Airfare is Killin' Me!

[cme]

Does everyone really think the the airfares are going to go down. I don't know about other people but everything that I have read and seen on the news says just the opposite. I believe our days of cheap airfare are soon to be a thing of the past.:mad: I just purchased my air for my cruise in Nov. I also paid $273.00 per person from Seattle to Ft. Lauderdale. I just continue to watch the fares, and if they do go down they will refund me the difference.

 

Carrie

[TheMiz]

Air fare is a game!

 

Using http://www.kayak.com as the airlines search engine, I have seen fairs from oHIo to Spain change as much as $500 in one day only to see it drop by $627 then back up.I am sure this weekends fare will be much higher than the fares you would get this Wednesday.

 

You have to be fast and check often, you see the fare you might like you better jump on it.

[LLSullie]

Ok, I'm afraid to ask. What was your disaster with Delta? I booked a flight for $243 pp in Oct which was the best rate i could find for the airport we're flying out of. I'm not sure I really want to know, but go ahead and tell me....:confused:

 

Rhapsody April 9, The Cruise That Almost Wasn't ...

Royal Caribbean Rocks ! ! ! Delta ... not so much.

 

Our flight was 1.5 hours leaving Dulles Int'l !, I have never run for a flight in my life ... I did in Atlanta. We made it to the gate 5 minutes before our flight was supposed to leave and they had ALREADY backed away and were gone ! !

 

Delta wanted to put us on a flight thru Cincinatti! to arrive in Houston at 7:58p. Needless to say I fell apart. Delta rep was on the phone with RCI, not getting anywhere, and so was I, however it seemed I was making some progress (pretty sure the hysteria didn't hurt :rolleyes: ). Delta/RCI got us on a flight at 2:30 that landed at 3:40. I was given a cell phone # for a wonderful RCI Rep at the port in Galveston. I had our luggage forwarded on to Key West, as there was no way we could wait for it at the Houston Airport. RCI arranged for a cab to be waiting for us. Luckily we landed on time. We ran thru Houston airport to meet up with Gary, the RCI rep at the airport, who threw us in a cab and we were off.

 

Did you know that if you do 85/90mph from the airport you can make it in under an hour? ... Neither did our cab driver, however it's amazing what $50 can do.

 

I kept in contact with Jean at the port who arranged for police intervention, so we didnt' get stopped. The cab driver was told that the sherriff was waiting at a gate that isn't normally used right near security and to look for the police van with lights on. Jean met us at the door, we were rushed thru security, I "threw" our passports at an RCI employee, an RCI employee "threw" our Sea Passes at us, and we ran for the gangplank where several RCI employees were waiting graciously for us. Pictures taken, a wonderful woman with a Swedish accent escorted us to our room where we were able to take a breath and watch the ship pull away from the dock.

 

THANK YOU GARY and JEAN ! ! ! and CAPTAIN ANDERS ! ! ! and EVERYONE THAT HELPED MAKE THIS POSSIBLE ! ! !

 

WHEW ! ! ! And I was stressin' about what to wear ... LOL

 

If I can help it, I will NEVER fly Delta again, and may never cruise anyone but RCI :rolleyes:

[mjyanne]

Originally Posted by NancyB84

I am having the same issues... Norfolk, VA to San Juan... has me all over the east coast, in every airport I ever wanted to see and some that I don't. Gees. I have the potential to spend an entire day flying. Norfolk to Miami, Miami to Orlando, then Orlando to San Juan? EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEKKKKKK

 

Here is an option to try. I am flying JET BLUE to San Juan in August out of Richmond, VA. The flight goes to NY then Ny to San Juan. Except for the drive to Richmond (from Northern VA) and a slight layover not a bad flight over all. And I certainly love flying Jet Blue over United. The fare was slightly better than United as well. Even if it had been higher I would go this route. My plan is to spend the night before at an Airport hotel in Richmond. You could do this in the winter in case of bad weather. Bottom line is bad weather will happen whereever and it doens't have to be where you're flying to or from because planes have to get from point A to point B anyway. The only problem is that JETBLUE doesn't open thier bookings until 6-months out. So you probably won't see December flights until late June. I always fly JetBlue from Dulles to Ft Lauderdale and then take a taxi to Miami. Nicer flight and less hassels at the airport (from my experience).

