PBH / colombia (travelguide, pictures) / post

You can get to Colombia cheaper on frequent flyer miles than on a regular ticket...

I am a poster here and also a frequent traveler to Colombia. The least expensive way to fly to Colombia is to buy some frequent flyer miles from someone who has a ton of them. You then make the reservation and he or she redeems their miles to pay for it and the ticket is then yours. Many business people have earned tons of miles, and have little use for them.

I and my friends have tons of them and can offer them to you at a price less than the cost of a regular ticket, in some cases saving hundreds of dollars. In addition, unlike regular tickets, they are good for a FULL year, and changes are totally FREE.

We do this on a friend-to-friend basis only and prefer to get to know you first a bit. We get to unload our miles and you get a cheaper way to travel...especially since Colombia seems to be one of the more expensive countries to travel to in South America.

Please do not contact me unless all of the following exist:

1) I only help out my fellow Colombian travelers...people going to Colombia.
2) I prefer people who make at least two trips a year, or who travel down for long trips, such as expatriots or students.
3) I can best help those whose tickets are going to cost $700 or more bought the regular way.
4) This is the most important....you need to be very flexible in your travel dates...and the further out the better. But remember, unlike regular tickets, tickets issued with miles are good for a whole year and offer limitless changes, and for free. These features alone make them more valuable than regular tickets!

If you meet all these criteria, feel free to contact me at WGregg123 at aol.com or private message me.

Say that you saw this on the Poor But Happy Guide. By the way, this is not an ad, but a way to help out my fellow travelers to Colombia...if you want to go to other countries, I can't help you.

And if you have any questions, post them here...I am always reading the forum for the great info it offers.

By Bill1243 on Jul 10, 2004, 22:43 in Friendly Talkzone.

vicshere says on Jul 11, 2004, 08:07:

warning this is the second time is see this post on this board...what got my attention was the phrase "help out" .....yea right the world is full of do gooders... you seam very eager to sell your air miles.....I myself would never buy air miles from any stranger...maybe a good friend or a family member...IMHO I would have to say this is some kind of scam......please folks do your due diligence before you transfer any kind of funds to any internet business.....or stranger saying they are your friend and trying to save you money....

listo
"con mucho gusto"
Vic

listo

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Bill1243 says on Jul 11, 2004, 14:45:

response to Vic's warning I guess I must admit I'm a little surprised at Vic's response. This is no scam at all. I have a ton of frequent flyer miles and it is very simple.. I can get someone a ticket for less than the cost of a regular ticket...and they are also good for an entire year and with no change fees. It's is really quite simple.

And it is true...I only make them available to my fellow Colombian travelers. And quite frankly I don't appreciate you slamming me on the forum. It may have sounded like an ad to you, and I can understand that. And you are welcome to purchase miles any way you wish, or earn them the hard way thru flying and charging on credit cards. But if you would like more info on it, send me an email, reference the forum, and I'll send it.... now wouldn't that be a lot better than slamming me on the forum?!! And believe me...this is no "internet business" as you call it.

As a matter of fact, three different people from the forum have got tickets this way... do you think I would be mentioning this on here if it was a scam on my part?

Vic, email me at the address above.

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caslug says on Jul 11, 2004, 15:32:

kinda harsh don't you think Vic, I seen bill1243 contribute very usefull information on other sites, so would tend to give him the benefit of the doubt. Vic, while I applaud your cautionary warning to the general public about using a "unknown" entity. I feel your tone was a tad harsh, after all unless you or know of people that used bill1243 in the past and gotten burn. How do you know he's not legit, how is this different than if he put those miles on EBAY.

Bill, I saw your post in two other sites also, and was always interest. But how did you work out the logistics of the transaction? Confirmative of payment and confirmation of the ticket. I think if you want to put potential buyer mind at ease, please post the steps that they would use. And show that those step protect both the buyer & you from non-payment or non-delivery.

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pablo says on Jul 11, 2004, 16:47:

No surprises
I'm one of the three that Bill1243 has helped out and haven't had any problems. I saved some money this route. I have met Bill and trust him.

