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Tagged With "airline fees"

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Re: Air Miles vs Low Fare Airline

PortMoresby ·
Continuing my search for an economical way to use my miles and avoid absurd fees, I tried a combination of 2 one-way flights, one with miles, one on Norwegian. One way on Norwegian is as low as $286. If I avoid using BA with points, flights on AA to Paris are 20,000 miles (before May 15th) plus a $5 fee (excellent!) but with a stupid schedule, 3 flights and 2 days to get there. And 1 possibility available. All the rest are BA flights, $326 in fees + 20,000 miles. Next thought, why is AA...
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Re: Air Miles vs Low Fare Airline

Paul Heymont ·
The AA-BA mashup is tricky, yes, but not as devious as it may seem. Between New York and Paris, for instance, AA has only two non-stops a day; BA has a half-dozen (or more, including Open Skies). And, BA has many seats LON-PAR, so availability is greater. A similar situation exists on this side of the ocean, where BA feeds many AA domestic flights. It's sometimes possible to get around better if you don't mind one stop...we've used AA to Madrid paired with Iberia to Paris (Iberia's charges...
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Re: Air Miles vs Low Fare Airline

PortMoresby ·
Call it whatever you like, but I seem to have missed your point. But, no matter, MY point was simply that I see no excuse for charging astonishingly different prices for the same product, transportation from point A to point B, on partner airlines ostensibly selling the same thing.
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Re: Is it time to regulate airplane seats? Chris Elliott thinks so!

DrFumblefinger ·
I'm not sure if "mandating" certain seat sizes would do anything but raise prices, but it might be nice if they introduced a simple grading system. "A" for business/first class, "F" for the sardine can seating in the most cramped airlines. If I was less than 5 ft tall and weighed less than 100 lbs the current seating system would work fine for me. For most folks it's much too crowded, especially on long flights. All the worse if you have to have your bag under the seat in front of you. Let's...
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Re: Is it time to regulate airplane seats? Chris Elliott thinks so!

Paul Heymont ·
I'm not sure it's the case that mandating a decent space would raise fares...in the past, we've certainly seen that fares have a resistance point, and airlines have backed down from increases at times. Also worth noting that fares seem largely based on competition rather than actual expense involved; that's why it's often cheaper to fly NY to LA than NY to Kansas City! And, as Chris Elliott points out, having people fighting over seat space has led to expensive consequences, too...
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Re: Is it time to regulate airplane seats? Chris Elliott thinks so!

DrFumblefinger ·
The trouble with a mandate is that it has deadlines and airlines who fly to the US would have to go through an expensive seat replacement program. That cost is one we share, or that puts the airlines in the red and in jeopardy. Makes sense to pressure them to improve, but that's just my opinion. But I do like the idea of "grading" seats. Helps me know what I'm buying. For example, Canadian airlines definitely have larger seats that American carriers. I'll preferentially fly Air Canada to...
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Re: Is it time to regulate airplane seats? Chris Elliott thinks so!

GarryRF ·
This debate seems to accept that the profit margins of Trans-Atlantic Flights are squeezed by costs outside the carriers control. The only solution they have is squeeze more seats in to control income. Last month I paid £759 ($1245) for 1 seat UK to Philadelphia - Return - with an American Airline. 7 hours in the sky. Each way. My £759 will also get me a flight to the Caribbean from the UK. 10 hours in the sky. 14 nights in a hotel. Food and drink included. And flight back. The Caribbean...
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Re: Canadian airline adopts unpopular US fee

DrFumblefinger ·
Air Canada just announced that it too will have the $25 baggage fee. http://money.ca.msn.com/invest...for-economy-travel-1
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Re: Why tickets stay high while fuel prices drop

DrFumblefinger ·
I think I'm seeing better ticket prices than I have for several years now, so I'm not sure if this is completely true. But it could just represent a biased sampling (Canada, more than US flights).
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Re: Why tickets stay high while fuel prices drop

Paul Heymont ·
Overall, for U.S. airlines, the trend is up; last month all the majors went along with a $2 average increase on almost all fares. Those fares, of course, are subject to competitive discounting on specific flights or routes; Alaska and Delta have been battling over the Seattle market all year, for example, affecting prices on those routes.
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Re: Why tickets stay high while fuel prices drop

Travel Rob ·
With Airline consolidation the last few years and some budget airlines changing their image and prices, there doesn't seem to be that downword pressure for most prices in the US
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Re: Why tickets stay high while fuel prices drop

GarryRF ·
The cost of an Airline Ticket has little to do with the cost of a barrel of oil. That's why I can fly to Sydney Australia for the same price as I can to New York. That's 3500 miles to New York or 10,500 miles to Sydney. Same price. It's solely based on the principle of how much juice you can squeeze from an orange.
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Re: Why tickets stay high while fuel prices drop

Paul Heymont ·
While it's true that competition and cupidity rather than cost are the basis of pricing, fuel does factor in: when fuel is high, the airlines add surcharges, and when fuel costs drop, they seldom remove them!
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Re: Why tickets stay high while fuel prices drop

GarryRF ·
Airlines and many other companies are determined to squeeze the public to the last drop of juice. Take a look at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Price_fixing_cases and see that there's no honour amongst thieves. Steal from one man and its theft. Steal from a thousand and its Corporate Policy.
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Re: What if the exit row weren't a row?

