Anyone work for an airline ?

[Samberr74]

anyone that would be willing to help me find a good price from NC to manila?

[LoneWanderer]

Sorry, I don't work for an airline but I'm willing to look for prices, if that helps you. There's quite a few good searching engines for flights online. Although admittedly I don't exactly know as much when flying from the States. More knowledge with flights in Europe instead.

So what's your price range, eg. minimum, optimum, maximum? Which airport would you like to depart from? Do you prefer having a domestic flight first and then a long-haul flight or going to a big airport and trying to find as direct connection as possible?

[Samberr74]

my airport codes are GSO , RDU , CLT philippines airport code is MNL

ideally my price would be 850 - 1100

I must leave march 3rd and return around may 22nd

Usually airline workers have what they call buddy passes that can greatly reduce the price of the ticket to just the taxes on it

[LoneWanderer]

Aha, I see. Then I don't know if I can be of much help -- at least when it comes down to low, low prices.

Having a look at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manila_Airport#Passenger seems like you'd have to change planes at San Francisco, Los Angeles or Las Vegas. I need to do a double-check but I find it weird that Delta Airlines would have a route between Detroit and Manila?!

Had to have a look on Google Maps what is NC exactly...haven't got such a good knowledge on US state abbreviations

United Airlines flies from Manila to Guam so I wonder if they've got flights even from the States directly to Guam. Probs not the best airport to change planes, though

Other options, when it comes down to changing planes, would perhaps be Honolulu or even Australia. The latter one, though, might make it a loo-oong trip, dunno about the prices then. But Qantas seem to have a good coverage with routes between Oz and the Philippines.

[LoneWanderer]

Through delta.com

No flights found from GSO, RDU

CLT-MNL ~USD 1,400

From CLT to MNL via Detroit and Nagoya (Japan) = 21 h 47 mins

MNL-CLT via Tokyo-Narita (Japan) and JFK in NYC = 25 h 21 mins

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I wonder how the airline booking systems work in the USA. At least here you'd better book any flights many months in advance in order to obtain the cheapest fare possible.

Probably too risky to wait and look for last minute fares?

Do the Philippines allow an US citizens to obtain a visa upon arrival to the country or do you need to contact their Embassy in your home country first? In such a case I wonder how efficient they are, if one month is enough?

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With Philippine Airlines "current offers" return flights STARTING from USD 1,218 to SFO/LAX/LAS ... add to that the cost of having to get there first of all.

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Hotwire.com

USD 1,303.50

RDU-MNL (March 3)

MNL-RDU (May 22)

Change at JFK and Hong Kong (American Airlines and Cathay Pacific)

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United Airlines website

USD 1,355.76

CLT-MNL

Change at Houston, Honolulu, Guam -- so perhaps not such a good choice?

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Orbitz.com

USD 1,319

CLT-MNL

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Cheapoair.com / Onetravel.com

USD 1,335

CLT-MNL

These offer some kind of USD 20 discount, which would make the total price USD 1,315. Not sure about their conditions, though.

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Cheapoair.com

USD 1,162

Leaving from CTL but returning to RDU

Including an almost eight hour stopover in Dubai

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Kayak.com

USD 1,288

RDU-MNL

More stopovers than with other search engines

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Asaptickets.com

USD 1,130.03

Never heard of this site/company before? They want you to call them and make the booking to get the cheaper fare. Are they reliable?

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Some sites offer a minor discount as a part of their "Valentine's Day sale". But then you've got to book your flights today at the latest. Of course you've got more of the day remaining than I do

Sorry, now I've got to start looking for clothes for tonight's meeting. CO visit beginning. Thought it would be easier than this to find cheap fares...

[ava]

My husband works for American Airlines, and honestly, I would not give a buddy pass for someone to travel international. Yes, there would be a huge savings, but trust me, the hassle of flying on standby for an international trip is not worth the cost savings. I fly at a higher standby class then our buddies would, and I don't think I would want to do it. I am sure I would, but it would probably be a nightmare, lol.

