Call me crazy, but...I just booked flights for October!

[Mom B]

I feel so much better now. After watching the internet sites
anxiously for about 3 months, I just went ahead and did it! I
know a lot of people say to wait until closer to travel time,
but I just couldn't stand it anymore. I think we got pretty
good rates...$267.50 on Continental out of MSP on a group
contract (11 of us going so far). The same dates are now
showing up on expedia at $478, so I guess I feel we did
okay. Even though US Airways is showing $208 on a web
fare...we couldn't get it for our size group. Now I can
concentrate on scarier things...like reserving the Cadillac my
hubby insists he wants to drive, rather than the minivan.
Ah, well, it is a vacation, after all!

 

[Chuck S]

If you feel it was a good price, great! If the price drops you MAY be able to get a voucher for the difference on future travel, it depends on the airline and the rules governing your particular ticket.

 

[Mom B]

Chuck,

Thanks for your support! And the advice! I'll keep an eye on
things and see how it goes.

 

[hercamore]

Hi,

What city is your connection in with Continental?

Anything under $300 from msp I consider a decent price!


Where are you staying in Orlando with your group?


herc.

 

[katefromny]

Congratulations...isn't it exciting!! We booked our airfare last July for this April trip, and though we paid $188/pp round trip from Rochester and I knew the fares COULD go down before April--it was just a complete relief to be able to book the flight and get the times that I wanted (ie. early morning arrival, late afternoon departure)..thus maximizing our DISNEY adventure! One thing I would warn you about is to check your flight status every so often....even though your trip isn't for 10 months yet. Our flight aboard US AIR has been changed twice, and while this is quite common--I was not happy to find out that they had overbooked the 4:50 flight home from Orlando and rebooked us on an 11 a.m. flight home the same day. It cut a half day out of our Disney trip. Thankfully, I was able to call US AIR directly and get us rebooked on a later flight (4pm), though they did want to charge us $100 per person for the change (can you believe it!!). Anyway, I'm still checking periodically, as our trip isn't until April..but I really don't think there's anything wrong with booking early, and now you can concentrate on all the other planning aspects!!



1994 -- Grosvenor
2000 -- Dixie Landings
2002 -- Boardwalk Villas and Wilderness Lodge Villas (first trip with KIDS!)

 

[Mom B]

Hercamore: Hi! We'll be flying out of MSP on Continental for
$267; I didn't think that was too bad considering some of the
other rates I've seen, especially from Duluth! I did see that
American was posting $248 on expedia today...and US Airways
was showing $208, but US wouldn't give me that rate on a
group contract, and the $20 difference from American probably
isn't worth the hassle of changing at this point. Anyway,
I don't want to harass my poor travel agent too much! I
have a feeling I'll give her enough grief as time goes on. By
the way, we'll be at Old Key West October 27 - 31. Are you
going to be in the neighborhood?

Katefromny: Thanks for the advice! I'll watch those flights.
You seem to understand exactly where I'm coming from; it's
better to know what you're getting into than to fear the
unknown. I guess some of us just have to be "planners."
Like you said...now we can get on to planning other things.

 

[Mom B]

Hercamore: Sorry; reread your post and realized I missed the
point. Our connection going out is IAH (Houston? I think) and
coming home is Cleveland (CLE).

 

[inkkognito]

I don't think you are crazy at all!!!
I am a fellow compulsive traveller, and I always book as soon as I see a good deal, no matter how far in advance it is. The only time I ever ran into any problems was with United flights that we had booked waaaay before 9/11 for Thanksgiving weekend. But even though they were cancelled, we managed to get on good alternative flights. I am compulsive with ALL our travel ressies...we also have our next 8 Disney cruises (all in 2002) booked with DU already, and I am waiting for them to run a special to start booking the ones for 2003.
Barb
Visit the Platinum Castaway Club at: www.castawayclub.com

 

[Humpbacks1962]

That's the way to do it! I booked our August vacation the first week of January, including plane and hotel rooms. I intend to pay everything off way before we get there. If the fare goes down, we'll always ask for a credit, but at least our vacation will be basically paid off before we get there.

Wanda

 

[SNOWBOARDER]

Way to go!!! We did the same thing for our May trip. It's always worth it to get the flights you want. Have a great time!!!

 

[cindala]

I booked our July 2002 airafare in August of 2001. Best prices and times for us, that's why I always book as early as I can if I know we are most likely going.

However, as mentioned above, the flight times are scheduled to change. My times just changed by 15 minutes, and my assigned seats disappeared! I called the Delta Web desk right away, and all was corrected. (The seats were in the system, just weren't showing up on my screen when I checked my itineraries.) I'm sure this will change again, so the best thing to do is to periodically check your ressies on line and see if anything is different.

 

[dtuleya]

We have booked refundable air from BWI to MCO (through Charlotte) for $250/pp for the week of Thanksgiving (11/22-11/29). DTC has given us our seat assignments. How can you tell if your flight has changed? Since we did not book the flight directly, will DTC notify us? Right now, I have the flights I want (Departure times 6:00 AM and 4:20 PM). Do I check flight status through USAir or DTC? Thanks....I'm new to this whole booking flights thing.

 

[tinaluis]

I usually book our trips from Chicago far in advance if I can get a good fare. If I can't, we drive. I check the fares 1-2 times a week. Sometimes, we've been lucky and gotten good fares on ATA or Southwest. Other times, we've driven. Either way, I figure, we'll be at the happiest place on Earth, one way or the other. Have fun!

 

[Bildmouse]

I booked our air for our March/April vacation back in July. The fares have only gotten higher since that time. Do keep checking for changes because that has happened to us at least twice but a quick call and everything has been taken care of such as seat assignments.

 

[yasuern]

I believe that when you see what you feel is a great deal - no matter how far or close to your date of travel you should buy. I purchased 3 rtns tickets from boston to orlando on AA for dec 2002 in jan total for 3 tickets $330.00 - the next day the price was 178.00 for the same flights each ticket.

 

[Mom B]

That's a great deal, yasuern! I guess it's a good idea to "strike
when the iron is hot," or whatever you want to call it. I don't
know...I just feel better having it "done," if you know what I
mean. I guess I'm not the only one who feels that way.
Thanks for all the feedback, everybody!