Lebanon
One-way tickets to Boston are now advertised at $49 until New Year’s, down from the regular price of $59. Flights to White Plains, N.Y. — which includes limousine service to Manhattan — are going for $99, down from about $130.
The company has offered discounted tickets before, but usually in times of exceptionally low ridership or close to the New Year. About $1 million in federal funds are dependent on the airport boarding 10,000 annual fliers, and there’s sometimes a rush to meet that goal, Airport Manager Rick Dyment said.
“I have total confidence we’ll hit the 10,000,” he said on Wednesday. “We’ve hit is consistently, at least since 2012.”
Year-to-date enplanements are down this year, though. Dyment said 6,492 people have boarded at the airport this year, down from about 6,600 from this point last year.
“We’re about on par to hit 2013 year-to-date,” Dyment said. “We’re lower than we were in 2015 and 2014 at this point. In past years they’re had sales in November and December (to boost those numbers).”
Past sales caused some to worry that the airport isn’t holding its own against competition in Manchester or from Dartmouth Coach.
A roughly one-month sale in 2015 was triggered when enplanements reached a low not seen since 2011. In 2012, Cape Air cut airline prices earlier in December to make the 10,000 goal before the end of New Year’s Eve.
But instead of waiting until winter, it appears Cape Air is trying to increase sales through the 2016 season, starting earlier this month. Dyment said he’s confident the strategy will work and keep federal dollars flowing to fund airport improvements.
On Wednesday, about three people waited for Cape Air’s 1:30 p.m. flight to Boston. The Cessna 402 expected to shuttle them to the city seats nine, and the airport was mostly quiet except for the noise of television in the terminal.
“I had to go to (Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center) and this was the closest airport,” said Ritika Zijoo, who came from Boston for a work-related trip. “It was convenient flying in here. A lot of people drive in (but) I chose to fly.”
She said her hotel provided shuttle service to and from the airport, so she didn’t have to bother with renting a car. She also only needed to be in the Upper Valley for a few days.
“I’ve known people that have rented cars here and they’ve driven in and out,” Zijoo said. “But if you fly in, this is the only airport you can choose.”
Ardis Olson and her husband were also in the terminal. They planned to meet with their daughter in Boston, where they would all leave for a vacation in Nova Scotia.
“There are better connections and it didn’t cost much more than the Dartmouth Coach,” she said. “We just decided to check prices. They charge for parking at Dartmouth Coach.”
Dartmouth Coach charges $38 for a one-way ticket to Boston and charges $3 a day for parking at the Lebanon terminal, according to its website. The trip is longer, of course, but that’s an option many people weigh, said Doug Wentworth, a manager at Milne Travel, which an office West Lebanon.
“For Boston, we see people using Cape as a connection to get all the way to Lebanon, and a few folks prefer the flight over Dartmouth Coach,” he said in an email on Wednesday. “(Dartmouth Coach) is much more popular overall.”
Wentworth said the flight to White Plains is also popular, and the company has several regulars who use it often.
“Often, clients aren’t aware the flight exists, and are happy to learn it’s an option for NYC versus bus, train or flying from Burlington or Boston,” he said.
People can find out more about the Cape Air discounts by visiting Capeair.com/travel_deals. The sale is expected to run through the remainder of the year.
Tim Camerato can be reached at tcamerato@vnews.com or 603-727-3223.