An original place for a holiday party at reduced prices has been named: on top of the New Year

Those who, in light of the shortage of affordable New Year’s tours, have not saved up for a trip, have a chance to fly cheaply right on New Year’s Eve. And not just fly away, but take part in the New Year’s party on board.

We learned the details from those who decided on such an adventure.

“Invitations” to a high-altitude New Year’s celebration from domestic airlines are impressive: for example, from Moscow you can fly to Baku for only 6,700 rubles (in normal times about 15 thousand rubles one way), from Sochi to Yekaterinburg for 2,024 rubles, and to Moscow for 1900 rub. Before and after the New Year, tickets for the same flights are many times more expensive.

“Prices for flights always fall on New Year’s Eve,” says Alina, a flight attendant at one of the domestic airlines. – Everyone wants to celebrate the New Year at the table with loved ones, and not with us in the air. Therefore, it is not so easy to assemble the crews leaving for the flight on New Year’s Eve; everyone wants to be at home. But for us, those who are ready to spend New Year’s Eve with passengers, of course, bonuses to our salaries. For example, I always agree, but not even for the sake of money. I myself was born right on board, and it so happened that 26 years ago, on January 1, my mother was just flying home to give birth to me in Yekaterinburg, but was a little late.

– Is it true that tickets for this New Year’s Eve have become especially cheaper?

– Is it true. But not in all directions, of course. For a million rubles one way there is also one. From Moscow and St. Petersburg to the Maldives and Phuket, for example. But this is business class. They have a Christmas tree, artists and champagne on board. Many people consider a party to be a good way to ring in the New Year. But on shorter routes, discounts on New Year’s Eve also depend on the departure time. For example, the cheapest New Year’s flight today departs from Sochi to Moscow at 23.35 and arrives at 3.05. Minus takeoff and landing, when you can’t get up from your seats, they don’t have much time for New Year’s toasts. Champagne will be poured for them, but the rest of the festive night will be occupied by non-celebratory matters – a trip to the airport, registration, security screening, and so on.

The Russians, even among those who never found money for a New Year’s trip, have not lost their ingenuity and have already figured out how to combine business with pleasure.

“I was going to Goa in January anyway,” shares Svetlana from Tver. “I have friends renting a house there, waiting for me.” They stopped the prices for one-way tickets; in India, the end of December is high season, so prices are soaring. I was looking for discounts at the end of January, and then I saw right on New Year’s Eve tickets to Delhi in business class with a New Year’s party for only 100 thousand – that’s what I would have paid at another time for regular economy. And at other times these cost from half a million, but, apparently, there are few people who want to fly directly on New Year’s Eve. And I’ll fly, it’s even interesting, I’ve never flown on business, I’ll clink glasses there with the rich ones for the New Year.

Meanwhile, airlines continue to attract: on board significantly cheaper New Year flights from Moscow abroad (the cheapest are Istanbul and Guangzhou, only 10.7 thousand rubles and Abu Dhabi for 26 thousand rubles), passengers will be served Olivier, champagne and collectible chocolate, and New Year’s gifts will be waiting for them under the air tree, including free flights in the coming year.

At approximately the same prices (from 9 to 11 thousand rubles) on New Year’s Eve, Muscovites and St. Petersburg residents, in the best traditions of their favorite New Year’s cinema, can find themselves in Vladivostok, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Krasnoyarsk, Khabarovsk and Blagoveshchensk with a glass of sparkling wine.

“And we will celebrate the New Year twice for only 14 thousand rubles,” triumphs a couple of Muscovites who were recently planning to go to Venezuela in January, but changed their minds after seeing the New Year’s “air offer.” – We bought a ticket from Moscow to Havana with departure from Moscow at 10.50 am on December 31st. The flight there takes more than 14 hours, so according to our time, we will celebrate the New Year in the air, they promise a New Year’s party. And we arrive in Cuba at 17.00 their time, and it’s back for them, that is, they will still have December 31st. Just time to wash, sleep, change clothes and it’s New Year again!

Considering the results of a recent study claiming that more than half of Russians spend money on air tickets without remorse only if they are within 45 thousand rubles, and the Magadan region was named the most expensive domestic destination (the cheapest is the Nenets Autonomous Okrug), there is only one question left, and it is to to the flight attendant.

– Nowadays there are so many complaints about air rowdy people at ordinary times, but here it is New Year, there are legitimate toasts. Aren’t you afraid that there will be chaos in the skies on New Year’s Eve due to these air parties?

– Oh, don’t worry about that! New Year’s crews have special instructions, and not only regarding Olivier and Santa Claus and Snow Maiden costumes. Although we will be very festive, we never forget about safety in flight, it comes first.

Well, if the soft handcuffs assigned to air rowdies for New Year’s Eve are decorated with snowflakes, even they won’t spoil the flying party.