How to save on soaring summer airfares

Suffering from airfare sticker shock? Join the club.

Domestic fares are out of sight, especially for summer travel.

Last spring, there was a rock-bottom $160 round-trip fare between Seattle and Washington, D.C., thanks to a sale on United Airlines. This spring, the same flight costs around $500 on United.

Europe is even worse. Some fares are more than double last summer's sale prices, with round-trip coach tickets between Seattle and Rome costing more than $1,500 this August.

At this time last year, airlines were pushing one another out of the way to announce fare sales, especially to Europe, as the recession curbed travel. So far in 2010, the few ticket sales that have taken place have been short-lived and heavily restricted to specific travel dates and days. Summer travel sales are nearly nonexistent.

Bing Travel fare specialist Joel Grus said several factors are responsible for the run-up.

"Prices were very low last summer, which makes the increases look high," he explained. "Airlines have been cutting capacity, so there are fewer seats. And demand seems stronger. More people are vying for those seats."

Bing Travel's initial forecast for 2010 summer travel concluded that, nationwide, domestic airfares have gone up 22 percent over 2009, and fares to Europe have risen by 29 percent. Grus doesn't anticipate any softening of fares in the near future.

If staying home is not an option and your budget can only take so much, what's a traveler to do? Some tips:

Track the sales. Various travel websites, including Yapta.com, Kayak.com, Farecompare.com, Bing.com/travel, Airfarewatchdog.com and Priceline.com, offer fare-sale notifications. But also check daily on at least one third-party booking site, such as Orbitz.com, Expedia.com or Travelocity.com.

Remember that Southwest Airlines isn't shown on some third-party sites, so check its website directly (www.southwest.com). It's worth checking on most airlines' individual websites as it can be easier to see low fares, particularly using the "flexible days" option that shows prices over multiple days. (A tip: Wednesday is often a slower travel day, with lower fares,)

Look at alternative airports. If you're flying to Los Angeles, for example, look at fares at airports in Southern California besides Los Angeles International Airport. Check flights to Long Beach, Ontario International, John Wayne Airport in Orange County and Bob Hope Airport in Burbank. Most booking sites will allow you to conduct a search that includes nearby airports.

Don't check luggage. Most major airlines, including United, US Airways, Delta and American, charge $25 for the first checked bag and $35 for a second checked bag (some offer slight discounts for paying online). Southwest does not charge for checked bags; JetBlue does not charge for the first checked bag.

You'll avoid the baggage fees by going with carry-on only (except on the much-criticized Spirit Airlines that will charge for carry-on starting this summer).

Look for competition. If your vacation destination is flexible, pick one where lots of airlines fly so the competition helps keep fares lower.

Last-minute fares: Airlines sometimes offer very cheap last-minute fares — for the next day — through their Facebook pages or Twitter. Sign up for alerts.

Go in the offseason. Internationally, consider offseason summer destinations. For example, July and August is winter in Australia and New Zealand, so fares are cheaper.

Seize the fare. When you find a reasonable fare, don't hesitate. Fares can change within minutes.

Kristin Jackson of Seattle Times Travel contributed to this report.