Spring break travel: Airfares up, hotel rates down

Average airfares for spring break are up from last year but hotel rates are down, according to data from Bing Travel and Travelocity.
Travelocity found average airfares are up 9 percent compared to last year, with the average domestic roundtrip flight at about $351, while hotel prices are down to an average nightly rate of about [...]

Hard-pressed Europeans flock to cheaper airlines

Budget airlines in Europe gained 13 million more passengers last year, with cheaper prices pulling in customers amid an overall drop in air travel.
The European Low Fares Airline Association, which includes Ryanair and easyJet, said an 8.7 percent increase in passenger numbers in 2009 allowed their industry expand and hire 3,000 more workers.
Airports say overall [...]

How to beat airline fees

You could almost feel sorry for the airlines.
Few people see the service on one carrier as being much different than another, so competition is all around fares — how cheaply can I get there? — and most of them lose money. Which means the carriers constantly skirt bankruptcy and have to find all kinds of [...]

9 spring travel tips: How to save money and sanity

As I write this here in the Northeast, the rodent saw his shadow, a snowfall fell the next day and we’re headed for a single-digit deep freeze this weekend — all of which are indicators that it is time to distract ourselves with dreams of spring travel.
Of course, planning a trip these days can induce [...]

Airlines’ attempt to increase fares fizzles

Low-cost airlines did not hike fares, forcing major airlines to pull back
U.S. airlines’ second attempt of 2010 to raise ticket prices has fizzled, with major carriers pulling back fares over the long holiday weekend, according to Farecompare.
Last week, UAL Corp’s United Airlines increased fares by $10 per round-trip, and other top carriers followed suit. But [...]

Peru tries to bring tourists to Cuzco

Peru’s government is cutting airfares and hotel rates hoping to draw tourists to the Incan city of Cuzco even though the country’s top tourist destination, the nearby Machu Picchu fortress, remains inaccessible.
Tourism Minister Martin Perez says the promotion begins Thursday and will first be extended to domestic tourists before being offered to international visitors.
Perez says [...]

Southwest Airlines launches 3-day fare sale

Southwest Airlines Co. is offering a sale geared toward leisure travelers who want to make short trips this spring.
The discount carrier said Tuesday it will sell tickets starting at $39 each way on some routes under 500 miles.
As usual, the airline didn’t say how many seats it will offer at the sale prices, and Friday [...]