One of the trickiest parts of applying for a Schengen Visa, Canada Visa, China visa or other hard-to-get visas is getting the flight reservations.
For example, for Schengen Visa, flight reservations are a requirement. Not having these will most likely result in the denial of your application. But here’s the thing: Booking flight tickets before you get a visa is not advisable because in the off-chance that you are refused, it will be a big waste of money. Flight tickets are not cheap!
It is important to remember this: What is required is FLIGHT RESERVATION, not an actual ticket. Meaning, you don’t need to pay for the flights in full yet. You just need to reserve them. It’s sometimes casually called a “dummy ticket” because you can cancel it or it expires.
WHAT'S COVERED IN THIS GUIDE?
Where to get Flight Reservations?
For our past Schengen Visa and China visa applications, we’ve always booked with Gazelle Travel and Tours, which came highly recommended by a friend. They issue legit reservation proof that we used in our application.
We’ve been travel blogging for the past 14 years, covering around 60 countries. Many of them require a flight reservation in their visa application process. We’ve experienced lodging our Schengen visa application via the French, Italian, Greek, and German embassies. We never had any problems with the flight reservations it issues. (Our applications were approved, no sweat!)
Gazelle Travel and Tours is:
- DOT-Accredited (Accreditation No. TOP-R04A-00003487-2016)
- DTI-registered
- Member of PTAA (Philippine Travel Agencies Association)
From the day we published our Schengen Visa Guide, we get multiple inquiries about how to book with them, so we decided to just make it a lot easier for our readers. We arranged an agreement with them and created a Google Form (see below) where you can simply enter the details of your flight reservation request and they will be the one to contact you via text or email.
Aside from travel agencies, a few airlines will allow you to reserve flights for free. You can simply visit their website, choose your flights, and when you’re asked how you would like to pay, choose to pay cash at their office. They will issue a flight reservation that is valid for 24-48 hours. Just reserve the day before your submission of application. But these airlines are rare. Most airlines have stopped this practice.
If the route you want isn’t served by an airline that allows flight reservation, then consider getting one from a travel agency. However…
What does a Flight Reservation look like?
Gazelle’s looks like this. Click on the pics to enlarge. These are samples only. The actual document varies depending on the airline and the booking system used.
‼️ IMPORTANT! The Austrian Embassy and the Czech Embassy are reported to refuse reservations from travel agencies. In cases like this, Gazelle can issue a flight reservation document straight from the booking system. Please make sure you indicate what embassy you’re lodging your application at when completing the form.
How Much Does it Cost?
With Gazelle, you have two options: REGULAR and RUSH.
Regular takes 3-5 working days, while Rush takes 24 hours from Mondays to Thursdays only. Applications paid on a Friday, Saturday, Sunday or a holiday will be processed on the following working day. The count begins at the moment you have made the payment. Processing is done within business hours, 10:00 AM to 17:00 PM.
You will be charged P200 per additional flight if you need to book more than 3 flights (regular) or 5 flights (rush).
The rates are PER PERSON per processing. You can make corrections until you give approval.
Once you approve, the request is processed, and the reservations have been issued, you can no longer make changes. You will have to start a new request.
How long can they hold the reservation?
It depends on many factors such as:
- Airline. Each airline has their own policy when it comes to blocking period lengths. Moreover, not all airlines allow flight reservation. Some are on a book-and-buy basis.
- Airline Booking Class
- Travel Period
Gazelle will be informing you of how long the reservation will be valid.
Normally, due to the short holding period that airlines allow, Gazelle will be sending the flight itinerary document a day before your embassy appointment or submission. If you want to receive it before that, let Gazelle know in advance.
You can still book with them now and arrange to have it sent to you on a specific date and remind them when that date is near for good measure.
Where to get Hotel Reservation?
When it comes to hotels, we personally use online booking websites with FREE cancellation like Booking.com and Agoda. Both of these websites have a wide selection of hotels, hostels, apartments, and other accommodation types that can be reserved and cancelled for FREE. If your visa application isn’t approved, just cancel it and you won’t be charged. Just make sure you’re booking a property tagged FREE CANCELLATION and take note of the coverage date.
