Are you planning a trip to India? Whether you want to visit home or just wanna travel to this diverse land to find what you seek, discovering cheap tickets to India can be a challenge. We provide super low fares year-round to students and 18-25 year olds on flights to just about anywhere. While our prices are consistently low, if you’re shopping during peak travel times, just remember that the fare might be a little pricier than in off-season travel. Here are some tips to help you grab your cheap flights to India from the US:

  1. Book at least two months in advance
  2. Two one-way tickets can be a better deal
  3. A flight with a longer duration will be cheaper
  4. Check alternative destination options
  5. Look for festive discounts
  6. Subscribe to our newsletter emails

So, let’s dive into it.

Book at least two months in advance

I know this sounds cliche, but it’s worth a mention. For flights with a longer distance, two months might still not get you a good deal, especially from the US to India, as there are a lot of Indian students wanting to fly home during peak seasons like summer and winter breaks. Nearly 269,000 Indian students are currently enrolled at US universities – a number that has greatly increased year-over-year since the pandemic. No wonder the prices have gone up, right? But don’t worry, StudentUniverse is always devoted to providing cheap international flight tickets, including to India.

Even if you missed booking ahead of time or in the case of sudden plans, you can still find some reasonable prices for flight tickets to India if you are flexible on travel dates.

Student planning a trip to India from the US ahead of time

Two one-way tickets can be cheaper

Although this might sound silly, it can be very effective to get cheap flights to India for your “roundtrip” journey from the USA. It allows flexibility in terms of dates because you can select dates based on your preferences. You can shift your departure date or arrival date to the cheapest options depending on your urgency and save money on either or both dates. You also have the freedom to choose different airlines based on your comfort and budget. Plus, buy two one-ways gives you the power to book your two trips with different airlines, allowing true optimization for the cheapest journey.

Happy student after booking two cheap one-way international flight tickets from the US to India on StudentUniverse

A flight with a longer duration might be cheaper

Although this isn’t what everyone would like to do, this could be a money saver for some. I’ve known people taking longer flights of even 36 hours to India to save on flight tickets. I do not blame them as sometimes the tickets are just too expensive. But I’m not suggesting you take a long haul of 36 hours. However, if you wouldn’t mind taking a flight as long as 24-27 hours, you can save some serious money in comparison to quicker, more direct options.

Check alternative destinations

Booking an international flight to anywhere in India would cost you somewhat similar. However, there can be a case where you might find a cheaper flight to a different destination in India. For instance, if you are looking for a flight from Dallas to Hyderabad, also look for flights from Dallas to Mumbai, Dallas to Chennai, or Dallas to Bengaluru, and then travel to Hyderabad domestically. Don’t forget about different airports on the US side, too! Mixing up your city pairings can be a great tip to finding cheap flights to India. Remember, travel in India is cheaper, and you get multiple options to travel within India. While it might be hectic to travel, if you have friends or family in any of those cities, you can rest there and later transit to your destination. 

If you don’t know anyone in that city, this could be an excellent opportunity to explore a new place! Not to forget, there are multiple accommodation options, based on preferences, available, too.

Look for festive discounts

Now we all know there are amazing discounts during the festive season and in can be a great time to save big on everything from flights and hotels, to clothes, and more. Here at StudentUniverse, we work hard to run deals when we know you as a student traveler will want to see them. Think spring break trips going on sale in February/March, summer flights on sale in May, and winter break flights on sale during the fall. While these are awesome opportunities to book with promo codes, if you do happen to find a good deal when a sale isn’t currently happening – don’t let that stop you from booking! You never know when airlines will change their prices so it’s best to grab that good deal while you see it rather than risk the price increasing later.

Subscribe to our newsletter emails

Subscribe to our email newsletter to stay updated with the latest deals and discounts delivered to your inbox so that you don’t miss out on them. We won’t spam you with too many emails, we promise. But we will email you when we have a sale, as well as sending you great deals, travel inspiration, giveaways, and travel tips and tricks.