Airfare rises are affecting travel plans

Rising airfares are having a big impact on UK tourists’ travel plans, a survey last week showed.

And more than three quarters of UK travellers do not consider so-called low-cost airlines to be low cost once taxes and added fees were taken into account, the poll by Trip Advisor found.

As many as 68 per cent of British travellers said the recent eight per cent increase in air passenger duty (APD) airport departure tax on flights from the UK would affect their travel plans, with nine per cent saying the impact would be “substantial”.

Nearly two thirds (64 per cent) believed APD to be unfair, with only 11 per cent thinking it was fair.

A total of 83 per cent of people cited the price of a flight as a key factor when choosing an airline, compared with 71 per cent last year.

The UK is Malta’s biggest market for inbound tourists.

Based on responses from 5,555 travellers, including 1,116 from the UK, the survey showed that British Airways was the UK’s favourite airline, with budget carrier Ryanair being voted both Britain’s and Europe’s least favourite airline.

With BA in number one spot, the second most-favourite airline for British travellers was Virgin Atlantic, followed by Emirates, Singapore Airlines and Thomson Airways.

Trip Advisor spokesman Emma Shaw said: “This year’s results reveal a general worry about the expense of flying, whether it’s APD, cynicism around ‘low-cost’ carriers or simply the significant price tag of a flight.”