35 replies to this topic

[gareth75]

If u want to do it the cheapest way possible
go to http://www.oasishongkong.com cheapest i can get in june is
£376.00to hongkong then u take a another flight just make sure u got 5 hours before u flight
http://www.thaiair.com cheapest i can get from hong kong to bbk
£171.15
Total
£547.00
it the easy dont need any visa if u british if u go hk can get 180 days on entry and thailand get visa on arival 30 days

[gareth75]

this one can only go from gatwick in london which has really easy transport links can go by train or coach for about 20 pounds

[dixon cox]

kliome's said it all.

Although I understand the desire to get something 'in the bag' as soon as possible it is a costly method.

I have never booked more than 3 months in advance before as the best prices simply aren't posted that early. Even if you left it late these current prices are close to what would be on offer at that time.

For Dec/Jan I would start checking around late August with a view to booking around Sept/Oct.

I only do direct flight these days and www.opodo.co.uk lists all the airlines which do direct. They also have a +/- one day flexible search too. I've used them for years.

[denuk2003]

kliome's said it all.

Although I understand the desire to get something 'in the bag' as soon as possible it is a costly method.

I have never booked more than 3 months in advance before as the best prices simply aren't posted that early. Even if you left it late these current prices are close to what would be on offer at that time.

For Dec/Jan I would start checking around late August with a view to booking around Sept/Oct.

I only do direct flight these days and www.opodo.co.uk lists all the airlines which do direct. They also have a +/- one day flexible search too. I've used them for years.

dixon: thanks for the opodo tip. But their prices are even higher than lastminute at the moment - e.g. £1000+ for 20/12 - 4/1. This is way over my budget so I have no choice but to wait and hope that the prices will be better later in the year.

As hotels expect flight details to be provided with reservations, how does a Sept/Oct flight booking impact on getting a room at the better hotels (DIG, etc)?

[kliome]

I'd agree with Dixon, I always use Opodo or flights4less, they are so easy to deal with and all of these online agents have roughly the same prices, give or take a few quid.

Lastminute are the worst company to use, extremely poor customer services, faceless phone lines, with high administration charges should you need to change anything regarding your flight (pre departure - once you depart t's the airlines responsibility). It's also almost impossible to get anything done through their phone line and thety always insist you contact them via email which takes up to 24hr per e-mail, and usually severl days to get problems solved - whish is a nightmare when ticket prices are changing by the day.

BUT lasminute.com have the best search engine. By using their 'flexible date' search you can work out the cheapest dates and then search for these dates on Opodo or one of the other agents, and you'll find the prices are roughly the same.

AGAIN, it's way to early for Xmas!

[denuk2003]

...Lastminute are the worst company to use, extremely poor customer services, faceless phone lines, with high administration charges should you need to change anything regarding your flight !...

My only criticism of lastminute is that its search engine never worked with my dialup connection. But as I also use ADSL computers it's not a problem.

I use lastminute precisely because I just want to find the cheapest price within my flexible dates, enter the cc details and get my receipt. So, for me, they are still the best. But I accept that my opinion might alter drastically if I ever have to contact their customer services.

[kliome]

I've never had a problem with the search engine. It's a bit slower than most others so I can imagin witha dial-up it might cause problems (I didn't realise anyone in the world still used dial-up! :? ), but the width of the results are brilliant.

I would strongly advise AGAINST using lastminute.com for flights at Christmas or during any busy periods.

I used lastminute.com for years until one Xmas I had to change a flight date and it was a nightmare, I ended spending ££££'s and hours on the phone trying to get it sorted, and as a reslult I got an even worse flight becuase they would only accept confirmation of flight changes via email, but this always took 24hrs, and everytime I made a change the price would have altered or the flight would have filled within the 24hrs. They refused to call me me or allow me to speak to someone who could make a change that instance.

In the end I had to go back to my original flight and because of an administration error (which they still charged for) I had to pay an extra £350. they agree to refund me the money but it ended up taking several more hours of expensive calls to get it back.

I looked up lastminute.com complaints on the web and foudn hundreds of simialr experiences. the only dilemma is that this is the reason why they are so cheap, because of the lack of money spent on customer services and customer care. Without sounding too much like a Daily Mail reader, Opodo and flights4less are a lot better to deal with becuase they have direct phone lines to customer service agents that speak perfect English and have the Authority to make changes there and then.

I'm moaning way too much today.

38 days till LOS!

[dawkin]

Not an options anymore as they are in recievership. What a pity, agreat airlines and so cheap. I used this as a hub for either Thailand or Phil using Cebu-Pacific airlines.

[Hoot]

Dawkin - Since we are digging up an old thread here, at least tell us who you saying is bankrupt? There are a lot of airlines and websites mentioned on this thread. I didn't recognize any of the names from this post that had gone belly up.

[dawkin]

Sorry it is oasis that have gone belly up. I was lucky i flew with them in Jan 2008 and nearly booked again a few weeks ago.


Confirmation from www.oasishongkong.com/gb/en/home.aspx

"It is with regret that Oasis Hong Kong Airlines announces that the airline has applied to the High Court of Hong Kong Special Administration Region to appoint provisional liquidators on 9 April 2008.

Our flight operations have been cancelled until further notice."

[Phil Lander]

I'm not using Cebu again as they did not honor my prepaid booking and charged me again so I could fly . It took months to get a refund off them.