How Are You Dealing With Air Fares Before Cruises

[mcrcruiser]

With the problems that are in todays travels by commercial airlines ,what is your secret to lessen the difficulties ?

[saskacruiser]

I book my own economy+ (whatever allows for change/cancellation), fly in 2 days before and I don’t choose flights with short connection times - minimum 3 hour layover (lessons learned)

 

[slidergirl]

I just book and don't look at fares again.  It's too much to keep looking for a $2 decrease.

 

[Tapi]

Book nonstop flights at convenient times even if more expensive.

Give myself plenty of time at the airport to check in. 
 

Fly in 1-2 days before the cruise. 
 

Relax and explore the embarkation port before starting my cruise.

 

For decades, this has always been my strategy and it has worked very well.  

 

 

 

[mcrcruiser]

Here is a whopping saving tactic we learned about , We happen to be both Marriott & Hilton honors members . with Marriott we can buy points & get 40% added free points with Hilton honors we but & get 50% more free points . This helps defray the increased cost of hotels

[YourWorldWithBill]

Bit of a side note on airfare: We found that the airfare is was ridiculously high to fly to Amsterdam for an upcoming HAL cruise. For a cruise later this year we are booking Oceania. Airfare (up to $1,100 each) is included in the price, which also includes credits. Looking at the total including excursions, it's better than what we are paying for our HAL cruise with excursions (we are in a Neptune suite), and it's a slightly longer cruise. 

[auntmeg]

3 hours ago, mcrcruiser said:

With the problems that are in todays travels by commercial airlines ,what is your secret to lessen the difficulties ?

What "problems" and "difficulties" are you asking about?

[aliaschief]

Flew 50,000 miles last year. A couple of minor delays but no cancellations. Fares have increased. Whether we have no control over.  Booking travel on a Tuesday sometimes helps but like everything else we either pay or don’t go.

I’m sure if one Google’s how to fly cheaper a multitude of sites will appear.

Edited April 14, 2023 by aliaschief

[Hlitner]

We cruise and fly all over the world (in Japan now).  These days we do not think a single strategy is the way to go.  One should explore various options for each trip/flight including cruise air, direct bookings with the airlines, looking at the options on booking engines such as Orbitz, and also looking at the IATA site for flight/routing options.  
 

Sometimes spending a few minutes doing research can pay off.  We recently flew from the East Coast to Tokyo in Business Class for less than $2200.  One could have also booked our exact flights for over $10,000.  In our case we got a great deal using HALs online booking engine and using Iberia Air to get a fantastic deal on British Air to JAL.  The good deals are often there for those that do their homework.

 

Hank

[YourWorldWithBill]

46 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

 In our case we got a great deal using HALs online booking engine and using Iberia Air to get a fantastic deal on British Air to JAL.  The good deals are often there for those that do their homework.

Hank

Thanks for this tip! I will remember to try this next time.

[FlyerTalker]

8 hours ago, mcrcruiser said:

With the problems that are in todays travels by commercial airlines ,what is your secret to lessen the difficulties ?

 

What problems?  I'm not having any kind of problems, and I'm flying a lot.

 

 

[FlyerTalker]

7 hours ago, mcrcruiser said:

Here is a whopping saving tactic we learned about , We happen to be both Marriott & Hilton honors members . with Marriott we can buy points & get 40% added free points with Hilton honors we but & get 50% more free points . This helps defray the increased cost of hotels

 

You do realize that you are getting lousy value for the points you are purchasing, even with the bonus?  With the implementation of dynamic award pricing at both Marriott and Hilton, you aren't getting the value you once did from your points.

 

Check your hotel award pricing vs cash booking.  Then see what that value of a point is for your redemption.  Bet it's less than what you paid for it.

 

 

[6rugrats]

What types of “problems?”

[megr1125]

Problems?  As in delays and cancellations.  Fly in early.  Be prepared and proactive and have good travel insurance.  
 

