War's ebb spurs travel interest

By Chris Woodyard and Barbara De Lollis
USA Today

With war waning and terrorism fears abating, travelers are starting to book summer vacations, giving airlines a much-needed boost.

"It looks like it's starting to pick back up," says Frontier Airlines CEO Jeff Potter.

The upsurge is being spurred by cheap fares, including a big sale by Northwest Airlines announced Tuesday, which some airlines matched yesterday. "You're going to see some fairly aggressive pricing," Potter adds.

Airlines and Web sites for travel reported brisk sales yesterday as the nation's terrorism alert level was reduced from orange, or "high," to yellow, or "elevated." The Web site Orbitz reported that yesterday could be a record day for sales. CheapSeats.com, a site for discounted international flights that started in February, had record bookings Friday.

Northwest reported a brisk initial response to its sale, now that the major fighting is over in Iraq.

"We decided it was time to launch," says Executive Vice President Tim Griffin. During the war, "We thought running a sale wasn't the right time. ... Everyone was watching CNN and saying, 'Don't bother me.' "

The summer sale includes fares as low as $88 round-trip for flights from Detroit to Chicago or St. Louis and $390 round-trip for Boston to Amsterdam. Tickets must be purchased by Tuesday for domestic travel through Sept. 9.

Travel experts say the fare sale is respectable enough to draw notice from consumers who held off making summer reservations.

The sale might ignite weak travel demand, says Bestfares.com publisher Tom Parsons. Fares were low even before the sale, especially through June 18. Several airlines have been offering Baltimore to San Diego for $178 round trip, plus a $20 fuel surcharge.

Another help to travelers: President Bush signed legislation yesterday to suspend an airline security fee of $5 to $10 on each round trip. While the actual start date is yet to be decided, it's expected to be this summer.