3 months ago
Tampa, Florida -- The holiday travel season is nearly here. If you and your family are flying over Thanksgiving or Christmas, you're likely paying more thanks to new fees from airlines.
But you could also be paying more if you don't eat before you arrive at the airport.
Food at restaurant airports can cost a lot more than comparable restaurants off-site.
Katrina Zazaliaris noticed the higher prices after a recent visit to Tampa International Airport. She was waiting for her mother to arrive for a long weekend and stopped by the airport Burger King with her sister and two children. She didn't like the higher price.
"If you don't have time to get out of the airport and go buy food, you have to buy it here," said Zazaliaris. "So you're forced to pay a higher price. And in today's economy, I don't think that's right."
It may not seem right, but Burger King and all the restaurants at TIA aren't breaking any rules. The airport allows them to charge "street pricing" plus ten. That means they are allowed to charge 10% more than comparable restaurants off airport property.
"It's more expensive to do business at the airport," said TIA Executive Director Louis Miller. "We have a huge facility here that we've got to maintain and take care of. So it's just one of those things that we've got--a lot of public space here that they don't have in other places. We've got to get a return on our investment."
10 Connects News decided to check on a few items--comparing them to off-site restaurants.
The price of a Whopper hamburger at the TIA Burger King is $2.99. At the Burger King a couple of miles away on Dale Mabry and Columbus Drive the price is $2.79. That's less than ten percent.
A grande coffee at the TIA Starbucks is $2.00. The same cup of coffee at the Starbucks on Westshore Blvd. is $1.95. Again, that's less than 10%.
And at the airport Carrabba's, the popular Chicken Bryan entree is $18.15. It is exactly 10 percent less at the Carrabba's on Dale Mabry Hwy--$16.50.
The airport Carrabba's put TIA's street pricing policy to the test not long after it opened last year. A regular customer noticed when he bought chicken marsala, he was charged $3 for a house salad. At another Carrabba's that salad was included in his meal. The customer complained, and Carrabba's changed its menu -- offering the salad for free.
You might actually save money by eating at Tampa International Airport because not all airports follow street pricing. 10 Connects partner USA Today recently compared prices at several airports across the country:
TOP 21 AIRPORTS' PRICES FOR FOOD AND BEVERAGE |
| Most prices for some common items at the nation's 21 busiest airports are higher than at stores outside. | ||||
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| Airport | Airport policy for food/beverage | 20-oz. water bottle ($1.20 at 7-Eleven) | McDonald's Big Mac value meal ($5.20) | |
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| Atlanta | Street pricing + 10%1 | $1.79 | $3.40 | $5.11 |
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| Chicago O'Hare | Street pricing | $2.65 (25-oz. bottle) | $3.25 | $5.30 |
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| Los Angeles | No limit | $2.29 | $3.40 | $6.79 |
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| Dallas/Fort Worth | Street pricing + 10% at "a majority" of stores | $2.39 | $3.00 | $5.39 |
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| Denver | Street pricing + 10% | $1.99 | $3.49 | $6.30 |
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| New York JFK | Street pricing | NA8 | NA8 | $6.49 |
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| Las Vegas | Prices comparable to shops at major airports | $2.25 |
$3.39 | $7.794 |
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| Houston Bush | Street pricing | $1.75 |
$2.99 | $6.39 |
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| Phoenix | Street pricing2 | $1.34 (25-oz. bottle) | $2.70 | $7.764 |
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| San Francisco | Street pricing + 10% | $2.79 | $3.05 | $6.894 |
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| Newark | Street pricing | $2.35 | $4.117 | $6.16 |
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| Charlotte | No limit | $2.49 (25-oz. bottle) | $3.40 | $6.894 |
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| Orlando | Street pricing3 | $1.89 | $3.15 | $5.99 |
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| Detroit | Street pricing, not to exceed 10% | $2.29 | $3.00 | $5.69 |
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| Minneapolis | Street pricing + 10% | $2.59 (25-oz. bottle) | $2.95 | $5.49 |
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| Miami | Street pricing + 10% | $2.49 (24-oz. bottle) | $3.20 | $5.69 |
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| Seattle | Street pricing | $1.79 | $2.25 | $5.694 |
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| Philadelphia | Street pricing | $1.75 |
$4.155 | $5.99 |
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| Boston | Street pricing | $1.69 | $2.95 | $5.89 |
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| New York LaGuardia | Street pricing | $2.29 | $1.997 | $6.09 |
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| Washington Dulles | Street pricing | Prices capped at $1.76 | $2.80 | $4.796 |
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| 1 Sources: Airports, USA TODAY research |
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