Flight to San Jose Cabo questions

[Attic Village]

I am planning to fly to San Jose Cabo on June 17-24, 2006 and I noticed a flight from LAX to SJD by Mexicana De Aviacion operated by American Airlines. The Mexicana De Aviacion flight 3059 fare is $393 and the American Airlines flight 249 fare is $522. It seems like it is the same flight. Is it the same flight and if so, how come such a disparity in cost? Is it on an American Airlines plane?

I am planning to purchase 7 tickets to San Jose Cabo. I would like a non-stop flight. I live in Utah and I am comparing the cost from flying from Salt Lake City, Las Vegas, or Los Angeles. The SLC fare has been rising from $526 on Sunday to currently $606. The Las Vegas fare has been steady at $308 since Sunday. And the Los Angeles fare has been $330 on Sunday to currently $393. I would like to fly out of SLC, since it is the closest. Would it be worth it to drive to Las Vegas or Los Angeles to save some money? I know I would have to consider the drive time, hotel cost, and gas. Any other things I need to consider or suggestions?

 

[Dave M]

Yes, it's the same flight. It's operated by AA. However, if you decide another AA flight, it is operated by Mexicana if the AA flight number is 8XXX.

Airlines frequently "codeshare" flights so that an airline can fly its customers to more destinations without having to incur the expense of operating additional planes. Each airline has a certain number of seats which it owns on the flight and can sell for whatever price it chooses. Thus, it's normal for the fares to be different.

By way of comparison, I fly many miles on UA each year. However, I can sometimes get a lower fare by booking a US Air codeshare price on that UA plane. The result is the same, because I fly on the UA plane and get UA FF miles for the flight.

Only you can decide whether it's worth the aggravation of driving 400 or 700 additional miles each way to save some money. I would imagine your calculations for hotel, gas, meals, etc. will show not much savings. Further, those who are not paying, most likely won't like the drive time necessary to save you that money. One additional factor: Consider that if you have an emergency (e.g., car trouble) on the way and miss your flight, you'll not be happy with the choice you made.

The nonstop flight is on Delta (actually a related airline, Atlantic Southeast), currently at $606. You can save $126 per person by flying on Frontier through Denver. Is it really worth paying an extra $900 or so, just to have a nonstop flight? Also, once you find the best fare on a search engine, check the airline's website for possible better fares.

One last thought. Airfares regularly go up and down within a very short period of time. Those SLC fares could just as easily go down - perhaps for only part of a day - as go up over the next week or so. So consider checking several times each day over the next week, being prepared to jump at a fare in the $$ (you choose the level) range, if you get the chance.