Now that Alaska Airlines' big Permanent Fund dividend airfare sale is over, it's time for prices to go up. Right?
Well, not necessarily. If you live in Nome, Kodiak or Bethel, fares have gone up. But if you're a traveler who flies from Anchorage or Fairbanks, you may notice that while some fares have gone up, others have gone down due to competition between Alaska Airlines and Delta.
While Alaska's PFD sale ended on Oct. 10, Delta's fares are available for purchase through Oct. 20. But the fares that first were announced aren't even the lowest fares. Since mid-September, Alaska and Delta have been sparring in several markets — and fares have dropped well below the initial "sale" fares.
Between Anchorage and Seattle, fares have crept up just a little, to $203 round trip on both Alaska Airlines and Delta. The lowest fares are available beginning Nov. 3, for travel through Dec. 23. If you want to plan a trip next May, check out JetBlue's fares of $66 each way for travel between May 26 and June 13, 2017.
Delta still has the best fare from Anchorage to Portland, just $196 round trip for travel through Dec. 17. Again, JetBlue offers nonstop flights between May 25 and June 10, 2017, for as little as $133 round trip.
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Both Alaska Airlines and Delta offer a great fare from Anchorage to Las Vegas: $280 round trip. The rate is available between Oct. 29 and May 20, 2017. There are price surges over Thanksgiving, Christmas and spring break.
I'm confident that flights from Anchorage to the Los Angeles area are going to be cheap all winter long. Delta is offering flights from Anchorage to LAX for $238 round trip. If you want to fly to Orange County, the price is just $246 round trip on Delta. If you really want to fly into Long Beach and you don't mind connecting in both Seattle and Salt Lake City, Delta will sell you a ticket for as little as $200 round trip.
Flights to Northern California cost a bit more. Alaska charges $342 round trip to fly from Anchorage to San Francisco. The least-expensive airport in the region is Sacramento. Both Alaska and Delta offer tickets for as little as $280 round trip—all the way through mid-May of next year. Again, there are price jumps around Thanksgiving, Christmas and spring break.
The best deals between Anchorage and Phoenix still hover around $300 round trip: $298 round trip on either Alaska or Delta.
Between Anchorage and Minneapolis, Delta's nonstops are available on select dates for as little as $395 round trip. The first available date is Nov. 11. It's hard to find this rate during the week. Most of the available dates, through Feb. 18, were departing on Fridays and Saturdays.
If you want to fly to Florida, both United and Delta offer a great fare from Anchorage to Orlando: just $438 round trip. This fare is available from Oct. 29 to May 12, 2017, with price surges over Thanksgiving, Christmas and spring break.
The fare to Boston really is a great deal, particularly if you're trying to top off your mileage account to achieve "MVP" status on Alaska Airlines. The Anchorage-Boston fare is just $370 round trip on Alaska. In fact, Delta has upped the ante by lowering the fare to $365 round trip.
Fairbanks travelers are lucky that Delta is flying year-round from Seattle. That means rates will be cheap all winter. Right now, in fact, it's cheaper to fly from Fairbanks to Seattle than it is from Anchorage to Seattle. The rate from Fairbanks is just $190 round trip on both Alaska and Delta. Travel between Oct. 29 and May 7, 2017. Of course, the fare is more around school holidays.
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Delta offers the least-expensive fare from Fairbanks to Portland: just $227 round trip for travel between Oct. 27 and Dec. 12.
Delta's fare from Fairbanks to Sacramento is about the same as it is from Anchorage: $281 round trip for travel between Oct. 26 and Jan. 28, 2017.
Just like the rates from Anchorage, the fares from Fairbanks to southern California are really low this winter! From Fairbanks to Los Angeles/LAX, the fare is just $239 round trip on Delta. It's $246 round trip to fly from Fairbanks to Orange County.
Delta offers about the same fare from Fairbanks to Phoenix as from Anchorage: $300 round trip for travel between Oct. 26 and Dec. 16 and also from Jan. 5 to Feb. 16, 2017.
Alaska Airlines offers a great deal from Fairbanks to Denver: just $343 round trip. Travel is from Nov. 11 to Apr. 20, 2017.
Alaska Air also offers a nice fare from Fairbanks to Dallas, just between Nov. 1-16: $415 round trip.
Fairbanks travelers who want to visit Orlando can save money if they fly from Fairbanks to San Diego and then on to Orlando on Alaska Air's new nonstop flight. The price is available between Oct. 30 and Feb. 10, 2017: $450 round trip. If you fly that route in both directions, you'll accrue about 9,440 Alaska Airlines miles!
My favorite fare from Fairbanks to the East Coast is the $379 fare from Fairbanks to Boston on Delta, available Oct. 31-Feb. 10, 2017. Alaska Airlines has a lower fare: just $372 round trip. But every day that I checked, it calls for a very long layover in Seattle.
All of these fares are subject to change without notice. Many of the fares mandate that you purchase by Oct. 20, but don't wait until then to buy it. Chances are good the rates will change once or twice between now and then.
While researching these fares, I used five sources: Kayak.com/explore (for the handy map), AlaskaAir.com, Delta.com, Matrix.ITASoftware.com (for the rules and flight details) and Google Flights. I also checked JetBlue.com for flights to Seattle and Portland next May.
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.