How to buy a flight ticket without intermediaries?
For many, buying a flight ticket is an exciting event, and no one wants to overpay. Today we will talk about intermediaries when buying a flight ticket: who they are, and if they are necessary?
Intermediaries are travel agencies, airline ticket offices, consolidators (wholesale sellers), and online flight booking agencies, for example, kupi.com.
To buy a flight ticket on Kupi.com without intermediaries means to buy it directly from the airline at their office or on their website.
What are the advantages of buying flight tickets without intermediaries?
First and foremost, it's peace of mind. It's much easier to part with your money when you pay the service provider directly. Secondly, airlines often sell tickets at special web fares that some intermediaries do not have. That's where the advantages end... If you need to change or cancel a flight ticket, you will have to deal directly with the airline. If you are flying with Aeroflot, Transaero, or any other Russian-speaking airline, there are no problems with this. But what if you bought a ticket from a carrier that does not have a representative office in Russia? It's good if you have a sufficient command of English; you can always call or write to them, but what if you don't? In addition, far not every airline has a website with online booking capabilities. In this case, you cannot do without the services of an intermediary. And even if it does, it will not offer all connection options and flights. As a rule, airlines sell tickets only for their own flights, as well as for code-share flights with other airlines. Intermediaries have the ability to connect many airlines, giving you more flexible flight options. Most airline websites are in English, which is another drawback for those who studied German, French, or don't know any foreign language at all.
Why are flight tickets cheaper through intermediaries?
If you are looking for flight tickets online, you have probably already noticed that tickets are cheaper on intermediary websites than on airline websites. The explanation here is very simple: many know that wholesale purchases are much cheaper than retail ones. When you buy any product in bulk, you get it with the minimum markup, and the more you buy, the greater discount you receive. It's the same here: intermediaries are wholesale sellers of flight tickets; they sell hundreds and even thousands of tickets a day, for which they receive them at special confidential rates or on more favorable terms. But even this is not the decisive factor why tickets are cheaper through intermediaries. Prices for the same flight can differ when purchased in different countries. Online ticket booking sites work not only directly with airlines but also with partners, large consolidators worldwide. Thanks to this, you can buy flight on Kupi.com tickets at a price intended, for example, for the US market, which may be cheaper than for Russia. In addition, online flight ticket agencies have a more technologically advanced system for searching and combining fares compared to airlines. There are many different ways to influence flight ticket prices. Whoever does it best sells them cheaper.
Are there any downsides?
There are always downsides. And in the case of booking a flight ticket through intermediaries, they depend solely on the intermediary itself. Some have poor service, others have a limited choice of payment options. However, most of the downsides that passengers complain about on forums and blogs are actually not dependent on the intermediary at all. For example, flight ticket refund rules.
Whether a flight ticket can be refunded or not depends solely on the airline!
It is the airline that sets the exchange and refund possibilities, as well as penalties, in its fare rules. The intermediary can only add a return/exchange fee on top, but a fair one. The process of refunding money for a flight ticket or exchanging it often takes a very long time. The penalty is calculated manually. Blindly relying on an intermediary is also not advisable; it's important to find a good partner and avoid falling victim to scammers, of whom, unfortunately, there are quite a few now.
