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  About Kolkata

The capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, Kolkata, is famed to be one of the best metropolitan cities in the country. Known as one of the busiest cities, the rich and illustrious history is a testament to the Kolkata's culture. The cuisine does not just reflect this that they are famously known for but also the city's pristine architecture. There are a plethora of sites and important institutions that must be visited to understand the history and the magnitude of the British influence on the city. From mishti dois to doi potol to rasgullas, the elaborate list of dishes from the Bengali culture can be found in every nook and corner of Kolkata.

Best time to visit Kolkata

The months from October to March is considered the best to visit Kolkata. The temperatures see a pleasant drop while the air is cool and comfortable. The December and January months see temperatures ranging between 9 degree Celsius and 11 degree Celsius, making it cold but beautiful. The winter season also sees various important festivals observed by the Bengalis such as Durga Puja, Laxmi Puja and Kali Puja. As it is a peak season, the flight tickets to Kolkata might soar a little.

Just like most of India, the months of April to May sees a tremendous surge in the temperatures, making the atmosphere too hot. In Kolkata, summers range between 30 degree Celsius to 40 degree Celsius, which is quite a lot to bear. It automatically affects the plans to sightsee, especially if you are a tourist. If you are unfazed by the harsh sun during the summer, then you should visit the city. The flight tickets to Kolkata are cheap and affordable. As the accommodations are so low-priced, you can reach the city and book a hotel too.

The city does witness tremendous rainfall from June to September, come monsoon. However, of all the months, August is the wettest for Kolkata during rains. The best part about rains is how the city is filled with hawkers selling munchies while chai becomes the partner in crime.

Places to visit in Kolkata

Ensure to add the Victoria Memorial to your itinerary of places to visit in Kolkata. The structure looks like it has been picked out of a fairytale with its exquisite Victorian architecture and the well-kept gardens. Discover more about the English influence by visiting Fort Williams. The enormous white structure has been an important part of British rule and continues to play a vital role in today's Kolkata as well. This 19th-century palatial estate located in the North of Kolkata once belonged to the royal families of Kolkata.

It would be a sin to miss the Howrah Bridge, when in Kolkata. The Harbour Bridge of India is the oldest and the busiest roads you will find in the city. The bridge has been built over the Hoogly river and plays a vital role in connecting two big cities, Kolkata and Howrah. The Tagore House is also one of the famous tourist attractions. The former house of the Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore, the Tagore House has photo galleries, paintings and literary works of the poet. Kolkata's biggest attraction, though, is the Sunderbans. Listed under the UNESCO World Heritage Site and being called the largest tiger reserve in India, the Sunderbans have a reputation for bringing forth a surreal for travellers.

The city also has various temples, churches and mosques that can be added to your list of places to visit in Kolkata. St Paul's Cathedral is famed for its stature as the largest church in Kolkata. As for temples, since the Bengalis have extreme faith in Goddess Durga and her various forms, there are several Devi temples and shrines that you will see in the city. The Kalighat Kali Temple, Dakshineswar Kali Temple, Birla Mandir, to name a few are beautiful temples with interesting architecture that should be explored. Do not miss the Nakhoda Mosque, which is located in Rabindra Sarani.

Things to do in Kolkata

There are several fun things to do within the city of Kolkata. You can take a book and sit by the Rabindra Sarovar to savour in the literature as well as the peaceful ambience of the place. Or you can always opt to go a little bonkers at the Aquatica, a water amusement park, touted to be the largest in the Eastern parts of India. If you think there is a lot more you need to know about the city, then the Indian Museum is your place to be.

The city has a few ghats such as Princey Ghat, located close to the Hoogly river and you should check them out. No trip can be signed off as complete with a little shopping indulgence. Head to the Park Street and haggle for some pretty accessories, Dokra and paper mâché masks when you're in Kolkata. You can further indulge in some street food binge too.

Food and Restaurants in Kolkata

The Mughals and British heavily influence Kolkata's food culture. It is believed that the Mughals played a catalyst to bring forth the famed Bengali sweets. The idea to use dry fruits in food was a Persian thing that they practised and have been doing to this day. While the enthusiasm for art and literature is very Western, the cuisine has a blend of Chinese, Portuguese and Armenian.

Flurry's, Mocambo, Fire and Ice Pizzeria, Mrs Magpie, to name a few, have the best Continental and English spread that one can ask for in Kolkata. The quaint restaurants don't just offer their lip-smacking food but also a piece of their soul when they interact with their customers. From cute cupcakes to a delicious English breakfast, these places would give you the best food in the city.

