Flying Fiance to the US

[top_secret 2,414]

On 4/26/2023 at 6:55 AM, Kawika & Michelle said:

 

Wouldn't a route like this also require the beneficiary to do the immigration process at the first port of entry in the US...so in this scenario they would have to go through the immigration process in Atlanta? So we would need to make sure that the layover on the first port of entry is several hours long just in case their processing takes a lot of time.

  That was the "not ideal" part, although since you mentioned wife made it to Costa Rica under rona-travel bans, she has proven herself an accomplished international traveler who is able to handle a connection.

 

BUT,  Cheap fares are back on the EVA flights.  Right now they have $772 one way CEB-TPE-IAH on May 15,21,22,23,24,25.  Get one while it's still there.   last time such fares only lasted an hour. (ok, still expensive but less ridiculously so) 

 

[top_secret 2,414]

On 4/26/2023 at 6:45 AM, seekingthetruth said:

Where can I find that fare?

 

 

That fare was just on delta.com.  The Philippines and TPAC flights were Delta codeshares operated by Korean Air.

 

Note that EVA just added a Clark-Taipei flight last month and had some cheap(er) flights CRK-USA at the time to kick the new flight off.  EVA would be a fantastic option from Clark now.

Edited April 27, 2023 by top_secret

[seekingthetruth 1,246]

1 minute ago, top_secret said:

 

 

That fare was just on delta.com.  The Philippines and TPAC flights were Delta codeshares operated by Korean Air.

 

Note that EVA just added a Clark-Taipei flight last months and had some cheap(er) flights CRK-USA at the time to kick the new flight off.  EVA would be a fantastic option from Clark now.

Yes, I was following the prices since January, and before the startup (March 30) I could get RT for 800-900.  After the flight started, prices have more than doubled for all the way to August!  September you can find <1000.

 

[top_secret 2,414]

12 minutes ago, seekingthetruth said:

Yes, I was following the prices since January, and before the startup (March 30) I could get RT for 800-900.  After the flight started, prices have more than doubled for all the way to August!  September you can find <1000.

 

That's a summer time premium and is from anywhere in the Philippines to anywhere in the US this summer.   Right now is the craziest summer pricing I've seen in like 20 years tracking airfares to and from the Philippines.  It's almost as bad as Christmas/NY.

 

 

[seekingthetruth 1,246]

4 minutes ago, top_secret said:

 

That's a summer time premium and is from anywhere in the Philippines to anywhere in the US this summer.   Right now is the craziest summer pricing I've seen in like 20 years tracking airfares to and from the Philippines.  It's almost as bad as Christmas/NY.

 

 

A friend of mine flew RT Clark/Seattle on EVA last week and it was only $775.  I hope fares come down before my family needs 5 one ways.  The RT was just for me to go scouting and see my ill sister.  I will check Delta from Manila too.

[Kawika & Michelle 108]

1 hour ago, top_secret said:

BUT,  Cheap fares are back on the EVA flights.  Right now they have $772 one way CEB-TPE-IAH on May 15,21,22,23,24,25.  Get one while it's still there.   last time such fares only lasted an hour. (ok, still expensive but less ridiculously so) 

 

The best flight for EVA Air from Cebu would be the one that leaves around noon with only one stop in Taipei. The main issue I've been seeing is that EVA Air likes to hide the availability of the Basic Economy seats for that flight for One Way searches but they show up if you search for a Round Trip. The price for that leg on a round trip tends to be less than $700 which is why I was asking earlier about how the refund process works. If it works like I hope it would...I should be able to get the flight I want at the best price if I go through the round trip ticket process...but I want to make sure that the only thing I lose when canceling the second leg of the round trip is the refund fee. If that is the case, then I could secure the flight I want at the best price going this route for just the cost of the refund fee ($50). Otherwise I would have to pay almost $200 more to put her on an earlier flight that would stop over in Manila before following the same route as the preferred flight. Taking the earlier flight would also create the issue of having to put her in a hotel over night in Cebu so that she could make it to the airport on time. 

 

On top of all of it is that we have no guarantee that she will get her visa in time for the flight on May 12th. Her interview is on May 4th (Thursday)...so we may be taking a risk that she would even receive her visa in Cebu by the 12th. It basically comes down to whether or not I would like to gamble $100 on the chance that she can be here on Friday night...which for me is worth it. If we pick a later date & she ends up getting her visa prior to May 12th...I would have wished that I would have taken the risk to see her sooner.

[top_secret 2,414]

14 minutes ago, Kawika & Michelle said:

On top of all of it is that we have no guarantee that she will get her visa in time for the flight on May 12th. Her interview is on May 4th (Thursday)...so we may be taking a risk that she would even receive her visa in Cebu by the 12th. It basically comes down to whether or not I would like to gamble $100 on the chance that she can be here on Friday night...which for me is worth it. If we pick a later date & she ends up getting her visa prior to May 12th...I would have wished that I would have taken the risk to see her sooner.

