Confessions of a YYC Travel Junkie

[DownhillGoat]

Originally Posted by cmyden

Toronto airport vs connecting in Dallas, that's a bit of a toss-up. A lot of international flights connect in Dallas and I've seen some massive passport lines there and have come close to missing flights because of it. On the other hand, last time I was there, there was no line, all about timing I guess.

Thanks! I'll probably end up doing the Toronto route (although it's air Canada which is rather not do...). Any idea what prices to Santiago from YYC average? Anything I'm finding is around $1500. Just wondering if that's an okay price.

[cmyden]

Originally Posted by kunkstyle

Thanks! I'll probably end up doing the Toronto route (although it's air Canada which is rather not do...). Any idea what prices to Santiago from YYC average? Anything I'm finding is around $1500. Just wondering if that's an okay price.

That doesn't sound too unreasonable, prices to SCL seem to higher this year than last year. Pretty sure they could be had for around $1200ish or so last year. This year the bottom seems to be closer to $1400ish. Santiago always seems to be higher than most of the other major South American destinations like Buenos Aires or Rio.

[cmyden]

Originally Posted by Temporary_User

What would be the best way to get a good deal on a group flight booking (10-15 people)?

The standard practice is for airlines to offer 10% off if there's 10 or more.

You can usually just Google 'airline name group discount' to find their policy.

[getbak]

Originally Posted by kunkstyle

(although it's air Canada which is rather not do...)

I assume the Dallas connection is with American. I'd much rather fly AC than any of the major US airlines.

There's a reason why AC wins awards as the best North American airline, and it's not necessarily because AC is so good.

[rubecube]

Originally Posted by cmyden

Sounds like a great trip, and I'd say that's a pretty great price for flight + accommodations for 16 nights, and flying into one country and out of another.

Flight alone to Belize would likely have been $1000+ just over a year ago (which is why people used to fly into Cancun and bus it to Belize).

Yeah, if I had one tip for booking accommodations in Belize, it would be to not book through third party websites, and just email the hotels themselves and ask for deals. A couple of the hotels I was looking at were averaging $120-$150/night and I got them to knock off about $50/night. Obviously that probably won't work during the high-season but it's still good practice.

[Old Yeller]

Arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrgh!!!!

The Air Transat flight in May from Calgary to Amsterdam that I've been watching for months dropped from $1000 a ticket to $750 this afternoon for like 10 minutes online... by the time I'd run to grab my credit card and clicked it was back at $1000.

I called an agent at Air Transat in hope that they'd still honor it (yeah right), but no dice.

[Draug]

^^^^

I feel for ya .... that sort of thing is so frustrating with the airline industry. That, and standing in the infinite check-in lines for United.

[rubecube]

Well this burns. Flights to Cancun roundtrip just went to $293 with taxes. If I had done that and bus backed and forth to Belize, it would've cost me close $400 less for the entire trip.

[rubecube]

Oh wait, I'm ######ed. Those were one-way prices from Victoria.

[Jbo]

Hey Chris,

When is the best time to fly to Turks and Caicos. Looking to go there next. I saw some prices first week of June for about 444 each way pre-taxes. Would you wait until later in the summer or even Fall?

[cmyden]

Originally Posted by J-bo09

Hey Chris,

When is the best time to fly to Turks and Caicos. Looking to go there next. I saw some prices first week of June for about 444 each way pre-taxes. Would you wait until later in the summer or even Fall?

Turks & Caicos is rarely cheap to get to from Calgary. AirCanadaVacations occasionally drops their charter flights to PLS out East, which results in a price drop here, but it's rare.

So I don't think waiting for any specific season will necessarily help your chances. Although winter might actually have a better chance of a lower price than the warmer months, which sounds counter-intuitive, but there are not as many charter flights in the warmer months, and those are the ones that drop to PLS, with flights on the major airlines tending to always remain expensive no matter when you go.

When is the best time of year to visit the Turks and Caicos?
Honestly, all year round is great. We get a bit more rain in the spring (April/May) and toward the end of the year, but not enough to change vacation plans. Hurricane season is technically June to November, but ‘peak season’ is September and October. With today’s forecasting capabilities, most storms can be predicated up to a week or so in advance with decent accuracy. It’s hottest here in August and September; it’s coolest in January and February. It’s most crowded here from Christmas through Easter (although never real crowded) and the week after New Years is traditionally a slow one. It’s least crowded in September and October and in fact some resorts and other businesses close during that period. Summer is a nice time with generally calmer waters – and lower hotel rates. Some major events on our calendar are Christmas and New Years; a Summer Festival usually at the end of July, and the annual Conch Festival the last Saturday in November. Bottom line, come down any time and while we don’t have the traditional four seasons of northern climes, we do have a bit of diversity.

source: http://www.turksandcaicosreservation...aicos-islands/

[return to the red]

Originally Posted by cmyden

The standard practice is for airlines to offer 10% off if there's 10 or more.

