Flying into and out of different airports

[Jon Voyage]

SJC and LAX may be the same price, but SFO/LAX and LAS (I know this isn't Cali), will have different rates. It's a good point actually... mixing fares with different destinations can make a dramatic impact. Historically LAS has been more expensive than SFO/LAX, so whilst driving from SFO - LAS on a sort of 'L' shaped route makes sense, you may end up paying a couple hundred per person more. Worth checking the different flight combinations when planning your route, as different California airports are not common rated, and also there may be better availability into one as opposed to another.

[marlouwrig]

We will be wanting to fly into LAS and back home from LAX.

Plans still to be made but we will probably want to do an internal flight from LAS to either LAX or SNA. Probably best to book this separately rather than included in the transatlantic booking?

[megaflyer]

Originally Posted by marlouwrig

We will be wanting to fly into LAS and back home from LAX.

Plans still to be made but we will probably want to do an internal flight from LAS to either LAX or SNA. Probably best to book this separately rather than included in the transatlantic booking?

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If internal flights are to connect you to a flight home then best doing as one booking as if one is delayed/cancelled they will look after you and get you but if the internal flights are mid way through your vacation then yes totally separate booking(s) is way to go

[marlouwrig]

Originally Posted by megaflyer

If internal flights are to connect you to a flight home then best doing as one booking as if one is delayed/cancelled they will look after you and get you but if the internal flights are mid way through your vacation then yes totally separate booking(s) is way to go

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Thank you for the advice, I really appreciate the wisdom of the Dibb. The internal flight will be totally separate mid way though so I did suspect that a separate booking would be the way to go. This is going to be a really complex vacation I think as it will involve a very private Vegas wedding with the guests? arriving actually after the wedding has actually taken place. I expect I will be starting threads requesting thoughts once our plans are better formulated

[megaflyer]

Originally Posted by marlouwrig

Thank you for the advice, I really appreciate the wisdom of the Dibb. The internal flight will be totally separate mid way though so I did suspect that a separate booking would be the way to go. This is going to be a really complex vacation I think as it will involve a very private Vegas wedding with the guests? arriving actually after the wedding has actually taken place. I expect I will be starting threads requesting thoughts once our plans are better formulated

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Sounds wonderful, exciting and intriguing !

Definatley book internal flights separately then - google flights will help you find ones that best suit

Happy to help in any panning - Vegas is not my place of expert knowledge (despite Visiting a deal for work - I only really used the hotel pool and bed ! ) but others on this forum are indeed Vegas experts; anything SoCal happy to through in my advise either on here or privately

[cornishfrogboy]

In October I am flying into SFO and out of SAN. I also have a separately purchased flight from Tucson to San.
Next April I have LHR.. Vancouver for 3 nights.. to Honolulu for 11… to Seattle for 1 night.. to LHR. 3 tickets purchases with 3 different airlines.

It is a simple matter to book a multi city with BA, Virgin or most other Airlines. You just enter ‘British Airways multi city’ for instance on the Google tool bar and it takes you straight to the right page. It is equally simple to do it through any of the search engines.

It is also a simple matter to book any further, domestic flights within the US, either as part of your multi city or as a separate . It ain’t rocket science.

I am with Megaflier about going down the DIY route and am confident that as a whole, I can save plenty over any travel agent. These are my reasons for that assertion and also why I advocate DIY in my own personal circumstances.

1. At the shutdown of the USA through Covid and onwards, I had 3 West Coast vacations cancelled, all complex and with Longhaul flights, domestic flights, amtrac’s, multiple car hires, hotels, attraction tickets etc. I had 69 separate elements between the three and when I shut each of them down, I got every penny back in bits and pieces. As each element refunded me, it immediately went into my bank account, longhauls within a week, likewise hotels. Car hires took a little longer and some tickets for experiences/attractions ended up being claimed by S75 on my credit card.
If I had booked through a TA, I would in probability had to wait until they had reclaimed every element before they refunded me anything. This would have taken months. Many DIBBERS has very bad experiences in raking back their money through TA’s.

2. Hotel and car hire prices go up and down between release and use. I always book refundable deals through the bigger search engines such as ebookers and I book them early for reasons as below.
Sometimes after booking, I might find a better deal on said car hire, hotel or even a different or better accommodation . When I do, I simply cancel one and book the other. I might do this multiple times, driving the price down considerably from the total at which I started and occasionally, just weeks before I am due to travel.
Through a TA, I lack this constant and ongoing flexibility to save money. I am not going to be thanked for asking that a full audit of numbers is done each month and any savings passed on to me.

3. TA’s need to be paid for their service. They are not charities. My vacations may take hundreds of hours of ongoing research, research that I greatly enjoy as I chop, change and continually modify my product in order to both improve it and save money in the lead up to travel day.. Why then would I pay somebody else?.. and in any case, no TA is going to repeatedly research and amend as I do. They simply don’t have enough hours in any day, dealing with volume. I am only dealing with myself.

