Search engine Aviasales surveyed 10,000 independent travelers to find out their attitudes toward charter flights.
Charter flights are often significantly cheaper than regular flights. For example, you can save 15% on a flight to Antalya, and 28% to Larnaca, and the difference The Moscow-Pula route is visible to the naked eye. Red Wings offers tickets for 4,558 rubles, while S7 offers tickets for the same dates for almost 17,000 rubles. On average, charter flights save between 20 and 251 rubles.
The majority of passengers surveyed by Aviasales (81%) stated that, all other things being equal, they would prefer to fly on a scheduled flight. Moreover, even if a charter flight were slightly cheaper, 58% travelers would still choose a scheduled flight.
Among the dislikes of charter flights, survey participants noted factors such as "old aircraft" (38%) and "frequent delays" (36%). Another 11% tourists were dissatisfied with the fact that they cannot earn airline miles on charter flights. This means that even when flying on an Aeroflot charter, they won't be able to earn bonuses, which are then typically used to purchase award tickets. Finally, 9% respondents were confused by the "package passengers" themselves.
Of course, many of these fears are irrational. Charter flights are a convenient and inexpensive way to reach popular resorts. To save money, Aviasales experts recommend:
- Do not search for charter tickets earlier than a week before departure.
- Unfortunately, no one can predict whether tickets will be available for the desired date. There's a risk that tickets won't be available. Here's a hint: the chances of snagging a ticket are higher at the beginning and end of the season.
- It's cheaper to fly back exactly 2 weeks later, since almost all tours are designed for this period.
Source: trn-news.ru