catherine

I'm not a fruequent traveller. I used to purchase the air-ticket via agent. After having been in this board for some time, it seems to me that e-ticketing is more efficient and cost-effective. <BR><BR>I hope that some of you may kinly list out the procedure from the pt of purchasing till<BR>the final pt-using it. Should I print out the reservation, if any. If yes, what should I do if I can't print it out in case of printer being out of order, for instance. Should I have to go airline counter to get an traditional ticket. Is refund easily be done for e-ticketing? Is the procedures are applied to priceline or expediate too?<BR><BR>I appreciate your assistance and hope that you won't laugh at my naive. Thanks.<BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR>

Jim Rosenberg

The site you are using will &quot;walk&quot; you through the process, prompting for information and giving you the opportunity to view fare rules and procedures. I purchase my e-tickets from an airline site, so there is a stored profile with all of my intineraries that can be accessed by password. (I would imagine that probably prevails with other booking sites, too.) If you are concerned with a printer malfunction, you should write down your ticket/record numbers long-hand, but you will get an e-mail confirmation with these numbers after you complete your purchase, too.<BR><BR>If you don't feel comfortable with the process, don't do it. While I personally feel it is the easiest, best and most cost-effective way to make my travel arrangements, there is nothing wrong with using the travel agent route if it means getting it done right. They're still around and while there are fees, they aren't all that high and they are a lot cheaper than trying to change a screwed up ticket after the fact.

Judge

C<BR>There are LOTS of non-frequent travelers in our friendly skies.You can ALWAYS go to the ticket counter upon entering any airport.You CANNOT be passed thru a security check point with thorough,convincing, and incontrovertible evidence that you are indeed a passenger on a flight,that day.The ticket counter agents will provide you with this evidence in the form of a printed out confirmation at the very least.That is all you need.ALL commercial airlines will be issuing e-tickets by the end of 2003.The e-ticket was invented by the airlines.Thats the type ticket they want.The airlines do ot want traditional,paper tickets.But they are making it easy for travelers.No matter where you buy your ticket.Relax and enjoy your travels.

Bobo

Catherine, e-tickets are terrific. Many airlines still send a paper confirmation with your itinerary and record locator (booking number) and/or you can print out the receipt you got online. Do write down your record locator number somewhere just in case you have computer crash (happened to me!) but even then you'll be Ok as the airline has the info in their system. In terms of Priceline or Expedia - they are just the agent through which you are buying the ticket. It is the airline that actually issues the ticket. Do be aware that sometimes such services have an additional identifier (called &quot;reservation number&quot; or something similar) that will not help the airline lcoate your file. It is the airline record locator you want.

Professional Traveler

One of the main problems with eTickets comes up if yours is an endorseable ticket. That is, if it is one which can be used on another airline in the even of your airline not being able to provide transport. For example, you are on business class, the only flight to your destination is cancelled and you want to take another airline's flight.<BR><BR>Basically you are out of luck as airlines generally will not accept others' eTickets.<BR><BR>A similar situation exists if your itinerary is on multiple carriers, but not quite as drastic.<BR><BR>(This is based on how it was last year ... if anyone has new information, please correct me!)

Fly High

Actually, endorsibility doesn't depend on paper vs. e-ticket format. It is a fare restriction that limits one's ability to fly on another airline. You can tell this is the case if in the fare rules/restrictions you see something to the effect &quot;valid only on flights operated by XYZ airline&quot;. If this is the case, then even with a paper ticket you cannot change at will to another airline. The issuing airline may, at its discretion, put you on another airline in the event of flight irregularities. If you are on nonrstricted ticket (aka &quot;full Y fare&quot then paper or e-ticket, you can ask to be routed on an alternate airline. Essentially, what you are doing is getting a refund from the first airline and applying it to the cost of the other airline.

michelle

Catherine, E-tkts can always be printed to paper tickets by the respective airline, however the opposite is not true. If you lose a paper ticket, you cannot make it &quot;electronic&quot;. If your flight is cancelled and need to be endorsed to another airline, have your airline's agent print a paper ticket for you. Also, most airlines are now charging a fee between $20-$25 for a voluntary paper ticket when electronic is an option. Catherine you'll be fine with an electronic ticket, just keep in mind that as of Dec 2 EVERYONE must have a boarding pass to proceed through security, no more checking in at the gate or simply flashing a paper ticket to the guard. You will need a government issued photo ID to get your boarding pass at the check in counter (just as if you had a paper ticket). If you get your boarding pass from a self service kiosk, your photo ID will still be checked by an airline agent before boarding the plane. Happy travels!

