budget airline ticket

Cheap Flights to Dallas

2008-01-14T09:29:00.000-08:00

I've been planning a working vacation to Dallas for this spring, so I'm in need of some cheap flights to Dallas. After searching high and low, I've found a website with good prices.

Visit the links for traveling on the cheap to Dallas: Cheap Flights to Dallas

Airline Tickets For Less Than Filling Your Car

2007-04-27T09:02:00.000-07:00

Skybus, a new US budget airline, is offering one way tickets for $10 each, not including the taxes though. Tickets are on sale at their website, www.skybus.com.

The budget airline offers nonstop service from Columbus to the Boston, Los Angeles, San Francisco Bay and Seattle/Vancouver areas, and to Ft. Lauderdale, Richmond, Kansas City and Greensboro/Winston-Salem, NC.

Bill Diffenderffer, Skybus CEO, said,"Travelers who visit our web site will find outrageously low fares on nonstop flights to major markets and to cities that are underserved from Columbus. And these fares - starting with at least 10 seats at $10 on every flight - will always be offered. They are not `promotional’ fares that will go away in a couple of weeks. These are the everyday low fares we promised when we began working to build Skybus."

Visit www.skybus.com for more information and other cities served.

Airfare to Paris

2007-04-16T05:38:00.000-07:00

This summer, I'm going to Paris, France on a business/leisure trip. It'll take me 4 days to complete my business, then I'm staying an additional 10 days to tour France.

So I've been looking around for budget airline tickets to Paris. I want to fly into Paris then return from Marseilles. I believe this is called an "open jaw" ticket by travel agents and the airline industry.

I found a website that is simple and easy to use, Airfare To Paris, that offers this kind of ticket. Their prices are competitive to a ticket in and out of Paris and after calling their toll-free number, I'm confident they are a reputable firm.

Airport Limousine Service

2006-11-21T18:14:00.000-08:00

Here's an informative article by the travel expert, David Tinney, about how to rent a limousine for less. He's also did some homework by listing the top 10 searches for limousine service by city and provided phone numbers for the top 10 companies in those cities. Atta boy, Dave!

Taxes and fees make airfare bargains vanish

2006-10-02T07:12:00.000-07:00

Don't jump for joy when you find what looks like a fabulous $508 Chicago-London fare for travel this month. By the time the U.S. and United Kingdom tack on taxes and fees--and the airline adds its fuel surcharge--you will discover your ticket actually costs $752.50.

The airlines aren't trying to hoodwink you. That's just the way final fares are calculated, whether you're flying internationally or domestically. Carriers will give you an approximate fare, but until you book an itinerary for a particular routing, they can't tell you what that final number is until the taxes and fees are added.

For that Chicago-London fare, the Air Transport Association, a Washington-based airline trade group, chose a United Airlines flights departing Oct. 9 and returning Oct. 16. The additions to that $508 base fare would be:

- $2.50 U.S. security tax ("Sept. 11th fee");

- $4.50 U.S. passenger facility charge (Chicago O'Hare);

- $14.50 U.S. international departure tax;

- $24.23 (13) U.K. passenger service charge;

- $37.27 (20) U.K. air passenger duty;

- $14.50 U.S. international arrival tax;

- $5 U.S. customs fee;

- $7 U.S. immigration fee;

- $5 U.S. Department of Agriculture inspection fee;

- and a United Airlines $130 fuel surcharge.

That's a total of $244.50 more.

"On an international ticket, you're not only paying the U.S. taxes, but you're paying whatever taxes that are applied to the country you are traveling to," explained David Castelveter, an ATA spokesman. "Every country has its own rate structure that it associates with travel to and from its country. So based upon where you are flying you are paying not only the fees that our government collects, but theirs as well."

ATA publishes a list of U.S. taxes and fees levied on commercial aviation on its Web site (www.airlines.org/econ). "The reason we don't do an international tax table is because there are an infinite number of permutations of what an itinerary might cost in terms of taxes and fees, depending on what foreign airports and countries are involved in the itinerary," said John Heimlich, ATA's chief economist, who noted that U.S. passenger facility charges vary from airport to airport too.

Taxes on international flights can be wildly different even to the same destination. Looking online at travel site Orbitz, I found that taxes and fees on round-trip flight between Chicago and Delhi range from $69 to well over $300 depending on the airline and its routing.

The cheapest listed basic fare was $807 on Air India, with two stops going and one stop returning. In contrast, American Airlines was listed at $1,280--seemingly a hefty premium for the only non-stop service from Chicago to India. But when taxes and fees--$298 on Air India, $69 on American--were added in, the American non-stop at $1,349 cost just $244 more than Air India at $1,105.

The taxes and fees on the same route can vary even for the same airline. A one-stop in both directions on Air India listed at $1,180, but the taxes and fees on this routing were only $94.

On the domestic front, though fliers don't have to pay international departure or arrival taxes, the additional charges still add up--sometimes in different ways. For instance, there is no fuel surcharge on domestic flights (it's included in the basic fare), but there is a federal ticket tax of 7.5 percent that doesn't apply to overseas flights.

Because of "segment taxes" ($3.30 per segment) and passenger facility charges (up to $4.50 per segment), the price of a ticket can change even more with a connection or stop, noted Terry Trippler, an airline expert.

