Airlines, Airlines, Airlines

Well, I was going to start off with my usual bemoaning of the airlines because we are only 13 days into the New Year and they have already announced increased fees. However, we also got some exciting news to report as well!

Southwest and United Airlines are offering a two for one sale for Colorado Customers. The United deal is this: 1) Tickets must be purchased by Feb 15th for travel by March 5th, 2) Travel must originate and end in Colorado and 3) It must be booked in a certain class of service meaning it may not be the cheapest flight out there. For Southwest you must purchase a Business Select fare in order for the two-fer promotion to be used.

In other good news, JetBlue has been offering a fantastic New Year promotion with $29one way fares. If you want to go somewhere, hurry up because you must book by 11:59pm tonight.

Ok,so now for the not so good news...both Continental and Delta have announced increased baggage fees. If you check in online 24 hours prior to your flight on their websites you can pay for your checked baggage in advance and it will be a discounted fee. And while Frontier did lower their change fee, it was conveniently offset by an increased baggage fee.

Airlines Add Fees for Holiday Travel

American and United both added a $10 surcharge for flights around Thanksgiving and New Year's Eve. American announced their new policy Wednesday and United matched it on Thursday. The fee is technically a fuel surcharge but obviously its a way to charge more for premium travel. The three days surrounding Thanksgiving and January 2nd and 3rd are the highest most travelled days of the year. Other major carriers may announce higher fees as well in the coming weeks. In better aviation news, Frontier reduced their change fee from $150 to $100 last week. However, the carrier did raise its first checked bag fee.

Southwest Announces Bid for Frontier Airlines

Southwest announced last week they had entered a bid to purchase Frontier Airlines. The bid potentially worth at least $113.6 million would be over the $108 million bid Republic Airlines had offered the suffering carrier. Frontier Airlines, known for years for their beloved animals on the tails of the aircraft, has been in bankruptcy court for the past year. Southwest said if successful, they would keep both names for several years before merging the two companies. The move would also make Southwest the second largest carrier in terms of passenger amounts in Denver. Questions remain if Southwest could keep their point to point flight system and low fares if such a deal is finalized.

Frontier to Change Fares

Frontier Airlines will soon be introducing a new way to purchase travel. Frontier's product is called AirFairs, which is a new fare structure to offer bundled pricing for customers. AirFairs is Frontier’s way of giving customers a choice when purchasing a plane ticket. Customers will be able to pay for they type of travel experience they prefer in 3 different levels: Economy, Classic, or Classic Plus.

Economy offers maximum savings (and personally I think will be on par with Southwest) with the basic amenities, and the ability to pay for any additional services as the passenger flies, with seats available only at check-in. Classic and Classic Plus offer more amenities and flexibility of tickets. Classic, for example, will offer advanced seat assignment, 125% mileage accrual, complimentary Direct TV, $50 ticket change fee, and $75 change flight same day confirmation. Classic Plus will offer all of that and more, including 150% mileage accrual, free paid beverages, food, the ability to refund, and the list goes on.