Betting on Airfare

This is a weird one: Allegiant Air is apparently considered asking you to gamble on the price of your airfare.

Blame it on rising oil prices.

Gamble on Airfare, Gamble on Oil

Allegiant has suggested (and this has not been okayed by anyone, let alone the government) that passengers could choose between a “regular” ticket with a fixed price, or gamble on a so-called “variable” ticket. With a variable ticket, fliers would pay one price, but if the cost of jet fuel dropped by the departure date, the passenger would get cash back. However, if the price goes up, passengers would pay more (up to particular “cap”). Sound intriguing? Or looney?

I guess you have to remember where Allegiant is headquartered: Las Vegas.

It kind of reminds me of Continental’s fairly new FareLock innovation which allows you to book a flight and, if you like, you can pay a fee that starts at $9 to hold that reservation at the locked-in fare for up to a week. In other words, should the price of that airfare rise, you win, but if it drops, you can just cancel without paying the heavy change fee, and all you’re out is that FareLock fee.

Better Idea – Sign up for FareCompare Airfare Alerts

So let’s go back to Allegiant: I’m a little concerned that it will turn fliers into “oil price” day traders. I’ve got a better idea.

Sign up for the FareCompare Airfare Alerts, and let us do the work for you; we’ll watch the prices and let you know when they come down. No need to gamble whatsoever.

What Do You Think?

What do you think about betting on airfare? Tell me on the FareCompare Facebook page – I’d really love to hear.

More from Rick Seaney:

Got Luck? Gamble on Price of Your Airline Ticket

AmericanAirline’s attempted $10 roundtrip domestic airfare hike launched earlier this week was followed by an entire day of inactivity from legacy and low cost domestic airlines – meaning, they decided not to match the hike. So, moments ago, American rolled back the hike to maintain competitive equilibrium.

Does this mean consumers have hit their saturation point on higher ticket prices?

It is too early to tell. Just FYI, in 2008 we also saw a handful of unsuccessful hikes during weekly attempts in March and April of that year.

Rather than a statement on consumer demand waning, this aborted increase attempt could just as easily mean that domestic airlines want more time to evaluate bookings before jumping back in on the hike band wagon

I fully expect another domestic hike attempt next week, as carriers continue to probe the appetites of travelers (and that of their competition) to lift the price of airline tickets.

Learn more about FareCompare and the cheapest days to fly and best times to buy airline tickets for year-round savings.