✅ SEARCH FREE-CANCELLATION HOTELS ON BOOKING.COM HERE!
✅ SEARCH FREE-CANCELLATION HOTELS ON AGODA HERE!
But these websites require a credit card. So if you don’t own one or you feel more secure with having a travel agency book your hotels for you, you can also tap Gazelle Travel and Tours for that. Just use the same form below.
Here are the rates per person:
If booking more than 4 hotels, you will be charged P200 per additional hotel.
The rates are PER PERSON per processing. Once the request has been processed and reservation copies have been issued, changes can no longer be made.
Where to get Travel Insurance?
We get our travel insurance online! We usually book TravelJOY Plus from PGA SOMPO, a joint venture of the two of the most trusted insurance companies in the Philippines and Japan. They offer various travel insurance policies.
But for Schengen Visa, book the SUPREME plan, which is accredited by Schengen embassies. Aside from the Schengen countries, it also covers other countries like UK, Ireland, Turkey, and European Russia. It’s very easy, and you can totally do it yourself.
The best part, they’re giving THE POOR TRAVELER readers a special, more affordable rate! Just visit the PGA Sompo page and use the code WORTHIT!
But again, if for whatever reason you don’t want to book on your own, you can also have a travel insurance included when booking with Gazelle Travel and Tours. They sell plans by Standard Insurance, Liberty Insurance, and Starr International Insurance Philippines, both accredited companies by Schengen embassies.
On top of the cost of insurance, Gazelle will charge a P250 booking fee.
Please check with the embassy if they require travel insurance coverage to have extra days allowance beyond your actual travel period, e.g., additional 15 days for Italy, Switzerland.
How to book Flight Reservation?
- Fill out the form below. Choose between REGULAR or RUSH. If you want to include hotel reservations, tick the corresponding checkbox. Make sure you enter your email address and contact number correctly.
- You will receive a message from Gazelle Travel and Tours confirming the details of your request. You will also be asked to settle the bill via bank deposit before they could process the request.
- Pay to Gazelle’s BDO account. If you prefer GCash, you may transfer the amount from your GCash to BDO, too. Please indicate your mobile number in the Notes section and email a copy to Gazelle.
- Wait for your Flight Reservation, which will be emailed to you.
That’s it! Easy!
Please make sure that the information you will submit is correct. This will be the basis for the travel agency when they process your request. You can make corrections until you give approval. Once you approve and the request is processed, you can no longer make changes. You will have to start a new request.
FLIGHT RESERVATION REQUEST FORM
✅ If you’re viewing this on mobile, fill out the form here: FLIGHT RESERVATION REQUEST FORM
Important Notes: Please Read.
- These reservations will be cancelled automatically by default. The auto-cancellation is done by the airline, not by Gazelle Travel and Tours. You don’t need to use these ticket reservations, but if you choose to stick to it, please let Gazelle Travel and Tours know so they can finalize the booking of those flights for you. The cancellation date of the flight reservation depends on the airline. Fare is not guaranteed and is subject to change depending on the booking class fare sale availability.
- Payment is non-refundable even if your visa application is declined. The result of your application does not change the fact that you used the services of Gazelle Travel and Tours.
- The rates are PER PERSON per processing. Once the request has been processed, changes can no longer be made.
- Make sure you double check details before you confirm with Gazelle. The reservation document is final once it has been issued. If the document has been issued and you want to make changes, you will have to start all over.
- The transaction is between you and Gazelle Travel and Tours only. The Poor Traveler does not own or are not employed by Gazelle. Please coordinate with Gazelle directly if you have questions or clarifications.
- Full disclosure: This post is sponsored by Gazelle Travel and Tours. But we have been using their services even before we decided to work with us. That’s actually how we discovered the agency. We ordered our flight reservations from them whenever we applied for Schengen, Chinese and Canadian visa. We were satisfied with their service, so when they approached us for this project, we said yes right away. We figured it would also help our followers/readers to have easier access to their services.
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