As the Sankranti festival approaches, there has been a significant surge in air and bus fares, causing inconvenience for travelers planning to visit their hometowns.

The demand for transportation has led to a substantial increase in prices, impacting both airfares and private bus tickets.

Despite the RTC's announcement of special buses, private bus fares to Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam, and various parts of Andhra Pradesh have witnessed a notable hike. 

Train tickets for routes like Hyderabad to Visakhapatnam, Vijayawada, Rajahmundry, Srikakulam, and other destinations were sold out as early as December.

For flights from Hyderabad to Vizag, the one-way non-stop fare for Thursday reached 21,000, five times higher than the regular price.

The Air India flight with stops in Mumbai and Delhi, with layovers of four to seven hours at each stop, soared to almost 60,000.

Fares for Friday and Saturday surpassed 18,000, while Sunday's tickets ranged between 9,000 to 10,000, compared to the normal price of up to 4,500.

Similarly, airfares from Hyderabad to Vijayawada surged by at least four times, reaching 28,000 on Thursday and 11,000 on Friday, with Sunday fares at 10,000 against the regular ticket fare of 3,600 to 4,000.

The surge extended to bus fares, with prices from Hyderabad to Visakhapatnam reaching 5,000 per passenger, double the usual fare of up to 2,500.

Travelers faced increased fares across all types of private buses, including normal and sleeper services. According to travel agents, the surge began on Wednesday morning as people from Andhra Pradesh working in Hyderabad started booking flights for the weekend.