Airfares are going up for summer -- here's how to find the deals

Airfares go down and airfares go up. And as summer approaches, most fares are going up.

Some of the upward drift can be attributed to the spike in traffic as tourists flock north to gaze at our mountains and enjoy our hospitality. Part of the price-shifting, though, is a function of how Delta and Alaska are getting along. Remember — when the airlines are mad at each other, the traveler wins with lower fares and better service. The opposite it true too: When airlines are working well together, fares go up.

Between Anchorage and Seattle, JetBlue is the low price leader, with fares starting at $157 round-trip beginning June 4. Alaska's least expensive rate is $242 round-trip, while Delta dips as low as $180 round-trip. Of course, the cheapest fares are on the red-eye flights.

JetBlue's nonstop flights to Portland from Anchorage also are priced lower than either Alaska or Delta. All three airlines are operating nonstop flights between Anchorage and Portland. JetBlue starts at $157 round-trip beginning May 29. Alaska charges $294 round-trip and Delta wants $203 round-trip, starting June 17.

For some reason, flights to Sacramento have been less expensive than flights to the Bay Area all winter. This trend is continuing going into summer. Between Anchorage and Sacramento, the lowest fare is $328 round-trip on Delta. Compare that with the least-expensive fare to the Bay Area: Anchorage-San Jose, California, for $378 round-trip on Delta.

Do you miss Alaska Air's nonstop from Anchorage to San Francisco? Me too. United has one nonstop per day. The price? A whopping $827 round-trip. Wow.

Prices are cheaper when you're flying to Southern California from Anchorage. JetBlue's nonstop flight from Anchorage to Long Beach is priced at $256 round-trip, starting June 7. If you want to fly from Anchorage to Los Angeles/LAX, the cheapest flight is on United. First, you fly on that super-expensive nonstop flight from Anchorage to San Francisco. Then, hop another plane to Los Angeles. Taking that extra flight to L.A. trims $549 off the fare. That's right: United's fare is $278 from Anchorage to Los Angeles via San Francisco. I have no explanation why United Airlines punishes San Francisco travelers with such a high fare.

If you want to fly from Anchorage to Las Vegas, Delta has a $331 round-trip fare. JetBlue's is actually a little cheaper ($318 round-trip), but there's a long layover in Las Vegas. Delta's connections are pretty good via Seattle or Salt Lake City.

Speaking of Salt Lake City, Delta charges $585 round-trip for the nonstop flight if you purchase your tickets three weeks in advance. But JetBlue charges just $366 round-trip. Even though the flights are via Long Beach, the connections are pretty good — I think it's worth changing planes to save more than $200 each. It's nice to have an option to save a few bucks.

I think this is the season when folks from Phoenix fly north to Alaska. The tickets are pretty cheap, starting as low as $340 round-trip on United (via San Francisco or Denver). The nonstop flight on American is not that much more: $388 round-trip starting June 9.

The best deal on flights to Texas is on JetBlue. But it's hard to find the bargain flights via Long Beach, from $390 round-trip. It's more common to find a fare between $433-$456 round-trip.

Travelers between Anchorage and Minneapolis are lucky, since Sun Country Airlines is putting their nonstop flights on sale. Prices start at $397 round-trip. Delta has brought its prices down to $480 round-trip as a result.

Earlier this year, there were some great deals to Boston. Right now, I can find just one date available for $434 round-trip on United: June 6.

Usually, nonstop flights cost more, just like that expensive flight to San Francisco on United. Here are some other examples of nonstop flights from Anchorage and what they cost:

Anchorage-Denver: $743 round-trip on United. Delta charges $493 with a stop in Seattle each way.

Anchorage-Dallas: $719 round-trip on American. Actually, when you consider that the least-expensive option is $606 on American (via Los Angeles), the nonstop looks pretty good!

Anchorage-Houston: Fly nonstop on United for $957 round-trip. Or, trim $541 off the top just by flying via LAX on American. The total cost is $416 round-trip (departing June 10).

Anchorage-Newark: United's nonstop flight is actually the least-expensive option, at $739 round-trip. The nonstop operates on Saturdays between July 2 and Aug. 27 only.

Anchorage-Spokane: Alaska's Saturday-only nonstop service starts on June 11 and runs through Aug. 20. It costs $445 round-trip, compared to the least expensive fare via Seattle, $380 round-trip on Delta.

Anchorage-Atlanta: Delta flies this route all summer long and it's priced from $783 round-trip. Compare that with the least expensive fare of $614 round-trip on Delta, which includes a stop in Seattle in each direction.

Anchorage-Chicago: Both United and Alaska offer nonstop flights, from $533 round-trip. Right now, the nonstop flights offer the cheapest (and fastest) way to get there.

Anchorage-Vancouver, B.C.: Air Canada flies nonstop for as little as $446 round-trip all summer long. If you can get one of these tickets, grab it. You can save a few bucks flying on United, but you have to travel via Denver on the way down and San Francisco on the way back. I am not making this up.

Anchorage-Frankfurt: Condor's flights over the pole are just nine and a half hours. The nonstop flights are available for as little as $989 round-trip (departing June 18). But more flights are available for about $1,200 round-trip. The least-expensive flight via the Lower 48 is on Delta for $1,948 round-trip (departing June 8).

Anchorage-Reykjavik: Fly nonstop on Icelandair for $1,233-$1,500 per person in June or July.

Anchorage-Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky: Yakutia Air's nonstop flights to Russia operate on Mondays between July 11 and Aug. 29. The lowest available fare is $1,080 round-trip. There's a 30-day advance purchase requirement and a 16-day minimum stay. You also have to get a Russian visa. More details are available on the website: airrussia.us.

Remember, fares change all the time. Typically, I seek out the best fare on the ITA Software site by Google (matrix.itasoftware.com). It's the same system that Orbitz uses. Then, when I find a fare that I like, I go directly to the airline website to book it. Occasionally you can find a great deal on ITA that's not available on the airline's website. First, call the airline and book it over the phone. If that doesn't work — go ahead and call a travel agent. An agent will charge you between $35 and $40 per ticket (more for international tickets).

Scott McMurren is an Anchorage-based marketing consultant, serving clients in the transportation, hospitality, media and specialty destination sectors, among others. Contact him by email at zoom907@me.com. You can follow him on Twitter (@alaskatravelGRM) and alaskatravelgram.com. For more information, visit alaskatravelgram.com/about.