Latest news with #ThriftyTraveler
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
U.S. Airlines Are Reportedly Charging Solo Travelers More for Plane Tickets—Here's What You Need to Know
A new industry report indicates that U.S. airlines may be charging more for individually booked tickets. In one example, a solo ticket was priced at $422 per person, but dropped to $266 per person when the same route was booked for two people. In order to save on your next flight, experts recommend clearing your browser history and setting up price alerts on your desired traveling alone can be enticing and relaxing, new data reveals it might also be more expensive. U.S. airlines are allegedly charging single passengers higher fares than couples or families, according to a new report from the booking site Thrifty Traveler. The travel data team recently compared the price of a single-ticket purchase versus that of two or more tickets. In multiple instances, the single-ticket purchase was more expensive per one example, the report showed how a United Airlines flight from Chicago's O'Hare International Airport (ORD) to General Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport (PIA) cost $269 for a one-way ticket for a person traveling alone. But when the same route was booked for two people, the price dropped to $181 per person. The team also noted that a single fare on an American Airlines flight that was priced at $422 dropped to $266 per person when multiple tickets were booked. 'It's just another way for airlines to continue 'segmenting' their customers, charging business travelers paying with a corporate card more while offering a better deal to families on the exact same flight," Thrifty Traveler executive editor Kyle Potter said in the report also notes that the phenomenon doesn't appear to be a widespread occurrence, and may be a limited-time test, or may only appear on select routes. After the report was released, dozens of flyers and aviation enthusiasts confirmed the findings independently. Jeff Rossen, a consumer correspondent and the host of the Rossen Reports, shared his experience of seeing higher fares for single tickets on social media.'I picked a random round-trip flight, and the first one I picked, boom … a giant $240.93 price difference,' Rossen told Travel + Leisure. 'Same flights. Same cabin.'He also said booking websites may use other clues to potentially generate higher fares and prices for certain customers.'Airlines can track your search history and apply different prices based on it,' Rossen said. 'So, clear your cache and cookies before logging into the airline. Better yet, search in incognito mode to avoid price hikes targeting you.' At the time of publication, neither American Airlines nor United Airlines provided a comment to T+L. In the meantime, if you're traveling alone, experts recommend setting up price alerts to save some cash. Alternatively, you could consider flying into other nearby (often smaller) airfields that may be less expensive. Read the original article on Travel & Leisure
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Travel + Leisure
2 days ago
- Business
- Travel + Leisure
U.S. Airlines Are Reportedly Charging Solo Travelers More for Plane Tickets—Here's What You Need to Know
While traveling alone can be enticing and relaxing, new data reveals it might also be more expensive. U.S. airlines are allegedly charging single passengers higher fares than couples or families, according to a new report from the booking site Thrifty Traveler. The travel data team recently compared the price of a single-ticket purchase versus that of two or more tickets. In multiple instances, the single-ticket purchase was more expensive per passenger. In one example, the report showed how a United Airlines flight from Chicago's O'Hare International Airport (ORD) to General Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport (PIA) cost $269 for a one-way ticket for a person traveling alone. But when the same route was booked for two people, the price dropped to $181 per person. The team also noted that a single fare on an American Airlines flight that was priced at $422 dropped to $266 per person when multiple tickets were booked. 'It's just another way for airlines to continue 'segmenting' their customers, charging business travelers paying with a corporate card more while offering a better deal to families on the exact same flight," Thrifty Traveler executive editor Kyle Potter said in the article. The report also notes that the phenomenon doesn't appear to be a widespread occurrence, and may be a limited-time test, or may only appear on select routes. After the report was released, dozens of flyers and aviation enthusiasts confirmed the findings independently. Jeff Rossen, a consumer correspondent and the host of the Rossen Reports, shared his experience of seeing higher fares for single tickets on social media. 'I picked a random round-trip flight, and the first one I picked, boom … a giant $240.93 price difference,' Rossen told Travel + Leisure . 'Same flights. Same cabin.' He also said booking websites may use other clues to potentially generate higher fares and prices for certain customers. 'Airlines can track your search history and apply different prices based on it,' Rossen said. 'So, clear your cache and cookies before logging into the airline. Better yet, search in incognito mode to avoid price hikes targeting you.' At the time of publication, neither American Airlines nor United Airlines provided a comment to T+L. In the meantime, if you're traveling alone, experts recommend setting up price alerts to save some cash. Alternatively, you could consider flying into other nearby (often smaller) airfields that may be less expensive.
