But what about airfare?

Well, air travel is expected to be  slightly lower than usual with airfare up over 21 percent when compared to last year. The increase was triggered by the higher jet fuel costs coupled with reduced capacity as airlines tried to increase profits.

But airfare has shown a 5% decrease when comparing November 2011 with December 2011 – a very good sign.

“The drop in gasoline prices, higher airfares and fewer available flights on smaller planes, and the slowly-improving economy mean more people will travel to visit family, friends and holiday destinations,” said David E. Parsons, president and CEO of AAA Carolinas.

Here’s a timely Christmas present from Spirit Airlines…

A long-lived $18 airfare sale that includes a long travel window—both anomalies for the South Florida-based low-cost airline.

Featuring convenient midweek flights through the middle of March, Spirit’s airfare promotion will be available for flights booked by Tuesday, December 27. Our quick test revealed the cheapest travel days to be Tuesdays and Wednesdays, however Mondays and Thursdays are also a great deal but average of $40 or so more round-trip.

Rates start at $18 round-trip.

Vayama Offers End of Year Gift to Customers that Purchase International Airfare

Customers who Book International Airfare between December 27th and January 2nd will Receive a $50 Vayama Travel Gift Coupon

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., Dec. 27, 2011 — /PRNewswire/ – Vayama.com, the online travel agency that specializes in international travel, announces today that it is giving a year end $50 travel coupon to everyone who books an international flight between December 27, 2011 and January 2, 2012 and signs up for its deals newsletter. The $50 travel voucher can be used on future international airfare purchases on Vayama.com any time from January 1, 2012 through April 30, 2012.

“On average, our customers travel internationally two to three times a year,” said Tom Kent, vice president of marketing at Vayama.com. “We are offering the End of Year promotion to our customers as a way to say thank you and to help them continue on their path of global wanderlust.”

The End of Year promotion is valid for all new round-trip international airfare bookings that originate on Vayama.com and are made between December 27, 2011 and January 2, 2012. In order to be eligible for the $50 travel coupon, customers must sign up to receive the Vayama e-newsletter. Upon validation of the booking, a confirmation email will be delivered with a $50 Promo Booking Code – promotion is limited to one Promo Code per booking and can be used any time from January 1, 2012 through April 30, 2012.

For more information on Vayama’s Year End travel coupon visit http://www.vayama.com/travel-deals/year-end-gift-50-gift-travel-certificate/.

About Vayama:

Vayama is an online travel agency uniquely focused on international travel. The company offers travelers a vast selection of flights through its online booking engine that taps into inventory not available on other online travel websites. Launched in 2007, Vayama has continued to expand its online international travel services to include features such as 24/7 customer service, premium economy and discounted hotel rates, activities and car rentals.

For regular Vayama updates, follow us at www.twitter.com/Vayama become a fan on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/VayamaTravel or visit www.Vayama.com.

About Travix International B.V.

Vayama is part of Travix International B.V., a global travel company that manages an extensive portfolio of international travel websites operating under the brands: Vayama (USA, UK & Canada), CheapTickets (Europe & Asia), Vliegwinkel.nl (Netherlands), BudgetAir (The Netherlands, United Kingdom & France), Flugladen (Germany) and EasyToBook.com (Worldwide).

Travix operates in 16 countries; employs 430 staff and has combined sales in excess of USD $1,1Billion.

SOURCE Vayama

AirTran Airways has announced that their commercial flights will soon be losing XM satellite radio.

This move comes as the Dallas, Texas based Southwest Airlines integrates AirTran Airways operations into its day to day after acquiring them earlier this year.

In a recorded message on Monday, Southwest’s chief commercial officer Bob Jordan told all employees that they had decided to remove the satellite radio service from AirTran aircraft in order to offer “a consistent product” between Southwest and AirTran.

Dec. 20 (Bloomberg) — Carol Massar of Bloomberg reports her findings on the Bloomberg Rankings official analysis of airlines’ operating performance and service charges. The analysis found that American Airlines rated the worst performance and Southwest Airlines rated the best.

The list evaluated the largest 10 U.S. air carriers, as identified by passenger traffic on domestic flights. Lisa Murphy and Adam Johnson also commented. (Source: Bloomberg)