Priceline tickets

[HappyMom0328]

So, I've been looking for the cheapest possible tickets for a trip out to ND to visit a friend. I came across Priceline.com, I entered my travel dates and it came up with the price of around 550 (sounds about right). There was a button that said "Name Your Price". You go to it put in your price then it bumps it up to like 50 more then you put in... So if ya put 100 then its like 150. Anways, I was just wondering if anyone had tried this before.


This is what is says-
You can save up to 40% over leading online sites when you Name Your Own Price® for your flight.1 We guarantee you a quality travel experience at the best price possible. Please note that Name Your Own Price® flights are economy (coach) class only.
Also
Your trip will start between 6am and 10pm on your travel dates. Your exact flights and times will be shown to you once your purchase is complete. Although we always look for non-stop flights first, priceline flights may make up to one connection each way.

I want to go ahead and purchase my tickets but it just seem impossible to get a round trip flight for that cheap. Let me know if you have dealt with this before.

Thanks!!

 

[GWguy]

I used Priceline when it first came out, but for groceries. They've since stopped doing that. If I remember, they would "deal" with you the first or second time, but then the deal prices would go up. Eventually, it wasn't worth the effort. A few of my friends noted the same thing. I have no idea if they still do that. Try going directly to the airlines. I know I get far better rates dealing with SouthWest directly than using another broker.

 

[StrawberryGal]

If you purchase your airline tickets from Priceline.com, it doesn't mean you have a seat reserved on the airplane. It is better to purchase tickets from the airline company if you want to have a peace of mind to have your seat reserved.

 

[deemerma]

So, I've been looking for the cheapest possible tickets for a trip out to ND to visit a friend. I came across Priceline.com, I entered my travel dates and it came up with the price of around 550 (sounds about right). There was a button that said "Name Your Price". You go to it put in your price then it bumps it up to like 50 more then you put in... So if ya put 100 then its like 150. Anways, I was just wondering if anyone had tried this before.


This is what is says-
You can save up to 40% over leading online sites when you Name Your Own Price® for your flight.1 We guarantee you a quality travel experience at the best price possible. Please note that Name Your Own Price® flights are economy (coach) class only.
Also
Your trip will start between 6am and 10pm on your travel dates. Your exact flights and times will be shown to you once your purchase is complete. Although we always look for non-stop flights first, priceline flights may make up to one connection each way.

I want to go ahead and purchase my tickets but it just seem impossible to get a round trip flight for that cheap. Let me know if you have dealt with this before.

Thanks!!

I have used Priceline a NUMBER of times, I would recommend it as long as you are prepared for the reality of this type of purchase, meaning you are FLEXIBLE

here are the negatives of the name your price:

you do not get to pick the time of your flight and are usually stuck with the exact time you don't want out of the choices you first see

once you submit, you are locked in, your card is charged and there is no changing it. The airlines are not usually willing to "work with you" too much with tickets bought through a "3rd party," somehow their computers know where/how the ticket is purchased. I was successful once in changing my departure home--I said I had an ear infection and couldn't fly. gossip: I really just wanted to stay longer and had no reason to hurry home)

as with regular purchases, the more connections you make, the cheaper the flight, so what should be a 2hr. flight turns into 5 hrs.

here are the positives:
YOU CAN NAME YOUR OWN PRICE. SERIOUSLY. They may not accept your first offer, but you can add $5 and try again, and they may...

I usually start off with a ridiculously low amount, knowing that they are going to add at least $20 in fees, I'm not sure what the going rate is as my experiences were 5+ years ago.

i.e.: I put in $100 for a round-trip to Denver, CO, they reject it, I raise to $110, they reject it, I put in $125, reject, $130 (plus $50 in "fees"), I get my ticket for $180 and get the flight at 6am, which means I have to leave the house at 4am, which means I have to get up at 2:30/3am. Then for the return trip, I get to leave at 5pm, make 4 layover "stops" and "delayed due to mechanical problems" get home at 11:45pm--ever tried to get someone to pick you up from the airport at 11:45pm? You could always leave your car at the airport, long-term parking isn't horrible...

But, I GOT MY ROUND-TRIP ticket for $180...

 

[kalmd]

My co-worker gets great deals on hotwire.com.

 

[musiclady]

I used this too. Got good prices for 6 to go to FL with airfare, hotel and car roundtrip. However, a nonstop flight is less than 3 hours. With this deal, we left FL at their first flight out, layed over 5 hours in GA, then another 2 somewhere else, then they held our flight cuz it wasn't full for another 1 1/2 hours, and flew us to NJ for a hop to BWI, but since they held our flight, we arrived in NJ AFTER the last flight of the night, had to spend our own cash to spend the night ( rental car place was already closed), and hubby missed 4 hours of work the next day by the time we arrived in BWI and got home. Wasn't worth the "savings," but was an excellent deal.

 

[Chasey_Lane]

I like cheaptickets.com. Expedia and Travelocity have good fares, too. I don't think I've ever purchased an airline ticket directly through the airline and I've never been bumped or delayed, but I have heard horror stories before.

 

[kris31280]

The secret to booking travel with control over when you'll fly is to use a big site like Expedia, Orbitz, Hotwire, Sidestep, etc., take the cheapest flight listed from them and go to that airline's website directly. 90% of the time you'll get the ticket cheaper with less fees by purchasing directly from the airline. Also, fly on a Tuesday or Wednesday (both ways) and the price drops by an average of $100.

My ticket to MN cost $267 round trip with fees included on Midwest Airlines.

 

[BottleBlonde]

I recently stumbled across kayak.com when looking for plane tickets.

it's great & compares prices at all the different sites (ie. priceline, orbitz, expedia, etc, as well as the actual airline sites).

I've found round trip (seattle to bwi) for $225!

 

[HappyMom0328]

Thanks for all the advice on the sites to use. I would hate to order off Priceline if my seat wasn't guaranteed. However if that isn't the case I wouldn't mind flying at off the wall times.. With the prices of everything now n days good lord you do what works.. haha.. Thanks for the Input