rescheduling return flight
Nov 7th, 2010, 04:31 PM
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rescheduling return flight
Hi,
Air travel newbie here just trying to figure out how to solve a problem...
My wife and I are flying to the Big Island of Hawaii from Kentucky for a couple of weeks after which she will return. Due to a variety of circumstances I don't know exactly when I'll be flying back. It could be as much as several months. Any travel veterans care to advise me on the most economical way to book this? If we both book round-trip, can I simply reschedule my return flight for a fee? We normally book through Kayak for the best price possible.
Any help appreciated!
John
Air travel newbie here just trying to figure out how to solve a problem...
My wife and I are flying to the Big Island of Hawaii from Kentucky for a couple of weeks after which she will return. Due to a variety of circumstances I don't know exactly when I'll be flying back. It could be as much as several months. Any travel veterans care to advise me on the most economical way to book this? If we both book round-trip, can I simply reschedule my return flight for a fee? We normally book through Kayak for the best price possible.
Any help appreciated!
John
Nov 7th, 2010, 05:42 PM
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You basically have it correct - book round trip for yourself with a return date several months out. As soon as you know your exact return date, you'll need to change the reservation. That will cost a ticket change fee (~$150 for most airlines), plus any difference in fare.
You might also just want to look into one way ticket for yourself. Several airlines let you book one way tickets without any one-way penalty. AA is one such airline. Then once you know your return date you could book a 1-way flight back home.
For the best flexibility you could use FF miles. I believe you can make date changes for free on some airlines - my experience is limited to AA.
Kayak isn't a booking service - you use that to search for fares, then kayak redirects you to whatever website is actually offering that fare. Sometimes it's the airline website, sometimes it's a 3rd party travel agency.
You might also just want to look into one way ticket for yourself. Several airlines let you book one way tickets without any one-way penalty. AA is one such airline. Then once you know your return date you could book a 1-way flight back home.
For the best flexibility you could use FF miles. I believe you can make date changes for free on some airlines - my experience is limited to AA.
Kayak isn't a booking service - you use that to search for fares, then kayak redirects you to whatever website is actually offering that fare. Sometimes it's the airline website, sometimes it's a 3rd party travel agency.
Nov 9th, 2010, 06:55 AM
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The big unknown in your plan is what the fare will be on your changed date. Almost all airlines charge a healthy premium for tickets bought at the last minute, so the fare difference which you would be charged (in addition to the change fee) could easily be hundreds of dollars.
You could minimize that by buying the revised ticket at least a week or two in advance of the revised flight date. I don't know if that will work in your situation; you might end up having to stay in Hawaii for an extra week or two, which would certainly not be inexpensive.
Finding a reasonable one way fare would be one solution. Another would be to look into buying a non-discounted ticket: they typically let you change the return date without additional cost, but they also cost a lot more than a discounted ticket.
You could minimize that by buying the revised ticket at least a week or two in advance of the revised flight date. I don't know if that will work in your situation; you might end up having to stay in Hawaii for an extra week or two, which would certainly not be inexpensive.
Finding a reasonable one way fare would be one solution. Another would be to look into buying a non-discounted ticket: they typically let you change the return date without additional cost, but they also cost a lot more than a discounted ticket.
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