Daniel Friedman
Media Writing
9/30/15
Ways
to save on the “not so budget friendly” Budget Airlines
Free peanuts
and drinks, are a thing of the past on most airlines in todays market, now
airlines are trying to “nickel and dime you in any way possible", as one University of Tampa student said .
Everything from selecting your seat, boarding order, legroom, carry-ons, and checked luggage, all come at a premium. So why do airlines add all of these fees to their ticket prices, and what can one do to save money while traveling by air. For that answer, we turn to research of flight patterns, costs, travel websites, as well as the interviewing of fellow passengers and travelers. As you will notice later on in this article, a non-budget friendly airline is actually the cheapest! But why is this? Read on to find out.
Everything from selecting your seat, boarding order, legroom, carry-ons, and checked luggage, all come at a premium. So why do airlines add all of these fees to their ticket prices, and what can one do to save money while traveling by air. For that answer, we turn to research of flight patterns, costs, travel websites, as well as the interviewing of fellow passengers and travelers. As you will notice later on in this article, a non-budget friendly airline is actually the cheapest! But why is this? Read on to find out.
There are
many low-cost airlines flying across the continental United States. Allegiant
Airlines, which is receiving an award this year from the Tony Jannus Society for
outstanding service, Southwest Airlines, Spirit, and Frontier. Airlines like
American, United, and Delta, mimic these low-cost airlines with fare cutting
tactics, which means something about low-cost airlines is working, but are they
all really low-cost?
Think of it
this way, it’s school break, and students want to fly home for the
well-deserved break, but as many know, students are usually tightly budgeted,
so how can the typical college student save even more money on the low cost
airlines and the legacy carriers as well?
I often hear students at the University of Tampa say, "what is the cheapest way I can travel home for the holidays"?
Well, being a well-traveled individual, I can personally tell you the advertised fares on a website like Spirit.com for a $19.99 flight are usually too good to be true. Sure it looks cheap, because it is, but once you start the booking process, fees are added on left and right! Some of these fees include: choosing your seat. The best way around that one to wait 24 hours before the flight, so you can choose your seat for free and stick to the advertised price of $19.99! If you can’t wait, prepare to pay up to $30.00 for that extra bit of leg-room! I admit that I pay for extra leg-room, and let me tell you, it’s worth it for $20.00 on a three hour flight! Now that humble fee of $19.99, has gone up to $40, but that’s only the beginning. Let’s move to that humdrum process of boarding a plane. The process varies from airline to airline, but some airlines, do “speedy” boarding; this means for a premium, you can board the plane first. Well if you’re one of those who are impatient and must board before everyone else, you may pay $25.00, making your total $65.00! Thus bringing our grand-total to $40.00. Some add-ons though, are required; these add-ons include paying upwards of $50.00 for a checked bag or $25 for a carry-on, for something that use to be free! Also depending if you pay ahead for bags, or at the airport, you may pay even more than the base luggage fees. Thus bringing the current total to $115.00 for a one-way trip. But don’t forget taxes and final fees, which can total upwards of $150.00! Thus making our grand total $265.00, insane! Let us also not forget, since most students need to return after break, they will be paying the above grand total twice, thus the student spends a total of $530.00 for their travels!
I often hear students at the University of Tampa say, "what is the cheapest way I can travel home for the holidays"?
Well, being a well-traveled individual, I can personally tell you the advertised fares on a website like Spirit.com for a $19.99 flight are usually too good to be true. Sure it looks cheap, because it is, but once you start the booking process, fees are added on left and right! Some of these fees include: choosing your seat. The best way around that one to wait 24 hours before the flight, so you can choose your seat for free and stick to the advertised price of $19.99! If you can’t wait, prepare to pay up to $30.00 for that extra bit of leg-room! I admit that I pay for extra leg-room, and let me tell you, it’s worth it for $20.00 on a three hour flight! Now that humble fee of $19.99, has gone up to $40, but that’s only the beginning. Let’s move to that humdrum process of boarding a plane. The process varies from airline to airline, but some airlines, do “speedy” boarding; this means for a premium, you can board the plane first. Well if you’re one of those who are impatient and must board before everyone else, you may pay $25.00, making your total $65.00! Thus bringing our grand-total to $40.00. Some add-ons though, are required; these add-ons include paying upwards of $50.00 for a checked bag or $25 for a carry-on, for something that use to be free! Also depending if you pay ahead for bags, or at the airport, you may pay even more than the base luggage fees. Thus bringing the current total to $115.00 for a one-way trip. But don’t forget taxes and final fees, which can total upwards of $150.00! Thus making our grand total $265.00, insane! Let us also not forget, since most students need to return after break, they will be paying the above grand total twice, thus the student spends a total of $530.00 for their travels!
In
conclusion, if you are planning a flight anytime soon, my advice would be to
follow my advice, or visit websites like Travelocity, Expedia, Kayak, and
CheapOair.com, in order to find the lowest fare possible for your flight.
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