Cheapest Airline for flight from Beijing to Tokyo (or near Tokyo)?
 

i'll be residing in beijing for some time and had planned to hop over to japan for a couple of times. but now i'm checking the airlines...

actually there is no budget airline operating on this route, which i find crazy, at least i didnt find anything...

i only found "cheapish" (or not really cheap) flights from hong kong and macao to tokyo, which doesnt really help...

i thought there are so many chinese budget airlines operating nowadays, so if someone here please could give me any tips, i'd appreciate it very much.

the cheapest thing that i found for the end of september PEK-NRT was ANA, 421€ for roundtrip... for that price i can fly from germany to new york usually...

Check out ctrip.com. You will need to use a credit card. As an alternative, find a Chinese booking agent and that will help as well. I have been able to get flights going across China for less than it would have took to take a train (I think the cost was like 500 RMB tops but it might have been less...it's been a while).

Obviously, the international part of your flight is part of the issue. A good booking agent will also help here as they will keep their eyes open for cheap \flights or spots that open up.

One word of advice. Make sure when the agent finds a decent price that you take it. Things can fill up fast and I think spots can be reserved only for a specific period of time.

Always looking for the cheapest flights - driving ticket prices down and down and down, cutting the pay of the employees - making them work more jobs to make ends meet. And supporting shitty carriers that screw over employees at every step of the way. Everybody is in search of cheap flights, they think it is their god given right to travel across the country for $50.

Look at what happened to Colgan Air - and all the other accidents that have been a cause of pilot fatigue... Look at the RV city that has been setup at LAX! It makes you wonder how much sleep those sitting up from have received - It's not like flight training is expensive or anything... and after going 40-60k in debt, it's completely acceptable, if not expected to work for 10.00/hour OR LESS.

Everybody thinks pilots make 6 figure salaries... but that is hardly the case. More often then not we're working multiple jobs, barely making ends meet, and never getting enough rest. All due to the demand that ticket prices go lower and lower. But it is as the old saying goes "Dead passengers are cheaper then injured ones."

Why should I? Because you feel like you deserve cheap flights?

Yes. Also, you mentioned getting flights cross country for $50. Link?

And how am I an idiot? I'm in the industry.

People who wash dishes are in the food industry.

Chances are a lot of them aren't swinging heavyweight intellects.

People with philosophy degrees paid thousands of dollars for them, yet they don't get high paying jobs.

O Locke. Your level of don't get it is off the fucking charts. Were you dropped as a child, or did you simply not getting enough air to your brain at those high altitudes?

You're an idiot because you're trying to make someone feel guilty about looking for the best deal he can find, and being as personally financially responsible as he is able to.

When you go out to buy groceries do you deliberately shop at places that are more expensive so that the employees make more? I do not think that you do.

In conclusion, and I feel a quote is the best way to sum up,

SHUT UP.

QED.

That's right. Fuck the consumer for trying to find the best deal. Fuck them hard.

You know, before this post I had a fear of heights that prevented me from flying.

Now I have a new reason to NEVER EVER FUCKING GET ON A PLANE.

But they also dont have the lives of their customers riding on them. If they fall asleep, people don't die.

And yet, if my professor falls asleep, I do not die. If he fucks up, I do not die. A slight little bit of MAGNITUDE there bud.

You're telling me that a dishwasher and philosophy major have the same level of responsibility as an airline pilot? Come on now, think about it a little bit.

And damn right I'm making him feel guilty - because he should feel bad - or at least realize that he is part of the problem that plagues an entire industry. I'm not against getting good deals - but when my life is on the line - I'll pay more every time to feel safer.

He's not interested in root causes of anything. He's just angry because this example of money-saving happens to be targeted at his industry. He would never complain about any other instance of this because he is a selfish hypocrite.

You could also blame dependency on cheap fossil fuels... people still remember when they were able to fly round-trip across the Pacific Ocean for less than $800, but they forget fuel for something that big has also quadrupled.

That's absolute bullshit.

Maybe death is an extreme outcome, but it can happen when a chef slacks off and undercooks a piece of pork or isn't mindful of cross-contamination with fish. If your chef is feeling sluggish or distracted, you could very easily contract a case of e.coli or salmonella from your food. These are potentially fatal bacteria. If a chef falls asleep, he could even set loose a fire that injures an entire restaurant full of people.

So don't glorify airline pilots as being the sole bastions of safety and vigilance. Accidents can happen in any field of work and people can get seriously hurt. A construction engineer doesn't look where his backhoe scoop is going. A cop accidentally fires into a crowd of people while chasing a thief. A nurse misreads a set of medical orders and administers too much morphine. Bad things can happen. You're not unique for working amidst danger.

When the dishwasher is spilling water all over the floor, he's liable for the safety of those around him. When the philosophy major climbs into a car, he's responsible for the safety of his passengers and for the cars around him. Being a pilot doesn't make you more or less special than anyone else who is in command of a potentially injurious situation.

How's about the next time you take a taxi, you pay a $20 surcharge to make sure that the driver is wide awake and concerned for your safety?