Last year my flight from EWR-CPH-FCO (cruise air, yes I know what I was buying, yes I know the risks) was cancelled 8 hours before departure  The carrier was VERY helpful, while Flights by Celebrity was not.  The carrier rebooked me on a partner, nonstop to FCO and the only "problem" was that I left 15 minutes later and got to FCO like 4 hours earlier.   The carrier, SK, was super efficient and I giggled at a delay of 15 minutes resulting in a 4 hour earlier, non stop arrival, was a problem.

 

If crap hits the fan again this year, I know that A), SK will likely fix it fast, B), there are at LEAST 30 other options to get me from EWR-AMS in time for my event (3 days later) and C) I do have trip insurance.  

 

All that sounds like normal potential travel issues.  And I'm prepared to know that there might be bumps.  Last year's Europe trip was interesting but both carriers (SK and later, BA but that bird strike is another story) ultimately made it right. 

 

Be early. Be patient. Be FLEXIBLE.  Be prepared.  Be knowledgeable and BE NICE.  

[LHT28]

17 hours ago, mcrcruiser said:

Here is a whopping saving tactic we learned about , We happen to be both Marriott & Hilton honors members . with Marriott we can buy points & get 40% added free points with Hilton honors we but & get 50% more free points . This helps defray the increased cost of hotels

How does it work with airfare??

[LHT28]

16 hours ago, YourWorldWithBill said:

Bit of a side note on airfare: We found that the airfare is was ridiculously high to fly to Amsterdam for an upcoming HAL cruise. For a cruise later this year we are booking Oceania. Airfare (up to $1,100 each) is included in the price, which also includes credits. Looking at the total including excursions, it's better than what we are paying for our HAL cruise with excursions (we are in a Neptune suite), and it's a slightly longer cruise. 

I did not know  they capped the airfare  😲

[FlyerTalker]

3 minutes ago, LHT28 said:

How does it work with airfare??

 

One needs to know the rough value of "points" in terms of actual redemption values.  There are a number of websites that try to give some "exchange rate" estimates for the various programs.

 

The trend with airlines is to move to dynamic pricing for awards - away from the traditional fixed award charts.  So the opportunity for outsized redemptions is declining.  Still possible, but not guaranteed.

 

An example is how Delta moved their awards into the stratosphere.  Today, you are fortunate to get a bit over a penny in value for each skypeso.  So if buy points for 3.5 cents each, you are basically losing 2/3 of the value of your purchase.

 

The way to go is to think of points as an alternative currency.  There are pounds and euros and yen - and there are points.  One needs to think of them as an item of value - and to see what the exchange rate is for turning them into something of useful value to you.  Most times purchasing is useful if you need to top off your account to reach an award level.  If you can find some non-dynamic award pricing, then buying can be worth it -- IF you get more value back than the cost of the points.

 

For example -- AA still uses fixed award pricing for partner flights (for now...supposed to end in the near future).  So if you buy 70,000 points for a one-way partner business award to Hong Kong, and the price is 3 cents a point, you make out if the ticket price is greater than $0.03 x 70,000.  But if the ticket is less, you lost out. 

 

OTOH, Delta frequently wants over 300,000 miles for a one-way business class ticket to Europe.  So even if you pay as low as two cents a mile, you need to have a $6000+ ticket to break even.  Plus, cashing in points forgoes the earning on the ticket.

 

So for ANY program, be it hotels or airlines or whatever - check to see what kind of value you get in return.  Try this comparison -- someone offers you a gift certificate, that you would easily use, worth $100.  What would you pay for that certificate?  If the answer is greater than $100, you just fell into the same situation as buying points for a price more than the value you would later receive.

 

 

[LHT28]

52 minutes ago, FlyerTalker said:

 

One needs to know the rough value of "points" in terms of actual redemption values.  There are a number of websites that try to give some "exchange rate" estimates for the various programs.

 

 

Thanks  I did not know you could us Hilton & Marriott points  for airfare that is why I asked

🤔

[FlyerTalker]

40 minutes ago, LHT28 said:

Thanks  I did not know you could us Hilton & Marriott points  for airfare that is why I asked

 

You can't.  Never said you could.

 

What you can do is transfer points from the hotel program to an airline program. And then use those points once they are in the airline program.

