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Farecastblog.com

A glimpse behind the curtain of Farecast.com

Summer Airfares up 20%May 28 2008

By: John Rauser - Farecast Fareologist

If you’ve read any press about the travel industry, you know that things are pretty rough out there. The carriers that haven’t gone out of business are suffering weakening demand and fuel prices that have nearly doubled in the last year. Naturally, they are responding with both higher fares and reduced capacity.

How far have airfares risen? The chart below shows the history of the year-over-year increase in cheapest available airfare for domestic trips departing in the following 90 days.

You can see that in the last few days, fares for upcoming flights are up about 20% from 2007 levels. The year-over-year gap has been widening since March, as more and more summer itineraries have been included in the 90 day window.

Summer fares are always higher than other times of the year, but they are especially high this year. So far, the average July departure h

Fourth of July Airfare OutlookMay 23 2008

By: John Rauser - Farecast Fareologist

With the summer travel season nearly upon us, I thought I’d slice and dice some Fourth of July airfares. The average summer airfare is up 20% since last year, and trips over the Fourth of July weekend are no different. However, you can still exercise some control over your airfare by carefully choosing your dates of travel.

When To Fly

This table shows the average price of the cheapest available ticket for a variety of Fourth of July itineraries in our top 100 city pairs.

Since the Fourth falls on a Friday this year, the picture is similar to Thanksgiving: trips returning on Sunday are the most expensive by far. Returning instead on Saturday or Monday saves $25/ticket on average, and delaying your return until Tuesday or Wednesday saves over $40/ticket. Varying your departure date can also save $15-20.

The most expensive itinerary is Sunday June 29 to Sunday July 6, which has averaged $352 so far this year in our top 100 markets. At this time last year, that same ticket had averaged just $290. The cheapest itinerary we’re tracking is a seven night trip Tuesday July 1 to Tuesday July 8, which has averaged $284 so far this year.

When To Buy

If last year is any guide, do not delay: on a

Farecast Wins A WebbyMay 8 2008

With immense pleasure, we are happy to share that Farecast is the winner of the Webby Award in the Travel category.

This is an unparalleled honor.  With nearly 10,000 entries from all 50 US states and over 60 countries worldwide, the 12th Annual Webby Awards is the biggest in history and continues to be the leading international award honoring excellence on the Internet.

“The Webby Awards honors the very best of the Internet,” said David-Michel Davies, executive director of The Webby Awards. “Farecast’s win is a testament to the skill, ingenuity, and vision of its creators.”

We are deeply honored by this award and give thanks to our users who have helped in so many ways to make Farecast all that it is.

We’d also like to congratulate the People’s Voice winner, Kayak, and the other travel category nominees - TripIt, Wikitravel and Travelfinder.

Microsoft Acquires FarecastApril 17 2008

By: Hugh Crean
 
We’re excited to confirm that Farecast has been acquired by Microsoft! This acquisition creates tremendous opportunities for the Farecast team and our customers.  We look forward to sharing more details in the weeks to come.  On behalf of the Farecast team, thank you.

Farecast Nominated For Webby AwardsApril 9 2008

Farecast has just been nominated for the 12th Annual Webby Awards! (It’s “the Oscars of the Internet”).  There is some great competition in the travel category, but with your vote, you can help us bring home the Webby.  Make sure to register and vote by May 1st.