Guide to Group Airline Tickets - Part 3
Now you have a price you like and you need to know what to do. In most cases, you can ask the airline agent for either a courtesy hold or a contract. Airline policies vary, but most allow you to hold the group for a week or two before they require you to make a decision. If you fail to communicate with them by the deadline, they will cancel the group. The hold is convenient if you are still shopping around with other airlines. In addition, it provides you with more time before a deposit is due to the airline.
When your courtesy hold time is up, you will need to either let the group cancel or ask for a contract. When you go to contract phase, once again you usually have a week or two to sign the contract and return AND pay a deposit. The contract is your agreement with the airline -- they are going to provide air travel and you are going to pay for it. Of course, that's the simple version. In the details are all the terms and conditions. The deposit is a down payment on your tickets. However, different airlines treat the deposit differently.
For example, some airlines will take your deposit and apply this amount to your purchase price when you actually buy the tickets. Others do not apply this deposit. This means that when you buy the tickets you are paying the airline the FULL price at that time. After your trip, the airline will refund you your deposit. You can argue the benefits of doing it each way, but the main thing for you is to be aware how your chosen airline handles the deposit.
In addition, probably the MOST important thing about deposits is whether or not the airline will refund your deposit in any way. Certain airlines will refund your deposit provided you cancel your group or seats before a deadline. Others will not refund it at all. There are also others that will not refund your money, but will give you a credit in that same amount to use in the next 12 months. If you work with multiple teams or groups, you may be okay with the latter knowing that you can use that credit for another group trip.
The bottom line is that the airline will generally require $40 to $50 per seat you want to hold. So a group of 20 might result in a deposit of $800 to $1000. Some airlines do charge more per seat you hold, as much as $100 per seat and more.
But wait! Before you sign a contract and give the airline your money, you need to know what you are agreeing to in the contract. The basics of group airline contracts is covered in Part 4 of the series.
