Going to NATAS fair

I had been toying with the idea of going back home to visit my family this coming Chinese New Year (2012). It's still a long way off (4 months+ away) but I learned from my colleagues that it is better to book my ticket early to get a better price. Ticketing agencies and airlines bump up their prices towards the festive season knowing that hordes of Chinese will go home to visit their families.

2012 Chinese New Year falls on a Monday and Tuesday, so I could leave on Friday evening and spend Saturday, Sunday and Monday with my family before coming back on Tuesday. It's going to cost but I had already started putting aside SGD80 every month since the beginning of this year to see if I can make this trip back. I expect the ticket to cost about SGD700 and that will leave me some money to buy some gifts for my parents and brothers.

Two weekends ago, I visited the NATAS fair. My colleagues told me that you can get cheap air tickets back to China. The place was really, really crowded and I had trouble just knowing where to go or moving around. Singaporeans must be a lucky lot... having enough to go on holidays every now and then!

Unfortunately, after spending 2 hours there and despite paying SGD4 for the entry ticket, I did not get a good deal! Most of the companies were selling tour packages and did not even want to entertain me when I asked them about ticket back home. A few more friendly ones told me to go to their offices in the city to check out ticket prices and gave me a card of their address in town. They advised me to book when it is closer to the dates as they were not able to tell me ticket prices at the moment. This is contrary to what I hear from my friends and colleagues who told me to book early. Can any readers advise?

Why is my ticket so costly? That's because I live at the far north of China. I have to fly to Shenyang and then take a 2 hr taxi ride or train home. There is normally one stop in between... so altogether, it could take me as much as 8 hours to get home.