India-based Airlines - Agent or Online??

I reside in the US and planning to travel within India using the domestic airlines and probably a trip to Dubai/Abu Dhabi.

Do you get good prices by going through an agent or online? If online, are there meta-search sites like kayak that I could use to find good rates for domestic/international (DXB/AUH).

It seems like the older people use agents and younger folk do online..interested in hearing your experience and any tips.

Thanks

(PS did a quick search and didn't find a relevant answer in the old threads)

I reside in the US and planning to travel within India using the domestic airlines and probably a trip to Dubai/Abu Dhabi.

Do you get good prices by going through an agent or online? If online, are there meta-search sites like kayak that I could use to find good rates for domestic/international (DXB/AUH).

It seems like the older people use agents and younger folk do online..interested in hearing your experience and any tips.

Thanks

(PS did a quick search and didn't find a relevant answer in the old threads)

Usually for domestic flights I do an online search and depending upon schedules and Prices, I either make an online reservation - paid for with my US Credit card, either Visa, Mastercard or AMEX - with the airline directly (especially with the private airlines) or ask a relative to make a booking for me - for Air India or IC. The fees that brick and mortar travel agents add to the total is just ridiculous.
Same with India to neighboring countries - India - SIN or India - HKG.
Have never done India-Middle East.

For domestic flights within India, check out makemytrip.com, ezeego.com, yatra.com,travelguru.com .. there are many global sites like travelocity.co.in etc alsoo..
I usually check out those sites, check the best fares and timings and then also check on that specific airline's site for prices.. Many times some of the above sites have some offers etc and sometimes the airline sites have offers.. If prices are the same or small difference, I book with airline site otherwise with the above sites..

if you are interested then i can pm the details of a good travel agent so that you can compare prices....i always use a ta....simply because it saves me the hassle of booking myself & dealing with changes & cancellations....my ta does everything for me in a short phone call....

if you are interested then i can pm the details of a good travel agent so that you can compare prices....i always use a ta....simply because it saves me the hassle of booking myself & dealing with changes & cancellations....my ta does everything for me in a short phone call....

with the amount of flying u do and references u give them, he better does this ;)

Do a quick search on cleartrip.com or makemytrip.com to check fares and then compare them with a TA..

Do a quick search on cleartrip.com or makemytrip.com to check fares and then compare them with a TA..

+1

I normally find a TA cheaper.

+1

I normally find a TA cheaper.

they are cheaper most of the time & the best part about a good ta is that you don't have to deal with the airline if something goes wrong....the ta would do it for you....

they are cheaper most of the time & the best part about a good ta is that you don't have to deal with the airline if something goes wrong....the ta would do it for you....
True.. Though I don't understand why the TAs are cheaper..

Shouldn't the airline sell the cheapest tickets on its own website/booking counter considering it's not paying a % to any 3rd party website or TA?

True.. Though I don't understand why the TAs are cheaper..

Shouldn't the airline sell the cheapest tickets on its own website/booking counter considering it's not paying a % to any 3rd party website or TA?

if i remember correctly, i don't think ta's get commissions anymore so there is hardly a difference between the ta & airline prices....

if i remember correctly, i don't think ta's get commissions anymore so there is hardly a difference between the ta & airline prices....

Lets put it this way - TA fares are not always cheaper than airline fares. But a good TA is far better at putting you into a lower fare bucket (Z or D instead of J, or get you V where the airline keeps offering you half or zero mile earning buckets like S and W). Also good at waitlisting PNRs.

[this excludes corporate TAs - at least the one I'm stuck with - from all this .. I've had enough to do cleaning up the mess they make of even a simple booking change that I find it easier to call the airline direct - staff hired more for english speaking skills and a snooty attitude than for any particular skill with a GDS]

Lets put it this way - TA fares are not always cheaper than airline fares. But a good TA is far better at putting you into a lower fare bucket (Z or D instead of J, or get you V where the airline keeps offering you half or zero mile earning buckets like S and W). Also good at waitlisting PNRs.


