Liz

Need to book airfare from Philly to Ft. Lauderdale- leaving 4/18/2003. I know this is "prime time" spring break (going on cruise), but what advise can you give me for finding best fare?

Jen

Sorry, I can't help you find the best fare, but I would strongly advise you to book ASAP. Spring Break for colleges will be over, but you will run into TWO sets of younger school vacationers: not only is that the beginning of vacation for Easter week vacations, it's also the beginning of vacation for the Massachusetts schools that take off the week of Patriots Day (i.e., 3rd Monday in April) and many flights go thru Philly, so you'll find extra demand this year.

Jim Rosenberg

Liz, is it still possible to work with the service/agency that you booked the cruise with? They can often come up with something that's at least somewhat reasonable.

Liz

Jim: I just emailed my agent, and we'll see what she says. I think their agency may just deal in cruises only, but we'll see. Thanks for the suggestion.<BR><BR>Peter, I know you're out there somewhere. What do you think???

Patty

Liz,<BR>I don't usually take the cruise line's air as I can almost always find a better fare. But on a recent booking, my agent advised me to go ahead and book the cruise line's air, then shop on my own as the flight schedules were very limited for my routing. She said that we could always drop the cruise line air as long as it was before the penalty period (usually 60-75 days). This way I can keep shopping for air without feeling like I need to book something right away and if I can't find any good fares, I have the security of falling back on the cruise line's air. This might work in your situation too. Cruise only agents will only be able to book the cruise line's air for you. They will not be able to book independent air. Also I personally do not like the idea of purchasing air tickets this far ahead, especially with the recent new restrictions on non-refundable tickets. I would be concerned with what happens if I decide to cancel or change my cruise plans.