Why does a flight that cost me 544.00 cost me 1800.00 a week later?

[raphael7546 0]

My daughter flys (unaccompanied minor) on Delta Airlines all the time. The fare usually costs me around 500.00 us round trip from Vancouver, BC to SLC Utah. So I decided to book her flight for Christmas. She gets to spend a long Christmas vaction with us this year.

Last year she arrived Dec 16th & left the 21st.

This time, her school doesn't let out until Dec 21st. So she will be coming Dec 22 to Jan 6th.

I went online to book her flight and was shock to see that the price has tripled since I last booked a trip! This is the exact Air Line, & plane that she always flies. She was last here this past summer. Her American T Giving Trip for November is only 499.00 so why 1800.00 for a month later?!

They can't say fuel charges have increased that much! And yes, I know it's Christmas, but I paid 500 last Christmas (a week earlier) ?! #######??!

[~Laura and Nick~ 5]

My daughter flys (unaccompanied minor) on Delta Airlines all the time. The fare usually costs me around 500.00 us round trip from Vancouver, BC to SLC Utah. So I decided to book her flight for Christmas. She gets to spend a long Christmas vaction with us this year.

Last year she arrived Dec 16th & left the 21st.

This time, her school doesn't let out until Dec 21st. So she will be coming Dec 22 to Jan 6th.

I went online to book her flight and was shock to see that the price has tripled since I last booked a trip! This is the exact Air Line, & plane that she always flies. She was last here this past summer. Her American T Giving Trip for November is only 499.00 so why 1800.00 for a month later?!

They can't say fuel charges have increased that much! And yes, I know it's Christmas, but I paid 500 last Christmas (a week earlier) ?! #######??!

That is insane...

I have no idea....I know the closer you wait to Christmas, the more they jack up the price..but what..if someone waited 2 weeks from now to book for Christmas it would be 4000 bucks?!?!

I'm sorry

[Delicia 1]

I hate that too, but it is strictly capitalism at work. They will jack the price around holidays or closer to the departure date because it is the price the market will bear.

[~Laura and Nick~ 5]

Oh yes...I forgot to ask..when did you book the trip last year? Was it this close to Christmas or was it like in the summer months or even sooner...that also could be the reason...

The closer you book, the more it costs.

[Kathryn41 3,205]

Try a few days before and after the selected dates for arrivals and departures. Perhaps a somewhat shorter time will allow a cheaper flight. Flights change costs all the time. We just booked our flights to Houston from Atlanta to spend Thanksgiving with Joe's family. We had originally checked a month ago and tickets were listed over $400 each for our dates, so we planned to drive. Tonight, we did a final check and those dates had dropped to $350 each. Then, we played around with the dates and discovered that if we arrived a day later - on the Tuesday before instead of the Monday, and flew out late Friday rather than early Saturday the flight was $125 less each - so we booked. Keep checking your options and try playing around on the dates you have available. Maybe it would be possible for her to leave school a day early? Good luck on finding a reasonable flight.

Edited November 3, 2007 by Kathryn41

[raphael7546 0]

I usually book her flight about a month in advance.

The problem is, You can't book an unaccompanied minors flight on a cheap website. (Expedia, cheaptickets, etc...) They always say they need at least one adult fare.

Also, an unaccompanied minor can't be booked on the last flight of the day as they have no way of looking after the child if there's a problem and its overbooked, mechanical failure, snowed in etc...

The wife of one of the guys I work with is a travel agent and she is trying to find me a deal somehow.

The other problem is that I can't change the dates of flight. It has to be Dec 22 and Jan 6th

Bloodsucking airlines! UGH!

[~Laura and Nick~ 5]

Bloodsucking airlines! UGH!

Completely

[rouguewave 7]

My daughter flys (unaccompanied minor) on Delta Airlines all the time. The fare usually costs me around 500.00 us round trip from Vancouver, BC to SLC Utah. So I decided to book her flight for Christmas. She gets to spend a long Christmas vaction with us this year.

Last year she arrived Dec 16th & left the 21st.

This time, her school doesn't let out until Dec 21st. So she will be coming Dec 22 to Jan 6th.

I went online to book her flight and was shock to see that the price has tripled since I last booked a trip! This is the exact Air Line, & plane that she always flies. She was last here this past summer. Her American T Giving Trip for November is only 499.00 so why 1800.00 for a month later?!

They can't say fuel charges have increased that much! And yes, I know it's Christmas, but I paid 500 last Christmas (a week earlier) ?! #######??!

Sad to say, but it is definately because of the Christmas holiday. Yes, they jack up the prices when they know that people are flying for the holidays.

Just out of curiosity, I tried the Delta website for Dec 16th - 21st this year. The flight would cost $692.

