Website pricing confusion
Jan 2, 2016, 10:06 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2006
Posts: 193
Website pricing confusion
Hi, hoping for some advice to save my sanity. I've been checking the prices for 3 of us to fly LHR to SFO next summer (July). As expected prices are very high, but what I can't understand is the way prices for all the classes seem to change depending on what class you set your search for.
For example, if I search WT I can see WT+ is £800, but if I search the same flight for WT+ it shows a cost of £657, but I then cannot book a cheaper WT flight on the return leg. Sorry if this sounds confusing, if I call BA will I be able to get more flexibility in the booking process? And if so is there an charge for booking via phone?
Thanks
For example, if I search WT I can see WT+ is £800, but if I search the same flight for WT+ it shows a cost of £657, but I then cannot book a cheaper WT flight on the return leg. Sorry if this sounds confusing, if I call BA will I be able to get more flexibility in the booking process? And if so is there an charge for booking via phone?
Thanks
Jan 2, 2016, 10:14 am
#2
Suspended
Join Date: May 2009
Posts: 4,959
This sounds like a quirk of the website, where it gives you a slightly made up cost for each direction which is based on half the cheapest possible return on your outbound and return dates.
If you fiddle with the out and back dates and the classes, the prices can appear to jump and seem really cheap in one direction, meantime the other direction looks really expensive.
In actual fact the price changes are just glitches in the way the data is presented. You'll notice that the "fare code" being booked into is the same.
Once upon a time BA.com would occasionally suggest a sector would have a negative cost!
If you fiddle with the out and back dates and the classes, the prices can appear to jump and seem really cheap in one direction, meantime the other direction looks really expensive.
In actual fact the price changes are just glitches in the way the data is presented. You'll notice that the "fare code" being booked into is the same.
Once upon a time BA.com would occasionally suggest a sector would have a negative cost!
Jan 2, 2016, 10:48 am
#3
Join Date: Aug 2014
Posts: 2,659
This sounds like a quirk of the website, where it gives you a slightly made up cost for each direction which is based on half the cheapest possible return on your outbound and return dates.
If you fiddle with the out and back dates and the classes, the prices can appear to jump and seem really cheap in one direction, meantime the other direction looks really expensive.
In actual fact the price changes are just glitches in the way the data is presented. You'll notice that the "fare code" being booked into is the same.
Once upon a time BA.com would occasionally suggest a sector would have a negative cost!
If you fiddle with the out and back dates and the classes, the prices can appear to jump and seem really cheap in one direction, meantime the other direction looks really expensive.
In actual fact the price changes are just glitches in the way the data is presented. You'll notice that the "fare code" being booked into is the same.
Once upon a time BA.com would occasionally suggest a sector would have a negative cost!
My understanding of this is as you say due to the the way it is presented in terms of price.
An actual "fare" price is for the whole itinerary.
So viewing a ticket in Pegasus (BA's Amadeus based reservation system) displays a total cost of the fare with a seperate total for taxes fees and charges is given.
The website simply splits the total for a return journey to give an estimated price for each sector.