Tired of pricing surprises? Why what we pay for travel goods and services changes, sometimes by the minute (LA Times)

It was chilly and I wanted a cup of coffee-flavored caffeine. I plopped down my $4.55 — pricey, I thought, but hey, soy milk doesn’t grow on trees — and went on my merry way. Did it again a week later, same weather, same order, same price. I wasn’t charged more because it was sweater weather. Clearly, this isn’t a business run by purveyors of travel products. Buying a ticket on a plane or bus, renting a car or a hotel room, catching a ride-share ride to the airport? Good luck figuring out how much that’s going to cost you. It’s like trying to predict … the weather. In Kansas. In spring. Or ever.