Connecting flight worth it for a $153 ticket?

[mommyto3]

AA has flights for $153.80 (this includes taxes) out of Houston with a connect in Dallas. Worth it? There will be 5 of us, and the only non-stop out of Houston is Continental, right now going for $307. Since Continental has no competition, I really don't think it would ever get that low. The lowest we have ever been able to fly Continental in the past is $213-$220. This is for May/June/July dates.

So, would you jump on these prices, or wait it out?

 

[javaj]

I would do the connecting flight for that much savings -- especially for 5 people.

 

[rlduvall]

I agree; totally jump on it. Airfares are so flaky right now; you just never know what is going to happen. Is it a long layover in Dallas? I live in Tulsa, Oklahoma and non-stop flights to really great places are pretty much non-existant for us. Layovers are a way of life. I just try to avoid excessively long layovers.

 

[mommyto3]

Layovers are about 40 to 45 min, which concerns me some, BUT I made sure there are at least 3 flights after ours so if we miss a connection we have 3 other chances.

 

[safetymom]

I would take the connecting flight. Chances are you will arrive early and have more time. It is also much easier if you have to change terminals now at Dallas with their new monorail system.

 

[chicagodisneyfan]

I know Southwest has non-stops from Houston. We met friends last year in Orlando who traveled on them.

I think they flew for around $200 round trip

 

[mommyto3]

Southwest does fly non-stop from a different airport, which is about an hour away from where we live. Cheapest I have ever seen (in the past) is about $220. The problem is only 3 of there daily flights are non-stop (only 1 out of the 3 is a morning) and the way they do there booking, I have never been able to get both segments of a flight non-stop. I think I'm SW challenged. Another negative, they only open flights like 4 months ahead of time, so there is no way to even check on SW flights until Feb/March.

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

If I see a really good fare for my travel dates, I like to grab it. Sure, the low fare could be available again in the future; there might even be a somewhat lower fare. But you could also face fares twice as high, as seats fill up for the dates that you want.

The airlines are trying hard to raise average fares in an effort to return to profitability. And they're cutting capacity, especially on low-yield leisure routes, so that they can charge more for the remaining seats.

Of course, connections take longer than nonstops, and it's possible to miss a connection, so I prefer nonstops. But connections are often priced lower. And between many city pairs, connections are the only option. The airlines know how to run their connection hubs so that almost all passengers connect successfully. Yes, there can be a weather or mechanical delay on your first segment, but the airlines deal with this all the time.

 

[mommyto3]

Thanks everyone!!!!

I wish I wasn't so wishy-washy about this and just DECIDE!!!