Your thoughts on IndiGo airline

Hi there,

It's a regional and domestic Indian low-cost airline, and the reviews aren't great—frequent delays and pretty basic planes. Of course, all services are extra. You'll see it a lot in Thailand, like in Bangkok and Phuket, coming from major Indian cities. If you're looking for a cheap price, then yes! It also flies from Turkey in old 777s (no entertainment at all). They’ve ordered 30 Airbus A350s outright, plus 70 more to be confirmed later, so they’ll be heading to Western Europe and the US in about 3–4 years.

Thanks Patrick! That’s exactly what I thought I understood.

Hi there,

I travel regularly with IndiGo, an airline that has clean and well-maintained Airbus 320s and 321s. However, you’re only allowed 15 kg of checked baggage on domestic flights (20 or 30 kg on international flights, depending on the destination). My agent always adds an "6E add-on" of 8 kg for me, bringing it to 23 kg, for around 10 €. All drinks and snacks on board are paid.

I once had a big delay due to bad weather in Chennai, but my connecting flight to Colombo (also IndiGo) waited for us for over 3 hours, so I didn’t miss it.

Otherwise, Vistara isn’t bad either, though it’s usually a bit more expensive.

Safe travels

Thanks Babibi. I think for domestic flights, it’s more than enough in terms of comfort, and thanks for the tip about the extra 8kg. Good to know. I’m mainly wondering about a France/India trip.

IndiGo doesn’t fly from Paris, but from Frankfurt, Düsseldorf, Amsterdam, or London... and it seems pretty expensive. Otherwise, Oman Air, Qatar, Air India, or Air France are the easiest options from Paris.

I'm not leaving from Paris... and from where I'm leaving, there's pretty much only IndiGo. The others are at least 300 € more expensive, with crappy schedules. And I've been using Partirou.com for ages—it gives me all the options.

Hi there, IndiGo doesn’t fly from Europe—only from Istanbul using two old 777s leased from Turkish Airlines. They have an agreement with Turkish Airlines to transport passengers to Istanbul to board those 777s, which don’t even have in-flight entertainment screens, even when departing from Paris. So, you’ll have a layover in Istanbul, which could be longer or shorter. They recently ordered 30 A350-900s to start operating in Europe and the US, but that won’t happen for at least another 2-3 years.

True, you have to connect in Istanbul... but IndiGo just ordered 500 Airbus A320s!

https://www.lemonde.fr/economie/article/2023/06/19/airbus-la-compagnie-indienne-indigo-commande-500-a320-record-absolu_6178314_3234.html

Yes for their domestic and regional flights. The A350s are planned for Europe and the USA.😉

Hello,

Have you ever traveled with this airline? It seems they have a real monopoly on certain destinations and are also much cheaper.

Thank youuuu.

Hi Lula, I’m a bit hesitant to reply after my skeptical advice about the validity of your e-visa... But Patrick’s responses, which seem to hold a grudge against Indigo, have led me to share my opinion. Indigo is an EXCELLENT domestic airline that I’ve used many times, as well as for traveling elsewhere in Asia. The value for money is more than good. Comfort on board, and boarding/deboarding that isn’t chaotic like so many other low-cost airlines, especially Air Asia. There’s a fare—I’ve forgotten the name—that’s just a little more expensive than the standard fare, allowing cancellations and/or date changes, and includes a free meal on board. A "meal" might be stretching it. Let’s say it’s something edible—not great, but not bad either. You can’t have your cake and eat it too... They provide good follow-up on any schedule changes. The biggest issue is the 15 kg baggage limit. And they’re super strict, even for just 1 extra kilo. But as mentioned here, for a modest supplement, you can go up to 23 kg. In any case, based on my experience, I find Indigo far superior to Air India in terms of value for money. I don’t earn any royalties from Indigo. For long-haul flights from Europe, when you carefully read the fine print of so-called cheaper airlines, you realize that in the end, for the same services, they all align on a price that’s nearly identical, within a few dozen euros. After that, it’s a matter of personal comfort preference for a flight that’s almost 10 hours.

Thanks Marien!

Super clear, your description.

Hi there, Like all decent airlines, the real issues come to light through customer service/refunds/compensation. IndiGo is one of the worst when it comes to their PAS (Problem After-Service). Air India has recently made huge improvements, and their PAS response time and efficiency are now good—even very good. On that note, Vistara (excellent service, quality, and PAS) has actually merged—well, been absorbed by—Tata (Air India).

Hello Like all decent airlines, problems come to light through customer service/refunds/compensation. IndiGo is among the worst when it comes to its CSP (Customer Service Post-Issue). Air India has recently made huge efforts, and the response time and efficiency of its CSP are good, even very good. On that note, Vistara (excellent service, performance, and CSP) has actually merged—it was absorbed by Tata (Air India).