He provided these two scenarios on a Chicago-Los Angeles round trip, departing Oct. 16 and returning Oct. 23. The base fare ($241.86) and 7.5 percent federal ticket tax ($18.14) was the same for both. But to this total of $260, you would add:

On a non-stop flight: Passenger facility charges ($4.50 each for Chicago and Los Angeles), $9; U.S. security taxes ($2.50 per segment), $5; and federal flight segment taxes ($3.30 per segment), $6.60. The additions total $20.60 and bring the final ticket price to $280.60, about 16 percent more than the $241.86 base.

On a flight with a stop or connection in Denver: Passenger facility charges ($4.50 for Chicago, Los Angeles and twice through Denver), $18; U.S. security taxes ($2.50 per segment), $10; and federal flight segment taxes ($3.30 per segment), $13.20. The extra charges are now $41.20 and the final ticket price is $301.20, nearly a 25 percent increase over the base fare.

Where does all this money go?

- The ticket and flight segment taxes plus--on international flights--the arrival and departure taxes go to the federal Airport and Airway Trust Fund. The fund pays the majority of the annual budget of the Federal Aviation Administration, which regulates and oversees civil aviation--including the air traffic control system.

- The security tax funds Transportation Security Administration functions such as airport screening.

- The passenger facility charge is federally authorized, but goes to local airport operators.

- The immigration, customs and agriculture fees assessed on international arrivals help to fund those airport inspections.

Since it's an airline trade group, it's no surprise that the ATA dislikes passing the security taxes on to passengers. "There's no other means of public transportation where there is a 9/11 fee," said Castelveter.

Airlines May Find it Harder to Raise Fares

2006-04-11T09:56:00.000-07:00

According to a recent article by Reuters, US airlines have exhuasted the patience of travelers to tolerate rising fares.

Writer Kyle Peterson says the US airlines have managed to up fares by 10% over the past year. He predicts that when the busy summer season is over, demand may be so low that airlines will lose their ability to continue raising fares.

"I think the public is now conditioned to expect air fare bargains," said Joe Schwieterman, a transportation expert at DePaul University in Chicago.

All of us budget travelers say, "Hell yes!" to the expectation of air fare bargains.

You can read the entire article, "Airlines may soon find new obstacles to fare hikes" at this link.

Summer Fares Could Be Higher

2006-04-06T15:09:00.000-07:00

A reduction in US airlines' available seats coupled with a strong economy promises to pack planes this summer, making flights dismal for passengers but lucrative for an industry struggling to offset surging fuel costs.

"I definitely think capacity is going to be tight this summer. Demand is going to be strong," said Standard & Poor's equity analyst Jim Corridore. He said load factors -- the percentage of available seats sold -- probably will approach 90 percent in the summer months.

That compares with an average load factor just above 80 percent in the summer of 2005, he said.

Data from the Air Transport Association, an airline industry trade group, show the number of seats on domestic flights declined by 1.7 percent from March 2005 to March 2006. That contrasts with a capacity increase on international flights of 4.9 percent during the same time period.

The domestic capacity reductions were largely the result of cutbacks by traditional carriers and the demise of low-cost carrier Independence Air in January, the ATA said.

In addition, bankrupt carriers Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines canceled leases on dozens of planes, further thinning out seat availability.

Major carriers, meanwhile, have been shifting their capacity from domestic routes to more lucrative international ones.

Fewer seats in the sky means carriers have more power to raise fares. Ticket prices have been inching higher since last year. The ATA says prices are up more than 10 percent year-over-year.

Still, they remain down 16 percent from peaks achieved before the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks torpedoed demand.

Continental & Alitalia Begin Codeshare

2006-04-06T14:46:00.000-07:00

SkyTeam alliance members Continental Airlines (NYSE: CAL - News) and Alitalia today announced they are beginning codesharing to provide better service to passengers who travel between Italy and the U.S. and transfer between the two carriers.

Continental and Alitalia are two of the nine carriers who make up the SkyTeam alliance, which also includes Aeromexico, Air France, Czech Airlines, Delta, KLM, Korean Air and Northwest.

Effective immediately, Continental will place its code (CO*) on the following Alitalia flights: between Rome/Milan and Bari, Brindisi, Catania, Florence, Lamezia Terme, Naples, Palermo, Pisa, Trieste and Venice, Italy; between Rome and Bologna, Genoa, Reggio di Calabria, Turin and Verona, Italy; and between Rome/Milan and Tirana, Albania. These flights will connect with Continental's daily non-stop services between New York/Newark and both Rome and Milan.

Codesharing improves airline service by simplifying the booking process with electronic ticketing and communication of itinerary information between airlines. Customers traveling on connecting CO/AZ itineraries are able to have single check-in for all flights, including the issuance of boarding passes and checked baggage to their final destination. Additional codesharing routes are expected to be announced in the upcoming months.

Continental and Alitalia already have airport lounge and frequent flyer reciprocity under the SkyTeam alliance. Members of the two airlines' frequent flyer programs, Continental's OnePass and Alitalia's MilleMiglia, can earn and redeem miles on all flights operated by the other carrier. Indeed, travelers on any SkyTeam airline earn mileage in their frequent flyer account regardless of which member airline they fly.

