International travel is back on track following a slump that lasted nearly three years because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Dubai, in particular, welcomed over 14.36 million overnight tourists in 2022, a sharp jump from just 7.28 million visitors in the previous year. In January 2023 alone, the emirate saw 1.47 million tourists, with the largest portion coming from India.

Dubai, over the years, has emerged as one of the favourite destinations for Indians for tourism and shopping. The rising number has led to the launch of several new direct flight routes between the emirate and various Indian cities. With the Eid Al Fitr holidays coming up, the Dubai-India route is expected to be busier than usual.

There are reportedly over 80 non-stop daily flights operated between the emirate and airports in India — and the number is likely to shoot up in the coming year.

India's domestic airline IndiGo has announced the launch of a direct flight route from Bhubaneswar in the state of Odisha to Dubai. As per the agreement, IndiGo will operate direct flights from Biju Patnaik International Airport thrice a week. Inaugural ticket prices start at Dh448.75 for a single journey and Dh897.49 for a two-way trip. The operation will go live on May 15.

Dubai is also among the most-served international airports from India. Frequent nonstop flights to cities are available from:

  • Ahmedabad
  • Bengaluru
  • Chennai
  • Delhi
  • Hyderabad
  • Kochi
  • Kolkata
  • Mumbai
  • Thiruvananthapuram
  • Kozhikode
  • Lucknow
  • Mangalore
  • Tiruchirappalli
  • Kannur
  • Amritsar
  • Madurai
  • Jaipur
  • Pune
  • Goa
  • Chandigarh
  • Indore

With the addition of the Bhubaneshwar-Dubai route, the number of Indian airports offering non-stop flights will rise to 22. Additionally, easy connectivity to Dubai is available from cities like Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh with the operation of non-stop flights to Sharjah.

Travellers can choose from an array of airlines options offering non-stop flight services between Indian cities and Dubai. These include Air India, IndiGo, Air Indian Express, Vistara, Go First, SpiceJet, Emirates, and Flydubai.

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