For the sweet tooth in you, visit Balaram Mullick and Radharam Mullick to taste their legendary flavours as they constantly work on improving and innovating new sweets to keep the customers engaged. The sweets shop is actually run by the Scion of the Mullick Dynasty that was prevalent in Bengal 150 years ago.

Kewpie's Kitchen, Koshe Kosha, Indian Coffee House, Paris Cafe and Kusum Rolls are some joints which offer amazing cafe and fast food. These places do add more intrigue to the food culture of Kolkata.

How to reach Kolkata

By Air

As one of the top cities of India, Kolkata has a domestic as well as an international airport. Touted to be one of the busiest airports in the country, The Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport, better known as Kolkata International Airport, has excellent connectivity with domestic as well as international cities. The flight connectivity to and from Kolkata is brilliant as the city has flights coming in from major Indian cities such as Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, etc. In fact, the airport also sees flights from Kolkata reaching other top international cities.

The international routes directly connected with Kolkata include Doha, Dubai, Bangkok, Singapore, Chittagong, Dhaka, Hong Kong, etc. You can easily book direct flights from Kolkata to these international destinations without having to compromise on the time duration as well as layover concerns. Major Indian, as well as international airlines, also have dedicated flights and parking stations in the city's airport.

One need to fret over flight tickets to Kolkata as the busy airport sees a lot of action with many travellers making their way in and out of the city. Interestingly, out of all the top metro cities in India, flight tickets to Kolkata are the cheapest. This means you can always opt for a cheap flight to Kolkata and get great deals on the same.

By Rail

There are two important railway stations that connect the city from the rest of the country. The Howrah Railway Station and the Sealdah Railway station see outstation trains arriving in and leaving Kolkata. However, they are not the only two stations which see trains connecting to other cities. Even the Chitpur railway station, Shalimar Railway station and Kharagpur railway station have express and intercity trains connecting Kolkata with various cities within West Bengal and other states.

Some of the most famous express trains to travel to Kolkata are Duronto Express, Rajdhani Express and Jan Shatabdi Express. There are special trains such as Garib Rath Express and Yuva Express that also travel to the city. The train connectivity of Kolkata is excellent as it manages to connect with various states from Jammu & Kashmir to Kanyakumari. If you are unable to get flight tickets to Kolkata, splurging on a train ticket, especially an express train, is a good travel option.

By Road

The city's roadway connectivity is just as immaculate as the train and flight connectivity. Some of the major national highways and state highways connect Kolkata to important metro cities. Taking a road trip seems like a good option, provided you are travelling from Andhra Pradesh or Orissa or Jharkhand or even Bihar. The neighbouring states of West Bengal have dedicated buses to and from Kolkata as the domestic routes are well-connected. You can further connect to the North-Eastern states with utmost ease from the city as the domestic routes from Kolkata connect perfectly with Guwahati and Siliguri.

  About Thai Smile Airways

Thai Smile Airways is a low-cost regional carrier that predominantly caters to services in Thailand and India. The airline is fairly new in the aviation industry as it came into existence in 2012. Operations of Thai Smile Airways commenced in 2012. It is a subsidiary of Thai Airways International and is wholly owned by the parent company. The decision to commence a business for a new carrier came in 2011 by the Thai Airways board. They announced plans to come up with a low-cost carrier that would be emulating Thai Wings. The chairman of Thai's board of directors, Ampon Kittiampon, revealed plans for Thai Smile Airways in 2011. The main idea behind creating Thai Smile Airways is to provide to the market gap that low-cost airlines and main service airlines. Out of a pool of names that were collected from about 2,229 entries, the name Thai Smile was finally chosen. It was speculated that the airline would start showing profit margin two years from its inception.

Right from its first operations, Thai Smile Airways has managed to grow into an important subsidiary for Thai Airways International. There are plans to expand Thai Smile Airways' domestic route and regional route to accommodate more destinations and attract passengers in the process.

Fleet size of Thai Smile

As of 2020, Thai Smile's fleet size has 20 aircraft, all from the Airbus family. The airline has two diverse configurations to the Airbus A320-200 aircraft, namely 320 and 32S. Currently, the 320 configuration aircraft is in service and has about six of its as part of Thai Smikle's fleet. As for the remaining 14, they are all of the 32S configurations and in service. The major difference between the two variants of Airbus A320-200 is the seating class and configuration. While the 320 can accommodate about 168 total seating class, 32S has space for 162 seating class which can be utilised. The airline has not revealed any plans to expand its fleet or acquire new aircraft to replace the current ones. As it is a fairly new fleet, the requirement to replace the existing aircraft doesn't seem necessary. However, expansion of the fleet with more aircraft does seem like a good approach if the airline is rooting for some upscaling and is eyeing to connect to more domestic route and international route destinations.

