Bargain air fares taking a summer holiday

Bad news is piling up for families looking to fly overseas or even cross-country for vacations. Airlines are cutting flights, adding fees and fuel charges, trimming frequent flier benefits and reducing customer service personnel, particularly at airport counters.

It's not just the airlines. The declining dollar is making overseas travel out of the question for many Americans, even those who are used to shopping excursions and Mediterranean cruises.

Delta Air Lines this week underlined the issue facing travelers and the industry. It announced plans to ground more than 40 planes and slash domestic flights by 10%. Today it raised domestic air fares by $10.

It's happening all over the airport. United Airlines and Northwest Airlines also said they would cut domestic flights, and analysts said other big carriers were likely to follow. Shorly after Delta's latest fare hike, American Airlines and Northwest raised fuel surcharges on international round-trip flights by $20. Fuel fees, which airlines charge on top of the base fare, now average about $200 for longer international round trips, or about double that of last year's average, according to Bestfares.com.

With fewer flights this summer, travelers can expect higher fares and planes even more packed than today, which is prompting some families to forgo flying altogether.

"I'm probably going to drive somewhere this year," said Bryce Berg, a Long Beach resident and a father of two boys ages 6 and 9. Berg typically takes his boys to visit family in either Chicago or Idaho for the summer, but "with the economy as it is, I'm not going to take a big trip."

Of course, there will always be opportunities for those who dig deep enough, and there is no stopping travelers who feel a summer vacation in the Azores is a must.

But air fare deals to popular destinations are likely to be harder to find. Want to redeem those frequent flier miles for a free ticket? Wait in line.

Already, a plane ticket for a trip overseas during the peak summer travel months is up an average of 10%, according to a Summer Travel Forecast report that online travel service Farecast.com is unveiling Thursday.

Dana and Roy Dolin of Westchester are taking their three sons and the children's grandmother to Italy in July despite air fares that were about $800 more per person than they had expected to pay. The Dolins, who booked the trip last month, said they thought they "could get by" for about $1,000 per person based on fares they'd seen last year.