YOU GOT A BUDDY PASS?

You've been dreaming of taking a weekend vacation to Miami or Los Angeles to soak up the sun, watch beautiful people lay out on the beach, visit high end shopping strips, drink cocktails and party at the same urban hotspots PDiddy, JayZ, Beyonce, Lady Gaga and Rihanna are often seen and photographed by the paparazzi. You simply want to live the party life for a weekend and get away from the daily grind at home with your rambunctious kids or your demanding 9 to 5 job. You need a break. A getaway.

You check your online bank account statement and decide you can afford to blow a few hundred dollars on a swanky upscale hotel and a rental car. Next, you check out Orbitz and Travelocity and cringe at the prices of airline tickets. Round trip ticket prices are advertised as low as $569 but after all of the taxes, bag fees, and service fees are included, the cost of your ticket has skyrocketed to $795.

You log onto facebook and twitter and you come across the face of a friend, a friend that works for the airlines! You send them a note requesting a buddy pass and you're even willing to give them $200 under the table for the pass. You need an airplane ticket and you're certain he or she wants the extra cash.

THE REAL DEAL ON BUDDY PASSES

Most airlines have First Class, Business Class and Economy Class. When you travel on a buddy pass, you are Priority Class Numero Zero. Therefore, you are on the very bottom of the list to board a flight. It's time to cross your fingers and say a prayer that there is an open seat on the flight.

Buddy passes are standby nonrevenue tickets. A standby nonrevenue ticket is airline lingo meaning you are traveling on a free ticket or you only paid the required taxes on the ticket. The ticket didn't create a profit or additional revenue for the airline.

If you've paid an airline buddy cash dollars under the table for the pass, you are still not guaranteed to get on a flight. In fact, selling buddy passes is not permitted by most airlines. If you purchase a buddy pass from an airline friend, never let the airline know you "purchased the pass." Your friend may lose their pass privileges or suffer more severe penalties and get terminated from the airline.

Also note, most airline employees are not given a stack of buddy passes to offer to family and friends on a monthly or weekly basis. Most buddy passes are earned by a number of hours worked over a quarter or other strict requirements set forth by the airline. A friend may earn two buddy passes or zero buddy passes. Simply because he or she works for an airline, does not mean they have buddy passes to share or sell (under the table). In fact, buddy passes are not free for airline employees. Most employees are required to pay the taxes and fees on the buddy passes.

 NO GUARANTEES

Traveling on a buddy pass does not guarantee you will get on a flight to your destination. You are a stand by passenger. If a flight is sold out, your name is rolled over onto a list of standby passengers waiting to get on the next flight scheduled to your destination.

The stand by list has an order of passenger priority. You may have arrived first in the standby line to board the flight, but you still might be the last name to be called to board the plane. Employees, parents, spouses and children of employees, retirees, and revenue customers that wish to take an earlier departure are usually given priority over the buddy pass holder to board the plane.

Inevitably, waiting all day to board a flight can be tiresome and frustrating. However, it is important to always remain patient, polite and pleasant to all airline employees, especially airline customer service agents that hold the power to allow you to get onboard the plane. If you become unpleasant or unruly, your buddy pass may be rebuked and denied and your discount flight will immediately become a dream that flew away.

In addition, be polite to the inflight crew. If you are rude and demanding to the flight attendants while traveling on a buddy pass, you will certainly create problems for yourself as well as your airline buddy that gave you the pass. The airline can call security, kick you off of a flight and void the remaining portion of your pass. You will be stuck in an airport in a random city with your luggage at your side.

PREPARE FOR A LONG DAY

If you are traveling standby, try and limit your luggage to 1 or 2 pieces you can carry onboard. If you must check an oversize bag, pack your toiletries, a change of clothes, medication, and other important items in your carry on bag. There is always a chance that your checked luggage may arrive at your destination before you.

Many airlines have a dress code for non revenue passengers. Halter tops, shorts, sneakers, and flip flops are not allowed on most commercial airlines for nonrevenue passengers. Learn what clothes and shoes are acceptable for travel on the airline.

Log on to http://www.tsa.gov/ to find out what you can and cannot bring through airport security. The website will give you updates about liquids, gels, and items the government prohibits on airlines.

Read a book, log on to your computer and get be ready to spend hours at the airport. Having some source of entertainment for yourself helps the hours fly by while you wait to board a plane.

Also, pack a light weight jacket or sweater because most airports are quite chilly inside.

Be prepared to pay high prices for food, drinks, and snacks in the airport. Airport concession stands know that you don't have many choices for dining, therefore they inflate the prices of food. A Subway footlong sandwich in the Las Vegas airport can cost you $12 for a tasteless meal not including a drink or chips.



 


DAYS AND TIMES TO TRAVEL ON A BUDDY PASS

Always remember, traveling on a buddy pass is traveling STAND BY. If you decide to fly on a buddy pass to a popular destination on a Friday, Sunday, or during a holiday weekend, indeed, you will be standing by the customer service desk in the gate area at the airport all day or even two days as you wait to hear your name called to be cleared to board the plane.

The best times to fly on a buddy pass are early morning flights during the week. If the early flights are full, you will still have other options during the day to get to your destination. Tuesday and Wednesday are usually favorable days to fly standby.

Call your airline buddy a night or two before your date of travel. Ask him or her to check the bookings of flights to and from your destination so you will have an idea of what to expect during your travels. Also, call the airlines 800 number or their non revenue hotline directly and let the reservation agent know you are traveling on a buddy pass and you would like assistance in mapping out available  flights to your desired destination.

If most of the flights to your destination are booked full, ask the airline reservation representative or customer service agent in the gate area at the airport to help you map out a "round about way" to get to your destination. Airlines have unpublished routes.

For example, your plan is to fly from Chicago to Los Angeles. However, all nonstops from Chicago to LAX are oversold. The customer service agent may recommend you fly from Chicago to Kansas City, change planes and connect to Phoenix and take a non stop from Phoenix to Los Angeles.

The customer service agent may also recommend that you fly into a different airport located miles away from your original destination. Burbank Airport, Ontario Airport, and Orange County airport have shuttles, rental cars, and other transportation services to LAX airport in greater Los Angeles. Most other major US cities have alternative airports nearby. For example, you can fly into Ft. Lauderdale and catch a shuttle to Miami. Or if you plan to visit Manhattan, you can fly into Newark, NJ and take the path train into the city.

It sounds tiring and it certainly can be, however, you are flying for pennies. The outcome of arriving at your destination without paying a hefty price, is usually worth the hassle of the numerous flights and connections.

~Safe travels
  theflygirl