SkyTeam was named the 2005 Best Airline Alliance by Global Traveler Magazine.

Budget tickets for Luxury Class tickets to London

2006-03-24T19:27:00.000-08:00

Competion is heating up for luxery class travel across the Atlantic. Two new airlines have entered the USA to London market, Eos Airline and Maxjet.

Transatlantic travel amounts to about $20 billion a year in revenue with about a third of that being USA to the United Kingdom. Maxjet and Eos are competing for a share of the lucrative London route.

The Eos Boeing 757 has been reconfigured to accommodate 48 passengers in walled pods, where the seats convert into beds, complete with feather pillows and cashmere blankets. Tickets start at $1,475 each way, meaning a return ticket will set you back just under $3000. Thats not bad, compared to the major airlines' price starting at $4,000. As of this writing, they are also offering American Express members 2 for the price of 1 tickets.

Maxjet uses Boeing 767s outfitted with 102 business-class seats that recline but don't lie flat. Each is on an aisle or window. From New York, round-trip tickets start at $1,500. In April, Maxjet will add a Washington DC to London route.

Eos Airlines phone numbers are, USA 888-357-3677; UK 0800-019-6468. Maxjet phone numbers are, USA 888-I-FLYMAX (435-9629); UK 0800-023-4300.

Click this link for more information how to travel first class or business class for less.

What To Know in Case of Airline Bankruptcy

2006-03-22T19:51:00.000-08:00

The airline industry has struggled for more than a decade, even in the favorable economics of the 90's. All the major US carriers, with the exception of Southwest Airlines, have been in bankruptcy or are in the state of chapter 11 now.

Hopefully there will not be any more airline bankruptcies, but it has to be recognized that it could possibly occur. Following are guidelines you should know and how an airline bankruptcy could effect you.

If an airline declares bankruptcy, it is not obligated to carry you or to refund tickets issued before the bankruptcy.

If you purchased your airline ticket directly from the airline, the airline is not obligated to refund the ticket.

If you purchased your airline ticket from an internet web site not owned by an airline, such as expedia, travelocity, etc., that web site is acting as an agent for the airline and is not allowed to refund your airline ticket.

If you purchased a ticket through a tavel agency, the agency is not allowed to refund the ticket of the bankrupt airline.

Money given to a travel agency for an airline ticket, whether it be cash, check or credit card, immediately becomes the property of the airline.

Travel agencies are required by law to comply with an airline's orders, rules and directives.

If an airline declares bankruptcy, it might continue service, limit service or stop service completely.

Other airlinesmight accept passengers under limited circumstances or may refuse to accept any passengers from the defaulted airline.

The United States government has given airlines 'preemption', or immunity, from consumer protection laws. Your rights as a US citizen do not apply to airline bankruptcy.

Travel insurance is your best protection in case an airline declares bankruptcy.

Northwest offers Cash and Miles Special

2006-03-22T05:29:00.000-08:00

Got this email from Northwest this morning promoting a Cash and Miles special. This is a great concept, I read about it in this eBook Why Not Fly For Free.

Fly for as low as $119 roundtrip plus 10,000 WorldPerks Miles during Northwest Airlines' Spring Cash and Miles promotion. Visit new places in the US48, Canada, Mexico, Europe and Asia for less. Tickets must be issued no later than May 14, 2006 for travel between April 3, 2006 and June 6, 2006. Travel to Asia must be completed by June 9, 2006.

www.nwa.com

Now-leaner airline sets sights on its future

2006-03-18T08:59:00.000-08:00

ATA after bankruptcy
Profits may yield stock sale in 12 to 24 months

By Ted Evanoff
ted.evanoff@indystar.com

While bankrupt Delta, Northwest and United grapple with how to turn their proud and profitless carriers into moneymakers again, ATA Airlines has quietly gone bankrupt, retrenched and gone on.

Once a leading Indianapolis employer, ATA last week emerged from a 16-month bankruptcy reorganization recast as a leaner company reliant on Pentagon charters.

If its stable financial condition improves, the Indianapolis-based company might sell stock to the public within two years, ATA chief John Denison said in his first interview outlining the new course since leaving bankruptcy Feb. 28.

Read complete article at Indystar.com here

Airline fares begin ascent

2006-03-18T08:36:00.000-08:00

Travel experts say the era of cheap flights may be ending as airlines grow bolder about raising ticket prices to boost their bottom lines.

BY MARK SKERTIC
Chicago Tribune

Travelers will need to get used to paying more for an airline seat in 2006, experts warn.

Even as fuel prices have begun to drop in recent weeks, fuller planes have emboldened carriers to get over their fears of raising ticket prices. Some carriers have raised fares $3 to $10 on some routes in recent weeks. And some analysts predict the days of $39 fares are coming to an end.

"Airlines are realizing they can't keep selling tickets for a loss. Expect to see those cut-throat, under $100 fares double by the end of the year," said Terry Trippler, an analyst with cheapseats.com in Minneapolis.

The price increases mark the reversal of two trends that have bedeviled the industry for several years: Rising jet fuel prices have been blamed for dragging down airline earnings and wiping out profits, while fierce competition has prevented many carriers from boosting fares to offset the jump in fuel costs.

