1,980 in taxes for a stay on November 21.
Airfares have seen a similarly sharp increase in the past few days.
The head of a global hotel chain, who is travelling with his spouse from Delhi, said he has paid ₹40,000 one way per person for the flight to Ahmedabad. «Is there a rationale behind me paying so much? There isn't.
It's all emotional. It's about the Indian cricket team playing in the World Cup final in India,» he said, requesting not to be identified.
With Ahmedabad running out of hotel rooms, neighbouring cities and drivable destinations such as Vadodara, Gandhinagar and Udaipur have also seen a dramatic upswing in hotel tariffs and airfares.
On Saturday, no direct flights were available for routes such as New Delhi-Udaipur and Mumbai-Vadodara till November 21 and November 24, respectively, across travel portals.
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