Am I a fool for considering EZ-air

I like to look at potential cruise itineraries and use EZ air to get a quick estimate of the airfare might be. Lately some of the airfares Princess is offering look very good...better than I can find elsewhere. Usually, the itinerary is marked "new lower airfares." Has EZ-air been improved, I don't recall prices being so good in the past.

In the past when I have read comments about EZ-air, some people imply only a foolish, unsophisticated traveler would use it. These people tend to be frequent flyers who probably also post on flyer talk (I think that's what it's called). Anyway they list many reasons, that I won't repeat here, explaining why EZ air is not a good idea.

I don't have a particular destination in mind. This is a general question. Also, is it true that I won't get frequent flyer points if I use EZ-air...the prices are so good sometimes, maybe this doesn't matter.

I gave up on Princess Air years ago as they were always higher than other available options. Lately, however, I have started looking at them and now find they are as low or lower than other choices. Throw in the support you can get from Princess if there is a problem and they seem to me to be a better deal.

We price both ways. We have found sometimes Princess is cheaper, and other times there more. We book our cruises when they first open up. also check airfares when they first become available and book then. We haven't used ez air in a long time now. We have been flying Southwest and no baggage fees and there fares have been really good when they first open up. One thing about booking through Princess is that if you have flight delays and miss the ship, everything is covered under there insurance. If you book flights separate, the flights aren't covered unless you buy separate coverage. Nothing wrong with ez air, just recommend checking other fares.

I had never considering using it before, but I am using EZ-air on my Mediterranean cruise next month (coming from California). When I first booked, I checked the flights and came up with the exact same costs (within $8) so it was a no-brainer. I later changed my flights to depart later so I could take advantage of a debarkation tour and had no costs or hassles to change the flights. Over time I have watched special fare deals and the most I have seen is $30 off what we paid. Overall, I feel like it's cheap insurance to stay with the Princess arranged flights, especially that far away from home. I don't have any doubts that I made the right decision.

I like to look at potential cruise itineraries and use EZ air to get a quick estimate of the airfare might be. Lately some of the airfares Princess is offering look very good...better than I can find elsewhere. Usually, the itinerary is marked "new lower airfares." Has EZ-air been improved, I don't recall prices being so good in the past.

 

In the past when I have read comments about EZ-air, some people imply only a foolish, unsophisticated traveler would use it. These people tend to be frequent flyers who probably also post on flyer talk (I think that's what it's called). Anyway they list many reasons, that I won't repeat here, explaining why EZ air is not a good idea.

 

I don't have a particular destination in mind. This is a general question. Also, is it true that I won't get frequent flyer points if I use EZ-air...the prices are so good sometimes, maybe this doesn't matter.

Just used Ez-Air for our most recent cruise. While we did have the cheap seats, they were less price than booking directly with the Airline, and we were able to get the Flexible option on the tickets, and did not have to pay until final payment date. We were able to get mileage points from our airline

I was a long time lurker of EZ Air but always booked our flights direct since the prices were as good or better on the United website (our preferred carrier - have tons of miles and FF benefits). Then things seemed to change and for the cruise we booked next month, the Flexible fares for the exact same United flights were significantly cheaper with EZ Air. So I thought I would give it a try, especially since we are flying on the same day as the cruise for the first time ever. I was a little nervous because when I pulled the reservation up on the United website, it wasn't ticketed and at the top of the screen was a caveat that indicated that the reservation would be cancelled if not paid at the end of the day. That appeared every day until 45 days before our cruise, then the ticket numbers appeared and the receipt indicated that it was paid (shows "bulk" for the fare + the $$ taxes). It looks like any other reservation that I made directly with United and I was allowed to choose my desired seats etc. right on the United website. And all of the information is displayed in the CP on the Princess side as well. So far so good!

We always use EZair.

We used EZ Air for the first time for our Alaska cruise in September. The fares were same as going direct to airline, but I like being able to make changes with no penalty. Three weeks after I booked the air fare dropped by $65 per person. I called Princes and rebooked same flight, same seats - no cost. Two days later, prices went back up (even higher), so worked out well.

I prefer booking my own air.

Keith

We used E-Z Air for our February cruise out of FLL and it was $50 per person cheaper than we could find anywhere else. Next time I'll definitely check it first.

We always booked our air independently until recently when yes, EZ Air started getting competitive and offering awesome Flex fares that matched or beat airline pricing! We've already been able to get 2 price drops on our Flex fares. Delta seems to be the main option when I've checked.

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

I have used EZAir several times in the past few years and have found the flexible fares to be amazingly reasonable especially for one way flights to or from Europe, and they are significantly lower than those I can find on the airline's own website. If I flew a lot and amassed lots of miles, I might be less inclined to use EZAir, but I don't, so EZAir provides me my best fare deals.

Overall, EZAir is so much better than what it was a few years ago when there were fewer to choose from and not good timing for connections. Now there are usually lots of choices of flights. I like that I can scroll thru the available flights and pick the ones that allow me adequate time between flights to get from one gate to the next without feeling rushed or pressured, particularly in airports I have not used before. For me that is a big plus.

