This is the reason why American Airlines charges solo fliers up 70% more for their flights
New reporting from a travel blog finds that solo travelers are being charged more; good news for those booking family summer travel.
As millions prepare to travel this summer and are in the process of finalizing trip details and purchasing tickets, a trusted travel blog has uncovered some helpful pricing information.
Critical information for those traveling as a group or family
A few days back, the Thrifty Traveler published a blog after their team uncovered some inconsistencies across ticket prices. The researchers found that when a person booked two tickets, the overall cost of the ticket was lower than the price offered for one passenger. The outlet also found that in some cases, the Basic Economy tickets didn’t even appear for solo travelers. The team found this discrepancy when comparing prices on United Airlines.
Since the news broke, United Airlines and Delta Airlines have vowed to end the practice. American Airlines has made no such public commitment.
They found that many airlines in the United States were using this pricing structure, warning that this could mean that solo passengers could pay as much as 70 percent more for the same ticket, according to additional reporting by Newsweek.
But it doesn’t end there.
Are you traveling in a group or family this summer?
If you are planning to travel in a group, it might be worthwhile to compare the cost of booking together, with some tickets reducing even further when more than two passengers are added to the order.
the Thirfty team discovered that increasing the number of passengers from one to four resulted in a one-way ticket on American Airlines from Chicago-O’Hare (ORD) to Peoria (PIA) falling Chicago-O’Hare (ORD) to Peoria (PIA) from $269 to $181.
When we looked at this flight, we found that if a person were to buy three tickets, the Basic Economy price was $151, whereas a solo passenger would be paying a whopping $309.48. The prices remain constant on United Airlines, regardless of the number of passengers.
However, when we changed the destination to Atlanta, Georgia, on the same day from O’hare, we didn’t find differences in the ticket prices by passenger for those selecting between American Airlines and Frontier.
How widespread is the problem?
The Thrifty Traveler team further contextualizes their findings by saying that customers will not see it on every route, but it is nevertheless "it’s real and undeniable." There is still much research to be done on exactly how long this strategy has been in use, and there is plenty of analysis still left to complete to understand exactly how widespread it is. The team said that none of the airlines has responded to their comments.
The travel experts think it might be an example of companies attempting “to cater to different kinds of customers at once." A solo traveler, they say, might be flying for work, and less likely to care about a few dollars difference, whereas a family might be more willing to buy if they see a lower price.
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