Tips on finding the cheapest flights

Published 11:08 pm Wednesday, June 11, 2008

Buyers beware when it comes to airfares these days.

Gone are the days when air travel was relatively hassle-free and buying a plane ticket was straightforward. High fuel prices and fewer flights guarantee that passengers will pay more for airfares for the foreseeable future. Besides rising ticket prices, travelers also need to keep an eye out for new fees.

With fuel costs up as much as 90 percent year over year, U.S. airlines have raised fares 17 times since January with 12 of those increases sticking. The carriers’ most recent attempt to bump up fares over the weekend didn’t take, with airlines dropping prices Monday.

“This could be the first sign that demand is softening,” said Graeme Wallace, chief technology officer of airfare research site FareCompare.com. “Up until now, the (airlines’) statements have been that they expect demand to stay high.”

Despite the failure of the fare increase, American Airlines broke ranks on Wednesday and announced a fuel surcharge increase of $20 each way.

And US Airways chief Doug Parker told shareholders Wednesday that for every round-trip passenger, “we need to get $650 on average just to break even.”

“We’re nowhere close to that,” he said. “Nobody in the business is close to that. This is a major problem.”

High prices already have kept many travelers home. The Travel Industry Association reported in May that Americans will make 41 million fewer flights this year — costing airlines $9.4 billion in revenues — because of increased fares and hassles.

As airlines dump their older, gas-guzzling jets and cut capacity, analysts say travelers can expect fewer flights and fuller airplanes. Carriers that had stopped requiring a Saturday night’s stay for discount tickets also are expected to reinstitute the policy. And airlines are charging premiums for choice seating and other services.

Families looking to visit DisneyWorld later this summer will pay an average of $425 per person round trip to fly from Seattle to Orlando. That’s up $150 round trip over last year, according to FareCompare.com. Think you’ll save by going to Disneyland instead? Round-trip fares from Seattle to Los Angeles have jumped to $283 from $175 per person for late summer.

Carriers are finding new ways to pass along costs to passengers. That means air travelers need to be savvy about buying tickets.

Price-finding Web sites such as Expedia, Orbitz and Hotwire can only do so much of the legwork. Passengers still need to keep certain questions in mind when searching for the lowest fare.

For instance, a round-trip ticket going from Seattle to New York City in late July costs $469 on American Airlines. That’s less than the published fares of carriers including Alaska ($506), Southwest ($531) and Continental ($485).

However, if you’re spending a week out in New York, you probably want to check a bag, maybe two. On American, you’ll pay $15 each way for your first checked bag. Bringing two? Your $469 fare went up $80 since the second bag is $25 each way. And you better hope your bags aren’t over the allowed weight maximums.

For that same trip, then, Continental would be your best bet if you need to check one bag. Alaska would cost you just a tad more than American.

When checking two bags, the more expensive of the bunch, Southwest Airlines, offers the best bargain. The low-cost carrier has yet to add a fee for a second checked bag, which would raise fares on American, Alaska and Continental to $549, $556 and $535 respectively.

Out of 10 major carriers flying into and out of the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, only Southwest Airlines allows passengers to check a second bag free. Most have tacked on a $25 one-way fee for the second bag. Low-cost carrier JetBlue has a $20 charge each way for the second checked bag.

Some carriers still allow passengers two checked bags on international flights. Others, such as Continental, allow two bags for certain international destinations, including Brazil, but let you bring just one to other spots in South America, Mexico and Central America. (Oddly enough, Continental lets passengers bring not only two pieces of checked luggage to Brazil, but those bags can weigh 70 pounds apiece compared with 50 pounds for other destinations).

Luggage fees aside, basic fares, such as the one between Seattle and New York City, are up dramatically over last year. The same trip, booked 21 days or more in advance, cost about $263 last year, according to FareCompare.com. And that’s before many of the nation’s carriers added any fees for checked bags.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.