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Late purchases of airline tickets for Thanksgiving travel will be costly. Book Christmas flights now
Published on Saturday, Nov 10, 2007
By Marilyn Miller
Beacon Journal business writer
If you haven't gotten your airplane tickets for Thanksgiving yet, you will pay premium prices for that airline seat, or you might want to consider driving.
Thanksgiving is the busiest travel time of the year — in the air and on the road, beating out Christmas.
''The absolute busiest day of the year at the airport is the Sunday after Thanksgiving; 99 percent of the seats are sold out,'' said Kristie Van Auken, marketing director at theAkron-Canton Airport. ''People leave three or four days during the break, but no matter how many days they take off, they all return on Sunday.''
JoAnne Lee, general manager for travel operations at the Akron Automobile Club, said airlines let you book your flights 11 months ahead of time.
''Most people drive to their Thanksgiving destination if it's a 50-to-100 mile trip. But when it starts cutting into the time to get there and back and you add in the cost of gas, some people decide to just fly,'' said Lee.
Lee said when the agency suggests Amtrak or taking a bus, members often tell them it just takes too long to get there that way.
''There is very little left for the places that most people want to go if you haven't booked an airline flight yet,'' said Lee of Triple A.
''There are also fewer flights this year; larger airlines have scaled back.''
Lee said every time the price of oil goes up, so does gasoline at the pumps and eventually airline tickets.
''Airline prices are going up 5 to 10 percent because of oil prices,'' said Van Auken. ''Airline officials say they spend 38 percent of their profits on fuel.''
She said airlines are not adding a lot of domestic capacity. They are replacing less fuel-efficient airplanes with newer planes. Larger airplanes are being purchased to fly overseas, because those flights are more profitable than domestic flights.
Van Auken said that half of those who will be flying will be on their only flight of the year, so they should familiarize themselves with the security rules at http://www.tsa.gov.
The basic rules are:
Arrive at the airport early.
All liquids, gels and aerosols must be in 3-ounce or smaller containers and placed in a baggie. Larger containers that are half-full or toothpaste tubes rolled up are not allowed. If in doubt, put your liquids in checked luggage.
Don't wear items that will slow you down before you can get through security. Do wear comfortable clothing and shoes.
If you haven't booked your Christmas flights yet, Lee said, ''Do it yesterday, do it now; fares keep going up.''
Marilyn Miller can be reached at 330-996-3098 or 800-777-7232 or mmiller@thebeaconjournal.com.
By Marilyn Miller
Beacon Journal business writer
Get the full article here.
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