Monday, June 30, 2008
This week, from Hawaii
Like many other economists, I will be at the Western Economics Association meetings in Waikiki this week. Several friends I expected to see there have canceled, however, mostly because of high fares due to a decrease in competition.
Lots of miles, though; and I guess I'd better use them soon, before even their costs go up!
After the recent bankruptcies or termination of service of the Hawaiian specialists ATA Airlines and Aloha Airlines, fares to and within the Hawaiian islands have soared. When fuel surcharges are included, the cost of flying roundtrip between Los Angeles and Honolulu can be as high as $900 for peak summer dates. The cost of flying from one Hawaiian island to another (like Oahu to Maui), which had gone down to as little as $39 each way, has recently soared to $74 and $84, ...Posting will be light the rest of the day while I fly; my ticket (booked in early May) was well north of $1000, and the only way I could afford this was to schedule flying home on the Fourth, when travel is typically low.
Lots of miles, though; and I guess I'd better use them soon, before even their costs go up!
