Hot answers tagged one-way
26
It's hard to understand why this can be the case without some background in how airline fares work, so lets start with a bit of background...
For each route, airlines will publish a number of different fares, each with a distinct "fare code" - normally with weird names like "TANRKL", "YSJWNN" or "X34Q". Corresponding to these fare codes are "fare rules" ...
20
You can do that. since one-way tickets are always more expensive. Booking a flexible return ticket will also be more expensive than the single ticket version, but you should look into it, since it should be cheaper than the double-return tickets in most cases.
But you better make sure that you know where and how to buy a ticket in Hong Kong and how much it ...
13
Technically speaking, almost all airlines can serve you well without any tickets or PNRs (passenger number record or booking reference) as long as you have bought the ticket and made reservation regardless of the method of buying. All they need is your name and a valid ID (passport in international flights) and they can get you the boarding pass. Even the ...
12
One major concern is that some airlines don't like it when you drop tickets (legs or entire flights) because it's cheaper for you. As a result, not turning up can be held against you and any frequent flyer program that you might hold with them.
I don't know of anyone personally that's had theirs cancelled or penalised, but have seen it mentioned ...
11
Yes. You can and often should do that.
In some instances, you are actually legally required to have a return flight (for immigration) even if you plan to travel to a 3rd country. Of course, this depends on the country and your citizenship/visas &c.
If you have an A to B return ticket and you have now arrived at B and do not plan to use the return to A, ...
11
When proof of onward travel is required, it is always the job of an airline to check whether your documentation is in place. If not, and if you have to be deported, I believe in this situation the airline has to bear the cost of flying you back; this is standard practice around the world.
Malaysia implements these requirements pretty unevenly. Citizens of ...
10
Flying one-way with many of the major carriers is normally far more expensive than half of a return due to the way airlines price flights. That leaves you with three options :
Find a major airline that doesn't bump prices for one-way (as much). SAS is one that springs to mind, and their one-way flights are normally cheaper than other major airlines. Also ...
9
By it's very name, an "Electronic Ticket", or an "E-ticket" is not a physical item - it's just an entry in a computer system.
As a result, you do not need to physically present any specific document at time of check-in in order to get your boarding pass. So technically, no, you do not need to print anything out at all.
However there are a few places where ...
9
First of all, an airline is not required to check anybody in. By purchasing a ticket, you have entered into an agreement with a private company, and assented to all the terms of their Contract of Carriage. Written into every airline's CoC will be a clause allowing them to deny you passage under various conditions. You may be entitled to be rebooked for a ...
8
Simple: Book a cheap return ticket, throw away the other half. You're not supposed to do this, of course, but unless you make a habit of it the airlines will not care.
Flights are cheapest when nobody wants to travel. Low season, midweek, departures and arrivals at inconvenient times, and awkward transfers all lower the price. Problem is, you're looking ...
8
When i crossed the border Canada -> US (on a European passport) earlier this year by car they did not ask for any return tickets. Just what i do for a living, how long i plan to stay in the US, how i plan get out and how much money i had on me and available in my bank account.
Been there before for 2 weeks and in transit a couple of times; so maybe they ...
8
Yes, have all the documentation of your travel prepared for each leg! Outline your trip briefly to the officials, explain that it was most cost-effective solution and show him/her that despite the fact that you have a one way ticket, you're leaving the country on X date. I think I've heard it's also helpful to have any other supporting documentation -- i.e. ...
7
I know someone who tried to do this with a one-way ticket from Europe to the USA. They were denied boarding in Europe (pre-immigration screening) until they purchased, on the spot, another ticket out of the USA. That being said, it sounds like you will have a ticket from Vancouver to Bangkok which should give you a stronger argument.
In my experience these ...
7
In my experience, you're not going to have any problems. They can technically ask for proof of onward travel, proof of adequate funds, and proof of housing. In reality, they'll (in all likelihood) see that you're American and (maybe) ask how long you're staying. There aren't really concrete answers because there seems to be a discrepancy between the law and ...
6
No, this will not work.
Buying a return ticket and only using the first leg of it will certainly work - just make sure that you don't skip any of the legs before the one(s) you intend to use to avoid the ticket being canceled.
