BenStark Posted March 13 Share Posted March 13 4 minutes ago, Seppius said: BA is now coming up 850 slightly different dates, the Thai ones have gone back up. Search by whole month for depart and return Why don't I get the same prices, using the same search engine with the same dates. We are talking about 30% difference Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seppius Posted March 13 Share Posted March 13 Just now, BenStark said: Why don't I get the same prices, using the same search engine with the same dates. We are talking about 30% difference Strange Ben, not sure why, I live here but use a UK VPN, just searched again Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenStark Posted March 13 Share Posted March 13 11 minutes ago, Seppius said: Strange Ben, not sure why, I live here but use a UK VPN, just searched again With VPN enabled I get 892 on the those dates, and 1162 for Eva on the 16 > 28 dates, so VPN indeed seems to give better results. Learned something new today 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blazes Posted March 13 Share Posted March 13 9 hours ago, BenStark said: With VPN enabled I get 892 on the those dates, and 1162 for Eva on the 16 > 28 dates, so VPN indeed seems to give better results. Learned something new today I don't follow: why is using one's VPN likely to give better results? My VPN is on almost permanently, so I can't easily distinguish whether that is good or bad in the searches we are talking about here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chivas Posted March 14 Share Posted March 14 13 hours ago, richard_smith237 said: Which agents do you use that are giving you a much better price than the Airline Websites ??? I could name at least 10 without drawing breath Travel agents whether physical or online are the life blood of the aviation industry They exist as consolidators by buying blocks of discounted seats ensuring that the airline reaches minimum income on any one flight I'd love to know how much I have saved long haul via agents 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rampant Rabbit Posted March 14 Share Posted March 14 15 hours ago, Chivas said: No standard return on Oman Air in fact half the price of what the OP was suggesting Lot of you guys enjoy throwing money away by booking direct with airlines is half the problem and this myriad of spurious information which claims if you book with an agent you cant contact the airline subsequently for any reason Utter boll**** ok so i was correct also GULF air can be even cheaper, Emirates are a joke I paid £1700 last year with Gulf, Emirates wanted £4000 .....hilarious and Gulf And Oman both use new 787's with direct aisle access, Theyre darn good seats. Service like all of them these days ( inc emirates), mediocre in Gulf, absolute sheit with Oman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post superal Posted March 14 Popular Post Share Posted March 14 9 hours ago, richard_smith237 said: Not quite... I booked a flight (£2500) through an agent with Qatar Airways. Qatar Airways cancelled the flight 2 days before hand... I put in a claim with Qatar Airways, the response was that I had to put a claim in with the Travel Agent. Of course, travel agent put in their claim, 5 months later offered me 80% of my money back with the excuse that it was not their fault the ticket was cancelled and they still had costs to cover - I reverted to an ombudsman and received a full refund eventually. The initial issue here was that as the ticket was booked through an agent the Airline simply was not interested in dealing with me.\ Booking with agents may get you a cheaper ticket but if there is a cancellation of your flight , you are on your own if booked with an agent , as you have said . If booked with an airline direct and the flight is cancelled the airline will offer an alternative flight . However , recovering your money from a cancellation is not always straight forward , often with agents and sometimes with airlines . That is why it is prudent to take out a travel insurance at the time of booking because the insurer will pay you out whilst dealing with the agent / airline . Further more , there are many dodgy agents out there and some show a London office but they are often based in India and the Indian agent says his name is Dave , Mike , Peter etc . It was such a company that ripped me off for a grand but I recovered it within 1 week using my banks fraud team . Lastly the likes of Momondo , Skyscanner , Kayak etc , are not direct agents , they are third parties acting for many direct agencies . Not forgetting that when booking with agencies you must check your luggage allowance as often that come as an expensive extra . Unlike with airlines , booking with agents , sometimes does not give you the option to select your seats which could be a problem if travelling with family or friends which could mean you are sat apart , especially on a popular flight . 