

Here is what I do: I use the discount sites to get an idea of what prices should be and what airlines fly the route I need, then I go directly to the airline's websites to search for lowest fares depending on day and time of travel. Sometimes I go to my arrival city airport website to see what airlines serve that city. Then I start narrowing down by number of stops, time of day, type of equipment used, etc. This is all very time consuming, but I have much more control over the process than booking with a travel agent or an on-line discount site. Travel agents are valuable allies and the ultimate time savers who do much of the work I've just mentioned, but you are not guaranteed the rock-bottom lowest price..... they only have so much time to invest making bookings that yield them just a few dollars commission.
If you have a good relationship with a travel agent and your bottom line is price, they can book through a consolidator (also known as "bucket shop") that are not available to individuals. These companies buy blocks of seats far in advance for a discount, then are able to sell them at lower prices. You'll pay an agent service charge of around $25, but your flight (major cities only) will be about the cheapest you'll find.
So to boil this down, your airfare price will largely depend on how much time and energy you put into the search.
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