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Ticket prices on some routes out of/to Charleston on some airlines have risen as much as 338 percent, according to research by BestFares.com. And, yes, there are a lot of qualifying statements there.

The travel Web site found that flights to New York City on US Airways rose 338 percent, and flights to Chicago on United rose 310 percent. Other routes saw similar spikes (see the other increase, here).

It should be noted that fares for similar routes on other airlines, while they may be higher, did not show the same increase.

So what's it mean? There are fewer open, low-cost seats. So buy smart and prepare for a sardine-like ride.

BestFares.com offers this advice:
Today, if you want to fly from hub cities or on other nonstop routes where the major airlines compete with low-cost carriers that do not offer nonstop service, you are going to pay more. On select routes out of Charleston (SC), that nonstop privilege is as much as 338% over last summer's airfares for the exact same routes.

We believe these airfare hikes on nonstop routes will stay in place until the end of August, due to high demand for summer travel. As we enter the fall travel period, we expect the major carriers to become more competitive and be forced to roll back these much higher airfares. If you are planning a trip in mid-September or October on up until Thanksgiving, we suggest that you sit back and wait. You could save several hundred dollars for the wait.

A similar jump in prices was not reported in other regional airports, though prices all across the county have been rising.