Orbitz questions.

Hi all,

I am in the process of arranging a flight for my friend to come and visit me
from the US to here in the UK.

I am looking at different reasonably priced ways of purchasing tickets for
her.

What is Orbitz like? Do you guys recommend it?

Also, is it possible for me to buy the tickets on my credit card (uk) for
her and then she receives the tickets or can't that be no these days?

I think I only ever did that once and that was before 9/11.

All comments and recommendations are welcomed!

Gavin.

--
Remove AT from my address reply directly.

I am in the process of arranging a flight for my friend to come and visit me
from the US to here in the UK. ...

What is Orbitz like? Do you guys recommend it?

The last time I asked, Orbitz didn't accept credit cards from outside
for U.S. for anti-fraud reasons.

Since most tickets are now e-tickets, you can buy tix anywhere you want,
such as opodo.co.uk or Travelocity of Expedia.

John R. Levine wrote:

I am in the process of arranging a flight for my friend to come and visit me

from the US to here in the UK. ...

What is Orbitz like? Do you guys recommend it?


The last time I asked, Orbitz didn't accept credit cards from outside
for U.S. for anti-fraud reasons.

because only US cards are fraud proof..........LOL

I think that they simply have more access to information to check on the
validity of transactions on US cards.

mrtravelkay wrote:
because only US cards are fraud proof..........LOL

John R. Levine wrote:
The last time I asked, Orbitz didn't accept credit cards from outside
for U.S. for anti-fraud reasons.

I am in the process of arranging a flight for my friend to come and
visit me
from the US to here in the UK. ...
What is Orbitz like? Do you guys recommend it?

"mrtravelkay" wrote in message
. com...


John R. Levine wrote:

I am in the process of arranging a flight for my friend to come and
visit me

from the US to here in the UK. ...

What is Orbitz like? Do you guys recommend it?


The last time I asked, Orbitz didn't accept credit cards from outside
for U.S. for anti-fraud reasons.

because only US cards are fraud proof..........LOL

Yeah, I found that amusing too. When I was in the US at it was my
girlfriends birthday I couldn't use my card on hardly any of the US
Websites. Yet I can go down the road in the US and use my card where ever I
want too. Very strange.

Frank F. Matthews wrote:

I think that they simply have more access to information to check on the
validity of transactions on US cards.

Are you suggesting that the info on whether the non US account is valid
or not is not retreivable by computer as easily as it is for US accounts?

On Tue, 11 May 2004 18:47:46 +0100 "IceC" icecATdsl.pipex.com wrote:

:"mrtravelkay" wrote in message
y.com...

: John R. Levine wrote:

: I am in the process of arranging a flight for my friend to come and
:visit me

: from the US to here in the UK. ...

: What is Orbitz like? Do you guys recommend it?

: The last time I asked, Orbitz didn't accept credit cards from outside
: for U.S. for anti-fraud reasons.

: because only US cards are fraud proof..........LOL

:Yeah, I found that amusing too. When I was in the US at it was my
:girlfriends birthday I couldn't use my card on hardly any of the US
:Websites. Yet I can go down the road in the US and use my card where ever I
:want too. Very strange.

So it is your opinion that physical possession and presentation of a credit
card to a retailer does not protect the retailer more than entering data on a
web site?

--
Binyamin Dissen
http://www.dissensoftware.com

"IceC" icecATdsl.pipex.com wrote in message ...
Hi all,

I am in the process of arranging a flight for my friend to come and visit me
from the US to here in the UK.

I am looking at different reasonably priced ways of purchasing tickets for
her.

What is Orbitz like? Do you guys recommend it?

Also, is it possible for me to buy the tickets on my credit card (uk) for
her and then she receives the tickets or can't that be no these days?

I think I only ever did that once and that was before 9/11.

All comments and recommendations are welcomed!

Gavin.

I found Orbitz does a very good job searching a wide spectrum of
carriers to give you a cheap fare, better than most other sites. But
you could still beat it if you know a particular carrier is having a
fare sale sometimes.

I think that they simply have more access to information to check on the
validity of transactions on US cards.

Are you suggesting that the info on whether the non US account is valid
or not is not retreivable by computer as easily as it is for US accounts?

Yup.

Dealing with different formats for mailing addresses, phone numbers,
and other info used for verification is different. Laws about
trans-border dataflows are different. These are all soluble problems,
but they do need to be solved.

Also, any large online business has its own fraud prevention department
with models of valid and invalid transactions, and those would need to
be adjusted for international customers.

Orbitz made a specific decision to go after the US market first. They
don't sell tickets that originate outside the U.S. Someday they will,
but not yet.

John R. Levine wrote:
I think that they simply have more access to information to check on the
validity of transactions on US cards.

Are you suggesting that the info on whether the non US account is valid
or not is not retreivable by computer as easily as it is for US accounts?


Yup.

Dealing with different formats for mailing addresses, phone numbers,
and other info used for verification is different. Laws about
trans-border dataflows are different. These are all soluble problems,
but they do need to be solved.

They have apparently have been solved by the many places online,
including travel sites, where you can use a credit card no matter where
it was issued.