Why are flights so expensive!

[Mac4life30]

I want to fly from Miami to Orlando ( tired of driving) however the cost is crazy!!! Flights are going for $258 in October. I have paid less to fly from Miami to NYC.

 

[minnie mum]

Have you noticed the rise in fuel prices over the last year?

 

[bcla]

Flying such a short distance seems kind of counterproductive unless it's something like a connecting flight. Why not train or bus? I'm getting $43 one way on Amtrak. I'm seeing Megabus fares at $1, although more seem to be at the $5 price point.

 

[Mac4life30]

Last time I flew was $110. It was actually cheaper then driving.
In regards to Amtrak I never considered it. Im going to check now.

 

[PhillyToDisney]

Just booked a one way from Philly for $106

 

[bcla]

Last time I flew was $110. It was actually cheaper then driving.
In regards to Amtrak I never considered it. Im going to check now.

You have to deal with transportation to airports, as well as delays due to ticketing and security.

Amtrak is interesting, although there only seems to be two trains per day for the Miami-Orlando route - the Silver Star and Silver Meteor.

Megabus is showing 14 daily trips. The prices vary from $1 (their promotional fare with limited seats) to $25. However, for random days I'm seeing a lot of $3 and $5 fares. They have two stops in Miami - Miami International Airport and a parking lot at 601 NE 1st Ave, which seems to be downtown Miami (and actually in the city of Miami and not greater Miami-Dade County).

http://us.megabus.com

If I may ask, what's so bad about driving? I've been to Florida once, and driving didn't seem that bad. I'm seeing estimates of less than 3 hours Miami to Orlando.

 

[JessicaR]

I want to fly from Miami to Orlando ( tired of driving) however the cost is crazy!!! Flights are going for $258 in October. I have paid less to fly from Miami to NYC.

wow that is outrageous!

 

[Mac4life30]

If I may ask, what's so bad about driving? I've been to Florida once, and driving didn't seem that bad. I'm seeing estimates of less than 3 hours Miami to Orlando.

It gets very tiring. I just drove back today and I go back next month and then again in October and Nov. I flew once and it was nice to get there in 30 mins.

 

[bcla]

It gets very tiring. I just drove back today and I go back next month and then again in October and Nov. I flew once and it was nice to get there in 30 mins.

OK then. Why not Megabus if you can get one of their cheaper fares? Greyhound also runs this route, and their web-only fares are $18-25 one way.

I've taken Megabus once. It was a pretty nice ride. The seats had seat belts, and the bus was equipped with a lavatory and Wi-Fi (probably cellular data based). The caveat is that they only allow one piece of luggage, and it has to go inside. You can have a personal item like a small pack. Greyhound is a little more generous with one piece checked in and one carry-on size.

Of course the big difficulty is where these buses end up. However, if they're close to car rentals, they can often be cheaper than airport rental locations.

 

[Poohforyou]

It gets very tiring. I just drove back today and I go back next month and then again in October and Nov. I flew once and it was nice to get there in 30 mins.

I understand driving is tiring but you aren't really getting there in 30 minutes when you factor in the travel to/from the airport and the airport wait time.

The bus is probably almost as fast as flying when you factor in wait time.

 

[Sabeking]

I agree about the increase. We wanted to fly to South Bend but the tickets were about 500 a piece; so we are flying to Chicago for 260 a piece and then driving. IT Is not only the flight but you could pay an extra 30 a ticket to get an exit row. Crazy. For someone who like me who is absolutely terrified to fly I would like to pay the cheaper fare for my torture!

 

[Mac4life30]

The Crazy thing is a flight from NYC to MCO on the same dates is just $10 more than the flight from MIA to MCO

Not that I want to fall into the category of beggars can be picky but

a bus/Amtrak take to long.

I could drive there in 3 hours
take a flight and get there in 30mins
or take a bus and take 5 hours

but thanks for the suggestions.

 

[DebbieB]

The airline mergers have reduced competition and they are able to get away with charging more. They have also reduced the number of flights available, with fewer empty seats they can charge more.

 

[Tinkermommy]

The Crazy thing is a flight from NYC to MCO on the same dates is just $10 more than the flight from MIA to MCO

Not that I want to fall into the category of beggars can be picky but

a bus/Amtrak take to long.

I could drive there in 3 hours
take a flight and get there in 30mins
or take a bus and take 5 hours

but thanks for the suggestions.

Your total time flying would be over 3 hours.

Let's say

20 mins to airport - assuming you live close by and someone drops you offering
10 mins to check in and check luggage
20 mins for security
45 mins to wait at gate and load plane
30 mins in air
15 to deplane and walk through airport
20 mins to collect luggage
40 mins to take a taxi to WDW

This is conservative and it adds up to 3 hours and 20 mins.

I think a 3 hour drive is a lot less stressful than dealing with air travel.

 

[Albort]

Not sure of your dates but i was able to find one for $137 based price on a weekday... early in the morning though...

 

[bcla]

Your total time flying would be over 3 hours.

Let's say

20 mins to airport - assuming you live close by and someone drops you offering
10 mins to check in and check luggage
20 mins for security
45 mins to wait at gate and load plane
30 mins in air
15 to deplane and walk through airport
20 mins to collect luggage
40 mins to take a taxi to WDW

This is conservative and it adds up to 3 hours and 20 mins.

I think a 3 hour drive is a lot less stressful than dealing with air travel.

Other forms or transportation are subject to assorted time overhead. And you typically need to show up on time, especially with some discount carriers with nonrefundable/nonchangeable fares. However, I can generally show up pretty close to departure time for an Amtrak train. I haven't really gone any longer than maybe 100 miles on Amtrak, but I have been on some of the intercity trains for short distances and seen the procedures for boarding them since we had to go through the same process. They tend to be simple boarding procedure without the security theater that you find at airports. You can also board with reasonable liquids in carry-on luggage.

My wife insisted on flying to Southern California because she thought it would be too tiring for me to drive. I think overall we spent about 5 hours taking public transportation (and barely making it to the airport in time), going through security, waiting for our gate-checked stroller/child seat, renting a car, and driving to our hotel. When I drove (with moderate traffic) it took about 6 hours (minus meal/potty breaks) and we didn't have to pay airfarex3. We also had to rent a car and still pay for parking, although your mileage may vary.

I actually find air travel for relatively short trips more tiring than just driving. One issue is that my wife is a packing procrastinator. At least driving, we're not on anyone else's schedule. If you miss a flight, then what's the use if you would have saved a couple of hours? For me, the worry about missing a flight is worse than the fatigue from driving.

 

[Tozzie]

The Crazy thing is a flight from NYC to MCO on the same dates is just $10 more than the flight from MIA to MCO

Not that I want to fall into the category of beggars can be picky but

a bus/Amtrak take to long.

I could drive there in 3 hours
take a flight and get there in 30mins
or take a bus and take 5 hours

but thanks for the suggestions.

I think the problem is a combination of airlines merging and few carriers that fly that route, there is really no competition for the flights.