Will travel surcharges cost you Thanksgiving dinner with the fam?
If you have been checking airfares for the Thanksgiving holiday over the past few weeks, you have probably noticed one thing: your turkey dinner with the folks in Tulsa seems to be growing more expensive by the day.
Added fees for baggage, food/drinks service and booking have become standard air travel procedure, but the introduction and then doubling of “holiday surcharges” by several major airlines could make that bite of your Grandma’s pumpkin pie a little hard to swallow.
In September, Delta, Northwest, United and American airlines began charging holiday travelers on a few specific days (i.e. the Sunday following Thanksgiving and January 2-3, 2010) an extra $10 each way. They later expanded the holiday surcharge dates to include more travel days around Thanksgiving, Christmas, Spring Break and Memorial Day of 2010. Then, last week, some holiday surcharges jumped to $20 each way. That’s before the baggage or any other fees are added. (If you’re shopping around for an airline with the fewest additional travel charges, check out Smarter Travel’s comprehensive list of fees here.)
Thanksgiving travel is stressful enough, without adding more burdens to travelers. Many airlines have cut back their number of flights and scaled back services over the past year in an effort to make sure the planes that do take off are full. Between the fees, fewer flights and more crowded planes, some Americans may opt out of long-distance family feasts and simply stay home. The Air Transport Association predicts air travel over the turkey holiday this year will drop by four percent over 2008.
While gas prices aren’t rock bottom, they are still relatively low enough to make driving a reasonable alternative to staying home, provided the distance isn’t too great. Of course, many people will be out on the roads as well, so pad your schedule with extra time in the event of traffic or weather delays. Also, have an idea of where you want to stop for a rest break. Keep in mind that some states have begun closing some of their rest areas in an effort to save money. You “usual” stop may not be an option this year, so have a back-up exit in mind just in case.
Are you flying over Thanksgiving? When did you book your flight? Did the addition of holiday surcharges affect your decision to fly, drive or stay home this year? Did they impact your choice of airline?
How far are you willing to drive to save money and decrease hassles over flying at the holidays? If you’re driving, what do you consider the best days for traveling the roads at Thanksgiving? If you’re flying, will you leave earlier or stay later to avoid the surcharges?
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8 comments Add your comment
Clay
November 11th, 2009
1:35 pm
I’m driving; but, we always drive. It’s a good thing that we don’t go too far. I don’t know why any family would consider flying if you can drive it within 8 hours or so. If you live in Gwinnett County and have a 10AM flight, you have to leave home at 7AM. Then, you have delays and then you get off the ground. Say you land at 11:30 and then you have to go to Baggage Claim. Then, you have to go get your rental car. Then, you have the hour or so drive from the airport to your destination. That’s a lot of work to save a couple of hours in the car. Unless I’m going to the West coast, I would almost always choose driving over flying. Way too many hassles invloved when you fly.
Squanto
November 11th, 2009
1:41 pm
If it’s not within an 8-10 hour drive time, I’m not going. I will cook for myself and watch football in my own house on my own TV whilst sitting in my own favorite chair with my beverage of choice in hand.
Steve
November 11th, 2009
1:43 pm
I use the same rule-of-thumb (8 hour drive). In addition to the other frustrations you mention; I also avoid the cramped seating (I’m 6′2″) and possibly catching someone else cold/flu. Additionally, my trunk has yet to have delivered my luggage to Dallas when my car goes to Jacksonville.
Paul
November 11th, 2009
2:07 pm
8-10 hour drive here, too. But this year we are staying home. I would love to fly, but after paying $40 round trip for one checked bag of luggage so that my wife could spend a few weeks taking care of my mother after surgery, not any time soon. I thought cell phone companies nickeled and dimed you to death. Airlines are outrageous. It will get to the point that it was once was upon a time. Only the well to do can fly. The rest of us little people will have to to resort to driving or not going anywhere.
Beebop
November 11th, 2009
2:14 pm
The airlines (at least the ones I fly) have figured out how to win! 1) They charge more for less and less. 2) They have crowded the seats together so that you are comfortable if you
weight maxmum 120 lbs, are 5 feet tall, and have no luggage (some charge now for having luggage(!); 3) You pay more now for a ticket with less options. The airlines gave themselves the rule that you can’t get your money back if you don’t fly the ticket you booked. Of course, you can’t book unless you pay – so you lose from beginning to end. I know someone who found out she was pregnant and couldn’t take the shots to fly to Asia because of her pregnancy, but Delta refused to reimburse her ticket ($x,xxx)! This needs to be changed! If you didn’t get the product (take the flight) you should get your money back! This is the way business works – except for the airlines. They made the rule and we pay the consequences. Service has gotten worse. seats are uncomfortable and too close together. I don’t want to drive everywhere; I like flying and getting to a new location. I also don’t realistically think with the way we are packed together in coach that in an emergency people aren’t going to trample each other. The aisles are too narrow to be safe in an emergency also. The public needs to address these issues with the airline industry. We all serve each other after all and are dependent on each other.
Bill
November 11th, 2009
2:21 pm
The cost of gas to drive 500 miles, for my car, is about $90 round trip, and the time is about 9 to 10 hours. Door to door, by plane takes between 5 and 7 hours. The ticket is perhaps $250. Let’s see, first there is the requirement to be at the gate an hour before the plane leaves. To get to the gate takes about 2 hours, by way of Marta train. The actual in flight time is 90 minutes. The time on the ground before the plane leaves, is never certain, and then there is the trip from the airport at the destination, by way of the auto rental office, adding another hour or two. So, flying is not much of a savings. Then there are the security philosophers and their imperious manners. Why suffer such abuse and even fear? And let’s not forget the noise and press of strangers. No, the cost of the ticket is just icing on the cake, just one more reason not to fly.
Jennifer
November 11th, 2009
2:41 pm
We are sucking it up and driving. 21 hours each way with four kids and a dog! The cost of a hotel, meals, leaving the dog behind, and gas does not compare to airfare for the six of us. I fly two or three times a year for pleasure, but hardly ever with the kids.
Bkk
November 11th, 2009
3:02 pm
For the past 3 years we’ve been driving. Granted, ours is just 7 hours driving. But just before we stopped taking flight to our destination, a 90 minute flight took about 4 hours to reach the destination. We decided we are not flying anymore. With 2 kids and us, now it is cheaper and kids also get to watch TV for free while if we fly (if available on the airlines) needs to be paid by an arm and leg I suppose for that service.