After thinking of the right words to reply to this shining example of self-righteous jackassery, I think the best ones are a simple "fuck you, too, asshole".

The problem with Locke is that he doesn't have the ability to see beyond whatever specific cock he happens to be sucking right then. He's a pilot, so only the direct reaction of an action to pilots hits his notice. He's pro-Palestine, so only the direct actions of Israel matter. He's a pilot so someone who blew up a plane should die cancer-ridden in prison, no matter the politics.

He's like a one-eyed bird. He lacks depth perception so he spends his days slamming face first into glass walls. Unfortunately he isn't about to get a new eye, so he'll continue the behaviour until someone has the pity to snap his neck and let the comic-tragedy come to an end.

Seriously, Locke. Die in a house fire, you simple-minded git.

1.) As others have mentioned, people try to go for the cheapest price all the time. It's not just flights, but everything from food, to cars, to games, to music, to clothes and the list just keeps on going. You can't blame people for trying to save money. You can only truly blame the companies for giving the deals out in the first place. And yes, i know getting the customer's to buy their stuff is the main reason for the deals, but ultimately that is the company's choice.

2.) While I do agree that they have a more life-or-death situation here, I should also remind you that many other people of many other professions and lives also run into the same problem.
In addition, while not everyone flies a plane, there are people who have similar types of jobs that if done incorrectly have devastating consequences. Bus drivers come to mind quickly. So do train conductors. Crash brought up Taxi drivers which is another valid point. People who prepare and sanitize food also come to mind. This list can go on. While i do understand the frustration, what makes Pilots so different from those and other professions that they are worth of such a rant, but others are not?

Furthermore, this issue you speak of is not uncommon for most people. Those people might be exhausted by having a schedule similar to one you speak of. Those same people may be more likely to have an accident which depending on what could happen could do a lot of damage. What about those people?

3.) I never thought that they made six figure salaries. I doubt most people on these forums thought that as well. So the word "everyone" is quite too strong.
By your mention of ticket prices are getting lower, I am assuming that means that a pilot's pay is going down as well? I'm not saying it's unheard of, I have read the stories about various airlines. However, you can't just blame consumers for this issue. There are many factors for this. The current recession. The spike in gas prices over a year ago. In fact, if I recall correctly, it was the rising prices of airline tickets a bit over a year ago due to those reasons and more that caused some people to either not go on a trip, or just not fly. You can't blame the consumers for not wanting to pay for that. That is their choice. Furthermore, you can't blame them when some of their incomes have decreased. But nonetheless, that meant the airlines made less, and so (in theory, I have not seen an article or so on this yet) that they are trying to lower their prices to get more customers.

Ultimately, you can't blame another person for trying to find a cheaper price. That is how business has been conducted for centuries. Furthermore, it's the companies that make these choices. A company has just as much right to never give deals as a customer has to want, look for, and accept a deal. However, the companies aren't at fault either, as there are other factors that play into their decisions. Many of them though, are of no fault of their own or anyone else. Things happen.

If you truly feel this upset over your profession, might I suggest you look into another? You have the choice to continue your profession or not. Keep in mind though that all professions can and will be challenging. If you are expecting a high-paying, challengeless job, then I feel you will most likely be disappointed. Keep in mind that it would also be hard for you to change the "circumstances" currently that you are unhappy with in your profession. That is to say, if you were to suddenly jack up the prices to what you felt was "fair", people will either 1.) find someone else or 2.) not fly. And you can't get angry at them for either choice. If you do, then a person at McDonalds has just as much right to be angry at you for not ordering food from them.

Oh, look at Locke, crusader for the common man and champion of a living wage.

What's that, you say? Locke is against unionized employees striking for better wages? Well, I'm sure he has his reasons.

Alas, Locke's industry-centric view isn't isolated. When I saw the rant, I was immediately reminded by this Freakonomics post by a pilot named Steve.

As you might expect, the comments are similar to the ones here. Except for the civility - though there would have been moderation at the NYT for the more extreme epithets, of course.

Locke, you say that the airline industry is demand-driven - that demand for cheaper flights is driving ticket prices down and down. However, capitalism dictates that businesses try to maximize profits, and charge the highest price that the market would bear. Since this isn't happening, then this is obviously a supply-side issue. Though it is an oversimplification, I believe the major reason why wages are driven down is simply because there are too many pilots.

Besides, just because you're underpaid doesn't mean you intend to kill yourself. I'm sure that even if the airline company doesn't value the lives of passengers, you value your own while flying, and will do your darnedest best to not crash.

Look, a lot of my family is dependent on the Big 3 US car companies doing well. I won't demand that Gamingforce buys a bunch of Fords, though. Gech and Dull work for the pig-disgusting oil companies but they're not pissing on the base of windmills. There's literally tens of computer programmers here and not one of them throw a shitfit when someone talks about downloadingbuying legally a copy of Photoshop.

I get being sensitive about people not paying for your good work because they can get the same product for cheaper. I also get that I benefit from being able to do the same. Suck it up.