Summer Vacationers Face Crowded Planes and Higher Fares
This summer vacation season, travelers are likely to face higher air fares, more-crowded flights and longer security lines at airports, reports Scott McCarthy of the Wall Street Journal. He indicates that airlines, airports, and Federal transportation officials are preparing for the busiest travel season in five years. With security staffing down at some big airports, this could mean longer lines at some security checkpoints.
McCarthy points out that there are some bright spots as well. Airlines have cut back on the number of flights, easing congestion at some airports. Therefore flight delays should be shorter and lees frequent this summer. However, flights will be more crowded. McCarthy says that full flights mean that travelers have a greater risk of being bumped, “The number of passengers involuntarily bumped from oversold flights is already climbing since planes are so full, up 27% in the first three months of this year, according to the Department of Transportation.�
The article also indicates that prices are also rising, with fares for summer trips already purchased are up about 10% over last summer, according to both Orbitz and Travelocity, two of the three big online ticket-sellers. However prices are not as high as they were in 2000 and 2001. While travelers cannot expect to see the bargain fares available last summer, vacationers are a resilient lot and the higher prices do not seem to slowing down vacation travel.
These findings are consistent with our own flying experience. Most of the flights around weekends seem to be oversold, with vouchers being offered as an incentive to take a later flight. We have found that if you wait too late, you risk being unable to book a flight at all. The best advice in McCarthy’s article is to book early, as prices will only go higher. Also you should make sure you have an assigned seat
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The situation in air travel is consistent with our own vacation rentals, which have booked up earlier this year than ever before. While most of our guests travel by automobile, our experience is consistent with the overall occupancy increases in the lodging industry.