CNN
2 days ago
- Business
- CNN
Solo flyers on US flights can pay much more than those traveling as a pair, report finds
Solo travelers have long faced higher prices when it comes to group tours and it seems that the so-called 'single supplement' is being applied to flights as well. Three of the biggest US airlines have been charging higher fares for solo flyers on some domestic routes, according to a recent investigation by consumer travel website Thrifty Traveler. Delta Air Lines, United Airlines and American Airlines are all currently charging what some are describing as 'a tax on single travelers' on certain routes, Thrifty Traveler's analysis found, with a fare doubling in at least one instance. Kyle Potter, executive editor of Thrifty Traveler, explained how he noticed a significant price difference while searching for a Delta Air Lines flight to New York for one passenger and then adding a second passenger and completing a new search. While the amount for a flyer traveling solo was $206, this decreased to $154 when two passengers were traveling together, Potter told CNN's Kaitlan Collins. 'That's not how airfare typically works,' he said. 'It's usually the reverse.' Potter said he noticed the same thing was happening on 'dozens' of different domestic routes on Delta, along with United Airlines and American Airlines, adding that the practice is 'not widespread.' When approached by CNN, Delta said that the fare structures were not new to Delta or the airline industry, but declined to provide an official comment. CNN has approached United Airlines and American Airlines for comment. Examples found by Thrifty Traveler included a one-way United Airlines flight from Chicago to Asheville, NC, listed as $223 for one passenger, which fell to $207 in total for two passengers, meaning that it was actually cheaper for two people to travel than a passenger going solo. Meanwhile, a one-way flight with American Airlines from Charlotte, NC to Fort Myers, FL in October was listed as $422 for one passenger traveling solo, but dropped to around $266 per person when two passengers were traveling together. The discrepancies were 'almost exclusively' found on one-way routes, according to Thrifty Traveler's investigation. 'It is not widespread,' Potter said, pointing out that he was unable to find any instances of this pricing structure on international flights. 'It's pretty hit or miss. But this is undeniable that it's happening.' While reports of the price discrepancies may come as a surprise to some passengers, Potter points out airlines have been 'writing this into their fare rules.' For example, Delta's fine print outlines 'accompaniment restrictions,' on some of its fares, stating that travelers 'must be accompanied on all sectors in same compartment by at least 1 adult.' Meanwhile, United Airlines advises that passengers 'must be accompanied on all sectors in same compartment by at least 1 adult 15 or older' for some of its fares. Brian Kelly, founder of ThePointsGuy, told Collins that the fare discrepancies seemed 'deceptive,' as not all passengers would be aware of the cost difference. 'I think the airlines need to be careful here, because if they continue prodding and poking consumers, you're just asking for government regulation,' he said. 'And often no one wins when that happens.'
