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Track Airline Ticket Prices, Get Refunds

by Joshua Fruhlinger on May 22, 2007 at 12:39 PM

Yapta.com

We were lucky enough to get an early look at Yapta.com, a new ticket price tracking service. Today, the public beta of the site rolls out, which means you can give the track-a-ticket-and-get-a-refund-if-the-price-drops service a go.

What Is it?
Yapta.com isn't just any travel service -- it don't sell tickets. Instead, it helps help you look up ticket prices at various airlines' sites and keep track of them. As the ticket price fluctuates, you get notices (via e-mail) from the site so you can choose when to strike for the best price. It gets better: If the price drops after you buy the ticket, Yapta.com will help you get a refund for the difference.

Does it work?
We created a test trip to London and were quite pleased with the regular notices from Yapta as the price changed. The e-mails were so frequent and accurate that we were almost tempted to just buy the ticket and take off for a weekend of Fish & Chips.

This service is great for those planning a big trip ahead of time. You can set up your trip and watch as prices drop. For last-minute travelers, however, Yapta.com probably won't help all that much, as the service really needs a couple days to track the prices and make a difference.

Do you really get refunds if ticket prices drop after you buy your ticket?
We wanted to know the same thing, so we asked Jeff Pecor, Yapta's PR Director.

"Airlines only honor their 'guaranteed airfare rule' if people buy directly from the airline (so it doesn't apply if you buy on Expedia, for example)," says Pecor. "Our data from beta users shows that people will qualify for a travel voucher or refund on about one third (1/3) of the flights they take (based on average tracking period of 21 days). Every airline has slightly different rules regarding their airfare guarantees, so Yapta gives people the specific amount and specific instructions for each airline."

Can Everyone Use it Now?
Yes. Yapta launched its public beta today, so check it out, and good luck!

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Tags: airline tickets, AirlineTickets, breaking+news, top, travel, yapta

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