One thing I have learned from other's, the earlier you buy the ticket, the cheaper it will be. Yes, you may find a deal close to your trip, but that is not a guarantee. It's best to buy it as early as possible from what I understand.

[Tazenergy]

I would not give a buddy pass for someone to travel international.

One thing I have learned from other's, the earlier you buy the ticket, the cheaper it will be. Yes, you may find a deal close to your trip, but that is not a guarantee. It's best to buy it as early as possible from what I understand.

What is a buddy pass? I do try to get my tickets a few months early. I don't fly international, the farthest I've flown was Maine to Hawaii for the International DC in 09. That was a terrific trip. Now I usually fly from Maine to St.Louis or Maine to Alabama.

[ava]

I would not give a buddy pass for someone to travel international.

One thing I have learned from other's, the earlier you buy the ticket, the cheaper it will be. Yes, you may find a deal close to your trip, but that is not a guarantee. It's best to buy it as early as possible from what I understand.

What is a buddy pass? I do try to get my tickets a few months early. I don't fly international, the farthest I've flown was Maine to Hawaii for the International DC in 09. That was a terrific trip. Now I usually fly from Maine to St.Louis or Maine to Alabama.

People who work for airlines like my husband get a certain amount of "buddy passes" each year that they can give out. The buddy passes do cost, they are not free, but they are very very cheap compared to buying a ticket yourself. You fly standby, but employees are good at letting you know what days to fly are good or bad, avoid holiday weekends, certain times of the day are better flying standby then other times of the day, etc.

[Tazenergy]

People who work for airlines like my husband get a certain amount of "buddy passes" each year that they can give out. The buddy passes do cost, they are not free, but they are very very cheap compared to buying a ticket yourself. You fly standby, but employees are good at letting you know what days to fly are good or bad, avoid holiday weekends, certain times of the day are better flying standby then other times of the day, etc.

Ohhh thank you for letting me know. So are there any other tips we should know about? I'm going to try to fly out of here on a Monday and come back Wed. Does that sound okay as far as the days go?

[ava]

People who work for airlines like my husband get a certain amount of "buddy passes" each year that they can give out. The buddy passes do cost, they are not free, but they are very very cheap compared to buying a ticket yourself. You fly standby, but employees are good at letting you know what days to fly are good or bad, avoid holiday weekends, certain times of the day are better flying standby then other times of the day, etc.

Ohhh thank you for letting me know. So are there any other tips we should know about? I'm going to try to fly out of here on a Monday and come back Wed. Does that sound okay as far as the days go?

I can only offer tips on flying standby, sorry. I don't buy my airplane tickets, so I don't know if there are better days to fly out on, or if better days are cheaper. I have heard, and I may be wrong, that flying during the week usually is cheaper and planes are not as full vs flying on weekends. But that may not be accurate.

Since I fly standby, I can only help with that.

Only tips I can really help with are how to pack your carry on luggage, as I am an expert on that, lol. I have the 3 oz liquid rule down pat, and I know what the TSA does and does not like on your carry on luggage. I fly so much and I have dealt with the TSA all over this country, so I am pretty good now on that, lol.

[GrumpysWife]

I have found that if you get your tickets for a Tuesday and return on either a Tues or Wed the flights are cheaper. When we fly to New Hampshire that's what I do and then South West doesn't charge for baggage and that's a big break in price.

[Tazenergy]

Thank you Ava, I usually fly about once a year when I go on vacation. Last year I flew in Sept for a weekend trip to St.Louis, then again for my nieces funeral in Nov. I usually try to put everything in my checked baggage that way I don't have to worry about it. I just carry things I need for a few hours on the plane with me. I try to keep my bag small so I can have it at the seat with me. I try not to have anything that will have to go above me.

[Tazenergy]

Thats a help to Vernalee, I will have to keep that in mind.