Airfare Prices & Choice Air

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If you've read all the other posts and the stickies you should know all this already but here's the quick version to save you the bother.

 

For most people a Cruise Air flight will probably work just fine. However, in cases where "irregular operations" happen you could be very stuck. That could mean that if you experience an involuntary reschedule between booking and travel that you cannot choose any flights between origin and destination as you would with an airline booking. Or it could mean that if you experience issues on the day of travel that any form of flexibility to switch to other routes/flights/airlines is tossed out the window.

 

The reason many of the regulars here hate Cruise Air and the like is that it is very opaque product. You cannot get a copy of the fare rules to know what you're buying and to me that's borderline fraudulent.

 

The "sunshine and kittens" crowd want to believe Cruise Air tickets mean the ship will be held or you've got some crack team of people in some bunker wearing earpieces tracking all the flights Cruise Air passengers are on ready to guarantee you'll make it to your boat in time. That is not the case, it's almost the complete opposite.

 

Cruise Air is a crappy product sold largely to those that do not know what they are buying or it's to people just looking to save a few bucks with little regard to what that's costing them.

[FlyerTalker]

I came on trying to figure out if I should book Choice Air for our Med cruise in October. I've been watching fares and tonight Choice Air is $400 less pp than the same flights on AA.

 

They're the exact same flights I'd book on my own and I have the option to select seats. I also will be buying travel insurance.

 

in a nutshell, can someone please tell me why I shouldn't use choice air? I've read other posts where folks say choice air changed their flights but I wonder if that may have been at a time (if that was the case) where one didn't know the airline? Wouldn't I get a confirmation number I can double-check on the AA site?

 

Thanks- Appreciate the insight!

Let me directly address some of your statements:

 

Exact same flights: That is quite likely true. The flight is the same. However, as others have mentioned, what is different is the TICKET. Do not think of airline tickets like a ticket to a play. There, the ticket gets you in the door and to your seat. But if your ticket was to a baseball game and the game is rained out, you don't now automatically have a new ticket to the same seat versus the same teams. There are terms and conditions to the rain check that determine what happens when things ARENT as usual.

 

With your airline travel, the "ticket" includes all of the underlying rules of the "fare" that governs your ticket. When all is well and good, those rules don't really matter much. Your flight departs and arrives in normal course and you go on your way. Where the fare rules matter is when something other than the normal course occurs. Now, it's a bit like the baseball rain check - you're dependent on what the rules are. And that's the rub.

 

Very often, cruiseline air uses "fares" (which is a term different than "price") that have very restrictive rules. In addition, it is difficult to impossible to see those rules before purchasing the ticket. As mentioned above, those rules could prevent you being rerouted through another city, rerouted through another airline and other methods to help you get to your final destination. In addition, when those 200+ people from your flight need to be re-accommodated, the cruiseline ticket likely will be at the end of the priority list for being re-booked. So you are even moreso being left behind the eight-ball.

 

End summary - even though it may be the same flight, it's not the same ticket, which means it's not the same product that you would buy direct from the airline.

 

Select seats: This has little to nothing to do with the underlying ticket. It proves nothing other than the you are on that flight.

 

Insurance: Remember that insurance is ONLY to provide after-the-fact reimbursement of actual incurred expenses caused by irregular operations. It will NOT get you to your ship, it will NOT provide any special services and it will NOT compensate you for any lost vacation "experience". It is solely to protect against financial losses.

 

I think I can speak for some of the other regulars....if you want to buy cruiseline provided air, go ahead. We have no skin in whatever your choice is. But we do want you to make an educated, informed decision. For those who think that saving XX number of dollars is worth potential problems, so be it. Just know that cruiseline air tickets are NOT the same as those direct from the airline and that you may not even be able to know what the differences are prior to puchase. Beyond that, good luck and caveat emptor.

[FlyerTalker]

Deleted

Edited April 18, 2015 by FlyerTalker

[greatam]

The "sunshine and kittens" crowd want to believe Cruise Air tickets mean the ship will be held

 

Love that phrase

 

 

you've got some crack team of people in some bunker wearing earpieces tracking all the flights Cruise Air passengers are on ready to guarantee you'll make it to your boat in time. That is not the case, it's almost the complete opposite.

 

 

You mean those guys in the bunkers at BIAP (Baghdad International) monitoring the Gryphon flights spiraling in aren't the same guys who watch over the Cruise Air passengers? I thought they were all multi purpose with their drones, earpieces, joysticks and instantaneous worldwide communications.

 

Just a side note for those of Vietnam era. Gryphon is called "Air America" by most, just like 40+ years ago when the airline really was run in Vietnam by the CIA. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gryphon_Airlines

 

You really have to wonder about the lineage since Gryphon is based in Vienna VA (the CIA was based in Vienna for a lot of years, their trainee program is still there and the FBI Terrorist Oversight Center is in the old CIA Bldg).

