If you’re one of the many people are starting to plan out trips for the future, you may want to double check those booking prices.
Christopher Elliott, author of “How to Be the World’s Smartest Traveler," joined Live in the D to talk about changing trends in airline pricing.
Since the beginning of quarantine, a few of the major airlines have removed some of their widely disliked ticket change fees. These fees were incurred when you modified your ticket, and could range anywhere from $200 to $750.
If you’re traveling domestic in economy class, you won’t pay a change fee. But for international flights, those fees are still there. Elliott says that it’s unlikely for these travel fees to disappear like airlines claim.
He says these fees aren’t going away because people keep paying them, so do your best to avoid those unnecessary charges. One easy fee to avoid are advanced seat assignments. Once you’ve bought the ticket, you have a seat, so be patient, and wait for your assignment from the gate agent.
If you are traveling now, it may be a good time to try for upgrades, since there are more empty seats than usual. As always, asking politely and smiling can help bump you up a few seats.