10 Scenic Flight Routes Worth Fighting The Window Seat For

The hills are definitely a calming view, and if you aren't a mountain person this journey will change that. The flight from Chandigarh to Leh starts with a view of the green farms of Punjab, which dramatically evolves into snow-capped mountains of the Himalayas. You will get to marvel at the Rohtang Pass stretch that captures a panoramic view of the hills, only made better with the passing clouds, interspersed with roads and water bodies. 

Journey time: 1 hour, 5 minutes (non-stop flight)

Flight distance: 388 kilometres

One-way flight price: INR 9,000 onwards

Best time to visit: May to September

Best time to fly: Mid day flight

Pro Tip: Everything you can do in Ladakh is right here! 

This is one of my favourite flight views ever. Being a beach lover, this view is a coastal paradise that beckons to you with turquoise waters and golden sands. The Andamans are gifted with calm water bodies courtesy of the Bay of Bengal, interspersed with islands that you can cover in a two-day cruise. Soaring above its capital, Port Blair, expect to see clean waters, green lands, and sands that will definitely not give you the ick. 

Journey time: 2 hours, 20 minutes (non-stop flight)

Flight distance: 1,368 kilometres

One-way flight price: INR 4,000 onwards

Best time to visit: October to May

Best time to fly: Morning flight

Pro Tip: Here's everything you can see in Andaman! 

While the distance can be fairly covered by both road and train, the flight from Jaipur to Khajuraho is an experience every architecture lover will enjoy. You take off from forts and enter a realm of forts that have a different range of architectural expressions, aura, and purpose. Picture an expanse of forts, each merging into the other with beautiful domes, archways, and a simply magnificent sunrise or sunset complementing it all. Khajuraho, a UNESCO world heritage site, is dotted with intricate temples, museums, and is a microcosm of history that you'll get to see from the get-go. 

Journey time: 1 hour, 30 minutes (non-stop flight)

Flight distance: 475 kilometres

One-way flight price: INR 3,500 onwards

Best time to visit: October to March

Best time to fly: Sunset flight

As someone who has been blessed enough to be a part of the Holy Ganges Aarti at Varanasi, the entire experience is surreal. This is one flight route that has a different kind of energy that you can simply feel through your window itself, especially in the evenings when the Ganga river comes alive with diyas, lights, and throngs of devotees setting afloat their oil lamps. The view looks like a golden sanctuary of peace and divine intervention that will stay with you long after you leave the city. 

Journey time: 1 hour, 55 minutes (non-stop flight)

Flight distance: 994 kilometres

One-way flight price: INR 3,500 onwards

Best time to visit: November to February

Best time to fly: Sundowner flight

Pro Tip: Here's everything you can do in Varanasi, from places to eat and stay, to temples to visit! 

If you are a hill station lover, you cannot miss out on the absolute gem of a view that this flight offers. This is one scenic flight route that gives you the best of both worlds, starting off with lush green tea plantations of Darjeeling and capping it off with the surreal view of Kanchenjunga, snow-capped and blissful, standing strong in the distance. This is the view that will definitely make it to your next motivational poster. 

Journey time: 1 hour, 5 minutes (non-stop flight)

Flight distance: 447 kilometres

One-way flight price: INR 3,800 onwards

Best time to visit: October to March

Best time to fly: Sunrise/sunset flight

Any flight from Kathmandu, for that matter, is a trip you'll enjoy thoroughly if you love a scene that you wish you could paint. The flight from Kathmandu to Delhi is a no-brainer flight to book the window seat for. Picture a scenic and peaceful view of the Himalayan ranges, only made better with the pinkish hues of sunset or the glowing yellow beginnings of a sunrise. The snow-capped mountains are the perfect backdrop for that lo-fi playlist you have been building. Yes, there may be clouds, but be patient as the hills will reveal themselves to you in due course. 

Journey time: 1 hour, 55 minutes (non-stop flight)

Flight distance: 815 kilometres

One-way flight price: INR 8,000 onwards

Best time to visit: October to March

Best time to fly: Morning or evening flight

Viewing the Northern Lights is an experience like no other. If you wish to fulfill this bucket list goal of yours, you need to be a bit calculative. The Northern Lights are a phenomenon based on chance. To increase your chances of viewing them from your flight, book one that flies from the North to the South, especially with routes above Alaska, Greenland, or the Arctic. Travelling in the winter during the night is your best bet. Consider asking your travel agent or service provider about the flight route, if it's above Aurora Oval (area of high aurora intensity), and make sure you check the weather for your travel dates. Some ideal flight routes would be Los Angeles to Helsinki, Tokyo, and Seoul, and flights that fly to Finland and Iceland. 

Journey time: 25 hours to 1.5 days (India to Alaska) (one-stop flight)

Flight distance: 16,206 kilometres

One-way flight price: INR 50,000 onwards

Best time to visit: Late August to April

Best time to fly: Night flight

The Grand Canyon is a view so breathtaking, it leaves many weak in the knees. The entire view is made of geological colour and erosional forms carved by the Colorado River. You get to view its enormous buttes, pinnacles, and mesas, which make for the perfect postcard photograph. To view the Grand Canyon, there are custom helicopter tours that take this flight route to give you a tour of this popular destination. But if you want to view it on a commercial flight, the ones that fly from SeaTac to Phoenix or Phoenix to Seattle are the ones to book. 

Journey time: 3 hours, 5 minutes (Phoenix to Seattle, non-stop flight)

Flight distance: 1,781 kilometres

One-way flight price: INR 7,000 onwards

Best time to visit: March to May, September to October

Best time to fly: Morning flight

Santorini has long become an aesthetic, thanks to its white buildings with blue roofs and clean, cobble-stoned pathways with green vines and beautiful blooms. The city is a treat to look at from above, a calming mesh of white and blue in the backdrop of a beautiful pink sunset. Greece has a charm of its own, and you can't deny that it has been on all our vacation plans at some point. A flight from Athens to Santorini gives you a panoramic view of the Caldera, the commercial part of the city that has been on our vision boards for quite some time now. 

Journey time: 1 hour (non-stop flight)

Flight distance: 220 kilometres

One-way flight price: INR 1,500 onwards

Best time to visit: April to May, September to October

Best time to fly: Sunset flight

Look out the window on any flight above the Antarctic desert, and all you'll see is enviable white snow that tickles all your clean obsession the right way. Pristine snow-clad mountains, rich snowy terrains, punctuated by a water body or two here and there: this view is the perfect poster child for winter in the truest sense. However, due to the extreme weather conditions, no commercial flights fly directly above, so you'll have to sign up for an Antarctic desert tour that takes place on a flight. 

Best time to visit: Late October to March

Best time to fly: Winter morning flight

As someone who dreams of going to New York City ever since seeing it on every romcom ever, this one had to make it to the list of scenic flight routes that are unmissable. A bustling city with skyscrapers, glistening in the light of dreams and glamour, it is the perfect sundown view that calms your nerves. You almost forget everything that weighs you down when you look at NYC through your flight, high above all the noise and traffic. 

Best time to visit: April to June, September to November

Best time to fly: Evening sundowner flight