Costs up, but people still travel for holiday
By Alicia Ebaugh Journal staff writer | Posted: Saturday, May 27, 2006
People pass through a security checkpoint to board a Friday afternoon flight at the Sioux Gateway Airport.(Staff photo by Jim Lee)
It doesn't matter to the Janiczeks how much it costs to fly to Grand Rapids, Mich. -- they'd still be going there to visit family members for this Memorial Day weekend.
They normally drive the 12 to 13 hours from Sioux City to visit relatives, Diane Janiczek said as she, her husband Lloyd and their teenage son waited for their flight Friday afternoon at the Sioux Gateway Airport.
"It's a short weekend, we've got to get back. Our son's still in school," she said. "All our family is getting together to celebrate my mom's 80th birthday."
Next weekend, Diane said, they're driving to Chicago to help their daughter move in to her new apartment. And even with gas prices climbing, they won't hang back from visiting local colleges with their son this summer.
Many Midwesterners aren't being deterred by increased gas and airline ticket prices as the summer vacation season kicks off this holiday weekend, travel agencies have predicted.
"People are finding ways to cut costs in other places," said Maryann Sargent, Sioux City AAA office manager. "They're still valuing time away, vacations with their families."
Memorial Day weekend is usually dominated by road trips to see family and friends, Sargent said, even though the Midwest is expected to produce 1.2 million air travelers, coming in second only to the West Coast.
Travel over the three days is expected to increase slightly over last holiday, she said, even though gas prices are hovering around $3 a gallon. Nationwide, Sargent said the average gallon of gas will cost up to $2.93 -- more than 75 cents higher than this time last year.
"People don't seem to be going as far out, though," Sargent said. "And when they do, they may stay with family members to cut costs."
Summer vacation plans for the more cash-strapped are also following the same pattern, said Royal Apple Travel office manager Mark Morehead.
"Families will sit down and say, 'We have an extra $200 a month,' a certain amount budgeted for entertainment they can use," he said. "So this year they can't afford certain things ... maybe they'll settle for five days in Chicago instead of a family cruise."
Whether they're traveling to London or Lincoln, Neb., most people have made their summer vacation plans by now, Morehead said, especially to far away destinations such as the coasts or foreign countries. That means at least the jump in airline ticket prices in the last two weeks -- anywhere from 15 to 50 percent -- didn't affect them. Those who've been waiting to make plans may be in for a big surprise, however, he said.
"Out of Omaha, Tampa was $108 a ticket. Now it's $208. (Los Angeles) was $250, and now it's over $300," Morehead said. "Customers have gotten used to airfare wars, but it's almost like someone's pulled the plug on that."
In fact, air travel prices are at their highest levels since before Sept. 11, said Chriss Camenzend, owner of Premier Travel. That's because airlines had lowered their prices to rock bottom in hopes of wooing customers back into the air, she said, and now they're trying to climb out of debt as demand for their services rises.
"In some markets availability is down on flights because the trend is to use smaller aircraft, especially in regional markets where they feed into larger airports," Camenzend said. "Airfare wars depend on demand. That's up and availability is down, so if nobody's balking, they keep flying, they'll keep charging those prices."
But factoring in the cost in time, money and vehicle maintenance, in most cases flying is still a more viable option for travel this summer than driving for more than a day or two to get to your destination, Camenzend said.
"No matter what, you have to decide if the price is worth it for you," she said.
Are you traveling?
Tell us about your travel plans. Are you staying with family, traveling closer to home or changing plans based on gas prices? Share your story in our Holiday travelforum.
Tips for finding cheap airfare from Chriss Camenzend, owner of Premier Travel:
-- Surf airline Web sites as well as discount ticket sites like Travelocity.com to find weekly specials. Northwest Airlines, for example, comes out with new specials every Wednesday.
-- Be aware of the rules and restrictions that come with discounted fares. Many times the tickets are non-refundable and cannot be changed, Camenzend said.