I also just tried Dec 22 - Jan 6 but the price I got was only $1341. This is another frustrating example of flight price fluctuations. One time you try you get one price. Another time you get another price. That's because people call and make reservations (holding tickets) and then cancel them or they expire. They go back to being sold at the original price.

I also tried their flexible travel search option and indicated I could fly Dec 21 - 24 out (YVR -> SLC) and Jan 4-7 back (SLC -> YVR). The prices ranged from $488 Dec 24 - Jan 7 to $1879 Dec 21 - Jan 5. The point here is to be persistent, patient, and explore different options.

Finally, I tried travelocity (www.travelocity.com) for those dates (Dec 22 - Jan 6) and came up with 1 flight combo at $643 (United), 2 at $648 (Alaska, Northwest/Delta) and LOTS of others for less than $1,000. The point here is although I understand you might be used to having her fly Delta, but you might consider other options.

Just a few thoughts.

[Jasman0717 9]

fleese the public at peek periods

[Marilyn. 340]

Oh yes...I forgot to ask..when did you book the trip last year? Was it this close to Christmas or was it like in the summer months or even sooner...that also could be the reason...

The closer you book, the more it costs.

.. sometimes flights can dip in price and then go back up again etc...

[~Laura and Nick~ 5]

Oh yes...I forgot to ask..when did you book the trip last year? Was it this close to Christmas or was it like in the summer months or even sooner...that also could be the reason...

The closer you book, the more it costs.

.. sometimes flights can dip in price and then go back up again etc...

True that Marilyn...it's a game really...

[Marilyn. 340]

Oh yes...I forgot to ask..when did you book the trip last year? Was it this close to Christmas or was it like in the summer months or even sooner...that also could be the reason...

The closer you book, the more it costs.

.. sometimes flights can dip in price and then go back up again etc...

True that Marilyn...it's a game really...

yup, I remember the game well... I always booked my hubby's plane flights....

[raphael7546 0]

See the problem is, we can't be flexible with dates for her flight or time!

becuz she's an unaccompanied minor, she can't fly on the last flight going to SLC or from.

She also has to fly non stop.

We always used to fly out of Seattle with Southwest Airlines . It was always way cheaper then delta. but, my ex won't drive her to seattle to get on a cheaper flight.

I did find a flight from bellingham which isn't too far from my ex's place but the flight leaves at 6am. He'll have a fit if he has to be at the airport at that time in the morning! Plus the return flight might be the last flight of the day. It doesn't say on the website.

Usually if you try to book a flight online thats not on an actual airline website (expedia) It will ask the age of the child. If you just click on child and not adult, it won't allow you to buy the ticket. Red lettering will come up that says you must purchase an adult fare with the child. It won't let you buy just 1 child fare.

If the return flight out of bellingham isn't the last flight and she can use this flight I'll probably buy it. I'll offer to pay for a hotel for my ex & my daughter so that they can drive to Bellingham the day before so that my ex won't complain about driving all the way to bellingham for a 6am flight. ( I can be sure he'll complain cuz thats what he does. He loves to make my life miserable!)

[raphael7546 0]

Welcome to Travelocity

Sorry, we cannot ticket travelers under age 15 flying alone.

Unaccompanied Minors

You must contact the airline directly before purchasing a ticket for an unaccompanied minor. Most airlines allow unaccompanied minors to travel on their flights, but have special restrictions, so please check with the airline to confirm specific policies. Age restrictions vary by airline. In general, children under the age of 5 may never travel alone. Most airlines require unaccompanied minors services for children ages 5-14, and some require it through age 17. Additional fees apply (approximately $25-100 each way) and can be paid at check-in. For security reasons, most airlines do not allow unaccompanied minors to travel on the last connecting flight of the day. Some carriers require unaccompanied minors to travel on non-stop flights only. The specific flights required vary by airline, so check directly with them prior to making a reservation.

[Flames9_RN 358]

My wife and I have booked oodles of airfare, that happens when one does a multiple yr long distance relationship,lol Prices seem to go up, then go down, one big roller coaster. You can check the price today and its 500, next day its 900, then check again, and its 300!! Can be very frustrating. One magazine article I read stated the best time to buy tickets was late on a Tuesday night??

A few good sites for air fare checking: http://www.mobissimo.com/search_airfare.php and http://www.kayak.com/ I really like kayak, it search all the major airlines, plus expedia, travelocity etc. Doesn't help you much in this case though. But I have found that booking directly with the airline (online) isn't that much different that booking it via expedia. Lot of time I use expedia (now kayak) to find the cheaper airfare, then go to the company's website to see if they offer the same price, and quite often they are very close. And sometimes it can work in ur favor and actually call them. I do that quite often with hotels! Find the cheapest price online, then call and see if they can beat it, sometimes they have specials which they do not advertise!! Best of luck