What have you paid for airfare from Houston to San Diego?

[bob7judy]

We will be flying into San Diego in early April from Houston and was wondering what others may have paid for similar flight?

[GCurry]

We will be flying into San Diego in early April from Houston and was wondering what others may have paid for similar flight?

Just booked SouthWest for my wife and I non-stop out and back from Hobby, a January cruise for $728.60 total.

At this time they are only booking until March 7th.

 

Hope this helps for a benchmark.

[Jeano222]

For months and months air from IAH to SAN had been running 444.00 per person for non-stops on Continental flying in October. Three months ago I checked in the morning and it was 444.00 and that night at 7 it had dropped to 214.00 including all tax. It stayed low like that for 4 days before going back up. Air changes every 4 hours, so you need to check frequently to see if it has dropped, and when it does, be ready to grab it.

[jasmith52]

 

This is a chart off of the Kayak.com website. The chart shows average and best low fares (including taxes) between Houston and San Diego.

 

It looks like the best you can do right now is ~$225 or so roundtrip

 

Check out the website (http://www.kayak.com) for finding a great airfare.

[bob7judy]

Thanks for the great info. Now I'll know a good price when I see it and will keep checking until I find one.

[jasmith52]

Air changes every 4 hours, so you need to check frequently to see if it has dropped, and when it does, be ready to grab it.

 

If you watch airfares really close they change by-the-minute. You can see a great airfare and then go to book only to be rejected when that airfare is no longer available. Airlines have complicated computer models that allow them to maximize revenue while keeping the planes full. These models change the airfares regularly. So if you are trying to get on a particular flight and want their very best airfare they may only have a couple of seats left. If that airfare is available you better grab it cause it might not be around for long.

 

The flip side is, if you look for the very lowest airfare and it is not available it may be later. It may be available in an hour, in a day or in a week. You just have to keep watching. Of course, there is no guaranty that you'll get the flights you want at a price you want.

 

Cruise prices do similar things but the prices don't seem to change as fast as airline ticket prices.

[Jeano222]

No, airfare is regulated and is set every 4 hours, 8A, Noon, 4P and 8P. They cannot change price of air until the next change. Several years ago an airline made a mistake and input 19.80 instead of 198.00 and they could not do another change for 4 hours. it was a wild ride

[jasmith52]

Jeano:

 

What you posted may be true. But there are probably a dozen or more fare categories. If you are trying to get the best fare on a flight, then that category comes and goes. If you watch airfares closely you will see that seats become available and then disappear quickly. It may have to do with the way they are assigned with the various booking engines.

 

If you are trying to get a low(est) fare then it can be maddening.

[Jeano222]

Absolutely maddening, that's why I no longer book air for clients, By the time I saw a good fare and contacted clients the next change time would have had happened. It is much too labor intensive. During the time change airlines can choose to raise, lower or keep the price the same as the previous change. It is certainly true that you could have 20 different fares on seats based on what the change rate was at time of booking.