The document discusses challenges with booking high season travel, including increased time spent, higher prices, and limited availability. It provides tips for travel agents to better qualify clients, set realistic expectations, and utilize alternative routing and airline options to find available space when normal searches come up empty. Effective collaboration between agents and the rate desk is emphasized to streamline the process and improve outcomes.

1. High Season Space Is it worth it?

2. High Space Headaches Price - fares are 2 to 3 times higher Availability - discounted fares are sold out Time - more leads and more time spent Rate Desk -we don’t look for availability

3. I Time Headache Problem : Your e-mail is full, phone won’t stop wringing, can’t get back to anyone and you’re constantly working late. You thought you’d have some time this morning, but then someone scheduled a stupid meeting! Solution : Before you begin a new trip ask: Is this going to sell? How much time is this going to take? How much can I potentially make? How much can I potentially lose?

4. 1.Is this going to sell? US originating Round the worlds MSI’s TYO originating Europe originating Net fares Serious pax OZ/NZ originating LON originating India/SE Asia organ ARC Africa originating S. America origin Shoppers/cheapskates/Time wasters Business class Roundtrips?

5. 2.How much time is this going to take? – the Bandits- $20/hr Waiting for vendor answers- 2 days/$320 Client changes- 3 hours?/$60 Last minute Ops nightmares- 2 hour/$80 Sending to the rate desk-2 days/$320 Looking for space-2hours?/$40 Total time lost-4 days, 4 hours Total price due to time- $820

6. How much time is this going to take – the heroes! Pricing with verified fares -2 minutes/$1 Steering Clients- 30 minutes/$10 Rating yourself – 30 minutes/$10 Knowing where to look for space-1 hour/$20 2 hours, 2 minutes Total money lost - $45

7. What do we learn from time? It’s everywhere- every time you start working with a client, you are being charged by time. If you sell that lead, you still must deduct how much you owe to time. It’s precious- don’t waste it on people who have little chance of buying. Always ask yourself- how much time is this going to take? How much do I stand to make or lose?

8. High Space Headaches Time - more leads and more time spent Price - fares are 2 to 3 times higher Availability - discounted fares are sold out Rate Desk -we don’t look for availability

9. II Price Headache Problem - Expectations of Price vs Realizations of Price

10. Expectation – the high estimate on trip planner is close to what this trip will cost Realization -often the final price will 2 to 3 times as much the highest trip planner estimate Action : Prepare your clients-if they have low budgets, remind them of when they are traveling. If price is too high, maybe they can go later in the year, or shorten their trip

11. Expectation - if I switch my days around, the price will be much cheaper Realization - there are weeks at a time where there is no space. Especially to places like Africa, Europe and India Action : drastic prices call for drastic measures: is pax willing to fly into different cities; ie BRU instead of AMS. Are they willing to cut out entire continents, ie. Africa?

12. Pricing tip Aim High- when sending an estimate, where you haven’t checked space, keep margins high, maybe even higher than usual because you know you will not be able to find space.

13. Price conclusions There’s little you can do about prices in high season. It’s not your fault someone has waited to the last minute, airlines have raised their fares, or space is gone. Don’t get hung up a client who is haggling over price. The more you can qualify your clients about budget, and flexibility the more their expectations will meet the realizations.

14. High Space Headaches Time - more leads and more time spent Price - fares are 2 to 3 times higher Availability - discounted fares are sold out Rate Desk -we don’t look for availability

15. III Availability Problem : You’ve decided this client is worth spending your valuable time on. He’s comfortable with the price you’ve estimated for a high season trip, but now you can’t find jack crap on any of the options in filemaker Solution : use your knowledge as a travel professional to get this person space where no one else can find it.

