Dan

Anyone here ever bought air tickets through HOTWIRE which is somehow connected to SideStep online? I have bought tickets from Sidestep and all went well but this Hotwire they have linked through them is different. Says you can't know what airline or even what time of day you will fly until AFTER you pay and all ticket sales are final and they mean final. So it's a bit intimidating to know if they will be okay and not book one on some unknown airline or leaving at 5 am or something. Their fares are over $100 less for what I want per person so I would like to hear they are kosher. Anyone use Hotwire and have any input please??

Anna

I bought airline tickets from Hotwire for our trip from Chicago to Hawaii in February 2001. They are totally legitimate, we flew on American and saved over $200 per ticket. You don't know the times until after you purchase and you can't earn frequent flyer miles. You may be able to find some more information if you look at Frommer's website (www.frommers.com), I think that is how I originally found out about them. If you look around at Hotwire, you will find their partner airlines.

thereuare

I bought tix thru hotwire and was quite happy with the experience (and the money i saved!) I paid $120/RT rom NYC to Chicago, when the going rate was $210. However, i've since learned that a cheaper fare is available thru Priceline.

With Hotwire, you can visit their "partners" and see what airlines they deal with (i'm pretty sure almost all of them are "big" names and major carriers). Check the "learn more" link as i believe they tell you that you may depart anytime between 6am-10pm (assuming you don't agree to a red-eye). To learn more about Hotwire (but more particularly about Priceline) and see a link about bonus money/coupons, see www.biddingfortravel.com

Jim Rosenberg

Do you travel a lot or a little? How important is routing to you? I recently flew to the east coast on my preferred carrier for $223 from the midwest with complimentary first class upgrades both ways and good connections, picking up nearly 8,000 FF miles in the process. Neither Priceline nor Hotwire can compete with that deal for me unless they can provide the ticket for around $100 and not waste my time in transit. Realistically, that's not likely to happen from my home airport and even if it did, I can forget about being upgraded. Status and miles have an economic value that can be substantial in your overall travel picture and each individual traveler needs to figure out what it is. On the other hand, when the per-ticket savings can be multiplied by a number of passengers and make a trip feasible that would otherwise be too costly, these alternatives are well worth a look.

Trish

Hi Dan,
You may also want to check out Expedia.
I recently bought 4 rt tickets, at a savings of over $800.00!! I used Expedia's "bargain fare". You plug in your dates of travel and agree to fly with airline they assign you. We are flying American Airlines w/one connection, 9:00 a.m. each flight out. Absolutely perfect for us, AND it was the shortest flight duration available.
I'm thrilled with this deal!