Of the flights I have done in recent years to/from cruises, I have had no complaints about any aspect of them that were booked thru EZAir..

Thanks, OP, for asking the question - and for the replies. I haven't used EZ Air before, but we are considering it for our cruise to Hawaii in February. I know there are guarantees of getting you to the next port in some specific circumstances, but am curious - does anyone know if this applies to Hawaii as well? If something happens and we miss the ship leaving L.A.......then what? I can't imagine Princess putting us up in L.A. for a few days, or putting us up in Hawaii for a few days until the ship gets to the first port - maybe they do - I dunno! Looking for anyone's experiences with that. Thanks!

(my question is mostly academic - we're both flying in from separate cities on the East Coast, and are arriving the day before the ship leaves....but am still curious as to 'what if')

Thanks, OP, for asking the question - and for the replies. I haven't used EZ Air before, but we are considering it for our cruise to Hawaii in February. I know there are guarantees of getting you to the next port in some specific circumstances, but am curious - does anyone know if this applies to Hawaii as well? If something happens and we miss the ship leaving L.A.......then what? I can't imagine Princess putting us up in L.A. for a few days, or putting us up in Hawaii for a few days until the ship gets to the first port - maybe they do - I dunno! Looking for anyone's experiences with that. Thanks!

 

(my question is mostly academic - we're both flying in from separate cities on the East Coast, and are arriving the day before the ship leaves....but am still curious as to 'what if')

Sure they would that is their guarantee, u might have to make some phone calls but they will have you covered Hawaii is simple for a catch up. Just make sure u have insurance as well.

I have never had a problem with EZ air, but as others have said it has really improved in the last few years and some of their 1 way tickets cannot even be matched.

Do you accrue airline miles as normal with the carrier you select?

We've already been able to get 2 price drops on our Flex fares. Delta seems to be the main option when I've checked.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

How does this work. Normally, if I need to change a flight, the airline charges me a fee as well as any difference in price between the new ticket and the old one.

Some time EzAir's price is better, some times it's not..

For our British Isles cruise We used EzAir. We got Business Class seats for $3150 per person. We followed the price down from over $4000. Repriced our tickets three times. On Delta's website the same flight is $7778 per person.. Being that they are Flexible tickets it was a no brainer..

I think u would be foolish not to consider it, especially if you can book the flexible option. The way to the best air fare is to compare all sites.

Recently I was looking at a Last minute cruise and the one way fare flying from FL back to LAX was 89 bucks!!!!!! what???? yes that what it was, about 5 weeks B4 the sailing....couldn't book it....but what a deal.

Of course it was flying to/from a major city and air was for April 2016, it showed for about 3 days as 2 seats left, so it was not some shot in the night.

Used it to go to Rome last year, and from Barcelona. A few hundred lower than direct through Delta. No issues with keeping our seats we picked, or getting the frequent flier miles.

Do you accrue airline miles as normal with the carrier you select?

I have, just make sure you add ur number prior to the flight for ease.

How does this work. Normally, if I need to change a flight, the airline charges me a fee as well as any difference in price between the new ticket and the old one.

Do a flight quote for ur cruise , there are 2 columns, one flexible, one restricted so simple on the Princess site to see air line costs vs other cruise lines.

How does this work. Normally, if I need to change a flight, the airline charges me a fee as well as any difference in price between the new ticket and the old one.

Once you have your flights booked you can go into your personalyzer and edit your flights.

What I would do is just look get a price quote from the cruise details page. If it was lower than what I already had I would go into my Personalyzer and edit my flight.. I did this three times and kept the same seats each time.

I booked ez air this past week for an upcoming cruise. It was simple, cheaper and I got my Alaska Airlines miles as well. One of the questions asked at time of booking was for our airmiles #. I have used it once before as well and made a change to save over $100. Also a simple change with no penalty. I will always check them out before booking privately now.

Connie

How does this work. Normally, if I need to change a flight, the airline charges me a fee as well as any difference in price between the new ticket and the old one.

If you have booked through e z air and the price goes down, you call the Princess phone number or your TA. In the past three months my flight to go to Europe for a Baltic cruise dropped four times. I got the dropped price each time. I even changed airlines.

EZair has changed over the years..Years ago they assigned you a flight. Now there is a list of carriers and times and you pick what is best for you. You can now fly out pre cruise and return post cruise on different dates than the cruise and from different ports, as long as it is on the list.

We found the price to be equal or better than going straight to the carrier. Plus they insure flight interruption. Using EZ air there is no cost to keep changing..You just need to find a representative who knows all the new features! You can also edit your flights yourself if you are confident on the computer.

I've had seat assignments from the beginning and will get air miles when completed. Using one carrier to go and another to return. Leaving 6 days before the cruise and returning 6 days after the cruise from another country.

Once you have your flights booked you can go into your personalyzer and edit your flights.

 

What I would do is just look get a price quote from the cruise details page. If it was lower than what I already had I would go into my Personalyzer and edit my flight.. I did this three times and kept the same seats each time.

Got to love it......I've never changed an EZ air booking and did not realize it was that simple, more reason to book EZ air. If I understand you only have this flexibility until final payment, isn't that correct? Oh and u do have to book the flexible flight.