Hi there,

I'm looking at booking BA LHR-MAA, then on a separate ticket on UL MAA-CMB. I've looked at the nuts and bolts of it, and it appears I don't need an Indian visa if my bags are checked all the way through (BA should interline to UL) and if I have my boarding pass for the UL flight (I could check in online before I leave).

Now I think I can do it... the question is, should I? Has anyone had any experience of this? Namely:

1) I have seen reference to a "transit area" where pax doing the above are held. Is the transit area at MAA ok? 4.5 hours (with a 1.5 year old) may be challenging if it's pretty horrible...

2) Can you get out of the "transit area" and go to a lounge? I will have lounge access, and although the lounges don't sound great at MAA, they will presumably be nicer than the "transit area". I've not seen any reference to transit passengers getting to lounges, but if you are airside it makes sense to me that you should be able to get to a lounge.

Many thanks in advance for any help.