College Centex 2004

Flights

Of course, hopefully everyone has already booked flights, but if you're having trouble, check out these options:

If you can, fly into Austin-Bergstrom (AUS) - this airport is about 12 and a half minutes from the fields and even less from downtown. Southwest Airlines (www.southwestairlines.com) consistently has the best prices for Austin, but fills up fast. National carriers Delta (www.delta.com) Continental (www.continental.com), American http://www.americanairlines.com/and others all have daily direct flights from most major cities in America.

The second choice would be to fly into San Antonio (SAN) - which is an hour and 15 minutes from the fields. It's more of a regional airport than any of the other alternatives, but sometimes you can find shockingly good deals on major carriers. Again, Southwest Airlines is the major player for this airport.

Other options:

Houston - has two airports: Bush International (IAH) and Hobby (HOB), both of which are 2 and a half hours away from Austin. Hobby is a regional airport, and has much the same booking status in my mind as San Antonio, which is to say it's a hit or miss on deals and times. IAH, on the other hand, is one of the larger airports in the nation, and is serviced by just about everyone who flies the friendly skies. The best thing by far about IAH is that it caters to shuttle carriers like AirTrans (( http://www.airtran.com/) and Ted Airlines (www.flyted.com). If you're flying from a major metropolitan area, you should check these latter two airlines first. Continental has a hub in Houston, so they might also have decent deals.

Dallas - has DFW and Love Field, though I think Love is either dead or dying. DFW, though, is one of the busiest airports in the nation. It has all the amenities of Houston, and I would recommend it last for Centex flying only because of the 3 and a half hour drive from Dallas to Austin. Delta is the major carrier for DFW.

If you are looking for individual tickets, might I recommend:

www.orbitz.com
www.expedia.com
www.cheaptickets.com
www.travelocity.com
www.lowestfare.com

and for the truly desperate:
www.hotwire.com
www.priceline.com

Keep in mind that these tickets are rarely sold in blocks of more than 8, and that by purchasing them you drive up the price of all remaining tickets - i.e. you can't use these for your entire team (unless you're really crafty). Hopefully your travel plans will not include these last sites.
As a true alternative to flying, I've investigated pricing for charter buses - which is prohibitively expensive in groups less than 40, but a decent alternative thereafter, with cross-country prices ranging between $150-$180 per person. Check out www.busbank.com for specific quotes. (remember to factor in what your team will save by not having to rent cars for the weekend)