[NancyB84]

Originally Posted by NancyB84

I am having the same issues... Norfolk, VA to San Juan... has me all over the east coast, in every airport I ever wanted to see and some that I don't. Gees. I have the potential to spend an entire day flying. Norfolk to Miami, Miami to Orlando, then Orlando to San Juan? EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEKKKKKK

 

Here is an option to try. I am flying JET BLUE to San Juan in August out of Richmond, VA. The flight goes to NY then Ny to San Juan. Except for the drive to Richmond (from Northern VA) and a slight layover not a bad flight over all. And I certainly love flying Jet Blue over United. The fare was slightly better than United as well. Even if it had been higher I would go this route. My plan is to spend the night before at an Airport hotel in Richmond. You could do this in the winter in case of bad weather. Bottom line is bad weather will happen whereever and it doens't have to be where you're flying to or from because planes have to get from point A to point B anyway. The only problem is that JETBLUE doesn't open thier bookings until 6-months out. So you probably won't see December flights until late June. I always fly JetBlue from Dulles to Ft Lauderdale and then take a taxi to Miami. Nicer flight and less hassels at the airport (from my experience).

 

 

I have thought of that. My only fear about that was JFK in January?????? I am worried about going north first and then to San Juan. Jet Blue has some pretty good prices and we are only 45 minutes from Richmond... it is just that trip to JFK that I am worried about. I know that bad weather can happen anywhere but... I feel like I am tempting fate with a flight north first. LOL

[scopewest]

I'm actually on a different cruise line for our Christmas cruise, but I agree with all the people from Phoenix re flights. I'm trying to get to San Diego, a one hour flight, and every AWest coach seat was taken when I tried to book in March. Yes, I can wait for SWest to finally post their December flights, but I personally despise that airline and would rather drive than fly them. Delta has a flight that would take me from Phoenix to Salt Lake City and then to San Diego!!! Gee, do you think there might be snow in December in SLC that would delay things??? We could drive but for various reasons for this cruise we can't. Things aren't helped by a DH who keeps saying "but I used to fly to SD for $19 round trip." I have to remind him that was how many??? years ago!! We finally got our flights but boy, the struggle marks.

[Sun Lover]

Parrotheads,

I work with someone who says the lowest airfares are never when they first become available to book. She says the fares go up and down constantly and if you're patient, you can usually find a much lower fare several months down the road. Last year she booked a cruise for April around this time of year and the airfare at that time was around $350 but she kept checking and waited until December, when she found airfare for $220, which is quite a savings. I don't know what to do. I'm trying to decide whether to book a cruise now for April 2007 and the price of the cruise is okay but I don't know what the airfare will be like and with the gas rates rising, I'm afraid if I wait, the prices will just continue to rise. I don't want to get into a situation where I book the cruise and then find out the flights are so expensive we can't afford to go. Any suggestions?

[Sun Lover]

cme,

 

What type of tickets did you purchase? A rep at AAA told me last week that no airlines will refund a difference if the price goes down on a flight except if it is business class or first class. Do you know which is correct? If I could be assured of having the difference refunded to me in case of a price drop, I'd go ahead and book a flight way ahead of time. Does anyone know how this works and if it's the same for all airlines?

[NancyB84]

cme,

 

What type of tickets did you purchase? A rep at AAA told me last week that no airlines will refund a difference if the price goes down on a flight except if it is business class or first class. Do you know which is correct? If I could be assured of having the difference refunded to me in case of a price drop, I'd go ahead and book a flight way ahead of time. Does anyone know how this works and if it's the same for all airlines?

