Hotwire (better than Priceline)
 

Found a new site http://www.hotwire.com (heard it's owned by the major airlines). It's a lot easier and more convenient to use than Priceline. You name your city pairs and they give you an immediate price. It's that fast. The only downside is you do not receive frequent flyer points.

I'm pretty sure Hotwire is not owned by the airlines ... The airlines are having enough trouble with the site they do own, Orbitz, and the regulatory authorities.

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/Forum1/HTML/003293.html

Just click on About Us at the bottom of their website.

And yes, it is easier and more convenient than Priceline, but that comes with a price. If you're looking for the lowest fares, just use Hotwire as a guide for your Priceline bid. Works like a charm.

By the way, I happen to think Sheryl is the supreme all-knowing Goddess of Priceline knowledge. Check out her website at:
http://pub4.ezboard.com/bpricelinean...iabidding.html

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I don't like hotwire. Tried it and there was no savings. I guess that's what you get when you live in a city with a Northwest monopoly.

Test prepared on 9/17 for 9/19-9/22 travel all jet only, no redeye and 1 connection

DEN-ORD Hotwire $910 Lowestfare $297

MIA-MSP Hotwire $1292 Lowestfare $1143 delta.com $859 (unbelievable; Hotwire does not use DL) Airtran does this cheaper but with two connections

RIC-ABQ Hotwire $1478 Lowestfare $976 and
unbelievably, nwa.com $1342 (less than Hotwire and Hotwire uses NW)

"But Hotwire CEO Karl Peterson said the site
consistently offers the lowest prices on last-minute airfare."
http://news.cnet.com/news//0-1007-20...=st.cn.sr.ne.2

The October issue of Consumer Reports cites a test done at synchronized times on 19 of the busiest U.S. routes with cheaptickets, expedia, lowestfare and tra velocity. Fares were literally all over the place with hundreds of dollars apart.
On a particular LGA-ORD routing, Apollo as booked by a travel agent came in with the best fare and schedule.
The bottom line: I use the sites primarily for information purposes. I always check with my travel agent and mostly end up booking with him. Besides getting often the best fares, I get my seats request confirmed, and sometimes I get addl. advise I did not know. Best of all: I save lots of time compared to navigating those websites.
(rather spent my time on the FF board!)

[This message has been edited by cesco.g (edited 09-19-2000).]

Hotwire is partially owned by several of the major airlines. It is a publicly traded stock but the majors do own large chunks of it. Orbitz will be the sight that the airlines own AND run themselves.

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I wish I were 1,000 miles away

Supposedly, Hotwire's governance resides with Texas Pacific and Hotwire's board, which includes no airline representatives. The founding airline partners would not receive any favoritism over other carriers or travel suppliers that signed up later.

See also:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/Forum94/HTML/000805.html

Redhead, are you sure about Hotwire being a publicly traded stock? If so, what's their ticker symbol?

Regarding Hotwire vs the future Orbitz, Hotwire sells unpublished fares, much like a consolidator or Priceline would. From my understanding Orbitz will be selling published fares, but with a guarantee from the airlines that the lowest published fares will be made available through Orbitz. The fact that Orbitz will sell published fares could make a huge difference with frequent travelers, as being able to earn miles, get upgrades, and not have extra restrictions (or prohibitions) on itinerary changes keeps many people buying only published fares.