Airfare Deals and News for the Week of December 11, 2009

Virgin America's Fares to Fly By

Virgin America's (tel. 877/359-8474; www.virginamerica.com) current batch of "Fares to Fly By" start at $39 each way, before taxes, and includes First Class fares starting at $199 each way. Fare restrictions vary by route, though most of fares are available for purchase by midnight, December 15, and are valid for travel from January through late May. Check fare details for blackout dates.

Fares include:

• San Francisco to Las Vegas $78
• San Francisco to Los Angeles $78
• San Francisco to Santa Ana $78
• Los Angeles to Seattle $118
• Los Angeles to Boston $198
• Los Angeles to Washington DC $198
• Los Angeles to Ft Lauderdale $198

And, FYI, you'll find a lot of these fares are now being matched by JetBlue, United, and American.

Winter Deals from China Airlines

Save on travel from Los Angeles to select Asian destinations this winter on China Airlines (tel. 800/227-5118; www.china-airlines.com). This sale include Taipei, Kaohsiung, Hong Kong, and Bangkok, and is valid for travel from January 7 through February 4. Tickets must be booked by December 31. Sale fares are good for weekday travel only, and a surcharge will be applied for any travel on weekends. Feel like making a pit stop? Stopovers en route are permitted.

• Los Angeles to Taipei, Taiwan $786, incl. all taxes
• Los Angeles to Kaohsiung, Taiwan $794, incl. all taxes

Also from China Airlines, but separate from this sale, is this fare to Kuala Lumpur. This one is good for winter departures from January 16 through February 3, for travel 7 days a week.

• Los Angeles to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia $777, incl. all taxes

Midwest Holiday Sale

Midwest Airlines (tel. 800/452-2022; www.midwestairlines.com) has some affordable holiday fares up for grabs, good for travel from December 16 through January 4. Though their fine print warns taht "peak holiday travel dates may be slightly higher," you can still snag a decent fare just so long as you're somewhat flexible with dates.

Tickets require a 3-night minimum stay, and must be purchased by December 21. Fares include:

• Appleton to Las Vegas $208
• Nashville to Kansas City $118
• Columbus to Des Moines $178
• Washington DC to Green Bay $158
• Des Moines to Tampa $178
• Newark to Green Bay $208
• Green Bay to Orlando $168
• Indianapolis to Minneapolis $128
• New York to Appleton $138
• Orlando to Omaha $178
• Omaha to Tampa $178

Singapore Airlines' Houston Sale

As of December 18, perennial passenger fave Singapore Airlines (tel. 800/742-3333; www.singaporeair.com) will add a fifth weekly flight from Houston to Singapore, via Moscow. Of course this news calls for a sale, not only to Singapore and Moscow, but to destinations including Bangkok, Ho Chi Minh City, Denpasar/Bali, Kuala Lumpur, Chennai, Mumbai, and Delhi. Travel is valid from January 5 through May 20, on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.

• Houston to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia $981, incl. all taxes
• Houston to Denpasar, Indonesia $979, incl. all taxes
• Houston to Moscow, Russia $628, incl. all taxes

Holiday Sale from Mexicana Airlines

Mexicana Airlines (tel. 800/531-7921; www.mexicana.com) has some swell holiday deals from the U.S. to select destinations in Mexico, including Guadalajara, Mexico City, and Leon. Travel is valid from December 9 through March 25. Fares must be booked by December 17. Blackouts for southbound travel are in effect for December 18-22, and for northbound travel from January 2-6.

• Los Angeles to Guadalajara, Mexico $288, incl. all taxes
• Los Angeles to Leon, Mexico $218, incl. all taxes
• Oakland to Guadalajara, Mexico $257, incl. all taxes

Passenger of Size? Here Are the Rules, by Airline

By now we've all seen the photo of the very large passenger sticking into the aisle of an American Airlines single aisle plane. Was it real? Some kind of Photoshopped hoax?

Many airlines now have some kind of language in their travel info pages concerning when and if a passenger may be required to buy an extra seat, or may be so large as to be denied boarding. But others don't make this information easy to find, or haven't quite made up their minds about how to handle this weighty topic. Join us over in the blog as we break it down airline by airline.

Additional Reporting by Tracy W. Stewart

George Hobica is a syndicated travel journalist and blogger whose website, www.airfarewatchdog.com, tracks unadvertised airfare wars and fare sales, including the most helpful and always updated Top 50 Airfares.

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