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Buying vs. hoping for upgrades

Delta says it is selling more first class seats these days. (Image: Delta)

Delta says it is selling more first class seats these days. (Image: Delta)

For decades, elite-level business travelers came to expect free upgrades to first or business class as part of their birthright. But in today’s changing environment, they often have to decide in advance whether they want to spend some money to guarantee a seat in a front cabin, or take their chances on getting a space available upgrade.

The New York Times took a look at the changing upgrade scene, and concluded that “the perks of being a frequent flyer are not as valuable as they once were.”

The report noted that airlines are finding new ways to gain some revenue from unsold front-cabin seats instead of just giving them away. Increasingly common tactics include pre-departure offers of low-priced upgrades; taking bids for unsold premium seats; and cutting fares for front-cabin seats in order to boost sales.

JetBlue's Mint class meals are excellent (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

JetBlue’s Mint class meals are excellent (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

The newspaper interviewed a number of frequent travelers who bemoaned the changes and the new pre-departure calculations they must make in order to achieve the comfort level they want.

For example, should you just go ahead and buy that JetBlue Mint seat between California and NYC for $699, or pay United or Delta or American $499 for an economy seat and hope for the best? (Or pay just $399 each way for Mint seats on JetBlue’s new LAX-Ft Lauderdale flights!)

The NYT article also said that the airlines’ new strategies seem to be working, citing Delta’s prediction earlier this year that the percentage of paying passengers in its first class seats will increase from a little more than 50 percent in 2015 to 70 percent by 2018.

What about you, readers? What’s the best deal you’ve taken for an upgrade recently? What’s the most you’d pay for a transcon upgrade? Please leave your comments below. 

NOTE: Be sure to click here to see all recent TravelSkills posts about: How to get the BEST summer fare deals | One airline fee fading fast | Trip Report: Aer Lingus Economy Class | 5 top jobs for frequent travelers  | First class phase out coming soon

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Early Thanksgiving & Christmas fare sale

Southwest Airlines recently painted a 737 based on the Colorado state flag.

One of the biggest downsides of downsizing in the airline industry is that peak holiday airfares head into the stratosphere. Since 2005, the supply of airline seats flying around out there has declined about 10%. However, during holiday peaks, demand is the same or greater than before, which results in painful spikes in airfare.

Southwest and AirTran announced an interesting TWO DAY systemwide fare sale today, which offers nearly half off the going rate if you are willing to travel on the DAY of the holiday… i.e. Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Eve or Christmas Day.

This sale fare applies to flights on Thanksgiving Day (Nov 22), Christmas Eve (Monday, Dec 24) and Christmas Day (Tuesday, Dec 25).

Take a look at Southwest and AirTran and see much you can save if you are willing to fly on off peak days around Thanksgiving. While Delta has not announced this sale, we found matching fares on routes where they compete with Southwest and AirTran.

Let’s say you get up early and fly to San Francisco on Thanksgiving Day, getting there just in time for the big feast (and then returning on the Tuesday after). The lowest fare right now is $366. But if you travel when everyone else wants to, such as the Tuesday before Thanksgiving and the Sunday after, you’ll pay dearly, with the current lowest fare at $619.

Same goes for flights from ATL to Boston. If you fly up on Thanksgiving morning, and fly back the following Tuesday, the lowest fare is $281.60. But if you fly on peak days such as the Tuesday before Thanksgiving and the Sunday after, the current lowest fare soars to $438.00.

(Note: These fares were searched Tues, 28 Aug and are subject to change)

Keep in mind that this sale is good today through Thursday only… so if you are mulling heading home for the holidays, it might be a good time to start checking fares and making decisions.

Another important note–  for this post, I only researched  NONSTOP flights– and I always suggest traveling non-stop during the winter holidays– it reduces the likelihood of delays and offers the maximum amount of time with family for the holidays. You will likely see nonstop fares rise significantly as we approach the holidays, while one-stop fares might be lower.

Here’s the fine print regarding this sale (identical for Southwest and AirTran):

  • Purchase from August 28 through August 30, 2012, 11:59 pm Pacific Time.
  • Travel September 7 through February 13, 2013.
  • Blackout Dates Apply: October 5, October 12, October 19, November 16-November 21, November 23-November 26, December 20-December 23, December 26-December 31, 2012, and January 1-January 2, 2013.
  • Sale fares not valid for travel to New Orleans January 31-February 2 or February 6-February 9, 2013, nor from New Orleans February 4-February 5 or February 7-February 13, 2013.
  • Travel valid every day except Sundays.
  • Offer not available to/from Washington D.C. (Dulles); Key West, FL

What about you? Is it time to bite the bullet and commit to holiday travel plans? Given the strength of the summer travel season, I don’t expect to see many fare sales for the holidays this year… 

 

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Late summer fare sales require fast action

Southwest’s California flag-themed B737–one of my favorites– at SFO. (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

Several airlines have launched a pretty good fare sale for late summer trips– starting as soon as late July and lasting into fall months. However, you must act fast– the good deals are available for the next one to three days only.

For example, Virgin America is offering round trips of $156 (all in) for SFO to LA, San Diego or Las Vegas. Chicago is $378 round trip. Washington, DC and Philly are running at about $400 round trip. The popular SFO-JFK run does not seem to be included in this sale…nearly all fares, even on those awful red-eyes are in the $500 range. The sale fares are only good for travel Monday-Thursday from July 31 through September 12. If you fly on Tuesday or Weds, JetBlue will take you down to Long Beach for $130 round trip. To get these fares, you must book by this Wednesday, July 18 at midnight.

Southwest is offering a pretty good fall fare sale, but the deals don’t kick in until August 20 and are good for travel through December 14 (minus some blackout dates around holidays.) I found SFO-Atlanta for as little as $300 round trip (good on Southwest or AirTran). SFO or OAK to Chicago Midway is about $350. There are plenty of other cities on sale from the Bay Area, so just click on the link above to see them. Sale fares on Southwest or AirTran are available on all days except Sunday, and must be booked by this Friday, July 20.

United has Denver or Austin on sale for about $250 round trip (all in) during August and September. New York JFK and Chicago are in the low $400’s all in. Boston for $360 round trip is not bad for August. You can still buzz over to London (everyone I’ve talked to says that it’s as polished and ready as ever) for just $880 round trip in September or October when the crowds have gone home and the weather is at its best. How about SFO-San Juan, Puerto Rico for just $315 round trip? I’ve rarely seen fares from the Bay to the Caribbean as low as that! Midweek trips from the Bay Area to Honolulu are down as low as $450 which is not bad for mid-August. United has not published an end date for booking, but it’s likely similar to other airlines… which are running for the next 24-48 hours only.

Most other major carriers have matched these fares so shop around if you can’t find what you are looking for. Please keep in mind that I checked these fares on Tuesday morning, July 17, so they are subject to change.

It is interesting to see airlines discounting fares for travel during August– typically one of the busiest and most expensive times of the year for air travel. Clearly, demand for summer trips has not met the airlines’ expectations, which is a signal to me that consumers are becoming increasingly skittish.

What about you? Are you up for a late summer vacation? Or are you making plans for business trips this fall? Are these fares low enough to make you jump? 

 

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