16. Let’s Rap Atlantic crossings Obscure, unique, creative, available options AI AIRTREKS- NYC-LON/PAR CHI-LON/FRA LAX-FRA – up sells to B class / free add-ons in Germ. AF MILL RUN- auto-prices; fares up to H class, allows double open jaw EK AIRTREKS- HAM-NYC vv $482 one-way***** VS ATC – CHI/NYC/MIA/LAX/LAS/SFO/MCO NZ C&H – LAX-LON up sells to B class SW AVIAREPS- ex- FRA only to WDH/JNB/CPT TN PICASSO- LAX-PAR up to H class CX AIRTREKS-SFO/LAX- JNB 007 up sells to H

17. tip Avoid Europe connections: use non stop flights DL MILL RUN- ATL-JNB auto prices SA MILL RUN –NYC/WAS-JNB from website TK MILL RUN –NYC-IST MS ARC – NYC-CAI RJ ARC- NYC/CHI-AMM LY TMG –NYC/MIA/LAX-TLV EK AIRTREKS –NYC-DXB

18. Tip Use Second Tier international hubs VS ATC MIA/MCO JFK/EWR LAX/LAS DL MILL RUN- ATL/CVG PAR/BRU LON/MAN FRA/MUC ROM/MIL US MILL RUN- MAD/LIS LON/MAN ROM/MIL PAR/BRU UA MILL RUN –FRA/ZRH NW MILL RUN- Any Airline – NYC-LON roundtrip $500 MSP-DTW/MEM SFO/SEA AA MILL RUN- NYC-CHI/MIA PAR/BRU ARC fares from DUB/BRU –USA ARC fares – NYC-LON roundtrip $500

19. Pacific crossing Obscure, unique, creative, available CX –AIRTREKS, up sells to H, get creative Ex. MIA-TYO-HKG // CX 701 after Aug 18 NH- C&H w&g class WAS/HNL-SGN/SHA and TYO And inbounds from Asia to USA UA C&H – better availability than NW CA C&H –up sells to every class and inbounds MH ARC (5%)- usually good space, esp. to DEL

20. tip Use your CRS tools AD12JUNSFOATH/XSEA AD12JUNWASHKG/AUA/CH ACL1 – change to direct access

21. Asia to Europe and vv CX-LON/FRA/AMS/PAR/ROM/BKK/SIN/KUL/PEN/JKT/SUB/DPS 007 up sells to H TG-AIRTREKS-MAD/ROM/FRA/MUC/CPH/STO/PAR/MIL/ZRH/LON KL TMG –up sells all the way M LT-ARC DUS-BKK MU-Concorde – PEK/SHA-FRA/PAR/LON

22. Availability Conclusions Try using non-stop flights Try checking from second tier hubs/get creative Try using one of our many unique contracts Even with your best efforts, there will come a day in the not so distant future, when all the discounted net fare space will be gone for your client. Don’t fear. There is always published. When you’ve exhausted all other options, book anything in Amadeus, price it and FXC it

23. High Space Headaches Time - more leads and more time spent Price - fares are 2 to 3 times higher Availability - discounted fares are sold out Rate Desk -we don’t look for availability

24. III Rate Desk/Sales relationship Problem: Agents get busy, send a lot of trips to the rate desk, which makes the rate desk busy, so we rate quickly/poorly and send back to you. There’s no way the trip can work, so you send back to us, asking for alternatives -creating a wasteful frustrating cycle. Goal: Work to send more trips with Well Qualified/Realistic: Budgets, Flexibility and probability of selling. We will work to rate with Realistic estimates on carriers that have space. Result : The less poor quality trips sent to the rate desk, should decrease the overall number of trips sent. Thus, giving us more time to spend on each quality trip and hopefully one you can feel more confident in sending out.

25. What we like to see-same as you like to see Notes- “ have talked to client, knows he will have to be flexible with routing, willing to overland” “ Pax is willing to pay full fare, has to go these destinations” “ I have looked for space CX/JL/NW/KE, cannot find anything, any ideas?” “ If price gets above $5000, take out India.” NAMES AND DATES Realistic budgets Sellable itineraries- Space you are holding.

26. The Rate Desk Conclusions Improving the quality of trips sent to the rate desk , will improve the quality of trips you get back Despite all our best efforts, finding high season space is a pain in the butt and when you need suggestions, that’s what the rate desk is here for. Let us help.