Two days ago, British band Coldplay announced the dates for their show in Ahmedabad, saying the band will hold their biggest ever show at the Narendra Modi Stadium which boasts of a seating capacity of 1,32,000 on January 25, 2025. This is in keeping with the band's Music of the Spheres World Tour. Ticket sale will begin on November 16 at 12pm. This has, reportedly, caused a massive spike in hotel rent in and around Ahmedabad—as much as 10 times the normal rates.
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For a city which is the potential frontrunner in the bid to host the 2036 Olympics, this seems to be a good way to begin. Given Ahmedabad's connectivity via flights from all metros in the country, the metro station which is barely a 4-minute walk from the venue, and January offering pleasant weather in the city, the choice was obvious. After all, with a band as big as Coldplay, nobody wanted to risk the infamous traffic snarls of Mumbai and Bengaluru, the unforgiving smog of Delhi, limited stadium capacity of Chennai and frequent strikes of Kolkata.
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Interestingly, hotel prices in Ahmedabad have skyrocketed to Rs 50,000 per night ahead of the concert, for the day of the concert, as per sources. To manage costs, some suggest staying in Vadodara, where the rents will be comparatively cheaper, and then commuting to Ahmedabad for the concert. Distance between the two cities is about two hours. A social media user Samarth said he booked a stay with FabHotel Ratna Palace near Sabarmati police station, for Rs 1,800 two minutes after the announcement of the show on X. But soon he got the message that it had been cancelled and that he would be refunded.
When THE WEEK tried to book the tickets, the hotel mentioned they were sold out from January 25 to January 26.
Some are suggesting that the speculation that the band will play in Ahmedabad instead of Mumbai, began way back in September, especially after the ticket sale fiasco in Mumbai and that's when many people booked hotels in advance. Room rent rates at present, which is two months before the concert date, have gone up more than 10 times, and this is true not just for the five stars but for three star, and economy level hotels too. When THE WEEK contacted Novotel Ahmedabad for January 24 to January 26, the rent was Rs 1,29,800, while the same twin-sharing room for a weekend in November 28 to 30, when tried from the same site, showed Rs 19,789, including taxes.
One is left to consider options like Hotel The Royal Plaza which is charging under Rs 2,000 per person per night. But, it is situated on the Sarkhej-Gandhinagar highway, which is about a 16-hour drive from the Narendra Modi Stadium.
This happens to be the band's fourth India show but many on social media are now contemplating if coughing up huge amounts for the flight, hotel and concert tickets would be worth the effort at all.