purchasing airline tickets after visa approved

[wxman]

I have a question for those who have brought their fiances to the states. Did you purchase round trip tickets for her in the US? I have been checking online travel sites and one way tickets are twice as expensive as round trip tickets.

[Jet]

Just buy a R/T ticket that starts in FSU and throw the second half away. When buying the ticket keep the outbound flight date and the return date within 30 days of each other, as these tix are usually cheapest.

[BC]

On th first 'go round' if you have or can use mile programs to purchase the ticket it's a good way to go since these usually have the same restrictions as 'full fare' where you can change the departure return date etc.  Great for the occasions where you aren't sure if you will be able to make the flight. (like waiting for the visa to arrive)

Since the return part can be used within a year would be good for the first visit back home (for those who would be able to  return during this period)

[RacerX]

you might want to do a little more research, I found one ways to be cheaper (by a little).  One trick is to book two tickets from/to the connecting city.

I bought round trip tickets (AFTER the visas were approved) for my fiancee and daughter as a show of good faith that if things did not work out that they had a way to get back home.  My wife had enough pressure on her at that time and she told me later that this showed her that I was truely concerned about their well being.

It cost me another $100 per ticket to reschedule the return trip with Aeroflot after her AOS.

[wxman]

Thanks for all the advice. I do appreciate it. I will go to Ukraine to pick her and her daughter up and bring them to the states. I do not want her to go through airports and customs alone. She will be under enough pressure as it is. I find it odd that round trip tickets from Minneapolis to Kiev in September are around $1000, while round trip tickets from Kiev to Minneapolis are $1400. I use NWA/KLM since I have flyer miles. Is it possible just to purchase 3 round trip tickets from Minneapolis to Kiev and save $800? Will it be a problem that she will not be on plane to Kiev? If in the end, she does wish to stay in America, I will pay for her return trip the same way. She is a "tightwad" in a good way , and will want to know the exact costs of these flights.   

[Bruno]

I have a question for those who have brought their fiances to the states. Did you purchase round trip tickets for her in the US? I have been checking online travel sites and one way tickets are twice as expensive as round trip tickets.

Hello dancing cat... i dont know about us system but for my ex-Russian wife,  i have use hungarian airline... they are cheap, the one way ticket is the 1/2 of two way... the only problem is the connection to budapest... around 1.5 hour waiting... Kiev-budapest follow by budapest-JFK... they are very cheap... and you can make reservation and buy online...

 

[Jet]

Is it possible just to purchase 3 round trip tickets from Minneapolis to Kiev and save $800? Will it be a problem that she will not be on plane to Kiev?

Yeah, it will be a problem. If she doesn't show for the first leg, they will automaticly cancel the second leg. I went through this on a domestic flight sometime back where the one-way ticket was triple the R/T. They refunded the first ticket and I had to repurchase when I got where I was going.

(My daughter was visiting an Aunt in Jersey who had been down here in FL then drove back up. I was going up to see My folks and fly her back down with me)

[wxman]

Is it possible just to purchase 3 round trip tickets from Minneapolis to Kiev and save $800? Will it be a problem that she will not be on plane to Kiev?

Yeah, it will be a problem. If she doesn't show for the first leg, they will automaticly cancel the second leg. I went through this on a domestic flight sometime back where the one-way ticket was triple the R/T. They refunded the first ticket and I had to repurchase when I got where I was going.

(My daughter was visiting an Aunt in Jersey who had been down here in FL then drove back up. I was going up to see My folks and fly her back down with me)
[/quote]
Thanks for the info. Guess I will just have to pay the price then. I will just book their RT tickets from Kiev to Minneapolis, and make sure they are on the same flight as I am on my return flight. I assume that will be easy to do as I have her passport number, etc.  

[philb]

You could try Aerosvit.  You can buy a one way from them into New York for $490.00 and then buy a round trip to your final destination from New York.  You might be able to save some money this way.  Also Jet Blue sells their tickets by the leg rather than round trip and they fly out of NY.  Last time I checked they were $199.00 each way NY to Denver.  All of this could be way more bother than it is worth though.

[David C.]

Can anyone clarify what the requirements are in terms of air travel from Uzbekistan to the United States in regards to whether or not it is necessary to purchase a round trip ticket or if a one way ticket is ok when a fiancé is traveling to the USA for the first time with a K-1 fiancé visa. My fiancé was looking into purchasing a plane ticket and was told she needed to purchase a round trip ticket since an immigrant visa was required . I have heard of other FSU fiancé's who were able to purchase just a one way ticket. It appears that technically a K-1 visa is considered to be a non-immigrant visa however the area appears to be a gray area since the intent is to live here permanently and many of the requirements are the same as an immigrant visa. Obviously I prefer the expense of a one way ticket as opposed to a round trip ticket if possible. Any suggestions or help is much appreciated.

Sincerely,

David C.

[Bruno]

Yes, K1 is non-immigrant... until you marry her in US, she cannot stay more long that  3 month in US... only marriage can adjust his status...

As long as she has a visa they do not care whether she has a R/T or one way fare.

[Son of Clyde]

Is there an advantage to using a travel agent?

My agent got round trip tickets for me that cost $750.00.

If I purchase their tickets myself who knows where they might end up. Agents screw up too like the time they gave me a ticket with less than an hour between connecting flights.

[Jet]

There can be an advantage to using a travel agent or consolidator. When we buy tickets we usually consult several because sometimes they have unadvertised prices at a substantial discount. Agents can screw up, but so can the airlines, and you can never discount weather problems either!

Last summer Liliya and the little one got rerouted to Pittsburg because of heavy thunderstorms over Washington Dulles. Our travel agent had made sure to build in a 4 hour layover since they knew the child was entering on a visa. By the time they were sent back to Dulles and cleared passport control, their connecting flight had already departed and they were STUCK at the airport for 22 hours. Of course she had left the last of her cash (she had about $20.00 and no credit cards on her) with pappa in Russia as she was headed home :?.

United REALLY pissed me off when they didn't even bother to offer her and the 5yr old a room for the night as this was a "weather" related delay, and therefore NOT their responsibility :X

[ConnerVT]

Even the biggest places screw up.  I once arrived in France in June to find my connecting flight had been discontinued (no, not cancelled) in March.  I bought my ticket in April.  From where?  Travelocity.

I'd like to reignite this thread as it is of recent and future interest to me. My plan is to wait until Marina has the visa in had in Moscow (she will do a DHL Pick-up) then I will call the L.A. Aeroflot office to purchase a ticket on the first one way from SVO-LAX (there are 3 /wk and not so busy in OCT.). This way I will have to pay a $50 transfer fee to send the ticket to Moscow for Marina to pick it up (stupid I know) but at least it is buying direct and I can do it pretty much instantly with a credit card. Price about $600 (the details are at work). Anyway here are my questions.

Anyone else ever do it this way and how did it work out for you?

I did have trouble with the manager of the LA office as she insisted that we needed to purchase a two way which I new to be false. Well long story short she finally got off her ass and went and checked and found out I was right. No problem but I worry Marina could run into another "misinformed :?" Aeroflot employee on her way through the airport who may refuse her boarding. Has anyone ever heard of this happening?

PS The reason they even give a ship about the visa is if they allow someone to travel to the US without one they get fined for the hassle they end up causing the USCIS.