"Even if there are no fuel-price increases, I expect we will see more ticket-price increases," Trippler said.

Fuel prices, while coming down, remain more than 50 percent higher than they were in 2004. Even with the recent slight decreases, even relatively healthy carriers continue to feel pressure on their bottom lines.

Southwest Airlines, the only large carrier to post a profit last year, recently raised fares up to $3 each way. The ticket prices of other carriers also are creeping upward.

If fuel prices shoot upward again, fare increases will be more dramatic. But, even if fuel costs continue to drop, ticket prices are unlikely to move in the same direction, Trippler said.

The nation's large carriers — including Eagan-based Northwest Airlines — are more confident about raising fares because demand is high and planes are more full.

Northwest's load factor, which measures the percentage of seats filled, hit 80.9 percent in January, up 4.1 percentage points from the same period a year ago. A big reason for that increase: Northwest is a smaller airline than it was a year ago, with its capacity down more than 11 percent.

Reducing capacity lowers the number of seats available to travelers, and this comes at a time when demand for air travel is growing.

Investors have sent American Airlines stock up more than 18 percent so far this year, in part because they see a brightening revenue picture for the airline, and the industry, fueled by rising fares.

American Express, in its 2006 business fares forecast, predicted ticket prices would rise up to 8 percent for domestic travel, compared with increases of 3 percent to 6 percent worldwide.

Operating a plane requires a myriad of fixed costs that do not change whether the cabin is filled with passengers or nearly empty. A pilot, first officer and flight attendants are still needed. The cost for the plane, mechanics, baggage carriers and others does not change.

Once an airline makes enough to cover its fixed costs, revenue increases can boost the bottom line.

"Higher revenues and lower fuel costs is a recipe for improved financial performance in the airline industry," said Jake Brace, United Airlines chief financial officer. "Having said that, the fuel price we're starting from is exceptionally high and we have a long way to go to get the kind of financial results we really need.

"It's headed in the right direction, but we have a lot of work to do. … We're going to keep a focus on getting our nonlabor costs even lower."

Northwest Airlines offers Coach Choice seating

2006-03-18T08:16:00.000-08:00

Prefer an aisle or exit row seat? Northwest Introduces Coach
Choice(SM) Seating.

Northwest has begun saving some preferred seats (including aisle
and exit row seats) in coach class until check-in, which is available
24 hours prior to departure. You can confirm these preferred seat
assignments for only $15 per flight.

On your next trip, go to www.nwa.com Manage My Reservations, nwa.com check-in or a Northwest self-service check-in kiosk at the airport to purchase your Coach Choice seats.

Coach Choice is a test product available anywhere in the U.S. Only 5% of
seat assignments will be saved for Coach Choice so check in
early for more choices.

Coach Choice fees are non-refundable unless Northwest is unable
to provide the Coach Choice seat assignment due to a Northwest
initiated flight cancellation, equipment change, missed
connection, or the customer does not meet exit row seat
requirements.

Editors opinion: If Northwest airlines is so strapped for cash they have to sell seat assignments, why don't they look elsewhere to cut expenses? Like, starting with upper management salaries and perks.

How to get first class tickets for less...

2006-03-17T06:41:00.000-08:00

I read this great article the other day thats all about how to get first class airline tickets or business class airline tickets for less. The author shows seven ways how to do it. I've heard of a couple of ways he mentions but there were several I'd not thought of. I'll have to give it a try next time I fly overseas.

Here's where the article about Seven Ways To Get a First Class Ticket For Less is located.

Delta Skymiles not to change under restructure

2005-09-17T18:12:00.000-07:00

Delta Airlines announced their Skymiles program will not change even though they have filed Chapter 11. Following are question and answer from the Delta website.

What will happen to the SkyMiles program?

The SkyMiles program remains in effect. Your SkyMiles will be honored in accordance with our normal policies.

Are you planning to make any changes to the SkyMiles program?

We plan to make the SkyMiles program easier to understand and award seats easier to redeem.

Are you planning to make any changes to the Medallion program benefits?

All current benefits remain in effect. Any changes would be communicated directly to Medallion members.

Can I continue to redeem mileage for travel awards, upgrades, and Crown Room Club memberships?

Yes.

Can I still accrue mileage by using the services of SkyMiles partners (e.g. car rental partners, hotel partners, etc.) ?

Yes.

Can I continue to earn and redeem miles for mileage awards on any SkyTeam airline?

Yes. We want our SkyTeam Alliance customers to continue to have more flexibility and more choices with their international travel. Our partnerships with Aeromexico, Air France, Alitalia, Continental Airlines, CSA Czech Airlines, KLM, Korean Air, and Northwest Airlines remain unchanged.

Will the filing have any affect on my Delta SkyMiles Credit Card?

No.

NWA passengers have difficulty redeming award miles

2005-09-17T17:52:00.000-07:00

Northwest Airlines has enough frequent-flier miles outstanding to issue 3.8 million free tickets, and customers are struggling to convert their miles into usable tickets. Surveys by travel organizations rank Northwest as the poorest major airline for redeeming tickets, honoring only 37 to 43 percent of requests for free tickets through the program.

Frustrated travelers have banked enough Northwest Airlines bonus miles to crisscross the globe many times over but new restrictions have made it harder to cash in on free plane tickets.

