Rick Steves recommends that we book open jaw to "save money". Does "open jaw" mean booking 2 separate one-way tickets from a travel site like Travelocity? Do the tickets have to be from the same airline? Do we have to book them at the same time?
I priced two separate one-way and it was much more expensive than a round trip. I must be missing something....
I will be leaving from Houston (IAH) to Brussels (BRU) on 7/3/2010 and returning 7/12 from Berlin (BER) to Houston.
Thanks,
Kat
Open jaw means flying into one airport and out of another. On sites like kayak or Travelocity, it's usually referred to as "multicity". When you buy an open jaw ticket, it's generally all one ticket although it can be on multiple airlines.
Open jaw is generally going to be cheaper than two one-way tickets. Personally, I've always found round trip cheaper in price, but many people have found better prices flying open jaw. Especially since you have to pay to backtrack (i.e., if you fly in and out of BRU you have to somehow get from Berlin back to BRU), the time and money saved makes open jaw a good choice.
Steve and Liz,
Thanks for demystifying open jaw for me. I know how to book it now.
Best,
Kat
