In one chapter of Make Your Travel Dollars Worth a Fortune I emphasize that the airfare game has changed considerably in the past 8-10 years. Anyone basing their assumptions on the way it used to be is liable to waste time, effort and money. Ed Perkins seconds the thought with this new column, Airline Legends That Won’t Die .
He goes into low-priced standby fares (not in person anyway), senior discounts (almost completely gone), and stopover fares (gone for domestic routes.) For the latter he mentions some international ones that still show up, for Singapore and Iceland. I’d add Hong Kong to that since Cathay Pacific advertises one sometimes. Also, one little-known one that’s easy to set up is Copa Air via Panama. If you’re heading to another destination through Copa’s Panama City hub, you can usually make it a stopover with no extra charge.
He also discusses the myth that you can dress nicely and sweet talk your way into a first class seat. I wouldn’t totally discount the importance of not looking like a bum because it seems eerily helpful when you’ve got a routing/delay issue or have to discuss something with security or customs. But he’s right that the days when a non-elite flyer could get an upgrade without paying for it are pretty much history. The exception is when a flight is overbooked and you get bumped. Then negotiating for a first-class seat on the next flight can work—I’ve been in that boat and succeeded.
My old myths to also keep in mind are these:
- Booking far ahead gets you the best fare.
- You need to stay over a Saturday to get the cheapest fare.
- The big “legacy” airlines offer better comfort or service.
- U.S. Airlines are as good/better than foreign ones for international trips.
The good news is, finding a bargain ticket is not as hard as it used to be. There are very few secret hoops to jump through anymore because the fares are mostly transparent and out in the open. Just sign up for the right newsletters so the deals will come to you, then use the right services to compare across booking sites. Lots of great links here on this null page.
