News, 10 'sneaky' airline fees. (cost, reservations, airlines, price)

[John1960]

Carriers don't want to raise ticket prices, so they're looking for new ways to reach into travelers' wallets, charging extra for seat selection, phone reservations and even pillows.

These days airlines are desperate to raise revenues without raising fares. One solution? Tack on some fees.

10 'sneaky' airline fees - MSN Money (http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/SavingandDebt/TravelForLess/10SneakyAirlineFees.aspx - broken link)

[BlueWillowPlate]

"The most prevalent sneaky fee is a booking charge of $10 to $25 if you want to make a reservation any way but through the airline's Web site
heh
I remember the "good old days" when I was shocked at having to pay a $5 booking charge. I had called because I simply could not find a Nice to London fare online, but I knew it existed.
I got to pay five bucks for the privilege of finding out.

[okaydorothy]

I am looking to take the kids to Ireland in Feb and looked up the fare yesterday.

It is $210 one way ; including a $70 fuel surcharge each way. That is 33% of the ticket. So basically for the three of us to go we must pay $420 in fuel surcharges!!!

Plus pay for any soda ; they give you one, and you pay for any additional. Needless to say we dont take any soda.

And they are saying they are loosing money?? I remember after 9-11 I bought a ticket for my sister to come over ; it was $169 return.

d

[BlueWillowPlate]

Taxes were never cheap, but with the added fuel costs and the "security" fee, it all really adds up.
As it is now, the work of purchasing a ticket has been out-sourced to us, the customers.
We get to book our flights ourselves online, check in ourselves at kiosks.
This is not at all a bad thing in itself. I readily accepted E-tickets.
However, the airlines are being squeezed, and so we are, too--and now services that we used to take for granted, such as drinks, pillows, and communicating with an airline representative, are extra.
What kills me is when they present us with this type of information, and preface it with the phrase "For Your Convenience."
Yeah, right.

[Tek_Freek]

$130 ticket. Add in a $55 fuel surcharge, a $5 baggage fee, $10 to pick my seat $2 for a Coke

Just charge me $205 for the stupid ticket already! I'll still fly and do it without being p*ssed off about it. Geez!