By Julian Lenox
Holidays are supposed to be the most relaxing time of the year but if you are not careful enough when planning them, they may become a nightmare. It is a well known fact that anybody can get great international flight deals on the internet. However, not all of these deals are for real.
Sometimes you should trust your gut when these deals seem too good to be true. There are many agencies out there set out to scam you. They will trick you into believing they have the best prices on airline tickets for you, but in the end you will end up without your money and without your flight.
If you find a great international flight deal and you decide to buy it, the first thing you should verify is that the flight reservation is confirmed. Sometimes, you may get a ticket for your flight but that does not necessarily mean that your flight reservation has been confirmed. You should always verify confirmation when you book one of these cheap flights.
It is recommended that you make your payments with a credit card in order to be able to dispute charges in the event of fraud. Nevertheless, sometimes this is not enough. Some agencies will refuse to reimburse you for any kind of charges, no matter how much proof you have of their "mistakes".
Some companies even have class action law suits against them for this kind of crimes. So the best thing to do is make sure that you are working with legitimate agencies. Most serious companies are members of at least one of these organizations: ASTA, American Society of Travel Agents, USTOA, United States Tour Operators Association, IATAN, International Airline Travel Agency Network, BBB - Better Business Bureau.
The way these illegitimate agencies operate is by telling you they will book you the flight then charge you for it, but never book it. Another way of deceiving people is with hidden fees. They will not be entirely honest about all the charges that may result from the transaction, and sometimes you will end up paying awful charges if you request to change your flight.
Let alone scams, cheap flights may end up costing you more in some other ways too. Sometimes, this deals are offered by companies that are about to go bankrupt, and if you buy a ticket from one of this companies you may end up not flying at all.
Furthermore, there is a reason why these flights are not sold out and they are so cheap. Even if they are legitimate, they are not the kind of flight one would buy if one is hoping for a relaxed vacation. These cheap flights tend to include lots of connections and stopovers. You may end up spending more time in the airport than in the hotel.
All in all, whatever the case, it is highly recommended that you do a significant amount of research before purchasing these cheap international flight deals. As we have seen, they may end up costing you more than expected, not only in terms of money, but also in terms of preserving your peace of mind.
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