PortMoresby ·
Maybe the overhead bins have, as they say, been binned. Back to the days when it was considered a luxury to let someone else handle one's luggage. I still think it is.
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Re: What if the exit row weren't a row?

DrFumblefinger ·
I think that seating arrangement would work well in zero gravity. Think of the PanAm space cruises in the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey. Unless planes will be designed in a flying saucer shape, I can't envision what the Europeans are planning.
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Re: Memphis, Tennessee: 1) Graceland

GarryRF ·
You've put together an interesting tour DrF. I never knew you got that up close and personal on a tour . You mentioned the 2nd floor. Do the family still live there ? I'm surprised to see there's no mention of his manager. 50% - wow - that's some fee. Heard stories but never knew that was the figure. There have been other cases of artists - of that time - being mis-used too.
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Re: Seat Wars break out in the air...

Travel Rob ·
The Daily Telegraph conducted a poll after the first 2 incidents on "Should Reclining Seats be Banned" and 70% of the respondents said yes. The lack of leg space is a big issue and I hope airlines enact more reasonable legroom space for coach. If the reported stories are true though, some passengers weren't acting mature or reasonable at all and really should face stiff penalties for their actions http://www.telegraph.co.uk/tra...seats-be-banned.html
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Re: Seat Wars break out in the air...

DrFumblefinger ·
I think on short domestic flights (let's say 3 hours or less), we could do away with the reclining seats. For longer duration flights, more legroom would be a great addition and keep the reclining seats. But I can't see the airlines going this route. Space is so tight I can't even see the screen of my netbook if the traveler in front of me reclines their seat.
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Re: Marriott to offer free wi-fi to all its Rewards member

Paul Heymont ·
I think you're exactly right, PortMoresby. For quite some time, we've looked mostly at the inexpensive chains precisely because they offer clear and valuable perks: Free breakfast, free parking, free WiFi. Our occasional high-end hotels through Priceline have sometimes moved the per-room fee down to a lower tier, but after you've paid $20/day for parking, $11.99 a day for WiFi...not so lower! The two-tier WiFi issue is becoming a bug for me, too. I recently stayed at a DoubleTree by Hilton...
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Re: Marriott to offer free wi-fi to all its Rewards member

PortMoresby ·
And let us not forget the dreaded "resort fees". Defined as meaning anything the hotel wants it to mean. And charged whether we use the facilities it's said to cover, or not. Look in the dictionary for the definition of "chicken shit" and you'll find "resort fees". If everyone must pay it, it should rightly be included in the room rate. Even my favorite, AirBnB, makes options available for hosts - cleaning fee, security deposit, a charge for more than 1 person and even possibilities for...
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Re: Marriott to offer free wi-fi to all its Rewards member

Paul Heymont ·
I will say one thing for Airbnb, as compared to hotel resort fees: With Airbnb, before you click, you see the total of what's included, and what goes to whom. The resort fee and some of the others are often a surprise on arrival...
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Re: Virgin Hotels Promises No Nickel and Diming

DrFumblefinger ·
If they keep their room rates reasonable, they will be very successful. Especially important to fight that "resort fee" that's creeping up everywhere.
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Re: Scotland's vote may help ax high flying tax

GarryRF ·
UK Air passenger duty for under 12's will be abolished from May 2015. Under 16's will have to wait until 2016.
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Re: Coming soon: Adjustable-width airline seats?

PortMoresby ·
Looking at the picture, it appears to me that the business class option is a far cry from the direction upper class has been going of late, more and more comfort. Does this mean it will be more comfortable than currently is the case for economy passengers or less comfortable for business class? Maybe the arc has peaked for upper class comfort and this indicates the start of a slide down the other side.
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Re: Coming soon: Adjustable-width airline seats?

DrFumblefinger ·
I would presume the wider seat arrangement would more likely be "Economy Plus" rather than business class. Say two large people buying a 3 row seat and the third seat would get squeeze down by the wider adjustment of the above. International business class nowadays is almost universally lie flat bed seats. To not have these would mean a loss of this lucrative market for the airlines.
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Re: Coming soon: Adjustable-width airline seats?

PortMoresby ·
Maybe the trend will be to 3, rather than 4 classes, with econ+ going by the wayside and the flat bed option called first. Who knows. Business started out looking something like econ+ does now. Four options seems like about 1 too many to me.
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Re: Coming soon: Adjustable-width airline seats?

