High Airfare Prices Prompt Travellers to Choose Buses for Eid Return Journeys

The increase in air ticket prices ahead of Eid al-Fitr 1447 H has prompted return travellers to choose buses as their mode of transport to go back to their hometowns. In particular, those travelling between provinces find buses a logical choice amid the unaffordable rise in plane tickets for middle-class society. Whereas in 2022, a Jakarta-Padang plane ticket was around Rp 900,000 per person, it has now risen sharply to Rp 1.7 million per person. He chose bus transport to go back to his hometown because the difference with the plane ticket price is too great. With Rp 800,000, Yos can take his younger sibling and mother back to the village if using the bus. “If (bus) this Rp 800,000 I bring my sibling and mother, the three of us,” he said. Regarding the time, bus departure schedules are more flexible and varied. Thus, he does not need to rush back to the village and later return to the city. “For me, usually like that, three days before Eid so when arriving there (Padang) it’s already dawn of Eid,” he said. If using a plane, besides the cost factor, the flight schedules do not support the time pattern he has set. “Because I don’t want to stay long. Because I return after three days (to Jakarta) to work again,” he said. Besides Yos, there is Roni (46) who plans to return from Jakarta to Jepara, Central Java. If taking a plane, it is burdensome in terms of cost and the journey time is longer because he must transit first in Semarang.