Consoidator- ASAP agency

You're unlikely to save much by using a consolidator, and if anything goes awry (flight cancelations, change of equipment, etc.), it gets much more stressful than had you purchased directly from the carrier.

To add to the above...some consolidators buy up frequent flyer miles and get tickets with those. It's against the airlines' policy. If they catch you, your ticket gets canceled and you have little recourse to get your money back.

"I have never purchased an air travel ticket from one of those places before"

Please keep your perfect record intact. NO airlines do not give these agencies "deals" to sell tickets. (Those days passed with the internet)

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/tourist-scams/beware-of-asap-tickets
https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g1-i10702-k15284047-Asap_tickets_is_a_scam-Air_Travel.html
https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g1-i10702-k15278817-Warning_Avoid_ASAP_TICKETS_Misleading_sales_tactics_and_t-Air_Travel.html

Take a look at Norse Atlantic UK. They have one way fares London to NYC starting at £204 in October. Only book direct!

No way. Stick with the airlines, period!

There is no such thing as a "consolidator." Any "business" claiming to be one is just a fraud. Run away.

If you're hoping to use a "consolidator" to save a few bucks, you will need a time machine. Set the dials to the 1970s and have some fun. (Yes, consolidators once were a real thing, but they dwindled and eventually disappeared long, long ago.) Something called the Internet also made them unnecessary - but also became history's greatest tool to swindle the gullible and uninformed (among other benefits and evils we alternately enjoy and suffer every day).

"ASAP" is notorious as a place to avoid. Go look them up them on sites like Better Business Bureau or Pissed-off Consumer or just google them. You'll see that, at best, they are sleazy, shady and deceptive, mostly they seem to be straight-up liars, cheats and thieves.

The internet is filled with criminals, "discount business class bucket shops" (hah!) and other low-life scum. "ASAP" is a perfect example. A tip for the uninitiated: Simply entering "cheap airline tickets" into a google search and then pulling out your credit card is a surefire way to get taken to the cleaners.

There is no magic trick to getting "reduced price" airline tickets, no "one crazy trick", no secret discounters selling super-cheap tickets because airlines are inexplicably too busy or too lazy to bother selling themselves. But there are plenty of opportunities to be separated from your money. You've found one of them.

Book your tickets directly with the airlines. Period. You can (and maybe should) use LEGITIMATE search tools (google flights, skyscanner, expedia, whatever) to point you to flights but always, ALWAYS!!! go directly to the airline and buy the ticket directly from them, not from some dirtbag in a back alley. There will usually be (relatively) cheap, no-frills options you can buy directly from actual airlines (those often lead to miserable travel experiences and opinions vary as to whether the money saved was worth the suffering you endure, but that's your call) but buying from the airline will get you an actual ticket you can use, not always true with the clowns masquerading as "consolidators".

Thank you everyone for your very clear and helpful advice. It is much appreciated. Thanks for taking the time to respond. I will buy a safe return ticket and enjoy my flight back to the states. Happy Travels Everyone! Joanne