Cheap Business Class Airfares to Kolkata
The Indian city of Kolkata is a busy, bustling metropolis. Kolkata which has for
years been regarded as the cultural capital of India has been the favored abode
of artists, writers, poets and other creative folk. Today this city which is located
on the banks of the Hooghly River in the eastern Indian state of West Bengal is
India’s third largest city which is home to more 15 million people.
Kolkata has a long and rich history for the city once served as the capital of British
India from 1772 to 1912 and Kolkata’s skyline until today continues to be littered
with many magnificent edifices that are associated with this period of colonial
rule. However, Kolkata which enjoyed a vital position under the British declined
in importance after independence of India in 1947 and in the 1980’s it became a
communist enclave which led to a further decline of its economy. The growth in the
city at this time stagnated somewhat as the city was plagued by various ills of
urbanization like pollution, poverty and traffic congestion. Currently however Kolkata
is enjoying a renaissance of sorts and it has since the early 2000’s become an important
hub for the Indian technology sector; in fact it is the only such epicenter in the
Eastern part of the country which is attracting much business interest and investment.
Kolkata is served by the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport which
is located at a distance of 17km from the city center .The airport has three terminals
– domestic, international and cargo and is also connected to the Kolkata Suburban
Railway. The Kolkata airport can be accessed via an hour’s drive from the heart
of the city. This airport plays host to numerous international and domestic carriers
like Thai, Qantas, British Airways, Malaysian Airlines, Singapore Airlines, Cathay
Pacific, Emirates, Jet Airways and Kingfisher Airlines and if you are planning on
traveling to Kolkata anytime soon it is quite likely that you will use one of these
carriers to access the city.
In fact if you are flying out to Kolkata from the US you must prepare yourself for
a long, back breaking journey which can easily extend over twenty-four hours due
to connections and stopovers. However you can greatly reduce the agony of such a
journey by opting for business class travel to Kolkata. Most folks will however
deter you by saying that business class airfares to Kolkata from the US are prohibitive
and out of reach for most people but this is not entirely true for cheap business
class airfares to Kolkata do exist and are in fact promoted by the airlines themselves
who distribute these business class deals to Kolkata via dedicated email newsletters
or through various social media outlets as is the norm nowadays.
Moreover these discount business class airfares to Kolkata are in no way inferior
to regular business class fares for they come with all the perks normally associated
with business class like priority check-in, extra baggage allowance, airline lounge
access and several onboard comforts like fully flat bed and elevated levels of service
all of which can make your long journey to cultural capital of India infinitely
smoother and more comfortable. Additionally these cheap business class tickets to
Kolkata also have mileage accrual and seating choice benefits which are hard to
come by in coach and sometimes the airline offering a business class deal to Kolkata
may even throw in a complementary stay for a night or two at a luxurious hotel in
Kolkata as a part of the deal. All these benefits greatly justify the excess outlay
that you may have to incur on your cheap business class fares to Kolkata and if
by chance you have missed the deal offered by the airline then you can always turn
to a reputable airfares consolidator for a similar discount business class fare
to Kolkata. Consolidators always have stock of discount business class airfares
to various worldwide destinations due to their exclusive consolidator contracts
with airlines and often can supply them to you at short notice.
Kolkata which is also associated with two Nobel laureates, Mother Theresa who was
a champion of Kolkata’s poor and disadvantaged and the noted writer and poet, Rabindranath
Tagore who composed India’s national anthem is quite a fascinating city which offers
a wide assortment of attractions like the Great Banyan tree which is located in
the verdant Indian Botanical Gardens at Howrah. This star attraction of the garden
is over 200 years old and extends over nearly 5300 square feet. Additionally it
has the appearance of several trees as many of its hanging roots have reached the
ground and taken root there. Yet another famous attraction of Kolkata is its magnificent
marble edifice which is known as the Victoria Memorial. This building which today
houses a museum and has manicured gardens and lakes within its environs was built
in 1921 to commemorate Queen Victoria and is perhaps Kolkata’s most well-known attraction.
Another attraction of note in Kolkata is the Indian Museum which is also known as
Jadu Ghar and is the oldest museum in India. The museum which is hosted in a dilapidated
building has a spectacular collection of over 100,000 exhibits that include dinosaur
and mammoth skeletons and even an Egyptian mummy. The museum also has the largest
collection of Indian coins in the world along with interesting exhibits of textiles,
jewelry and decorative arts.
Like every other Indian city, Kolkata celebrates a number of festivals each year
but amongst its many celebrations is the Durga Puja fest which extends over ten
days every September/October. Colloquially referred to as ‘pooja’ this festival
sees the erection of small kiosks called ‘pandals’ all over the city. These elaborately
decorated pandals all house idols of the Goddess Kali who is associated with eternal
energy and is the patron of Kolkata. These idols are worshipped with elaborate rituals
and celebrations for the entire duration of the festival and during this time yet
another one of Kolkata’s famed attractions, the Kalighat temple which is over 350
years old is the also center of much activity. At the end of ‘pooja’ the idols of
Kali are immersed into the Hooghly River with much pomp and ceremony. If you happen
to be in Kolkata during ‘pooja’ you are bound to be swept up in the celebrations
as the festivities seem to engulf the entire city.
Other important events on Kolkata’s event calendar include extravaganzas like the
Kolkata Book Fair which is considered to be biggest book fair in Asia. This book
fair which is held in January/February each year is an immensely popular event which
has been attracting publishers, writers, buyers and authors from India and the rest
of the world for over 33 years with a busy program that includes diverse and interesting
lectures, seminars and exhibitions.