Do Airlines Track Activity?

[WiscMomof2]

This is crazy....or maybe I am who knows LOL

I've been checking Airtran prices for August for about a week now, eyeing one particular flight. After giving it some thought I went yesterday to book and the prices for just the flight that I was looking at has gone up almost $100.00. I was irritated to say the least. I know, these things happen...I missed the boat...blah blah blah, I totally am willing to accept that. BUT, you can look at open seats on the website and it I'm fairly certain no additional seats had been booked. It got me to thinking..... can and do airlines monitor search acivity and raise prices after a particular leg is priced out x amount of times. It seems ridiculous but with technology the way it is I suppose stranger things have happened. Maybe I'm watching too much CSI

 

[ancestry]

I don't know the specific answer to your question. But you can't tell how many seats have been sold by looking at Airtran's open seats. On Airtran seats are not assigned in coach class until 24 hours before the flight leaves unless the person pays the $6 assigned seating fee. The flight can be nearly sold out and still look empty online if no one has paid for and purchased the $6 per seat advaced seating charge.

 

[WiscMomof2]

I don't know the specific answer to your question. But you can't tell how many seats have been sold by looking at Airtran's open seats. On Airtran seats are not assigned in coach class until 24 hours before the flight leaves unless the person pays the $6 assigned seating fee. The flight can be nearly sold out and still look empty online if no one has paid for and purchased the $6 per seat advaced seating charge.

Yes you're right. I forgot about that. I always pay for the pre-assigned seating and shouldn't assume that others do too. Even so, it still seems slightly odd to me.....interested in any other feedback.

 

[Inkmahm]

I'd keep waiting and chances are the price will come back down. The flights we have for March have ranged between $49 and $129 each way and keep going back and forth (although they were only at $49 for a few days.) August is still a long way off- wait.

 

[crashbb]

I keep reading (mainly here) that you need to clear your cookies because the airlines keep track; however, this has never happened to me when I've booked tickets. I've checked flight prices for some flights dozens and dozens of times and clearing cookies or going in from different computers/IP addresses has never changed the price.

Does the price fluctuate? Absolutely, but never in a way that depended on the clearing my cookies or changing computers (or having someone else check from their computer at the same time).

Another good reminder that seat maps and ticket sales are only slightly correlated.

 

[DOPEYLUVER]

I can tell you that we were recently planning a trip to Ireland. I looked one day and the tickets on Aer Lingus had come down considerably. I called my mother and when she checked they hadn't come down. We were a party of 12 and she and I each bought 6 tickets. Once we cleared her cookies, she and I both had the lower rate. This was on the Aer Lingus website.

 

[bavaria]

I keep reading (mainly here) that you need to clear your cookies because the airlines keep track; however, this has never happened to me when I've booked tickets. I've checked flight prices for some flights dozens and dozens of times and clearing cookies or going in from different computers/IP addresses has never changed the price.

Does the price fluctuate? Absolutely, but never in a way that depended on the clearing my cookies or changing computers (or having someone else check from their computer at the same time).

Another good reminder that seat maps and ticket sales are only slightly correlated.

It's another DISmyth I believe about cookies. Airlines can see demand, but I highly doubt that they track individual user activity. If demand increases, fares can increase. Same with rental car companies and that is why booking multiple reservations can backfire.

Almost every airline has some form of rate guarantee ie they will quote the lowest price on their website. Raising the fare for one traveller due to cookies would go against their guarantee and open them for a valid claim. Some carriers like AC do hold fares/space for a short amount of time while one is searching and/or going through the booking process, but that isn't due to cookies - it is done as a courtesy for a very short period of time.

Put it in the same category as other DISmyths such as the seat map is an indicator of passenger loads, airlines (airlines, not charters) cancel flights if they aren't full, and foreigners are stupid. But then again, based on the last myth just disregard what crashbb and I wrote!

