In this article:
How fare holding works
1.1 What is a fare hold?
1.2 How does the hold period work?
The booking experience
2.1 What the booker sees
2.2 What the approving manager sees
If something changes before approval
3.1 Price changes3.2 Fare attribute changes
1. How fare holding works
We support fare holding for eligible flights (not hotels). This lets you lock in a price and seat without taking payment, giving your approver time to review before any cost is committed.
1.1 What is a fare hold?
When you select a hold-eligible flight, the system reserves your fare and seat with the airline without issuing a ticket. The booking is submitted for approval in the usual way, with the price and seat locked in for a set period rather than changing in real time.
Hold eligibility depends on the airline and fare type. Where eligible, you'll see a clear indicator during search and at checkout. Hotels are not eligible for fare holding, as room prices and availability can change at any time. Approvers should act on hotel requests quickly to secure the selected room at the quoted price.
1.2 How does the hold period work?
Each held fare has an expiry time: the deadline by which the booking must be approved. The duration varies by airline and fare, and is always shown before you complete your booking.
If the hold expires before approval, the fare is released and the booking is automatically rejected.
2. The booking experience
2.1 What the booker sees
Hold-eligible flights are clearly labelled throughout the booking journey:
- Search results & checkout: eligible flights show a hold indicator
- Confirmation email: expiry date & time is included so you have a clear reference to share with your approver
- Trips page: the hold expiry is visible at any point after submission
No separate "hold" step is needed. Submitting the booking for approval handles everything automatically.
2.2 What the approving manager sees
The approval email includes the hold expiry time alongside standard booking details. A reminder email also shows the expiry to help the manager prioritise time-sensitive requests.
Our standard approval window is 48 hours. If the hold expires in less than 48 hours, the email will clearly flag that the price guarantee is only valid until the hold expires. The manager should treat this as urgent and respond as soon as possible.
Important: If a held fare expires before the manager responds, the booking is auto-rejected. The booker will need to search again and submit a new request at the current market price.
3. If something changes before approval
3.1 Price changes
For held fares, the price is locked for the duration of the hold, so price changes won't affect the booking during that window. For flights without a hold, or where a hold has expired, prices are subject to real-time changes. The manager will always see the latest price before approving and can still proceed at the new price.
3.2 Fare attribute changes
If a critical part of the booking, such as the seat, fare class, or baggage allowance, becomes unavailable, our support team will step in immediately. You'll see a message on your confirmation screen confirming that payment has not been taken, and someone from our team will contact the approver directly with next steps.
For help at any time, use the live chat on the bottom right of your screen, call +65 3129 2139, or email support@trutrip.co.