FLY 201
AIRFARE INTRICACIES, BOOKING SECRETS AND STRATEGIC TRAVEL PLANNING
Objectives
This session is intended for companies and individual travelers interested in lowering or stretching their travel budget. You will learn how to find and book the cheapest available plane tickets and how to use your accrued miles for award flights.
We’ll teach you the fundamentals of airfares so you don’t rely on travel agents or third-party online booking engines to secure the best deals. We’d like to see you take control of your trips — and when you get a better price than Expedia or Travelocity, your satisfaction will be priceless.
Every traveler knows how frustrating it can be when you are unable to use your miles for award tickets. We’ll give you specific ideas and techniques on how to find seats, build a sensible itinerary and explore all options your miles can get you, including flights on partner-carriers, which are usually not offered online.
We realize there are various booking websites claiming to offer the best fares, as well as numerous travel blogs and forums giving often conflicting advice, so we’ll point you to those we consider most helpful.
This session includes real-time online booking exercises, and we strongly recommend that all participants bring a laptop to the seminar. Wireless Internet service will be provided at no additional cost.
REGISTRATION FEE FOR FLY 201: $599
REGISTRATION FEE FOR FLY 201 & FLY 202: $999
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Syllabus
I. Planning a trip.
1. Booking essentials:
a. Booking classes and fare codes;
b. Airline tariffs — rules, conditions and legal routing;
c. Airline inventory — booking-class availability and what it can tell us;
d. Creative routing to save money;
e. Nonstop vs. direct flights;
f. Taxes, surcharges and other pricing basics;
g. Code-sharing — positive and negative aspects;
h. Airfare e-mail alerts;
i. Fare mistakes and getting airlines to honor them.
Recommended reading:
Airlines refuse to honor mistake fares / U.S. warns airlines on fare mistakes / Hidden perils of airline code-sharing / Openness rattles airline industry / Airlines abuse ‘direct’ flights / Cheap airfares endure / Airline fare school
2. Ticketing essentials:
a. Who issues your ticket and what difference it makes;
b. Dealing with airline agents;
c. One-way vs. round-trip tickets — benefits and disadvantages;
d. Creative routing to maximize mileage;
e. Seat assignments and selecting the best seat on the plane;
f. Upgrades — types and requirements;
g. Additional fees and how to avoid them;
h. Schedule changes and how to make the best of them.
Recommended reading:
Flight schedule changes overwhelm agents, travelers / Fare sales often lost in translation / Round-the-world fare mysteries revealed / U.S. airlines handle disruptions best
3. Preparing for a flight:
a. Reissuing vs. revalidating a ticket;
b. Canceling a nonrefundable ticket;
c. Missing ticketed segments;
d. Online vs. airport check-in;
e. Luggage handling;
f. Anticipating delays and cancellations and rebooking if necessary;
g. Knowing what exactly to ask an agent to do for you if you need help.
Recommended reading:
Back to basics of air travel / Cancel trip, but don’t lose ticket / Rebook flights at no cost / Get refund if airfare drops / Airlines require credit cards at check-in / Airlines work to catch up to the digital age
II. Frequent-flier programs and mileage redemption.
1. Choosing the best program for you:
a. Basic elements and features;
b. Booking classes and mileage credit;
c. Comparative analysis of U.S.-based schemes;
d. U.S. vs. foreign programs;
e. Global airline alliances — basics and comparison;
f. Maintaining several accounts;
g. Non-flight earning options;
h. Buying and transferring miles;
i. Elite levels and benefits.
Recommended reading:
Is airline elite status still worth it? / Air miles’ value drops / Being airline elite can be simple / United executive breaks old barriers / Keeping track of your trips / Educating the flying public
2. Award tickets:
a. Determining the smartest use for your miles;
b. Understanding award charts;
c. Sources for checking award availability;
d. Strategies and tactics for award searches;
e. Creative routing and carriers — the advantages of a human brain vs. a computer;
f. One-way and miles-and-cash awards;
g. Award rules and fees, stopovers and “open jaws”;
h. Releasing award seats and award blocking.
Recommended reading:
‘Tweaking’ airlines’ yield management / United’s ‘award’ blocking an issue in Continental merger / Customers gain sway over airlines / American ends stopovers on ‘awards’/ Airlines curb ‘award’ tickets
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Also see the syllabus for FLY 201: Securing top elite status and flying in luxury.
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