 

[Luv2Diz]

This is crazy....or maybe I am who knows LOL

It got me to thinking..... can and do airlines monitor search acivity and raise prices after a particular leg is priced out x amount of times. It seems ridiculous but with technology the way it is I suppose stranger things have happened. Maybe I'm watching too much CSI

I was wondering the exact same thing. I first discovered some acceptable flights on American last week. I wasn't ready to buy just then. I checked their website a couple of more times that day to confirm schedules, prices, etc. When I went to check the website the next day, and every day from then on, the price had gone up almost $200. I'm waiting either until the cost comes back down or until Southwest releases their September schedule.... whichever comes up with the best deal first!

 

[bavaria]

I also think that readers sorely underestimate how many thousands of people are researching flights at the same time for the same routes - wholesalers hold and release blocks of seats, travel agents are searching, passengers are searching. If there are only a few seats left in one fare bucket and one requests more than that number, it will offer the higher fare.

I book (and change) an average of 5-10 flights a week on a variety of carriers and I have never witnessed this phenomenom, nor has any of my colleagues I have asked and they book (and change) similar amounts.

 

[GrumpyBa*D]

Try again late Wednesday evening.... I have heard and experienced the flights go up on th, fri sat sun and then looked tuesday and wednesday and they came back down and then up again for a few weeks

 

[Cdn Friends of Pooh]

We've been flying for years and I believe there are only a certain number of seats available in any fare class (those are the different letters - Full fare: Y, B; Standard fare: M, H, N; Special or discount fares: G, I, K, L, O, Q, R, S, T, U, V, W, X). Fare classes may also vary by how far ahead the ticket is purchased, or how long the length of stay is.

So yes, fares can change from the time you look at a fare to the time you actually buy it because someone else may have purchased the last fare in that class so it automatically bumps you up to the next higher fare class.

 

[dudspizza]

Big brother is watching...... so be very careful......

 

[bavaria]

I can tell you that we were recently planning a trip to Ireland. I looked one day and the tickets on Aer Lingus had come down considerably. I called my mother and when she checked they hadn't come down. We were a party of 12 and she and I each bought 6 tickets. Once we cleared her cookies, she and I both had the lower rate. This was on the Aer Lingus website.

It just started to rain. A poodle walked past my window. Poodles cause rain.

That is a spurious argument.

 

[brandylouwho]

WiscMomof2-when in August are you looking at? I am (im)patiently waiting for prices to come down a bit too and they took a turn for the worse for my dates too. (Aug 15-23). We'll be a group of 8, so that price increase adds up fast.

We are waiting for now. I can't justify that price and driving to MKE. The "web special fare is $169" for one leg!?! They had been $119, which I wasn't too excited about either. The flight I wanted to return on is showing $220 as its lowest fare.

Heck, I should be able to fly Allegiant out of Appleton (15 minutes away as opposed to 1 1/2 hours away) for a similar cost (well, we'd have to come home on the 22nd, but still).

And I have checked airfare from various computers at variuos times...makes no difference on what price pops up. It is what it is.

good luck on finding a great fare!

 

[WiscMomof2]

WiscMomof2-when in August are you looking at? I am (im)patiently waiting for prices to come down a bit too and they took a turn for the worse for my dates too. (Aug 15-23). We'll be a group of 8, so that price increase adds up fast.

We are waiting for now. I can't justify that price and driving to MKE. The "web special fare is $169" for one leg!?! They had been $119, which I wasn't too excited about either. The flight I wanted to return on is showing $220 as its lowest fare.

Heck, I should be able to fly Allegiant out of Appleton (15 minutes away as opposed to 1 1/2 hours away) for a similar cost (well, we'd have to come home on the 22nd, but still).

And I have checked airfare from various computers at variuos times...makes no difference on what price pops up. It is what it is.

good luck on finding a great fare!

We're going Aug 8-15. I ended up going with Midwest $258 RT nonstop out of MKE. I know they've had trouble with flight cutbacks etc. but I feel okay about it. (crossing my fingers) I could have probably eventually gotten it cheaper out of Ohare, but I really just wanted to get it out of the way.

 

[s8film40]

I've had fares change back and forth within minutes on American's website. The fare showed $126 OW for departure, I went back and changed my return date and then the same departure date was $206 OW. I went back and made the exact same search again and now the departure was back down to $126!!