On the third failed attempt the clever system had detected a certain interest in our flights, and socked up the price by $200!
Or the inventory you were trying to buy was no longer available. Seats are not all the same price; they are divided into "fare buckets" that are usually lettered. There are very few cheap fares on each flight, more medium fares, and even more full-fares. You should check the code as you are booking; if the fare code changed, they ran out of inventory. If the fare code stayed the same, then they raised the price of that inventory.
Just saying -- it wasn't some conspiracy. Someone just bought them out from under you. Most airlines let you hold a reservation for a few hours, so if this ever hits you again, just hold the reservation, call the web services desk (not the general reservations desk), ask web services to fix your name, and then continue the ticketing process online.
(This is the procedure for AA, anyway. Dunno about other airlines, as I've never used them.)
Personally, I always hold, triple-check my plans, and then buy. So I have never had inventory disappear out from under me, and I have never needed to change a non-changeable fare :)
Or the inventory you were trying to buy was no longer available. Seats are not all the same price; they are divided into "fare buckets" that are usually lettered. There are very few cheap fares on each flight, more medium fares, and even more full-fares. You should check the code as you are booking; if the fare code changed, they ran out of inventory. If the fare code stayed the same, then they raised the price of that inventory.
Just saying -- it wasn't some conspiracy. Someone just bought them out from under you. Most airlines let you hold a reservation for a few hours, so if this ever hits you again, just hold the reservation, call the web services desk (not the general reservations desk), ask web services to fix your name, and then continue the ticketing process online.
(This is the procedure for AA, anyway. Dunno about other airlines, as I've never used them.)
Personally, I always hold, triple-check my plans, and then buy. So I have never had inventory disappear out from under me, and I have never needed to change a non-changeable fare :)