Booking a return fare when return flight not yet for sale

[Josh]

Hi,

I'm looking to book a return fare, JNB-SYD, departing Jan 2026, returning Sep 2026.
Given the Sep 2026 flights won't be released until around September this year, I can't book yet. However, there is I fare class available on the Jan 2026 flight, which I what I want to book into.
When booked as a one-way, it's about R39k, but a return is about R60k, because Qantas price one-way fares higher.
What options do I have to secure this sale fare now? I was thinking:
1. Booking it as a one-way, and in September, adding the return segment, and having them re-price it to around the 60k mark. Would it work this way?
2. Booking it as a return, but coming back a random day and paying a change fee when September opens up. (Not ideal, of course).
3. Booking it as a return, but coming back a random day on a flex fare, so no change fee (will they refund the different if I rebook the return into a sale fare?). This isn't preferrable, as it's a bigger cash outlay.
4. Wait until September to book, and hope the I fare class is still available

Thanks,
Josh

 

[justinbrett]

Hi,

I'm looking to book a return fare, JNB-SYD, departing Jan 2026, returning Sep 2026.
Given the Sep 2026 flights won't be released until around September this year, I can't book yet. However, there is I fare class available on the Jan 2026 flight, which I what I want to book into.
When booked as a one-way, it's about R39k, but a return is about R60k, because Qantas price one-way fares higher.
What options do I have to secure this sale fare now? I was thinking:
1. Booking it as a one-way, and in September, adding the return segment, and having them re-price it to around the 60k mark. Would it work this way?
2. Booking it as a return, but coming back a random day and paying a change fee when September opens up. (Not ideal, of course).
3. Booking it as a return, but coming back a random day on a flex fare, so no change fee (will they refund the different if I rebook the return into a sale fare?). This isn't preferrable, as it's a bigger cash outlay.
4. Wait until September to book, and hope the I fare class is still available

Thanks,
Josh

I think you might need to speak to a travel agent to work out the best way of doing this. @madrooster may be able to help.

 

[equus]

Options 2, 3 and 4 are all valid - and with the pros and cons you have identified. For option 1, you have forgotten that adding the return leg and repricing will incur the change fee - and suffers from the same issue as options 2 and 3.

For what its worth, the evaluation comes into the relative cost of all the fees involved. You would probably be wise to assume that option 4 is probably not going to have the sale fare available (and you are going to be stressing for the next 6 months checking on it).

If the difference between the flex and the sale is more than the change fee (i.e. paying the change to move the return segment is less than paying the flex), then Option2 is the go. If the sale fare saving is not that much, then option 3 is preferred. Option 3, if it offers flexible enough, may also allow for Option 4 in effect - when your dates become available for the return, if there are still sale outbound fares as well, cancel your current flexible fare for a refund, and book the now cheaper return (just make sure your flexible allows a refund, not just a credit, or that you have a use of any excess credit).

A good Travel Agent will help you here heaps - especially as depending on the actual fares involved, a good TA may be able to book Option 3 now, but not have to have it actually paid for months (option 2 on the other hand will require cash - as sale fares typically have a tight pay / ticketing requirement). They can also watch availability, and advise if it looks like it is wise to switch from Option 3 to Option 2 at some point in time.

 

[RooFlyer]

a good TA may be able to book Option 3 now, but not have to have it actually paid for months

Yes @Josh I think a travel agent is by far the best option. But the good old days of being able to kick the payment can down the road by repeatedly cancelling and re-booking (as long as availability lasts) I’m afraid is pretty much dead. But there is still some creativity possible that you can’t usually do yourself.

 

[equus]

the good old days of being able to kick the payment can down the road by repeatedly cancelling and re-booking (as long as availability lasts) I’m afraid is pretty much dead.

All depends on the fare rules. In this case, for simple returns, you are correct, pretty much gone, but if you are playing with other fare types, such as DCIRC22 and the like, that still only require ticketing 25 days before departure, there are still some things that can be done when booking well ahead. Different airline policies can play havoc with that, but a good TA can still get creative.

I had an example where CX was playing nasty about wanting a particular sector ticketed, and cancelled the booking - but we were able to add the same flight back using a JL codeshare instead, and the JL rules were happy to have it sitting on the reservation within the overall fare rules.

In the current case (assuming simple QF return), Sale fares (I) need to be ticketed with 3 days of reservation, and as you go up the classes (D, J) you can get a bit longer - 14 or 30 days. 3 days is useless for cancel and start over, 14 is not much better, and even 30 days doesn't offer much, but can sometimes be useful when looking for returns that are not yet on sale for shorter sorts of trips. With an 8 month trip, however, the OP is likely to be struggling for great options.

 

[Josh]

Oh I should have added - I have already booked a one-way Economy Flex ticket during DSC, and I was going to just do a change on that or use it as a flight credit, so at least I'll get DSC on the outbound journey in Jan. So going to a TA might not be an ideal option for me.

 

[equus]

If you want the DSC, then the existing PNR will have to be used, so the TA approach is out (I don't think there is going to be much they could do with those fare classes anyway). You can use your flex Y one way to change to any of option 2, 3, or 4 that you wish at any time.

Given the change fee on the Sale is A$220, or about R2,500, and the difference to even a saver for one leg is R3,600 (which still has a change fee that is half the sale), and a flex costs over R14k more, I would think the smartest move would be to just book the return sale now, and accept the R2,500 change down the track as the cost of not paying more for that fare.

 

[Ade]

but if you are playing with other fare types, such as DCIRC22 and the like, that still only require ticketing 25 days before departure, there are still some things that can be done when booking well ahead.

I'm very keen to know more about this option please. I would like to use this option to delay payment for a J seat that I will be taking later in the year. I can continue this discussion on a DM if explaining this here will be OT for this thread.

 

[equus]

The CIRC22 are Oneworld Circle Pacific fares (See conditions). and in a similar category to the Global Explorers (RTW fares). They have very specific requirements - eg. Australia, North America, North Asia, have mileage limitations, numbers of stops and distance limitations. Great value if they meet your needs, but pretty specific. Also not cheap, but a lot cheaper than separate fares.

Just a general comment about using a good travel agent. A good travel agent can do many things, and can be cost effective, but is not generally a way to make simple things cheaper. They need to make money for the service they offer, and that either means fee for service or commission. Commission on airfares these days is tiny - and the cheaper the fare you are trying to get, the less will be made. You need to either pay directly for their time (which will probably negate any savings you are making) or be booking other things where they can still make reasonable commission - like speciality / luxury hotels. In many cases, they can get the same or better prices than online, get extra inclusions and/or better arrangements and still make decent commission. When you have such a bundled trip, then they are willing to play around a bit with the airfares and booking as part of the overall package, but as a stand alone, possibly not so much.

The other thing about a lot of the good TAs that people use, is that they don't actively advertise - or take just anyone for random bookings, relying on repeat business and referrals..