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FredGarvin says on Jul 11, 2004, 16:50:

Credibility is everything You might be able to build some credibilty if you actually use your real name, perhaps have a personal website with contact information, phone number, physical address, ect... We (or I) simply have no idea who you are!!!

This is the first post I have seen you make. So, perhaps if you actually help people FIRST (doesn't matter what it may be, not necessarily pertaining to your offer of cheap airfairs), you are in a better position to build that credibilty with people.

Not here to tell you that what you are offering is a scam (or even if you are profiting from your offer, I don't care -- it's irrelevent), just letting you know that building trust takes time and effort -- regardless of what your offer is. Especially in the online environment -- people do business with those that they actually know and trust.

...Focus on building that trust and you shouldn't have any problems promoting anything that you offer. Just remember, this is a community of people, and advertisments/product or service pitches tend to be looked down upon. We ALL get enough ads thrown at us on a daily basis -- this is a community where I can feel safe from that.

FG

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Bill1243 says on Jul 11, 2004, 20:32:

Comments back to Caslug and Fred
caslug,

The logistics are very simple...you just make the reservation, telling them a friend will be paying for it with his miles. The reservation is good for two weeks...awaiting payment. You then send me a check and I apply the redeem the miles and the ticket is issued in your name.

I do outline the steps in an outline I send out, but didn't have enough room in a short post to do it.

Fred,

Good point...but you have to realize that I only do this on a small basis, mostly from word of mouth. And since the airlines frown on it, I do not want a website up. Again, this is yet another reason why I only wanted to deal with friends, i.e, other guys going to Colombia. I do agree, however that I am not a long time poster here, but I am on the other latin forums. Perhaps I felt a kindred spirit with other people traveling there, and maybe I stepped over the line of trust. To tell you the truth, I sometimes wonder why I sell them at all, since it seems to take more time than it is worth! But they are a great deal, especially for those that meet the criteria above.

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Miguel says on Jul 12, 2004, 05:37:

¡Tranquilo! Rather than blast the guy, do your homework first. I did and his offer is legit.

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r1ch1ee903 says on Jul 14, 2004, 14:54:

more info needed Bill how does this work, you explain a little but I (we) need more info. what airline? Can it be a one way or does it have to be round trip? and as far as destination (e.g., Boston to Bogota to Santa Marta, or one way in reverse........lets say that's my flight plan) can you accommodate all destinations?

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Bill1243 says on Jul 16, 2004, 02:14:

answer to r1ch1ee903 As I said, email me for questions.....amail address above. I hesitate to name the airline because technically they frown upon the sale of miles, but email me and I'll report further.

It is round trip, but the tickets are good for a whole year. They are perfect for people staying a long time, since long term tickets cost a bundle when purchased the regular way.

You are allowed one layover....or one open jaw, where you go to one city and then you leave from another. I think with Santa Marta that you might have to book an in-country flight to this city.

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thegoodbyestare says on Jul 16, 2004, 16:44:

Settle down people I emailed bill1234 and he was very informative about the miles. While I couldnt use them due to restrictions on my travel dates cause I am in school and can only travel certain dates, his offer seemed very legit to me. Give him some slack, He's trying to help you out, not scam your money.

Hius Enauk

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Bill1243 says on Jul 17, 2004, 14:20:

Thank you Thanks. Yes, it's totally legit. If I can save you money on selling me miles, then great. I realize there is kind of an airfare war on now, but for many people, especially those who can be flexible in their booking, or for people taking long trips, you can save a ton of money flying on miles. Here is one example....it now costs about $900, including tax, to fly from Portland to Bogota. With a block of miles (35,000 of them) you could go for about $550, including taxes. And the ticket is good for a whole year, not the 60 days of most tickets. And changes are FREE.

Read the first post in this thread and if you fit the situation, email me. I have transferred most of my emails for miles over to a different email, so would prefer you use it...but either one is fine for now. My new one is bill1243 at yahoo.com

Ciao.

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