early booking ticket

[Severn 109]

But....... I booked through a big holiday company, not direct with the airline so I am not sure your hypothesis is correct.

 

More possibly.... Empty seats just above cost. Used PayPal so no CC charges either.

 

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[Goldpanner 399]

But....... I booked through a big holiday company, not direct with the airline so I am not sure your hypothesis is correct.

 

More possibly.... Empty seats just above cost. Used PayPal so no CC charges either.

 

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t isnt a hypothesis. Its a fact that large companies have block allocation on many Airlines, thats why when you try and book very early you will see half the plane seats already full.

Yes you can get a cheap ticket from a big company even if its close to the departure date as they, like anyone else can buy their tickets from any Consolidator.

[Severn 109]

I like facts..... Do you have a reference source please.

 

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[Goldpanner 399]

I like facts..... Do you have a reference source please.

 

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You arent going to get Consolidators or airlines to tell you how they do deals matey. I used to buy from Consolidators and from 2 airlines direct. They werent allowed to sell to me direct but I was selling so many tickets it was worth their while. I'm still friends with many in the business and large comapnies taking block allocations on each flights are standard.

How do you think they can offer all inclusive holidays on open dates 6, 7 or 8 months ahead if they didnt have allocated block seating. on flights?

However when its gets close to departure dates and they have more than a dozen or so of their allocation unsold they release them back to the airline. Hence the price goes down. If they then need some seats for their customers they get priority.

 

So there are the facts. Take them or leave them, I care not a jot, I just post to try and help people. If they take that advice or not is up to them. But take note of prices for October November now, then check them in September, all of a sudden you will see a drop in prices on some flights by as much as £50 to £75 as the companies dump their allocations. Thats the time to buy. Either well before they take their allocations or close up to the date of departure when they release unsold seats..

Qatar are a good example. In January this year they were selling LHR-BKK LHR for £321, that then jumped to £454 and is now down to around £420. I suspect in September they will drop to around £350 for any seats they havent filled. In January Thai were selling at £425. Its now up to £540 mark.

 

You pays yer money

[Severn 109]

So I guess that you disagree that airline pricing is made by complex algorithms as described here.

http://www.bbc.com/travel/story/20130405-how-airline-pricing-works?ocid=ww.social.link.email

 

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[Goldpanner 399]

So I guess that you disagree that airline pricing is made by complex algorithms as described here.

http://www.bbc.com/travel/story/20130405-how-airline-pricing-works?ocid=ww.social.link.email

 

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Your link doesnt work.

Yknow I wrote a long reply to your post but decided it just wasnt worth it.

Just ignore my posts OK , if I can help some people fine, if not thats fine too.

I reay dont give a shit

Edited May 29, 2017 by Goldpanner

[Grandpollo 366]

My ticket for upcoming trip this Sunday was booked a week ago so 13 days before travel and was some 20% less than my last trip in 2013. And 45% less than the very first trip I took to BKK.

 

Airlines of course use dynamic pricing that can even change in the same web session .

 

One ass per seat plus a few extras on known no show routes at the best price they can.

[Severn 109]

Goldpanner, I totally agree with your advice for international travel that you should not book an airline ticket too early for many reasons such as, you won't get the best price, the airline has your money and things can happen meaning you cannot travel. If you are date specific then 3 months before the flights is ample time to start trawling the scraper sites like Skyscanner Kayak, Momondo etc and if you see a price that suits your budget book there and then, but not necessarily through the links that they provide.

 

If you have flexibility on the dates then book flights for the next day or within the next week.

 

There are still a few old style travel agents like Flight Centre that will beat internet prices so once you have evidence of the price call them and ask them to beat it.

 

This advice does not apply to the budget carriers, Air Asia, Ryanair, Scoot, Easy Jet, Wizz etc as the early bird with them gets the cheapest price.

 

I also understand what you say regarding the big companies that sell hotel and flight holidays and how they are able to reserve an allocation.

 

These "dynamic pricing" algorithms are the latest incarnation of how airlines do business, and many of us can remember the old days of paper tickets that you bought from a local travel agency shop for a fixed price or for the more adventurous of us from the back street "bucket shop" which the airlines used to offload unsold seats.

 

I remember waiting anxiously for the postman to deliver the tickets sometimes not arriving until a few days before the flight.

 

Keep posting as I believe that you post useful information for fellow travellers.

Edited May 30, 2017 by Severn

[Butch 3,456]

I think if a person isn't "in the know" then leaving the ticket until last minute has a psychological barrier to it, especially if it is an important trip or a long awaited holiday. There's that feeling of completion you get when the flight is booked, and for some it's important.

 

I recently booked and paid for 2 Cathay Pacific flights MNL-HKG-LHR Return with less than a weeks notice of travel, the tickets were about 20% cheaper than when I checked them out just over a month ago. I also went direct with the Cathay global website - which, if anyone wishes to book with Cathay, is always the best option I've found for minimal hassle and Cathay are pretty shit hot at sorting out problems if you've booked with them direct. I accrued AMEX points as well as even more FF points, putting Mrs Butch up to Marco Polo Gold level (which apparently translates as OneWorld Sapphire) while I slum it in Silver for one more trip.

 

It's definitely worth considering late booking, as well as early, but as GP has said, the bit in between needs to be avoided. There's also a caveat though, on Cathay they have at least 5 services daily to HKG so unless there's a real fuck up, seats will be available right up until the day, but perhaps on someone like EVA who only operate one service, it might be prudent to book early than leaving it until the last minute.

