Skip to content

Top Navigation

Travel + Leisure Travel + Leisure Travel + Leisure Travel + Leisure
  • Trip Inspiration
  • Travel Guides
  • Plan Your Trip
  • World's Best
  • Destination of the Year
  • A-List Travel Advisors
  • Cruises
  • Travel Tips
  • News
  • Food + Drink
  • Travel Accessories
  • Check-In

Profile Menu

Join Now

Account

  • Join Now
  • My Profile
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Join T+L Club this link opens in a new tab
  • Give a Gift Subscription
  • Help
  • Logout
My Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • My Profile
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Join T+L Club this link opens in a new tab
  • Give a Gift Subscription
  • Help
  • Logout
Login
Subscribe
Book Now
Pin FB

Explore Travel + Leisure

Travel + Leisure Travel + Leisure Travel + Leisure Travel + Leisure
  • Explore

    Explore

    • World's Best

      World's Best

      The greatest islands, cities, hotels, cruise lines, airports, and more — as voted by you. Read More
    • The 50 Best Places to Travel in 2022

      The 50 Best Places to Travel in 2022

      Whether you're traveling solo or planning a family vacation, here are the 50 best places to visit in 2022. Read More
    • Let's Go Together Podcast

      Let's Go Together Podcast

      Start listening to T+L's brand new podcast, Let's Go Together! Hosted by Kellee Edwards. Read More
  • Trip Inspiration

    Trip Inspiration

    • Trip Ideas
    • Weekend Getaways
    • Spring Travel
    • Summer Travel
    • Fall Travel
    • Winter Travel
    • Solo Travel
    • Romantic Getaways
    • Luxury Travel
    • Beach Vacations
    • Adventure Travel
    • Road Trips
    • Family Travel
    • National Parks
    • Holiday Travel
    • Travel Photography
    • Photo of the Day
    • Culture + Design
    • Like a Local
    • Travel To
    • 50 Years of Travel + Leisure
  • Travel Guides

    Travel Guides

    See All Travel Guides
    • Mexico City
    • Maui
    • Charleston
    • Tulum
    • New York City
    • London
    • Paris
    • Iceland
    • Los Cabos
    • See More Travel Guides
  • Plan Your Trip

    Plan Your Trip

    Norwegian Cruise Line Will Require Vaccinations for All Passengers and Crew

    Norwegian Cruise Line Will Require Vaccinations for All Passengers and Crew

    Norwegian Cruise Line hopes to resume sailing out of the U.S. on or around July 4.
    • Travel Deals
    • Attractions
    • Travel + Leisure GO
    • Amusement Parks
    • Festivals + Events
    • Bus and Train Travel
    • Flight Deals
    • Budget Travel
    • Hotels + Resorts
    • Disney Vacations
    • Airlines + Airports
    • Ground Transportation
    • Get Outside
    • Wanderlust
  • World's Best

    World's Best

    • Top Hotels
    • Top Cities
    • Top Islands
    • Domestic Airlines
    • International Airlines
    • Tours
    • Safaris
    • See All World's Best
  • Destination of the Year
  • A-List Travel Advisors
  • Cruises

    Cruises

    • Find A Cruise
    • Caribbean Cruises
    • River Cruises
    • European Cruises
    • All-Inclusive Cruises
    • Family Cruises
    • Alaskan Cruises
    • Disney Cruises
    • See All Cruise Vacations
  • Travel Tips

    Travel Tips

    • Travel Trends
    • Packing Tips
    • Points + Miles
    • Budgeting + Currency
    • Customs + Immigration
    • Responsible Travel
    • Travel Etiquette
    • Travel Warnings
    • Weather
    • Mobile Apps
    • See All Travel Tips
  • News

    News

    • Wellness
    • Celebrity Travel
    • Animals
    • Jobs
    • Offbeat
    • See All News
  • Food + Drink

    Food + Drink

    • Restaurants
    • Wine
    • Beer
    • Cocktails + Spirits
    • Bars + Clubs
    • Celebrity Chefs
    • Cooking + Entertaining
    • Food Fairs + Festivals
    • World's Best Restaurants
    • A Spirited Occasion
    • See All Food + Drink
  • Travel Accessories

    Travel Accessories

    • Travel Bags
    • Shoes
    • Travel Tech
    • Shopping
    • Style
    • Gift Guides
    • See All Travel Accessories
  • Check-In

Profile Menu

Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
Join Now

Account

  • Join Now
  • My Profile
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Join T+L Club this link opens in a new tab
  • Give a Gift Subscription
  • Help
  • Logout
My Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • My Profile
  • Email Preferences
  • Newsletters
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Join T+L Club this link opens in a new tab
  • Give a Gift Subscription
  • Help
  • Logout
Login
Sweepstakes
Book Now

Follow Us

  1. Home
  2. Airlines + Airports
  3. Guide to Hidden Airline Fees

Guide to Hidden Airline Fees

By Sarah Gold September 08, 2009
Skip gallery slides
Pin
Credit: Aerial Archives/Alamy
Planning to attend your annual family reunion in Chicago, you spend hours searching online for the best available plane fare. Finally, success: on a discount-booking site you find a round-trip ticket on US Airways for less than $180. Done deal.

