Air Travel

Question:

: Archive-name: travel/air/online-info : Last-modified: 1994/11/01 : [[ This Q&A is a response to a flood of questions about access to Eaasy Sabre :  and the like.  Suggestions for improvement welcome.]] : * Is there a way to get airline schedules on the Internet for free? : Yes, finally, but the longer answer is more complicated.  See below. : * Is there a way to get airline schedules on the Internet if I pay for it? : Definitely.  See below. : * What’s available for free? : PC Travel is an on-line travel agency that lets you telnet in, check fares : and schedules, and make reservations.  Credit card number required to : check fares and make reservations, but they won’t issue tickets or charge : you until you specifically say to do so.  Data come from APOLLO, the : United Airlines reservation system.  Tickets are issued through PC Travel, : paying with a credit card, generally delivered the next day by FedEx.  I : find it relatively slow and clunky compared to Eaasy Sabre, but : considering that it’s free, it’s great.  Telnet to pctravel.com. : * What other reservation systems are available? : There are three computer reservation systems available to the general public: : EAASY SABRE: Run by American Airlines, lets you check fares and schedules : on all airlines with computerized reservations (all but the most obscure), : and make reservations for yourself and others.  Tickets can be sent by : mail, issued by airlines at the airport or city ticket offices, or by any : travel agent with a Sabre terminal, which is nearly all agents in the U.S. : You can keep a lot of profile info on-line such as frequent flyer numbers : and meal and seat preferences which are automatically inserted into : reservations you make for yourself.  Your ID is your AAdvantage frequent : flyer number.  Official Recreation Guide available at extra cost.  Line : oriented command language, e.g.  to ask for flights from Boston to San : Francisco on July 4 around noon: : /AIR,BOS,SFO,4JUL,1200 : It will prompt you field by field if you don’t know all the parameters. : TRAVELSHOPPER: Run by Worldspan (formerly PARS), which is Delta, Northwest : and TWA, similar features to Eaasy.  Interface is a little clunkier, but : there are some features not available on Eaasy such as open date tickets, : and experienced users can type through menus faster.  Same ticketing : options, but fewer agents have Worldspan terminals.  No travel club, less : detailed profile.  Line oriented command language with optional prompts, : same query as above would be: : A;BOS;SFO;4JUL;12n;1 : The 1 means one person travelling. : ON-LINE OFFICIAL AIRLINE GUIDE: Similar data and commands to the other : two.  It used to be better than Sabre and Travelshopper, but now : everyone’s updated in near real-time.  Lots of other random stuff, e.g. : frequent flyer newsletter and flight departure and arrival info (they can : show you the contents of the flight info TV screens from some airports.) : Airlines and a few agencies can issue tickets. : * Are these the same systems that travel agents use? : The underlying data are the same, but the interface is different.  Some : data are visible to agents, but not to these systems.  A good way to work : is to make the best reservation you can on-line, then call a travel agent, : tell him what you’ve reserved, and see if he can do better. : * How do I get access to them? : Eaasy and Travelshopper are only available via gateway systems, OAG : directly or via gateways. : Eaasy Sabre: GEnie, Compuserve, Delphi, Prodigy, AOL, eWorld : PARS Travelshopper: Compuserve, Delphi. : OAG: Direct subscription, Delphi, Compuserve, GEnie, Dow Jones News Retrieval, :       AT&T InterSpan. : Telnet to Delphi: delphi.com, no surcharge. : Telnet to OAG: oag.com, no surcharge. : Telnet to Compuserve: compuserve.com, hostname CIS. : AOL: experimental MacTCP and Winsock software available from FTP.AOL.COM : Compuserve has a front-end program called CIM which runs under Windows and : can make access and navigation somewhat simpler, is only intended for : direct dialup use, not via telnet.  A program called COMt, available at : ftp://ftp.std.com:/customers/software/rfdmail/comt.zip, makes a Telnet : connection look enough like a dialup port to make CIM work. : For dial-in access, Delphi is on Sprintnet and Tymnet, no surcharge nights : and weekends.  Compuserve has its own extensive network, or is available : via Sprintnet at a surcharge.  OAG is on Sprintnet and Tymnet, no surcharge. : * How much do they cost? : Eaasy and PARS are available at the base rate for all of the on-line : services that offer them except for Prodigy. : Delphi offers a five-hour free trial when you sign up; you can use PARS : and Eaasy during that time.  AOL also usually offers a free trial period. : Gateway systems charge a substantial surcharge for the OAG, e.g.  Delphi : charges 59 cents/min peak, 42 cents/min off-peak.  A direct subscription : to the OAG is much cheaper, per-minute rates are lower than the surcharge. : Call 800-342-5624, ext Q714 for a 15 day free trial, $25 signup if you : continue.  If you subscribe directly, the OAG waives session charges if you : make or cancel a reservation during the session.  The OAG has no monthly : minimum, which is good for occasional users. : * Isn’t there anything available without signing up? : Canadian Airlines has an experimental WWW server with schedule info. : You get to it using a WWW browser that supports forms such Mosaic. : The URL is http://www.cdnair.ca.  Lufthansa has some info at the : Electronic Newstand, gopher to enews.com or telnet to enews.com, login enews. : * What about on-line travel agents and clubs? : Eaasy Sabre offers Traveller’s Access, run by Comp-U-Card which for $49/yr : rebates 5% on air, hotel, and car rentals for you and family members that : they’ve ticketed for you and family members when you send in receipts.  In : my experience, their agents are not very good. : Mass., primary access via Delphi, but Internet e-mail is fine, too.  Costs : $39/yr, sliding rebate on tickets depending on price and how delivered. : Rebates mailed automatically quarterly.  Lots of useful coupons and : discounts.  That’s the agency I use. : welcomes Internet customers. : welcomes Internet customers. : around-the-world specialists; also other discounted international tickets; : NOT a general-purpose, corporate, or domestic travel agency. : Internet customers.  They use consolidators and offer discounts.  For more : hotels world wide and discounted rental cars in Euurope.  Internet users get : a 10% discount.  WWW at file://ftp.netcom.com/pub/jchase/html/info.html. : of Let’s Go Travel in Portland OR.  They offer a no-fee rebate travel club : as well as discounted consolidator tickets and tours. : Integra Travel in Cincinnati, OH.  The agency is a general travel agency : which offers complete service for both domestic and international trips. : a full service airline ticket agency suppling information and discounted : tickets for domestic and international travel.                 : Network Agency also offering tours and colsolidator tickets.  Prices are : competitive. : Ambassador World Travel in Atlanta, specializing in travel for special : interest groups, including the leather community.  She offers a free : bi-weekly email travel newsletter. : and Lesbian community. : discount air to Europe. They have a WWW site with travel information : at http://xmission.com/~aoi. : trips to south and southeast Asia, including consolidator tickets for : Asian airlines. : Niguel, CA is a full service bilingual agency specializing in trips and : tours to Italy for individuals, families, and groups. : He specializes in Mexico and the Pacific. : welcomes business from the Internet. : 18-35 year olds and is also airticket consolidators (Europe only). WWW : page is http://www.charm.net/~aesu/ : [[ I know there are others, tell me about them and I'll add them ]] : — : John R. Levine, IECC, POB 349, Cambridge MA 02238, +1 617 492 3869 I have used Eaasy Sabre several times via prodigy. In each case I found the flight I wanted and went to my favorite travel agency. Believe it or not the travel agent was able to save me money. I don’t know why this happens but they seem to have more up to date access and the knowledge to find … read more »

Response:

Archive-name: travel/air/online-info Last-modified: 1994/11/01 [[ This Q&A is a response to a flood of questions about access to Eaasy Sabre  and the like.  Suggestions for improvement welcome.]] * Is there a way to get airline schedules on the Internet for free? Yes, finally, but the longer answer is more complicated.  See below. * Is there a way to get airline schedules on the Internet if I pay for it? Definitely.  See below. * What’s available for free? PC Travel is an on-line travel agency that lets you telnet in, check fares and schedules, and make reservations.  Credit card number required to check fares and make reservations, but they won’t issue tickets or charge you until you specifically say to do so.  Data come from APOLLO, the United Airlines reservation system.  Tickets are issued through PC Travel, paying with a credit card, generally delivered the next day by FedEx.  I find it relatively slow and clunky compared to Eaasy Sabre, but considering that it’s free, it’s great.  Telnet to pctravel.com. * What other reservation systems are available? There are three computer reservation systems available to the general public: EAASY SABRE: Run by American Airlines, lets you check fares and schedules on all airlines with computerized reservations (all but the most obscure), and make reservations for yourself and others.  Tickets can be sent by mail, issued by airlines at the airport or city ticket offices, or by any travel agent with a Sabre terminal, which is nearly all agents in the U.S. You can keep a lot of profile info on-line such as frequent flyer numbers and meal and seat preferences which are automatically inserted into reservations you make for yourself.  Your ID is your AAdvantage frequent flyer number.  Official Recreation Guide available at extra cost.  Line oriented command language, e.g.  to ask for flights from Boston to San Francisco on July 4 around noon: /AIR,BOS,SFO,4JUL,1200 It will prompt you field by field if you don’t know all the parameters. TRAVELSHOPPER: Run by Worldspan (formerly PARS), which is Delta, Northwest and TWA, similar features to Eaasy.  Interface is a little clunkier, but there are some features not available on Eaasy such as open date tickets, and experienced users can type through menus faster.  Same ticketing options, but fewer agents have Worldspan terminals.  No travel club, less detailed profile.  Line oriented command language with optional prompts, same query as above would be: A;BOS;SFO;4JUL;12n;1 The 1 means one person travelling. ON-LINE OFFICIAL AIRLINE GUIDE: Similar data and commands to the other two.  It used to be better than Sabre and Travelshopper, but now everyone’s updated in near real-time.  Lots of other random stuff, e.g. frequent flyer newsletter and flight departure and arrival info (they can show you the contents of the flight info TV screens from some airports.) Airlines and a few agencies can issue tickets. * Are these the same systems that travel agents use? The underlying data are the same, but the interface is different.  Some data are visible to agents, but not to these systems.  A good way to work is to make the best reservation you can on-line, then call a travel agent, tell him what you’ve reserved, and see if he can do better. * How do I get access to them? Eaasy and Travelshopper are only available via gateway systems, OAG directly or via gateways. Eaasy Sabre: GEnie, Compuserve, Delphi, Prodigy, AOL, eWorld PARS Travelshopper: Compuserve, Delphi. OAG: Direct subscription, Delphi, Compuserve, GEnie, Dow Jones News Retrieval,         AT&T InterSpan. Telnet to Delphi: delphi.com, no surcharge. Telnet to OAG: oag.com, no surcharge. Telnet to Compuserve: compuserve.com, hostname CIS. AOL: experimental MacTCP and Winsock software available from FTP.AOL.COM Compuserve has a front-end program called CIM which runs under Windows and can make access and navigation somewhat simpler, is only intended for direct dialup use, not via telnet.  A program called COMt, available at ftp://ftp.std.com:/customers/software/rfdmail/comt.zip, makes a Telnet connection look enough like a dialup port to make CIM work. For dial-in access, Delphi is on Sprintnet and Tymnet, no surcharge nights and weekends.  Compuserve has its own extensive network, or is available via Sprintnet at a surcharge.  OAG is on Sprintnet and Tymnet, no surcharge. * How much do they cost? Eaasy and PARS are available at the base rate for all of the on-line services that offer them except for Prodigy. Delphi offers a five-hour free trial when you sign up; you can use PARS and Eaasy during that time.  AOL also usually offers a free trial period. Gateway systems charge a substantial surcharge for the OAG, e.g.  Delphi charges 59 cents/min peak, 42 cents/min off-peak.  A direct subscription to the OAG is much cheaper, per-minute rates are lower than the surcharge. Call 800-342-5624, ext Q714 for a 15 day free trial, $25 signup if you continue.  If you subscribe directly, the OAG waives session charges if you make or cancel a reservation during the session.  The OAG has no monthly minimum, which is good for occasional users. * Isn’t there anything available without signing up? Canadian Airlines has an experimental WWW server with schedule info. You get to it using a WWW browser that supports forms such Mosaic. The URL is http://www.cdnair.ca.  Lufthansa has some info at the Electronic Newstand, gopher to enews.com or telnet to enews.com, login enews. * What about on-line travel agents and clubs? Eaasy Sabre offers Traveller’s Access, run by Comp-U-Card which for $49/yr rebates 5% on air, hotel, and car rentals for you and family members that they’ve ticketed for you and family members when you send in receipts.  In my experience, their agents are not very good. Mass., primary access via Delphi, but Internet e-mail is fine, too.  Costs $39/yr, sliding rebate on tickets depending on price and how delivered. Rebates mailed automatically quarterly.  Lots of useful coupons and discounts.  That’s the agency I use. welcomes Internet customers. welcomes Internet customers. around-the-world specialists; also other discounted international tickets; NOT a general-purpose, corporate, or domestic travel agency. Internet customers.  They use consolidators and offer discounts.  For more hotels world wide and discounted rental cars in Euurope.  Internet users get a 10% discount.  WWW at file://ftp.netcom.com/pub/jchase/html/info.html. of Let’s Go Travel in Portland OR.  They offer a no-fee rebate travel club as well as discounted consolidator tickets and tours. Integra Travel in Cincinnati, OH.  The agency is a general travel agency which offers complete service for both domestic and international trips. a full service airline ticket agency suppling information and discounted tickets for domestic and international travel. Network Agency also offering tours and colsolidator tickets.  Prices are competitive. Ambassador World Travel in Atlanta, specializing in travel for special interest groups, including the leather community.  She offers a free bi-weekly email travel newsletter. and Lesbian community. discount air to Europe. They have a WWW site with travel information at http://xmission.com/~aoi. trips to south and southeast Asia, including consolidator tickets for Asian airlines. Niguel, CA is a full service bilingual agency specializing in trips and tours to Italy for individuals, families, and groups. He specializes in Mexico and the Pacific. welcomes business from the Internet. 18-35 year olds and is also airticket consolidators (Europe only). WWW page is http://www.charm.net/~aesu/ [[ I know there are others, tell me about them and I'll add them ]] — John R. Levine, IECC, POB 349, Cambridge MA 02238, +1 617 492 3869

Response:

Archive-name: travel/air/online-info Last-modified: 1994/11/01 [[ This Q&A is a response to a flood of questions about access to Eaasy Sabre  and the like.  Suggestions for improvement welcome.]] * Is there a way to get airline schedules on the Internet for free? Yes, finally, but the longer answer is more complicated.  See below. * Is there a way to get airline schedules on the Internet if I pay for it? Definitely.  See below. * What’s available for free? PC Travel is an on-line travel agency that lets you telnet in, check fares and schedules, and make reservations.  Credit card number required to check fares and make reservations, but they won’t issue tickets or charge you until you specifically say to do so.  Data come from APOLLO, the United Airlines reservation system.  Tickets are issued through PC Travel, paying with a credit card, generally delivered the next day by FedEx.  I find it relatively slow and clunky compared to Eaasy Sabre, but considering that it’s free, it’s great.  Telnet to pctravel.com. * What other reservation systems are available? There are three computer reservation systems available to the general public: EAASY SABRE: Run by American Airlines, lets you check fares and schedules on all airlines with computerized reservations (all but the most obscure), and make reservations for yourself and others.  Tickets can be sent by mail, issued by airlines at the airport or city ticket offices, or by any travel agent with a Sabre terminal, which is nearly all agents in the U.S. You can keep a lot of profile info on-line such as frequent flyer numbers and meal and seat preferences which are automatically inserted into reservations you make for yourself.  Your ID is your AAdvantage frequent flyer number.  Official Recreation Guide available at extra cost.  Line oriented command language, e.g.  to ask for flights from Boston to San Francisco on July 4 around noon: /AIR,BOS,SFO,4JUL,1200 It will prompt you field by field if you don’t know all the parameters. TRAVELSHOPPER: Run by Worldspan (formerly PARS), which is Delta, Northwest and TWA, similar features to Eaasy.  Interface is a little clunkier, but there are some features not available on Eaasy such as open date tickets, and experienced users can type through menus faster.  Same ticketing options, but fewer agents have Worldspan terminals.  No travel club, less detailed profile.  Line oriented command language with optional prompts, same query as above would be: A;BOS;SFO;4JUL;12n;1 The 1 means one person travelling. ON-LINE OFFICIAL AIRLINE GUIDE: Similar data and commands to the other two.  It used to be better than Sabre and Travelshopper, but now everyone’s updated in near real-time.  Lots of other random stuff, e.g. frequent flyer newsletter and flight departure and arrival info (they can show you the contents of the flight info TV screens from some airports.) Airlines and a few agencies can issue tickets. * Are these the same systems that travel agents use? The underlying data are the same, but the interface is different.  Some data are visible to agents, but not to these systems.  A good way to work is to make the best reservation you can on-line, then call a travel agent, tell him what you’ve reserved, and see if he can do better. * How do I get access to them? Eaasy and Travelshopper are only available via gateway systems, OAG directly or via gateways. Eaasy Sabre: GEnie, Compuserve, Delphi, Prodigy, AOL, eWorld PARS Travelshopper: Compuserve, Delphi. OAG: Direct subscription, Delphi, Compuserve, GEnie, Dow Jones News Retrieval,         AT&T InterSpan. Telnet to Delphi: delphi.com, no surcharge. Telnet to OAG: oag.com, no surcharge. Telnet to Compuserve: compuserve.com, hostname CIS. AOL: experimental MacTCP and Winsock software available from FTP.AOL.COM Compuserve has a front-end program called CIM which runs under Windows and can make access and navigation somewhat simpler, is only intended for direct dialup use, not via telnet.  A program called COMt, available at ftp://ftp.std.com:/customers/software/rfdmail/comt.zip, makes a Telnet connection look enough like a dialup port to make CIM work. For dial-in access, Delphi is on Sprintnet and Tymnet, no surcharge nights and weekends.  Compuserve has its own extensive network, or is available via Sprintnet at a surcharge.  OAG is on Sprintnet and Tymnet, no surcharge. * How much do they cost? Eaasy and PARS are available at the base rate for all of the on-line services that offer them except for Prodigy. Delphi offers a five-hour free trial when you sign up; you can use PARS and Eaasy during that time.  AOL also usually offers a free trial period. Gateway systems charge a substantial surcharge for the OAG, e.g.  Delphi charges 59 cents/min peak, 42 cents/min off-peak.  A direct subscription to the OAG is much cheaper, per-minute rates are lower than the surcharge. Call 800-342-5624, ext Q714 for a 15 day free trial, $25 signup if you continue.  If you subscribe directly, the OAG waives session charges if you make or cancel a reservation during the session.  The OAG has no monthly minimum, which is good for occasional users. * Isn’t there anything available without signing up? Canadian Airlines has an experimental WWW server with schedule info. You get to it using a WWW browser that supports forms such Mosaic. The URL is http://www.cdnair.ca.  Lufthansa has some info at the Electronic Newstand, gopher to enews.com or telnet to enews.com, login enews. * What about on-line travel agents and clubs? Eaasy Sabre offers Traveller’s Access, run by Comp-U-Card which for $49/yr rebates 5% on air, hotel, and car rentals for you and family members that they’ve ticketed for you and family members when you send in receipts.  In my experience, their agents are not very good. Mass., primary access via Delphi, but Internet e-mail is fine, too.  Costs $39/yr, sliding rebate on tickets depending on price and how delivered. Rebates mailed automatically quarterly.  Lots of useful coupons and discounts.  That’s the agency I use. welcomes Internet customers. welcomes Internet customers. around-the-world specialists; also other discounted international tickets; NOT a general-purpose, corporate, or domestic travel agency. Internet customers.  They use consolidators and offer discounts.  For more hotels world wide and discounted rental cars in Euurope.  Internet users get a 10% discount.  WWW at file://ftp.netcom.com/pub/jchase/html/info.html. of Let’s Go Travel in Portland OR.  They offer a no-fee rebate travel club as well as discounted consolidator tickets and tours. Integra Travel in Cincinnati, OH.  The agency is a general travel agency which offers complete service for both domestic and international trips. a full service airline ticket agency suppling information and discounted tickets for domestic and international travel.                 Network Agency also offering tours and colsolidator tickets.  Prices are competitive. Ambassador World Travel in Atlanta, specializing in travel for special interest groups, including the leather community.  She offers a free bi-weekly email travel newsletter. and Lesbian community. discount air to Europe. They have a WWW site with travel information at http://xmission.com/~aoi. trips to south and southeast Asia, including consolidator tickets for Asian airlines. Niguel, CA is a full service bilingual agency specializing in trips and tours to Italy for individuals, families, and groups. He specializes in Mexico and the Pacific. welcomes business from the Internet. 18-35 year olds and is also airticket consolidators (Europe only). WWW page is http://www.charm.net/~aesu/ [[ I know there are others, tell me about them and I'll add them ]] — John R. Levine, IECC, POB 349, Cambridge MA 02238, +1 617 492 3869

Response:

John, You mention in your faq the Apollo Connection and I assume that it is releated to the Internet Travel Network, which is also set up through Apollo.  The Internet Travel Network allows anyone with a www internet connection to check fares, availability and make reservations. Unlike PCTravel, no credit card is necessary to access this information and it’s just as user friendly as Eaasy Sabre.  Try it http://www.slip.net/~eurofile/home.html Joe — Joe Witherspoon –  discount travel specialist European Travel Inc. tel 800-635-6463             442 Post St. suite 301 San Francisco CA 94102                                                                       415-281-9876   voice mail       fax 415-986-5166 http://www.slip.net/~jwithers/index1.html           http://www.european.com/~eurofile/home.html

Response:

Archive-name: travel/air/online-info Last-modified: 1995/06/28 PLEASE NOTE: I am not a travel agent, just an interested traveller. Everything I know about on-line travel info is in this FAQ.  Please don’t write me asking for fare quotes, packages, or any other info, because I don’t have it. * Is there a way to get airline schedules on the Internet for free? Yes, finally, but the longer answer is more complicated.  See below. * Is there a way to get airline schedules on the Internet if I pay for it? Definitely.  See below. * What’s available for free? PC Travel is an on-line travel agency that lets you connect via telnet or WWW, check fares and schedules, and make reservations.  Credit card number required to check fares and make reservations, but they won’t issue tickets or charge you until you specifically say to do so.  Data come from APOLLO, the United Airlines reservation system.  Tickets are issued through PC Travel, paying with a credit card, generally delivered the next day by FedEx.  I find the telnet version relatively clunky compared to Eaasy Sabre, but considering that it’s free, it’s great.  WWW to http://www.pctravel.com, or telnet to pctravel.com. * What other reservation systems are available? There are four computer reservation systems available to the general public: EAASY SABRE: Run by American Airlines, lets you check fares and schedules on all airlines with computerized reservations (all but the most obscure), and make reservations for yourself and others.  Tickets can be sent by mail, issued by airlines at the airport or city ticket offices, or by any travel agent with a Sabre terminal.  You can keep a lot of profile info on-line such as frequent flyer numbers and meal and seat preferences which are automatically inserted into reservations you make for yourself.  Your ID can be your AAdvantage frequent flyer number.  Official Recreation Guide available at extra cost.  Line oriented command language, e.g.  to ask for flights from Boston to San Francisco on July 4 around noon: /AIR,BOS,SFO,4JUL,1200 It will prompt you field by field if you don’t know all the parameters. Prodigy has its own interface to Eaasy which is supposed to be easier to use but provides only a subset of the functionality. TRAVELSHOPPER: Run by Worldspan (formerly PARS), which is Delta, Northwest and TWA, similar features to Eaasy.  Interface is a little clunkier, but there are some features not available on Eaasy such as open date tickets, and experienced users can type through menus faster.  Same ticketing options, but fewer agents have Worldspan terminals.  No travel club, less detailed profile.  Line oriented command language with optional prompts, same query as above would be: A;BOS;SFO;4JUL;12n;1 The 1 means one person travelling. UNITED CONNECTION: New interface to United’s Apollo system available on Compuserve.  I haven’t used it but reports say that it’s similar in function to Sabre, but less complete flight info (no Southwest flights.) User reports are welcome. ON-LINE OFFICIAL AIRLINE GUIDE: Similar data and commands to the other ones.  It used to be better than the airline-operated systems, but now everyone’s updated in near real-time.  Lots of other random stuff, e.g. frequent flyer newsletter and flight departure and arrival info (they can show you the contents of the flight info TV screens from some airports.) Airlines and a few agencies can issue tickets. * Are these the same systems that travel agents use? The underlying data are the same, but the interface is different.  Some data are visible to agents, but not to these systems.  A good way to work is to make the best reservation you can on-line, then call a travel agent, tell him what you’ve reserved, and see if he can do better. * How do I get access to them? Eaasy, United, and Travelshopper are only available via gateway systems, OAG directly or via gateways. Eaasy Sabre: GEnie, Compuserve, Delphi, Prodigy, AOL, eWorld PARS Travelshopper: Compuserve, Delphi (gateway currently down) UNITED: Compuserve OAG: Direct subscription, Delphi, Compuserve, GEnie,         Dow Jones News Retrieval, AT&T InterSpan. Telnet to Delphi: delphi.com, no surcharge. Telnet to OAG: oag.com, no surcharge. Telnet to Compuserve: compuserve.com, hostname CIS. AOL: 2.0 version of their software speaks WinSock.  FTP from FTP.AOL.COM. Compuserve has a front-end program called CIM which runs under Windows and can make access and navigation somewhat simpler.  The latest version works both with traditional dial-in access and via WinSock.  You can download it from their new WWW page at www.compuserve.com. For dial-in access, Delphi is on Sprintnet and Tymnet, no surcharge nights and weekends.  Compuserve has its own extensive network, or is available via Sprintnet at a surcharge.  OAG is on Sprintnet and Tymnet, no surcharge. * How much do they cost? Eaasy and PARS are available at the base rate for all of the on-line services that offer them except for Prodigy. Delphi offers a five-hour free trial when you sign up; you can use PARS and Eaasy during that time.  AOL also usually offers a free trial period. Gateway systems charge a substantial surcharge for the OAG, e.g.  Delphi charges 59 cents/min peak, 42 cents/min off-peak.  A direct subscription to the OAG is much cheaper, per-minute rates are lower than the surcharge. Call 800-342-5624, ext Q714 for a 15 day free trial, $25 signup if you continue.  If you subscribe directly, the OAG waives session charges if you make or cancel a reservation during the session.  The OAG has no monthly minimum, which is good for occasional users. * Isn’t there anything available without signing up? Several airlines are on the World Wide Web. For most of them you need a browser that supports forms, such as Netscape, or Mosaic. Canadian Airlines has a WWW server with schedule info at http://www.cdnair.ca. Southwest Airlines has a web page at http://www.iflyswa.com with schedules and fares. Cathay Pacific has a web page at http://www.cathay-usa.com/ with info of interest to travellers from the U.S.  No schedules, some tour prices. A Northwest Airlines "fact sheet" with mostly historican info is at http://www.winternet.com/~tela/nwa-info.html. No fares or schedules. There’s an Aeroflot at http://www.seanet.com/Bazar/Aeroflot/Aeroflot.html with some schedule info. The American Trans Air page at http://www.xmission.com/~aoi/fata.html has mostly phone numbers. * What about on-line travel agents and clubs? Eaasy Sabre offers Traveller’s Access, run by Comp-U-Card which for $49/yr rebates 5% on air, hotel, and car rentals for you and family members that they’ve ticketed for you and family members when you send in receipts.  In my experience, their agents are not very good. Mass., primary access via Delphi, but Internet e-mail is fine, too.  Costs $39/yr, sliding rebate on tickets depending on price and how delivered. Rebates mailed automatically quarterly.  Lots of useful coupons and discounts.  That’s the agency I use.  Although they have a national clientele, they’re 1/2 mile from my house, which may bias me somewhat. NOTE: All of the descriptions below are edited from info provided by the agencies themselves. welcomes Internet customers. welcomes Internet customers. around-the-world specialists; also other discounted international tickets; NOT a general-purpose, corporate, or domestic travel agency. Internet customers.  They use consolidators and offer discounts.  For more hotels world wide and discounted rental cars in Euurope.  Internet users get a 10% discount.  WWW at file://ftp.netcom.com/pub/jchase/html/info.html. Integra Travel in Cincinnati, OH.  The agency is a general travel agency which offers complete service for both domestic and international trips. a full service airline ticket agency suppling information and discounted tickets for domestic and international travel.                 Network Agency also offering tours and colsolidator tickets.  Prices are competitive. Ambassador World Travel in Atlanta, specializing in travel for special interest groups, including the leather community.  She offers a free bi-weekly email travel newsletter. and Lesbian community. discount air to Europe. They have a WWW site with travel information at http://xmission.com/~aoi. trips to south and southeast Asia, including consolidator tickets for Asian airlines. Niguel, CA is a full service bilingual agency specializing in trips and tours to Italy for individuals, families, and groups. He specializes in Mexico and the Pacific. welcomes business from the Internet. 18-35 … read more »

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> destination.  A lot of random searching.  Is there some more logical way that > turns up the same result more efficiently?

Try http://www.itn.net Dr. Thomas C. Wilson                   "A Paranoid Personality: Ottawa, Canada                          Someone who is in possession 45.25N  75.43W                          of ALL the facts." URL:http://www.ncf.carleton.ca/~al419   Languages: English, French, Russian, German – in that order of fluency.

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: Try http://www.itn.net/cgi/get?itn/register:iOylG9Rikwe  This is the : Always, : Sheila Johnson http://www.itn.net is all you need.

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I haven’t seen this addressed in the FAQ, and wonder if someone has an answer: The problem: When trying to use Eaasy Sabre or PCTravel to locate the cheapest domestic (US) flight between two locations, both systems appear to be oblivious to the existence of the actual cheapest fares.  Often the difference between what the CRS tells me is the cheapest when I ask for fare information is more than double the actual cheapest fare.   Often the information about the actual cheapest fare is in the system, but not shown to me when I ask about fares.  E.g. if I ask for the cheapest r.t. on UA between EWR and SBA, Jan 9-Jan 12, I get about $1460 on both Eaasy Sabre and PCTravel.  But if I book a EWR-ORD-LAX-SBA r.t., I get a price of $775. There are even cheaper fares available if I add one more connection, and add a Las Vegas stop. The questions: (1) In this particular case, it appears as if the system is screening out itineraries that exceed 1 change of plane.  Is there any predicatable rule about what kind of screens fare searches will invoke?  Knowing the rules would help me know when to trust the fare results and when not to.  Or am I wrong about why the software is missing these vastly cheaper fares? (2) Are there any alternatives to ES and PCTravel that do not apply such restrictive screens?  In the above example, adding the extra change of planes added 2 total hours to travel and saved over $700.  I wish my time were worth more than $350 an hour, but it isn’t. (3) If there isn’t anything better than ES, does anyone have any advice on how to more systematically search for the genuinely best fares?  What I tend to do if the initial result seems unacceptable, as above, is to look for cheap rountrips between my starting point and hubs on the way to my eventual destination.  A lot of random searching.  Is there some more logical way that turns up the same result more efficiently? Many thanks, Marc Levy

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says… >  <snip lengthy discussion about how hard it is to get EasySAAbre to

give you the actual lowest fare [Surprise!! :->]> > Is there some more logical way that >turns up the same result more efficiently?

                My advice: call 1-800-FLYASAP.  They’ll give you the lowest fare without regard to airline or route.  They may also suggest alternative carriers like Tower or Sunjet that often aren’t listed.         –Bill (Princeton ‘82)

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Try http://www.itn.net/cgi/get?itn/register:iOylG9Rikwe  This is the neatest spot I have found for looking up reservations.  You will have to register but it is free.  I sometimes type these wrong so if you try it and it doesn’t work look at the next post because I will test it to make sure that it gets you where you are supposed to and if it doesn’t work I will make corrections. Always, Sheila Johnson

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Archive-name: travel/air/online-info Last-modified: 1995/12/18 * Is this FAQ available on the WWW? No, but I’m working on it now that I have a web server.  I hear some people have put it on their own web sites without telling me, which is OK with me so long as they keep it updated. * Is there a way to get airline schedules on the Internet for free? Yes, finally, but the longer answer is more complicated.  See below. * Is there a way to get airline schedules on the Internet if I pay for it? Definitely.  See below. * What’s available for free? There are now several Internet gateways to airline CRS (computer reservation systems.) PC Travel is an on-line travel agency that lets you connect via telnet or WWW, check fares and schedules, and make reservations.  Credit card number required to make reservations, but they won’t issue tickets or charge you until you specifically say to do so.  Data come from APOLLO, the United Airlines reservation system.  Tickets are issued through PC Travel, paying with a credit card, generally delivered the next day by FedEx.  I find the telnet version relatively clunky compared to Eaasy Sabre, but considering that it’s free, it’s great. WWW to http://www.pctravel.com, or telnet to pctravel.com. Internet Travel Network is a new WWW-based flight booking system. You make reservations, using Apollo, which are then ticketed by any one of a long list of participating travel agencies.  Users pay nothing, agencies pay $3/ticket. I found it kind of hard to use, for example a lot of parameters are only found on your profile page so you have to go in there if you, e.g., want to reserve aisle rather than window.  It also seemed to have trouble finding itineraries, for one I tried it found two, while Eaasy found over a dozen.  (The guy who maintains ITN says it found dozens for him, so this may be a temporary glitch.)  Even so, if the agency you use participates, it’s worth using, and again it’s hard to fault the price. Their URL is http://www.itn.net System One, which started a long time ago as Eastern Airlines’ res system but has now grown into an enormous international CRS, has a bunch of attractive web pages at http://www.sys1.com/.  They offer schedule and price info for flights among large US cities.  (There’s a fixed list of cities, not including Ithaca NY which is where I fly from.  Boo.)  No booking yet, they say to call your agent.  They say they’ll have more cities, rental cars, booking, and other features on-line in early ‘96. TISS at http://www.tiss.com is an online database in Germany with current airfares provided by a group of consolidators.  They offer departures from Australia, Belgium, Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Netherlands, Singapore and Switzerland, and plan to add other countries soon.  They claim the prices they offer are the best available. * What other reservation systems are available? There are four computer reservation systems available to the general public: EAASY SABRE: Run by American Airlines, lets you check fares and schedules on all airlines with computerized reservations (all but the most obscure), and make reservations for yourself and others.  Tickets can be sent by mail, issued by airlines at the airport or city ticket offices, or by any travel agent with a Sabre terminal.  You can keep a lot of profile info on-line such as frequent flyer numbers and meal and seat preferences which are automatically inserted into reservations you make for yourself.  Your ID can be your AAdvantage frequent flyer number.  Official Recreation Guide available at extra cost.  Line oriented command language, e.g.  to ask for flights from Boston to San Francisco on July 4 around noon: /AIR,BOS,SFO,4JUL,1200 It will prompt you field by field if you don’t know all the parameters. Prodigy has its own interface to Eaasy which is alleged to be easier to use but provides only a subset of the functionality. Sabre is working on a direct WWW interface, which will apparently be available in early 1996, but I don’t know many details. TRAVELSHOPPER: Run by Worldspan (formerly PARS), which is Delta, Northwest and TWA, similar features to Eaasy.  There are some features not available on Eaasy such as open date tickets.  Same ticketing options as Eaasy, but fewer agents have Worldspan terminals.  No travel club, less detailed profile.  Currently only available on Compuserve via CIM interface, rumors say it may be going away. UNITED CONNECTION: New interface to United’s Apollo system available on Compuserve.  I find it inferior to Sabre, less complete flight info (no Southwest flights) and doesn’t find as many itineraries.  Your ID is your milage plus number, non-members can join on-line.  No car or hotel info yet.  More reports from users are are welcome. ON-LINE OFFICIAL AIRLINE GUIDE: Similar data and commands to the other ones.  It used to be better than the airline-operated systems, but now everyone’s updated in near real-time.  Lots of other random stuff, e.g. frequent flyer newsletter and flight departure and arrival info (they can show you the contents of the flight info TV screens from some airports.) Airlines and a few agencies can issue tickets. * Are these the same systems that travel agents use? The underlying data are the same, but the interface is different.  Some data are visible to agents, but not to these systems.  A good way to work is to make the best reservation you can on-line, then call a travel agent, tell him what you’ve reserved, and see if he can do better. * How do I get access to them? Eaasy, United, and Travelshopper are only available via gateway systems, OAG directly or via gateways. Eaasy Sabre: GEnie, Compuserve, Delphi, Prodigy, AOL, eWorld Travelshopper: Compuserve, must use CIM United: Compuserve, must use CIM OAG: Direct subscription, Delphi, Compuserve, GEnie,         Dow Jones News Retrieval, AT&T InterSpan. Telnet to Delphi: delphi.com, no surcharge. Telnet to OAG: oag.com, no surcharge. Telnet to Compuserve: compuserve.com, hostname CIS. AOL: 2.0 version of their software speaks WinSock.  FTP from FTP.AOL.COM. Compuserve has a front-end program called CIM which runs under Windows and is required for Apollo Connection and Travelshopper.  The latest version works both with traditional dial-in access and via WinSock.  You can download it from their new WWW page at www.compuserve.com. For dial-in access, Delphi is on Sprintnet and Tymnet, no surcharge nights and weekends.  Compuserve has its own extensive network, or is available via Sprintnet at a surcharge.  OAG is on Sprintnet and Tymnet, no surcharge. AOL is on Sprintnet and Tymnet, no surcharge. * How much do they cost? Eaasy, United, and Travelshopper are available at the base rate for all of the on-line services that offer them except for Prodigy. Delphi offers a five-hour free trial when you sign up; you can use PARS and Eaasy during that time.  AOL also usually offers a free trial period. Gateway systems charge a substantial surcharge for the OAG, e.g.  Delphi charges 59 cents/min peak, 42 cents/min off-peak.  A direct subscription to the OAG is much cheaper, per-minute rates are lower than the surcharge. Call 800-323-4000, and ask for a 15 day free trial, $25 signup if you continue.  If you subscribe directly, the OAG waives session charges if you make or cancel a reservation during the session.  The OAG has no monthly minimum, which is good for occasional users. * Is there anything available without signing up? Several airlines are on the World Wide Web. For most of them you need a browser that supports forms, such as Netscape, or Mosaic.  There’s an index of most of them at:         http://www.yahoo.com/Business/Corporations/Travel/Airlines These airlines have booking information available; see the Yahoo page for lots of others of airline web pages with other info. Canadian Airlines has a WWW server with schedule info at http://www.cdnair.ca. Southwest Airlines has a web page at http://www.iflyswa.com with schedules and fares.  Rumors say they’ll allow booking in the near future. * What about on-line travel agents and clubs? Eaasy Sabre offers Traveller’s Access, run by Comp-U-Card which for $49/yr rebates 5% on air, hotel, and car rentals for you and family members that they’ve ticketed for you and family members when you send in receipts.  In my experience, their agents are not very good. Mass., primary access via Delphi, but Internet e-mail is fine, too.  Costs $39/yr, sliding rebate on tickets depending on price and how delivered. Rebates mailed automatically quarterly.  Lots of useful coupons and discounts.  That’s the agency I use.  Although they have a national clientele, they’re 1/2 mile from where I used to live, which may bias me somewhat. The Travel Source is a collection of one of a kind travel resources on the WWW.  This is a free service but you have to be the first of your kind. http://www.tiac.net/users/longleyr/travel.html NOTE: All of the descriptions below are edited from info provided by the agencies themselves.  There are lots of resources other than travel agents available on the net, as well, but they’re not listed here. welcomes Internet customers. welcomes Internet customers. around-the-world specialists; also other discounted international tickets; NOT a general-purpose, corporate, or domestic travel agency. hotels world wide and discounted rental cars in Euurope.  Internet users get a 10% discount.  WWW at file://ftp.netcom.com/pub/jchase/html/info.html. Integra … read more »

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