Flight Tips

IndiGo runs a buy-on-board model, so a vegetarian meal is not automatic unless your fare includes one. You can pre-book a vegetarian option through 6E Eats on the IndiGo website, app or Manage Booking, ideally at least 24 hours before departure so your chosen meal is guaranteed rather than a standard snack. Updated October 2026

Yes, helmets are generally allowed on Indian flights, either as cabin baggage if they fit within the airline’s size and weight limit, or as checked baggage otherwise. A helmet carried in the cabin counts toward your normal cabin allowance rather than travelling for free, so check the dimensions before you decide where to pack it.

Camping gas cartridges, butane canisters and any filled fuel container are banned from both cabin and checked baggage on Indian flights, since they are a flammable dangerous good. An empty, cleaned stove without fuel is often acceptable as checked baggage, but this depends on the airline, so the safer plan is to carry the stove

Dry ice is allowed on flights only in limited, vented, labelled packaging, capped at 2.5 kg per passenger under IATA rules, and airlines want advance notice. Ordinary frozen food like ice cream or frozen vegetables is best packed in checked baggage, since anything that melts in flight counts as a liquid and falls foul of

Dry prasad like Tirupati laddu generally travels fine in both cabin and checked baggage, packed in a sealed or transparent container for easy security screening. Liquid or semi-liquid prasad, such as panchamrit or soft ghee-based sweets, falls under the standard 100 ml per container rule if carried in cabin baggage, so larger quantities should go

India has rolled out chip-enabled e-passports under Passport Seva Programme 2.0, formally launched in mid-2025 and extended across regional passport offices since. The embedded chip stores your personal and biometric details digitally alongside the printed page, following international passport standards, and is identified by a small symbol on the front cover. Your existing non-chip passport

The US State Department significantly narrowed who can skip an in-person visa interview, with the tightened rules taking effect from 1 October 2025. Most nonimmigrant applicants, across almost every age group, now need an interview. The main exception left for many Indian travellers is B1/B2 tourist or business visa renewal, under specific conditions, plus a

The Thailand Digital Arrival Card, or TDAC, is a free online form every foreign traveller must submit before entering Thailand. Indians should file it at the official site, tdac.immigration.go.th, within three days before arrival, with passport, travel and accommodation details. It replaced the old paper TM6 form in 2025. Indians separately get 30 days visa-free

Winter school holidays in India generally run from around Christmas into the first half of January, though exact dates vary by state and board. Flights across this window get booked up and priced up fast because of the Christmas and New Year rush, so book both onward and return legs early, check infant fee rules

Rovaniemi in Finnish Lapland, home to the official Santa Claus Village on the Arctic Circle, is a popular December trip from India. Indian passport holders need a Finland Schengen visa, which typically takes two to three weeks to process, so apply well ahead of travel. Fly via Helsinki, Finland’s only direct link to India, or