US airlines extend fees to all major holidays

Major US airlines recently announced plans to expand their already widely criticised peak-travel-days charge, resulting in higher fees on more days during the year. The new fee hikes will include every popular holiday season across the calendar.

Late last month, American Airlines made history by becoming the first airline to charge $10 (€7) in extra fees during the three days surrounding Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day. US airlines is now following suit to place higher fees on virtually every major holiday time period.

These two airlines are not the only ones, however. Following American Airlines announcement of the increase in fees during peak holidays, almost every major airline has taken similar courses of action. The fees originally only extended to include New Year’s and Thanksgiving, but more and more airlines are beginning to extend those fees to other holidays throughout the calendar year.

The only airlines in the United States to not follow the crowd are well-known budget air carriers JetBlue and Southwest. Both budget carriers have said that they will not add the surcharge and have no intentions to do so in the future.

These new fees surrounding holiday travel join a long list of other charges being tacked on the ticket bookings. Some other fees that have been implemented in the wake of global recession include fees on checked luggage, seat choice, food, and other in-air services, all of which used to be included in the base price.