Vicky

I am so frustrated. I am ready, willing and able to travel and have several destinations in mind, but dont' see airfares coming down. Would like to go to the Military Tattoo in Edinburgh in Aug but airfares over $900. Also considerating Italy in Sept/Oct but airfares in the $750-850 range. So upset I didnt' grab a NW fare of $509 to Rome in Sept when it was briefly available about 6 weeks ago. Are the airlines hoping war will be quick so they can charge their usual high summer/fall rates? I dont' see that high prices are encouraging people to travel, especially those of us who like to plan ahead. Any thoughts?

ira

Hi Vicky
US Air has ATL/FCO for under $700 in Sept.

ron

Vicky, no, not really – I’m just glad there are still airlines in business. I think we would all be better off if the airline business was profitable and if it is going to cost me an extra couple of hundred bucks on my plane fare for that to happen, I’m glad to pay it. That money, pro-rated over a two or 3 week vacation, is pretty insignificant. And I can find other costs to cut back on if I have to.

beckonbecky

We bought tickets from NC to Rome for September on www.airtravel.net for $584/RT. I think they may still have some available. Best Wishes!

jor

Ron, Are you an airline employee? Are you a travel agent? Nobody on this board is willing to pay a couple hundred dollars more!!! to help corporate giants. Would you be willing to pay a couple of hundred dollars more for internet access? Pro-rated over a two or 3 month period, its pretty insignificant. Not.

Ann41

Vicky-yes, fares are high, but they are typical for this time of year. You'll get sales closer to your dates. And I also think the airlines are waiting to see how things play out. So I'll wait along with them.

rex

I vote with Ron. Predatory pricing is good for a lucky few (and yes, I have been a recipient more than once) - - so call me a hypocrite, if it makes you feel better.

I have a "Let's Go Europe, 1969", Vicky, and the airfares then were virtually the same then as they are now. And virtually every city in Europe had hotel rooms (admittedly budget ones) for $2 to 5, at the lower end of the spectrum to $10 to 20, in London and more expensive cities.

Chances are that with diligence, you might again see a sub $600 fare to somewhere in Europe for September (though you don't clarify where you are originating). Good for you, if you do. It's a small handful of people who will ride that plane with you who will be paying that little.

Best wishes,

Rex
[email protected]

AAFrequentFlyer

It's simple economics folks. Airlines have cut capacity by huge numbers, so the seats that are left are getting filled for the prices they sell. 2 years ago there were probably 50 flights a day from NY to London, today there are maybe only 25.
And I agree with Rex. In 1978 going on my first European vacation with a friend, flying Lufthansa cost me $400, which on occasion you could still find the same fare today.

ron

No to both your questions, Jor. I like dealing with well run, successful businesses that make money. I am comforted by the fact that they are likely to spend adequately on quality and maintenance, have satisfied employees who will serve me well, will fly me where I want to go and will be there on my return flight.

It seem clear to me that the days are over where an airline can sell me a $300 ticket because they have a business traveller willing to pay $3000 for the seat next to me. Leisure travellers are going to pay more because business travellers won�t pay the premium. Until they get there economics right, we are going to continue with bankruptcies, deteriorating aircraft, surly service and increasingly inconvenient routings.

So yes, I don�t have any trouble paying $200 extra on a vacation that is costing me $3000 anyway � if the $200 is a problem, I can stay in a cheaper hotel or shorten the vacation by a day.

I have personal experience to back up Rex�s comments. I flew to Europe in 1966; my air fare was $400, almost one month�s pay. My hotel cost (one-third share of a triple room) ranged from $1.80 in Genoa to $4.00 in Munich. Sorry, Jor, the golden days of cheap airfare are rapidly ending, because businesses, to survive, have to make money.

Your internet access analogy is nonsense.

Christina

I'm not frustrated and I think the fares you quote, Vicky, are fairly normal for the times of year you cite and destinations, if you are on the east coast of US. August is peak season to Europe, so $900 to Edinburgh (which is never going to be as cheap as London) doesn't sound that unusual to me at all. I think I paid $700-800 last August to London. The $700-800 for early fall to Rome, again not the cheapest place, sounds normal.

I gather you are annoyed that the airlines are charging their "usual" rates because you think you should personally profit from this war. This is not exactly a very attractive or sympathetic sentiment IMO.