Paul Heymont ·
Keep in mind that the picture is the patent model...tricked out with real upholstery it may look very different. Other than fitting big people better, I think this may mainly be used on smaller airliners that fly as one- or two-class, as British Air does on a lot of European flights....business class there is pretty much just empty middle. This would allow flexibility. Be my guess...
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Re: New trend: airport lounges for non-members

DrFumblefinger ·
A little pampering after a long flight, especially in steerage, is a good investment in my opinion. While I haven't used these lounges a lot, they make great sense if you have many hours of waiting between flights, even at a fee.
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Re: AirBnB vs New York. Update

PortMoresby ·
I'd love it if they collected the bed tax here. Since they don't, and it's my impression that few here pay it, including it as part of my fee creates an imbalance for me, making it appear as though I'm getting more than I do. I state the breakdown in my listing but hardly anyone actually reads the listings. If they collected it, it would give a fair comparison of the room rate with the taxes added on at the end, as the fees are now. I think, though, despite what seems a good idea from the...
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Re: AA gets its first Dreamliner

DrFumblefinger ·
I like the image of Boeing handing over a set of keys to AA executives for a jumbo jet. I'm glad to see more of these planes come in to service and hope within the next year or so to have the opportunity to fly one.
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Re: AA gets its first Dreamliner

Travel Rob ·
I'm flying on a 787 late May!Glad to see AA starting to get theirs!
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Re: AA gets its first Dreamliner

Paul Heymont ·
Looking forward to a 787 blog from you, Rob! That should be fun.
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Re: AA/USAir miles programs merge starting Saturday

PortMoresby ·
All my miles in one pile this morning, enough to go anywhere, and I still can't decide, a truly terrible problem.
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Re: AA/USAir miles programs merge starting Saturday

Paul Heymont ·
Yes, the transfer seems to have gone very smoothly...too bad, in a way; I was hoping for an accidental bonus as I once got from Delta (which added an extra zero, back in 1999).
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Re: AA/USAir miles programs merge starting Saturday

DrFumblefinger ·
Originally Posted by PortMoresby: All my miles in one pile this morning, enough to go anywhere, and I still can't decide, a truly terrible problem. But an enviable problem, PM. If it's the worst thing you have to deal with this week, you're having a pretty fine week.
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Re: AA/USAir miles programs merge starting Saturday

PortMoresby ·
I'm always aware, DrF, I've lived a charmed life (for a commoner).
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Re: AA/USAir miles programs merge starting Saturday

DrFumblefinger ·
Now I'm really confused. I just learned from your POD yesterday that you were a princess pretending to be a commoner....
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Re: AA/USAir miles programs merge starting Saturday

PortMoresby ·
No, DrF, you read it wrong. A commoner with delusions.
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Re: Delta makes its 20-minute bag guarantee permanent

DrFumblefinger ·
Nice to hear of something positive for consumers. As you know Alaska Airlines sparked this, as they've done this for at least a decade. But less waiting for a bag is a positive thing for travelers and I applaud them for doing so.
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Re: Airports, Airlines battle over passenger fees

DrFumblefinger ·
What I dislike are when fees are not used for what they're charged for. If airport improvement fees really are used to fix up and improve airports, I think most consumers are fine with that. But when they just get put into the general revenues of a city's cash pool, that bugs most of us. What a find far more unreasonable than this are the fees to change or cancel a flight. Often they approach or exceed the value of a ticket. That's really gouging the consumer.
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Re: Airports, Airlines battle over passenger fees

Paul Heymont ·
The other fees that especially bother me are the ones you never see in tickets, because they come out the back door. Compare airport car rental prices with off-airport of the same brand; compare the price of gum or candy at the airport or a neighborhood store. That’s airport revenue, too, either through a direct charge (car) or super-high-rents (newsstand)
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Re: Airports, Airlines battle over passenger fees

DrFumblefinger ·
Good points, PHeymont. I have noticed the extremely high fees imposed by airport car rentals. Sometimes these exceed the cost of the car rental itself.
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Re: As scheduled Cuba service nears, charter operators face unknown future

Travel Rob ·
With a few exceptions, the charter prices for Americans were really expensive. So for those companies, the gravy train is over.
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Re: As scheduled Cuba service nears, charter operators face unknown future

GarryRF ·
On leaving Cuba last year our flight home to the UK was delayed. We had to wait on the plane for 4 hours. The airport had run out of Jet Fuel A1. So a fuel tanker was dispatched to fetch some. I do hope the US embargo stops before I go again. I'm not fighting American Airlines for the last drop of Jet Fuel !!
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Re: Airline scheduling: Hurry up and wait, or run like crazy?

Marilyn Jones ·
Excellent and informative article!!
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Re: For $345 you can fly back to the 70s on Pan Am

PortMoresby ·
Make that the '70s - no 747s in the '50s.
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Re: For $345 you can fly back to the 70s on Pan Am

Paul Heymont ·
Thanks! Editing error now repaired!
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Re: For $345 you can fly back to the 70s on Pan Am

Travel Rob ·
We get some great Twitter responses to our articles. @ nichtvermietbar asks of this one: " including smoking?"
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Re: For $345 you can fly back to the 70s on Pan Am

Paul Heymont ·
A good question, and it is mentioned on the site: that part is up-to-date, and no smoking is allowed.
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