 

 

My experience is that is is different for every airline... you need to read the fine print. Most will charge a fee for the change. I did that once when I found a cheaper fare... but by the time I paid the $25/per person change fee etc... it was only a $5 savings. You can also check the cancellation policy. Some charge a small fee. But if the price drops ALOT... you can cancel, pay the small cancellation fee and then re-book. Check the individual airlines policy!!!!!! Good luck.

[yj2cute]

cme,

 

What type of tickets did you purchase? A rep at AAA told me last week that no airlines will refund a difference if the price goes down on a flight except if it is business class or first class. Do you know which is correct? If I could be assured of having the difference refunded to me in case of a price drop, I'd go ahead and book a flight way ahead of time. Does anyone know how this works and if it's the same for all airlines?

 

Nancy is right. Each airline is different. But remember, when we're talking about discounted coach fares, even when the price difference is greater than the change fee, you still don't receive an actual refund. They will send you a voucher good for future travel. Usually good for rebooking within a year. So, in essence you're getting the refund, but not in cash. Sort of like a store credit. :) If you travel at least once a year and can use the voucher it's worth it. It happened to me recently. I started looking at airfare from EWR to Orlando last Sept. The prices were outrageous at well over $300. Traditionally we can get flights for this route around the $200 range, give or take a little. I waited and waited and it didn't look like they would ever come down. Finally in Dec. I booked for $235 thinking I had a steal. Then, in Feb the prices went down to $158. I had to pay a $25 change fee, but it was still worth it and I received voucers for the difference, which I've used already, BTW. :)

 

I say, when you see a fare you're comfortable with, book it. Then if it goes down, go for the voucher.

[caribbean dreams]

The prices are getting really bad, we booked our flight from San Francisco non stop to Miami 8 days ago and the cost was $305 pp, my brother booked the same flight yesterday and the price was $478.

San Francisco is a port city, just the wrong port.

[ronandannette]

I'm sitting here wishing I was all of you:p . We bit the bullet today for our trip to Florida to board the Mariner on August 27. From here in Calgary this is a VERY expensive flight at the best of times (not to mention 10 hours of travel end to end), but over the last 5-6 weeks, prices have gone up by at least a 30%.

 

When we originally deposited on the cruise before Easter we could have booked American Airlines flights with excellent schedules for about $450.00/pp. I have web-surfed til I'm blue:( (or is that purple?) and talked to several TA's who all agree that we're not likely to see seat sales this summer. Finally ended up getting the best price taking two one-way segments on different airlines for almost $600.00/pp.

 

This is more than we're paying for our E1 Balcony:eek: !

[Pradagal]

Just saw this same subject on the news tonight. With fuel prices sky rocketing it's not going to get any better this summer or early fall. Experts are saying if you see a great price book it quick! Our flight to Galveston in August has gone up twice (already booked at a cheaper rate:) )

[yj2cute]

I'm sitting here wishing I was all of you:p . We bit the bullet today for our trip to Florida to board the Mariner on August 27. From here in Calgary this is a VERY expensive flight at the best of times (not to mention 10 hours of travel end to end), but over the last 5-6 weeks, prices have gone up by at least a 30%.

 

When we originally deposited on the cruise before Easter we could have booked American Airlines flights with excellent schedules for about $450.00/pp. I have web-surfed til I'm blue:( (or is that purple?) and talked to several TA's who all agree that we're not likely to see seat sales this summer. Finally ended up getting the best price taking two one-way segments on different airlines for almost $600.00/pp.

 

This is more than we're paying for our E1 Balcony:eek: !

 

Why didn't you book it at the $450 price? I've learned the hard way that when I see a good price, book it! Don't take the time to sign off, call someone, get an OK and go back, because chances are, it may not be there. That applies to all areas of travel, not just airfare. Hotels, cars, whatever. It's happened to me many times, so I've learned my lesson.

