AC Cyber Monday Deal - 15% off

Old Nov 25, 2018, 10:13 pm
  #1  
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AC Cyber Monday Deal - 15% off

Came across this today whilst trolling the AC website for deals:

Promo Code : XC3CF3X1

T&Cs:
  • Book by November 26, 2018 at 11:59 pm from your city of departure in Canada.
  • Valid on base fares in Economy (Basic, Standard, Flex, Comfort and Latitude), Premium Economy (Lowest), Premium Economy (Flexible), Business (Lowest) and Business (Flexible).
  • Travel valid from January 10, 2019 until June 15, 2019.
  • Subject to availability at time of booking.
  • Blackout dates apply.All destinations:
    February 15, 2019 February 18, 2019
    February 28, 2019 - March 3, 2019
    March 7, 2019 March 10, 2019
    March 15, 2019 March 17, 2019
    March 22, 2019 March 24, 2019
    March 29, 2019 March 31, 2019

    Asia & Australia - return travel dates:
    April 27, 2019 May 5, 2019
  • Valid on certain codeshare flights only:
    Lufthansa Group
    Swiss International Airlines Group
    Austrian Airlines Group
    Brussels Airlines
    Eurowings
    Asiana

Safe Travels,

James
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Old Nov 25, 2018, 10:55 pm
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Yup, sometime after Zero Dark Thirty, the AC website changed from the black Black Friday headline to this

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Old Nov 25, 2018, 11:14 pm
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It looks like they changed the promo code from 'XC3CF3X1' to 'CYBERMONDAY2018'. I was halfway through on a booking before it kicked me out and it took me a while to figure out why YYZ was not an eligible destination all of a sudden!
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Old Nov 25, 2018, 11:46 pm
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One of the few blanket offers each year that applies to premium travel.
Don't forget to use Masterpass for another $150 off in premium cabins
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Old Nov 26, 2018, 6:12 am
  #5  
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Did AC raise the fares again before starting this promo?
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Old Nov 26, 2018, 6:17 am
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Thumbs down

Originally Posted by Adam Smith
Did AC raise the fares again before starting this promo?
Yes, total scam. YYZ/GRU/YYZ in PE was raised substantially!
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Old Nov 26, 2018, 7:29 am
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YYC-FRA & YYC-LHR in J were raised as well (at least on the dates I was tracking).
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Old Nov 26, 2018, 7:43 am
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I was tracking a trip to PVG for next March in J. Those base prices have not changed for a couple of weeks, so this sale gave me a very welcome 15% discount. Nice
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Old Nov 26, 2018, 7:58 am
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Originally Posted by Rushfan1
Yes, total scam. YYZ/GRU/YYZ in PE was raised substantially!
Originally Posted by Diabeetus
YYC-FRA & YYC-LHR in J were raised as well (at least on the dates I was tracking).
I believe you both.

But I'm still curious - have you confirmed that the same fare basis code (which, admittedly, Air Canada does not make it easy to find) is still available but has increased in price? Or is it just that you can only get a price on a different fare basis code now? Because if the later, is it not possible that the cheaper fares just sold out?

For example, here's what ExpertFlyer is showing for J cabin YYC/FRA for some random dates that are eligible for the cyber monday sale. Have these changed?

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Old Nov 26, 2018, 9:24 am
  #10  
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We all track different destinations. It could be for routes we fly more often, it could be for ones we want to fly or plan to fly so we keep an eye on prices.

As for whether they have increased, probably yes for some routes. Two of my routes have definitely increased, so I look at other airline options. Two others have remained within the same range.

As I pointed out recently, AC has now added a large "Carrier Surcharge - Canada". This has affected overall price on some routes, but not as much on others. The base fare is lower so the commission to TAs is lower, if anything at all. Plus, the value of any % off promo code is lower. The Base plus YQ for AQD calculations should still be the same. I haven't checked all of the numbers yet.

So, the AC 15% Cyber Monday (pick a fake holiday designed to convince consumers there are deals...) may save a couple of hundred on a J international business class fare, but will barely move the needle on a Y ticket in North America. As always, YMMV.
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Old Nov 26, 2018, 9:27 am
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Originally Posted by canopus27
I believe you both.

But I'm still curious - have you confirmed that the same fare basis code (which, admittedly, Air Canada does not make it easy to find) is still available but has increased in price? Or is it just that you can only get a price on a different fare basis code now? Because if the later, is it not possible that the cheaper fares just sold out?

For example, here's what ExpertFlyer is showing for J cabin YYC/FRA for some random dates that are eligible for the cyber monday sale. Have these changed?

I'm not seeing any substantial evidence of increased fares because of this sale. For example the fares you show for YYC-FRA were published on 16 Oct and have not changed since. AC doesn't need to manipulate published fares - their revenue management system takes published fares into account when returning availability and if you are seeing higher fares, then it is more likely that RM is pushing you to a higher fare bucket, than the actual fares having been increased.
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Old Nov 26, 2018, 9:40 am
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YYZ-FRA-KTW doesn't seem to work for a flight i am waiting on. the FRA-KTW is a codeshare with LH so seems to fall outside of the "Valid on certain codeshare flights only"

but price has gone up $20 since a week ago on flex fares

it seems to have some really weird blackout dates i don't see a pattern to them

Last edited by Aselwyn; Nov 26, 2018 at 9:59 am
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Old Nov 26, 2018, 11:41 am
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I've been tracking several itineraries for YXE-DUB in the non-blackout period. Near as I can tell, they ALL went up.
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Old Nov 26, 2018, 3:45 pm
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Originally Posted by Norcanair
I've been tracking several itineraries for YXE-DUB in the non-blackout period. Near as I can tell, they ALL went up.
With all due respect, YXE isn't the most competitive market for airfares, particularly to Europe. YYZ, YUL and to some extent YYC and YVR have international competition by way of BA, EI, LH, AF, etc. AC doesn't codeshare with m(any) non-*A partners and WS only partners with a small handful which means from a fare construction standpoint if you're flying out of YXE you'll have a tough time finding a good itinerary at a good price. Hence, I suspect if you're looking for a good deal you'll want to position yourself for the deal (i.e. be in YYZ).

It sucks but I've been in this situation a few times (i.e. taking the train up to YOW from YXU just to get a dirt cheap United fare to HKG). Most recently I managed to snag a $515 CAD flight from London,UK to LA then New York to London,UK (also on United). I had to use my Aeroplan points and an Air Canada flight pass I bought for this purpose to take advantage of the fare and make it work out for me (it also allowed me to visit my parents near YXU and my sister in YSJ). If you are flexible with when and where you are taking off, great air fares can be had. In fact, I'm starting to see $400 CAD return flights on United to North America now from Europe.

Safe Travels,

James
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Old Nov 26, 2018, 4:31 pm
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While it's still cyber monday .... if anyone really believes that AC is gaming the system, then I encourage you to find any prices that you're suspicious of, and then post the price and associated fare booking codes here, tonight (while the sale is still on). Then we can all watch together to see if the base fares go back down again, once the sale has finished. And with the data that you've posted here, we'll be able to understand how AC did it.

If the prices don't go back down again, but have actually gone up permanently ... then I ask you to consider whether or not this was an artificial price fixing situation, as appears to be implied - or is it just that previously cheap fares are now sold out (which, you know, is kinda what happens).

Bottom line, I'm a little skeptical that AC is doing anything deceptive, but I am very interested in seeing details so that we can all move past innuendo and start talking facts. If AC really is temporarily inflating base prices during a sale (perhaps by zeroing out cheaper fare classes), then they should be held to account.
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