Baggage Allowance

Thai Smile's baggage allowance is quite similar to the policy as set by Thai Airways International. Ahead of the journey, the airline expects passengers to understand more about their baggage allowance policy and ensure to follow the same. Thai Smile doesn't have a business class cabin on their flights as it is a regional carrier. However, it does offer a premium class and economy class cabin where the facilities are diverse. For international routes, Thai Smile allows the premium class passengers to carry about 40 kg for checked baggage. As for passengers travelling by economy class, the airline allows a maximum of 30 kg weight for checked baggage. It is necessary for travellers to adhere to this limit as the airline will not accept baggage weighing more than what's mentioned in their policy. Similarly, for domestic route transit, the airline allows 30 kg weight for premium class travellers and 20 kg for economy class passengers. The dimension of the baggage should also not exceed 158 cm and should be inclusive of the wheels, pockets and handles. This helps the airline accommodate the checked baggage in their aircraft. The rules are slightly tweaked for passengers travelling with Star Alliance or Royal Orchid mileage programme.

In-flight services

Thai Smile's in-flight services are in the lines of how one can enjoy immaculate hospitality on Thai Airways International flights. As its regional subsidiary, the in-flight services are just as good, even though they do not have many facilities to provide. The regional airline is a cost-effective venture that offers affordable tickets to basic travellers. Hence, in-flight services are also quite basic. The seating is decent, and there is enough legroom to wriggle in. The flight attendants are quite helpful and accommodating. Passengers who have premium memberships in the airline's mileage program and or are part of the Star Alliance's frequent flyer programme can receive several in-flight benefits ranging from complimentary in-flight meals to seat selection. For members of Royal Orchid Plus, the airline allows the passenger to select the seat, ahead of the transit. The passenger would not be charged extra fees for the seat selection. Other such in-flight services include the airlines offering complimentary meals and beverages that can be availed on domestic as well as international flights. In fact, travellers can pick from the menu that the airline has provided, which has several types of meal combos, including vegetarian and vegan meals. Additional carry-on baggage allowance can also be enjoyed by passengers.

Popular routes and top cities for Thai Smile

Thai Smile has managed to acquire several domestic routes and international route connectivity since its inception. With Bangkok as its hub and Chiang Mai as the focus city, the airline boasts exceptional route connectivity with Southeast Asian destinations. Some of the top cities include Chittagong, Phnom Penh, Siem Reap, Changsha, Chongqing, Zhengzhou, Hong Kong, Luang Prabang, Vientiane, Macao, Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Yangon, Mandalay, Kaohsiung, Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Hat Yai, Khon Kaen, Krabi, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Narathiwat, Phuket, Surat Thani, Ubon Ratchathani and Udon Thani. Simultaneously, Thai Smile caters to a slew of Indian cities. As a regional airline which has good international route connectivity with cities in India, it is not surprising to see the list of names that are part of its services. The Indian cities that Thai Smile operates services to include Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Gaya, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai, New Delhi and Varanasi. Out of these, Gaya is a seasonal destination wherein travellers majorly visit during Buddha Purnima. As Bodh Gaya is the place where Gautam Buddha is said to have attained enlightenment, the Indian city witnesses a huge number of tourists during Buddha Purnima from Buddhists around the world. Thailand, in general, is one of the cheapest and affordable tourist destinations for Indians. Hence, the country sees a huge number of tourists from India. To cater to the demand, Thai Smile has enabled several services that connect Thailand and India.

Why travel by Thai Smile?

Thai Smile Airways, as a subsidiary to Thai Airways International Public Company Limited, has the best domestic route connectivity. The airline's vision to become the Regional Favourite Airline in Thailand drives it to constantly work on enhancing the quality and efficiency of its services. From the start, the airline has been offering high-quality in-flight services and convenient facilities to meet the needs of passengers. Not to mention the affordability of such experiences that come at a pocket-friendly budget. As part of the Thai Airways International, the airline certainly has some exquisite benefits for passengers. The airline's mileage programme called Royal Orchid Plus has a slew of discounts and deals for passengers and loyal members. In fact, Thai Smile's affiliation with Star Alliance further adds to the perks that passengers can avail in terms of booking Thai Smile flight tickets, raking in better baggage allowance and getting access to airport lounges, to name a few.

