Nobody will like to stand in long lines and communicate with the cashier through the embrasure of the window. If before there was no alternative, and our parents had to storm the representative offices of companies or go to the airport, now you can draw up all the necessary documents and pay for the flight without leaving your home - book airline tickets online.
To do this, you don’t need to have any special knowledge or skills or undergo special training, you just need to be able to use a computer and carefully read this material and take advantage of the advice contained in it.
Choosing an airline or agency
There are several approaches to how to book flights online. The first one is to use the services of a special agency. We are talking, of course, about the sites of these organizations that work with several airlines at once. Through the agency you can quickly find the flight you need, since there is no need to find out which carrier services the destination of interest. It is worth going to the websites of intermediary companies before buying airline tickets online, because:
- sometimes they provide seasonal discounts or cumulative bonuses;
- they have more payment options;
- You can compare prices of different airlines.
However, in addition to the advantages, agencies have their drawbacks. They get money for their work as a percentage of the price of tickets purchased. Sometimes airlines lay the share of intermediaries in the price of a flight, then it does not matter where exactly to book flights. But as a rule, the cost of agency services increases the cost of the buyer, then it is more profitable to turn to the services of the airline directly.
Both of these approaches can be combined with each other. For example, find the flight you want through the agency’s website, and then go to the airline’s Internet resource to complete the transaction.
Search for a flight
Usually, this process for those who are faced with the question “How to buy airline tickets over the Internet?” Does not cause any particular difficulties. In the appropriate field of the form, select the start and end point of the trip, the desired date and number of seats, taking into account the age of passengers. If you plan a one-way trip, then check the corresponding item on the site. On some resources, you can activate the "floating dates" function, then if there are no tickets for the selected day, you can see the neighboring numbers. Pressing the search start key, we proceed to the choice of flight and ticket category.
Categories or classes of airline tickets
People who have not yet gained experience with such operations and don’t know how to buy airline tickets over the Internet will probably be surprised at the very different price of tickets for the same flight. The cost of the flight may differ by two or more. The point is in the class of selected tickets. Different airlines have different ticket categories, but practically everyone has a division into "business" and "economy". There are much more small classes - up to 10 or more varieties. They, as a rule, differ slightly among themselves. The buyer of a ticket of the category “business” or “first class” can use a special check-in counter, a waiting room of increased comfort with an expanded list of services, as well as large, comfortable seats in the front of the aircraft. Different types of economy tickets are distinguished by the ability to change the reservation parameters, the fee for canceling a flight and the restrictions on baggage carried. There are situations when two tickets belonging to different classes do not differ from each other in anything but the price.
The fact is that airlines often set a low price for a ticket, trying to attract customers to their website, but limit the number of discount places to make transportation cost-effective. Thus, when cheap seats run out, the buyer is forced to prefer more expensive ones in order to be able to fly on the appointed day.
Separately, it is worth noting the class of so-called "shuttle" transport. The cheapest air tickets are sold in this category, buying through the Internet here is usually impossible. Payment for a flight in this category is made at the time of check-in.
E-ticket
Having decided on the desired category, you can proceed to direct ticket issuance. If we are talking about international traffic, then you should prepare a passport before you even buy tickets online. Otherwise, a Russian document will suffice. The last name and first name of the passenger, as well as passport data, are entered in the required fields of the form.
After this, the payment procedure occurs, which we will dwell on in more detail below. The result of the whole event will be receiving a ticket by e-mail. Riding somewhere to pick up a printed copy is not necessary. The fact is that now most airlines use an electronic ticket. After receiving the document, you can print it or simply rewrite the reservation code indicated in it. With this data, you can go to the airport on the indicated date.
Online Payment Security
Before proceeding with the reservation, it is necessary to transfer to the card the amount that is supposed to be spent on airline tickets. Buying over the Internet in most cases involves the use of international payment systems. The most convenient plastic cards are such as MasterCard Standart or Visa Classic, they have a three-digit code on the reverse side, which you will need to use to complete the transaction. Some banks require a two-stage authorization to confirm the purchase. In this case, you will need to enter the code in the form field that will be sent to the mobile phone number, or the password indicated on the printout from the bank.
Do not forget to clarify the amount of debited funds before ordering tickets online.
The safety of an operation is largely up to the buyer. Fulfillment of all warnings, which are warned by financial organizations, issuing cards to the user, will insure against unlawful debiting of funds. Also, before proceeding with the payment procedure, you should make sure that a modern anti-virus system with a regularly updated signature database is installed on the computer.
Change flight options
Before ordering airline tickets online, you should make sure that the dates selected are really suitable, and the number of passengers will not change. Otherwise, you will have to change your reservation settings or return tickets.
Alas, coupons of some categories cannot be returned. In other cases, part of the amount will be compensated, however, the full cost of the ticket cannot be refunded.
check-in
Many carriers have recently provided such a convenient service as online check-in. In this case, 24 hours before boarding, you can go to the site and specify the booking code, select a seat on the plane from among the free ones, and also indicate your dietary preferences.
As a rule, there is a choice between classic food and vegetarian, lean or fruit. Check out the food assortment offered by the carrier before you even buy tickets online. Reviews will allow you to understand how tasty one or another airline feeds.
Conclusion
I hope that after reading this review, the reader has a common understanding of how to buy airline tickets over the Internet. There is, of course, a lot of nuances that make flights more convenient and cheaper. This is a program of gift miles, and promotions held by airlines. However, to get to know these features better, you need to dive into e-commerce a little deeper. The information provided is enough to arrange your flight or to answer friends and acquaintances to the question "How to book airline tickets over the Internet?"