Years ago, when i worked overseas, i used to buy certain books that contained maps of all continents and their major airports, together with information about which airlines served those airports. These books were re-issued every few months, in tune with the regular airline schedule changes, and using them during negotiations with travel agencies i was able to do some interesting trip planning (flying routes the agents never thought of).
Is anybody familiar with these books? Are they still available?
It sounds something like the (OAG )Official Airline Guide, at least the bit about airports and flight schedules. With computerized reservations systems and the Internet, I don’t think they publish a paper version anymore.
You can do similar stuff and more just with a Google search and Expedia.
That is useful info - thanks!
On the OAG website i have found a way to check which airlines serve the routes i am interested in…
You could be right - but, then, the OAG does still publish their data in book form, in addition to the software versions…
(It’s just that they don’t seem to want to sell one book for $15 but a year-long subscription of 12 books for $180… )
Hm… i doubt it. Nothing comes close to a map and a list of carriers in hand that you use when talking with the person at the travel agent’s office who you want to enlist for help in finding a decent fare and schedule. And i’ve tried Expedia and a few other services that promise a lot. To start with, they are not flexible enough to handle queries involving return tickets with open return dates and trips where the return flight starts at another airport than the arrival airport. and then their range of dates is often much more limited than what i am looking for. And finally, their fares are nothing special in many cases - and you can’t negotiate with a machine.
But - would you be prepared to convince me otherwise?
Here is one trip itinerary i am inteersted in: Leave Taipei in the middle of April to go to Copenhagen. Come back to Taipei at the end of the year (close to but not within the high price period around Christmas & New Year’s Day), leaving from Amsterdam. Any suggestion on how to get good info on special fares out of Expedia or some other service?
I’m not suggesting using Expedia to make reservations for flights out of Taiwan, but just as a resource to see which airlines serve the market you want to travel. Then, I would go directly to those airlines’ web sites.
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and then their range of dates is often much more limited than what i am looking for. And finally, their fares are nothing special in many cases - and you can’t negotiate with a machine.