Are Tickets Usually Non Refundable?

[ev1lchris]

Hi all,

I'm using Skyscanner trying to get a deal going from Bangkok, TH to Hilo Hawaii. I notice that pretty much all the carriers are saying their tickets are non refundable?

Is this usually the case? So if I miss my flight for some reason I can not use what I paid as credit for another booking?

I want to keep my options open just in case I find a job or something down here. I need some advice because I'm not privy to really booking expensive flights.

[mcfish]

Stay away from 3rd part re sellers. Always stick with the airline

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[kkerry]

CHEAP Tickets are often non refundable. It's part of the reason they're cheap. If you want refundable tickets it will cost you more. Some budget carriers will have an option when booking which will allow you to change your flight if you pay an additional fee, but mostly you need to book with the larger higher priced full service airlines to get free or minimal fee flight alterations and cancellations.

[mcfish]

CHEAP Tickets are often non refundable. It's part of the reason they're cheap. If you want refundable tickets it will cost you more. Some budget carriers will have an option when booking which will allow you to change your flight if you pay an additional fee, but mostly you need to book with the larger higher priced full service airlines to get free or minimal fee flight alterations and cancellations.

It's not just that. Re sellers will often indicate that there is a refund but it's very vague and you will end up in a call center in chekoslvaki with a minimal English speaking rep if you can even get through only to confuse you more until you give up

Thousands of posts on Google about it

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[SoiBiker]

One wonders how anyone this naive about air travel managed to get to Thailand in the first place.

[ev1lchris]

Thanks for letting me know.

I'll check out the carriers directly.

[CNXSTEVE]

One wonders how anyone this naive about air travel managed to get to Thailand in the first place.

On a non-refundable round trip ticket of course.

[kbelyeu]

Usually non refundable tickets are changeable up to a year from the booking for a fee (300 USD plus or minus). You really should read the fine print.

Kurt

[Jiu-Jitsu]

Usually non refundable tickets are changeable up to a year from the booking for a fee (300 USD plus or minus). You really should read the fine print.

Kurt

You are just making it up as you go along...

[NanLaew]

Usually non refundable tickets are changeable up to a year from the booking for a fee (300 USD plus or minus). You really should read the fine print.

Kurt

You are just making it up as you go along...

...or flying by the seat of his pants maybe?

[mtls2005]

Every ticket has an associated set of terms and conditions which cover pretty much everything including cancellation, refunds, re-booking, re-issuing, etc.

Usually you can review those prior to purchase.

Very generally speaking:

- there are very few fully refundable fare buckets

- Economy fare buckets range from high priced (Y) to low-priced (QVWSKLT)

and as you move from most expensive to least expensive, you encounter more restrictive/costly cancellation/re-booking, re-issuing terms, with little or no 'refundability' (although you might be able to apply the origianl fare towards a re-0issue, after paying a potentially sizable fee.)

IMO, for leisure/budget traveling, you should only purchase a ticket when you are 99.5% of your travel dates/plans.

[kbelyeu]

Usually non refundable tickets are changeable up to a year from the booking for a fee (300 USD plus or minus). You really should read the fine print.

Kurt

You are just making it up as you go along...

20 years flying mate.. million miler on Continental airlines.

Kurt

[CNXBKKMAN]

There are lots of airlines and lots of fare rules. With cheap airfares its very common to be fixed dated non refundable but not all airlines have this policy but it is becoming more common. Or date changeable for a fee, maybe 40, 75, 100, 150, 200 or more euros/pounds/dollars plus any airfare difference plus an admin fee for doing it. Admin fee maybe 30 dollars. Now you can only change the date within the validity of the ticket, 14 days, 30 days, 45 days, 60 days, 3 months, 6 months and less common now with cheap airfares 1 year. The example quoted above of having a year to play with is definitely airline specific and not common all over the world. As you move away from the rock bottom cheapest airfares and start paying a lot more the fare rules becomes less and more flexible but lots of airlines will offer business class airfares (at a big discount) that are fixed dated non refundable.

[NanLaew]

Usually non refundable tickets are changeable up to a year from the booking for a fee (300 USD plus or minus). You really should read the fine print.

Kurt

You are just making it up as you go along...

20 years flying mate.. million miler on Continental airlines.

Kurt

...and a white knuckle flyer too.

[Jiu-Jitsu]

Usually non refundable tickets are changeable up to a year from the booking for a fee (300 USD plus or minus). You really should read the fine print.

Kurt

You are just making it up as you go along...

20 years flying mate.. million miler on Continental airlines.

Kurt

Twenty fours year flying...so what?

You description is simply made up. Continental does not represent the airline industry. CNXBKKMAN provides a much better explanation.

[Gulfsailor]

One thing to know is that certain taxes, surcharges and fees can be claimed back if a flight was cancelled or missed, regardless of the ticket conditions. These charges together can make up to 30-40% of the total ticket price in some cases, so it certainly is worth checking into this.

[Jiu-Jitsu]

One thing to know is that certain taxes, surcharges and fees can be claimed back if a flight was cancelled or missed, regardless of the ticket conditions. These charges together can make up to 30-40% of the total ticket price in some cases, so it certainly is worth checking into this.

Erm....no. if a flight is cancelled by them, you may get a full refund and compensation. if a flight is cancelled by you, you must do so before the flight is due to leave, then only APD is refundable. If a flight was missed, only APD is refundable. Taxes, surcharges and fees? No.

Some airlines may charge an administrative fee in some cases....which in turn may wipe out the amount of APD due to be refunded.

[mtls2005]

BKK-ITO is an interesting routing; I looked at a few combos and to me, it looks like you'll have to use multiple carriers, without a code-share option. This further complicates/compounds the ticketing fare rules re: cancellation before travel begins, changes (routing, day of travel, etc.) both before travel begins, and after travel begins. And this assumes you're dealing with the issuing airline (on whose ticket stock the ticket was issued), who may have little influence on the second carrier.

You can do some dummy bookings on the likes of DL, NH, PR, which may require the HNL-ITO hop on HA, and take a read at the fare rules. They can be quite complex.

Cancellations (WX, MX, IDB) terms are covered in the Contract of Carriage. There may be some relief for medical, death, natural disaster.