Feb 28, 2021, 12:23 pm
Last edit by: WineCountryUA
Archive thread, active thread is
Consolidated "Why is this UA fare so expensive?" thread
Potential reasons for high fares
-- the lower fare classes are sold out
-- the lower fare classes are not available due to fare rule restrictions
..... day of the week travel restrictions, Saturday night stay requirement, minimum stay requirement, advance purchase requirements, ...
-- desired fares are not combinable
-- discount fares not available for one-ways, only roundtrips Why are international OWs so expensive, such high fare classes?
-- discount inventory for codeshare marketing airline is gone, but flight operator may have discount fare (or the reverse)
-- Plating -- airlines restrict the best fare to their ticket stock, meaning ticketing that flight on another ticket stock will be more expensive
-- Airline is figuring it will still sell (due to last minute purchases0 even if the competition is lower earlier. Such as peak leisure periods or special events.
-- Airline is placing a premium on non-stop (monopoly?) versus alternative connecting routings
If you find an expensive flight, start by checking the fare class and compare to the less expensive option -- that generally will explain a lot.
Consolidated "Why is this UA fare so expensive?" thread
Potential reasons for high fares
-- the lower fare classes are sold out
-- the lower fare classes are not available due to fare rule restrictions
..... day of the week travel restrictions, Saturday night stay requirement, minimum stay requirement, advance purchase requirements, ...
-- desired fares are not combinable
-- discount fares not available for one-ways, only roundtrips Why are international OWs so expensive, such high fare classes?
-- discount inventory for codeshare marketing airline is gone, but flight operator may have discount fare (or the reverse)
-- Plating -- airlines restrict the best fare to their ticket stock, meaning ticketing that flight on another ticket stock will be more expensive
-- Airline is figuring it will still sell (due to last minute purchases0 even if the competition is lower earlier. Such as peak leisure periods or special events.
-- Airline is placing a premium on non-stop (monopoly?) versus alternative connecting routings
If you find an expensive flight, start by checking the fare class and compare to the less expensive option -- that generally will explain a lot.
Consolidated "Why is this fare so expensive?" Thread [Archive]
May 1, 2013, 7:23 am
#556
Join Date: Mar 2001
Location: Colorado Springs, CO
Programs: 1MM BIS. Former 18-year segment 1K, 1997-2014...now just a distant memory.
Posts: 1,200
I presume from Frontier's pulling out of COS. Several flights are actually substantially cheaper ex-PUB instead of COS, which has been unheard of.
Last edited by ColoBill1; May 1, 2013 at 11:00 pm Reason: Provide more accurate detail
May 3, 2013, 10:41 pm
#557
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: New England
Programs: American Gold, Marriott Gold, Hilton Silver
Posts: 5,644
I need a roundtrip from BOS-AOO in early August. AOO isn't exactly a tourist destination. I saw mid $200 fares for the same dates back in February, but didn't book at the time thinking that they would come down closer to departure. Right now, they're all above $300. Is this a heavily traveled route? I'm thinking about paying an extra $4 for the flight that does IAD-JST-AOO just to see the airport at JST. Any chance that this fare will come back down? At 30+cpm, it's kind of ridiculous.
I'm looking at some flights from BOS-LAX in August. I need one in mid-August and one in late August. The fare bucket seems to never drop below K. I know that this is probably a popular route with the business travelers, but will it get any less expensive? At 6cpm right now, it's not bad, but can/will it get better? What are my chances of a UFC? (My plans changed so I'll still be kettling it in August).
I'm looking at some flights from BOS-LAX in August. I need one in mid-August and one in late August. The fare bucket seems to never drop below K. I know that this is probably a popular route with the business travelers, but will it get any less expensive? At 6cpm right now, it's not bad, but can/will it get better? What are my chances of a UFC? (My plans changed so I'll still be kettling it in August).
May 6, 2013, 8:09 am
#558
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: London, UK
Programs: BA Gold, UA Nobody, Hilton Gold
Posts: 2,372
Need to fly NYC-SAN fairly urgently. US has one-ways all this week at sub $200, United wants $550. Any ideas how to force a better fare?
Also as my return is uncertain I'm figuring two one ways would be better than a flexible return; any thoughts or tips?
Also as my return is uncertain I'm figuring two one ways would be better than a flexible return; any thoughts or tips?
May 6, 2013, 8:18 am
#559
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: LGA/JFK/EWR
Programs: UA 1K1.75MM, Hyatt Globalist, abandoned Marriott LTT (RIP SPG), Hertz PC
Posts: 21,172
One ways are hit or miss - sometimes 1/2 the price of a basic r/t, sometimes equal to the r/t price itself
May 6, 2013, 8:30 am
#560
Join Date: Aug 2011
Programs: UA 1K
Posts: 8,634
Just a note: I've been pricing out fares NYC-LAX for the last day, and both United.com and the Matrix have been giving me only T fares despite all of the prerequisites being met for K/G/N fares. Something odd is going on. So maybe you might want to hold off?
May 6, 2013, 8:44 am
#561
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: London, UK
Programs: BA Gold, UA Nobody, Hilton Gold
Posts: 2,372
Depends on whether the fares are o/w or r/t. I'll look when I get a chance.
Just a note: I've been pricing out fares NYC-LAX for the last day, and both United.com and the Matrix have been giving me only T fares despite all of the prerequisites being met for K/G/N fares. Something odd is going on. So maybe you might want to hold off?
Just a note: I've been pricing out fares NYC-LAX for the last day, and both United.com and the Matrix have been giving me only T fares despite all of the prerequisites being met for K/G/N fares. Something odd is going on. So maybe you might want to hold off?
Running NYC-LAX with a connection forced in SAN actually increases the fare to $900, plus I will need to check luggage which makes hidden city impossible.
I can't really hold off as I need to get out to a ill relative so will probably book US unless someone has any other great ideas.
May 6, 2013, 8:46 am
#562
Join Date: Aug 2011
Programs: UA 1K
Posts: 8,634
Thanks. UA only has M available (at $775) on the non-stop and S/Q available (at $550) with one connection. US has K available with one connection for $197.
Running NYC-LAX with a connection forced in SAN actually increases the fare to $900, plus I will need to check luggage which makes hidden city impossible.
I can't really hold off as I need to get out to a ill relative so will probably book US unless someone has any other great ideas.
Running NYC-LAX with a connection forced in SAN actually increases the fare to $900, plus I will need to check luggage which makes hidden city impossible.
I can't really hold off as I need to get out to a ill relative so will probably book US unless someone has any other great ideas.
In your situation, I'd go with US. My flights on US over the weekend were a delight.
A follow-up on this comment of mine. I dug a bit deeper, and all of the published sub-T fares for NYC-LAX exclude the month of July through a blackout date rule at the moment. Here's to hoping that changes.
Last edited by iluv2fly; May 6, 2013 at 12:45 pm Reason: merge
May 9, 2013, 7:38 am
#563
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: London
Programs: UA GS
Posts: 2,438
ORD-HNL in March 2014
I've been eyeing some flights nonstop ORD-HNL for March 2014. I'm in no hurry to book but I am curious as to how they're controlling inventory for these flights.
I had an alert on EF set to watch R inventory because I plan on upgrading myself and 3 companions to F using miles. I haven't booked the flights yet, but was planning on moving on it if R inventory started to fill up (it was R7 and R9 for the two flights).
On Tuesday I was notified that BOTH flights had gone to R0. In addition, the inventory for the cheaper classes went away as well (previously, there was an S fare on the outbound and W on the return, now it's W and V only), so the fare is over $150 up from what it was ($1174pp for the nonstops).
I'm not overly concerned about booking this since it's so far out, but I am curious why this inventory is so weird. R inventory went away at the same time the cheaper classes did.
Maybe it'll come back next week - when these flights first went for sale it looked like this and about 2 weeks later R opened up along with the cheaper classes. Thoughts?
I had an alert on EF set to watch R inventory because I plan on upgrading myself and 3 companions to F using miles. I haven't booked the flights yet, but was planning on moving on it if R inventory started to fill up (it was R7 and R9 for the two flights).
On Tuesday I was notified that BOTH flights had gone to R0. In addition, the inventory for the cheaper classes went away as well (previously, there was an S fare on the outbound and W on the return, now it's W and V only), so the fare is over $150 up from what it was ($1174pp for the nonstops).
I'm not overly concerned about booking this since it's so far out, but I am curious why this inventory is so weird. R inventory went away at the same time the cheaper classes did.
Maybe it'll come back next week - when these flights first went for sale it looked like this and about 2 weeks later R opened up along with the cheaper classes. Thoughts?
May 9, 2013, 12:36 pm
#564
Join Date: Aug 2011
Programs: UA 1K
Posts: 8,634
I've been eyeing some flights nonstop ORD-HNL for March 2014. I'm in no hurry to book but I am curious as to how they're controlling inventory for these flights.
I had an alert on EF set to watch R inventory because I plan on upgrading myself and 3 companions to F using miles. I haven't booked the flights yet, but was planning on moving on it if R inventory started to fill up (it was R7 and R9 for the two flights).
On Tuesday I was notified that BOTH flights had gone to R0. In addition, the inventory for the cheaper classes went away as well (previously, there was an S fare on the outbound and W on the return, now it's W and V only), so the fare is over $150 up from what it was ($1174pp for the nonstops).
I'm not overly concerned about booking this since it's so far out, but I am curious why this inventory is so weird. R inventory went away at the same time the cheaper classes did.
Maybe it'll come back next week - when these flights first went for sale it looked like this and about 2 weeks later R opened up along with the cheaper classes. Thoughts?
I had an alert on EF set to watch R inventory because I plan on upgrading myself and 3 companions to F using miles. I haven't booked the flights yet, but was planning on moving on it if R inventory started to fill up (it was R7 and R9 for the two flights).
On Tuesday I was notified that BOTH flights had gone to R0. In addition, the inventory for the cheaper classes went away as well (previously, there was an S fare on the outbound and W on the return, now it's W and V only), so the fare is over $150 up from what it was ($1174pp for the nonstops).
I'm not overly concerned about booking this since it's so far out, but I am curious why this inventory is so weird. R inventory went away at the same time the cheaper classes did.
Maybe it'll come back next week - when these flights first went for sale it looked like this and about 2 weeks later R opened up along with the cheaper classes. Thoughts?
May 9, 2013, 6:22 pm
#565
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: London
Programs: UA GS
Posts: 2,438
The nonstops are just more convenient. The ones with connections really aren't much cheaper, and with 2 mothers who already don't care much for flying 1 flight is better than 2 even if it's longer (and especially if it's confirmed in F).
I actually did an award search for March 2014 - I noticed that they completely zeroed out ANY saver inventory for Th F Sa and Su for the 3 week period. Seems strange?
I actually did an award search for March 2014 - I noticed that they completely zeroed out ANY saver inventory for Th F Sa and Su for the 3 week period. Seems strange?
May 9, 2013, 6:25 pm
#566
Join Date: Aug 2011
Programs: UA 1K
Posts: 8,634
The nonstops are just more convenient. The ones with connections really aren't much cheaper, and with 2 mothers who already don't care much for flying 1 flight is better than 2 even if it's longer (and especially if it's confirmed in F).
I actually did an award search for March 2014 - I noticed that they completely zeroed out ANY saver inventory for Th F Sa and Su for the 3 week period. Seems strange?
I actually did an award search for March 2014 - I noticed that they completely zeroed out ANY saver inventory for Th F Sa and Su for the 3 week period. Seems strange?
May 9, 2013, 7:17 pm
#567
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: London
Programs: UA GS
Posts: 2,438
I'm too lazy to look at the moment, but there have been very low fares in Y for NYC and EWR to all the islands throughout this year. It's been a big MR destination for some. It would seem that you could route through NY using two separate fares and make it work for much cheaper than $1,000.
Further, she already needs to fly to ORD from FAR and dislikes the whole taking off and landing part of flying, so again, trying to minimize the discomfort for what otherwise is a nice treat by her son
My plan for now is just to wait and see. These planes are extremely empty and I expect fares will go down and not up.
I was just wondering if the restricting of saver and upgrade inventory across these 3 weeks is part of some larger trend some have started to notice, or an anomaly.
May 11, 2013, 5:41 pm
#568
Join Date: Jun 2005
Posts: 4,645
What's the deal with SFO/KIX?
Anyone else familiar with this route?
In the pre-$mi$ek era, this was my secret route to Japan. For years, flights were cheap, and R space was abundant. Anytime I needed to go to Japan, and NRT was too expensive or lacking R space, I'd grab that flight to KIX and have no problem applying a GPU upon booking.
What's shocking now is that the fares on that flight have gone through the clouds. For a 12 day trip, ITA fare matrix is showing cheapest Y fare > $2,000 for every day in May and June and July.
By comparison, SFO/NRT is around $1,200 for cheapest Y fare.
These fares are totally out of whack with reality and a huge break from historical precedent.
Surprisingly, there is abundant R space, but it's not much of a deal since the > $2,000 fares are in V class and a W class fare would typically be a bit cheaper. At these fares, you're almost paying cash up to the P equivalent.
In the pre-$mi$ek era, this was my secret route to Japan. For years, flights were cheap, and R space was abundant. Anytime I needed to go to Japan, and NRT was too expensive or lacking R space, I'd grab that flight to KIX and have no problem applying a GPU upon booking.
What's shocking now is that the fares on that flight have gone through the clouds. For a 12 day trip, ITA fare matrix is showing cheapest Y fare > $2,000 for every day in May and June and July.
By comparison, SFO/NRT is around $1,200 for cheapest Y fare.
These fares are totally out of whack with reality and a huge break from historical precedent.
Surprisingly, there is abundant R space, but it's not much of a deal since the > $2,000 fares are in V class and a W class fare would typically be a bit cheaper. At these fares, you're almost paying cash up to the P equivalent.
May 11, 2013, 6:18 pm
#569
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: LHR (sometimes CLE, SFO, BOS, LAX, SEA)
Programs: UA 1K
Posts: 5,895
How full were the flights? How full are they now?
May 11, 2013, 7:07 pm
#570
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: SFO
Programs: UA 1K, HH Gold, Hertz Pres
Posts: 289
My flights mid/late May are pretty empty. 20+ in BF and E+ cabin is almost empty.