Experts are sounding the alarm again for summer’s peak travel season, expecting more passengers than ever to fly.

Air travellers are struggling. Airlines have never had more complaints. Europe’s main cities face strikes. Experts think the US air traffic infrastructure cannot accommodate consumer demand.

This book identifies pain locations and gives you the information you need to navigate even when things become tough.

Airfares rose about 10% in April compared to April 2019, according to the Bureau of Labour Statistics, even as inflation slows. After the epidemic, fewer flights, a labour shortage, and increased fuel expenses raised prices. Travel-hungry consumers haven’t protested enough to force airlines to lower them.

The picture might be confusing—and shifting.

Domestic airfares are now lower than last year, but Hopper expects them to grow through June, when summer airfares surge. Hopper expects domestic round-trip bookings to peak at $328, down from $400 last June but still 4% higher than in 2019.

International flights are worse: Hopper anticipates European fares to rise 32% to $1,188 this summer. Asia flights average $1,890, up 17% from last summer and 67% from 2019.

How can travellers avoid scams? Be open-minded.

“It’s about being flexible on one of the booking parameters,” said Laura Lindsay, a global travel trends specialist at Skyscanner, an airline search site. “If you are flexible on when, where, and even how you want to go, perhaps flying out of one airport and returning to another or on a different carrier, there’s a deal. If you’re stubborn, you’ll pay more.”

Flying makes adjusting easier. Skyscanner lets customers get the lowest rates for a journey within a month. Google Flights delivers price notifications for attractive prices on any day on a journey, and Kayak allows flexible date searches.

Consider 2023 a summer of serendipity for travel.

“Let the deal dictate the destination if you can,” said Ted Rossman, a senior industry analyst at Bankrate, a personal financial website. “People often set their hearts on a place and limit their options. Shop around if you don’t care which beach.”

Book summer flights today. Hopper suggests tracking domestic fares three to four months before trip and buying one to two months out. Many search engines track specific routes. In summer, the finest discounts are frequently available three to four months in advance.

Skiplagging lets travellers arrange a ticket with an intermediate stop at their destination and avoid the last leg, which can be cheaper than flying straight. Skiplagged compiles airport-specific bargains. It recently reported a $134 flight from San Francisco to Jacksonville, Fla., via Miami. San Francisco-Miami direct flights cost $158. Airlines despise the practise, which entails booking outward and return flights individually and forgoing checked luggage.

Try flight and hotel packages instead. Priceline claims its packages save $240 per booking. JetBlue Vacations, an airline subsidiary, said its hotel and flight discounts are better than booking separately 90% of the time. The “Best Vacation Finder” lets shoppers compare beach, mountain, and city vacations.

Finally, use credit card or airline points as payment.

“It’s all the more important now,” Mr. Rossman said, noting that many people stockpiled points during the epidemic, which airlines may devalue at will by charging 60,000 points for a ticket that was 50,000 yesterday. After the epidemic, providers want paying consumers, not freebies.

Airfares rose about 10% in April compared to April 2019, according to the Bureau of Labour Statistics, even as inflation slows. After the epidemic, fewer flights, a labour shortage, and increased fuel expenses raised prices. Travel-hungry consumers haven’t protested enough to force airlines to lower them.

The picture might be confusing—and shifting.

Domestic airfares are now lower than last year, but Hopper expects them to grow through June, when summer airfares surge. Hopper expects domestic round-trip bookings to peak at $328, down from $400 last June but still 4% higher than in 2019.

International flights are worse: Hopper anticipates European fares to rise 32% to $1,188 this summer. Asia flights average $1,890, up 17% from last summer and 67% from 2019.

How can travellers avoid scams? Be open-minded.

“It’s about being flexible on one of the booking parameters,” said Laura Lindsay, a global travel trends specialist at Skyscanner, an airline search site. “If you are flexible on when, where, and even how you want to go, perhaps flying out of one airport and returning to another or on a different carrier, there’s a deal. If you’re stubborn, you’ll pay more.”