 

Whoever owns them, I can sure say their pilots are very, very good. And that spiral into BIAP is better than any amusement park ride I have ever been on.

[hun]

Thank you all, I didn't understand the distinction about the fare rules being different and will stick to the actual airlines!

[waterbug123]

For some reason you guys seem to think that because this is the first time I've posted here and the first time I booked with Choice Air that I'm not a seasoned traveler. I could tell you about all of my flights too. Yes, we have had things go wrong, but the majority of the time everything is smooth. I am pretty sure we a credit card with a balance that will allow us to fly around the world if we choose. We alway give ourselves an extra day or two on each end to pad ourselves. We see no reason to pay twice as much for something just so we can lord it over others.

 

No one here who buys tickets directly from the airline is "lording it over others." They have just tried to explain that comparing a highly discounted CA ticket to one issued by the airline is an apples to oranges comparison, not an apples to apples comparison as you said. You say you are a seasoned traveler and I'll take you at your word that you are, but it sounds like maybe you are NOT all that clear on the potential differences in tickets. You said the fare rules only matter if YOU cancel the ticket, but as I said earlier that is NOT the case. Those rules and restrictions can be very important if the AIRLINE cancels the flight or it gets delayed.

You ARE correct in saying that the majority of the time everything is fine. But for people to make informed decisions they need to understand the potential "what ifs" for when things don't go wrong. IF they are fully informed, THEN they can decide whether the risks are worth taking.

[iancal]

Why does the fare code matter???

 

Last year we flew to Thailand. It came down to two airline choices. United and Delta. We checked the fare code for each offer. United was no cancellations/changes. Delta allowed changes for $200. We chose Delta.

 

As luck would have it, we had to return early for a family issue. We happily paid the $200. change fee.

 

Had we purchased the non refundable/non returnable United fare we would have do buy an expensive one way ticket home....probably $700-$900 each.

 

That is why the fare code matters.

 

We have also been stuck in DC and rescheduled out the following day. Our fare code (and our carry on bags) enabled us to get the last two seats on a plane heading west away from the storm front. With an extra stop we arrived home two hours late instead of 1 1/2 days late.

 

We sometimes buy cruise air but we select the route and the airline carefully based on our point of departure and our destination. And so far it has only been for one ways at the end of the cruise. We also buy consolidator tickets once in a while when it makes sense for us to do so. But we understand the downside if something goes south on us.

Edited April 20, 2015 by iancal

[ducklite]

Why does the fare code matter???

 

 

 

Last year we flew to Thailand. It came down to two airline choices. United and Delta. We checked the fare code for each offer. United was no cancellations/changes. Delta allowed changes for $200. We chose Delta.

 

 

 

As luck would have it, we had to return early for a family issue. We happily paid the $200. change fee.

 

 

 

Had we purchased the non refundable/non returnable United fare we would have do buy an expensive one way ticket home....probably $700-$900 each.

 

 

 

That is why the fare code matters.

 

 

 

We have also been stuck in DC and rescheduled out the following day. Our fare code (and our carry on bags) enabled us to get the last two seats on a plane heading west away from the storm front. With an extra stop we arrived home two hours late instead of 1 1/2 days late.

 

 

 

We sometimes buy cruise air but we select the route and the airline carefully based on our point of departure and our destination. And so far it has only been for one ways at the end of the cruise. We also buy consolidator tickets once in a while when it makes sense for us to do so. But we understand the downside if something goes south on us.

 

 

If you had travel insurance and a covered family issue, they would have reimbursed the United tickets home. Not saying I disagree with your logic, but for the sake of those who might find themselves in a situation.

[iancal]

No, our situation would not have been covered by insurance.

 

And it was thanks to a post on this board a few years ago that we actually started checking airline ticket fare codes.

We now have a much better understanding of what we are buying.

 

When we buy Cruise Air we now always assume that we are getting a consolidator fare code even though we may not be and we plan our travel accordingly.

Edited April 21, 2015 by iancal

[waterbug123]

No, our situation would not have been covered by insurance.

 

 

Actually, it might have been. There are many kinds of travel insurance, and it depends on the specific policy you purchase.

[iancal]

Actually it might have been.

 

What a silly statement when you have absolutely NO IDEA of why we decided to return home early.

 

And besides, my point was that it really does pays to UNDERSTAND what you are buying vs. buying a pig in a poke so to speak.

[waterbug123]

Actually it might have been.

 

What a silly statement when you have absolutely NO IDEA of why we decided to return home early.

 

 

My point was simply that there are lots of types of travel insurance policies and some would have covered that. Perhaps yours didn't, but it might help someone else out there to realize that your blanket "insurance wouldn't have helped" statement isn't always true for every policy.

[ewenix]

If you don't like a post, don't read it.

I'm kinda wondering how this would work. :confused: