Posting this on a few social media sites as it’s got my dander up…
So, I’m planning a vacay to Roatan Honduras and happened to check flights from Austin and Houston and noticed that if I fly from Austin, through Houston, I pay half the cost of what I would if I fly from Houston. That’s right half.
And it ain’t just Austin…
So, everyone comes in from out of town on one United flight then gets on the same plane a Houstonian payed double for to Roatan.
This seems very ‘fraud’ like. It’s taking advantage of Houston travelers. It’s egregious. WTF United?
It’s funny (not really). I’ve been contemplating switching from Southwest to United next year, but this gives me pause. Granted, I’m not spending my money but that really ticks me off.
Seems a lot more efficient to just buy the tickets from Austin, skip the Austin to Houston leg and get on the plane in Houston.
But somehow that’s against the rules and gets you fined and banned from airlines…
I don’t understand how any of this makes sense.
There should be a law against businesses screwing folks. What’s wrong with just taking a reasonable profit instead of “squeezing every last drop of blood” from your customers?
My daughter lives in San Marcos, so I might try to coordinate a visit where she picks me up here a day before in Houston and then get her to drop me at the airport. Then I’ll just skip the last leg on the way home.
What really ticks me off is how much Houston has spent on new construction at IAH over the last couple of decades just to help them and other airlines. Only to be slapped like this.
Interesting…American has similar pricing but not flying through Houston. So…book on American Airlines (equal, refundable fares)…
IAH to RTB (roundtrip) $1202
AUS to RTB (Flying through Miami) $584
Here’s AI discussion of skiplagging. Check out the “What airlines do about it” section. This post does not constitute legal advice
Skiplagging, also known as hidden-city ticketing, is a way to save money on flights by purchasing a connecting flight and getting off at the layover city.
How it works
A passenger buys a ticket to a flight with a connection at their intended destination
The passenger boards the flight and gets off at the connection city
The passenger discards the remaining segment of the flight
Why it’s done
Skiplagging can be cheaper than buying a direct flight
Flight fares are affected by market forces, so a flight with a connection might be cheaper than a direct flight
What airlines do about it
Most airlines prohibit skiplagging
Airlines may punish travelers who skiplag, such as by canceling their tickets, preventing them from flying, or taking away frequent flier miles
Airlines have sued companies that facilitate skiplagging, such as Skiplagged.com
What travelers can do
Only bring a backpack that fits under the seat in front of you
Bring your passport for international flights
Don’t associate a frequent flyer account with the flight
Buy a refundable return ticket and cancel it after boarding
Flying from a smaller airport to a destination through a hub is often cheaper because airlines can fill their planes more efficiently by connecting passengers from various smaller airports to a central hub, allowing them to operate with higher passenger capacity on larger planes, which ultimately lowers the cost per passenger on each route; this system is known as the “hub and spoke” model, where the hub acts as the central point for connecting flights, leading to economies of scale and lower ticket prices for passengers on smaller routes.
I bought tickets recently to go to Indianapolis for the Indy 500, costs for tickets that weekend are 2.5-3X higher than the weekend before or after.
Skiplagging has risks and the airlines will come down hard on you if they catch you.
A little off topic (and don’t judge me) but has anyone tried the 1st class on spirit? It looks like maybe a little less $ than regular seats on united. I’m a little tentative to trust my schedule to spirit tho. Also what if there’s panhandlers and street performers all flight hitting you up for $?
Not from what I can tell. I’ve not found another airline that charges double to the hub passenger vs someone coming in on a connecting flight. They might charge a little more, 10% or so…but I’m not seeing a 100%, and higher, premium to hub passengers on SW, Delta, American, or Sprit…for equal benefit tickets flying to the same destination.
Now…that’s only a 1/2 hour of looking. I’m real curious now about it and might find some more time to look around over the weekend. Got some work and Coogs game to go to tonight…direct drive!
Edit: Took a couple mins and hit that skiplagged website…
American overcharges Houstonians too…and they have no direct flights to RTB from IAH…you have to fly to Miami. So…American…
IAH to RTB (through MIA)- $1098
AUS to RTB (through MIA) - $480
So…not only price gouging I’m saying price fixing too.
Here is Spirit for comparison, doesn’t fly to RTB but does to SAP in Honduras
AUS to SAP (through FLL) $439
IAH to SAP (through FLL) $342
FLL to SAP (direct) $274
(Same day’s flying)
That’s how you do it. Good on Spirit…well untl the bag fees and the bus like seats. LOL.
Part of the deal is that US airports are largely fee funded. The port authority charges the airline for all kinds of fees, on the ramp and in the terminal. Big airports can charge more. The airline just passes these costs on to you. Austin connecting through Houston is probably cheaper because they don’t have to run you through Houston security, initial baggage handling, or gate services, among other fees.
I really see this up in the PNW. SeaTac is also pretty expensive, partly because it’s the only big US airport in the region and it’s not really on the way to a lot of destinations, so market forces are kinda weird. On the other hand, Vancouver is almost entirely government funded, so there is far less overhead for airlines to pass along in the fare. Also, this attracts more airlines, so the competition brings prices down. Their parking situation is amazing too. I live exactly halfway between, but the border crossing is usually much faster than traffic through Seattle, and YVR is on the nearer side of Vancouver, so I much prefer to fly from there. They even have an entire terminal for US flights, with US CBP check in right after security to streamline reentry-just walk off the plane and go in the US.
Interesting but I’m not buying that as an reason for 100% price increase when the fees you spoke of would be for every single flight and in my example above Spirit doesn’t do it.
This is price gouging by United and American pure and simple.
