Question for TA's About Airline Price Trends

We have numerous guests who have yet to book their airfare for our April wedding, hoping that prices will go down.

 

Prices are presently about $600-$750 from the depature destinations they will be using (CLT, ATL, MCO, and NYC airports).

 

Currently, rates are about $300 to PUJ (Punta Cana) during Jan-Feb-Mar, but spike tremendously in April. Any idea if we can expect prices to come down in the beginning of February (once April gets to be 3-months out?).

 

I have a feeling we are going to have a lot of people back out at the last minute, even though their rooms are paid for, b/c of airfare prices.

check out farecompare.com... they tell you highs and lows for the past year.. of course nothing is set in stone but they can see how low an airfare has gone to know if they're getting a good deal.

That stinks, is there anyway you can contact your guests and suggest they book now?

Yeah, I love that site ... but it's not painting a pretty picture.

Oh how I wish. I have been emailing airfare rates to confirmed guests for MONTHS -- anytime a good rate comes out. People evidently LOVE to procrastinate.

Isn't it frustrating? We even offered guests a payment plan option where, for $150 down, they could reserve air/hotel and pay the rest off as they wished. Very few takers. Just before the wedding we got a few "I should have booked sooner, it's so much now". Some of them couldn't go and some had to pay more than they should have.

That says it all!!!

Sssoo frustrating.

I'm so sorry your guests are running into this Tami! We went through the same thing... in the summer when we invited everyone, fares were uber-cheap and very few people booked. Over the past few month, when most people booked, they ended up paying $200+ more than they would have! It was ridiculous! People suck sometimes, but it was there choice not to book when fares were cheap. Very frustrating!

 

I love that smiley btw - lol.

yeah fares have really jumped in 2008 b/c of the airline gas price increase. we were seeing philly to hawaii for $550 to $600 in the Fall and now is is closer to $700!