Booking Out-of-Town Training and Airfare - The Balancing Act

[Anthony]

Hello Everyone,

Up to this point in my life all of the firearms training I have attended was within driving distance of my home here in Texas.

In my first attempt to book an out-of-state class with one of the big name training schools I was left holding an airline ticket to a city I would never go to on vacation when the class was recently canceled. Now I get to pay an extra $150.00 to rebook the ticket to a different destination.

In this case I was exchanging frequent flier miles for a free ticket and had to book it several months in advance. That said, the class was canceled a full two months prior to its start date. Not much time to book a good deal on a flight in my experience, but then again I am new at the out-of-town training thing.

Can anyone who has done quite a bit of training out-of-town give me some tips to avoid this and other common pitfalls when trying to book something as important and expensive as this?

Thank you for your input.

- Anthony

[David Armstrong]

My solution has always been simple--I ALWAYS drive to FA training. As much hassle as it is flying these days, coupled with the (sometimes) hassle of transporting guns, and so on, I find it better to just make the drive part of the trip. You can bring more stuff, you can see some lovely country, you don't ahve to worry about ammo (did I ship enough? What do I do with what's left) and so on.

[fm2]

I have only flew to a couple of training classes. It worked out okay. It was a little hassle for getting all my gear there. I like driving a whole lot better.

[Marty Hayes]

I would call the training entity and confirm the class is a "go" explaining that you have been burned previously when a class was cancelled at the last minute, before you book and pay for your airfare. Schools should know ahead of time if a class has sufficient enrollment to hold it. If you get the run around, then that's a clue.