OK, so I'm trying to get price quotes for a round trip ticket from Detroit, MI to Cincinnati, OH, a distance of 250 or so miles. Here's what I discovered:
A NONSTOP flight from DETROIT to CINCINNATI will cost $375 + taxes/fees and take 2 hours.
A ONE-STOP flight will cost $250 + taxes. Here are my options:
DETROIT to CHICAGO (O'HARE) (200 miles in the WRONG DIRECTION) to CINCINNATI - counting a 3 hour layover, 6 hours and 30 minutes
DETROIT to CHARLOTTE, NC (DOUGLAS INTERNATIONAL, and just 35 miles from my hometown) to CINCINNATI - 492 miles due south, then 465 miles northwest - 8 hours, counting a 55 minute layover.
What boggles my mind is why on earth an airline would charge over $125 more for a flight that's at least 250 miles SHORTER, and why a flight totaling almost 1,000 miles is cheaper than a 250 mile flight.
At least Greyhound and Amtrak go in the right direction to begin with. And, both of them are actually SHORTER in duration than flying (discounting the nonstop flight, that is).
And people wonder why so many airlines are going bankrupt???
Comments
Boston to Toronto used to
Boston to Toronto used to cost 3 times as much as Boston to Orlando, and almost the same as Boston to Los Angeles. Go figure!
Karen
Been going on a long time...
In the mid '80s I was stationed at Fort Knox outside Louisville. I flew to Chicago about three times, it was always cheaper to fly to Cincy, Detroit, St Louis or some other city than to take a direct flight to Chicago. I did get one direct flight to Chicago, the airline decided flying two people to Detroit wasn't worth it. The other guy caught a flight from Chicago to Detroit, and I got to Chicago before I left.
Squirrel bait
I can fly to Philadelphia (from LA or LA area airports) cheaper than to San Francisco, and get better seats with carry-on and checked luggage.
Hugs,
Erin
= Give everyone the benefit of the doubt because certainty is a fragile thing that can be shattered by one overlooked fact.
There's actually a kind of economic sense
to what the airlines do. Many direct routes are not popular or profitable but as long as people are willing to pay the price they will offer them. However other direct flights are much more popular so that the airline can offer cheaper fares and fill seats on those direct flights that are more popular with people like you that need to get somewhere else. The plane's going there anyway and it'as cheaper than flying a half plane of people on a direct flight.
My sister just flew to Kansas City from Tampa via Charlotte NC and coming back she'll go via Miami simply because not enough people want to fly to KC from Tampa or back.
Commentator
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It is called demand pricing
More people are willing to pay the extra for a simple journey (direct flight) than a multi-hop.
As an aside, your prices are well out of kilter to other parts of the world. I don't know how far in advance of the flight date you were booking but obviously the more time between the booking and flight date the better.
I can fly from London (Gatwick) to Boston(Logan) in September for as low as £149 outward and £124 return all taxes included. (11th out 21st back)
There is competition on this route. How many airlines fly the routes you want?
Even for London to San Diego (10.5hours) where the only direct flight is by British Airways I can get a return for £483 in September. Ironically, this can be cheaper than flying American via Dallas or LAX or SFO. Go figure eh.
As you can see, the world of Airline Fares is almost an inpenetrable maze that has a huge 'Caveat Emptor' sign at the entrance. I've flown close on 750,000 miles in my lifetime and the number of hours I have spent working out route and fare permutations is huge. For the average non industry punter it is almost impossible to get the best fare...
and given the frequency of people being thrown off overbooked flights in the USA, I really don't envy anyone travelling on the major carriers. Is it little wonder that we don't call Coach/Economy by their formal names. We call it 'Cattle' class.
Enjoy...
Samantha
If you think that's crazy...
You should try the UK Rail network.
Say you want to travel by rail from Bristol to Sheffield, a 170 mile journey. There is a direct train which travels all the way and the normal fare costs £60. However, if instead of booking your ticket from Bristol to Sheffield, you book from Bristol to Cheltenham, from Cheltenham to Birmingham, from Birmingham to Derby, Derby to Chesterfield and from Chesterfield to Sheffield (these are all stops along the way), then the ticket comes down to £36, a 40% saving. Is this crazy or what?
Think yourself lucky.
and thats far from the worst one
what about the Lad (capital L seems appropriate) who went from Newcastle to London via Menorca and saved >60% over any way of going by train, and it was late night flights so got a day out in Spain and didn't need hotels
I think they just throw darts
My favorite story on flying was from a sports writer I hear. His original flight had him going from New York to Green Bay. His plans changed to where he only was going to Minneapolis. Northwest Airlines (RIP) was going to charge him $500 to change his flight, $150 for change $350 for fare difference The best part, original itinerary had him changing planes in Minneapolis! Didn't pay for change and just didn't get on flight for Green Bay.
The spoke and hub system makes things like this happen. Living in Minneapolis has caused flying on Delta to become annoying. We some how always wind up in Atlanta.
Delta's home
Delta's home IS ATLANTA and it's their main hub. Hence, many of their flights go there.
Old saying
It has long been said that to go to Hell you will have to change in Atlanta.
Much Love,
Valerie R
Years ago
Several years ago my, then 15-year-old, daughter went on a missions trip to South America. We flew down with her to the jumping off place in Miami because she had never flown before. She was flying back alone. We lived in Portland Oregon and her flight back would have two stops, one in Atlanta and one in Seattle. My wife and I had the same route when we came back and knew the short hop from Seattle to Portland was nearly empty. So I had the bright I idea that we could leave our car at PDX and take Amtrak to Seattle and surprise her by joining her at Seattle. I was astounded at the price tag of $ 100 a seat. Needless to say, we met her at PDX.
Hugs
Patricia
Happiness is being all dressed up and HAVING some place to go.
Semper in femineo gerunt
Ich bin eine Mann
Airlines Are Crazy
Does anybody still wonder why the millionaires have boosted the private jet business so much?
Juliette Boudicca
At Last, Admitting What I Am To Myself...
You don't need to be a millionaire to use a private jet
Many private jet flights are empty. They are either going to collect a client or returning to base after taking a client to a destination. There are a few companies who will 'sell' you a seat on an otherwise empty Jet.
If there are say 8 of you going somewhere then chartering a jet can work out cheaper than flying First Class. And there is not TSA Screening to endure!
Win-win
I've even flown from Manchester NH to Galway, Eire on a Cargo flight (Circa 1984)
Samantha
Don't know if it is still true
You used to be able to fly standby for free if you had military ID. And you could deadhead on military transports too.
Hugs,
Erin
= Give everyone the benefit of the doubt because certainty is a fragile thing that can be shattered by one overlooked fact.
one word
DRIVE
The reason has to do with a simple logistical fact.......
The cheapest and most efficient logistics model is basically hub and spoke. This means that all routes are based around major hubs, running like spokes between the hub and the outlying points. What this means is that you will normally be routed from your point of origin to the hub (Chicago, Charlotte, Atlanta, Philadelphia, D.C., Phoenix - all typical examples), and then from the hub to your destination.
Yes, this adds miles, but it allows for better utilization of equipment and fuller flights - and therefor lower costs. Hence why the tickets are lower even though the distance is longer. It may seem counter-intuitive, but as someone who specializes in logistics, trust me it makes sense.
Certain routes still run direct - mainly those to major tourist or business destinations; e.g. Orlando, Las Vegas, and New York City.
D
D. Eden
Dum Vivimus, Vivamus
How are mega bus prices?
How are mega bus prices?