Check it out...Air Jam having GREAT Sale
PURCHASE UNTIL 8/17/04 FOR TRAVEL UP TO 12/15/04
Liz

http://www.airjamaica.com/Sale_Detail.asp?SaleID=71.
I actually got the same Sun-Sun deal ($493 - $536 after taxes) almost 2 weeks ago.

Highlights: Boston, Baltimore and Philadelphia are the same - $413 weekdays/$493 weekends (Fri, Sat, Sun). New York/Newark are even cheaper - $381 weekdays/$461 weekends. Houston $494/$542. LA also has a good fare - $513/$593 - that sounds like a great fare fromt the left coast.

$386 from chicago

That must have been a different sale - it isn't listed on that page...

Atlanta $411.00/$491.00. $99.00 cheaper than in June. Great deal. Book-em Dan-o.

We are traveling Chicago to Bonaire August 18th and just saw the reduced rates on AJ. Called the travel agent to see if there was any chance to get the better rate and she called AJ three times and got the same answer - we are stuck with our higher rates - about $200 per ticket higher. Anyone have any luck getting their existing tickets changed to take advantage of the new sale rates?
Tom

We just booked round trip from Miami to Bonaire on AJ through cheap tickets.com for $442 USD. $47 less than on Air Jamaica's web site. Robert.

Really? That's surprising - I just for the heck of it looked at Miami-Bonaire on AJ, doing a Saturday-Saturday random search (I chose Sept 4-18) and got $437.50 including taxes... Were you looking out of the sale dates?

Fort Lauderdale/Miami to Bonaire/Curacao 333 (+ taxes and fees) Mon-Thurs, 393 (+ taxes and fees) Fri-Sun.

This sale ends Aug 17, and all trips must be completed by Dec 15, 2004.

CheapTickets must have been stating the AJ "regular" prices, or AJ must have sold out all the "Sale" seats for the days you are travelling, and CheapTickets had bought a block. From the price you're quoting, I'd say that might be the case - it's the AJ price plus a $5 markup.

One caveat for anyone looking to get these prices from AJ: as I found out to my dismay last trip, only a certain number of tickets are available at the sale prices. Once they're gone, even though there are seats available for the flight, there are no more sale seats available. I'd been checking the fares every day that time, finally talked my husband into the trip (he was being "fiscally conservative" ), and the day I went to book, the dates I'd first chosen had been sold out of the sale seats. Seats were available, but at $100+ more. Luckily, I was flexible so went for a day later and still got the sale.

Well,My vacation dates are set for Saturday, September the 25th through Saturday, October the 2nd. I could have bought for less, but I didn't want to spend the night in Curacao or San Juan, which would offset the lower fare. The $442 fare from Cheap tickets does include taxes and fees. I just checked Air Jamaica's web site and they are still quoting $484.50 for the same flight I bought @$442... Orbitz is quoting $545.

Robert,

Then what I stated about the limited number of seats available at that price is probably the case. Cheap Tickets probably bought a a block of them, and the ones AJ had left were sold out. Again, the flight wouldn't be sold out, just the number of seats they will sell at that price for those dates.
It happens - it happened to me in February, during a similar sale.

I called AJ up, all unhappy - I'd seen the sale price for those dates the day before, and the "Specials" page still indicated that I should have been able to get the cheaper fare for the original dates.

They told me what I say above: the number of sale seats per flight/day is finite. Besides that, they sell blocks to travel agents and apparently, businesses like CheapTickets. You snooze, you lose - at least getting them from AJ. You lucked out in your CheapTickets fare.

I just looked again, and I really think what I am telling you is the truth. You don't see the cheaper seats for those dates because AJ has sold all the allotted cheap tickets for those dates.

To back it up: I looked at Sept 26 thru Oct 3, essentially your dates except Sun-Sun rather than Sat-Sat. Again, $437.00 including all taxes.

I am not changing my seats for a cheaper rate on a different date, no way, no how.

Yuck, that would be a pain in the backside, particularly after everything AA put you through!! :P

I'm just being nerdly, and trying to point out that if you don't already HAVE tickets, and the dates you first choose don't show the "sale" prices, wiggle your dates a bit and you may find them.

I know Susan. I looked for the lower fares, will not lie and say I didn't:-{)} Then I remembered how John and I had already changed vacation dates several times and stopped looking.

Susan,
I'm not trying to argue, in fact, I believe you! Before I bought from Cheap Tickets, I called AJ and asked how Cheap Tickets could sell seats on an AJ flight for less than AJ. The lady at AJ explained that Cheap Tickets had done just as you have stated, they bought a block of tickets at wholesale(her words,not mine!)price.I guess what I was trying to say and didn't say it well, was the AJ ticket sale, although beneficial to some, wasn't much of a sale to me. We paid only $397 last year for the same flight that's costing us $442 this year. Air fares seem to be more volatile this year, moving up and down on a daily and even hourly basis. Yes, Sunday to Sunday fares are slightly lower than Saturday to Saturday fares.We choose Saturday to Saturday because we like to have Sunday to unpack our gear and rest before going back to work on Monday. I don't think I lucked out at all, I was out there tracking prices every day, two and three times a day, until I found the price I needed. Hope you have a great vacation, we are!!