Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Robot_Teacher]

I sent out inquiries and calls today on taking a vacation from August 1st to August 15th to find the flights are very expensive and almost unavailable to get off the ROK. What's going on here? It's not last minute or even remotely close as I'm talking about purchasing an air ticket 2 months ahead of time. I feel the following prices are inflated a bit too much.

I'm being quoted after tax prices like 930,000 for Bali, 700,000 for Bangkok, Thailand, 500,000 for Hong Kong, and 420,000 for Tokyo. I don't want to list agent names as to not slander them, but they're the English speaking agents listed in the travel agents sticky.

They're telling me availability is almost gone. It couldn't be that flights 2 months from now are booked out as I know Koreans do NOT plan ahead on most things. In fact, Korea is a last minute kind of culture when it comes to business matters.

I'm trying to get quotes on www.whypaymore.co.kr but it seems to be telling me flights aren't available where I get the red circle with a cross stroke through it with an airplane symbol instead of a cigarette just like a common no smoking sign. This pees me off, it's like saying, "No flying here."

Can anyone enlighten us as to what's going on with trying to buy a flight 2 months ahead of time? I'm a bit stumped. Thanks for your advice in advance.

[losing_touch]

Last week, I purchased a one-way flight from Busan to Bangkok for August 10 through Thai Airways. The reservation was made on the phone. Because my wife is Thai, she got some sort of Thai person discount not offered to foreigners. Her ticket was about 360,000 won. Then, a foreigner ticket on the same flight was around 490,000 won. It is a bit ridiculous.

I booked myself flights back to the states yesterday for the time period of Aug. 1 - Aug. 9. It was expensive! It was very, very expensive. Having flown between the states and Asia many times, I don't think I have ever paid so much for a flight. For my own reasons, I need to go home. I am not sure when I can go again.

Your post is alarming. I guess I should be shopping around for my own departure on September 1! Pulling up sites now!

[patongpanda]

You don't have to pay a deposit to book a flight.
So I think everyone books flights even if they are not going to use them.

Last time I booked 4 different flights booked but only took one of them.

Every flight to Phuket that has been "fully booked" has had some seats vacant.

Also, you can go on the waiting list so that when people drop out you can take a seat.

This time I've got BUSAN-PHUKET for 680,000.

But the prices are subject to change anyway!

[Robot_Teacher]

How do you book flights without paying for them? Why is www.whypaymore.co.kr not showing any flights available when I do searches on going to Thailand, Bali, and other tropical places from August 1st through 15th? I had heard you can do the best through them by having a Korean purchase you the flight.

Will keep exploring my options. Surely we can get better prices than what the English speaking Korean travel agents are reporting today. American sites seem to be useless if not going to or from America as they're even more expensive, becuase they have to buy from Korea to sell you the flight.

[soviet_man]

If you are contemplating spending 700-900,000 won to go to South Asia, why not just spend a little more and go to Europe via Dubai on Emirates - which is about 1.1 million for those dates to anywhere in Europe.
http://www.emirates.com/kr/english/index.aspx

Air France, KLM, Lufthansa, Aeroflot and the other European carriers offer fairly similar prices.

SE Asia represents truly appalling value - and the Koreans have nobody to blame but themselves.

If you can make it to Osaka or Tokyo, you could even fly to Australia on Jetstar.com return for about US $580 in August.

[Kurtz]

Robotteacher,

It's a sad fact of life that even though Koreans in general can't plan ahead, they do seem to love planning holidays.

August is their holiday season when all the Park and Kim families jump on a plane and go terrorize some poor unsuspecting country with ramyon which they bring from home.

Low flight prices are basically unheard of due to the demand and lack of competition with the carriers. I hope to be gone some time early September, but even if not, I'd just kick back in ROK and save my cash in August and spend it more wisely at a later date.

[oni]

soviet man is so right!
I got my ticket to Prague for August for 960,000 including taxes with Aeroflot via Moscow.

Friends are going to Mongolia and their tickets were 650,000

[WendyRose]

Try booking through Zenith Travel. Email Wystan Kang at [email protected] and just specify your date/time. I've gotten really cheap tickets through him. 2 RT's to Japan for August under 500,000 won.

Good luck,
Wendy

[Bramble]

[rayjoy]

I actually have had a lot of luck with good old Expedia for finding good deals. I'm doing a one-way to Tokyo for $200 (back on the ferry) and into Beijing, out of Mongolia for $600.

Lots of sales on Qantas right now. I got a LAX > AUS / NZ > LAX for $750.

I just peeked and they have RT tix to Sydney for 575,000 won.

[JBomb]

www.orbitz.com is not bad for flights. Although I am experiencing the same thing with the whole value thing.

[tefain]

[D.D.]

The new scam is to tell people that the planes are full and sell tickets at twice the price. You pay 800 for a 400 ticket to Thailand and you sit on an empty plane. When you get there the hotels say that they are full and charge more as well. You notice that the lobby is always empty and few people are around. It is there way of trying to make the same money as they were during good times. Not much you can do about it.

[Robot_Teacher]

[Otherside]

Great fares are still there, just look around, and be mercenary: don't show any loyalty to agents or airlines.

I just booked a return flight to Hong Kong for late July, price: 312,000 INCLUDING taxes. Awesome deal. Cathay Pacific,

Side note, my friend booked a trip to Bali with her travel agent (who she has been using for over a year now), for 835,000. The same day, I found the identical flight (stopover, times, flight numbers etc! exact same flights all round), on the Singapore Air website for 720,000 all-in.