*Archived Transaction*
The FareQuoteFlexShop functionality is limited to only a small number of customers at this time.
FareQuoteFlexShop_5 serves as a fare shopper tool for users who want to check prices for a general itinerary. It is best suited for fare- and schedule-driven travelers. This transaction mirrors the FareQuoteSuperBB transaction, except for the additional flexible shopping feature.
See the Air Shop FAQ for questions regarding all air shopping transactions.
FareQuoteFlexShop_5 performs the Super Best Buy transaction, also known as Shopper Fare Quote or Low Fare Shopping. This transaction allows a user to find the best price options for a proposed journey, using origin/destination and date information, without requiring a booked itinerary. It combines air availability and the fare quote request, and it allows a user to enter criteria to limit the shopping request, such as time period, specific carriers to include or exclude, private fare modifiers, and passenger types. It also provides the ability to perform Flex Shopping.
Flex Shop encompasses several product options. Access to these options varies depending on a customer’s Tier level.
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Option |
Description |
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Flex Airport |
Allows alternate origin and/or destination airports to be included in the shopping transaction. Available to Tiers 2 and 3 customers only.
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Flex Origin and Destination |
Allows airports within a specified distance from the origin and/or destination to be included in the shopping transaction. Miles or kilometers must be specified. The maximum distance is 100 miles or 160 kilometers. Available to Tiers 2 and 3 customers only. |
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Flex One Day |
Allows a range of day one day before and after the departure date and/or return date to be included in the shopping transaction. Available to all Tiers. |
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Flex More Days |
Allows a range of day one to three days before and after the departure date and/or return date to be included in the shopping transaction. Alternate dates (number of days before and after) can be specified for any of the following options for an itinerary:
If alternate dates are used for both the departure and return, different values can be assigned for each departure/return. For example: alternate dates for a departure can be specified for 3 days before and after the specified departure date, and for 2 days before and after the specified return date. In addition, the value of the range can differ both before and after a single specified date. For example: A range of 3 days before and 1 days after a departure date can be requested. Or, a range of 1 day before and 2 days after a return date can be requested. Available to Tier 3 customers only. |
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Flex Weekend |
Includes all of the weekends of a target month in the shopping transaction. For each weekend:
Weekend ranges in the target month are based on the departure date. If any departure date for a weekend rolls into the following month, that weekend range is not included in the response. However, if a return date rolls into the following month, that weekend range is included in the response. For example, the weekend range with the following departure dates is NOT included in an April target month: Thursday, April 29 Friday, April 30 Saturday, May 1 However, the weekend range with the following return dates IS included in an April target month: Sunday, April 29 Monday, April 30 Tuesday, May 1 Available to Tier 3 customers only. |
Flex Shop options are mutually exclusive. If multiple options are included in a single request, an error response is returned.
The host selects from the available flights and returns the best fares that can be obtained on these flights. FareQuoteFlexShop_5 displays one or more itineraries, and the associated best fares available on those flights. Like FareQuotesSuperBB, FareQuoteFlexShop_5 does not require a booked itinerary to perform the faring functions, whereas other Fare transactions require a booked itinerary.
Access to various levels FareQuoteFlexShop_5 functionality is based on the Tier level of the customer. In addition, Flex Shop functionality is available in two versions:
Flex Shop, which is available to all three Tier levels.
Flex Shop Premium, which is available only to Tier 3 customers.
See How To for more details about request and response options by Tier and functionality.
For Flex Shop functionality to be accessed by users, they must have an agreement that includes the Low Fare Shopping and Flex Shop functions. In addition, the following permissions in the AAT table must be configured :
The Low Fare Shopping field must be set to ‘Y’ (yes).
The Flex Shop field must have the appropriate values set for the various Flex Shop options available to that user.
If applicable, the user’s Tier level must be set for Levels 2 or 3 (be default, all users are Tier 1). As noted previously, certain Flex Shop options are permitted only for specified Tier levels.
The users may also be signed up for agency and/or airline private fares to receive private fares.
API Developer Notes can assist you when developing applications that use Galileo Web Services and XML Select. The following table lists the API Developer Notes that are applicable to this transaction and provides a description.
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Document |
Description |
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Distinguishing Private Fares, Web Fares, and Category 35 Fares |
Explains how to use account codes to differentiate between negotiated fares, Agency Private Fares, airline-filed Web fares, and Category 35 fares. |
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Overview of the air shopping process and the associated Galileo Web Services transactions. | |
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Overview of how to perform Point to Point, Partial Thru, and O&D Fares and Shopping. |
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High-level overview of airline industry codes, airline routing, airline ticketing, and how fares are created. | |
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Overview of the flight and fare selection process for Low Fare Shopping, also known as Super Best Buy, on the Apollo CRS. | |
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Overview of the flight and fare selection process for Low Fare Shopping, also known as Super Best Buy, on the Galileo CRS. |
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Answers to frequently asked questions about air shopping. |