Anchorage Daily News

Last week, after examining fares between about 200 different cities, I've noticed a couple of trends.

First, $700 is the new $500. For about 10 years, if you could get a ticket to the East Coast from Anchorage for $500, that was a good deal. Just like everything else, air fares are going up.

Oh, occasionally there are good deals. For example, you can fly between Anchorage and Washington, D.C., for $439 roundtrip, including all taxes and fees. Travel must be completed by Aug. 31 and you have to buy your ticket 21 days in advance. I priced the ticket on Delta, but American, Frontier and USAirways also offer the rate.

For the most part, however, fares are going through the roof to keep pace with record fuel prices. To fly to Richmond, Va., the fare is $733 roundtrip. To Philadelphia, it's $632. On a good day, you can get to New York for $543. To Newark, it's higher still: $605. For a trip in August, Alaska Airlines is charging $953.90 for a trip to Newark.

Fares are going up all over -- both domestically and internationally. Even on the West Coast, rates are headed up. Currently, it costs $708 to fly to San Diego and $674 to travel to San Francisco. Rates to Las Vegas have almost doubled in the past year to more than $800. Sometimes, you can get a good deal from Anchorage to Seattle, then combine it with a cheap ticket to Las Vegas. But that can be cumbersome. USAirways offers a daily nonstop trips during the summer.

Speaking of Seattle, prices for air fares are up as well. Prices range from $440 to $530 on either Continental or Alaska. Earlier this summer, Continental was offering some Web specials for $250 roundtrip. Recently, Alaska sent out an e-mail to its frequent flyers, offering a $498 roundtrip fare.

To the Midwest, there are a few good fares to Minneapolis on Sun Country Airlines through Labor Day (as low as $413 roundtrip). But Chicago is in the $600 range. Detroit costs $633 roundtrip and a ticket to Des Moines is $726 roundtrip. Even low-priced Denver now comes in at $533 roundtrip.

The second trend is the increase in the number of choke-points for travelers, whether at the baggage check-in station, at the TSA or at the boarding gate. Lately, the airlines are charging more for everything -- separately. That means travelers must be armed with a load of bills to pay for everything from in-flight meals to checked baggage.

Many travelers will try and cram everything into their carry-on luggage. That means there will be confrontations at check-in and at security. And the overhead bins will be in higher demand. Further, the airlines will need more people to deal with the increasing number of small transactions. This is difficult since most airlines are trying to shrink their way to prosperity these days, which is a difficult proposition.

In sum, airline tickets cost more. The services travelers receive are fewer. Smart travelers will avoid checking baggage or consider sending it ahead via FedEx or the post office.

Scott McMurren is an Anchorage-based travel marketing consultant. E-mail him at zoom@toursaver.com.

Scott's tips

• ULTIMATE GUIDE TO FEES: The folks at Smartertravel.com, airfarewatchdog.com and seatguru.com came up with a comprehensive guide to fees. tinyurl.com/3u7ntw

• STUCK IN SEATTLE? I'm impressed with the shops and food court at Sea-Tac airport, including Wolfgang Puck's new express kitchen: www.portseattle.org/seatac

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