Spring break airfare - what do you think?

[treloarf]

We want to go to WDW the week before Easter 4/7 to 4/13. Do you think airfare will increase substationally with the gas situation?

We're so use to paying between $150 & $200 - IT'S HARD TO PAY $300 PER PERSON.

Should I book now or wait?

 

[CherCrazy]

The sooner you book the better. (I was a travel agent for years) Don't wait until the last minute, you will not get what you want.

Here's another long forgotten travel nightmare....The airlines have charged fuel surcharges when faced with fuel price increases in the past. They would tack on the charge even if you had already purchased your ticket. They didn't care....it was legal for them to do it...they would just deny boarding until you paid the fee.

The reality is that you can't beat big business.

 

[mill4023]

The sooner you book the better. (I was a travel agent for years) Don't wait until the last minute, you will not get what you want.

I hope that's not true. The cheapest I can get right now for 3/25 - 4/8 is $420. Southwest has quite a few $200 RT's available for my route in November, December, and January. I was going to wait at least until SW extends their bookings to our dates to see if I can get tickets at least under $300. With 6 tickets to buy, it makes a big difference.

 

[CarolA]

I would wait on SW and book right after they come out. Weeks before and after holidays are harder to find cheap fares on so don't wait too late.

As for the airlines collecting a "fuel surcharge" there is one small problem... they no longer have the agents to collect the cash. Go to a major airport like Atlanta and try to find someone to assist you... it's all Kiosks and phone banks!! WHO is going to take my cash????

 

[Brian Noble]

The kiosk will helpfully accept visa, mastercard, discover, american express, diners club, prepaid gift cards, and small body parts.

Be aware that some have reported that SW immediately prices holiday weekend flights above what you might expect. Looking at January fares and hoping you might get that during Easter weekend might be a false hope.

 

[janets]

and was thinking that I would have to wait for SW and travel out of either Philly or Islip. But then all of a sudden I heard on these boards that Song had some low fares out and I booked out of LGA leaving 4/8 and returning on 4/14 for $165/pp rt including taxes. The outbound flight is a bit late in the day for me (around 4:30) but it's matched by just about the same time coming back. So we'll just check into the hotel and hang around the pool that first night, and spend most of the last day in the parks before heading out to the airport.

I also figure that between now and then, the schedule will change a number of times and my late outbound flight could be consolidated with some other flight. So far nothing has changed, but I check weekly.

If you see a fare on an airline that you feel comfortable with, book it. I can't imagine getting a much better fare for the week leading into Easter.

 

[CarolA]

The kiosk will helpfully accept visa, mastercard, discover, american express, diners club, prepaid gift cards, and small body parts.

Be aware that some have reported that SW immediately prices holiday weekend flights above what you might expect. Looking at January fares and hoping you might get that during Easter weekend might be a false hope.

Right now the DL Kiosks don't have the ablity to actually charge anything on them. I assume that could be changed, but I think the lack of agents to deal with "late minute" cash collections would be a consideration for all the airlines. Not to mention that the "starting" airline would really like everyone to follow and there is no way to gurantee that (and they know that some like SW wouldn't)

I don't really see them trying the "surcharge" this year, but I could be wrong.

If the airlines used "logic" they would be raising rates as gas goes up. However, if they used logic two of the major airlines would not have declared bankruptcy yesterday since thier expeneses exceeded thier revenue!


Brian is right. SW does not tend to release the cheapest fares for those flights around the holidays, but they may still be cheaper then what you see now.

 

[mill4023]

SW does not tend to release the cheapest fares for those flights around the holidays, but they may still be cheaper then what you see now.

Are you just talking about Easter week, or would you consider 3/25 - 4/8 to be "holidays" in terms of which fares SW has available?

 

[Brian Noble]

I was specifcally talking about Easter week. And, I don't really know for sure, because I don't fly southwest: AirTran, Trans Meridian, Northwest, and Spirit all fly direct from airports near me, and on Southwest I would have to connect. Every time I look, SW is never so cheap to justify a connection given the other fares I can get. Amusingly, SW is almost *never* the cheapest option for me, despite the fact that it is always less convenient.

In any event, I don't think you should look at the fares you can get for January (a very slow travel season for Florida) and hope you'll get the same in late March/early April (a much busier time). Depending on your airport, SW may well price out lower than the other airlines, but I'd be surprised if it's the same fare as those you see for January.

 

[mill4023]

In any event, I don't think you should look at the fares you can get for January (a very slow travel season for Florida) and hope you'll get the same in late March/early April (a much busier time). Depending on your airport, SW may well price out lower than the other airlines, but I'd be surprised if it's the same fare as those you see for January.

I know what you mean.
But even their christmas week fares aren't any higher than what other airlines currently have for my spring break dates (around $400). I figure their spring break fares can't be any more expensive than christmas week, so there's no reason for me not to wait. But I'll keep checking in the meantime in case something good comes up.

 

[Brian Noble]

Sounds about right to me.

 

[JDietz40]

We recently booked on Southwest for our November trip because it was cheaper than driving. We are going on the Spring break DCL Magic cruise and had planned on driving then but if Southwest has reasonable fares we will fly with them again. While I agree with what an earlier poster said about booking early for the best rates it makes me nervous with the way the airline industry is. We have been burned twice by airlines going under once by Kiwi and once by Pan Am both times leaving us little time to scramble for flights to WDW. Southwest seems to be on firm ground but you never know for sure.


John

 

[Crazy4Disney06]

Hate to thread jack, but does anyone know how long it will be before SW opens up their fares for next July? I know I've got some waiting to do, but I want to be on the look out...I'm hoping for some great rates or a DING.