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richard_smith237 Posted March 14 Share Posted March 14 4 hours ago, Chivas said: 18 hours ago, richard_smith237 said: Which agents do you use that are giving you a much better price than the Airline Websites ??? I could name at least 10 without drawing breath Travel agents whether physical or online are the life blood of the aviation industry They exist as consolidators by buying blocks of discounted seats ensuring that the airline reaches minimum income on any one flight You could... Yet you didn't..... I have never found any travel agents cheaper by any worthy margin (i.e. some consolidators on Skyscanner etc ring up cheaper prices by a marginal etc). 4 hours ago, Chivas said: I'd love to know how much I have saved long haul via agents Me too.. but first of all I'd like to know how much I could save on Summer and Christmas tickets to the UK with one of the agents you say are always cheaper than going direct with an airline. You can name 10 without drawing breath ??? - how about just naming one ? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richard_smith237 Posted March 14 Share Posted March 14 4 hours ago, Chivas said: 18 hours ago, richard_smith237 said: Which agents do you use that are giving you a much better price than the Airline Websites ??? I could name at least 10 without drawing breath Travel agents whether physical or online are the life blood of the aviation industry They exist as consolidators by buying blocks of discounted seats ensuring that the airline reaches minimum income on any one flight You could... Yet you didn't..... I have never found any travel agents cheaper by any worthy margin (i.e. some consolidators on Skyscanner etc ring up cheaper prices by a marginal etc). 4 hours ago, Chivas said: I'd love to know how much I have saved long haul via agents Me too.. but first of all I'd like to know how much I could save on Summer and Christmas tickets to the UK with one of the agents you say are always cheaper than going direct with an airline. You can name 10 without drawing breath ??? - how about just naming one ? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chivas Posted March 17 Share Posted March 17 (edited) Absolutely classic case in real time yesterday of why I will ALWAYS use an agent 99% of the time rather than direct with airline Friday I had issues with China Eastern (not huge but something that needed sorting)......As in Thailand I attempt to get hold of them via Phone Calls to Bangkok offices and Airport office (closed all weekend)......I contact via Twitter....no response.......I contact via FB page....no response Instead I email to Travel Trolley back in London knowing that office wasnt open until 9am the Saturday morning.........at 09.46 back comes the soothing email that all is well its a glitch with the China Eastern website we've checked and checked and status is good to go both sectors as expected This is WHY I was always use an agent because they are there to serve you because you're their customer Out of interest the fare I paid was available for just £9 more direct from CE....not a chance in hell would I have paid it and rightfully so because I'd be sat in hotel waiting for taxi wondering if their was a real problem Edited March 17 by Chivas 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chivas Posted March 17 Share Posted March 17 Why someone would put a sad emoli above I have absolutely no idea lol 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chivas Posted March 17 Share Posted March 17 On 3/14/2024 at 4:50 AM, richard_smith237 said: You could... Yet you didn't..... I have never found any travel agents cheaper by any worthy margin (i.e. some consolidators on Skyscanner etc ring up cheaper prices by a marginal etc). Me too.. but first of all I'd like to know how much I could save on Summer and Christmas tickets to the UK with one of the agents you say are always cheaper than going direct with an airline. You can name 10 without drawing breath ??? - how about just naming one ? Just use google flights kayak skyscanner or Travel Supermarket albeit some are powered by same search engine If you use Travel supermarket though it will list the individual prices for a particular flight (not always in ascending/descending order I might add) but it also lists normally around 10 alternates for same flight and normally (but not always) includes the airlines direct price I reckon I've saved £10.000 a least down the years probably lot more 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chivas Posted March 17 Share Posted March 17 ok live example.... Have picked dates in August knowing fare will be expensive So I entered 1st August till 22nd August The best fare as you can see is £1115 with Travel Junction....using the drop down alternates you can see direct from Eva airline at £1255 £140 more expensive via the airline Standard in my opinion and experience 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Carter icp Posted March 17 Share Posted March 17 38 minutes ago, Chivas said: ok live example.... Have picked dates in August knowing fare will be expensive So I entered 1st August till 22nd August The best fare as you can see is £1115 with Travel Junction....using the drop down alternates you can see direct from Eva airline at £1255 £140 more expensive via the airline Standard in my opinion and experience Try booking with those cheap travel agents though and try making changes to your booking Travel agent advertised flight that aren't available A recent review from an above agent "They are best at conning people ,would keep at cheap fare until your process a payment but once you entered your card details price will double and simply say price has increased and this is how they trap you.Please be aware of this scammers." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Carter icp Posted March 17 Share Posted March 17 4 hours ago, Chivas said: Absolutely classic case in real time yesterday of why I will ALWAYS use an agent 99% of the time rather than direct with airline Friday I had issues with China Eastern (not huge but something that needed sorting)......As in Thailand I attempt to get hold of them via Phone Calls to Bangkok offices and Airport office (closed all weekend)......I contact via Twitter....no response.......I contact via FB page....no response Instead I email to Travel Trolley back in London knowing that office wasnt open until 9am the Saturday morning.........at 09.46 back comes the soothing email that all is well its a glitch with the China Eastern website we've checked and checked and status is good to go both sectors as expected This is WHY I was always use an agent because they are there to serve you because you're their customer Out of interest the fare I paid was available for just £9 more direct from CE....not a chance in hell would I have paid it and rightfully so because I'd be sat in hotel waiting for taxi wondering if their was a real problem So the Travel agent just informed you that China Eastern website had a glitch ? Did the agent make any adjustments to your booking ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richard_smith237 Posted March 17 Share Posted March 17 4 hours ago, Chivas said: Why someone would put a sad emoli above I have absolutely no idea lol A lot of people are just trolls.... I wish they're bring back the older system where we could tell who posted which emoji's so we can just ignore the trolls... It would also cut down retards just posting emojis when they don't like someone. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richard_smith237 Posted March 17 Share Posted March 17 4 hours ago, Chivas said: Just use google flights kayak skyscanner or Travel Supermarket albeit some are powered by same search engine If you use Travel supermarket though it will list the individual prices for a particular flight (not always in ascending/descending order I might add) but it also lists normally around 10 alternates for same flight and normally (but not always) includes the airlines direct price I reckon I've saved £10.000 a least down the years probably lot more Ah ok.. So I've used SkyScanner a lot - its always the first 'go to' when searching for flights.... I also often give Kayak a try With both of them I never find any significant saving over going direct with the Airline. Given your earlier reply I thought you had a 'specific travel agent' which had good fares rather than the travel search engines (Skyscanner / Kayak). There is also another reason I go direct with the airline - After searching on sites such as SkyScanner and establishing that Emirates (usually) is the better option for us (my family) we can then go direct to the airline and get a cheaper fare still using AirMiles to offset the cost. Also; Travel Supermarket only searches flights originating from the UK so its not useful when base in Bangkok (and choosing flights originating from Bangkok). 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
superal Posted March 18 Share Posted March 18 17 hours ago, richard_smith237 said: A lot of people are just trolls.... I wish they're bring back the older system where we could tell who posted which emoji's so we can just ignore the trolls... It would also cut down retards just posting emojis when they don't like someone. I have been saying that for some time . Original system was much better without anonymous emojis 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chivas Posted March 19 Share Posted March 19 (edited) On 3/17/2024 at 4:50 AM, Nick Carter icp said: Try booking with those cheap travel agents though and try making changes to your booking Travel agent advertised flight that aren't available A recent review from an above agent "They are best at conning people ,would keep at cheap fare until your process a payment but once you entered your card details price will double and simply say price has increased and this is how they trap you.Please be aware of this scammers." so why have I never ever had a problem with agents I jave used for decades and at least 120 return trips plus around 50 with BA/Qantas staff ticketing !! I'm just going to start seperate thread over China Eastern booked through Travel Trolley so bear with me......for the first time there WAS a (very) minor