Using the approach or intermediate airport strategy.

When private or discount fares are not available on the travel dates of a trip you must take or want strongly to make, pulling connecting airports into service will often put that discount back in your wallet. When a specific air route or itinerary is not available to you, create one, buy the ticket, and fly your own way.

The general idea and a start up method:

Using any published airfare Internet booking engine, input the long haul flight itinerary you want to price from origin airport A to destination airport B. Select the lower prices for acceptable itineraries displayed in the flight search results. Examine those itineraries and note the connecting airport C immediately before your destination. Now input for A to C and check that price. Then input for C to B and check that price. Total the two ticket prices and compare it with the original one ticket price.

Examples using Europe as a departure region:

Zurich, Switzerland to Nadi, Fiji at 1700 British Pounds which connects via Sydney, Australia. Compare Zurich to Sydney at 932 GBP and Sydney to Nadi at 337 GBP. Tally is 1700 minus 1269 which equals a savings of 431 Pounds when using the approach airport strategy. Be certain that you allow at least four or more hours layover at Sydney between the cross ticket flights. Be certain that you document passport, visa and transit requirements before buying air tickets. Consider buying cover in case you miss connections. Consider a relaxing overnight stay in Sydney between tickets in at least one direction. With all considered and spent, you still have money left over for something more than airplane seats.

An even more striking example is cutting cost in half by booking ZRH SEL, SEL SPN instead of ZRH SPN. These examples use the same Internet booking engine throughout. You might learn that one public or private airfare engine has a specially low price to an approach airport A to C and a different engine is showing a promotional fare for C to B. Expanding this strategy even further, a person might come to know that a particular airport always has good prices or better flights to a certain region or country and shop that for the A to C approach even when it is not shown as a connecting airport in the initial flight search results for A to B. An outside in helper could come from scanning special airfare lists and promotional flight offers to spot a potential approach airport.

Sometimes you can use the multiple city function of an Internet booking engine to route a flight via the approach airport and get the same price reduction put on one ticket.

For flying out of North America

Trips from North America into the Pacific region and especially to island nations can often make use of Seoul, Bangkok, and Hong Kong. Some areas are as well or better served by Singapore, Sydney, and Tokyo. Leaving the East Coast for Asia and the Pacific, you might find better prices using a European or an Arabian airport as an approach. Trips into Africa are well served by London, amsterdam, Zurich, and Paris while Brussels, Madrid, and Frankfurt can be better for some African destinations. Trips into the more eastern parts of Europe often benefit by booking into western cities and trips into the Middle East are well served via London, Paris, Amsterdam, and Frankfurt. Flights into Central and South America are well served via Los Angeles, Houston, Dallas, and Miami. The idea is that buying a ticket to an intermediate airport and matching it up with a second ticket onward to your destination will often yield a lower total cost. Sometimes you can use the multiple city function of an Internet booking engine to route a flight via the approach airport and get the same price reduction put on one ticket.

For flying out of Central and South America

We are often asked how to buy tickets on air routes that do not transit United States airports. The answer is similar whether departing from Central America or from some airports in the northernmost countries of South America and whether flying to Canada, Europe, or Africa. Make use of airports in Mexico, Cuba, and many of the Caribbean islands which are not holdings or protectorates of the U.S.

For example, many direct flights to Canada are available from Mexico City, Cancun, and Havana. For Europe, those islands in the Caribbean that are holdings of Great Britain, the Netherlands, Spain, and France offer direct flights to those countries and others as well. The more tourist traffic an airport has arriving from the final destination, the better chance for a direct flight that bypasses the United States.

Before using the following methods to buy your tickets, please be sure to have your travel and transit documents in hand. You can buy a ticket from your origin to one of the airports suggested above and then buy a second ticket from there to your final destination on a flight that does not transit in the States. You can also use the multiple destination function of an Internet booking engine to set your itinerary to make use of the suggested airports and have the entire trip booked on one ticket.

Air routes are constantly changing. Try a regular booking first because an Internet booking engine just might display a direct flight from origin to destination that does not transit a U.S. airport. If none appear in the flight search results, then make use of the hints above.

For flying within and out of Africa:

When travelling from Sub Sahara Africa to destinations in Europe, Eastern Europe, and the Middle East; appreciable amounts of money can be saved by dividing your trip into two flights. Book one flight from central or southern Africa to northern Africa and a second flight from there to your destination. Casablanca, Tunis, Tripoli, and Cairo will often work best as intermediate airports between sub saharan departures and destinations in Europe and countries of the Middle East. Otherwise, if you learn of alternate airports that have high levels of tourist traffic from the final destination, check the total cost of a ticket to that airport and a second ticket from the alternate airport to the final destination. That brief effort could save you a lot of money.

Air travel pricing within Africa is affected by a myriad of factors and fares often come at a premium. The cost of a trip can often be cut in half by using an approach airport and buying two tickets instead of one.

Africa has a wide variance of trade agreements between African countries and with countries on other continents. There are relatively fewer airline consolidators and air ticket brokers holding contracts. This forms a caveat and an opportunity at the same time. The not so good trade agreements will result in higher fares comprised of taxes and fees the airlines must pay and of taxes and fees that passengers must pay all piled above the operating costs of the airline. The opportunity is taken by shopping different airports in different countries and subdividing your trip into two or more shorter flights so that the total cost of several tickets will be appreciably less than one ticket for the entire trip. That same reduction of cost can be obtained by using the multiple city function of an Internet booking engine. That allows you to input those connecting flight segments between airports that yield the lowest cost overall and put them all (or most) on one ticket.

Note: document your passport, visa, and transit requirements before buying airline tickets. Book a layover of four or more hours between cross ticket flights at the approach airport. Consider travel insurance to cover missed connections. Consider an overnight stay between connecting flights to reduce risk and get a good rest. The approach airport shopping strategy will often yield appreciable savings. Consider the big picture because you might realize that saving only a small amount may not be worth the risk and effort involved.

These tactics will not work with every published airfare search engine or with every departure airport or with every approach airport or with every destination. Where and when it does work, it will not work every time. Nonetheless, it is worthy of a studious attempt. Each try will add knowledge toward perfecting the next airfare search.


via Creative Reporter,
Air Travel Center
over the wires at:
http://airtravelcenter.com/over the air at:
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