 

Sorry you had to pay more, but have a great cruise!

[labeachcomber]

Why didn't you book it at the $450 price?

 

I think ronandannette probably thought that $450 was still a lot for the flight and was hoping that prices would go down, simple as that. I made the same mistake for our LA to San Juan flights. Prices went from $715 to over $900 in just three days, and they've never come down. Paying over $900 a ticket is ridiculous. But I've decided to just forget about it and not let it ruin my cruise. Will just have to scrimp and save elsewhere from now until then to soften the blow of the outrageous prices.

[burritopunk]

Southwest.com 's internet fares are great.

[wrp96]

Southwest.com 's internet fares are great.

 

Don't assume that Southwest will always have the best fares. In the last year, I've found that they are frequently higher priced than the legacy carriers from my area unless you happen on a Ding fare.

[ronandannette]

Does anybody know if Southwest flies to Canada? They never show up on my web TA flight searches. Bad as my Florida flights are, I'm stuck with them now, but I also have 2 to book Calgary/LA return for that same week in August. Many airlines hub out of Calgary for their flights to the Western half of the continent so we can usually get very reasonable flights to places like LA, Seattle, etc. This year though, oh boy - same story as everywhere else. Let me know if you have any leads.:)

[cmich068]

Southwest doesn't fly to Canada.

 

We here are stuck with Error Canada or Westjet.

[Cassandra]

Two words - GAS PRICES

[wrp96]

Southwest doesn't fly to Canada.

 

We here are stuck with Error Canada or Westjet.

 

Error Canada - I like that. That sounds like NorthWorst to me.

 

Even in the US, Southwest fares are only searchable via their own website. They don't allow their fares to be posted on any TA sites or internet search sites.

[land lover]

I think there are good rates to be had, but while getting a $100. refund on my AA ticket to Paris for June...... The agent told me that AA is not allowing any employee to fly stand-by this summer, she said due to the fuel..they have canceled several flights...so most will be over booked.

 

If you are curious about my refund. Always book your international flights with AA early because if there is a price drop they will honor it back in cash, which is what happen to me...of course this can change at anytime put presently that's how they handle it on international flights.

 

And another tip always put a good price on hold with a major airline, that gives you 24 hours to look around...because when you come back after checking that great price might have disappeared.

 

Good flights.......

[atlcple2]

We recently booked a land vacation for 1 week in St. Martin for our anniversary in September. We cruised that same week last year on the Caribbean Princess and it was so rough that DH won't cruise during hurricane season again. So, we decided to do the land vacation in St. Martin. Got a great rate on the condo in Grand Case...it was less than 1 person's airfare for the entire week!!! From Atlanta to St. Martin, there is only 1 direct flight and it is through Delta. $775/person and it wasn't a lot cheaper to do a 2 stop flight on AA...maybe $50/person cheaper. We booked the direct flight on Delta. So I feel your pain!

[beach08]

I was wondering if this might work. Here's my question? If several people are flying from the same airport to the port of call on the same itinerary...could we qualify for a group discount with the airline? American offers group discounts with 10 or more.. So if a thread was opened Per Intinerary date and ship... I don't think it would be hard to get 10 people flying out of the same airport that would be willing to book as a group to save $$$$. of course the more people the better the discount.

 

I know in April when me and DH fly to Miami for our VOS cruise, while reviewing these boards, several people were flying out of BWI..same flight as us....

 

I also believe American will offer to refund the difference on domestic flights, if airfare is reduced after purchase

[Obaybee..tryingthisagain]

Wouldn't hurt to ask I guess. My recent experience is that flying Delta to Miami with a group of 11 for our June FOS cruise (initially we were a group of 14) there were no group discounts that they would let me use.

As I posted earlier on this thread Delta has even offered me $150.00 voucher per ticket to change our flight times from 6am to 11 am that same day.