Yes, I am still searching for the right flight

[Iamthesea]

I have posted before about the fact that I need to get my parents air tickets to FLL for our cruise in October. I messed up royally when we booked the cruise several months ago. At the time, my DH and I used our credit card miles to get seats on USAir. I was suppose to book my parents on a flight as well. The airfare at the time was $266 pp, which in retrospect was great! However, I thought we could do better and I have waited and the prices keep rising! It is now up to $358 from their city to FLL. They need to fly on USAir, so that we can meet up in Charlotte and fly together to FLL (and the same on the way home), so no other airline or terminal options will work.

 

Today is July 14th - the 90 day mark. Prices are still high and keep rising(they are the same on all web sites, so there is no reason to search - we prefer booking directly with the airline anyway) .

 

Here's my question: Should I bite the bullet and go ahead and book at $358, or do you think airfare may go down? I even stayed up past midnight on Monday and Tuesday night to catch a drop, but no banana!

 

What really worries me is that unlike other airlines, I cannot check to see how full the airplane is and if we can wait. What should I do? I need HELP! :eek:

[seahags]

you CAN check the airplane..a bit tricky, but I do it all the time. Go ahead and pick your flights and continue on to the purchase tix windows. put in your credit card number & information and then DO NOT hit continue, but scroll up to the arrow that allows you to pick your seats. It will give you the seating choices remaining on the aircraft...once you've looked at the seats and, if multiple flights picked your seats for the first ones, just CANCEL the rez. Works everytime. If you should err and hit the purchase, you have 24 hours to cancel without penalty...just go to the home page of the website and put in the rez number, last name, etc. and cancel.

 

A bit cumbersome, but it can really give you a heads-up on the flightload!!

 

good luck...

;)

[justaknucklehead]

You don't mention what city your parents are originating their flight from. Is it cheaper to get a straight through flight for them rather than one that hooks up in Charlotte?

[Iamthesea]

eileen - Thank You! :D

 

justaknucklehead - No direct flight from SC to FL. My brother will get them on the flight to Charlotte and then we will be there to help them to the next leg and vice versa on the way home.

They could get a cheaper flight from Atlanta or Charlotte if they drove to those two cities (only 2 hours from their home), however, we do not want them driving and it is a hassle to have someone else drive them...not to mention the cost involved. Delta would be out of Atlanta.

[IvesGrandmama]

Hi,

 

If you buy tickets for the higher price and they come dowm they will give you a voucher for the dirfference to use on another flight. Just watch the price after you book. But with Charlotte and cruise line they are always a busy airport. So you may need to check how many seats are left. The airline will tell you that if you call.

 

Janie

[Iamthesea]

I didn't think that USAir would give you a refund in vouchers. :confused: Can anyone else confirm this? That would be great as we travel often and could use them.

 

Another question: I am a frequent flyer member. Can I book my parents tickets and get the credit? It didn't appear that I could.

 

OK, I used eileen's nifty system and was able to check for seats. We are fine for waiting at this point.

First leg going down: 41 out of 50 seats are available.

Second leg going down: 66 out of 114 seats are available

Coming home first leg: About half are available

Coming home second leg: 27 out of 48

 

Thanks again eileen! ;)

[worldsbestcandles]

You can't earn miles on someone else's flight, no matter the airline.. it's not legal... in the future you can gift miles to other passengers, so get their flights for free and book your own and earn your own miles.... good luck to you!

[justaknucklehead]

I have had US Air give me a vouchers for airfares that went down. The only stipulation was that it had to be used within the year. I never used mine, so it was good for nothing. But at least I had it.

[Iamthesea]

in the future you can gift miles to other passengers, so get their flights for free and book your own and earn your own miles.... good luck to you!

Good suggestion!

 

We have earned points booking seats for our children when we fly as a family, I just thought maybe I could do the same with my parents tickets, since I am booking them.

 

justaknucklehead - We will probably be flying within a year, and if we hadn't planned it, having that voucher would force us to take a trip. :D

[Iamthesea]

Any other opinions?

[stargate fan]

I just saw a story on the news tonight where air tickets are going up to meet the rising fuel costs. My opinion is to bite the bullet because we are hitting record highs on barrel prices...over $60.00. With the situation in the world, I'm not optimistic about fuel prices going down.

 

Good luck.

[IvesGrandmama]

Hi again,

 

 

 

Iused vouchers that US Air have given us for price reduction.

 

No problems if you are going to fly with them within a year. In fact have 2 right now and just used one for NY last week.

 

Janie

 

Like the above poster air fare isn't coming down only going up.

[alexkrn46]

We have learned the hard way when you see a great fare grab it. More than one time, my husband will call and get quoted a fare, and then called me to get my ok only to have the fares disappear!

[JerseyGirl23]

Book the flight already! We booked our flight in February for our December cruise. We paid $215 round-trip to Florida; just checked the price and the airfare is over $800 now EACH! :eek:

[sherry7]

Just passing along a tip I read on the boards here a few weeks ago. Try doing your air searches at http://www.kayak.com. It searches all possible airlines, and unlike Travelocity, etc doesn't add a surcharge.

[PVDCruiser]

Well here's your problem...they'll be flying right from a US Airways hub, and I can assume they have a monopoly on the route!

 

It's cheaper to fly through a hub than originate for it. For example, If I wanted to fly to Philadelphia a few years ago from Providence, it would cost a few hundred bucks.

 

If the flew through Philly to Florida, it would still be a few hundred bucks.

[Iamthesea]

Well here's your problem...they'll be flying right from a US Airways hub, and I can assume they have a monopoly on the route!

 

Not really so! Our airport is a USAir hub and we have standard fare of $266 to get to FLL. Hey! Maybe I will just have the parents drive up here the day before we leave. We are only 2 hours apart. :cool:

[justaknucklehead]

That sounds like a great idea, Iamthesea. Good thinking.

[Iamthesea]

If I could just get my parents to agree, it would make sense.

 

I just remembered that my son is on Fall break that week. He could drive half way to get them, if my brother would drive them the other half to meet. Then, after the cruise, they could spend the night and I would take them home.

[Iamthesea]

Thanks to Sherry7 for the Kayak web site. I love the convenience of this site. I am replacing my ITA site with Kayak!

 

Parents said to go ahead and book them out of GSP as they do not want to drive anywhere to catch a flight. They don't even care about the cost.:rolleyes: I am looking over the Kayak site now and will book something today. ;)

[FlyingPhotog]

Just passing along a tip I read on the boards here a few weeks ago. Try doing your air searches at http://www.kayak.com. It searches all possible airlines, and unlike Travelocity, etc doesn't add a surcharge.

 

Actually it does not list Southwest Airlines fares. The only place you'll find Southwest fares is http://www.southwest.com ;)

[Iamthesea]

We can't use Southwest, so it doesn't matter.

 

OK, I booked their flights. Still the same price, but I will be sure to check everyday. Thanks alot! :)

[JerseyGirl23]

A few months ago, someone on this board also posted that http://www.kayak.com link. I use it whenever I'm looking to find airfare prices! :)

[Iamthesea]

I discovered a glitch in that site. Not all flights show up. :confused: I have tweaked and tweaked the perimeters and still don't get my current booked flights to show up. I have to go back to USAir to do that.

[Iamthesea]

Book the flight already! We booked our flight in February for our December cruise. We paid $215 round-trip to Florida; just checked the price and the airfare is over $800 now EACH! :eek:

I booked when you all said book. Now the fare is down $75 pp. I should have waited. :(

 

I am waiting to hear from USAir about a refund voucher. Doesn't sound promising after reading this thread:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=213009