flying US-thailand: best way to purchase airfare (economy only)
Mar 7, 2013, 5:38 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2006
Posts: 1,638
flying US-thailand: best way to purchase airfare (economy only)
i have some thai friends who are not that travel-savvy, who would like to send their kids to thailand for the summer. their primary concern is price.
what, generally, is the best way to purchase tickets from US to thailand? is it better to (1) use a travel agent, (2) book online, (3) call particular airlines, or (4) something else?
they live in the DC area, but if it makes a difference what city in the US they start from, they're willing to fly to that city first and then take off for BKK.
they have told me that they travel back often, but on various different airlines, so they have been accumulating FF miles albeit very slowly and certainly not enough for this summer.
many thanks in advance!
what, generally, is the best way to purchase tickets from US to thailand? is it better to (1) use a travel agent, (2) book online, (3) call particular airlines, or (4) something else?
they live in the DC area, but if it makes a difference what city in the US they start from, they're willing to fly to that city first and then take off for BKK.
they have told me that they travel back often, but on various different airlines, so they have been accumulating FF miles albeit very slowly and certainly not enough for this summer.
many thanks in advance!
Mar 7, 2013, 10:17 am
#2
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: Omaha
Posts: 1,674
I figured somebody might have answered by now.
If I was paying money for that flight, I would book my preferred loyalty partner because that's about 20k miles. That's almost a third of a way to a free ticket to Thailand.
Anyways, I would just check the websites (Orbitz/Travelocity/Expedia/Kayak/etc). The ticket should be around $1300-$1400 or so. It looks like they are all showing $1800+ this morning, but those should come down later (wow, they better come down!). If they fly to BKK often, they should know the normal fares.
Tell your friend to stick to a loyalty partner, sign up for their credit card and charge everything on that card. Free tickets are where it's at
^
If I was paying money for that flight, I would book my preferred loyalty partner because that's about 20k miles. That's almost a third of a way to a free ticket to Thailand.
Anyways, I would just check the websites (Orbitz/Travelocity/Expedia/Kayak/etc). The ticket should be around $1300-$1400 or so. It looks like they are all showing $1800+ this morning, but those should come down later (wow, they better come down!). If they fly to BKK often, they should know the normal fares.
Tell your friend to stick to a loyalty partner, sign up for their credit card and charge everything on that card. Free tickets are where it's at
^
Mar 7, 2013, 12:41 pm
#4
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: DCA/IAD
Programs: most of them
Posts: 3,283
People used to always recommend a woman named Rhonda at an agency called Norcross Travel for cheap tickets on TG. Not sure if that is still the case.
Tickets from DC tend to usually be more expensive for some reason. So I would also look at fares from JFK. I would check the online agencies and/or kayak.com. I would also try to find a reputable consolidator agency to see what they could do.
You didn't mention how old these children are. If they are unaccompanied minors they will end up paying fees on top of the fare.
Tickets from DC tend to usually be more expensive for some reason. So I would also look at fares from JFK. I would check the online agencies and/or kayak.com. I would also try to find a reputable consolidator agency to see what they could do.
You didn't mention how old these children are. If they are unaccompanied minors they will end up paying fees on top of the fare.
Mar 9, 2013, 5:03 am
#5
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2006
Posts: 1,638
thanks to you all for your tips. sadly, they fall into that bizarre class of highly-educated professionals who think collecting miles is a waste of time and prefer to pay with cash instead of credit cards because it's "easier."
glennaa11, i did forget to mention that the kids would be flying as UMs. my assumption has always been that while fares may be variable, including consignment fares, UM fees are fixed by the airline regardless of fare.
glennaa11, i did forget to mention that the kids would be flying as UMs. my assumption has always been that while fares may be variable, including consignment fares, UM fees are fixed by the airline regardless of fare.
Mar 9, 2013, 11:07 am
#6
Join Date: Dec 2002
Programs: UA MM, Hilton-Dia
Posts: 1,480
I also echo Homer15's suggestion on considering flying east. Qatar has had some great fares ($1200-$1300ish) recently with roughly the same travel time as flying transpacific.
Mar 9, 2013, 2:14 pm
#7
Moderator: American AAdvantage
Join Date: May 2000
Location: NorCal - SMF area
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Posts: 62,948
We'll move this to TravelBuzz! for broader membership input, rather than the destination forum, which generally does not include purchasing airline tickets on various airlines.
