Conneticut Woman Tries To Book Basic Economy Domestic Flight on United for $600. Then She Sees the Restrictions: ‘No Carry-On Is INSANE’

Flights in the U.S. are more expensive now than many travelers are used to. And according to one United Airlines customer, what you get for the high price you pay does not make it feel worth it. At all.

In a recent video, which got over 457,000 views, TikTok creator April Hickman (@aprilmhickmandesigns) films her screen as she shops for a flight on the United Airlines website.

How Much Was The United Airlines Domestic Flight?

Hickman was shopping for a domestic round-trip flight from Hartford, Connecticut, to Denver, Colorado, and back. In total, the trip would involve about eight and a half hours of flying.

“Someone please explain this to me,” Hickman says as she films the United fare selection page.

The Basic Economy fare was listed at $631. The Economy fare was listed at $731, while the fully refundable Economy fare was listed at $821.

“I’m not doing this, OK?” Hickman says. “This sh– is bullsh–.”

The Basic Economy fare came with several restrictions. According to the screen, the fare included seat selection for a fee, last boarding, ticket changes for a fee, no refunds, no carry-on bags, and a first checked bag fee of $100.

“No carry-on bags,” she says. “First checked bag is 1 hundred [expletive] dollars. Excuse me? A hundred dollars?”

Hickman says she does not really care about boarding last. In fact, she says she does not understand the rush to sit on the plane longer than necessary.

“Why do I want to sit on the plane for an extra however long it takes people to get on the plane?” she asks.

But the seat-selection line bothered her, too.

“And then I have to pay money,” she says. “I have to pay money to get a seat. What am I paying? What is the $631 for?”

To clarify, passengers generally do not need to pay just to be assigned a seat. With Basic Economy, if a passenger does not choose one, the airline assigns one automatically.

How Much More Expensive Are Flights Now?

According to data by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, the average U.S. domestic airfare reached $428 in the first quarter of 2026, which is the highest non-inflation-adjusted fare in the agency’s data.

Even though jet fuel prices have dropped, travelers are still seeing high fares.

CBS News reported that the average price of a plane ticket booked through a travel agency in May rose 18% compared to the same period a year earlier, citing data from Airlines Reporting Corporation.

Passengers are feeling the difference.

“I fly between northeast airports often – ROC/BUF to BOS/PHL/JFK. Prices have skyrocketed,” one Reddit user wrote. “I used to be able to snag a round trip for like $200, now the price floor is like $450 no matter what day I fly on. It’s awful – I’m driving most of the time now.”

Commenters Were Also Frustrated

In the comments, viewers understood Hickman’s frustration.

“No because the tiers in economy is insane to me,” one commenter wrote.

Hickman responded, “It’s like, would you like poor, poorer, or poorest?? Either way we’re going to punish you for being poor.”

Another commenter joked that there might be a cheaper way to move luggage across the country.

“I think you can FedEx your bag for cheaper. lol,” they wrote.

Someone else said they had actually done that.

“You can!” they replied. “I shipped my snowboard and bag full of equipment from Utah to NC for cheaper last year bc Frontier wanted to charge $120 one way for a sports equipment bag.”

“Checked bags used to be free fyi,” a third wrote.

That is true. In 2008, American Airlines became the first major U.S. airline to charge for the first checked bag on domestic flights. At the time, the fee was $15. Now, almost two decades later, paying extra to bring luggage has become a normal part of flying.

@aprilmhickmandesigns WHAT THE FUCK ARE WE DOING!? WHAT ARE WE DOING?! @United Airlines ♬ original sound – Whitney Leavitt

The Mary Sue has reached out to United Airlines via email and Hickman via contact form.

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