Consolidator airfare - too good to be true?
Jan 29th, 2005, 12:16 PM
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Consolidator airfare - too good to be true?
We are traveling to Prague and Budapest in early September. We live in Ohio, so we have to fly to the East Coast (PHL, EWR, BOS,etc.), catch a flight to London or Paris and then another flight to Central Europe. On Delta, USAIR, NWA, the price into Prague and out of Budapest is about $1200. But...on AirConsolidators.com, it is quoted as $800, that's a big difference. Anyone used this company? Can you recommend another big deep discounter? Can you get insurance on the flight in case something happens? What if they book you with USAIR or Delta and the airline goes under, what happens to you? What would you do? Thanks!
Jan 29th, 2005, 05:42 PM
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I don't know about this one particular company, AirConsolidators, but I did buy tickets in the past from consolidators, and yes, they were significantly cheaper.
Consolidators purchase chunks of seats up front from the airlines (as much as I know from European airlines only, but I'm not sure), for a much lower price, and then can sell them for much lower price. But usually those are non-refundable, and can not earn mileage.
Couldn't answer your other questions, sorry.
Consolidators purchase chunks of seats up front from the airlines (as much as I know from European airlines only, but I'm not sure), for a much lower price, and then can sell them for much lower price. But usually those are non-refundable, and can not earn mileage.
Couldn't answer your other questions, sorry.
Jan 30th, 2005, 05:17 AM
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We used a consolidator our trip to Egypt, via Amman as we flew Royal Jordanian Airlines. The fare was approximately $500 then then if we had gone Egypt Air, British, or others.
Often with consolidator tickets, you can't accrue FF miles, but in our situation, we were surprised to learn that we could accrue FF miles and we did. If FF miles are important, you should inquire before paying your money.
Often with consolidator tickets, you can't accrue FF miles, but in our situation, we were surprised to learn that we could accrue FF miles and we did. If FF miles are important, you should inquire before paying your money.
Jan 30th, 2005, 05:53 AM
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If I found a consolidator fare for $500 less than a published fare, I would happily give up the FF miles. My only concern would be the non-refundable/non-changeable issue, but maybe travel insurance would help if something came up where the trip is cancelled. Good info, Sandi.
Jan 30th, 2005, 10:02 AM
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We also used a consolidator fare to New Zealand (on Korean Air) and it was less than half of what Air NZ and Qantas were charging. While we could not get FF miles credited to our Delta account (Delta and Korean are partners), Korean Air gave us full mileage credit and allows family accounts which pool miles for related travelers. We actually wound up with enough miles for a free ticket in the family account.
Jan 31st, 2005, 09:55 AM
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I used www.airlineconsolidator.com for some tickets to Paris last year. The fares were several hundred $ less than otherwise available. It went fine, but the "catch" is that most often the tickers are not changeable (not even different flight on the same date) and no FF credit accrues for most airlines.
Jan 31st, 2005, 07:19 PM
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I used www.1800flyeurope.com for a trip from BOS-CDG last year. Their price was about $200 less than any place else I checked (and I checked a lot of places). I was able to call them and find out what airline the price was on and I actually ended up booking over the phone. They offered to sell me travel insurance through Travel Guard. And I was able to get frequent flyer miles on American Airlines.
Feb 3rd, 2005, 11:45 PM
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I bought tickets for our trip to Europe last summer through AirGorilla.com
Weird name, but we saved a lot of money. I traveled from LAX to London, then home from Paris to LAX. AirGorilla apparently specializes in open-jaw tickets like this. Our tickets were on AirCanada.
The only problem we had was that my son was flying from Dayton to Toronto to meet me, and Air Canada changed his flight time to a flight 3 hours EARLIER. NO NOTIFICATION at all. Thank heavens I called on the phone to confirm as the change did not register on their web site, or he would have missed his flight.
Then on our way home from Paris, we found they had cancelled/discontinued the flight to Dayton altogether. But Air Canada rerouted him to Indianapolis and it all worked out OK.
If you buy from a consolidator, just be sure to call the airlines to reserve your seat choice, and check back before you go to confirm the flight schedule for any changes.
Enjoy your flight knowing you probably paid less than most of the people on it!
Weird name, but we saved a lot of money. I traveled from LAX to London, then home from Paris to LAX. AirGorilla apparently specializes in open-jaw tickets like this. Our tickets were on AirCanada.
The only problem we had was that my son was flying from Dayton to Toronto to meet me, and Air Canada changed his flight time to a flight 3 hours EARLIER. NO NOTIFICATION at all. Thank heavens I called on the phone to confirm as the change did not register on their web site, or he would have missed his flight.
Then on our way home from Paris, we found they had cancelled/discontinued the flight to Dayton altogether. But Air Canada rerouted him to Indianapolis and it all worked out OK.
If you buy from a consolidator, just be sure to call the airlines to reserve your seat choice, and check back before you go to confirm the flight schedule for any changes.
Enjoy your flight knowing you probably paid less than most of the people on it!
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