Wanderlust World Wanderlust World Not so long ago, making airline reservations was a complicated process, involving talking with with travel agents in person or over the phone. Today the process is much easier and can be done from home via the internet. Booking airline reservations online offers a number of benefits over telephone or in-person booking. Here are a few of them.
Booking flights through the Internet means that you have greater access to flight schedules. Online booking sites, whether run by individual airlines or third-party operators such as Expedia.com or Travelocity.com, can show you a range of scheduling options that would be difficult to obtain over the phone. You can see exactly when each flight departs and arrives and its stopovers.
Because of the competition engendered by online booking sites, airlines and third-party operators must offer competitive prices for flights. Online booking allows you to see the exact costs of each leg of a flight and the costs of various options associated with a particular flight.
Making airline reservations online means that you can book your flight from anyplace with an Internet connection---your home, office, or on the go with a mobile Internet device. It's midnight and you need a flight for 6 a.m.? No problem---just log on and purchase your ticket.
Need to change your flight? Making your reservations online means that you can make alterations to your schedule without having to speak to a ticketing agent. Many sites allow you to log in and make changes up to 24 hours before your scheduled flight.
Another benefit of making your airline reservations online is the ability to check in up to 24 hours before your flight, select your seat and print your boarding passes from home. You can skip long lines at the airport. If you have carry-on luggage only, you can go straight to your gate with your boarding pass. If you're checking luggage, you can skip the ticketing and boarding pass lines by checking your bags at a kiosk in the airport.
Booking online can often save you money. While travel agents take a commission and many airlines now charge service fees for telephone bookings, making reservations online can be cheaper, especially now that third-party operators have changed their policies and no longer charge any fees to make airline reservations.