Travel booking using an online aggregater. Part 3

Using an online travel aggregater to book flights is generally my first and usually the best option I've found when booking online air travel.  These aggregaters look at all online travel sites like Orbitz, Travelocity, Expedia, and many more including the airline sites like Delta, United etc.  The results they return are an amalgam of the "best of" depending on the parameters you put in the search whether by price or schedule or limiting the number of connections.  My favorite is http://www.kayak.com/.  It also allows you the options of searching by a specific carrier so if you are trying to use Delta for example, it pays to look at both Kayak as well as Delta since there may be some unpublished specials on the Delta site  The aggregaters will also mix and match carriers to give you the best fare options which specific airlines seem reluctant to do even if they are in the same "alliance" or award common shared "sky miles" points.  Some aggregaters are region specific and for those traveling to Europe next summer consider http://www.skyscanner.com/ or http://www.momondo.com/.  Kayak also has a neat feature that allows you to check a box called "my dates are flexible" and will then show you the best fares for up to 3 days on either side of your preferred travel dates coming and going. Momondo has a unique calender that lets you easily click to change dates and start the search over.  These are but a few of the ways to book travel. 

Booking International travel online searches (part 2)

Shopping for an international airfare online is best done in stages.  Every time you visit one of the dozens of online travel sites the fare to your intended destination will likely change.  Sometimes its cheaper and sometimes not.  This blog deals with the online travel sites that just search for the date and schedule you want and and returns options to consider.  They are paid from a small markup from the airline and from some ads in the margin.  Some of the more popular Online travel sites are www.EXPEDIA.com. www.TRAVELOCITY.com or www.ORBITZ.com.  They do a good job of mapping out all the possibilities of getting you to your selected destination and home again.  They do it well and will search most airlines to get you a reasonable selection of options to select from based on price, schedule and number of stops.  You can screen for preferred airlines (i.e Delta.com) and even set a filter to eliminate too many connections.  In theory you are seeing what the airlines offers at their sites but I have found that sometimes it pays to look at the airline site as well to see if perchance they may have something else to consider or even a "special".  Fares for the same routing can vary many times a day so it pays to check them all.  Prices will also vary based on dates selected, time of the year and demand for those airline seats.  In other words, who is your competition for those seats.  If you plan to travel to London in late July you'll be competing with the world trying to get there for the summer Olympics.  If there is a big trade show that week, you'll have lots of businessmen traveling who can generally pay more so the airlines obliges by not discounting their seats.  If you want to go to Rome or Paris in July you'll have tourists in place of the business traveler.  My suggestion is to check these sites beginning 3-4 months before traveling and then monitor regularly for a while before booking.   There is not urgency to book anytime before April for July trip.  The airline is in no hurry to discount and they don't even know the final demand for a trip in late June (more on when to book in an upcoming blog). Also look for other nearby gateway European cities that may offer cheaper fares direct from North America.  For example fly to Manchester, England instead of London, Lyon instead of Paris.  You can use these online travel booking sites to also check internal European flights on a whole host of discount air carriers within Europe that fly to Tallinn.  Part 3 next week:  the ONLINE AGGREGATOR. 

Passport for travel to Europe

Tallinn the capital city is located just accross the Gulf of Finland from Helsinki (not incidated on the map but just below the "D" in Finland).  By ferry boat the distance is about 42 miles.  Estonia is part of the European Union and uses the Euro unlike the other Baltic nations who still use their national currency and are only provisional members of the EU.  Once you have cleared immigration and customs in any Euroean country that is one of the 17 member countries you are able to travel to any member EU country much as we in North America can travel between states and provinces.

Not sure who is reading this so best to note that anyone traveling to Europe from anywhere else in the world will need a passport.  In the US the passport forms can be secured at the US post office https://www.usps.com/shop/apply-for-a-passport.htm or completed online at the US State Department http://travel.state.gov/passport/  First time applicants will need to appear in person at a post office to verify identification.
Passports are valid for 10 years and cost $110 plus a small handling fee.  Best to apply early or check and make sure your old passport will still be valid through next July.  You can get them in about 3 weeks or for lots more money you can get them rushed out but why wait?

Booking international travel using a travel agent (part 1)

Since you are reading this blog online I’ll assume you are probably more inclined to book your travel online without the use of a local travel agent. However, there are still many benefits to using some outside professional help especially if you are planning for multiple city stops needing hotels, train travel, car rental or even tours including cruises.   All this can also be done online by most PC literate travelers at any number of travel sites which will be my next blog (part 2 of travel booking).     

Airlines have all but eliminated agent commissions on flights over the past several years which has forced travel agents to focus on other aspects of travel such as the tours, hotels, car rentals and visas if needed (not necessary in Europe).  In order to get your business they will be happy to book your multi city travel international air travel for a service fee.  The fee for booking an international ticket is generally between $30 and $50 per ticket but worth it if you get a good fare, good stopovers and travel times that suite your style of travel (i.e. no 5 am departures or midnight arrivals in Budapest).  An experienced agent can also recommend and book all your hotels and airport transfers as needed.  To find a local travel agent you can ask around or check out http://www.angieslist.com/travel-agencies/.  The Angies Listing for your area will include phone numbers a map and reviews by users.