it doesn't matter....i brought it up just as an example of a very pervasive and annoying travel industry practice...as the examples in the posts above astutely demonstrate, it's absolutely ridiculous to advertise a fare with the small print saying "ONE WAY, BASED ON ROUND-TRIP PURCHASE". and all the taxes are a different issue---all i know is that with any other purchase, i know what taxes i'm paying....but when i have to pay in excess of $10 for "fuel surcharges", or as i've found in many hotels the "resort fee"... all it does is make me feel like a sucker who is being duped.

pretty much all airlines charge the same taxes and fees, so it's not like i would give one carrier my business over another if they all had to advertise their prices that included the taxes and fees...but as long as airlines will advertise "go to london for $79!*" for example (*79 one-way based on round-trip purchase, not including taxes and fees, etc.) i will continue to feel like they're taking advantage of me.

again, i'm sorry i used the word "fraud"... i'm just frustrated at how deceptive the marketing can be and i don't like when businesses play games like this with their customers. i think in certain cases it's unethical and at other times just unfair.