4. A TA may have his or her own reasons for favouring certain Airlines, Hotel Groups, Car Hire companies etc. that reason may well be margins and commission. They are not going to tell you which and why. That is both human nature and ‘business’.

5. There are numerous ongoing cash backs and discounts to be gained by going through Blue light card, NHS discount, Quidco, Nectar points, Tesco points and various other groups. I want to take advantage of them, rather than somebody else!

6. Financial protection? Don’t make me laugh. The only protection that proved worth a penny was S75 on your Credit Card during the Covid shutdown.

In summary, there are a myriad of reasons why DIY can be advantageous to me.
If you want to simply book a vacation as suggested, by another, stick to it and pay the start price without review, then maybe a Travel Agent is for you. Nothing wrong in that.
A Travel Agent may be the way forward for some and DIY the way forward for others. good luck though, in the event of another shut down!

[Jon Voyage]

Originally Posted by cornishfrogboy

In October I am flying into SFO and out of SAN. I also have a separately purchased flight from Tucson to San.
Next April I have LHR.. Vancouver for 3 nights.. to Honolulu for 11… to Seattle for 1 night.. to LHR. 3 tickets purchases with 3 different airlines.

It is a simple matter to book a multi city with BA, Virgin or most other Airlines. You just enter ‘British Airways multi city’ for instance on the Google tool bar and it takes you straight to the right page. It is equally simple to do it through any of the search engines.

It is also a simple matter to book any further, domestic flights within the US, either as part of your multi city or as a separate . It ain’t rocket science.

I am with Megaflier about going down the DIY route and am confident that as a whole, I can save plenty over any travel agent. These are my reasons for that assertion and also why I advocate DIY.

1. At the shutdown of the USA through Covid and onwards, I had 3 West Coast vacations cancelled, all complex and with Longhaul flights, domestic flights, amtrac’s, multiple car hires, hotels, attraction tickets etc. I had 69 separate elements between the three and when I shut each of them down, I got every penny back in bits and pieces. As each element refunded me, it immediately went into my bank account, longhauls within a week, likewise hotels. Car hires took a little longer and some tickets for experiences/attractions ended up being claimed by S75 on my credit card.
If I had booked through a TA, I would in probability had to wait until they had reclaimed every element before they refunded me anything. This would have taken months. Many DIBBERS has very bad experiences in raking back their money through TA’s.

2. Hotel and car hire prices go up and down between release and use. I always book refundable deals through the bigger search engines such as ebookers and I book them early for reasons as below.
Sometimes after booking, I might find a better deal on said car hire, hotel or even a different or better accommodation . When I do, I simply cancel one and book the other. I might do this multiple times, driving the price down considerably from the total at which I started and occasionally, just weeks before I am due to travel.
Through a TA, I lack this constant and ongoing flexibility to save money. I am not going to be thanked for asking that a full audit of numbers is done each month and any savings passed on to me.

3. TA’s need to be paid for their service. They are not charities. My vacations may take hundreds of hours of ongoing research, research that I greatly enjoy as I chop, change and continually modify my product in order to both improve it and save money in the lead up to travel day.. Why then would I pay somebody else?.. and in any case, no TA is going to repeatedly research and amend as I do.

4. A TA may have his or her own reasons for favouring certain Airlines, Hotel Groups, Car Hire companies etc. that reason may well be margins and commission. They are not going to tell you which and why. That is both human nature and ‘business’.

5. There are numerous ongoing cash backs and discounts to be gained by going through Blue light card, NHS discount, Quidco, Nectar points, Tesco points and various other groups. I want to take advantage of them, rather than somebody else!

6. Financial protection? Don’t make me laugh. The only protection that proved worth a penny was S75 on your Credit Card during the Covid shutdown.

In summary, there are a myriad of reasons why DIY can be advantageous to me.
If you want to simply book a vacation as suggested, by another, stick to it and pay the start price without review, then maybe a Travel Agent is for you.
A Travel Agent may be the way forward for some and DIY the way forward for others. good luck though, in the event of another shut down!

See more...

1, Booking 69 elements and contacting them all for a refund, I expect took a long time, whereas a TA would do this for you, so you'd make one phone call, rather than 69. I agree that most TA's would pay out after they'd got it all back though, rather than in dribs and drabs.

2, Also agree, a TA won't keep going back into your booking to check if the price has come down. Personally, I do do this on occasion, especially if there is a particularly expensive component, or I'm aware of a new offer. Also though, if you're booking in $USD, and the exchange rate changes, you'll pay the rate when you arrive, not when you book, so that in itself is a bit of a gamble.

3, TA's normally make their money from commissions they receive from hotels/airlines etc... so no, you're not really paying for the service. Most TAs do a lot of chopping and changing around when tailor-making itineraries, they want the best outcome for you.

4, Most TAs will choose the company/hotel/airline that's going to reflect best value for their client. It's a competitive market, and the goal is to retain business by booking the best trip possible so that they book again. I'd only recommend something as a preference, if I knew the service was better, not if I was going to make more money.

5, Some memberships with hotels/airlines/cruise can be redeemed irrespective of whether it's booked directly, or with a TA, but not all. I've never had any dealing with Nectar, Tesco of Quidco, for example.

6, Financial protection extends beyond your credit card. Example, I had clients that were stuck in Miami following the airport closure (due to a terror event). Consequently, they couldn't get home. It was the TAs responsibility to ensure they were accommodated, and even fed during their extended stay, and this wasn't just chuck them in any hotel and give them a fast food voucher, these guys ate steak every night and were accommodated in the same hotel they'd booked for their holiday. They also have reps at the airlines so that when flights re-open, their customers are re-protected first. This has been the case with natural disasters as well.

With that being said, I think a combination of TA and DIY is good... even as a TA, I DIY stuff for myself through hotel booking sites... and I sometimes even recommend customers to do this.

[cornishfrogboy]

Originally Posted by Jon Voyage

1, Booking 69 elements and contacting them all for a refund, I expect took a long time, whereas a TA would do this for you, so you'd make one phone call, rather than 69. I agree that most TA's would pay out after they'd got it all back though, rather than in dribs and drabs.

2, Also agree, a TA won't keep going back into your booking to check if the price has come down. Personally, I do do this on occasion, especially if there is a particularly expensive component, or I'm aware of a new offer. Also though, if you're booking in $USD, and the exchange rate changes, you'll pay the rate when you arrive, not when you book, so that in itself is a bit of a gamble.

3, TA's normally make their money from commissions they receive from hotels/airlines etc... so no, you're not really paying for the service. Most TAs do a lot of chopping and changing around when tailor-making itineraries, they want the best outcome for you.

4, Most TAs will choose the company/hotel/airline that's going to reflect best value for their client. It's a competitive market, and the goal is to retain business by booking the best trip possible so that they book again. I'd only recommend something as a preference, if I knew the service was better, not if I was going to make more money.

5, Some memberships with hotels/airlines/cruise can be redeemed irrespective of whether it's booked directly, or with a TA, but not all. I've never had any dealing with Nectar, Tesco of Quidco, for example.

6, Financial protection extends beyond your credit card. Example, I had clients that were stuck in Miami following the airport closure (due to a terror event). Consequently, they couldn't get home. It was the TAs responsibility to ensure they were accommodated, and even fed during their extended stay, and this wasn't just chuck them in any hotel and give them a fast food voucher, these guys ate steak every night and were accommodated in the same hotel they'd booked for their holiday. They also have reps at the airlines so that when flights re-open, their customers are re-protected first. This has been the case with natural disasters as well.

With that being said, I think a combination of TA and DIY is good... even as a TA, I DIY stuff for myself through hotel booking sites... and I sometimes even recommend customers to do this.

See more...

The refund issue took just a few hours to get going, (my plan sheets are very comprehensive). Obviously there was some chasing in the weeks that followed, I guess that in all it was 10-15 hours in total.

I think that a major issues in the TA/DIY decision may be as follows..

1. Many who. Can afford such vacations also have difficult, mentally stressful and sometimes long housed employment.

I have a very good pension and only work (albeit plenty of hours) in order to fund vacations and lifestyle, build a further NHS pension (10 yrs and counting) and have something to get up for. My job (effectively portering) is mundane when compared with previous careers (Aircraft technician and then Detective) and has plenty of downtime between taskings. If I am in for 40hrs in a week, I would be surprised were I to actually work 20 of them, particularly on the graveyard shifts. I use that downtime on researching, dibbing and the like.

2. Many of those as in point 1, collapse at the end of the day and vacation research is the very last thing on their troubled minds. They simply want (and can often afford), for someone else to do their vacation planning for them… a TA.

I am fresh when I get home and can use further hours productively. I need to exercise my brain and there are few opportunities in my job!

3. Many want a simple plan to follow.. LHR- MCO - LHR direct and with maybe one or two accommodations, a car and some park tickets. They want to relax and enjoy.

I want multi destination, multi car hire, domestic flights, amtrac etc etc. I am more mentally taxed on vacation than I am in my work place. Rest days? Forget it!

4. Some seek the reassurance that their vacation is in capable, experienced hands and are generally risk adverse.

I have the reassurance that my own hands are both capable and experienced and that I have control, from the moment that I have an idea until the moment I unlock my door in Penryn.

I will be going to the Far East in 2024, ( Cambodia for Angkor Wat, Vietnam for Hanoi & Ha Long Bay, Vietnam). This is outside of my comfort zone and after formulating what I believe will be a cunning plan, I may well make contact with a TA, inviting their advice and possible employment to put it together.