Making reservations for family of 4 question...

[bande]

I am looking at flights with Jet Blue for my family of 4. Is is better to make each reservation separately in case of price drops to make is more likely to receive credits? It is harder to find price drops for group of 4 versus 1? I haven't booked flights for many years and things are so different now. Any input would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Jestocost]

There are pluses and minuses to booking everyone separately. On the plus side, you may be better able to get flight credits if prices decline if there are fewer than four seats available at the lower price. If that's the big concern, be sure to book two one-way tickets vs. a round trip tickets. However, JetBlue charges a $100 per ticket change fee so unless the prices drop by more than that per ticket for you to get any benefit.

The minuses would be that the airline doesn't know you all are traveling together and you are more likely to be split up if there is any change in aircraft, that you have to keep track of multiple confirmation numbers and that you will need to do multiple check ins for each flight.

Given that JetBlue does charge change fees and your chances of being able to benefit from lower fares after purchase is limited, I would think there is little advantage to booking everyone separately.

 

[bande]

Do you mean that in order to get credits applied if my fare went down, I have to pay $100 per ticket? Is the credit not just applied to your account for future use? If so, is this because they issue a new booking for you? Thanks for the clarification. If this is the case I may wait to book my flights at a price I'm willing to stay at and not look for credits. Thanks.

 

[Jestocost]

Do you mean that in order to get credits applied if my fare went down, I have to pay $100 per ticket? Is the credit not just applied to your account for future use? If so, is this because they issue a new booking for you? Thanks for the clarification. If this is the case I may wait to book my flights at a price I'm willing to stay at and not look for credits. Thanks.

That's right. Most airlines charge a fee for any changes made to a non-refundable fare (which includes all but the highest-priced fares). This includes getting the benefit of a lower price if the fare drops after you purchase. So, yes, with JetBlue if the fare drops, you have to pay a change fee to get any credit and since the change fee is $100 per ticket the fare has to have dropped by more than $100 per ticket for their to be any credit left over.

FWIW, $100 is one of the lowest change fees. Most of the legacy carriers (American, United, Delta, etc.) charge $150 per ticket. Southwest is about the only carrier of note that does not charge any change fees and allows you to get full credit for a future flight if their price drops.

Click here for a link to JetBlue's policy, but the relevant portion is excerpted below:

For JetBlue Nonrefundable Fares, changes or cancellations may be made prior to scheduled departure for a fee of $100 per person plus any applicable difference in airfare. Any remaining balance will be placed in a JetBlue air-only credit and may be applied toward future travel for one year from date of issuance. If a nonrefundable reservation is not changed or cancelled prior to scheduled departure, all money associated with the reservation is forfeited.

 

[tinka-belle]

Jet Blue will not charge the change fee if you CALL them for price drops. Can't do it online without a fee. If there are not enough price drop seats the JB agent can split the record at that time, no need to book the four of you separately now. It has to be on the same flight/date you are booked on for the fee to be waived. Not sure how long JB will keep this policy, but it does help clients to make a decision and get the flights they want knowing they could get a credit (not a refund) if there are price drops on exactly what they now have.

Just a tip: When booking a round trip jot down the base price of each leg. Sometimes one goes down and the other up, but on the phone they can reprice each one way flight and give you the credit for just the lower price one without touching the other flight. If you don't know which flight went down it can take them longer to figure it out when you call.

 

[bande]

I will keep looking and see which flights I can get that work and then watch them like a hawk just in case. Someone has just posted about getting credits for their April flights so I will see what they say too about how they did it. Thanks again.

 

[goofy4tink]

I always call Jetblue when my fares go down...and I get the difference applied to my account.

As far as which is better to book..together or individually.
I would book everyone under the same reservation. If there are any changes, you may not all be moved together.
I booked my flight to Orlando last spring. Last month, I decided that my dd was going to be able to go with me, so booked her flight. Now, every time there is any type of change, we get two different email notifications. And if there were to be a flight cancellation, or an equipment change, we would be very likely to end up in different areas of the plane, or possibly on two different flights!!!
I called JB to see if I could have the two reservations linked to each other. Nope, not possible. I would have had to cancel them both, rebook and pay any differences in cost. So, save yourself some trouble down the line and book 'em all together.

 

[nkereina]

That has not been my experience with JetBlue, they have either given me a voucher to use towards a future flight or credit me with the price difference, even if it's been under $100. The only time I've encountered the change fee rule is with AirTran, and they would only give me the difference in price if the difference was greater than $75, since that is their change fee.