caveat incurred by not booking through the airline Give me a few hours and will get it uploaded Edited March 19 by Chivas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EVENKEEL Posted March 19 Share Posted March 19 On 3/17/2024 at 1:42 AM, richard_smith237 said: Ah ok.. So I've used SkyScanner a lot - its always the first 'go to' when searching for flights.... I also often give Kayak a try With both of them I never find any significant saving over going direct with the Airline. Given your earlier reply I thought you had a 'specific travel agent' which had good fares rather than the travel search engines (Skyscanner / Kayak). There is also another reason I go direct with the airline - After searching on sites such as SkyScanner and establishing that Emirates (usually) is the better option for us (my family) we can then go direct to the airline and get a cheaper fare still using AirMiles to offset the cost. Also; Travel Supermarket only searches flights originating from the UK so its not useful when base in Bangkok (and choosing flights originating from Bangkok). The main reason I book directly with airlines is if there is a glitch you have to deal with the "other people" The Airline won't help you, or that's been my experience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Carter icp Posted March 19 Share Posted March 19 1 hour ago, Chivas said: so why have I never ever had a problem with agents I jave used for decades and at least 120 return trips plus around 50 with BA/Qantas staff ticketing !! I'm just going to start seperate thread over China Eastern booked through Travel Trolley so bear with me......for the first time there WAS a (very) minor caveat incurred by not booking through the airline Give me a few hours and will get it uploaded You have been lucky so far . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chivas Posted March 19 Share Posted March 19 1 minute ago, Nick Carter icp said: You have been lucky so far . 33 years worth then......lol Have just uploaded that flight review and make a positive if minor concession to booking with that airline directly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Carter icp Posted March 19 Share Posted March 19 4 minutes ago, Chivas said: 33 years worth then......lol Have just uploaded that flight review and make a positive if minor concession to booking with that airline directly Yes, I used a travel agent once and fell foul to a scam , so never used a travel agent again . Do you get flights cheaper using a travel agent ? Have you bought a flight and then found airlines are selling more for the flight ? Agents often offer cheap flights that aren't available anymore 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chivas Posted March 19 Share Posted March 19 1 minute ago, Nick Carter icp said: Yes, I used a travel agent once and fell foul to a scam , so never used a travel agent again . Do you get flights cheaper using a travel agent ? Have you bought a flight and then found airlines are selling more for the flight ? Agents often offer cheap flights that aren't available anymore I have already indicated I must have saved a minumum of £10,000 down the decades Just use Travel Trolley part of Southall Travel who also have 5 other online agents. earlier in thread I had indicated on just 5 occasions since 1992 I have used airlines direct. On 2 occasions had issues I have never had slightest issue with an agent Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Carter icp Posted March 19 Share Posted March 19 12 minutes ago, Chivas said: I have already indicated I must have saved a minumum of £10,000 down the decades Just use Travel Trolley part of Southall Travel who also have 5 other online agents. earlier in thread I had indicated on just 5 occasions since 1992 I have used airlines direct. On 2 occasions had issues I have never had slightest issue with an agent You haven't , but many others have Have you changed flight details often ? I changed a flight date and just logged into the airlines website and changed my flight date If you use an agent, you would have to go through them to change details and they often charge a fee for the process 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoshowJones Posted April 2 Share Posted April 2 On 3/9/2024 at 1:22 AM, flyingtlger said: You're looking at the busiest time of the season. Supply and demand...... Capitalists at work again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoshowJones Posted April 2 Share Posted April 2 On 3/9/2024 at 1:43 PM, Bangkok Barry said: Note that BA are only flying three times a week but daily to KL. Might be an option to go via there? Check the fare for both. As for profiteering, it might be because they ran on empty during the pandemic and need revenue to stay operational? And if people are prepared to pay it, why not? I'd call that responsible business practise. Airlines work for themselves, not the passengers. Same as any business. Capitalism strikes again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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