Flying makes adjusting easier. Skyscanner lets customers get the lowest rates for a journey within a month. Google Flights delivers price notifications for attractive prices on any day on a journey, and Kayak allows flexible date searches.

Consider 2023 a summer of serendipity for travel.

“Let the deal dictate the destination if you can,” said Ted Rossman, a senior industry analyst at Bankrate, a personal financial website. “People often set their hearts on a place and limit their options. Shop around if you don’t care which beach.”

Book summer flights today. Hopper suggests tracking domestic fares three to four months before trip and buying one to two months out. Many search engines track specific routes. In summer, the finest discounts are frequently available three to four months in advance.

Skiplagging lets travellers arrange a ticket with an intermediate stop at their destination and avoid the last leg, which can be cheaper than flying straight. Skiplagged compiles airport-specific bargains. It recently reported a $134 flight from San Francisco to Jacksonville, Fla., via Miami. San Francisco-Miami direct flights cost $158. Airlines despise the practise, which entails booking outward and return flights individually and forgoing checked luggage.

Try flight and hotel packages instead. Priceline claims its packages save $240 per booking. JetBlue Vacations, an airline subsidiary, said its hotel and flight discounts are better than booking separately 90% of the time. The “Best Vacation Finder” lets shoppers compare beach, mountain, and city vacations.

Finally, use credit card or airline points as payment.

“It’s all the more important now,” Mr. Rossman said, noting that many people stockpiled points during the epidemic, which airlines may devalue at will by charging 60,000 points for a ticket that was 50,000 yesterday. After the epidemic, providers want paying consumers, not freebies.
Gate queues are rising. Airport lounges, historic refuges from peak-hour crowds, are now becoming longer.

More travellers are visiting lounges for free food, drinks, and Wi-Fi, whether they have a premium airline ticket, credit card, or membership programme.

As lounges become more popular, frequent customers say they have greater wait times and fewer perks. A rope queue for walk-up service replaces bar seats.

“The whole vibe in these clubs has changed to get passengers through, give them drinks, swipe their credit cards and sell them premium products,” said Eric Goldmann of Atlanta, a health care salesman who flies regularly. He used top-shelf booze, which is seldom free.

American, Delta, and United still provide access to elite or frequent flyer lounges.

Third-party operations have added alternatives. Fly often, book a first- or business-class seat, get a premium credit card, or pay for access.

Credit cards offer lounge access. The American Express Platinum Card, which costs $695 a year and includes $400 in hotel and airline charge credits, allows access to 15 Centurion Lounges in the US, London, and Hong Kong and more than 1,400 linked lounges globally.

Other luxury credit cards have lounges. The Capital One Lounge in Dallas Fort Worth International Airport is open to Capital One Venture X cardholders and two guests ($395 yearly charge plus $300 in travel credits).

JPMorgan Chase opened its first Chase Sapphire Lounge by the Club in Boston for Chase Sapphire Reserve cardholders ($550 a year with privileges, including $300 in travel credits) this month.

Club consortiums allow access. Priority Pass, a network of 1,300 airport lounges, costs $99 a year and $35 each visit. Some tiers provide limitless free visits. (Many premium credit cards feature Priority Pass.)

Plaza Premium Group sells its PPL Pass Americas for $80. The card allows two visits each year to more than two dozen lounges across North, Central, and South America, including Dallas, Newark, and Orlando, Fla.

Fly Lyfe, a luxury travel club, provides $35 visits to more than 600 lounges worldwide for $28 a month. Free lounge entrance costs roughly $50 per month.

At 15 membership-free Escape Lounges nationwide, a visit costs $40 if booked online 24 hours in advance and $45 if not. American Express Platinum cardholders get complimentary Escape Lounges. The Club’s over 20 lounges at U.S. airports and London charge $50. LoungeBuddy lists pay-per-visit lounges worldwide.

SOURCE :- https://www.nytimes.com/explain/2023/05/25/travel/summer-travel-airports-flights