It’s a small fee, after all
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Renita Jablonski: Oil is above $133 a barrel this morning.
Starting today, booking a trip with Disney Cruise Lines will cost an extra $8 a day, the latest fuel surcharge in the travel industry. Of course, Disney isn’t alone. Jeff Tyler has more.
Jeff Tyler: Disney is the last of the major cruise lines to tack on a fuel surcharge. Royal Caribbean and Carnival have been doing it for months. Are these additional costs having any effect on passenger logs?
Warren Miller covers the industry for Morningstar:
Warren Miller: It’s not going to have much of an impact on consumers attitudes at all. Cruise lines have historically been viewed as a great value vacation, where you get a lot of bang for your buck.
But the opposite is true for the airline industry, where consumers are getting less bang for the buck. Many airlines charge a base price for a seat, and extra for additional services. American Airlines’ broke ground with its new fees for each checked bag.
Miller says airlines hope such a la carte fees will help reduce sticker shock when consumers shop for fares.
Miller: If they’re looking online to buy their tickets and they’re seeing a price that’s $100 more than what they are used to, they’re going to turn it down right there.
He says Allegiant Air has been successful with this a la carte business model, and he expects other airlines will follow suit.
I’m Jeff Tyler for Marketplace.
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