 

But do you want to do this?  With Hilton - no way, unless you are just topping off an account for an award.  Reason:  The transfer ratio is 10 Hilton points to 1 airline point.  And given that most valuations for Hilton are at about 4/10 of a cent per point, the effective "cost" to get an airline point is about 4 cents.  And you rarely get that much value back from an airline point (with some exceptions).  So you are really losing value with Hilton transfers.

 

Marriott is another story.  Those points transfer at 3 Marriott to 1 airline, so you are getting some real value there. Plus, for every 60,000 Marriott points you exchange, you get a bonus 5000 airline miles for most carriers. (There are different bonuses and rates for United, American, Delta, Korean, Avianca and Air New Zealand)  So the ratio at that level is 60,000 to 25,000.  IMO, that's the best use for Marriott points, better than using them for hotel rooms.

 

Personally, I use Marriott to get points into programs that have some sweet spot awards, but that I wouldn't be earning points in directly, such as ANA, JAL and Turkish.  Same concept with Amex, Citi, Chase and CapitalOne points.  Don't use the points directly.

 

So, to answer the question -- yes, you can get air tickets from hotel points, but not directly.  And not always at a great, or even reasonable, "cost".

 

 

 

 

Edited April 15, 2023 by FlyerTalker

[LHT28]

1 hour ago, FlyerTalker said:

 

You can't.  Never said you could.

 

 

See post #5

 The topic  was about air travel

I was being factious  asking about hotel points 🙄

Ok bored now 😄

[FlyerTalker]

45 minutes ago, LHT28 said:

See post #5

 The topic  was about air travel

I was being factious  asking about hotel points 🙄

Ok bored now 😄

 

All good.  I originally was questioning the wisdom of buying hotel points, even with a bonus.  And it continued from there.  But still worth getting info out to those who might think the bonus makes it a good deal.

[YourWorldWithBill]

6 hours ago, LHT28 said:

I did not know  they capped the airfare  😲

If they're doing the booking, they won't tell you that. I found out from my TA when trying to decide whether it was better to buy my air ticket myself. He told me that I could use $1,100 toward buying the ticket myself. Then when I asked him to get a price from Oceania, they added in the portion of the air that would be over $1,100.

[YourWorldWithBill]

3 hours ago, FlyerTalker said:

 

What you can do is transfer points from the hotel program to an airline program. And then use those points once they are in the airline program.

But that doesn't work the same way anymore. For some time I was using airline points to pay for hotel bookings, and credit card points to pay for airline bookings. I thought I had found a way around not getting points. But even that changed not too long ago when hotel bookings handled that way went through a third party, such as Expedia In that case I don't even get recognized as a Marriott or Hilton honors member. Very frustrating.

[LHT28]

4 minutes ago, YourWorldWithBill said:

If they're doing the booking, they won't tell you that. I found out from my TA when trying to decide whether it was better to buy my air ticket myself. He told me that I could use $1,100 toward buying the ticket myself. Then when I asked him to get a price from Oceania, they added in the portion of the air that would be over $1,100.

Never had that happen must be new

Did you request specific flights/days    deviation??

[FlyerTalker]

2 minutes ago, YourWorldWithBill said:

But that doesn't work the same way anymore.

 

Try again.  Just transferred Marriott points this month to an airline program and used those airline points for an award ticket.  What doesn't "work" the same"?

 

2 minutes ago, YourWorldWithBill said:

For some time I was using airline points to pay for hotel bookings, and credit card points to pay for airline bookings.

 

And I will bet dollars to donuts you were just paying directly, without first transferring and then using the new points for the purchase.  Credit cards WANT you to use their points for a direct booking, usually at a rate of around a penny apiece.  Which is less value than you would get elseways by a transfer.

 

 

2 minutes ago, YourWorldWithBill said:

I thought I had found a way around not getting points. But even that changed not too long ago when hotel bookings handled that way went through a third party, such as Expedia In that case I don't even get recognized as a Marriott or Hilton honors member. Very frustrating.

 

Hotel elite benefits come about when you book through their sales channels.  Been that way for a while - you may have been lucky in the past and a hotel gave you some bennies.  Which they didn't have to.