Here we are in mid-summer and some of us still are searching high and low for travel deals.
And why not? There are spectacular deals out there if you know where to look. And that's the trick, isn't it?
I was visiting with some travelers yesterday who were searching for a short-notice ticket back to Seattle. As Anchorage travelers know, there is nothing cheap about air fares to Seattle. Heck -- it's cheaper to fly to New York.
But these folks were smart -- and they were determined to search the internet high and low. "Cheapoair.com, travelocity.com and kayak.com are some of our favorites," said Andrew, who was searching for a ticket. "Which do you like?" he asked.
I really didn't answer his question, because none of these websites address the key question: "How do you know where to look?"
In the end, I found Andrew a one-way ticket to San Francisco, with a free stop in Seattle. Since he's a student in the Bay Area, he can use the last leg of the ticket in August. This trick saved him more than $100 off the eye-popping $388 one-way fare to Seattle on Alaska Airlines.
My niece and her fiancé are headed north from Portland to Anchorage. Thankfully, the fares are pretty good: Just $400 roundtrip on Alaska Airlines. But she pressed me for some insider knowledge on how to reduce the fare.
"Get an Alaska Airlines credit card," I said. You'll get a $100 companion fare with the deal. Plus, you'll get 25,000 bonus Alaska Airlines miles," I said, "That's enough for a free ticket."
Both of these case studies point to the clear answer of "where to look": The soft spots.
Look to the soft spots where airlines compete head-to-head. Or, look to the frequent flyer plans, especially when they're affiliated with the lucrative credit card business.
Let's do a quick run-down of the cheapest destinations for mid-summer travel:
And lest we forget Alaska's Golden Heart City ...
And let's review the craziness for frequent-flyer awards. Even though the last-minute air fares can be budget-busters, you often can get a great deal using your miles. Between Anchorage and Las Vegas, for example, you can fly out on short notice, returning in July, for as little as 25,000 Alaska Airlines miles. The cost in cash? A whopping $1,144 roundtrip. Alaska Air's new online "reward calendar" is a handy tool for searching a wide spectrum of dates.
With the high cost of air fare to most cities, it may even be smart to "top off" your mileage account by purchasing additional miles.
There is always a new deal or scheme when it comes to finding a good deal on air fares. But a good rule of thumb is this: When airlines are upset at one another, the consumer wins. That's clearly the case with fares to Denver, Portland, San Francisco and Chicago.
But don't forget to keep a good stash of frequent flyer miles available -- and watch for bonuses and promotions for double miles or credit card tie-ins.
Online resources:
Alaska Airlines Visa. This is the closest thing to a back door for great airline deals, using your credit card for frequent flyer points and companion passes.
FlyerTalk. I love this chat-room. It's full of mileage junkies like me. Frequent flyer guru Randy Petersen started it. You can drill down to specific deals on particular airlines, destinations and so forth.
Scott McMurren is an Anchorage-based travel marketing consultant who has lived in Alaska for three decades, spending much of that time traveling the far-flung corners of the state. Visit his website at www.alaskatravelgram.com.