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Shocking ways people pay 'single tax' without even realizing
If you've ever booked a flight by yourself and thought, 'why does this feel more expensive than it should?' - you might be onto something. The so-called 'singles tax' is very real, and it's not just coming for your dating life - it's hitting your travel budget, too. It started with air travel, where travelers noticed that the airlines were charging higher fares when booking for one person versus two. But what looked like an isolated quirk turned out to be a broader trend. Now, Thrifty Traveler, which first reported the issues, found that all three of the country's largest airlines - Delta, United, and American - have been caught quietly charging solo travelers more on certain domestic flights. And, in some cases, it's not just a few bucks. Some people have seen price jumps of $80 or more, just because they're flying solo. Travel expert Sanjib Adhikari, Executive Director of the Everest trekking company Heaven Himalaya, told that he has seen this firsthand in his clients' bookings. 'Our clients have increasingly been seeing an increase in airline fares on the American domestic legs of their flights and didn't even know until comparing notes with other people on our treks who had also traveled there solo,' he said. So what's happening exactly? According to Adhikari, it's all about market segmentation. 'The airlines are trying to segment out business travelers, who often fly alone and aren't cost-sensitive, versus vacationers, who are more cost-sensitive and are likelier to fly in groups or pairs,' he explained. In other words, airlines are betting that solo travelers - especially those using a corporate card - aren't as worried about price, so they can charge more. So then they do. In one especially bold example, Thrifty Traveler found that a United flight from Chicago to Peoria: $269 for one person. But for two people it was just $181 per ticket. One passenger flying United from its Chicago-O'Hare (ORD) airport to Peoria (PIA) in June results in a $269 one-way fare Increasing to two or more passengers slashes the price by one-third In some cases, solo travelers aren't even shown the cheaper fare classes at all - meaning better deals are literally invisible unless you're booking with someone else. And it's not just limited to airlines. 'Unfortunately, the singles tax isn't unique to airlines, as solo travelers frequently pay more for cruises, accommodations, and holiday packages,' Adhikari adds. It seems that this 'singles tax' spills into every area of your life, especially if you live alone. Think about all of the money you pay when grocery shopping (rather than buying food in bulk) and especially for housing. And while a lot of this is systemic, there are some things you can do to avoid this singles tax, at least while flying. If you're a solo traveler who's over paying more just because you didn't come with a plus-one, Adhikari has a tip. 'I recommend solo travelers start doing price searches for group bookings to see if they can reduce their price. 'It's also a good idea to read the fare rules. 'It's a lot of fine print, but you can use an AI to summarize it for you so you at least have an idea of whether the fare has a singles tax or not.'
New York Post
3 days ago
- Business
- New York Post
Solo fliers are getting hit with higher fares — here's how airlines are getting away with it
In a time when businesses want to tack on hidden fees for almost anything — it shouldn't come as a surprise that airlines are suddenly being greedy with how they're charging solo flyers. Reportedly, Delta is one of a few airlines that are now charging extra for single flight tickets. According to View From The Wing, technically some of the airlines disclose in their fare fules that if a customer purchases an individual ticket — even if it's one of their cheapest fare options — that they'll be charged more unless they have someone accompanying them on the flight. 3 Reportedly, Delta is one of a few airlines that are now charging extra for single flight tickets. miglagoa – The team at Thrifty Traveler did some digging and pointed out that this price hike for solo tickets isn't for every airlines' flight route and it's unclear how long this increased fare will go on for. And it seems that Delta isn't the only airline being greedy. United and American airlines are supposedly also taking this approach with price gouging. Thrifty Traveler found that a single one-way standard economy United ticket traveling from Chicago-O'Hare to Peoria costs $269. But if you tack on a few more people to the reservation, that almost $300 ticket fare drops to less than $200 per person. 3 The airlines aren't even being sneaky with their price gouging tactics. Getty Images United isn't trying to be sneaky about it either — it's written in the fare fules for this ticket: 'Must be accompanied on all sectors in same compartment by at least 1 adult 15 or older.' It's easy for solo passengers to not even realize this price difference — so their best bet, if they're able to, is to shop around different airlines to get the best bang for their buck. 3 Those looking to travel solo should shop around for the best airfare prices. Goffkein – The good news is that overall, flight prices for summer travel are down 7% year-over-year, according to Eric Rosen, the director of travel content at The Points Guy and a Kayak report. 'It's quite significant for prices to drop that much,' he told The Post. And international airfare is seeing an even greater price decrease, with flight tickets to hot spots like Sydney, Hong Kong and Berlin — down by 23%, 16% and 13%. While you're looking for the best prices on airfare, also take a peek at off-the-beaten-path routes that airlines are adding to their network. 'United is putting a Greenland — which is in Denmark — flight into service on June 14, which could be interesting for folks who want to take an adventure-type trip,' Rosen suggested.
