Overnight, TAP increased their fares for flights between mainland Portugal and Madeira by 53 euros, which surprised travel agencies, who were not given prior notice of the change. Unsurprisingly, the increase will affect students travelling back to Madeira, as the new tariffs will come into force on the 16th of December.
The surprise felt by the agents, many of whom displayed their disbelief as those fares covered by the mobility allowance have been affected. In fact, it is cheaper to book a business class ticket than an economy one, but these tickets do not come under the Mobility Allowance tariff refund scheme.
Regarding the abrupt changes, an unspecified travel agency spokesperson said:
“We were surprised when we found that TAP, from yesterday to today, increased the economy fares by another 53 euros,” with flights increasing from 343.63 euros to 396.63 euros in the case of the most expensive economy class. A business class fare (Executive) currently costs 267.50 euros.” Residents can opt for this rate but are not entitled to a refund. And, in the case of the prices mentioned above for Economy, the total will exceed the maximum ceiling of 400 euros, because of the amount that is charged by travel agencies.
And, in fact, as Jorge Sargo, from Intertours, has already clarified many of the flights economy class sections are already fully booked over the Christmas break. What was worse is that TAP did not inform us of the changes leaving us unable to advise our customers of the changes and allow them to book seats at a cheaper price before the 16th of December.
Jorge Sargo also commented that TAP “usually increases fares” during Carnival, Easter, the Flower Festival, and Christmas, which has always affected the Madeirans. He also clarified that there have often been cheaper fares in business class compared to the more expensive Economy class, which in his opinion ends up benefiting the company.
The agency seeks to help its clients in the process of purchasing tickets so that they can benefit from the reimbursement of the social mobility allowance, making simulations of trips per route, in two processes (for one trip and for one return), than in a ’round trip’.
Samantha Gannon
info at madeira-weekly.com
