AVIATION :KOLKATA TO KATHMANDU DIRECT FLIGHTS STARTING 19 OCTOBER 2025 BY BUDDHA AIR

(One-way fare starts from INR 7837. For travellers and pilgrims, tour and religious packages are also available to enhance the journey.)

BY DEBAJYOTI  CHAKRABORTY

KOLKATA | 24 SEPTEMBER 2025

Buddha Air, a leading private sector airline in Nepal, is resuming its second international flight to Kolkata, the capital of West Bengal, India, from October 19 onwards. Buddha Air is the only Nepali airline to operate direct flights between Kolkata and Kathmandu. Currently, there aren’t any flights being operated on this route; Buddha Air will be the only airline.

Initially, flights will be operated three days a week, on Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. The flight will depart from Kathmandu at 7:00 AM (local time) and 9:20 AM (local time) from Kolkata. The Kolkata flight will be operated by an ATR 72 aircraft, and the flight duration of this route will be approximately 1 hour and 35 minutes.

To save passengers both time and expenses, Buddha Air’s subsidiary Buddha Holidays offers outbound holiday packages from Nepal to India, covering popular religious and cultural destinations such as Jagannath Puri Darshan, the Sundarbans, and Gangasagar. Likewise, inbound holiday packages are available for Indian tourists, featuring iconic experiences in Nepal such as the Pashupatinath Temple, UNESCO World Heritage Sites, Muktinath Darshan, Annapurna Base Camp, Pokhara Paradise, as well as renowned national parks and wildlife adventures.

Whether it is a business, work or family trip, Buddha Air aims to attract Indian tourists to Nepal through its Kolkata flights. By offering convenient flights and holiday packages, the airline is confident this initiative will contribute significantly to the promotion of Nepal’s tourism.

Buddha Air operates more than six dozen daily flights across different parts of Nepal. In addition, Buddha Air operates international flights to Varanasi, India, three days a week, on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.

Earlier, Buddha Air had operated flights to Kolkata from May 27, 2019. Later, flights were temporarily suspended from December due to various reasons.

Mr. Jhakka Prasad Acharya, Consul General of Nepal in  Kolkata has welcomed the latest initiative to connect Kathmandu with the City of Joy by air.

Dr. Kaulesh Kumar, Secretary General of ABTO has welcomed the move and said that it will further boost both inbound and outbound  tourism in both these two countries and will also  witness a surge in Buddhist tourism.

The  SkalInternational,  Indian Association of Travel Operators (IATO), Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI),  Travel Agents Federation of India (TAFI) and Association of Buddhist Tour Operators (ABTO) have also welcomed the new kathmandu to Kolkata direct flight services from next month.