TRAVEL SPECIAL............. HOW TO GET THE BEST AIRLINE DEALS?

 HOW TO GET THE BEST AIRLINE DEALS?





Domestic flyers need to factor in several things. First, they need to understand that these promotional offers are not going to be there forever. They should be utilised whenever they are available. “The all inclusive promotional offers of `500 and `990, will not continue because they are not sustainable rates,“ says Samyukth Sridharan, chief operating officer, Cleartrip.com. AirAsia's Goa­Bangalore air fair has already gone up to `1,699 from its promotional fare of `990.

Second, the fall in air fare is not simply because of AirAsia's predatory introductory offers. In fact, because of addition of capacity in the aviation sector, prices will not go back to previous levels. “Airlines have indicated that rates will be around 30% lower than the prevailing rates,“ says Sharat Dhall, president, Yatra.com. If that happens, it will indeed be `achhe din' for domestic travellers.

Third, the new player is helping break the existing cartel in the aviation sector. “Competition came down drastically post Air Deccan and Sahara Airlines' buyout. The industry began acting like a cartel. AirAsia will break the cartel which is in the interest of the consumers,“ says Subash Goyal, chairman, STIC Travel Group, and president, Indian Association of Tour Operators.

Now prices are expected to settle somewhere between the current promotional low fares and the cartel-promoted sky-high prices before AirAsia's entry. It will be in the interest of the flyers to book their flights at the earliest.

However, routes where AirAsia and other new airlines are looking to start operations could see a drop in air fares. There is a high probability that AirAsia will soon start offer ing services from a centre that operates international flights -Kolkata, Chennai or Thiruchirappalli. Since Bangalore is going to be its operational hub, it may also start flight operations to nearby places such as Hyderabad, Kozhikkode, Thiruvananthapuram, Puducherry, etc.

Expecting AirAsia's expansion to other routes, airlines have begun cutting rates. For instance, Indigo and SpiceJet have announced tickets starting from `1,999 for most routes they operate on. So, travellers who can wait for a few more weeks should wait for AirAsia's predatory offers and counter offers by other airlines, to benefit from the price war. The launch of Tata-Singapore Airlines is expected around September-Oc tober. Though this is going to be a full-service carrier, its launch and the additional supply will put pressure on air ticket rates and could bring the prices further down. “Tata­Singapore Airlines JV's entry is going to be another factor that may shake up the domestic aviation market, but things should stabilise after that,“ says Indiver Rastogi, chief operating officer and head, corporate travel, Thomas Cook (India). STIC's Goyal agrees: “Due to increase in competition, fares may fall once again when the Tata-Singapore Airlines JV is launched.“ Book early There are several ways smart flyers can get good deals. The most important among them is: Book early. Spot rates (for immediate travel) are usually 2-4 times higher compared to ticket rates a few months earlier.
And this is advisable even to the business class travellers. “Though it is difficult for corporate customers, we still advise them to book in advance to save costs,“ says Rastogi.
Why do airlines like advance bookings? This is part of their yield management. “Only the first few seats (15-20) are offered at the lowest rates and then they keep on increasing the fares,“ says Sridharan. They keep the last few seats for the spot customers and charge very high rates from them. “Corporate customers who travel at the last minute and pay the maximum price are subsidising customers who book early,“ says Rastogi.

Use calendar spreads The rates offered by airlines keep varying. “Monday morning flights to major cities are costly,“ says Rastogi. This is because of the heavy rush of business travellers at the start of the work week. Similarly, there is heavy outbound rush from cities on Friday evenings and this pushes up the rates. Leisure travellers can avoid this rush and save money. “Book tickets on Tuesdays and Thursdays as they are usually cheaper on these two days of the week,“ says Expedia's Malhi.

Though the rush will be lesser compared to Mondays, morning rush to major cities on all weekdays is quite high. Similarly, on all weekdays there will be outbound evening rush -though a bit less compared to Fridays.
Leisure travellers can easily avoid this by booking flights in the middle of the day. And, if you are ready for a little inconvenience, there are several late night connecting flights that offer discounted air fares.

Festival day booking Another problem faced by Indian air travellers is the jump in fares close to major festivals. The government has to take steps to control this. “During Christmas time, flying to Goa becomes costlier than flying to London,“ says Goyal.

Since the government may actually not do anything about it, you can take steps to help reduce your costs. “Book on the day of the festival, in case you have to travel the same day,“ suggests Malhi. This is because most travellers want to reach the home / tourist destinations before the festival and, therefore, the rates are a bit cheaper on the day of the festival.

Go for combo offers The commonest combo offers are the return trips. However, if you want to cancel your journey, some airlines may force you to cancel the return as well. Therefore, go for the combos only when the return fare is offered at a significant discount. Next in line are hotel-plus offers. “Travellers should take good hotel deals when available. After all, they have to look at the bundled cost for the trip and not just at one component,“ says Rastogi. “At times, air fare plus hotel room costs may almost be the same as the air fare alone at other times,“ says Sridharan. Some sites offer travel insurance deal also, go for it only if you need to buy insurance.

Wait for offers “Travellers have to plan in advance and then wait for promotional offers,“ says Sridharan.
Though offers pour in almost on a weekly basis, travellers have to act fast to benefit.
“Since offers are available for a few hours, they (travellers) have to get the information fast (by signing up for mobile apps, email alerts, SMS alerts, etc.) and also to make up their mind and take action immediately,“ says Dhall. The offers can come through your bank as well. For example, Indigo is now offering 10% discount on base fare for HDFC Bank and SBI card holders. However, please note that you can't club two offers. So, pick the offer that gives you the maximum benefit.

ETW14063