-- Don't wait until the last minute. Airlines are starting to require fares to be purchased up to three weeks in advance, she said, and flights are filling up fast due to reduced capacity in smaller planes.
They normally drive the 12 to 13 hours from Sioux City to visit relatives, Diane Janiczek said as she, her husband Lloyd and their teenage son waited for their flight Friday afternoon at the Sioux Gateway Airport.
"It's a short weekend, we've got to get back. Our son's still in school," she said. "All our family is getting together to celebrate my mom's 80th birthday."
Next weekend, Diane said, they're driving to Chicago to help their daughter move in to her new apartment. And even with gas prices climbing, they won't hang back from visiting local colleges with their son this summer.
Many Midwesterners aren't being deterred by increased gas and airline ticket prices as the summer vacation season kicks off this holiday weekend, travel agencies have predicted.
"People are finding ways to cut costs in other places," said Maryann Sargent, Sioux City AAA office manager. "They're still valuing time away, vacations with their families."
Memorial Day weekend is usually dominated by road trips to see family and friends, Sargent said, even though the Midwest is expected to produce 1.2 million air travelers, coming in second only to the West Coast.
Travel over the three days is expected to increase slightly over last holiday, she said, even though gas prices are hovering around $3 a gallon. Nationwide, Sargent said the average gallon of gas will cost up to $2.93 -- more than 75 cents higher than this time last year.
"People don't seem to be going as far out, though," Sargent said. "And when they do, they may stay with family members to cut costs."
Summer vacation plans for the more cash-strapped are also following the same pattern, said Royal Apple Travel office manager Mark Morehead.
"Families will sit down and say, 'We have an extra $200 a month,' a certain amount budgeted for entertainment they can use," he said. "So this year they can't afford certain things ... maybe they'll settle for five days in Chicago instead of a family cruise."
Whether they're traveling to London or Lincoln, Neb., most people have made their summer vacation plans by now, Morehead said, especially to far away destinations such as the coasts or foreign countries. That means at least the jump in airline ticket prices in the last two weeks -- anywhere from 15 to 50 percent -- didn't affect them. Those who've been waiting to make plans may be in for a big surprise, however, he said.
"Out of Omaha, Tampa was $108 a ticket. Now it's $208. (Los Angeles) was $250, and now it's over $300," Morehead said. "Customers have gotten used to airfare wars, but it's almost like someone's pulled the plug on that."
In fact, air travel prices are at their highest levels since before Sept. 11, said Chriss Camenzend, owner of Premier Travel. That's because airlines had lowered their prices to rock bottom in hopes of wooing customers back into the air, she said, and now they're trying to climb out of debt as demand for their services rises.
"In some markets availability is down on flights because the trend is to use smaller aircraft, especially in regional markets where they feed into larger airports," Camenzend said. "Airfare wars depend on demand. That's up and availability is down, so if nobody's balking, they keep flying, they'll keep charging those prices."
But factoring in the cost in time, money and vehicle maintenance, in most cases flying is still a more viable option for travel this summer than driving for more than a day or two to get to your destination, Camenzend said.
"No matter what, you have to decide if the price is worth it for you," she said.
Are you traveling?
Tell us about your travel plans. Are you staying with family, traveling closer to home or changing plans based on gas prices? Share your story in our Holiday travelforum.
Tips for finding cheap airfare from Chriss Camenzend, owner of Premier Travel:
-- Surf airline Web sites as well as discount ticket sites like Travelocity.com to find weekly specials. Northwest Airlines, for example, comes out with new specials every Wednesday.
-- Be aware of the rules and restrictions that come with discounted fares. Many times the tickets are non-refundable and cannot be changed, Camenzend said.
-- Don't wait until the last minute. Airlines are starting to require fares to be purchased up to three weeks in advance, she said, and flights are filling up fast due to reduced capacity in smaller planes.
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