George S. May Business Blog

Airfare Blowout Sales

Airfare Blowout Sales

For those who have wanted to fly across the country but could not afford it in the past, wait no longer. Round-trip airfares have slid below $100 on many routes today as three of the nation’s largest low-cost carriers announced extensive fare sales. See below for details on each of three’s sales.

Southwest

This morning southwest announced a 48-hour fare sale with fares tied to the length of a flight. Southwest will be offering its lowest fare – $30 each way – on flights of 400 miles or less. Of course there are fees and taxes, so after all is said and done, those traveling less than 400 miles in the air will be paying around $81.

Examples of such routes: Los Angeles-San Francisco, or Baltimore-Boston

If you are flying between 401-705 miles, Southwest is asking for $60 each way. With taxes and fees, about $140.

Example: Oakland-Las Vegas

Flights of more than 750 miles will be $90 each way, totaling the ticket price to around $200.

Example: Chicago-Houston

Of course, there are rules and restrictions on the sale fares. The fares are good for travel between Sept. 9 and Nov. 18, but are subject to capacity controls and are not offered for travel on Fridays or Sundays. Still the fares appeared to be available on many flights, based on a quick search this morning. Tickets must be booked by midnight PDT tomorrow. Check out Southwest’s website for additional details. (See a city-by-city list of sale fares on Southwest’s website).

AirTran

AirTran also announced a broad fare sale this morning, highlighting prices as low as $39 each way for off-peak days on some of its shortest routes. Once again, and you probably knew this was coming, AirTran’s special does comes with fine print:

The sale is good for flights through Nov. 11, and customers must book by Thursday. Also, the lowest fares are only valid for travel on Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday.

Sample round-trip sale fares on AirTran for off-peak travel (including estimated taxes and fees): Baltimore-Boston, $98; Minneapolis-Milwaukee, $98; Asheville-Orlando, $108; Boston-Dayton, $138; Los Angeles-Milwaukee, $258; Atlanta-San Francisco, $258.

Frontier

Frontier’s sale will let you book into the winter and allows you to travel from Aug. 10 through Jan. 15. Tickets must be purchased by July 14.

Here’s the fine print:

Restrictions include capacity controls and blackout dates on certain days around the winter holidays. The cheapest fares are for off-peak travel days.

Some examples of off-peak sale fares (including estimated taxes and fees): Albuquerque-Denver, $88; Omaha-Denver, $108; Austin-Denver, $148; Los Angeles-Grand Junction, Colo., $198; Denver-Atlanta, $218; Indianapolis-Las Vegas, $238; Washington National-Aspen, $260; Philadelphia-Jackson Hole, $278 and New York LaGuardia-San Diego, $318.

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