WebProNews

Tag: Airfare

  • Last-Minute Travel Deals for New Year’s Eve Available

    Last-minute travel deals for New Year’s Eve or after-Christmas visits are available for travelers who are willing to do things a bit differently.

    Consumer Reports offers some tried and true tips for those seeking those last-minute travel deals.

    Tuesday, Wednesday, and Saturday are typically the least expensive days to fly. Flexible travelers typically score the best last-minute travel deals.

    The Travel Channel reports that traveling on a holiday–for example, New Year’s Eve or New Year’s Day–often results in last-minute travel deals of up to 50 percent off the price of flights.

    Flying in or out of an alternative airport can often result in big savings on airfare. Again, flexibility is key when scoring last-minute travel deals. If you’re willing to drive a few extra miles to catch that fly, those miles can translate into big savings. Be sure to check multiple airports when looking for flights.

    Consumer Reports writes, “Check prices (on flights) at 3 p.m. on a Tuesday; that’s when the greatest number of cheap seats might be available. But bargains can appear at any time, so keep searching and set up alerts that will send you an e-mail or text message when prices on your route drop.”

    In a recent survey conducted by Consumer Reports, only 28 percent of travelers haggled with hotels for a lower rate or an upgrade. Of that 28 percent, however, 78 percent scored that upgrade or lower nightly rate. Don’t be afraid to haggle when seeking those last-minute travel deals.

    Are you looking for a few days away now that Christmas is over? Where might you fly off to when scoring your last-minute travel deals?

  • Japan’s Largest Airline Signs New Multi-Year Deal With Google

    Google announced today that Japan’s largest airline, All Nippon Airways (ANA), has signed a new multi-year agreement to use its ITA Software pricing and shopping engine.

    The deal is actually a renewal, as the airline was one of ITA Software’s first QPX customers in Asia.

    “ANA launched QPX in 2008, utilizing our advanced airfare shopping tools to provide international airfare search on www.ana.co.jp,” says technical account manager Lewis Chang, Sr. “ANA has since expanded their international search capabilities to incorporate calendar, flexible date shopping and multi-city. Most recently, ANA added slice-by-slice search capabilities which allows travelers to customize their itinerary by selecting departure and return options separately.”

    “Headquartered in the Shiodome area in Minato, Tokyo, ANA operates service to 49 destinations in Japan and 31 international routes,” adds Chang. “They’ve been a great partner and we’re excited to continue supporting their growth and expansion into other international markets over the next several years.”

    ITA Software powers Google’s Flight Search feature, which was recently expanded both in terms of geography and devices, having launched internationally and on tablets this year.

    Google’s acquisition of ITA Software, as you may know, was the event that led to the formation of the FairSearch coalition, a lobbying group comprised of Google competitors, which sought to see the deal blocked, claiming it was anti-competitive. The deal got by regulators, but the group is still at it, as regulators continue to investigate the company for broader issues. The group has picked up some members outside of the travel industry since the early days.

  • Fly.com Makes It Easier To Search For Flights

    A new concept in online flight search officially takes off in the UK today with the launch of Fly.com.

    Already hugely successful abroad, simple-to-use Fly.com scours all the major airlines, international carriers and online travel sites, and then helps people easily sort and refine results by criteria such as number of stops and departure times and traveller class. 
     
    Unlike most existing flight comparison sites that rely on cached data (old pricing and availability that may no longer be valid at the time of the search), Fly.com uses ‘meta-data’ technology to deliver the latest, most competitive prices – direct from the airlines and travel sites themselves.
     
    As an independent, unbiased authority on airfares, Fly.com provides the widest range of flight options and is the only flight comparison site to include prices for First Class, Business Class and Economy seats – not just the standard charter seats. 
     
    Because Fly.com is not a booking engine, it simply helps visitors decide which flights are right for them and refers them to the appropriate website for direct booking, so they always get maximum air miles.  All fees and taxes are included and Fly.com doesn’t charge visitors for its service.
     
    Says Aaron Ritoper, vice president of business development, Fly.com Europe: “Fly.com is the next generation of flight comparison site. Our mission is to simplify flight search in the UK and to provide exceptional service in every market in which we operate.
     
    “In a recent study we found that people spend an average 2.6 hours and check 4 different sites when booking a flight. We believe this is because there is so much misinformation out there and the prices offered on many sites are often no longer available when it comes time to book. 
     
    “Our results are updated upon every new search, so our users get real prices and availability. This means they don’t have to spend hours comparing flight prices and will not experience the frustration of clicking through on a price and discovering that it is not really there.”
  • Yapta Taps Kayak For Flight Search

    Yapta Taps Kayak For Flight Search

    Airfare tracking service Yapta said today it is partnering with travel search site Kayak to power its flight search engine.

    "By introducing Kayak’s best-in-class flight search engine, Yapta members now have greater access to flight data and are able to track prices for virtually any flight in the world," said Tom Romary, president and CEO of Yapta.

    "Tracking airfare prices prior to purchase will help travelers save money 45 percent of the time. And those travelers that continue to track the price of their flight after purchase will find that they’re eligible for an airline refund about 15 percent of the time. By combining Yapta’s price tracking capability with Kayak’s flight search, we’re looking to help even more travelers save on their airfare — before and after they book."

    Yapta-Kayak

    Kayak said it plans to eventually pair Yapta’s airfare tracking service with the search results on some of its websites.

    Yapta said it has tracked pricing on more than 3 million flights and has provided more than $300 million in savings for its members.