"5 or fewer seats left at this price"
Jan 31, 2015, 3:20 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2014
Posts: 168
"5 or fewer seats left at this price"
So I'm looking at some flights to Sydney during December 2015 and already I see a price saying "selling out".
Is this a marketing strategy or will prices for this flight only increase from now?
Is this a marketing strategy or will prices for this flight only increase from now?
Jan 31, 2015, 12:10 pm
#2
Join Date: Apr 2013
Location: New Zealand (most of the time)
Programs: Air NZ Elite *G, Honors Gold, IHG Platinum Elite
Posts: 6,114
Around Xmas is a very busy time for trans-Tasman flights, wouldn't surprise me if it's true. Prices are always expensive around Xmas as well.
Jan 31, 2015, 12:59 pm
#3
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: MEL CHC
Posts: 21,016
* Air NZ fare buckets for airpoints are hard to find
Jan 31, 2015, 1:14 pm
#4
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: New Zealand
Programs: Air New Zealand NZ*S
Posts: 237
If you see a good price it usually pays to grab it without going away from the page.
Feb 2, 2015, 1:17 pm
#6
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: New Zealand
Programs: Air New Zealand NZ*S
Posts: 237
I have had it happen, check prices, email relatives to check dates ok, go back and the price has increased, had it happen twice in one day for the same flights.
So I guess they had actually sold out or they were tracking my activity and punishing me for not buying the first time I visited!!!
So I guess they had actually sold out or they were tracking my activity and punishing me for not buying the first time I visited!!!
Feb 2, 2015, 8:34 pm
#8
Join Date: Dec 2012
Programs: NZ*S
Posts: 773
Feb 2, 2015, 10:02 pm
#9
Join Date: Apr 2013
Location: New Zealand (most of the time)
Programs: Air NZ Elite *G, Honors Gold, IHG Platinum Elite
Posts: 6,114
Prices can change on a day by day basis as far buckets are changed around.
Unlike some other airlines and many hotels these days Air NZ don't use cookies or other tracking tools to dynamically change pricing.
Unlike some other airlines and many hotels these days Air NZ don't use cookies or other tracking tools to dynamically change pricing.
Feb 2, 2015, 10:43 pm
#10
Join Date: Mar 2001
Location: SYD
Programs: Too many golds, no plat: OZ*G, AC*G, NZ*G, VA Gold, QF Gold, HH Gold, Bonvoy Gold
Posts: 5,350
Something to be aware of for the very peak travel days around Christmas / New Year is that often flights may be upgauged to larger aircraft or even additional flights scheduled if demand warrants. In that scenario, often there are suddenly a few more cheaper seats available again, but it's not something you can count on. Travelling between NZ and Australia at Christmas time is just very poor value, and generally speaking the earlier you book, the better, since they are never going to have fare sales that apply to that most peak of travel periods.
Feb 3, 2015, 5:53 am
#11
Join Date: May 2008
Location: Not where I want to be!
Programs: BD, BA, 1MHC.
Posts: 121
I have had it happen, check prices, email relatives to check dates ok, go back and the price has increased, had it happen twice in one day for the same flights.
So I guess they had actually sold out or they were tracking my activity and punishing me for not buying the first time I visited!!!
So I guess they had actually sold out or they were tracking my activity and punishing me for not buying the first time I visited!!!
Noiseboy
Feb 3, 2015, 2:13 pm
#12
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: New Zealand
Programs: Air New Zealand NZ*S
Posts: 237
I have had it happen, check prices, email relatives to check dates ok, go back and the price has increased, had it happen twice in one day for the same flights.
So I guess they had actually sold out or they were tracking my activity and punishing me for not buying the first time I visited!!!
So I guess they had actually sold out or they were tracking my activity and punishing me for not buying the first time I visited!!!
I paid $3811 return and have still been checking every day and it went up to within a few dollars of $4597 every day since with no further Deals offered.
The Deal I got was never advertised just came up on the search that one time.
Feb 4, 2015, 1:16 pm
#14
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: New Zealand
Programs: Air New Zealand NZ*S
Posts: 237
Feb 4, 2015, 1:19 pm
#15
Join Date: Feb 2004
Posts: 5,984
If anyone figures out a good way to track this behaviour without manually searching, I would be most grateful for your insights.