+1


[this excludes corporate TAs - at least the one I'm stuck with - from all this .. I've had enough to do cleaning up the mess they make of even a simple booking change that I find it easier to call the airline direct - staff hired more for english speaking skills and a snooty attitude than for any particular skill with a GDS]

i face the same problem regularly.. our corp ta thru whom I need to make each and every ticket is :td:.. Heck, most of the time they get me fares higher than what is even shown on the web and when I tell them that, they say they cannot see that in their systems :eek:

Lets put it this way - TA fares are not always cheaper than airline fares. But a good TA is far better at putting you into a lower fare bucket (Z or D instead of J, or get you V where the airline keeps offering you half or zero mile earning buckets like S and W). Also good at waitlisting PNRs.

over the last couple of year i've hardly found a difference between ta & airline rates....the max i've come about is inr 100 or so....

i completely agree with you on the other points....

[this excludes corporate TAs - at least the one I'm stuck with - from all this .. I've had enough to do cleaning up the mess they make of even a simple booking change that I find it easier to call the airline direct - staff hired more for english speaking skills and a snooty attitude than for any particular skill with a GDS]

i face the same problem regularly.. our corp ta thru whom I need to make each and every ticket is :td:.. Heck, most of the time they get me fares higher than what is even shown on the web and when I tell them that, they say they cannot see that in their systems :eek:

you guys should use my ta....they are excellent....

you guys should use my ta....they are excellent....

atleast I cannot since our company has this global tie up with this agent !!! :mad:

atleast I cannot since our company has this global tie up with this agent !!! :mad:

if your company is not completely satisfied with this agent then i could put you guys in touch with my agent to see if they can offer better services at the prices your company is paying....

if your company is not completely satisfied with this agent then i could put you guys in touch with my agent to see if they can offer better services at the prices your company is paying....

I wish it was so easy.. thanks for the offer nevertheless :)

if your company is not completely satisfied with this agent then i could put you guys in touch with my agent to see if they can offer better services at the prices your company is paying....

Dude the man just said 'global tieup' .. his employer looks like a multinational (as is mine). You try convince a multibillion dollar MNC to switch millions of dollars a year in spend from say Amex, Thomas Cook etc corporate travel desk to some neighboorhood TA in mayur vihar and see how well that works..

TAs can't be blamed for not seeing fare bucket availability or fares for a bucket that you see on websites. Not their fault.

They CAN on the other hand be blamed for staffing their travel desks with incompetents and then putting up a huge wall of procedure so that booking and changing itineraries is a royal pain, right after the pain you went through to get travel approved in the middle of a travel freeze.

[THAT pain would just about get beat by the pain of giving birth. Maybe]

Dude the man just said 'global tieup' .. his employer looks like a multinational (as is mine). You try convince a multibillion dollar MNC to switch millions of dollars a year in spend from say Amex, Thomas Cook etc corporate travel desk to some neighboorhood TA in mayur vihar and see how well that works..

the ta my firm uses are not a neighborhood ta in mayur vihar....they are one of the leading travel agencies in the country with offices all over the country as well as in many other locations around the globe....their corporate accounts include some of the biggest companies in india, including many multinationals....

last year i put them in touch with one of my clients who happens to be a huge mnc....they were extremely unhappy with the ta they were using & after a couple of meetings the india operations shifted all their travel bookings over to the ta i use....

just because a mnc uses a particular agency doesn't mean that they will continue to use them forever....after all, whoever offers the best rates & services is likely to get the job....

+1



i face the same problem regularly.. our corp ta thru whom I need to make each and every ticket is :td:.. Heck, most of the time they get me fares higher than what is even shown on the web and when I tell them that, they say they cannot see that in their systems :eek:

Welcome to INDIA, Sir it is probably showing on your computer but will not give you that fare when you try to buy the ticket online... LMAO

Welcome to INDIA, Sir it is probably showing on your computer but will not give you that fare when you try to buy the ticket online... LMAO

Welcome to FT mohit :)

This has nothing to do with India .. If there is any problem at all , then its in those airline websites or their syncing up with gds etc etc..
I have sometimes seen the same thing when booking with Austrian, Lufthansa and EK ..
And yes, I had a grand welcome when I was born in India more than 30yrs back, but thanks for the re-welcome :)