We'll be home for Christmas -- if we can afford it
Posted
Oct 03 2008, 11:43 AM
by
Donna Freedman
Rating:
About a month ago I booked a trip from Seattle to South Jersey to see my dad at the end of December. With taxes and fees, it came to $400. When I did a price search two weeks later, the cheapest ticket I could find was $97 more.
It's important to me to visit family, so I would have bought it anyway. Then again, there's only one of me. If I had a spouse and kids, that $97 per ticket would have been a problem.
Escalating travel prices are already a problem for a Smart Spending message board reader posting as "skammons," who recently canceled a trip because it cost too much. Baggage fees make travel even pricier, because the family brings a car seat and a stroller for its youngest member.
"That plus luggage for three adds up quickly," skammons wrote.
"We usually go see my family once each year, either for Christmas or Thanksgiving, but I don't know if we can this year because of the airline costs. It's frustrating."
'We still want to travel'
Next time you're tempted to complain about the price of the Philly-to-Boston shuttle, think about "Shawn in AK." She and her family of four used to travel several times a year, but moving to the Last Frontier cured them of that. They can't afford to travel again until late in 2009.
"It feels really weird to not be going anywhere for another year," Shawn said.
Having lived in Alaska for 17 years, I feel her pain. For many years we spent most or all of our vacation days visiting family back on the East Coast. And this was before the invention of Web special fares.
"NancyinFL" has had to go farther afield for cheap tickets because her local airport lost carriers. The closest airport with discount flights is 2½ hours away. Despite the long drive and the long-term parking, she and her family still save money.
"But it seems like we spent a lot of time going to and from our destinations instead of enjoying them," she said.
Reader "Sam O Ting" and his wife nixed a trip to Italy last July due to the abysmal exchange rate. Instead, they used frequent-flier miles to fly across the country and take a cruise. Next summer's vacation will be a day's drive away.
"We still want to travel; we just don't go as far," he said.
Book early, fly cheaper -- or free
"Cal Gal" is not just a frequent flier, but an overachieving one: She has earned free tickets on three different airlines. One of them will take her from California to the Midwest this Christmas; if she were paying cash, the trip would run her nearly $700. Frequent-flier seats tend to fill up fast, which is why Cal Gal booked hers way back in February.
Early purchase is key, according to "Inthetrenches," who booked a December trip for two from Pittsburgh to Orlando for $400. Those tickets would now cost $600, the reader reported, adding wryly that "those Web specials may be the next thing that goes away."
Last-minute flights can really cost you. Last year, reader "Deeone75" paid less than $300 total for three tickets from Florida to New Jersey. A recent death in the family meant booking tickets to the same destination with just one day's notice. That time, three tickets cost her $1,800. The airline gave a bereavement discount of only $45.
"This is crazy! When is this economy going to change?" Deeone75 wrote.
When we go -- and where
What's more likely is that consumers will have to change. Obvious tactics include enrolling in frequent-flier programs and searching diligently for the cheapest fares. Smart planning will help you avoid airline fees.
But in these days of economic turmoil, the question may be whether to vacation at all. Travel is not a divine right. If you're already in debt, shouldn't you be positioning yourself financially for the potential of layoffs or other bad times?
Such preparations generally would not include putting airline tickets on a credit card. Yet at the same time you want the kids to know Grandma and Grandpa in person, instead of from photographs.
If you have enough in your budget for some travel, the issue can easily become family vs. non-family vacations. Think luggage fees are outrageous? Wait until you see the cost of the emotional baggage should you book a ski trip instead of automatically going "home" for the holidays.
As costs continue to climb, we need to make tougher choices about how often we see family and/or old friends, and what constitutes a vacation.
I'd be interested in hearing how readers are handling these issues. I bet folks with limited funds and far-flung families would like to hear it, too. Leave a comment, or post your tips and strategies on this Smart Spending message board thread.
