Difference between round trip ticket and 2 one way tickets

[disneymom06]

We usually drive to Disney. This trip we are flying and I was wondering, what is the difference between purchasing our airfare on Jet Blue as a round trip ticket or 2 one way tickets? Our dates are flexible for both going to and coming home.

Also, what are the best days to purchase tickets? I noticed that flying on a Tuesday or Wednesday appear to be the cheapest. Any advice or suggestions would be appreciated. We are going in July.

 

[sharona]

I always buy 2 one way tix. If you buy round trip and for whatever reason miss your 1st flight, you whole itinerary will get canceled. Also, not sure if they still do this on JB but you used to be able to call in and get a credit to your True Blue account if prices dropped - easier to do on one ways If the price goes up on one ticket and down on the other. Otherwise, there really is no difference.

I don't see any advantage to booking round trip.

 

[seashoreCM]

Long long time ago, most airlines sold a nonrefundable round trip ticket for less than the price of two one ways. This was originally intended to result in increased ticket sales because more leisure travelers would fly, while not losing too much revenue due to business travelers' going after the round trips. The intended result ceased panning out -- too many businesses insisted that their travelers buy the cheapest thing -- and therefore many airlines ceased giving a discount for the round trip.

For some popular dates, the best time to book is at IPO. But IPO for the return trip may be on a different date than IPO for the outgoing trip and when there is no price advantage to the round trip, it could be better to snag just the outgoing trip first, as a one way.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

Just keep in mind that the opposite is true for international flights. Two one way tickets are far more expensive than a round trip ticket.