Wednesday, July 13, 2005

Why Can't the Airlines...

...just tell you the price right from the get-go? Here's an excerpt from an e-mail I received today from Swiss:

Dear Mr. [TBF]:
Early birds take note: With Swiss Summer Savers you can travel very cheaply to many intercontinental destinations in late summer - such as Miami from CHF 799.

They give a link that says "book ticket here". When you click on the link, it brings you to a page that shows the price for the Miami ticket as CHF 895. Huh? (TBF scratching his head) Oooohhhhhh, I see...that's CHF 799 plus a CHF 95 fuel surcharge. Then, when you go to the next page to confirm the price (huh? I thought it was 799!), you find out that the total for the trip including airport taxes is....CHF 1,025.50!!! I've got news for you Swiss: CHF 1,025.50 isn't "cheap"!
Please, JUST LIST THE FULL PRICE RIGHT FROM THE START!!! It doesn't cost CHF 799. It costs 28.3% MORE than that - CHF 1,025.50. Plus, the sample itinerary shows a departure and return around Labor Day weekend. When you choose that itinerary, it says that those dates are "unavailable". All other prices in Switzerland are shown including taxes. I don't see why the airlines shouldn't be held to the same standard.
Thanks. I feel much better now.