You can usually just Google 'airline name group discount' to find their policy.

Standard practice? I called West Jet for a group booking and up to 50 people was the exact same price as booking individually. What was even more surprising was that if it was over 50 it would cost more per person.

[cmyden]

Originally Posted by return to the red

Standard practice? I called West Jet for a group booking and up to 50 people was the exact same price as booking individually. What was even more surprising was that if it was over 50 it would cost more per person.

Maybe it would be better phrased as 'It's standard practice for airlines to claim you can get a 10 percent discount for group bookings'.

http://www.westjet.com/international...ventions.shtml

We offer great group rates to 10 or more guests travelling on the same itinerary. Groups require a deposit of $50 CAD/USD per person. You may also wait until seven days prior to departure to provide guests' names. Name changes are permitted up to 24 hours prior to departure at no additional charge. There are no minimum or maximum stay requirements and we book one-way fares. For more information visit westjet.com/agentweblink or contact the WestJet Groups desk:

When you choose WestJet for your convention needs no advance booking is required. You'll also receive a 10 per cent discount off the best regular fare available. We also allow for free name changes on your convention bookings up to 24 hours prior to initial departure. For more information visit westjet.com/agentweblink or contact the WestJet Convention desk:

But it wouldn't surprise me if 10 percent off the best 'regular fare' was more expensive than a fare that's claimed to be 'on sale' in their system (which they almost all always are).

It's kind of like the so-called compassion discounts for attending a funeral, which are rarely cheaper and often more expensive than the price currently showing on the airline's site.


Another link from their site...

http://www.westjet.com/guest/en/trav...s/groups.shtml

Getting married?
Planning a wedding is stressful enough without having to worry about how people are going to get there. Let us make your guests our guests on the happiest day of your lives.
We'll even assign your wedding a booking code, giving your guests an extra 10 per cent discount off our already low fares. Think of it as our wedding gift to you. All you have to do is let them know your booking number, which they'll be asked for when they book.

Maybe you need to pretend it's a wedding to get the discount...

[squiggs96]

Originally Posted by Mattington

My girlfriend and I are currently planning a trip to Europe and I was hoping somebody could give us some advice as to what would be a good ticket price.

We are planning on doing Amsterdam and several cities in Germany. So currently looking at direct flights from Calgary to one of either Amsterdam, or Frankfurt. We are looking to leave in mid June for 2 weeks. Direct flights right now are sitting at $1250 each w/return to Amsterdam, and about $2000 to Frankfurt. Obviously we are considering the Amsterdam flights at the moment. But should we be waiting for a sale or something? Or are these prices the best we can expect for travelling in June?

I booked two flights on British Airways to London and return from Paris for $2,200 all in with May departure and returns.

[tvp2003]

Not sure if it's been mentioned here but the limits for cross-border shopping in the US will increase effective June 1. If you spend 24 to 48 hours, the personal exemption increases from $50 to $200. If you spend at least 48 hours, it jumps from $400 to $800 (!). The increase if you spend 7 days is only $50 (from $750 to $800).

Always nice to subisidize a portion of your trip by getting some good deals south of the border

[Notorious Honey Badger]

Westjet is having the craziest effing sale to Chicago ever. 291 dollars in May was 1 round trip price I worked out with tax and everything. That's less than an XBOX.
http://www.westjet.com/guest/en/deal...20120405&mrd=0

[cmyden]

Originally Posted by Notorious Honey Badger

Westjet is having the craziest effing sale to Chicago ever. 291 dollars in May was 1 round trip price I worked out with tax and everything. That's less than an XBOX.
http://www.westjet.com/guest/en/deal...20120405&mrd=0

Just saw it, writing the blog post now! Look for June dates.

[Notorious Honey Badger]

I hope these sales come back in the fall so I can see a Jets game in Chi town!

[tvp2003]

Thanks Just booked for the May long -- ended up being $291 round trip per person, although we had to pay a little extra in US taxes for the lap infant.

[Notorious Honey Badger]

What are you gonna do in Chi town that weekend?