However what will not work is trying to book a refundable fare class for the return, and then obtaining a refund for that leg. The ...
6
Timatic (the visa system used by many airlines) specifically states for a US citizen visiting Columbia :
Visitors traveling as tourist are required to hold proof of
sufficient funds to cover their stay and documents required
for their next destination.
Warning:
- Visitors, traveling as tourist, not holding return/onward tickets could ...
6
No, this is totally "normal" airline behaviour. I never completely understood the rationale behind this policy. It seems to have something to do with that one-way tickets are the normal fare and on round trips reductions typically apply.
If you need to travel on very short notice, the return is sometimes just the double of two one-way trips.
5
My answer does not reflect official rules and laws, just my own experience.
I visited over 80 countries and many of them officially require proof of onward travel, ten of them are in South America.
The only time anybody ask me about onward travel was when checking in for a flight to New Zealand in Sydney. In some other cases I had return flights with the ...
4
According to TIMATIC (the Visa processing system use by most airlines/travel agents since 1963) the requirements for an Australia citizen visiting South Korea are :
Passport required.
Passport and/or passport replacing documents must be valid on arrival.
Visa required, except for Those traveling to attend conferences,
exhibitions, ...
4
As others have said, modern e-tickets typically don't require you to take any paperwork to the airport beyond your passport.
However, I have once or twice (for example, in Mumbai) been asked for ticket paperwork to gain entry to the airport or check-in area (for 'security' reasons). In one case, my travelling companions, who hadn't printed their details ...
4
On two different occasions I have had issues flying Lufthansa on an Air Canada ticket - their systems don't work together as well as they should - which were solved only by a tremendous amount of typing by the checkin agent. A vital part of this typing was my ticket number. Since I had nothing printed, I just opened the confirmation email on my laptop and ...
4
So, this is a problem I have faced as well (although I had a solution - a return ticket, just no proof of it - had to go to the upstairs office of Aerolineas Argentinas in Auckland Airport to print it out as proof!!). I've often wondered since then, and after seeing your question, did some research on it.
The weasel solution
The first solution comes from ...
4
Air Transat offers flights to Canada (Paris-Montreal can be quite cheap out of summer, even few days before booking).
Icelandair to North America via Reykjavik (they even offer the possibility for a stopover in Iceland if you want to visit). Icelandair have specific "gateways" on each side of the Ocean, airports for which they have more frequent and cheaper ...
3
With conventional, as opposed to low-cost airlines, one way tickets are almost always more expensive. Sometimes much more so. However, if you plan a multi-city, circular, itinerary and can manage to do all legs on one airline, or a bunch of code shared airlines, you will find it hard to beat the quoted price with individual tickets.
3
There is no issue and I personally often do this.
Try to book the flight back for the most plausible date of return. It may be eventually useful. Also note that even without specific flexible tickets, it is often possible to change your flight schedule any time for a little extra money.
3
When I flew into Colombia, I noticed that neither the airline nor immigration asked me about return/onward travel.
However, during a couple of subsequent trips, my departure ticket was checked:
Before issuing my boarding pass to travel to Paraguay, the airline service rep asked for my onward flight number and entered it into her computer. When I got to ...
3
I bussed in, but was not asked. However from experience, almost any country 'might' ask you for onward travel, and they seem more likely to ask at airports - as allowing someone into another country without an exit strategy, or allowing you into their country without a way out can lead to someone getting fined (an airline, for example).
What I've seen many ...
3
So the way I see it, there are two parts to this question then:
1 - Can you just drop the second leg - and 2) can you get a refund on this second leg
Can you drop the second leg of a flight
I've done this once, and I assure you, it's possible. However, there are several factors to consider:
say you have a flight with several legs - five for example. ...
2
I'm not sure why you would subject yourself to extra scrutiny by not having the proper documentation for travel. All it does is create anxiety for you and potentially get an airline employee/airline in trouble if they forget to check.
The general rule is that if you are not a citizen of a particular country, you must have either a return ticket to your ...
2
In my experience booking US- and Canada-based air tickets, what you are seeing is perfectly normal. Or rather, expect to see unexpected prices for air tickets.
It may be that the prices you were seeing were for products that weren't actually comparable, and this could explain some of the differences.
Were the flights at different times of day, or ...
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