JDiver, senior moderator
JDiver, senior moderator
Mar 23, 2013, 10:03 pm
#9
Join Date: Jul 2008
Posts: 100
It doesn't cost anything to talk to a travel agent. They will tell you some of the airlines that you can use and various prices and other valuable help. Different times of the year cost more than other times. Unfortunately the prices go up around the same time kids get out of school.
You can pull up airline websites and enter your departure dates and see what the prices are. Choose round-trip because buying 2 one-way tickets usually costs more. My flights always go through Japan now but some airlines also stopover in Korea and Taiwan for plane changes.
To buy from an airline website you will need a credit card. I fly a lot and stick with the same airline all the time. If you will only fly every now and then go with what you can afford. I have no problem with most major airlines.
Asians have a good support network where your Thai friends should check with their fellow adult Thai friends and see who they recommend. If there are any Thai speaking travel agents they will know where to go. Push comes to shove always compare your travel agency price against what you can get direct from the airline website.
If UM means they are minors flying unaccompanied - and they were my kids - I would put them on a US carrier; Delta or United. An adult will have to meet them in Thailand.
US citizens need passports. You can change US dollars in Thailand, even at the airport. Vary the departure date a little forward and back to see if the price changes. But if you only can fly from the US between June and late August you are stuck with higher summer prices.
Good luck.
You can pull up airline websites and enter your departure dates and see what the prices are. Choose round-trip because buying 2 one-way tickets usually costs more. My flights always go through Japan now but some airlines also stopover in Korea and Taiwan for plane changes.
To buy from an airline website you will need a credit card. I fly a lot and stick with the same airline all the time. If you will only fly every now and then go with what you can afford. I have no problem with most major airlines.
Asians have a good support network where your Thai friends should check with their fellow adult Thai friends and see who they recommend. If there are any Thai speaking travel agents they will know where to go. Push comes to shove always compare your travel agency price against what you can get direct from the airline website.
If UM means they are minors flying unaccompanied - and they were my kids - I would put them on a US carrier; Delta or United. An adult will have to meet them in Thailand.
US citizens need passports. You can change US dollars in Thailand, even at the airport. Vary the departure date a little forward and back to see if the price changes. But if you only can fly from the US between June and late August you are stuck with higher summer prices.
Good luck.
Last edited by Sirhalberd; Mar 23, 2013 at 10:10 pm Reason: Update.
Mar 24, 2013, 10:50 pm
#10
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I've done 2-3 trips a year out that way on paid and award flights for quite a few years. Usually the east side of the country prices at $200-400 more than the west...the size of that gap usually determines if it's a 1-ticket or 2-ticket strategy.
On Delta at least, lately Seattle has had the best prices. In years past LAX and SFO were the best bets and are always worth checking. NYC also sometimes goes below $1,000.
If cost is the only consideration and miles aren't a factor, then the lowest cost is usually from the likes of Eva, China Eastern/Southern, Korean or some other Asian carrier (but not Thai or Singapore airlines, alas). Eva or Korean would be my pick from those, though if UA or DL were close in price I'd go with them instead (UA and DL are the only U.S. carriers going into BKK with their own service).
Summer tends to have the highest fares outside holidays, even though it's a low season for Thailand (the transpacific part is what trips it up).
On Delta at least, lately Seattle has had the best prices. In years past LAX and SFO were the best bets and are always worth checking. NYC also sometimes goes below $1,000.
If cost is the only consideration and miles aren't a factor, then the lowest cost is usually from the likes of Eva, China Eastern/Southern, Korean or some other Asian carrier (but not Thai or Singapore airlines, alas). Eva or Korean would be my pick from those, though if UA or DL were close in price I'd go with them instead (UA and DL are the only U.S. carriers going into BKK with their own service).
Summer tends to have the highest fares outside holidays, even though it's a low season for Thailand (the transpacific part is what trips it up).
Mar 24, 2013, 11:42 pm
#11
Join Date: Mar 2013
Posts: 125
You may want to find out if your friends have enough miles to get their kids to Europe and then buy a ticket from there. My roundtrip ticket, 11/28/2012-1/16/2013, from Frankfurt to Bangkok was $950USD on Emirates. As their kids will be flying UM, your friends may also want to take into account how long the layovers may be. It might be worth it to pay a little extra $$$ to ensure that their children are not wandering around an airport for hours and hours.In that light, I have always had reasonably short layovers in Incheon when I have flown Korean Airlines, JFK-BKK.