Just booked Delta for December from ORF via ATL TO CZM for $602/PP. Go figure they want more for one leg than 2 and in October hurricane season vs: December & holiday season!
Best I could have found for my RT from ORF to CZM was about $535 but that had me leaving at 6AM, arriving at 3PM, departing at 3:30 PM and returning at Midnight! There were some others a bit cheaper that wanted to route me through Chicago and tacked on hours... Don't think I need to risk a connection in Chicago in December! For the extra $ we leave at 8:15AM, arrive at 1:30PM, Depart at 2:30PM and return at 8:30 PM via ATL both ways. The price sucks but time and convenience costs $. The airlines know this and their supercomputers are crunching the numbers 24/7.
Of note, the airlines reservation and pricing computers not only track bookings but also track the # of searches for specific dates and the departure and arrival cities. Ever searched an airline for a flights on specific days, received a quote, didn't book and searched it again 15 minutes later? You can find the price jumps $50-$100 instantly and then drops back the next day! Yup... supercomputers at work.
These days when I seach, I use Kayak, I use the +/- 3-days flexible search option and I NEVER enter the exact days I intend to travel. I always enter a day or two before or after the dates I want to travel so my intended travel days don't appear as popular dates to the pricing computers. The more people who search specific dates and don't book is viewed as the more people who want to travel on those days by the pricing computer and it will price accordingly going forward. It's like showing your hand in Blackjack to the house before placing the last bet!