After a relaxing few days in Goa, it was time to fly to Chennai. We chose IndiGo for our flight, which turned out to be a pleasant surprise.
As a reminder, I’m in the midst of a “vintage” trip report to India/Maldives. Although this flight took place in 2016, it still captures what you can expect if you fly IndiGo today and has not been previously published. Click here for more recent trip reports.
Allowing plenty of time, we left our hotel about two hours before takeoff and arrived at Goa International Airport with plenty of time to spare.
Although the check-in and security lines appeared chaotic, they moved quickly. In India, airport security checkpoints are segregated by gender. Heidi and I met up on the other side of the checkpoint.
Boarding began on time and I discovered that our “direct” flight would be making a stop in Hyderabad. This was not indicated on our reservation or e-ticket. We boarded via jetbridge onto our A320.
IndiGo (6E) 381
Goa (GOI) – Chennai (MAA) via Hyderabad (HYD)
Saturday, January 02
Depart: 03:30 PM
Arrive: 06:20 PM
Duration: 02hr, 50min
Distance: 456 miles
Aircraft: Airbus A320
Seat: 15D (Single-Cabin)
The aircraft was clean onboard…and smelled fresh. There were personal air vents at each seat. We found our seats toward the rear of the aircraft and were thankful that my window/aisle choice of advance seat assignment paid off: the middle seat between us remained empty.
We took off on time for Hyderabad and flight attendants soon sprang into service.
Service is buy-on-board and the menu included snacks, sandwiches, soft drinks, and sweets. Heidi ordered a Diet Coke and coffee while I had some cashews.
Let me pause here to point out I appreciated Indigo’s clever use of the English language. For example, Indigo’s in-flight magazine is titled “Hello, 6E”. Not only is 6E the IATA code for Indigo, but I love the play on seat 6E and “sexy”. I cannot think of a more clever name for an airline magazine. Another example: my cashews came in a metal canister marked “nut case”. I love it!
We landed in Hyderabad and the majority of the passengers exited the aircraft. Those continuing to Chennai were allowed to remain onbaord. During the ground stop, a security check was performed and we had to take our hand baggage out of the overhead bins.
Eventually, passengers originating in Hyderabad reboarded and we were on our way again. The total ground stop was 40 minutes.
Flight attendants again offered snacks and drinks for purchase during the second leg and were soon on final approach to Chennai.
CONCLUSION
Although I have not tried Vistara, I loved the Indigo experience and would not hesitate to fly Indigo again next time. Our tickets, by the way, were about $150 each and purchased 10 days prior to travel.
Have you flown Indigo? What did you think?
@Matthew
I think you meant A320 as opposed to Bombardier Q400 .
Thank you! Fixed.
I’ve used them many times over the years. Really good LCC in my opinion. They’ve generally been on-time, with friendly crews and clean, well-maintained aircraft. No complaints at all considering the low prices I paid (often ~$50 each way from Hyderabad to Chennai).
As an Indian (American) based in NYC with family in India I have used Indigo scores of times over the past decade. Couldn’t agree more with your review. They are almost always on time with highly courteous ground staff and cabin crew.
A friend of mine is currently travelling around India and she is raving about how good IndiGo are for domestic air travel.
I’ve flown Indigo a lot domestically within India. By far the best option.