Don't Be an Airline BumpeeQ. How can I reduce my chance of being bumped from a flight? - Secure a seat assignment when making your reservation. Being told you can't get a seat number until check-in is a good indication the flight may be overbooked.
- Check in online as far in advance as possible if you didn't get a seat assignment when making the reservation. Airlines generally open online check-in 24 hours before scheduled departure.
- Arrive at the gate at least one hour before the scheduled departure, since late arrivals are usually the first chosen for involuntary bumping.
- In general, you'll make out better if you're a member of the airline's frequent flier program.
Landing Bargain Air Fares Want to make a graceful getaway but you’re concerned about cost? Here are four ways to save on air travel. 1) “The best time to book a flight is 12:01 a.m. Wednesday, in the time zone where the airline is based,” says Peter Greenberg, a travel expert for AARP. How it works: You benefit from travelers who booked their airfare between Friday and Monday, when most airline fare wars are announced, but didn’t pay within the required 24 hours. On Tuesday at midnight, those unbought discount fares come flooding back into the airlines’ computers, so that’s when you pounce. Call the airlines and, if you find a rate you’re happy with, book it but don’t pay for it yet—you have 24 hours. Now see if you can beat the fare on the Internet. If you can, buy it. If not, call back the airline and purchase the flight you booked. “If you purchase something on the Web and then find something better later,” Greenberg says, “you’re trapped.” 2) If you want to know whether now or next week is the time to buy your ticket, plug your route into Bing Travel, as farecast.com is now called. For some domestic routes, the website predicts whether fares will be going up or down. 3) If you can’t plan ahead, try lastminute.com, many travel experts’ favorite pick. If you click on “last second deals,” you’ll get reduced-rate packages that include flights, hotels and car rentals arranged by date and destination. 4) Still looking for fire-sale airfares? Go to airfarewatchdog.com. It lists cheap flights by destination, but you’ll have to go to a booking site like Travelocity or Expedia to buy the ticket.
Compare and Save on Flights OnlineQ: Peter, Which websites are best to compare the cost of flights to a particular city in the United States?
A: Fortunately for travelers, Dona, quite a few websites can help you compare and save on flights. Some of my favorites include FareCompare.com, Kayak.com and Bing.com. All can help you make informed flight purchases, but each one has its own special features that focus on fine-tuning your airfare search specifically as opposed to a broader approach to all travel (hotels, car rentals, etc.).
Kayak’s flight search allows you to easily compare flights from any airline. Plus, it gives you the option to compare these rates with top deals found on the major aggregators like Expedia, Orbitz, Travelocity and others. Once your search results are found, you can narrow down your options based on your preferences — such as price, flight time and aircraft type.
Kayak also has an “Explore” feature that helps you come up with your perfect vacation destination based on your input. You specify how much you’re willing to spend on flights, the climate you want to enjoy, what activities you prefer and how long of a flight you’re willing to take. Kayak will then supply you with a map of your ideal vacation spots.
Bing is similar to Kayak in its flight search, but it does offer the unique feature of “Price Predictor." After searching for a particular flight, this fare-casting feature will advise you to either buy your ticket if prices are rising or hold off if prices are expected to fall. Bing claims to be 75 percent accurate in its predictions, so it may prove useful when deciding to make a purchase.
FareCompare differs from Kayak and Bing in that it specializes only in flights. While it doesn’t give you deals on hotels or car rentals, it can give you the most thorough and up-to-date information on flights. Like the other two websites, FareCompare offers a flight search that lets you easily compare ticket prices from airlines and online travel companies.
FareCompare does not stop there, however. If your flight dates are flexible or you often travel the same route, check out FareCompare’s “When-to-Fly alerts." This feature allows you to save your favorite flight destinations, and FareCompare will send e-mail alerts the instant prices change for this flight route. FareCompare also publishes tips on avoiding certain airline fees, comparing baggage fees, traveling with children and more.
Finally, the AARP Travel Center powered by Expedia offers the useful Trend Tracker tool. Trend Tracker lets you evaluate the least expensive hotel and flight prices for the time you want to travel. Compare historical price and weather trends to get the best value on both your hotel and flight bookings.
With so many free online resources, there is no reason you should be making uninformed airfare purchases. Do a little research and you’re bound to find flight prices that’ll fit your budget.
Choosing a Good Seat on a PlaneQ: Peter, I know you must fly a lot. Can you share any wisdom on the best places to sit on the plane?
A: Ben, the best seat on the plane depends on what you're looking for. In real estate, it's about location, location, location. That's true on planes, to some degree. You definitely don't want to be sitting across from the lavatory, with people lining up next to you the entire flight and unpleasant odors wafting your way. The same applies to seats near the galley. And if you're in a hurry, seats on the back of the plane are usually the last to exit. But there are other factors to consider, such as legroom, width and convenience. Exit row seats generally have the most legroom, but some of these seats do not recline. So be sure to check with the airline first. Many planes also have what are called "magic seats." These are window seats — often behind emergency rows — that have no seat in front of them at all. If you're all about legroom, that's hard to top. Bulkhead seats also have more room, but there's no place to stow your carry-ons, which means they may have to go overhead. Sometimes it's also tough to see the in-flight movie from these seats. American Airlines generally has the most room in coach, and if you're an Elite member on United, the Economy Plus seats have even more space. JetBlue has certain seats on its Airbus A320s that offer extra legroom for an additional fee. Check out a handy website called SeatGuru.com, which has diagrams of the seating arrangements for most airlines; it even includes notes on why certain seats are better than others in terms of pitch (the distance between seat backs), recline, width and even which ones have power ports available. In terms of window seats versus aisle seats, I think window seats are overrated, unless you can actually sleep on the plane. Otherwise, you may feel claustrophobic, and it's a hassle if you need to get up often. The aisle gives you more flexibility; plus, you have an easier time exiting the craft when you land.
A: This is tricky, because the wording that airlines use is not consistent. Besides, the way you get a first-class seat is not always by asking for it directly. For example, United Air Lines will tell you it occasionally sells discounted first-class seats. You have to book them over the phone, not online, and there may not be seats available for the flight you want. Others, such as American Airlines, will act like you're crazy if you ask for a discounted first-class seat, but they will sell you a "Y-Up" seat, which is basically a first-class seat, at a coach price. A rose by any other name. … Other airlines sometimes call them "Q-Up" fares. These fares are usually 30 to 75 percent below the full first-class price and are almost always cheaper than the full (not discounted) coach price! The "Q-Up" fares also have fewer restrictions than discounted coach seats have on refundability, advanced purchase, and blackout dates. Some Web sites, including CheapoAir.com and FareCompare.com, offer advice and alerts to help you find and book these flights. The CheapoAir site has discounted first- and business-class deals, plus occasional promotions of up to 50 percent off. (Find the coupon on the Web site under "Business Class," and then "First-Class Fares," in the top navigation.) Here are some samples of first-class deals: - Los Angeles–Seattle, United Air Lines, $424
- Los Angeles–Cancun, Mexico, US Airways, $768
- New York–London, Kuwait Airways, $2,375
- Honolulu–Manila, Philippines, Hawaiian Airlines, $2,086
- Honolulu–Sydney, Hawaiian Airlines, $2,293
FareCompare lets you search for Y-Up fares and has a handy FAQs section, including a list of rules and restrictions—which are often more flexible than those accompanying full-fare economy tickets. Lastly, another way to get into first class is to buy a coach seat and then ask to buy an upgrade when you check in. Based on capacity, airlines may offer upgrades to the next class of service for only a couple hundred dollars—which may end up costing much less than what a regular full-fare, first-class ticket would cost. |
