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]
Jul 20, 2019, 7:29 am
#1561
Join Date: May 2010
Posts: 1,124
While I know close-in fares are more expensive, what’s UA’s rev strat here? There are 11 UA flights on the outbound incl. two WB. Every single flight has like J2 Y9 so we’re talking an entire narrowbody of cumulative excess capacity just in UA. Is it just to get $800+ now and then drastically lower fares overnight? I can’t fathom that 100 pax will pay $800+. I usually don’t book this close in so kind of unfamiliar with the brinkmanship. AA is same. ULC are $300 cheaper but still...
Jul 20, 2019, 9:19 am
#1562
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Apr 2013
Location: PHX
Programs: AS 75K; UA 1MM; Hyatt Globalist; Marriott LTP; Hilton Diamond (Aspire)
Posts: 56,460
Jul 20, 2019, 11:36 am
#1563
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: London
Programs: UA GS
Posts: 2,438
Not strange. Fare Class has Inventory - Not Able to Book into?
Jul 20, 2019, 1:59 pm
#1564
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: Austin, TX
Posts: 21,412
The problem is, there's not exactly a big market for weekend trips to Europe, so United lumps those in with business travel and prices the flights accordingly.
The three cheapest P fares for both cities expire in early January -- UA doesn't like to sell discount fares this far in advance, as if the flight does better than expected, they may run out of inventory for lucrative last-minute travel.
The five other fares have 7-10 day minimum stays.
Jul 20, 2019, 3:59 pm
#1565
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: London
Programs: UA GS
Posts: 2,438
There are 8 P fares published from ORD, ranging from $1350 to $2700, and eight more published from EWR, ranging from $1350 to $2600. (All base fares, so add several hundred more for fuel surcharges).
The problem is, there's not exactly a big market for weekend trips to Europe, so United lumps those in with business travel and prices the flights accordingly.
The three cheapest P fares for both cities expire in early January -- UA doesn't like to sell discount fares this far in advance, as if the flight does better than expected, they may run out of inventory for lucrative last-minute travel.
The five other fares have 7-10 day minimum stays.
The problem is, there's not exactly a big market for weekend trips to Europe, so United lumps those in with business travel and prices the flights accordingly.
The three cheapest P fares for both cities expire in early January -- UA doesn't like to sell discount fares this far in advance, as if the flight does better than expected, they may run out of inventory for lucrative last-minute travel.
The five other fares have 7-10 day minimum stays.
I do see the lower fares in early Jan and as I’m looking to go in mid-Feb I’ll check back in about a month.
Jul 20, 2019, 5:26 pm
#1566
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: Austin, TX
Posts: 21,412
The minimum stay explains why it was so expensive for a shorter trip. But your logic on selling in advance doesn’t hold. I regularly see cheap P fares far in advance and as I said EWR-FRA for the exact same dates is much cheaper.
I do see the lower fares in early Jan and as I’m looking to go in mid-Feb I’ll check back in about a month.
I do see the lower fares in early Jan and as I’m looking to go in mid-Feb I’ll check back in about a month.
Anyway, I agree with your conclusion: for travel that's six months out, if you don't see a price you like, wait and see if it improves.
Jul 20, 2019, 6:22 pm
#1567
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: London
Programs: UA GS
Posts: 2,438
EWR-FRA is apparently an exception; there are others. I can assure you, however, that UA frequently (but not universally) keeps prices high until a few months prior to departure. The logic is simple: there's always time to drop prices later if sales aren't meeting expectations.
Anyway, I agree with your conclusion: for travel that's six months out, if you don't see a price you like, wait and see if it improves.
Anyway, I agree with your conclusion: for travel that's six months out, if you don't see a price you like, wait and see if it improves.
Jul 20, 2019, 6:27 pm
#1568
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Apr 2013
Location: PHX
Programs: AS 75K; UA 1MM; Hyatt Globalist; Marriott LTP; Hilton Diamond (Aspire)
Posts: 56,460
I routinely plan personal travel well in advance by buying a ticket and confirming a companion and I can’t assure you an $8500 fare to Europe is the exception, not the rule. EWR-TLV next June is $4200, EWR-CDG in April is $3500, EWR-LHR in April is $2900. There’s something off about MUC; I’ve never seen advance fares that high.
Thanks for reminding us
Jul 20, 2019, 7:33 pm
#1569
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: London
Programs: UA GS
Posts: 2,438
. My only point is that I book a lot of these fares in advance and have never seen them so high and can point to many examples (as I have) where that is not the case.Last edited by villox; Jul 20, 2019 at 8:57 pm
Jul 21, 2019, 6:39 am
#1570
Join Date: Nov 2012
Programs: BA Bronze, United 1K, HH Gold, SPG Platinum, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 3,477
However, one time I had to fly to GVA and I could route it through MUC for a P fare at $3,800 for a one week stay in March. My wife was considering flying to LYS (Lyon, France) and routing through MUC she found a P fare for $2,500 for September last year.
Jul 21, 2019, 8:08 am
#1571
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2003
Posts: 23,059
There's $3345 roundtrip Saturday-night stay P fares on DTW-MUC (PNX96ENC/PNX66SNC) that are valid in the winter (with 90-day advance purchase requirement). So there are reasonable Saturday-night stay P fares from some markets to MUC. Just not the UA hub markets.
Last edited by xliioper; Jul 21, 2019 at 8:36 am
Jul 21, 2019, 8:23 am
#1572
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: London
Programs: UA GS
Posts: 2,438
There are only 7-day and 10-day min stay P fare filings after Jan 3rd on EWR-MUC which go for roughly $3800 and $3600 roundtrip, respectively. It's not that there's no P inventory, it's just that there are currently no P fares for shorter duration stays. There's a seasonal Saturday night stay P fare (PQA66SNC) for $2700 roundtrip, but the last outbound date to qualify for that fare is Jan 3rd. Note that the Saturday night stay requirement is worded in such a way in the fare rules that it is measured from arrival day (so you must actually depart on a Friday to meet it). This is most likely meant to target business flyers who like to leave on a Saturday so they can get a night of sleep before going into the office on Monday.
Jul 22, 2019, 2:00 am
#1573
Join Date: May 2011
Posts: 110
IAH-YYZ fares are insane. $635 round trip for a 3 hour flight. No matter the season, prices are always $600+ on both UA and AC. At one point, it was cheaper to fly IAH-YYZ-PVG than just IAH-YYZ. LOL
Jul 22, 2019, 8:28 am
#1574
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Nov 2014
Location: MSP
Programs: DL PM, UA Gold, WN, Global Entry; +others wherever miles/points are found
Posts: 14,416
Aug 2, 2019, 11:08 am
#1575
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: San Diego Area
Programs: UA Gold MM, AA Gold MM, Marriott Plat LT, HH Gold, IHG Plat, WoH Discvst, Hertz PC
Posts: 1,834
2 One-Way Flights Cheaper than Multi-City?
Needed to book an Open Jaw trip: SFO-BWI and ORF-SFO.
Using "Multi-City" to price the open jaw for the flights I wanted came out at $628.
Pricing the identical flights: A one-way for SFO-BWI priced at $289, and the ORF-SFO one-way priced at $274, a total of $563 ... $65 cheaper! Go figure
Booked the 2 one-ways.
Using "Multi-City" to price the open jaw for the flights I wanted came out at $628.
Pricing the identical flights: A one-way for SFO-BWI priced at $289, and the ORF-SFO one-way priced at $274, a total of $563 ... $65 cheaper! Go figure
Booked the 2 one-ways.