In 2003, the airline said its frequent fliers had the miles to book 7.2 million round-trip tickets -- enough to replace the airline's paying customers for three months.

Detroit Metro Airport's largest carrier has since recalculated its outstanding frequent flier miles -- taking into account rule changes and other factors -- and now estimates only about 3.8 million free tickets will ever be redeemed.

In either case, Northwest customers are sitting on a mountain of miles and struggling to convert them to free flights to desired destinations at desired times.

Surveys last year by two travel organizations rank Northwest as the worst among major air carriers for honoring frequent fliers' ticket requests for customers' desired time, date and destination.

Through its WorldPerks program, Northwest generally awards one award mile for every mile flown.

Currently it takes 25,000 miles to earn a free round-trip domestic coach ticket and 50,000 frequent-flier miles to earn a round-trip ticket to Japan.

If no standard WorldPerks seats are available, travelers sometimes can cash in more miles for a seat under Northwest's "RuleBuster" program.

In recent years, travelers have become experts at hoarding frequent-flier miles through flights, credit cards, hotel stays and car rentals, expecting to someday redeem them for dream vacations.

The airline issued 1.38 million frequent-flier award tickets in 2004, but that number was down from 1.4 million in 2003 and 1.46 million in 2002.

"Standard award seats become harder to find when airlines run higher load factors (the percentage of seats filled)," said Mary Stanik, a Northwest spokeswoman.

Another Travel Horror Story

2005-09-16T11:30:00.000-07:00

The Government Accounting Office has just released a study that says airline flight crews - the last line of defense against terrorist attacks on planes - have received unrealistic self-defense training and too few crew members have participated in training sessions.

One example cited was teaching participants self-defense in open classrooms that fail to recreate the cramped conditions in a cabin or cockpit which require very different tactics in a fight.

So far a mere 474 crew members have attended training classes. The TSA is responsible for arranging this training, and in response to the criticism concedes 'Attendance is not as high as we would like to see it'.

How many is 474? To put this in context, there are over 50,000 flight attendants alone in the US. Less than 1% of cabin crew have attended training classes. And the classes they have attended have generally been inadequate.

Earning Free Travel

2005-09-16T09:28:00.000-07:00

Earning free travel through generating thousands of frequent flyer points has been around for some time. It's still a good deal, even though the airlines have changed their frequent flyer programs in the past few years. Simply put your business expenses and household expenses on an affinity card, a charge card that awards you points for every purchase. There are a couple of good eBooks available online that teach you how do this the most effective way.

Earning Free Travel

Northwest and Delta Bankruptcy

2005-09-15T09:10:00.000-07:00

The storm clouds started to build on Friday last week, increased over the weekend, and by Monday the only uncertainty was when, rather than if, Delta and Northwest would file Chapter 11.

What will these two new bankruptcies mean to you?

To answer the most important concern on most people's minds first, your frequent flier miles are safe for the foreseeable future.

Your future flight bookings might be at risk, however. Although neither airline is likely to stop flying operations entirely, (or at least not any time soon), various commentators are projecting cuts between 7% to 15% of both airlines' services. These cuts are likely to be more strongly focused on domestic operations; it is usually easier for the airlines to make money (or, at least, to lose less money!) on their international services.

So keep a careful watch out on what might happen to any flights you have booked in the future on DL/NW. If a flight is cancelled and you're not happy with the substituted flight(s), insist on a refund and quickly switch to another airline.

The probable reduction in routes is thought to be most likely to happen on routes where the two airlines compete with low cost carriers. This will provide a boost to the low cost carriers. The rationale for this expectation is that it is easier to compete with other dinosaurs than with new low cost carriers.

The reduction in routes might also mean that if NW/DL was previously your airline of choice due to the route system matching your most common itineraries, you might want to start thinking about switching to a different carrier who might edge ahead of NW/DL in terms of convenient route network.

Little Black Book Saves $147 on Airline Ticket

2005-09-14T09:24:00.000-07:00

"I used a consolidator listed in your directory and bought a ticket to Los Angeles from Cleveland, Ohio on Continental that would have cost me $497, but I got it for $350 and it was the exact departure and return flights I wanted."

Milan K.
Cleveland, OH

Little Black Book saves $147 on airline ticket

The Bumping Game-How to Win

2005-09-13T10:55:00.000-07:00

Did you know that 1 out of every 500 passengers is bumped (denied a seat) from a flight, wether they want to be or not? That's over 600,000 people a year that are bumped from their flights. Overbooking flights is a common practice among airlines.

The U.S. Department of Transportation allows such activity, but monitors its frequency and has set specific guidelines on how a "bumped" traveler should be compensated when it occurs. Do you know what to do if it happens to you? Do you know what your entitled to and how to ask for it? This guide teaches you everything you need to know.

How to Win Getting Bumped by an Airline

Save Big On Your Next Flight

2005-09-12T10:23:00.000-07:00

"I Saved $1332 on my first time using your sources to fly my family to Europe. I saved $333 per ticket ($1315 on internet vs. $982 through your sources) and I even got better flights!"