Members of the Star Alliance network will receive tremendous benefits from travelling with Thai Smile. The alliance network came into existence in 1997 as a global airline alliance network. The idea behind bringing forth such a network is to combine seamless services while offering excellent connectivity and a worldwide reach for an international traveller. A frequent flyer of Star Alliance' mileage club will be making quite a few heads turn at the airport with the benefits and facilities that will be at their service. As part of Thai Airways International, Thai Smile is also eligible to provide the benefits of Star Alliance to its customers and passengers. Right from the priority at the check-in counters to airport lounge access, a Star Alliance frequent flyer member can make the most of their membership. Flying from Thai Smile will also add to the miles earned, which can be utilised for a more expensive trip.

While some of the obvious perks associated with the airline's privileged programmes are available, its in-flight services and ticketing facilities are also quite good. Thai Smile's in-flight services are top-notch and in lines with Thai Airways International's standards set. You can book a Thai Smile Airways flight ticket on their website and even avail some discounts and combo deals. In fact, they do offer multitudes of travel deals on the website. Planning a trip to Thailand with Thai Smile would actually be more cost-effective than one can imagine. In case you are travelling with family, you can receive several discounts with respect to flight tickets and accommodations too. Further, the airline's website also enables web check-in to make the passenger's travel scenes more convenient. Travellers can also get updates on flight status and flight schedules from their website.

  About Kolkata Airport

Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport is located in Dum Dum, in the state of West Bengal. The airport serves the Kolkata metropolis and is about 17 km away from the city centre. It was earlier called the Dum Dum Airport but was later renamed as the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport, in 1995. The airport is sprawled over 1,641 acres and is the largest hub for air traffic in the eastern locales of the country. It is also one of the two international airports in the eastern part, along with the Bagdogra Airport. The Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport accommodates the 20 million passengers, making it the fifth busiest airport in the country apropos passenger traffic. The Kolkata Airport falls behind Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai and Bangalore airports in terms of passenger traffic. The Kolkata Airport is also known to be a major hub for flights to connect to the Northeast parts of India, Southeast Asia, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, to name a few. Much recently, the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport received the honour as the Best Improved Airport in the Asia-Pacific region.

About Kolkata Airport Terminals

Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport recently received the new integrated terminal called T2. It is spread over 2,510,000 sq ft and can accommodate about 25 million passengers yearly. This is massively better compared to the previous terminal, which could only hold a capacity of 5 million. The L-shaped structure has six levels, 128 check-in counters and about 78 immigration booths with 12 customs counters. The airport also has passenger lounges that are provided by Air India. T2 is well-equipped with 18 aerobridges and sees remote parking bays of 57. The airport authorities have further planned to erect an 18-foot statue of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose at the T2 complex. The domestic terminals have been shut down for a good while the integrated terminal is in function. In the past, the airlines did see some setbacks as Lufthansa withdrew services to Frankfurt, leaving the airport with no nonstop and direct connections to countries beyond Asia. However, since the extended new terminal, the international operations have resumed and are attracting several airlines as well.

About airport authority

Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport is owned and served by the Airport Authority of India. The AAI has been catering to the extension, maintenance and development progression of the domestic and the international terminals of the Kolkata Airport. Over the years, the statutory body has been extending its development plans to make the airport more efficient. AAI was initially two separate boards namely, National Airports Authority and International Airports Authority of India, handling domestic and international flights respectively. In 1995 though, the two individual bodies were merged to form the Airports Authority of India (AAI). The present works to make the Kolkata Airport more accessible is in progress. There are talks of the airport receiving connectivity with a metro rail system to connect to the main city of Kolkata. Currently, buses and prepaid taxis are the only ways to reach the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport. Hence, the metro line would connect to the terminal directly.

Top airlines flying from Kolkata Airport

The Kolkata International Airport is the hub for airlines and flights flying to the North-Eastern parts of India. Many domestic and international airlines operate from the city. Kolkata is the hub of the East in India. The Kolkata Airport, one of the oldest in the country, has tremendously good connectivity to the North Eastern cities of India. Airlines such as Air Asia, AirAsia India, Air India, Alliance Air, GoAir, IndiGo, SpiceJet and Vistara, operate from the Kolkata International Airport. The futuristic airport manages to connect to cities such as Imphal, Guwahati, Bagdogra, Aizawl, Agartala, Shillong, Jharsuguda, Tezpur, Silchar, to name a few. These domestic airlines operating from the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport, have dedicated flights to various other cities in India too, including the major ones such as Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Bangalore.

