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JetBlue offers refundable fares, but watch prices

JetBlue (www.jetblue.com or (800) 538-2583) recently began offering refundable fares through its Web site and third-party partners. This new option provides additional flexibility to people who want the ability to change or cancel their travel plans without penalty.

This comes on the heels of Southwest Airlines' (www.southwest.com or (800) 435-9792) launch of its Business and Business Select classes of service in November, which also allow for ticket changes and refunds. JetBlue appears to be playing a bit of catch-up in this space.

JetBlue allows unlimited changes to the ticket without penalty as well as a full refund at any time prior to the flight's departure. If you miss your flight and do not notify the airline, you will receive a full credit for the cost of the flight to be used at a future date within one year.

This appears to be a positive development, but in investigating the new fare structure, we've noticed that travelers need to carefully compare their options when considering the new refundable fares.

For example, we checked prices on flights from Chicago O'Hare to Orlando on a Friday in March and found that JetBlue's lowest everyday fare was $124 each way, while the refundable fare for the same flight was priced at $449 each way. That's up to three times the cost for the added flexibility, which is quite steep.

However, if you're unlucky and lowest fares are sold out, the everyday fare jumps to $329. In this instance, the price premium was not as great and might be worth the added cost for the additional flexibility.

We recommend doing your homework and comparing the lowest available JetBlue fares with the new refundable fares before booking. Depending on your specific situation and the prevailing fares at the time of booking, the new refundable fares may or may not be an option worth pursuing.

One final note on JetBlue's fares: We've noticed that when booking two or more passengers, some JetBlue flights drop in price as much as $15 each way. We have noticed this before, and it seems to be a nuance of JetBlue's reservation system, although it's never been officially documented anywhere to our knowledge. That's one more thing to keep in mind when comparison shopping for airfares.

Earn up to 20,000 OnePass miles

Continental Airlines' OnePass members can earn up to 20,000 miles with Chase.

When opening a Chase Free Checking account with direct deposit, members will receive 10,000 OnePass bonus miles. And if you decide to accept the Chase Continental Airlines Preferred Banking Card, you'll get another 10,000 bonus miles after your first qualifying purchase.

In addition, members will earn one mile for every $1 in qualifying purchases when using the banking card (with a $25 annual fee). Other restrictions may apply.

For more information or to sign up, visit www.chase.com/miles.

Skybus keeps low fares, expands routes

Skybus (www.skybus.com), known for its $20 round-trip fares, has announced new service to Chicago/Gary, Philadelphia/Wilmington and Toronto/Niagara Falls starting in March and April of this year.

As it frequently does, it uses smaller, less-congested airports to service busy airport cities. It's sometimes worth a little extra drive time to make your airport experience a bit easier, especially these days.

New daily service between Chicago/Gary and Greensboro, N.C., begins on March 13 at $35 each way, compared to about $86 each way on US Airways if you were to fly between O'Hare and Greensboro. And Gary Chicago International Airport (www.garychicagoairport.com or (219) 949-9722) is only about 25 miles southeast of downtown Chicago.

Taxes and fees on flights mentioned are additional and reservations and all booking information can only be found at the Skybus site. No search engines offer this information.

Earn double Delta Miles with Shutterfly

Members of Shutterfly (an online service for users to print and share their digital photos) and Delta Airlines' SkyMiles can earn 20 miles for every dollar spent between now and March 31.

This offer is valid for both current and new Shutterfly members. To sign up, visit www.shutterfly.com/secure/sign_up_delta20.jsp.

Get Amex card from Priority Club

Members of the Priority Club Rewards program (www.priorityclub.com) can earn a $50 American Express prepaid card when they use a valid American Express card to pay for stays of five consecutive nights at any Candlewood Suites or Staybridge Suites hotel in the U.S. and Canada.

Each Priority Club member can earn up to $200 in prepaid cards between now and March 31. More information is available at www.candlewoodsuites.com/amx or www.staybridge.com/amx.

Enrollment in Priority Club Rewards is free, and members benefit from flexible features, such as no points expiration, no blackout dates on reward nights and more redemption options than any other hotel loyalty program, including more than 500,000 lodging establishments worldwide.

Reach George Hobica at

hobica@gmail.com, Kim Liang

Tan at KimLiangTan@aol.com

or log on to www.airfarewatchdog.com.

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