The survey of 500 members of SAS's News and Offers programme found 92% were frustrated by such fees. More than half (52%) cited checked baggage fees as the most infuriating hidden charge, followed by fees for using credit cards (23%) and for seat allocation (17%).
One respondent commented: ‘I am really angered by all add-ons to the price. I want one price which is the true price, all included.’
The survey also found that 39% of respondents would rather travel to a centrally located airport and cut down journey times than take advantage of cheaper fares from budget airlines at secondary airports.
Only 15% claimed to prefer to travel from more remote airports if it would guarantee lower fares.
According to the research, the most stressful aspect of family travel was getting to the airport, cited by 49%, followed by the airport’s environment, including security measures (33%).
This compares with 66% who cited airport security checks as the biggest cause of stress in SAS’s 2007 report, suggesting that travellers are becoming more accustomed to heightened security measures.
See also:
Checked bag fees pay off for Jet2.com (25/07/08)
Checked bag charges boost easyJet (24/07/08)
Holidaymakers avoid airport stress (11/07/08)
Cost not main concern for most holidaymakers (10/06/08)
Holiday Which? lays into LCC pricing model (08/01/08)