At the airport, though, you discover that checking your two suitcases (one heavy with presents for family members) will set you back $50. Then, on the plane, a flight attendant informs you that a pillow and blanket will cost you another $7. Headphones to screen out the crying baby in the next row: $5. Same price for a can of beer to help you take the edge off. By the time you’ve reached your destination, your wallet’s lighter by about $70—almost half the price of your original ticket.

The extra fees that airlines now charge passengers—for everything from in-flight snacks to choosing a window or aisle seat—can accrue alarmingly fast. And when you can easily find yourself bumped from an overbooked flight, or sitting inexplicably on the tarmac for hours without taking off, they can seem like insult added to injury.

But there are things you can do to keep the nickeling-and-diming under control, says George Hobica, who runs the online airfare monitoring site airfarewatchdog.com. “It would be great if the carriers had fee charts that laid out all these costs in a full-disclosure way,” he says. “But since they don’t, passengers need to be proactive.”

Among Hobica’s suggestions for avoiding unexpected fees: Consider shipping your luggage. Ground transport via UPS, FedEx, or even Express Mail can cost less than checking at the airport—and makes tracking lost bags much easier. Leave Fido at home. A good pet-sitter is often more economical than the stiff fees (usually more than $100 per one-way flight) required to bring animals on board. Always book online. The good old-fashioned method of calling an airline to reserve by phone can now cost up to $35. Bring your own snacks, travel blanket, and pillow in your carry-on. And if you shell out once for a set of headphones, keep the adapter plug to bring with you on your next same-carrier flight. Don’t discount the “discount” airlines. Southwest Air, for example—long considered a budget option—is actually one of the only domestic carriers that doesn’t charge any extra fees. The reason, according to Southwest spokesman Chris Mainz: “What used to be considered ‘no frills’—like peanuts and sodas rather than full meals—are now considered amenities. Since we’ve always offered those things for free, we still do.”
Start Slideshow

1 of 14

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Air Tran

AirTran Airways
Credit: © David Osborn / Alamy

Phone Reservation: $15
Priority Seat Selection: $6–$20
Snacks & Meals: $1–$6
Blankets & Pillows: N/A
Entertainment: No fee (XM Satellite Radio)
Checked Luggage (first bag; second bag): $15; $25
Onboard Wi-Fi: $7.95–$12.95 (on select flights)

1 of 14

Advertisement
Advertisement

2 of 14

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Alaska Airlines

Alaska Airlines
Credit: © Mason Vranish / Alamy

Phone Reservation: $15
Priority Seat Selection: N/A
Snacks & Meals: $6
Blankets & Pillows: N/A
Entertainment: $6–$12
Checked Luggage (first bag; second bag): $15; $25
Onboard Wi-Fi: N/A

2 of 14

3 of 14

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

American

American Airlines
Credit: Stuart Kelly/Alamy

Phone Reservation: $20
Priority Seat Selection: N/A
Snacks & Meals: $0–$10
Blankets & Pillows: No fee
Entertainment: $0–$2
Checked Luggage (first bag; second bag): $15; $25 (no charge for first or second bag on international flights)
Onboard Wi-Fi: $7.95–$12.95

3 of 14

Advertisement

4 of 14

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Continental

Continental Airlines
Credit: George Hall/Corbis

Phone Reservation: $15
Priority Seat Selection: N/A
Snacks & Meals: No fee
Blankets & Pillows: No fee
Entertainment: From $1
Checked Luggage (first bag; second bag): $15; $25
Onboard Wi-Fi: N/A

4 of 14

5 of 14

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Delta

Delta Airlines
Credit: Jeff Greenberg / Alamy

Phone Reservation: $20
Priority Seat Selection: N/A
Snacks & Meals: $2–$8
Blankets & Pillows: No fee
Entertainment: $2–$6
Checked Luggage (first bag; second bag): $15; $25 ($0 for first, $50 for second bag on international flights)
Onboard Wi-Fi: $7.95–$12.95

5 of 14

6 of 14

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Frontier

Frontier Airlines
Credit: Bryan Correira

Phone Reservation: $25
Priority Seat Selection: No fee
Snacks & Meals: $3–$6
Blankets & Pillows: N/A
Entertainment: $0–$8
Checked Luggage (first bag; second bag): $0 to $15; $25
Onboard Wi-Fi: N/A

