Flight prices - I don't understand!!!

[mickeygirl14]

Ok, so we are trying to plan a weekend trip to somewhere basically so the kids can get an experience flying. We thought a weekend trip to Atlanta would be ideal -lots to do, hub for Delta, not too long of a flight for us from Charleston. So I'm pricing it out and a round-trip ticket to ATL from CHS is running about $350-$370/person (and up to about $550). This didn't sound right to me as I just got back from New Orleans and that ticket had only cost $280 with a stop in ATL. So, I priced a ticket from CHS to MSY (New Orleans) and that ticket FOR THE SAME TRAVEL DATES would be $300 per person. How is that right? And why wouldn't someone just buy the tickets to MSY and just "miss" the flights to/from New Orleans (or anywhere else) and stop in ATL? Am I doing something wrong?

 

[crashbb]

Ok, so we are trying to plan a weekend trip to somewhere basically so the kids can get an experience flying. We thought a weekend trip to Atlanta would be ideal -lots to do, hub for Delta, not too long of a flight for us from Charleston. So I'm pricing it out and a round-trip ticket to ATL from CHS is running about $350-$370/person (and up to about $550). This didn't sound right to me as I just got back from New Orleans and that ticket had only cost $280 with a stop in ATL. So, I priced a ticket from CHS to MSY (New Orleans) and that ticket FOR THE SAME TRAVEL DATES would be $300 per person. How is that right? And why wouldn't someone just buy the tickets to MSY and just "miss" the flights to/from New Orleans (or anywhere else) and stop in ATL? Am I doing something wrong?

Nope it happens.

And the reason that people don't buy the ticket and just "miss" their flight is because (if they do it on their outbound flight) the airline can (and will) cancel their return ticket. It is called a "hidden city" ticket. I can work if you are only going one way (or only doing it on your way home). In theory, the airline can come after you for the difference in fare, but, in practice they don't usually bother.

 

[Danibelle]

Ok, so we are trying to plan a weekend trip to somewhere basically so the kids can get an experience flying. We thought a weekend trip to Atlanta would be ideal -lots to do, hub for Delta, not too long of a flight for us from Charleston. So I'm pricing it out and a round-trip ticket to ATL from CHS is running about $350-$370/person (and up to about $550). This didn't sound right to me as I just got back from New Orleans and that ticket had only cost $280 with a stop in ATL. So, I priced a ticket from CHS to MSY (New Orleans) and that ticket FOR THE SAME TRAVEL DATES would be $300 per person. How is that right? And why wouldn't someone just buy the tickets to MSY and just "miss" the flights to/from New Orleans (or anywhere else) and stop in ATL? Am I doing something wrong?

Both airports have fairly high airfare. I wouldn't fly to Atlanta because of that. I would look for an airport served by Southwest and see if you can find something better. Atlanta particularly is notorious for high rates.

 

[undertheradar]

You should post this on the transportation board for better tips. The fact that you are flying into a Delta Hub is adding to your cost. Search other airlines and other destinations to get a better idea.

 

[plutolovr]

One point to mention, you should NEVER look at airfares on a weekend. Airfares are the highest on weekends. Look again on Tuesday afternoon and on Wednesday.

 

[lori123]

Ouch - those prices hurt! I will say that we (general we) are so used to getting great deals on flights that we have forgotten how expensive it "typically" was to fly. I know that I flew to see my dad quite often growing up and the flights were always $350-$400 - and that was pretty average and expected. All that said - I don't want to pay that either

 

[cassandrap83]

For those prices, I bet you could fly somewhere really out there, like Phoenix, LA, or Chicago.

If you're okay spending that kind of $$, might as well go somewhere that is out of reasonable driving distance.

Otherwise, just keep tracking fare prices. Good Luck! Also a tip: Both Air Tran & Southwest have credited us $$ when a fare gets cheaper than we had originally paid.

 

[Carmen NC]

Word of warning......I priced tickets from Charlotte to Louisville and it was like $600 RT but then looked at Greensboro (hour up the road from Charlotte) to Louisville. I would have landed in Charlotte with a 2 hour layover (20 minutes from my house) to catch the same flight I would have on the original itinerary and it was only $300 RT. So I asked AAA what would happen if I missed the first leg and just got on at CLT, and they said the entire ticket would be voided when I missed the flight in Greensboro. Be careful dong this is my warning because you may get to stay at ATL longer than anticipated.

 

[mickeygirl14]

Thanks all! I'm glad to have well - seasoned flying travelers that can give me the heads up on things like this. I would've never thought about the airline canceling our tix. That would have made for an interesting trip. I was pricing mid-week fares, so I'll just keep checking and I'm definitely going to look for other destinations.

 

[bearzabout]

I signed up for automatic emails from Travelocity to my favorite destinations. They will email me when a low fare on my preferred routes is announced. The price can drop for less than 1 day so checking over and over is just too difficult. The automatic emails are the way to go.

Sign up is free for their email notification service. I just booked round trip Detroit to Denver non-stop for $178, down from the typical price of $336.

Be ready to take advantage of a low rate. Sale fares can sell out fast.

 

[mrspopeye]

One point to mention, you should NEVER look at airfares on a weekend. Airfares are the highest on weekends. Look again on Tuesday afternoon and on Wednesday.

She is right on. The airlines match deals on Tue and Wed, then raise rates by Friday. Also sign up for some fare-watching sites like Travelocity that was mentioned, Tom Parson's Best Fares, Southwest Ding!, airfarewatchdog and farecompare.

Fare Compare does a good job of explaining how the pricing works and other tricks of the trade:

http://www.farecompare.com/

Allegiant Air has some dirt cheap rates sometimes if there is service near you.

 

[stitchfan18]

We had a similar situation happen to us when booking a flight for this summer. We want to fly in and out of Newark, and luckily we're coming in mid week so we got a great deal on Airtran with one way tickets less than $100 each. Going home wasn't so easy. The cheapest flight I could find was $300! I decided to just check the prices to fly out of the small airport near my in-laws to see if there was anything reasonable. I ended up getting us home on the same flight for $150 each, the only difference is that we have to take a bus from the smaller airport to Newark. I totally am confused, like you are, why the same flight with an extra leg is half the price! It ends up working out great for everyone involved. We get a cheaper flight, and my in-laws get to save money on gas by not taking up to an airport over an hour away!

 

[SweetPeasMom2]

I live in ATL and when I started pretty regularly a few years back, I thought that it would be cheaper, especially w/this being Delta's hub. Not so much. Most of the time it's a lot more. I can't wait for Southwest to come here. I hope it'll make the market more competitive.

 

[SPBendersky]

Its like anything else, supply and demand, popular destinations. It is eaiser to travel to the west cost cost wise than to Florida most of the time.Certain routes and times will be through the roof. Check around for other airlines that fly into remote airports or less traveled. Try flying into Baltimore MD, or Jacksonville Fl. You might be surprised.

 

[Cheshire Figment]

If you are attempting a "hidden city" flight you will be in trouble.

Let's say you are going from airport "A" to airport "B". You itinerary has you changing planes at airport C".

If you are a no-show for the C >> B flight your return portion of the itinerary will be cancelled and you will not be eligible for any refund or credit.