 

I'd say trying to guess a future visa delivery date almost to the day is a risky endeavor.  There are way to many variables in that equation.  To have that level of flexibility is likely to cost more.

[Kawika & Michelle 108]

4 minutes ago, top_secret said:

I'd say trying to guess a future visa delivery date almost to the day is a risky endeavor.  There are way to many variables in that equation.  To have that level of flexibility is likely to cost more.

 

Totally understandable...at this point that cost would be the $100 change fee if we had to reschedule to another day.

[top_secret 2,414]

1 hour ago, seekingthetruth said:

A friend of mine flew RT Clark/Seattle on EVA last week and it was only $775.  I hope fares come down before my family needs 5 one ways.  The RT was just for me to go scouting and see my ill sister.  I will check Delta from Manila too.

When I flew my wife and stepdaughter here in 2021 it was like $900 all in for the two of them together.  The only problem was, that the fare was only available on on Singapore Airlines. Singapore Airlines is really a fantastic airline but disadvantaged flying from the Philippines to USA.  I didn't mention the disadvantage to my wife, but I think she became suspicious when after flying 4 hours Clark to Singapore, having a 3 hour layover at Changi, and already being 4 hours into the Singapore-LAX flight, 11 hours into the trip, she noticed on the flight map that they were flying over Manila.  Other airlines would have been like $800 more for the two tickets at that time.

[seekingthetruth 1,246]

7 hours ago, top_secret said:

When I flew my wife and stepdaughter here in 2021 it was like $900 all in for the two of them together.  The only problem was, that the fare was only available on on Singapore Airlines. Singapore Airlines is really a fantastic airline but disadvantaged flying from the Philippines to USA.  I didn't mention the disadvantage to my wife, but I think she became suspicious when after flying 4 hours Clark to Singapore, having a 3 hour layover at Changi, and already being 4 hours into the Singapore-LAX flight, 11 hours into the trip, she noticed on the flight map that they were flying over Manila.  Other airlines would have been like $800 more for the two tickets at that time.

We would be happy to say hello to Singapore Changi if I could get a ticket price like that!  😁

[top_secret 2,414]

1 hour ago, seekingthetruth said:

We would be happy to say hello to Singapore Changi if I could get a ticket price like that!  😁

Alas that was 2021 when both Philippines and Singapore still had varying degrees of lockdowns and travel bans.  The CRK-SIN flight on Scoot was funny because it was the ONLY passenger flight arriving or departing Clark at that time of day.  Yet the entire airport staff, security guards, check-in agents, baggage handlers, BI, TIEZA, concourse workers, etc etc etc, were all there and on call.  Essential workers you know.  Once my wife and stepdaughter were checked in, there really weren't any other passengers in the terminal.  When the plane arrived they boarded the Scoot A320 to discover the entire passenger list consisted of, my wife, her daughter, and,,, one Australian guy.  Literally only 3 passengers on an A320 served by two pilots and four flight attendants departing from Clark Airport that had only seen those 3 passengers in the last several hours.  Then of course at Changi they got the VIP golf cart ride to the transit area designated for passengers from rona-death-zone countries such as US and Philippines.  The brand new 777 for SIN-LAX was only a third full to.

Edited April 28, 2023 by top_secret

[Redro 4,611]

1 hour ago, seekingthetruth said:

We would be happy to say hello to Singapore Changi if I could get a ticket price like that!  😁

Singapore Changi is my favorite airport. And I adore Singapore Airlines. 

[seekingthetruth 1,246]

27 minutes ago, top_secret said:

The CRK-SIN flight on Scoot was funny because it was the ONLY passenger flight arriving or departing Clark at that time of day.

I forgot about the SCOOT part,  They are not reliable on connecting bags so there needs to be ample connection time.  I never understood how SCOOT can be so bad when SQ is so good,

[Chancy 6,241]

8 hours ago, top_secret said:

When I flew my wife and stepdaughter here in 2021 it was like $900 all in for the two of them together.

 

That was a great bargain!  In 2021, my one-way ticket to Louisiana via JAL/AA was $850.  I booked it a week before my flight which was on the weekend before Thanksgiving.

 

Pre-COVID, I got all my RT tickets on EVA Air during the BPI Travel Fair.  Lowest was $540 for MNL-SFO RT in summer 2019.  The first Travel Fair for 2023 just ended a couple of weeks ago.  The next one will probably be in October.

 

[Kawika & Michelle 108]

I went ahead & took the plunge today to book her flight instead of risking the flight fully booking up or the prices go up even more. I went ahead & purchased the round trip ticket since that was the only way to get the 12:15 pm flight we were trying to get out of Cebu. It was not an option (other than buying the more expensive seats) as a one way ticket. Everything I've researched seems to indicate that the second ticket should be fully refundable minus the associated refund fee ($50 for the ticket I purchased). The refund fee can vary from $50-$200 depending on the ticket you purchase. I'll let everyone know what happens when we request a refund.