6 of 14

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

7 of 14

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Hawaiian Air

Hawaiian Airlines
Credit: © Andy Jackson / Alamy

Phone Reservation: $10–$20
Priority Seat Selection: N/A
Snacks & Meals: No fee
Blankets & Pillows: No fee
Entertainment: From $5
Checked Luggage (first bag; second bag): Between islands: $0; $17 All other flights: $15; $25
Onboard Wi-Fi: N/A

7 of 14

8 of 14

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

JetBlue

JetBlue Airways
Credit: Mark Peterson/Corbis

Phone Reservation: $15
Priority Seat Selection: $10–$40
Snacks & Meals: No fee
Blankets & Pillows: $7
Entertainment: $5–$15
Checked Luggage (first bag; second bag): No fee for first; $30 for second
Onboard Wi-Fi: N/A

8 of 14

9 of 14

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Northwest

Northwest Airlines
Credit: © Images-USA / Alamy

Phone Reservation: $20
Priority Seat Selection: N/A
Snacks & Meals: $2–$8
Blankets & Pillows: No fee
Entertainment: $2–$6
Checked Luggage (first bag; second bag): $15; $25 ($0 for first, $50 for second on international flights)
Onboard Wi-Fi: $7.95–$12.95

9 of 14

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

10 of 14

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Southwest

Southwest Airlines
Credit: Bryan Correira

Phone Reservation: No fee
Priority Seat Selection: N/A
Snacks & Meals: No fee
Blankets & Pillows: No fee
Entertainment: N/A
Checked Luggage (first bag; second bag): No fee
Onboard Wi-Fi: No fee (on select flights)

10 of 14

11 of 14

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Spirit

Guide to Hidden Airline Fees: Spirit
Credit: JHP Travel/Alamy

Phone Reservation: No fee
Priority Seat Selection: $7–$20
Snacks & Meals: $2–$4
Blankets & Pillows: N/A
Entertainment: N/A
Checked Luggage (first bag; second bag): $19–$25 for first; $25 for second
Onboard Wi-Fi: N/A

11 of 14

12 of 14

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

United

United Airlines
Credit: © Larry Downing/Reuters/Corbis

Phone Reservation: $25
Priority Seat Selection: N/A
Snacks & Meals: $6–$9
Blankets & Pillows: No fee
Entertainment: No fee
Checked Luggage (first bag; second bag): $15–$20 for first; $25–$30 for second
Onboard Wi-Fi: $12.95 (on select flights)

12 of 14

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

13 of 14

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

US Airways

US Airways
Credit: Bryan Correira

Phone Reservation: $25–$35
Priority Seat Selection: $5–$30
Snacks & Meals: $3–$7
Blankets & Pillows: $7
Entertainment: $0–$5
Checked Luggage (first bag; second bag): $15–$20 for first; $25–$30 for second
Onboard Wi-Fi: N/A

13 of 14

14 of 14

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Virgin America

Guide to Hidden Airline Fees: Virgin America
Credit: Aerial Archives/Alamy

Phone Reservation: $15
Priority Seat Selection: N/A
Snacks & Meals: $3–$10
Blankets & Pillows: $0–$9
Entertainment: $3–$8
Checked Luggage (first bag; second bag): $15; $15
Onboard Wi-Fi: $7.95–$12.95

14 of 14

Replay gallery

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook

Up Next

By Sarah Gold

    Share the Gallery

    Pinterest Facebook
    Trending Videos
    Advertisement
    Skip slide summaries

    Everything in This Slideshow

    Advertisement

    View All

    1 of 14 Air Tran
    2 of 14 Alaska Airlines
    3 of 14 American
    4 of 14 Continental
    5 of 14 Delta
    6 of 14 Frontier
    7 of 14 Hawaiian Air
    8 of 14 JetBlue
    9 of 14 Northwest
    10 of 14 Southwest
    11 of 14 Spirit
    12 of 14 United
    13 of 14 US Airways
    14 of 14 Virgin America

    Share & More

    Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message
    Travel + Leisure Travel + Leisure

    Magazines & More

    Learn More

    • Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Content Licensing this link opens in a new tab
    • Accolades this link opens in a new tab
    • Travel + Leisure Wine this link opens in a new tab

    Connect

    Subscribe to Our Newsletters
    Sign Up
    MeredithTravel + Leisure is published by Meredith Corporation under license from Travel + Leisure Co. Copyright 2022 Travel + Leisure Co. All Rights Reserved. TRAVEL + LEISURE is a registered trademark of Travel + Leisure Co., registered in the United States and other countries. Travel + Leisure magazine may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Privacy Policythis link opens in a new tab Terms of Servicethis link opens in a new tab Ad Choicesthis link opens in a new tab California Do Not Sellthis link opens a modal window Web Accessibilitythis link opens in a new tab
    © Copyright Travel + Leisure. All rights reserved. Printed from https://www.travelandleisure.com

    View image

    Guide to Hidden Airline Fees
    this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines.