Oct 20, 2009 6:00 pm US/Eastern
Survive In '09: Holiday Air Deals Few, Far Between
PHILADELPHIA (CBS 3) ―
If you're planning on flying home for the holidays, you'd better plan ahead or be prepared to pay more. As 3-On Your Side's Jim Donovan finds, in the past week alone, overall fares for Thanksgiving climbed 10 percent.
Last year, holiday travelers who waited until the last minute to book their tickets were rewarded with deep discounts. That's not going to happen this year.
Rick Seaney of Farecompare.com says, "If you wait until after November 1st to buy your ticket, you're going to probably end up with some of the steepest prices you've ever paid for holiday travel."
That's because the airlines have hiked fares and some introduced a first time ever 10 dollar surcharge for traveling on peak days like the Saturday before Christmas.
With Americans tightening their belts and traveling less, airlines have cut capacity. Fewer flights mean fewer seats and fewer bargains.
So the more flexibility you have, the more likely you are to get a deal. Just avoiding the Wednesday before Thanksgiving can help cut your fare in half.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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