Airline Travel: The Real Price of Flying
In recent months, the airline industry has responded to the recession and the corresponding drop in the number of passengers, along with soaring fuel costs by tacking on a number of service charges for items that were previously included when purchasing a ticket.
Airline travel has consequently become much more expensive and passengers have been left with few alternatives as all of the major airlines have begun adding these fees.
Perhaps the largest and most widespread of the new charges is a baggage fee which many airlines charge for both the first and second checked bag. One way to avoid what can be as much as $50 per bag is to carry-on luggage and to limit yourself to just one bag on even lengthy trips.
If you have additional items such as souvenirs or other purchases on the return trip which require a second bag, consider shipping them back using low cost parcel services which will still be far cheaper than trying to check a second bag.
Another one of the new fees which every airline is now charging is a telephone booking fee and a fee for printed tickets. Some airlines are charging as much as $25 just to speak to a representative over the phone to book a ticket. Similarly, printing tickets and having them mailed to you can cost as much as $50 per passenger.
Avoiding both of these charges is a simple matter of always booking from your home computer and printing out your own boarding passes at home. If for some reason you don’t have access to a computer or are worried about the security of booking your own tickets, many airlines have ticketing kiosks set up in major airports which allow passengers to book future travel and print boarding passes by simply swiping their credit card.
Airline travel has become very expensive recently, but for travelers who plan ahead and follow these simple tips, it is possible to avoid excessive charges and actually enjoy the fact that fewer travelers means less crowded flights and more airlines actually departing and arriving on time at their scheduled destinations.
