Travel Plan

Archive for October, 2010

Are Cheap Flights Becoming An Endangered Species?

A few years ago back when budget airlines like EasyJet and RyanAir were first on the scene we were all promised ridiculously cheap flights to all sorts of destinations from European city breaks to viable alternatives to ferries to Ireland. There seemed to be a growing market of flights that appeared to operate at a price lower than the cost to the airline itself.

This was all well and good especially after other destinations received discount flights like New York and even locations like India and Turkey. The problem is that in the past few years most people havent noticed the price of these flights has managed to creep up and now the moniker of cheap flights seems false.

Holidays site Travelocity has found that prices have raised by roughly 7 percent compared to last years prices so why has this happened? Well the price has risen due to a number of different factors and depending on which airline you select you may have to pay considerably more on top of your flight cost.

One common raise has been the rise of fuel tax with the airline industry receiving a lot of flak in the battle to make our lives greener air travel is said to produce one of the most destructive gases to our environment as well as bovine flatulence but thats another matter and so fuel surcharges has been increased to discourage people from taking flights.

Some people think that this initiative is a direct response to the cheap flights industry as many more people flew to destinations once cheap flights were readily available. Other than this cause there are a number of trivial extra charges such as aisle seats the boxed lunches and with some airlines if you have more than one item of baggage checked.

So are cheap flights lost to the ether an afterthought in the history of air travel? Well not necessarily there are a few ways in which you can help reduce the cost of your flights such as booking as early as possible. A leading travel agent explained that flight prices gradually rise in the lead up to the summer holiday period and are at their most expensive during the period of March to September. They also advised that December is the optimal time to book your flights as this is when they are at their cheapest.

Apart from booking good and early there is a number of air fares monitoring websites that can track multiple flights companies so you can hunt down the cheapest flight possible and pounce on them when the timings right

About the writer:  Andy Adams is an IT worker and experienced travel writer

An End For The Budget Traveller?

As the effects of escalating oil costs continue to affect industries across the board the credit crunch looks set to hit the consumer hardest once again.

Ryanair are the latest company to reveal the extent of its financial hardships with annual losses expected to approach GBP50 million. In fact in the three months to the end of June the carrier’s net profits had fallen a staggering 85 to just 21 million euro.

With the significant increases in the price of oil over the past few months a figure which saw it reach a peak in midJuly of nearly 150 per barrel an announcement such as this was somewhat expected; only the extent of the losses came as a surprise.

Following the announcement from Ryanair shares in the other exponent of budget flight easyJet plunged 8 while British Airways suffered a drop of 5 in value. Those to suffer the most from the decline in fortune however look certain to be those travellers looking to take advantage of the greatvalue flights on offer.

With a view to curb losses it is inevitable that profits will require a substantial boost from the raising of ticket prices. So is it time for the average traveller wave goodbye to those 1p fares? And if so what will the affect be on the travel industry?

Many elitists not too mention tourist destinations may well greet the news of a reduction in budget flights with glee: at last the beautiful cultured streets of Europe will be free from drunken stag weekenders and hen parties while the golden beaches of the Costa Blanca will no longer be inhabited by lobsterlike British bodies.

However tourism remains the lifeblood of many a destination and a significant drop in visitors may lead to a host of problems caused by depleted funds. As a consequence the need to welcome those budget travellers far outweigh the wish to keep them out.

It seems almost certain that the days when flights are sold for a penny apiece are gone. So will the immediate problems being suffered by the likes of British Airways easyJet and Ryanair prove longstanding or is there a glint of optimism on the horizon?

Thanks to the realisation that the overinflated oil costs are in part due to the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries’ OPEC reticence to export oil at a reasonable rate and in part due to greedy traders profiting on the New York Mercantile Exchange NYME oil has begun what many hope to be a steady downturn. Should this be the case it it plausible that the airline prices may decrease once the price of oil steadies.

In the meantime however it seems likely that the next 12 months at least can see potential travellers wave goodbye to their much anticipated holiday.

About the writer:  Max Clarke is a copywriter for holiday services company Holiday Extras

All About Benton City Washington

Benton City can be found in Eastern Washingtons desert area. The summers are long and the winters are moderate. Doing the Math there is a 300day average of sunshine in one year.

Large and small vineyards pastures irrigated orchards hayfields and acreages are privately owned and are also plentiful in Benton City and around it. The city appears as a valley bowl. To the west Benton City overlooks wineries and Red Mountain. Turning to the south one will see the Horse Heaven Hills which has a 1800 ridge slope descending to the orchids of walnut apple apricot pear and cherry and to the river.To the north is Rattlesnake Mountain known to be the highest treeless mountain in Northern America.

Fishing and water sports are available in the town and fishing is done on the Yakima River and this is where you can catch otters basssalmon and steelheads.The city also houses a boatrampbicycle/fishing/wildlife trails horseback riding a shooting range and over 30 arenas for horseroping.

The schools in Benton City are exquisite. They perform arts; have sports and also FFA programs. There are many churches industrial park and a fire department for voluntary workers. Great to know is that an aquatic park and also a business park are on the drawing boards and are in discussion. There is also housing facilities available for farm workers migratory and seniors.

The activities that rule over the city of Benton are the Christmas parades the winter festivals and the extensive fireworks that light up the city on the Fourth of July. In addition yard sales are held annually and on certain occasions there are mud bog racing craft shows Easter egg hunts and many more.Around 28000 cars pass Benton City using the Interstate 82 and around 9000 cars pass through the city using its river bridge.

About the writer:nbsp;nbsp;Written by Joe Lane. Find more information on
Richland Wa Homes as well as
Kennewick Wa Homes.