catherine

Thanks all of you. You are angels to me. <BR><BR>So in summary, once I make the purchase on the computer, then all I have to do is go to the airline counter exchange for boarding pass. Right? Sounds very easy.<BR><BR>Some more questions that I hope you can kindly provide the answers.<BR><BR>For example, my itnerary is Seattle-SF-Orlando. What should I do if the part of SF-Orlando is on the waitlist at pt of reservation being made. Previously it is the agent who assited me to change the status from 'waitlist' to 'confirm' before the departure date. How can I do now so as to make 'waitlist' to become 'confirm'?<BR><BR><BR>If all routes are run by same 'allies' of airlines, can I get all the boarding passes at the Seattle Airport (ie first departure airport)?<BR><BR>What should I do if I change my itnerary before the departuring date? Will I be charged for the changes? Can the itnerary of some e-ticketing be changeable? I know purchasing via priceline is not changeable? What about expedia?<BR><BR>Previously my itnerary is very tight. The transfer time from one pt to another is 45 min, I'm not sure if the e-ticking system is that smart enough to allow me to have enough transfer time so as not miss the flight? <BR><BR>Thanks in advance? All your replies are much appreicated.<BR><BR><BR><BR>

michelle

Catherine, Are you traveling from Seattle to Orlando with a connection in San Francisco? I'm a bit confused about your waitlist, if you are waitlisted from SFO to Orlando that means that leg of the flight is either sold out or the fare you want is no longer available but may become available if another passenger with the same fare cancels their reservation. The only way for a waitlist status to change to confirm is to have the seat become available either by a cancellation of another passenger or if the airline decides to release more lower priced fares. 45 minutes is usually sufficient time to make a domestic connection. The airline will not sell connection flights if they feel there is insufficient time to arrive in one gate and walk over to the next. Flights are sold by the airline, not a retailer such as Priceline. As for your boarding passes, you will only receive them the day you travel, meaning that you will not get your return flight BP on the day of your SEA-MCO flight. You should be issued 2 boarding passes in Seattle, SEA-SFO and SFO-MCO (Orlando) and vice versa for your return. As far as changing your itinerary, if your reservation has been ticketed you may or may not have to pay an increase in fare plus change fees. It all depends on the fare basis of your ticket, regardless if it's paper or electronic or where it was purchased. I assume you're flying on United. Don't be alarmed if you don't have advanced seat assignments. It is a United issue, not Pricelines, Expedia's, Orbitz's etc. If you do need to change a ticketed reservation, call the airline and ask how much the change will cost first, do not say &quot;I need to change my reservation&quot; without first knowing how much it will cost you, once a flight reservation is changed, it may not be possible to restore your original itinerary without having to pay more money, again regardless of ticket type and where it was purchased. These are the impossible airline rules and the way they conduct their business. I hope this information is helpful and BTW I am a corporate travel agent.

catherine

Thanks michelle. You surely provide a lot of useful information. I want to clear most of things before I jump into e-ticketing so as to avoid future mess. <BR><BR>You're right for the waitlist that I need to wait for someone cancels the reservation. I don't know how it actually works. But my agent and some of my friends told me that there are certain amount of tickets hold by/for the travel agents. Thus the case is that when the final date when the reserved tickets needed to be issued, there are some reservated seats then released out so the waitlist then can be changed to confirmed if there is a good connection ./. the agent and airline. So if I am purchasing on-line, I want to ask how I can fix that waitlist leg so that all the legs are confirmed, ie what should I do?<BR><BR>Previously, itinerary can be changed so far the ticket has not be issued. So I don't know if it works the same way with the e-ticketing. Am I given some dates of issuing an ticket after I make a reservation. Am I still charged for sth if I am willing not to restore my original itinerary. <BR><BR>Your advice and comments are greatly welcomed and appreciated. Thanks in advance.<BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR> <BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR>

D

My two cents regarding using e-tickets. Domestically in the u.s they are fine. If I was going internationally I would want paper. A couple of months ago I left Dalls with an Orbitz e- ticket. Delta staff who were issuing boarding passes assured me I would have no trouble switching to Mexicana in Mexico City. Afterall- all the information was on the e-ticket. In Mexico City the representative at the Mexicana counter said &quot;No paper ticket no fly.&quot; After much stress, much screaming in Spanish, and visits to many ticket representatives at three airlines, I got Aeromexico, Delta's parter to issue me a paper ticket which Mexicana then exchanged. So, unlike me, make sure you have what you need in advance.

Maurice

A WARNING!<BR><BR>I don't know about American Etickets, but the Air Canada ones have a dangerous new policy. If you miss one leg of your flight, the entire ticket is void. Even if you managed to get back on track (with one of those expensive one-way tickets) you can't pick up the trip where you left off, you can't ask for a $150 change in itinerary, you can't use the return portion. Your cash is gone.<BR><BR>This was told to me by an Air Canada phone agent. One more reason to fly Westjet.