I agree with Ron absolutely. What's the good of bargain fares on airlines that will cut routes or disappear by the time you need to fly? I first traveled to Europe around 1985 or so, and I believe RT to Ireland in August cost me around $800 then (that was from LA). That was over fifteen years ago and my salary sure has gone up a lot versus then.

Airlines are actually a pretty competitive business, all in all. And I have seen cheap airfares to Europe for this summer on AA, and they are still there (I checked yesterday), and they are matched by USAir. Only about $600 RT from Wash DC to Paris in peak summer.

jor

In a free market economy any business which can not stay in business without a government bail out should not be in business. I am not willing to let my government bail out an airline with my tax dollars and I am not willing to pay "a couple of hundred bucks more" to keep them afloat. The consumer will be the final test of a corporation's future. The days of welfare for failing corporations are gone.

eric502

The airlines have been hit by 9\11, and now the war in Iraq. Both of these events are not normal and the airlines are suffering through no fault of their own. I don't mind giving some of my tax dollars to keep the airlines flying.

But!!!!!!!!!!!!

I read the other day that some airline pilots make 200,000 dollars a year and work 20 hours a week or a month or something crazy. Is this true??

Before taxpayer money is given they need to show how they plan to become profitable.

Just my humble opinion

lisa

Where are you flying from and what websites are you checking? My ticket was $398 roundtrip for Washington DC to Shannon, Ireland for August 21-September 1 (plus tax). I think that's a great price for summer. Got it on the US Airways website. They have good fares to Dublin too. If I were you I would try to book a flight to Ireland and then get one of the great cheapie fares from there to Scotland, on Ryanair or the like.

rex

<<I read the other day that some airline pilots make 200,000 dollars a year and work 20 hours a week or a month or something crazy. Is this true??>>

I am shocked. Airline pilots make one-twentieth of mediocre baseball players??!! - - when they (pilots) have added so much to my life!!?? Flabbergasting, I agree.

The world is indeed a crazy place.

Rdtripper

Getting off the original thread a bit, but I wonder how, in principle, anyone can support tax-payer bailouts for particular companies within the airline industry, when other airlines are perfoming profitably? If United and American can't figure out how Southwest is doing it, they'll fall victim to their own poor management decisions, and the Southwests of the industry will fill the gap.

Isn't that how our vaunted capitalist market economy is supposed to work? What am I missing? It sure isn't the taxpayer's fault that market forces have caused airline companies to feel strained. How many other industries get Congressional handouts when sales slip? Sure wish I could lobby my senator for $$ when my business slows down...

And not to be flippant, I'm sincerely curious - How long can 9/11 be used as a reason for travel industry slumps? How did that event etch in stone certain negative effects?

Vicky

I guess I'm spoiled because I have always flown off peak and pay on an average $500 from Tampa, FL to Europe. This year I thought it would be nice to go when it was somewhat warmer with longer daylight hours. But I admit, I don't want to pay $900 of my travel budget for something I've gotten recently for under $500. I love to travel, but I squeeze every dollar I can to get the most value for it.

Zeus

Southwest doesn't fly to Europe. They charge cheap prices and make money because of the short distances they fly. Perhaps all American Flag carriers should give up their trans-Atlantic and trans-Pacific routes and we'll all fly foreign carriers.

Ann41

How much did a personal computer cost in 1990? How much does it cost today? Prices don't necessarily increase on everything.

The hospitality industry in the US as a whole was hit very hard by 9/11, but you don't see hotels getting government subsidies.

KE1TH

Zeus is correct about Southwest. Although I salute Southwest and have flown Southwest several times, they have barebones service and to get from east coast to west coast, you usually have to take off and land at least twice... sometimes three times or more.... for example: one plane will take off from Tampa and fly to Birmingham then fly to Houston then Las Vegas then end the day in Burbank.... so to get from Tampa to Burbank, you hop all over the country. I'd rather pay more and have one flight without all those takeoffs..... JMHO

eric502

Sometimes the government needs to step in and help companies that have been hurt by unusal circumstances. That doesn't mean they don't need to get their affairs in order.

Examples: Chrysler

Also, when disaster hits the government steps in and helps, why is this different?