Thursday December 28, 2000

How To Fly Cheap

Long lines, depressing delays, canceled flights. Headaches and higher prices... we hate to fly and it shows.

Well finally there's some good news for us weary travelers. Cheap tickets are out there... if you know where to look. And at least for now, smaller airlines are giving the big boys a run for your money.

Airlines like Legend, Sun Country, Spirit, Jet Blue and Frontier offer fares up to 50 and 60 percent lower than the big carriers.

Frontier airlines saved one frequent flier $200 on a ticket from L.A. to Atlanta.

One passenger tells us, "American is stinky, Delta is cranky, and Legend is great. All the seats are big, they bring drinks for free. They serve you dead cow, real filet mignon, I love it!"

She may love Legend, but most people have never even heard of these small carriers. And what you don't know can cost you.

Today show travel editor Peter Greenberg logs thousands of miles a month. He says, "Small airlines are a very big deal if you travel at the last minute."

For example, if you want to buy a full fare ticket from New York to Orlando, you'll pay about $1200 roundtrip on American. But on Jet Blue, the maximum you'll pay is 350! A last minute trip from Denver to New York on United is $800 each way. On Frontier, it's half that, about $400. You don't get frequent flyer miles, but who cares?

Greenberg says, "Are the miles really worth $400 to get to Denver... I don't think so."

And Greenberg says when it comes to safety... size doesn't matter.

He says, "I have no problem flying any airlines. Today safety is not about airlines, it's about an airline system. We have one of the safest systems in the world."

The big boys: United, American, and Delta control 60 percent of our air traffic. And they don't like the little guys creeping into their territory.

Greenberg points out, "Every time Southwest goes into a market, the fares drop dramatically."

Good for us, but Greenberg warns if travelers don't start taking advantage of smaller carriers, they could go belly up. That would lead to higher prices, which is bad. So with your holiday travel plans on the horizon a smaller airline could be just the ticket.

So, how do you find these little guys? Try the big travel websites. No luck? Check the airline website directly. And of course you have the good old-fashioned way... check with your travel agent. You might save a few bucks and you might get the service you deserve.

You can check out these sites for lower airfares.
www.skyauction.com
www.jetblue.com
www.legendairlines.com
www.flyfrontier.com
www.suncountry.com
www.spiritair.com