I'm looking for a one-way ticket from Shanghai to Tokyo, on December
11 or 12.  I already have a round-trip ticket from Tokyo to Shanghai
and back, but when I booked it, I was going to stay for 30 days.  Now,
I can only spare a couple of days.  The airfare I booked on Northwest
Air is non-changable and non-refundable, so I need a one-way ticket
back.  Here's my current itinerary with the wrong return date:
http://makeashorterlink.com/?W27B42F42

I'm really looking at something less than 25,000 yen.  I've already
tried expedia and travelocity and suchlike, with no luck.

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Request for Question Clarification by alexd-ga on 01 Nov 2002 21:31 PST

Hi vermack ! Thank you for your question.

1- First, I encourage you to call your travel agency or Airline, most
tickets are not refundable but are at least somewhat flexible
(changeable). I know you stated the opposite (non-changeable) in your
question but I still encourage you to check both the travel agency and
the airline, because the web page you specified states this at the
bottom of the page:

"Flight Changes, Ticket Refunds  : All airline tickets are
NON-REFUNDABLE and cannot be changed without substantial penalties
ranging from $75 USD to $350 USD plus any difference between the
original fare you purchased and the new fare you desire."

Depending on the new fare they charge you and the penalties you may
stay under your 25,000.00 Yen (204.516 USD according to XE.com).

2- If this fails to be an workable solution, I suggest you to check
with your credit card company. Many of them have some kind of airline
ticket cancellation coverage, depending on the card you used to buy
the ticket. Check you credit card contract, and communicate with them,
you may discover that your tickets are covered and insured.

3- I've searched a lot of sites, looking for the best price for
flights from Shanghai to Tokyo. Whew ! I had a hard time finding
something in your price range ! Below are the best fares I found,
although they are way out of the limits you specified, I think it may
give you a global idea of what's out there.

Qixo
http://www.qixo.com/
Shanghai to Tokyo : 498.00$USD (60,877.51 Yens)

CheapTickets.com
http://www.cheaptickets.com/
Shanghai to Tokyo : 530.50$USD (64,848.32 Yens)

4- You may also consider other means of transportations: boat, train
and bus will bet you to your destination for less (most of the time)
... but you will get there much slower than by plane. In that case I
suggest you to grab the phone book and look for train/boat/bus
companies to get some prices.


I hope I was able to help you a little bit, especially answer #1 and
#2 since they would be the easiest on your wallet. If this answer
satisfies you please tell me (in a clarification of question) and I'll
post it as an answer so you can rate it.

Thanks !

Alexandre

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Request for Question Clarification by alexd-ga on 08 Nov 2002 06:42 PST

Hi vermack !

Any news about your search for a one-way ticket from Shanghai to Tokyo
?

Did any answers/comments helped youm or did you find a solution by
yourself ?

Keep us up to date, posting your solution here will enrich the
question/answers database !


Alexandre

I have to agree. 59,693 yen was the best I could get, and that was
through a member's discount program that partnered with Sabre.

Yikes.  Originally I was going to China for a month, but things have
changed (got a job in .jp) and I can't stay gone that long.  I need to
get my visa renewed, and that means visiting a foreign country for
just a few days.   The reason I listed Y25,000 is that I've seen a
round-trip ticket to Korea for slightly less than Y21,000.  I didn't
think China was such a stretch seeing as Shanghai is just down the
coast from Seoul, but evidently it is.

I'm looking into items #1 and #2, so I'll keep everyone posted.

Great ! Good luck with #1 and #2. 

You may also try selling your return ticket (check carefully with your
airline/travel agency to see if it is allowed). You can try online
auctions(maybe eBay if you are comfortable with it) you may end up
getting a fair price for the ticket. However remember to put the
starting price high enough because you may end up selling the ticket
at this price if there's no bid fight on the item.

eBay has a category for such items:
http://altfarm.mediaplex.com/ad/ck/1065-6550-2357-59

Use it as a last resort, it's better selling the ticket for 100$US
than throwing it in the trash :o)