As the fifth busiest airport, Kolkata does offer good connectivity to the North East cities as well as countries like Myanmar, Bangladesh, Bhutan and other countries in Southeast Asia. International airlines such as Bhutan Airlines, Biman Bangladesh Airlines, Cathay Dragon, China Eastern Airlines, Druk Air, Emirates, Etihad Airways, Malindo Air, Myanmar Airways, NovoAir, Qatar Airways, Regent Airways, Singapore Airlines, Srilankan Airlines, Thai AirAsia, Thai Airways, Thai Smile and US-Bangla Airlines, operate from the Kolkata International Airport. The airport also has international airlines connecting cities such as Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Bangkok, Hong Kong and more.

Facilities at Kolkata Airport

Airlines lounges - The airport accommodates a handful of airline lounges along with the airport's dedicated lounge. As an international airport, the Kolkata Airport does cater to world-class facilities at the lounge including spas, restaurants and relaxing seats to unwind.

Baggage - Some of the big perks of baggage at Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport include the provision of baggage wrapping services. This is to avoid the bags from being mishandled or for the contents to be affected. A wrapping fee is charged at the airport, which can be paid by cash, online payments or with the use of a debit or credit card. Along with the wrapping service, the airline also provides a storage facility. You can keep your bags here if there is a long layover or you can ask for a porter service too, to take care of your luggage. The services can be availed for up to 30 days, but the airport would carry a thorough security check before allowing the baggage to be stored.

Child care centre - For travellers in-transit with infants, the airport has reserved special child care rooms. The facility has all the child care essentials, including a changing table for the baby. They can be found at the arrival as well as the departure section of all the terminals. The room is well-maintained and hygienic.

ATMs and forex - Foreign exchange services are also available at the airport for travellers who may need extra liquid cash. Money transfers and other such money-related services are also available at the airport. These are specifically reserved for international passengers or travellers flying out of the country. Dedicated local banks have also been made available at the airport to help the passengers.

Postal services - In case you need to share some important document via courier or other mailing options, the airline has reserved a postal service specifically for such situations. You can find the postal services within the premise of the airport. You can find out more about this at the information desk located at regular intervals in the airport.

WiFi - The airport also allows free WiFi services within the vicinity. You can directly connect to the airport's WiFi network with a valid Indian mobile number. The services are available at the domestic and international terminals, at the waiting areas. The high-speed connection can be availed for approximately 45 minutes. Following this, the passenger will have to pay a fee to get access to more internet.

Medical services - There are round the clock medical facilities available at Terminal 2 of the airport. The medical services are managed by the Airports Authority of India along with Medica Super Speciality Hospital. They have inspection rooms as well as emergency paramedic supplies as well.

Special assistance - Passengers who require special assistance with respect to being escorted in a wheelchair or help with the braille symbols, can request for the same. It would be best to inform the airline ahead of time so that the airport staff can be accommodated to cater to the same. A staff would accompany the traveller with mobility or other health conditions.

Smoking zone - Smoking in public has been prohibited by the government. Hence, special smoking lounges have been installed within the premise of the airport. You can find them at both the domestic and international terminals.

Retiring room - The airport has introduced a convenient retiring room for passengers who have layovers. There are retiring rooms and dormitories at the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport that passengers can avail to rest and freshen up.

How to reach Kolkata Airport

By Rail and Metro

The Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport was once well-connected to the main Kolkata Suburban Railway system. From the Dum Dum Cantonment railway station (now Kolkata Suburban Railway Station), the airport was connected at the Biman Bandar station. However, with the state's plan to work on a metro line that connects the airport to the railway, the station has been shut for construction. Presently, the metro rail is under construction with the Kolkata Suburban Railway system's connectivity shut down. The distance is 4km long and elevated which also passes through Jessore Road. Once the metro rail completes construction, it will be directly linked with the terminals of the Kolkata Airport.

By Road

Currently, the only way to reach the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport is by hailing a taxi or getting a prepaid ride. The airport and the city have excellent prepaid taxi facilities and AC buses that do connect the city with the airport. The 2 km flyover built from Kestopur to Raghunathpur was specifically constructed to increase the efficiency of reaching the airport and to avoid the traffic. You can make bookings of a prepaid taxi can be made at the booths and counters at the domestic and international terminals of the airport. You can easily reach Kolkata International Airport by road.