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Airline prices take flight for holidays

Ashley Doyle, Senior Staff Writer

Students may have to dig deep into their pockets if they plan on traveling from Cincinnati International Airport this Thanksgiving break.

According to a government survey released Oct. 25, the cost of flying out of Greater Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG) is the highest it's been in the last 11 years. With ticket prices rising 34 percent in the second quarter of 2006, CVG has the most rapidly rising ticket prices out of all other airports in the U.S., with the average round-trip airfare out of CVG being $536. This also is the highest round-trip airfare among major airports, according to the survey.

For Miami University senior Kate Rosenblatt, the soaring airline prices have hit home, so she's decided to fly out of more reasonably priced airports, such as Dayton and Columbus. However, high prices in airline tickets nationally have still taken their toll on Rosenblatt's holiday season.

"I had to cut my Thanksgiving (break) short," said Rosenblatt, who is from Connecticut. "To come home on Sunday, the prices are almost double."

CVG serves as the second-largest hub for Delta Air Lines' and despite criticism of the high prices, Delta continues to attribute the high costs to an even higher level of service, which can be seen through its direct service to more than 120 different locations.

While prices certainly are higher this year than in past years, Delta spokesperson Gina Laughlin says there are ways to get better deals and not pay outrageous prices.

"For students who want to get the best fares for Thanksgiving, the best thing for the students to do is start looking early,"

Laughlin said. "Typically the lowest fares are found two to three weeks in advance. There are only going to be a certain number of low fare tickets available for all flights. Once that inventory of low fare tickets is gone, the next set of inventory is overpriced."

According to Laughlin, the rise in prices of airline tickets over the past few years is a direct result of September 11. The prices dropped so dramatically, that they have been steadily increasing over the past few years to bring prices back to normal. Laughlin also attributes prices to the high fuel bill.

"Every time the price of fuel goes up just one penny, it costs Delta 25 million dollars extra a year," Laughlin said.

Despite the high prices in airplane tickets, Sandra Guile, public relations representative for AAA travel agency, has not seen a decrease in the amount of travelers.

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"We've had people in the Cincinnati area booking their holiday travels since June or July, and we haven't noticed any decrease in part of higher prices," Guile said. "Our AAA national headquarters are predicting that the number of travelers going by air will still be a slight increase."

Guile feels travelers have continued to fly despite high prices, especially during the holidays, because it is often the only option. People value their time, so rather than spending a day or two in the car, it is more time efficient to fly.

Laughlin maintains that if you are an individual who travels during the holiday season, the best thing you can do is plan ahead.

"Typically during the holidays, people make their travel plans very early so those lower fair tickets get taken up very quickly," Laughlin said. "It's important when planning for holiday air travel, to do the research as far in advance as possible."


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