Kelly P.
Oklahoma City, OK

Save Big On Your Next Flight

Remembering 9/11

2005-09-11T09:11:00.000-07:00

I'm just taking a moment to remember the tragedy, the flight crews, the passengers, the families, the victims, all the NYC policemen, fireman and emergency workers who lost their lives at the Twin Towers and the rest of America who's lives have been changed by the tragic events of that day 4 years ago.

This week's horror story

2005-09-10T13:07:00.000-07:00

A woman was killed and 62 injured during the evacuation of a Saudi Arabian Boeing 747 on Thursday. The plane, carrying more than 400 passengers and a crew of 19 was taxiing on the runway when the pilot received a call from the tower about a bomb threat. The plane stopped and passengers were ordered to evacuate through the emergency doors. Panic stricken passengers pushed and shoved their way out, with the death and 62 injuries as a result.

There was no bomb on the plane.

Sky Posse

2005-09-09T09:21:00.000-07:00

Here's another shameful attempt to cash in on the 9/11 tragedy, Sky Posse 'recruiting' air passengers to resist hijackers. From their press release:

We can never forget the heroes who died on 9/11. Unfortunately, our world changed forever on that day. In the spirit of the heroes of Flight 93, who fought back, Sky Posse is a means of demonstrating a visible symbol that you are one American who will fight back.

Sky Posse pins are a small but easily recognizable lapel, shirt or hat pin that serve as a silent signal to those around you. Others wearing Sky Posse pins provide a visible sign that your resistance to any attempt to commandeer an aircraft will instantly become group resistance. There is safety and strength in numbers!

We are in touch with cabin and cockpit unions, security agencies and major airlines promoting the concept. This is a patriotic, American grass roots program that is available to all concerned citizens and frequent flyers.

So what do you have to do to become a Sky Posse member? What training is required? What screening is applied against potential applicants?

Ummm, nothing. To become a Sky Posse member, you send Sky Posse $10 in return for which you get a miniature five point star badge, rather like you used to get in the cornflakes at a younger age.

If I were a terrorist, the first thing I'd do, in attempting to commandeer a plane, would be to neutralize (ie kill or maim) all potential sources of resistance on board. Sky Posse badges, while meaningless, would still provide a way of identifying potential troublemakers.

There's a reason why real Air Marshals are in plain clothes. You should be, too.
Sky Posse website

Beating the Airline

2005-07-30T09:10:00.000-07:00

Have you ever had to take a trip by airplane that wasn't going to last over the weekend? Almost all the less expensive airfares being offered by the airlines have restrictions on them. The main three are: advance purchase, Saturday night stayover and penalties for changes.

The other day, a friend of mine had to make a last minute trip to another city for just a couple days. He left on a Wednesday and returned on Friday. The cost of the ticket, over $1200.00! Yikes!

That will put a big dent in your travel budget if you're a small company or worse, yet, it has to come out of your own pocket like it did my friend.

What can you do? There is a practice known as 'back-to-back' tickets that will often soften the blow to this airway robbery.

This strategy involves purchasing two restricted tickets for the same trip, fares that require a Saturday night stay. The traveler then uses a portion of each ticket to avoid having to stay the weekend away and still gets as much as a 50% discount. Airlines have started to crack down on fliers who use these tickets and fining travel agents who issue them.

A way around getting caught is using two different airlines rather than buying the two tickets on the same carrier. Fly airline A to your destination and airline B on the return. No way will you get caught.

If you're fortunate enough, try using one of the smaller airlines such as Southwest or Frontier. Their pricing structure is typically lower because they base their round trip fares on 2 one-way fares together. In fact, I believe Southwest advertises they have no fares above $600, but don't quote me on that.

Getting bumped on purpose

2005-07-24T09:04:00.000-07:00

No, I'm not talking about someone getting up real close and 'bumping you'. I'm talking about the art of getting bumped from a flight and getting paid for it.

I've read from time to time about how the airlines are allowed to 'overbook' their flights because they know there will be a certain percentage of passengers who either choose to change their plans at the last minute or simply do not show up for the flight.

No one really knows the percentage amount, but it must be quite a bit. In my travels, it happens pretty regularly, the gate agent is asking over the intercom for volunteers to take a later flight because they have 'overbooked' this particular flight.

Just my opinion: what other business in the world can sell something they don't have? This practice of selling more seats than the airplane holds has got to be some kind of scam! But its true!

Ok, I've been doing some research on this subject and here is an outline I've come up with to 'get bumped' and get paid for it.

1. Try to keep the day after your scheduled return as empty as possible, so if you have a chance to be bumped, you can take advantage of it.

2. If the lounge seems crowded, mention to the gate agent that you might be willing to be bumped, before they announce that they're looking for volunteers.

3. Check on how quickly you can get routed to your final destination, judge the offer, and decide if it's worth it. Airlines start bidding pretty low sometimes, but if they don't get enough takers, they'll up the ante.

4. Pack a change of clothes (or at least underwear), toothbrush, comb, medications, eyeglasses, your telephone address book, etc. in your carry-on bag. If you're bumped from a connecting flight, your luggage will continue on without you.

5. If you've requested a special meal and the special can't be transferred to your new flight, ask for a meal voucher.

6. Always be polite to the gate agent; the more flexible you can be, the more likely that you'll be the lucky volunteer.

Well, thats about it on getting bumped on purpose.

