Crazy Airfare Prices

Mary L · Post by **Mary L** » Tue Mar 05, 2013 9:44 am

OK what is going on with the airfare, it's crazy. We have a trip booked for July 13-20 and the air fare just keeps on going up and up, today usairways was $764. and AA was $905.and Jet Blue is $785.these are all for Hartford, CT. I have never booked a place before buying my airfare, I think I made a mistake.

stjchica · Post by **stjchica** » Tue Mar 05, 2013 10:11 am

Gas prices are up right now...Just wait and watch until they come down again (Hopefully they will ???)...Keep checking your airfares, they are changing all the time...when they are lower, jump on it..

lark22 · Post by **lark22** » Tue Mar 05, 2013 10:15 am

I posted this on someone else's thread about high fares -- the Bing travel price predictor is a great tool (used to be FareCast). Basically, it looks at historical price trends and other factors and tells you whether to buy now or wait, because fare prices should be dropping.

I plugged in your travel dates & departure airport, and Bing recommends waiting:
http://www.bing.com/travel/flights/sear ... =1&b=COACH

News of St. John · Post by **News of St. John** » Tue Mar 05, 2013 10:25 am

I keep an eye on prices out of Hartford too, and I have also seen very high prices. JetBlue is outrageous lately. I actually booked two separate tickets for my next trip because it was cheaper. I am flying American down and JetBlue home. I ended up buying tickets from New York because it was cheaper and direct.

The only good thing about JetBlue is that you can get a credit if the price goes down. I received a $60 credit because the price dropped a few days after I purchased my ticket.

I am going in late May and paid $450 round trip.

Beachnut513 · Post by **Beachnut513** » Tue Mar 05, 2013 10:26 am

Wow that's insane!! We leave next tue for st John from Hartford and our price for round trip is $435 per person! I guess i got lucky!

jmq · Post by **jmq** » Tue Mar 05, 2013 10:28 am

Another argument for not traveling on Saturdays if possible, which can be a problem because I assume most villas may prefer Sat to Sat rentals (??) and a lot of folks might not have the flexibility to travel midweek. For example, that non-stop that American (#655 outbound) has been running out of JFK forever runs $508 RT on Sat. yet I have seen it as low as $293 midweek a few months ago.

Mary L · Post by **Mary L** » Tue Mar 05, 2013 10:43 am

I have never paid more then $400. in the 9 years of going to STJ. We have to go Sat to Sat because of the daughter. She want to cancel soon if the prices don't go down. I'll be sad

KTinTX · Post by **KTinTX** » Tue Mar 05, 2013 12:11 pm

Airfare from Houston is always high to STT. In 2009 we paid about $450 and have never seen it that low again when we have been watching (June or July travel).

2010 was about $600
2012 was over $700 after it came down!

This year had resigned ourselves to at least $750 and pricing was running higher than that. Caught a one day drop back in December and bought 1st class tix for right at my budgeted $750!!! Yeah, I could have saved about $300 total for the two of us, but the extra room and bag check savings (if we check) were worth the splurge. Happy 19th anniversary honey!

So... Stay patient and diligent. Good luck and happy hunting

silverheels · Post by **silverheels** » Tue Mar 05, 2013 2:36 pm

So glad that I purchased my tickets early in January for an April trip at $405 from Hartford on USAir and for an August trip on AA $374 plus the fact that I took out a Citi card and got a rebate of $125 plus free baggage. The prices that you are getting seem so high. I found that it was better to book on a Tuesday and travel mid week if possible.
Good luck.

ccinhbg · Post by **ccinhbg** » Tue Mar 05, 2013 2:54 pm

I've been keeping an eye on flights out of Harrisburg PA for a trip in August and the prices just jumped from nearly $100 in the past month. I keep hoping for lower fuel costs so the prices go down again.

PA Girl · Post by **PA Girl** » Tue Mar 05, 2013 3:27 pm

I found this thread a while back researching a different ticket issue. It is interesting, it explains how and why fares can change so much, so quickly, as seats get purchased on different segments of a flight. It also talks about a 24 hour window to cancel flights.

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/delta-sk ... -scam.html

JJShaw · Post by **JJShaw** » Tue Mar 05, 2013 4:14 pm

Prices from Myrtle even on Spirit are about 580.00 and thats EXTREMELY high for them...the most we have ever paid without miles was 285.00 however, I always book the air...then find a place...well I did it backwards this yr thinking we wouldn't be going...( I usually buy air in Nov or Dec.with miles) but I used the miles for a trip to see my son in NY...but after much consideration, and loosing a job..( my choice to quit) At least I have my sanity...

We have decided to cancel and try for next yr...plus we have a kitchen remodel going on..and so on and so on...its just not gonna work this yr...although I'm checking daily...its just not there...Ive even checked going into SJU and over on Cape Air...but that was about the same...oh well...at least I will have my sanity...and a new kitchen..and will be happy with a few days in NYC and Myrtle Beach..
Hopefully things will turn for the good for you and you will find a deal...now I gotta go delete my ticker...sniff sniff

sherban · Post by **sherban** » Tue Mar 05, 2013 5:23 pm

If you are trying to manage costs, I believe it is best to get airfare first then a villa.

Our June airfare is $344 RT PP from CLT

star2515 · Post by **star2515** » Tue Mar 05, 2013 10:17 pm

Sherban 344 sounds great, I've never managed anything that low out of CLT! I just booked a few weeks ago out of CLT 550 for end of July. Going down on AA and back on USAir gave us the best deal and got us down there by lunch on the first day. I've been tracking prices for awhile now and they are fluxuating both up and down, watch long enough I think you see a pattern and know about how low they go before jumping back up. I jumped on a low departing flight a few months before getting a good return flight, but we had specific dates we were tied into, may could have gone as low as Sherban if we were more flexible.

Good luck to those still on the hunt, I hope prices come down soon! I thought CLT prices were bad, sound like Hartford has us beat. :-/

Effie · Post by **Effie** » Wed Mar 06, 2013 7:56 am

Same thing happened to us and we also fly out of Hartford. I was watching Kayak flex month for August for a few weeks and because of our flexible dates, I saw it go as low as $360. The next day it was up to almost $500 and then a few days later back down to $380 but with another flight with a really long layover in Miami. I was getting frustrated and almost booked that one when a few days later, the good original flight I was looking at came back in at $360!! I even was looking out of Boston and Providence but surprisingly Hartford was still cheaper!

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