BY Clay Larroy
Make
the most of your travel experiences.
Taking a cruise is a great way to see many different places when you travel.
Cruises offer many activities and things to do while on the ship, while
offering you the opportunity to explore different locations each time you
arrive at a port. Travel is a great opportunity to learn more things. Time
spent abroad helps you understand and appreciate diverse cultures. In addition,
it encourages an acceptance and tolerance of ways of life that differ from your
own. When
you want to plan a vacation contact me!
SAVING BIG WITH INTERNATIONAL Consolidators AIRFARES
You want to go to Australia this winter, but published
fares are through the roof. Guess kangaroos, the outback and Crocodile Dundee
will just have to wait for your arrival, right? Not necessarily. With a little
patience and a good travel agent, you might just luck into one of the real
secrets of inexpensive travel... international airline consolidators.
Before we go
any further, a word of warning - do not try this at home. Your travel agent
will be able to steer you to reputable companies that have actual contracts
with the major airlines to sell discounted tickets. Trying to get a
consolidator ticket on your own is a risky proposition. The United
States Air Consolidator Association (USACA) sells their consolidator
tickets only through travel agents. So with that warning...here is what you
need to know.
Unlike domestic fares, international airfares are
regulated by an airline organization, the International Air Transportation
Association (IATA). However, every airline faces capacity problems... how to
sell the most tickets at as high a price as possible. If the airlines always
held out for their published fares, though, too many seats would go unsold.
This is why many international airlines turn to consolidators for assistance.
The best consolidators have contracts with airlines to
quietly sell their tickets at a discount through travel agents. In return,
bona-fide consolidators purchase large volumes of inventory from the airlines
at a discount. The effect is quite remarkable: travel agents can sell
international airline tickets at fares less, and often much less, than the
airlines themselves. This can save you literally hundreds of dollars.
Not every consolidator holds a contract with every
international airline. Most have several contracts, and some specialize in only
certain geographic markets such as Asia or South America. Your travel agent
will know which consolidators to use depending on where you want to go, and
they will often check rates with more than one. The key is reliability, finding
a company with a history of providing good service to agents and their clients.
Using a consolidator ticket is identical to using a
published fare ticket. On occasion, no fare is shown on the ticket, but this is
normal. Your travel agent will also include the taxes and other fees that are a
part of the actual ticket price. In some instances, but not all, the airline
may even credit your frequent flier account for your miles, giving you a real
bonus on your discounted ticket.
Consolidators are also the source for terrific
bargains on ‘Around the World’ tickets. These unbelievably inexpensive rates
are geared toward extended, sometimes months-long trips circling the globe,
hopping from one destination to the next. Constructing an around the world
itinerary is part art and part science. Around the World tickets have their own
rules and regulations, but every armchair traveler dreaming of a world-wide
excursion should ask their travel agent for more information.
So what is keeping you in your armchair? There are
bargains to be had on international airfares if you have a travel agent in the
know...and you do!
REFERENCE SITES:
http://www.travelresearchonline.com/
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