THE NEW WORLD OF ONLINE TRAVEL PLANNING
It used to be that, whenever I wanted to take a trip, I drove into Lexington and visited Colpitt’s Travel where Marilyn would help us make reservations. Unfortunately, she often had to deal with airlines that didn’t answer the phone and hotels in places she hadn’t visited. The situation today is very different, and most of the readers of this blog already probably take advantage of some of the tools out there. The purpose of this entry is to provide you with some ideas you might not be familiar with—and, of course, what I provide here is just a small piece of what is available. Be sure to use the comment box at the end to add your ideas and/or ask questions!
Step1:
Where/when do I want to go? Do I want to arrange for airfare or a package with car and/or hotel? Do I have flexibility for travel dates, times of day, locations? What am I willing to give up for the lowest price out there? Do I want trip cancellation insurance?
Step 2:
Pick one of the travel tools that are available online. Various review sites contrast the different tools, but there is some consensus that www.booking.com is the best overall site and www.Priceline.com is the best for last-minute deals.
Other popular sites include: Expedia, Cheap Air, Travelocity, Trip Advisor, and Kayak.
These sites allow you to 1) search across many different airline or select specific ones; 2) deal with specific or flexible travel dates; 3) sort information by date, price, time, and number of stops.
Be sure to look carefully at car rental information, especially at drop-off fees. Also be sure to note whether or not the site will alert you if there are price changes and if you will be able to take advantage of that information. Be aware, too, of the busiest airports. Smaller airports (like Providence) may be available near your destination—prices, though, might be higher, and they might have less availability.
Get Money for Change Flights
Airlines overbook assuming that they will have no-shows. Many times, they provide offers for volunteers willing to take different flights. Offers go up when there are no takers. But be sure to ask questions.
Sometimes, the offer provided can only be used with a full-fare ticket. The offer may not apply to your whole group. What if the next flight is also fully booked? Ask for a flight guarantee within X hours. If the delay to a substitute flight turns out to be X hours long, will they reimburse an overnight hotel bill?
Many years ago, I met someone who located the busiest American Airlines flight to LA and booked it to visit the grandchildren. He always got bumped.
When Should I Fly?
Tuesdays and Wednesdays are the least expensive days on which to fly; then Saturday. Fridays and Sundays are the most expensive. Very early morning, late night, red-eye, and mealtime flights are cheaper than other flights.
When Should I Book?
According to FareCompare.com data, the best time for booking in the U.S. is on Tuesday at 3 p.m. Many airlines release their weekly sales late on Mondays or early on Tuesdays. By mid-afternoon on Tuesdays, then, the competing airlines have matched the lower prices.
U.S. domestic tickets: Shop between 3 months and 30 days before departure. International fares: Shop between 5 ½ months and 1 ½ months before departure. Peak travel: During peak seasons such as June, July and August or the December holidays, purchase tickets two months in advance.
The large companies from whom we used to buy travel books now have elaborate, comprehensive web sites. These are particularly useful when trying to get detailed data on a location. Browse them and see what is available. These include, but are not limited to: http://www.fodors.com/ and https://www.viamichelin.com as well as https://www.lonelyplanet.com
One last item: Google is pretty good. If you type in, say, “American Airlines 145,” you will get the status of that flight. If it is already airborne, you will get its ETA and the arriving Gate Number–some airlines even make it possible for you to track their in-air flights!
John, a long time computer expert and guide, provides his helpful hints in this monthly BOLLI Matters feature. In the comment box below, provide questions on this month’s or any other computer/tech topic that you’d like to know more about in future Tech Talk articles.
john.rudy@alum.mit.edu (781-861-0402