Review Travel Site & Article

2005-07-21T07:43:00.000-07:00

I came across this budget airline ticket site today. This site has some pretty good tips how to buy international airline tickets less than retail price.

Also on the site is an article in favor of using travel agents. I have to concur with the article. From my experience, using a travel agent usually saves time and money in the long run. It's like having a person working for you on the 'inside' of the travel industry. I rate this *4-Star*!

Travel Experience in London

2005-07-13T07:10:00.000-07:00

I've had the opportunity to travel through London many times on my way in or out of Kiev. Because of the fight schedule to Kiev from London, it requires one to overnight in London when returning to the States from Kiev.

One of my more memorable experiences in London occurred a couple years ago when a colleague and myself were returning from Kiev to the States and had a forced overnight in London. Our flight from Kiev to Gatwick arrived around 5pm. We quickly made our way over to the Travel Inn Hotel, located just outside North Terminal, checked into our room and deposited our hand luggage.

Making our way back to the terminal, we hopped the Victoria Express into the center of London. London is famous for it's ethnic foods and I wanted to eat some 'real' Thai cuisine.

From Victoria Station, we enterd 'the tube', London's underground subway system. It was so cool, riding the escalator downward, there was a dude at the bottom singing old Beatle songs on an acoustic guitar and he sounded great, almost like Paul McCartney himself.

We went a couple or three stops and exited the tube then walked a little way into the Thai district. We found a Thai restaurant and ate a great meal, chased down with a couple beers apiece.

Our Victoria train pass back out to Gatwick airport, which takes almost an hour, was good until midnight, or maybe that was when the last train goes out, I don't remember exactly. So we went back into 'the tube' and rode to Victoria Station to catch the Express back to Gatwick. We didn't get to spend as much time in the heart of London as I would have liked, but I'm thankful for the few hours we got in the heart of London.

Find the Benchmark Price for Airline Tickets

2005-07-12T21:25:00.000-07:00

Here's another article how to get budget airline tickets:

Recently, I found a tool to that helps determine whether the price of an airline ticket is a bargain or not.

How do you know if the price you are being quoted is actually a low price? There is a way and I am going to tell you now.

You must first set a benchmark price and the best benchmark is the "retail" price the airlines are selling the ticket to your destination for.

Why is the retail price the benchmark? Because that is highest price you should pay. So any price below that would be a bargain, right?

Not long ago, I came across a website that scans up to 30 online booking engines. This including the major sites such as Orbitz, Travelocity, Expedia and all the major airline sites.

You can use this site for yourself, it's free. The name of the site is Sidestep and is located at www.sidestep.com

When you find the lowest price for your destination on Sidestep, you have effectively set the benchmark, the retail price. Because all of these sites are selling "retail" prices.

For an explanation of the difference between "retail" and "wholesale" air tickets, go to this site: What is a consolidator air ticket?

Incidentally, consolidator tickets are the airlines "best kept secret" from the public.

To show you how this works, on Sidestep I checked the price for a return ticket from Chicago to London, departing April 15th and returning one week later. Sidestep revealed the lowest price was $738 on Air Canada's website.

So now, I have set a benchmark price. Anything I find under $738 would be a better buy, right? A bargain fare.

Then, I checked the fares on our booking engine located at Adventure Travel Service, consolidator airline tickets, and we have a fare of $568 on United Airlines.

That's a savings of $170, a true bargain fare!

So now you can use a free tool to determine the benchmark price, "retail", then continue your search and you'll know if you are getting a bargain fare as you compare it to the benchmark price.

Reprinted with permission by the original author, David Tinney, Travel Agent.

Europe in August

2005-07-08T16:25:00.000-07:00

Just confirmed my travel plans today, I'm going to Belgium bext month. This should be an interesting trip, meeting new people, etc. By the way, I'm flying transatlantic on Continental Airlines, in Business/First. I've read that Continental's business class is really great, they've won the JD Powers airline of the year award in the past. So for once, I'm looking forward to the flight itself.

How to Buy cheap Airline Tickets

2005-07-03T11:31:00.000-07:00

I found this great article by David Tinney, "How to Buy cheap Airline Tickets". I've published it here with his permission:

How to Buy Cheap Airline Tickets

Nobody wants to pay more for an air ticket than they should. We all want the most value from our hard earned dollar, right?

In my book, Why Not Fly Free, I show how you can accumulate massive amounts of award miles for free travel. But there may be a time when you need to purchase an airline ticket.

Basically, you have three options where to purchase an airline ticket: Direct from an airline, a travel agent or from a booking engine on the internet. Or a combination thereof. Because both the airlines and private travel agencies are marketing fares online with booking engines.

Where and how you buy your ticket can greatly affect the price you pay.

If you call an airline's 800 number, you just made the biggest ticket buying mistake in your life. You ARE going to pay the highest available price, which is what we call the retail fare. Basically speaking, the airlines have set the pricing of airline tickets up on a two tier system, retail and wholesale. The airlines market their retail fares, among other places, through their own reservation centers.

If you book online through a booking engine or call a travel agency, you have a good chance of getting a good buy.

Calling a travel agency

Travel agencies are the closest you will get to unbiased information on an airline ticket. However, you cannot call just any travel office. If you're flying internationally, you'll need to contact one that sells consolidator tickets, otherwise you'll be paying retail.

