Guide
What you pay for a flight booked by phone
You won’t find prices on this site. We don’t sell tickets, and fares change by the hour. What we can show you is what goes into the number an agent quotes, so you know what to ask about.
The pieces of a ticket price
- Base fare
- The airline’s price for the seat in the fare class you pick. Cheaper fare classes usually come with stricter change rules.
- Taxes and government fees
- Set by governments, not the airline or agent. In an advertised fare they must be included in the total, per 14 CFR 399.84.
- Carrier-imposed charges
- Surcharges some airlines add on top of the base fare. These count toward the advertised total too.
- Optional extras
- Checked bags, seat selection and similar add-ons. The airline sets these prices, and you can often pay for them later.
- Agency service fee
- What the travel agency charges for its work, if anything. Some agencies charge a separate fee and some build it into the price. Either way, it belongs in the total you hear.
How to hear it as one number
- Ask for the total per traveler and for the whole booking
- Ask which of the pieces above are included, and which are still to come
- Ask whether the service fee is refunded if the airline cancels
- Ask for an emailed receipt that lists the fare, taxes and any service fee separately
After you’ve paid
Once the full amount is paid, the seller can’t raise the price of the ticket, its baggage charges or a fuel surcharge, under 14 CFR 399.88. A rise in a government tax or fee is the only exception, and only if you were told about that possibility and agreed to it before buying.
When a bag fee comes back to you
If you paid to check a bag and it’s lost or significantly delayed, the airline owes you a refund of that bag fee under 14 CFR 260.5. You first need to file a mishandled baggage report with the airline that flew your last leg.
“Significantly delayed” is defined in 14 CFR 260.2. On a domestic trip, it means the bag isn’t delivered or picked up within 12 hours of your last flight landing. On international trips it’s 15 hours, or 30 hours when a nonstop leg between the US and a foreign point runs longer than 12 hours.
Paid extras you never got
Under 14 CFR 260.4, an airline that is the merchant of record must refund fees for extras it didn’t provide through no fault of yours. That includes a prepaid service you couldn’t use because the flight was cancelled, significantly changed or oversold, and one lost to an aircraft swap or broken equipment. The refund should come automatically.
Fee questions, answered plainly
Why doesn’t this site list any prices?
Because we don’t sell tickets and can’t see live fares. The agent you speak with quotes current prices, and any fare that is advertised has to be the full amount you’d pay.
Does NoTabs Travel add a fee?
No. We’re paid by our partners for calls. Any service fee is the partner agency’s, and they should tell you about it before you pay.
Are bag and seat fees part of the quote?
Only if you ask for them to be. Tell the agent how many bags you’ll check and whether you want assigned seats, so the total reflects how you’ll actually travel.
Sources
Rule text from the Electronic Code of Federal Regulations, checked on . Rules and their enforcement change, so read the current text before relying on it.
- 14 CFR 399.84: Advertised fares must show the full price
- 14 CFR 399.88: No price increases after purchase
- 14 CFR 260.2: Definitions (significantly changed flight, prompt refund, delayed bag)
- 14 CFR 260.4: Refunds for paid extras that weren’t provided
- 14 CFR 260.5: Refunds of bag fees for lost or significantly delayed bags