Reasonably priced one-way flight Berlin to Bangkok

[ChristianPFC]

Reasonably priced one-way flight Berlin to Bangkok

 

I plan to fly to Bangkok in November or December and the date of my return is uncertain. I will get a Non-Immigrant Type B visa before flying, so there should be no visa problem. I have been looking for a resonably (read: cheap) priced one way flight, to no avail. Return flights from Berlin to Bangkok cost about 600-700 Euro, single flights about 500-600. I even wrote to a travel agency, their prices are similar. When I go back to Germany, I will have the same problem: one-way flight Bangkok to Berlin.

 

Where and how can I get a one-way flight at half the price of a return flight?

 

Of course, one day I will go back to Germany, but I don’t know when. Buying a return ticket with open return date or return in a year might be an option. There will be a fee for changing the return date, still cheaper than two one-way flights.

 

Another option would be to find someone who needs a ticket from Bangkok to Berlin, one of us buys a return trip and then changes the name of the passenger (for a fee, but still much cheaper than buying two tickets) and sells the flight to the other.

 

Does anyone have experience with similar problems?

 

(Side question: why are return flights cheaper than twice the price of a single flight?)

 

(I just notice, most of my topics are about money, or rather saving thereof. Usually the amounts are negligible – 10% service charge, 7% VAT, to tip or not to tip, free bus or bus for 6.5 or 8 Baht, checking if someone forgot his change in public telephones or ticket machines, how to avoid the 50 Baht airport charge for taxis – but now we are talking money: clever booking will save me 5,000 to 10,000 Baht for each flight!)

 

[TotallyOz]

I have had the same problem many times. From the USA, I found that Expedia helps a great deal as you can often find which airline will go lower for the oneway fare. Thai Air does it from time to time and I booked with them once but it was done through a local travel agent in Thailand and not online. Have you considered contacting one of them?

 

I always have problems with getting airlines with an open end return. It all depends on the class of fare you buy and if you buy a full refundable one, that is easy but that is almost the same price as a business ticket.

[Guest fountainhall]

Another option would be to find someone who needs a ticket from Bangkok to Berlin, one of us buys a return trip and then changes the name of the passenger (for a fee, but still much cheaper than buying two tickets) and sells the flight to the other.

 

I have never heard of this being possible, even on front-end expensive fares. I cannot believe airlines even permit it, as it then throws ticketing open to all sorts of abuse. I also thought the airlines' computers will automatically cancel a ticket with a name change.

 

As far as I can see from looking at a couple of airlines' small print, they permit only "legitimate" changing of names, as when there is a slight misspelling on the original ticket, or for reasons of marriage or divorce.

 

There are several threads on flyertalk about this, and this response (post #5) sums it up -

 

When you buy a ticket, you are basically signing a contract - the terms of the contract can't be changed - the contract is between the carrier and the person on the ticket. That's why name changes aren't allowed.

 

http://www.flyertalk...lse-travel.html

 

(Side question: why are return flights cheaper than twice the price of a single flight?)

 

Very good question. I returned from HKG last night and thought I might have to purchase a one-way ticket as the terms of my original ticket permitted no changes. I checked flights over 3 days. A business class return HKG/BKK could be booked at US$700; one-way was $904. Same in economy (although less difference in price) - round trip $370; one-way $486. It makes absolutely zero sense to me!

[ChristianPFC]

Change of name is possible with air berlin. However, you can change the name only before departure of the first flight, i.e. you still have the same name on both trips (whereas I wanted different names). But I was mereley interested in the possbility, I don't think this is a viable option because it will be a hassle to find someone for the return flight.

 

However, the passenger name may be changed up until the departure of the first leg of the flight. Further information about changing the passenger name »

 

The airlines just want to sell their seats, who is sitting there should be the same to them. Single-journey tickets/token for MRT and BTS are not bound to a person, train tickets are not, why are flight tickets?

 

Best option seems to book the return part of the flight in the far future as fully refundable (which will cost some 100 Euros more) and then ask for a full refund after arriving in Thailand.

[Guest]

Ideally you would want a long haul low cost airline.

For example, it was possible to book a reasonably priced one way ticket from the UK to KL via Air Asia until they stopped the service. I'm struggling to think of one now.

 

Perhaps the best option is to book a return, coming back many months in the future, on a ticket with the flexibility to move the date.

[Moses]

Transaero + Air Berlin (via Moscow) in opposite direction now cost only about 175 Euro

[pong]

ganz kurz und klar; geht nicht.

Or: this is NOT possible-anymore. The idea hat a single would be 50/60% of the cheapest return is nonsense. ONLY-in the past AirBerlin did it from Europe, and even had on some days direct flites BER-BKK (tegel then). But thats a thing of the past.My dear-as you clearly come back some day, whithin 1 year after dep, you are best off with still a return-but with changeable return date-maybe that may cost you 50 or 70 or 100 eur or US$ to do so-but its still the best deal. Call or even better (if in DE) GO into a real brick reisebuero and ASK and be German enough to not be skipped off with some young girl knowing nothing.

Some airlines are known to be much more felxible with changing return dates (this also depends on the FARE class-the lowest price may not allow it) as others-notably (as a rough approximation) the Mid-east airls like GF, EK, EY and the SAsian ones-notably TG.

IF you insist on the cheapest single into BKK-then its likely best to try via LON-book first from UK-start with a general site like westeasttravel or travelsupermakret-then check what the airline that shows up charges on its own site, if booked, find a cheapo BER-LON, AB, or EZ or Gerrywings-whatever.

anderswo rate ich dir die DE www-Thailandforen, wie nittaya, TOP-forumTHailand, thailand-reisetipps oder so. Flugpreise sind ja nicht abhaengig ob man sich als schwul oder nicht anmeldet.