Is it possible to visit the US and fly back from a different city?

Simon Calder answers your questions on the best way to avoid flight scams and the rules about buying one-way tickets to and from the US

West to east: Most transatlantic airlines still penalise passengers from the UK who simply want to buy a one-way ticket to the US (Getty)

Q Can I buy a one-way ticket from London to San Francisco, then drive across America and buy another ticket to fly back from New York or Washington DC? And if I can, am I likely to encounter problems at the US border?

Mike N

A The short, theoretical answer to your question is this: there is no impediment to your planning such a trip. American immigration rules expect you to have travel booked out of the US at the end of a short stay, though were you to be closely questioned by a Customs and Border Protection agent you could explain your plan and probably satisfy them that you are a safe bet to admit. (I am about to cross the border from Canada into the US with no confirmed exit strategy, and am hopeful I can do just that.)

Yet just because you could feasibly travel in on a one-way ticket, with a plan to return in the same way, does not mean it is a wise arrangement. Most transatlantic airlines still penalise passengers from the UK who simply want to buy a one-way ticket to the US. British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, and the North American carriers typically charge far more for an outward journey alone than for a round trip. Each airline, though, will gladly sell an “open-jaw” ticket – whereby you fly out to the west coast and return from the east coast – at considerably lower cost than two one-way journeys.

To avoid punitive change fees, you would need to make a firm commitment to either New York or Washington DC (or even Philadelphia or Boston) and stick to it. But a good travel agent will be able to advise on the best ticket to buy in order to retain flexibility on your inbound journey. Make as good a prediction as you can as to your likely return date: you can expect to pay a fee of up to $200 (£158) to change the day of the flight home.

Finally, the drive across America. A one-way coast-to-coast rental is likely to rack up a large drop-off fee in addition to the daily rental rates. The days when you could find a one-way “driveaway” opportunity to deliver someone’s car across America seem, sadly, to be over. But rental firms sometimes want their vehicles (both cars and RVs) to be relocated, and through companies such as Transfercar you may find some journeys you can string together.

Booking holidays through an Abta-registered travel agent or directly with the supplier and paying with a credit card would render this type of scam extinct (Getty)

Q A friend of a friend has been scammed for thousands of pounds in a flight fraud. For the life of me, though, I can’t see how this can happen in 2024 – surely we all pay by plastic, which leaves a trail and enables you to get your money back? How do the scammers do it?

Jessica A

A If we all booked holidays through Abta-registered travel agents or direct with the supplier (airline, car-rental firm, hotel) and paid with a credit card, travel scams would be more or less extinct. Sadly, villains know that some people will respond to particular levers – especially in a cost of living crisis when many people are desperate to save. They set a trap in motion that ends with them running off with the victim’s money.

Travel is the ultimate exercise in trust. You pay months in advance in the expectation that you will get what you ordered. Of course, you don’t “take delivery” until you get to the airport. A common scam is to set up a “travel agency” and publicise it on social media. Miraculously, it has flights available just when you want them at prices far lower than other merchants.

Once tempted in, you may well sensibly say: “I want to pay by credit card.” But prospective buyers are typically told that payment is only by bank transfer because either “the card machine is broken” or “we insist on it to keep prices down”. Anyone who sends money (often to a dubious destination account rather than a proper business) can probably wave goodbye to it – even if they get an email “confirmation” of a fake booking.

Typically, the victim finds out only when they try to check in or seek to contact the “agent” close to departure – only to discover that the airline has no record of a booking and the person who has all their money is uncontactable.

How to avoid being scammed? Unfortunately, it’s not quite as easy as saying “If it looks too good to be true, it probably is.” Ultra-cheap flights are sometimes available. Probably the single easiest test: are you asked to pay by bank transfer? This is equivalent to giving someone a sackful of your hard-earned money. In contrast, making payment with a credit card to a proper Abta travel agent (whose membership you can confirm very easily – just search for “Abta member check”) is a guarantee that you will get the holiday you paid for, or your money back.

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