 

Thanks for the explaination of how the system works GP, I find it interesting and useful info which will definitely save me a few quid down the road.

[Goldpanner 399]

Qatar have a 48 Hour sale on and flights to Bangkok are included. They are selling for £409 which, IMHO shows a little desperation on their part. I still say that fares for around my departure which ar at present around the £410 mark will drop well below the £400 mark.

 

I fully understand the desire to book early. You book, you pay and you feel safe and contented that its all sorted, you get that warm feeling inside (and in your pants) knowing youre on your way.

But in 6 months many things can happen and prices can go haywire. A bomb here and a bomb there and prices can collapse. Military Coups also dont engender confidence in most destinations.

But the big problem is the big companies and their seat allocation demands based on what they think will sell. They nigh on always get it wrong but they have to over allocate to cover their arses, and its good for late bookers who can grab a good deal when they dump their spare seats.

Best case for me was about 5 years back. Thai dumped a pile of seats back to consolidators and I got a non stop flight for the wife for £325 2 weeks later the price was back up to £425 as they had filled their empty seats.

 

My advice is to try and book via Skyscanner or any of the 'screen srapers' at least 10 months in advance. Then if you cant do that, leave it untill 1 month before. Booking direct with an airline will give you more leeway if cancelling or rescheduling, but, in general you will pay around £25 more than you would via the consolidators or online agents.

 

Start looking around 6 weeks prior to departure then check EVERY DAY, and its odds on that one morning you will suddenly see the prices drop, sometime by around £50 to £100.

Im REALY pissed off as I missed the Qatar Flights for October that were on sale in January for £321 !! BUT thats a good indicator of what they 'might' sell for in September if they have spare seats, and I suspect they will. Looks like £321 is the base price they can drop to. Thai are high now and I suspect they wont drop that much as they have bloody high seat occupancy rates with their shiny A380's and non stop flights, but you might get a few spare seats at a cheap price 4 weeks before any departure.

Its better for airlines to offer some knock down prices than to have empty seats. Empty seats=Bad. Cheap seats= Not good but still paying.

[jacko 8,815]

Booking direct with an airline will give you more leeway if cancelling or rescheduling, but, in general you will pay around £25 more than you would via the consolidators or online agents.

 

Some great advice there Goldpanner and much appreciated. Although I would like to add (note the sentence I quoted), if you book via a consolidator, be very confident that you plans are firm. Skyscanner will return a lot of different 'agents' some I have never even heard of. A recent ticket of mine went from Skyscanner to Expedia (Thailand). Unfortunately I was forced to cancel the return leg... refunds are rarely available! Even if they are they will duck and weave and generally piss you around to avoid paying up. I felt that the airline had made the refund, but the agent didn't want to pass it on to me.

I got it in the end ... but it was exhausting.

 

Saving £25 may not be worth it.

Edited May 31, 2017 by jacko

[Goldpanner 399]

Some great advice there Goldpanner and much appreciated. Although I would like to add (note the sentence I quoted), if you book via a consolidator, be very confident that you plans are firm. Skyscanner will return a lot of different 'agents' some I have never even heard of. A recent ticket of mine went from Skyscanner to Expedia (Thailand). Unfortunately I was forced to cancel the return leg... refunds are rarely available! Even if they are they will duck and weave and generally piss you around to avoid paying up. I felt that the airline had made the refund, but the agent didn't want to pass it on to me.

I got it in the end ... but it was exhausting.

 

Saving £25 may not be worth it.

 

I should have followed up my statement by saying, When you see a price on Skyscanner or any screenscraper, do a company review on Google.

Now its worth looking seriously at the replies as some of the most bitterest slagging off are planted by other companies but you can see the similarity in the complaints if you look.

Also some of the replies and complaints are obviously by some people who dont quite understand Internet booking of air tickets. If you make ONE mistake, say in a name, they dont realise that, in many cases the E-Ticket is issued almost immediately that payment is received, and to change it can cost you a lot of money.

 

If youre booking online? TAKE CARE WHEN TYPING OUT NAMES AND CHECK CHECK CHECK BEFORE YOU HIT THE 'SEND' BUTTON. One wrong letter can cost you hundreds.

[yselmike 393]

I should have followed up my statement by saying, When you see a price on Skyscanner or any screenscraper, do a company review on Google.

Now its worth looking seriously at the replies as some of the most bitterest slagging off are planted by other companies but you can see the similarity in the complaints if you look.

Also some of the replies and complaints are obviously by some people who dont quite understand Internet booking of air tickets. If you make ONE mistake, say in a name, they dont realise that, in many cases the E-Ticket is issued almost immediately that payment is received, and to change it can cost you a lot of money.

 

If youre booking online? TAKE CARE WHEN TYPING OUT NAMES AND CHECK CHECK CHECK BEFORE YOU HIT THE 'SEND' BUTTON. One wrong letter can cost you hundreds.

I do that as routine,I have noticed lately that most complaints are directed at the sites that offer the lowest fares and it's about contacting customer service? seems it's non existent in some cases,the savings are just not worth it stick with companies that you know and can reasonably trust.and prices went up across the board overnight I guess they all use the same software.

[pinoydave 210]

I'm always committed to flight times and therefore have few options.

 

I always book direct with the airline. Can't see the point of saving £25ish, in case things go wrong.

 

Recently I've had quite a few upgrades to business class, only one leg but very nice. Don't think I would have been chosen if I'd booked indirectly