Lagos to London One Way Ticket No More N800k as Airlines Adjust Prices to Match Naira Depreciation

• Nigerians looking to travel abroad will have to save more money to buy flight tickets as airlines adjust their ticket prices according to the naira exchange rate
• A six-hour flight from Lagos to London that used to cost between N800,000 and N1.2 million may now be sold for N2 million depending on the time of booking
• The National Bureau of Statistics' recent report revealed that 2.21 million international passengers were recorded in 2021

Foreign and local airlines have adjusted their airfare to reflect the drop in the naira's value in the official foreign exchange market.

This development follows the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)'s decision to float the naira and the directive to commercial banks to sell foreign currencies at market-determined rates.

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Air travel from Nigeria gets more expensive

Punch reports that the International Air Transport Association (IATA) platform has decided to adjust its exchange rate for pricing tickets in Nigeria from 663.04/$ to N770/$.

As a result, one-way economy class tickets on international routes from Nigeria could be sold for as high as N2 million, no longer N800,000.

The new IATA Rate of Exchange (IRoE), registered by the Global Distribution System (GDS), showed that a six-hour Lagos-London economy class ticket now sells for between N1.3 million to N2.5 million, depending on the airline of choice, place, and time of booking, Leadership reports.

While business class tickets to London from Lagos now go for as high as N3.36 million to N4.8 million.

Expert Opinion as airlines increase airfares

Providing insights into the adjustments, Susan Akporiaye, the President of the National Association of Travel Agents of Nigeria (NANTA), clarifies that tickets are currently being sold at the exchange rate determined by the Investors' and Exporters' (I&E) window.

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She noted:

"Tomorrow prices may drop, or may even go higher. Currently, the prices of tickets cannot be determined until they are purchased. The N770/$ is the highest the exchange rate has gone so far."

Kebbi tops list of states with highest airfare in Nigeria

Meanwhile, other Nigerian airline operators have increased the price of travelling from one part of the country to another.

The most expensive route to fly is Kebbi to Abia, with some airfares costing as much as N80,000

The development comes at a time when travelling by air is heightened as Nigerians looking to escape the insecurity challenges on the highway.

Source: Legit.ng