nHere’s an innovative offer from Lufthansa. The German airline is trying to lure more passengers for its new flights to West Asia. So, it has tied up with Air-India. The offer’s great for passengers who’ve been considering a pilgrimage to Jeddah or dying to shop in Dubai. You can now build in a stopover at Abu Dhabi, Muscat, Dubai, Kuwait or Jeddah, en-route to Frankfurt or Munich (or make the stop on the way back). Here’s how it works: Lufthansa and Air India have come together so passengers can fly to any of the five destinations in the Middle East on Air-India on your way to Europe and hop on to a Lufthansa flight for the onward journey. Or, passengers can stop over in the Middle East on their way back, flying the last leg back home on A-I. The triangular fares are mileage-based (depending on where you stopover), beginning at Rs 37,485.

nThe Big Apple just got a bit closer for people who live in Chennai. Starting this month Delta is flying daily from Chennai to New York via Paris. The airline, that has been operating in India since 1991 is targeting business and leisure travellers and has tailored the flights for Indians. That means it will serve a very Indian menu, with channa dal, chicken Nilgiri korma and saffron rice and show Tamil movies all the way to the Big Apple. The airline is flying Boeing 767-300ER planes that seat 204 people.