If you're flying domestically, there are several websites that sell domestic airline tickets discounted below the airlines published retail fares. Just to mention a few: Hotwire, Expedia, Orbitz and Travelocity. When these sites first appeared, they were selling retail fares. From what I can see now, they have negotiated contracts with certain airlines for discounts on many routes, but not all.

But you have to be careful, I have also seen times when fares on these sites are higher than what the airlines publish in the Central Reservation System (CRS). You ALWAYS need to check several sources before you purchase.

We sell domestic airline tickets in our office, but the vast majority of our business is international airline tickets. In times past, I have seen the fares in our CRS lower than what people who have called us have found online or from the airline. The only explanation I have is that our system, which is called Amadeus and owned by Lufthansa, Air France and others, prices flights a little different than other systems.

There are some consolidated fares on certain airlines on what we call long haul flights, like East coast to West coast and a few other major cities in between. But if you're looking for a discounted ticket between Des Moines Iowa and Little Rock Arkansas, they just aren't there.

Occasionally I get what I call "hate email". Some jerk sends me an email, chastising me for advertising "low fares" when they can't find a cheap fare between two small cities here in the USA. Or the price on our website is the same they've seen on everyone elses. I'm amazed at how brave and brazen people can be behind an anonymous email. I used to respond to their email, trying to explain these things. Now, I just hit the "delete" key. They don't want to learn, they just want to whine.

Not all booking engines are created equal

Let me explain something in detail here about booking engines, ok? Most of the booking engines online are directly connected to the airlines Central Reservation Systems (CRS), especially if its for domestic USA tickets.

What does that mean? The CRS are the RETAIL fares the airlines PUBLISH to the buying public. They are the highest rates. I have a CRS in my office, AND I also have the database of wholesale fares too.

This is a little known secret most of the buying public knows nothing about.

For instance, the booking engine we use on our family of sites does not contain the airlines published retail fares. Rather it pulls from a database of more than 8 million wholesale fares. Also known as consolidator, bulk or contract fares.

These types of fares can be as much as 70% below the airlines published retail fares. Let me ask you a question, "Which fare would you rather purchase, wholesale or retail?"

Example of the difference between wholesale & retail
Recently, I searched for a fare from New York to Paris on Orbitz™, one of the supposed leading low fare web sites. The travel days were Thursday to Thursday in August (lower fares are almost always found when you travel in both directions Monday thru Thursday). Anyway, Orbitz™ returned a fare of $862.00 plus the taxes. I then did a fare search on our site, same days & city pair to be fair, and our search yielded a fare of $719 plus taxes. A savings of $143!

The fare from Orbitz™ is a retail fare. You can get the same fare if you called the airline yourself. But the fare from our booking engine, which was less, is a consolidator fare. Big difference.

Also, not all consolidator fares are found online! Like I said, our database online contains 8 million consolidator fares to just about anywhere in the world. But we have other contracts that are not allowed by the rules of an airline to be put in the online database. And some of the time, those fares are LESS than those we offer online!

Case in point: There's a wholesale contract we sell from everyday from a European airline that's not in our database online. For the same dates and season that the above example is $862, this fare is $596, an incredible savings of $266!

For our customer's convenience, our phone number is displayed on all our web sites (we have many) for all who would like to talk to an agent. Write this number down, (800)488-7901, you can call us if you cannot find a fare.

So, using one of these two ways will allow you to buy the least expensive airline tickets: One, is to find a travel agency that sells wholesale (consolidator) fares or Two, when booking online to be sure the booking engine you are using contains consolidator fares.

Reprinted with permission by David Tinney. (david AT davidtinney DOT net)

Travel Well, Travel Cheap

2005-07-02T22:53:00.000-07:00

"Discover how a pauper travels like a King" says author Viktor Pryles. I read his eBook and got tons of information how to save money on hotel rooms. This is one of the major expenses I have when I stay in Europe. Hotel rooms are much more expensive there than the USA and, considering the Euro is more valuable than the dollar, I had to find a way to get cheap rooms.

This is good read, I recommend Travel Well! Travel Cheap! to you.

Why Not Fly Free

2005-07-02T09:21:00.000-07:00

David Tinney, a travel agency owner, authored this eGuide that describes how he has accumulated in 5 years enough frequent flier miles for more than 50 free tickets to Europe. He has discovered ways to get miles that most people never think of. His insight and knowledge of the travel industry is invaluable. He also shares how to buy the cheapest tickets when you cannot get a free one.

I enjoyed this book very much and it's a bargain at $9.95, most eBooks sell for 3 times that much!

Click here to see David Tinney book about Free airline tickets and frequent flier miles.

Travel Secrets Guide

2005-07-01T07:55:00.000-07:00

Just using one of the tips in this guide could save you hundreds on your next trip. Kelly P. in Oklahoma city saved $333 each on 4 tickets to Europe last summer.

The author, James Steubing, has really done his homework. After three years of exhaustive research, this is the "mother of all travel saving tips". You cannot afford to be without this jam-packed guide of money saving travel secrets. Includes a list of consolidator's phone numbers, lifetime FREE upgrade, 100% Money Back Guarantee and a whole lot more.

Take a look at Travel Secrets Guide