Flying

[Cumberland]

I was going to post something about this too. Our Christmas trip went from around 450 a person, tickets are now hovering around $900. We will have to buy four tickets, so that is quite a setback. We will do it this year bc we have already booked our place, and maybe just start saving early for next year?

I had someone tell me a month or two ago that air travel is going to become a luxury that is out of reach of most Americans. I can see it heading that way as we speak.

[alison]

Re: Flying

Chicago hasn't really felt the crunch yet. It's easy to get places, except for all the weather delays (thunderstorms this time of year, and snow in the winter).

When we fly to Vegas, it takes less than 3 hours sometimes. Would that be something workable?

[DCJenn]

Re: Flying

San Antonio just lost the At&T headquarters to Dallas because it's so difficult to get in and out of here. Back when my SIL did large scale meeting planning, she said that SA will never be a site for huge conferences because of the fact that to get here you 90% of the time have to change planes somewhere.

We also just lost ExpressJet as a provider.

I think the 1940s analogy is spot on- Amtrak is going to have to expand.

Jenn

[alison]

Re: Flying

Oh, I'm sorry, I wasn't clear. I meant that the flight to Nevada is under 3 hours, and I would think that the Reno-Chicago connection wouldn't be too bad. We have two airports, Midway and O'Hare. It's really easy to get around the country from here.

[mommax3]

Re: Flying

I had someone tell me a month or two ago that air travel is going to become a luxury that is out of reach of most Americans. I can see it heading that way as we speak.

I really have always felt this way, honestly, at least for families. I don't know (and haven't ever known) too many families who regularly fly to their vacation destinations. It has only been in the past year that I have felt okay about spending $1250 to $1500 just *getting* to a vacation destination....and that is assuming that we are going somewhere (FL) where we can get a cheap fare. We flew places during DH's residency because we were far from home and he didn't have a lot of time off, but the thought of spending money we didn't have (at the time) made both of us totally stressed out, not to mention that flying with little ones who like to be on the move is a nightmare all on its own. I just have a hard time spending thousands of dollars flying somewhere when I know I can drive (even driving a Suburban with today's gas prices) for lots cheaper, without being cramped, hungry, or held hostage by the people in front of/behind/beside me. I can bring all the luggage I want, eat when I want, etc. Frankly, that is most of the reason we got a Suburban in the first place, and why it will be hard to give it up. For our family, I predict that there are going to be some vacations in the next few years where the kids and I drive, and DH flies and meets us where we are going/back at home, since time off will always be an issue for him.

Sally

[SuzySunshine]

Re: Flying

We are lucky enough to be within driving distance of both sets of our parents however we are flying distance (more then a 16 hour/2 day drive) from two of our siblings. After flying with Adele twice without her own seat I don't think we'll do it again so that will make flying a lot more expensive.

I've read several places that the smaller airports are getting squeezed, even Kansas City airport which I consider to be a pretty big airport is supposedly losing double digit % of their flights.

The ironic part is that when we're done with residency and have more time I think we're more likely to take car trips when we could probably afford to fly. :huh:

[Vishenka69]

Re: Flying

We haven't felt the crunch yet, but living between Newark and Philly, I doubt we will any time soon. I was hoping that our local dinky airport would pick up some more flights but I don't think it's happening anytime soon. We fly for just about every vacation but try to plan around the current prices as oppose to being deadset on a destination. Luckily most of of our family and friends are within a 2 hour drive.

I realized recently that making a stop (adding another leg to the trip) on the way there or back usually doesn't cost anything (or minimal $10-20), so we've been doing that a lot. For example, we're going to Vegas in Sept and stopping in CO on the way back to visit friends. The flight cost was the same for straight round trip or with a stop. This way we don't have to schedule (and pay for) another trip to see our friends.

Another idea (won't apply for family visits though) is that often the higher flight cost is offset by the much cheaper accomodations/food at a particular destination. That's why we're thinking South America for our Thanksgiving trip. The flight is roughly $1K per person, but once there everything is very cheap.

Finally, watch the gas pump prices. As soon as those dip even a few cents a gallon, the airline prices will drop that day too. That's the time to snatch them up.

Re: Flying

I know Kansas City has lost several direct flights.

Re: Flying

I've heard about a few flights from Portland being cancelled, mostly to smaller cities (maybe Billings and a other similar sized places). It might not be out altogether but it is going from two flights per day to one. That must be hard on those smaller regional cities.

I've noticed the cost increase too. DH and DD just went to Denver, booked a ways in advance, and paid $100 more each than we usually get a fare for. We've typicallly flown instead of driving. We just haven't had the time on either side of a trip for the drive. Honestly, I'd rather spend 3 miserable hours trapped on a plane than 15 miserable hours in the car. On our last trip to Denver, as a family of now 5 we had to rent a car. That part makes driving seem a little more worthwhile. Still -- 4 days of driving I'm not too psyched about.

We are driving to NW Montana in October (9 hours or so they say). DH thinks I'm nuts. We'll see how it goes.

Julia, back to the original post...when we looked at residency programs, the airport and connecting flights were a consideration. With both of the top choice east coast programs we would have to connect through Chicago to get to Denver. That moved the programs down on my list. I think it is a reasonable consideration for the extent you can control it.

I agree, Lily, there is a new movement towards frugality that I didn't see a few years ago. It seems to be more entrenched here to begin with (DH couldn't believe how hard it was to find a recycling container in Keystone CO) but I'm noticing it more in national publications.

[DCJenn]

Re: Flying

and another one is gone- todays online SA newspaper is reporting that Midwest Airlines is now pulling the plug on flying into SA.

Ultimately we'll end up with Continental, American and Southwest- because they're all based in TX.

Jenn

[SuzySunshine]

Re: Flying

I just had a conversation with a friend who is planning a Napa trip for the fall and they had already booked their tickets on Midwest, now they're all screwed up b/c half of their trip was cancelled. Might want to keep that in mind before you book out to early for anyone who is thinking of traveling.

[Vanquisher]

Re: Flying

This is one of the reasons we really loved Lakeland, and it was so appealing to us. To be within close proximity to two major airports was awesome for us.

Being in Columbia now, we almost always have to fly out of Charlotte, and we still rarely get direct flights.

[peggyfromwastate]

Re: Flying

Probably for us it means instead of visiting home 2-3 times a year we'll be limited to 1 time... Maybe just the summer trip. I hate traveling over the holidays, but we're doing it this year and I already have those tickets. When DH figures out his days off, we'll get his but it's going to cost what it cost for 3 of our tickets (we got them a while back when they were much cheaper).

We've been flying into Seattle for forever, and the podunk airport at my hometown is always at least 200 more per ticket to fly into, so I'm pretty sure we'll never fly into there...

[SuzySunshine]

Re: Flying

Oh no, is Midwest in trouble? They are the nicest airline I've ever flown on.

I think like every other airline they're just cutting back right now. Not to say that they won't be in trouble soon, who knows anymore. :huh:

[PrincessFiona]

Re: Flying

We got a fairly good deal on our tickets to Germany...but it was a good deal considering the market as it is right now.... We have never spent this kind of money on tickets for a family vacation, but we decided on a once in a lifetime thing considering this is our first real vacation in ...15 years of marriage. It will also probably be years before we get another chance to have a trip on our own.

Airline travel has become very expensive and dare I say...inconvenient...what with the removing of shoes, tossing of liquids and lack of meals on flights (unless you pay extra for them...)

Kris