Personally, I’ve never had any issues with IndiGo for canceled flight refunds, and I’ve canceled trips more than once. Refunded in under 24 hours without any discussion. On the other hand, lots of problems with AIR FRANCE, a supposedly reliable airline. They scammed me out of over 2000 € for a ticket cancellation that should’ve been hassle-free. I never managed to get that money back. I shared this story a while ago in another discussion. No trust in Air India.

As far as I'm concerned, in October/November 2023, I took all my domestic flights without any issues with IndiGo. The only restriction is the 15 kg baggage weight limit. That said, excess baggage fees aren’t expensive, so you can easily go over the limit.

As far as I'm concerned, in October/November 2023, I took all my domestic flights without any issues with IndiGo. The only restriction is the 15 kg baggage weight limit. That said, excess baggage isn't expensive, so you can easily go over the limit.

Hi there, and thanks for your feedback.

Thanks for your reply! And for the details about the weight.

From what I remember, in Jodhpur for a flight to Mumbai, my checked baggage was 3 kg over the allowed limit, and it cost me around 3 €. I’ve heard that some travelers with excess weight over 15 kg weren’t even charged! It seems to depend on how busy the check-in counters are—so during peak departures, agents might rush through passengers...

Hi there

Here are some reviews about Indigo: https://flight-report.com/en/airline/13933/indigo/

ok, thanks a lot.

Thanks, I'm heading there right now.

Hello! First of all, I’d like to say how happy I am to (finally) be back on VoyageForum... To answer your question, yes, I traveled with IndiGo last November from Istanbul to Mumbai. On the plus side, the price was great, and the friendly vibe with passengers—it already felt like being on an Indian bus, which was kind of nice. On the downside, there were no services at all, not even a paid option—no water, not even a cup! And zero comfort (broken seats, wobbly trays). So for me, it’s a decent airline for domestic flights, but I wouldn’t fly with them again for long-haul trips. That said, it’s also a matter of age. Thirty years ago, the cheapest (or even free) option was my main priority, but now I also care about a little comfort for my joints. Wishing you a great trip!

I just booked my tickets to Thailand—from India—and I have to say everything is clear and perfect regarding the reservation. I’ll try to share how the two flights (round-trip) went when I get back, which won’t be until early March 😉

Thanks, this really confirms what I was thinking and what the various reviews say. I’m a bit like you—I’d prefer a little more comfort...

Thanks, I saw that, but what I really wanted were replies from VF members!

Hi there, I used this airline for several domestic flights last May: Jaipur-Mumbai / Mumbai-Chennai / Chennai-Delhi. Really happy with the quality-to-price ratio. Only one delay, but we were notified by email. The planes were new. I used to be a flight attendant, so my top priority is still safety. They seem to be a reliable airline on that front.

Thank youuuu!

Hi, I booked an INDIGO flight with a layover via BOOKING. Delhi - Jaipur - Jaisalmer. I just wanted to know if the luggage is checked through or if I need to pick it up in Jaipur? Thanks for your feedback.

Hi there,

Since I didn’t book through an agency, I only found out the answer to this question when I checked in my luggage in Delhi... You’ll have to ask the person at the counter. It depends—sometimes, for example, on routes like Goa/Chennai/Colombo, I didn’t need to collect my bags in Chennai. But on the way back, I had to pick them up in Chennai and drop them off in some kind of room that also doubled as a snack bar! Everything went smoothly anyway. Have a great trip!

Hello, I booked an INDIGO flight with a layover via BOOKING. Delhi - Jaipur - Jaisalmer. I just wanted to know if the luggage is checked through or if I need to pick it up in Jaipur? Thanks for your feedback.

You really need to read what’s written in the ticket details. It’s actually marked in red when you have to collect your luggage between the two flights. If it’s not mentioned, then the luggage is checked through.

I was talking about the online booking, of course

Hello,

It's worth checking on your ticket, but generally, domestic flights from Delhi that make stopovers in Rajasthan are "hop flights." In other words, the plane makes a stop of a few minutes and drops off passengers and luggage for the first destination on the tarmac, then takes off again for the next destination. So it's the same plane for the entire journey, and your luggage stays in the hold. If your flight does match this scenario, though I think it likely does.

Hello,

It's worth checking on your ticket, but generally, domestic flights from Delhi that make stopovers in Rajasthan are "hop flights." In short, the plane makes a stop of a few minutes and drops off passengers and luggage for the first destination on the tarmac, then it takes off again for the next destination. So it's the same plane for the entire flight, and the luggage stays in the hold. If your flight does match this scenario, though I think it does.

Well, that’s an excellent answer

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Maybe it would’ve been better to start a discussion in the right section instead of derailing a thread that doesn’t have much to do with it.