Airfare Deals under the Microscope

The previous examples are not outrageous. They were chosen as average exhibits of the fee structure that now greets almost every air traveler.

You can see how taxes, fees, blackout dates and off-peak requirements limit the impact of those stellar fares you see advertised every day somewhere.

But there are few other things you should keep in mind about sale fares:

Most promotional fares are non-refundable. That means once you buy, you cannot cancel the transaction for any reason.

Rare exceptions occur.If your future destination erupts in violence and the flight is canceled, airlines have been known to refund even "non-refundable" tickets. The same could be true if a major earthquake or hurricane strikes your intended destination.

But you can bet that in better than 99% of all situations, your money is gone if you should decide the trip is off.

Changes to the original itinerary can be expensive, too.

Some airlines will allow changes at a price. On international flights, revisions can cost $150 USD per change. Revisions to flights within a single country are generally in the $50-$100 range. It's important to check on all of these prices before booking online.

Availability can be a major catch. If the airline chooses, it will allot only a limited number of seats per flight for the promotional fare. If someone got in ahead of you, you're out of luck.