Mileage Run Discussion - How to use ITA info?

I'm sure this is in the wrong place, but...

ITA appears to be great site, but if you can't purchase tickets through them, and they have a lower price, how is that going to help me get the price they show? Prices change ALL the time and in a split-second, sometimes. By the time I print the page and call up a carrier, the price may have changed. Which begs the question, why do people have to know all kinds of different sites to find the lowest price? I found one price through google flights, but couldn't find it on United's site, even with the flight number. When I have time to play, I love the challenge of looking for deals, and reading all the posts here, but come school time, I'll have to go back to work and how many deals will I miss then? Oy vey.

I'm sure this is in the wrong place, but...

ITA appears to be great site, but if you can't purchase tickets through them, and they have a lower price, how is that going to help me get the price they show? Prices change ALL the time and in a split-second, sometimes. By the time I print the page and call up a carrier, the price may have changed. Which begs the question, why do people have to know all kinds of different sites to find the lowest price? I found one price through google flights, but couldn't find it on United's site, even with the flight number. When I have time to play, I love the challenge of looking for deals, and reading all the posts here, but come school time, I'll have to go back to work and how many deals will I miss then? Oy vey.

ITA gives you the fare basis of the flight that you select. Sometimes flights found by ITA aren't bookable on the airline's website. But if you call, an agent will most likely be able to assist you. Granted, I did match the same fare basis with an agent (simple roundtrip ticket on AA) but the price quoted by the agent and by the website was different.

Prices do change all the time, but unlikely in the 10 minutes required to call. As for keeping up with deals I'd just keep an eye on this forum. It's too much work for me to constantly be using search engines to look for deals :p

Keeping up with this website is addicting. ...and fun. :D

how many deals will I miss then? Oy vey.

You can't live the absolute optimal life where you never miss a deal. You'll just have to be happy with what you've found, and try for a decent amount of time. Even ITA does that. Finding the best airfare is computationally intractable, so they put a time limit on their searches and stop with the best they found thus far.

I usually book online rather than call up agents because phone booking usually adds some sort of booking fee. If your itinerary is simple, you can usually find it on the carrier's site.

... be happy with what you've found...

So true. I'll chalk (or dry erase) this up to being new to the site, and having a bit too much time on my hands. :cool: