Added: 03/24/2006 |
Airline consolidator for an excellent online travel bargain.Consolidators are companies that buy tickets in large quantities from the major airlines at bulk prices and resell them at attractive discounts. Particularly on international flights, consolidator fares are generally the best discounted air fares available. They are usually cheaper than the lowest published air fares available from the airline companies.
In essence, airline consolidators enable travellers to compare flight prices of different airlines for a particular flight route of the same time period. This enables travellers to save time and money by comparing a number of airlines to determine not only the most cost effective airline, but also the most convenient time to travel.
The core benefit of using an airline consolidator is that you can inevitably find not only the cheapest flight route, but also the most affordable flight at the most convenient time.
Indeed, the benefit of using an online airline consolidator is that you are able to not only compare several airlines using one consolidator, but, in fact, quickly and conveniently compare several travel consolidators' best prices for a particular travel route against one another. As such you are effectively comparing 'the best quote' over a range of 'best air fare' quote providers.
There are three main types of air fare consolidators.
Destination Specialists. Specialising in a particular region, they are able to negotiate strong discounts for flights to particular destinations. Usually, this group of consolidators often cross sells their flights as packages with hotel and/or car hire to maximise their commissions, and often use the flight as a loss-leader. They are able to get great deals on consolidator travel to particular destinations.
Wholesale consolidators. While you won't normally have any contact with these type of consolidators they inevitably will be the company your high-street travel agent contacts to find the best deal on a particular flight route.
These consolidators operate huge volumes of sales on extremely low margins to a wide range of travel agents. By bringing together a number of travel agents they are able to provide the best air fares for thousands of travellers and thus negotiate stronger air fare rates than a single travel agent could negotiate.
Online Travel Consolidators. The internet is arguably the best place to find the cheapest air fares nowadays. While they lack the attention and service of a traditional travel agent, the ease of price comparison cannot be beaten. Online travel consolidators tend to be able to undercut traditional agents simply because they can afford to market to a wider audience online and can cut their overheads by avoiding the expensive high-street rents that travel agents must absorb.
Travel books listing consolidators run out of date very quickly, and the internet has become the best way of finding an airline consolidator. Dealing with a consolidator online is much like dealing with any other kind of business on the internet.
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