The unpublished, discounted fares offered by consolidators are hard to find. They advertise in newspapers like the "The New York Times," and "The San Francisco Examiner," and on Web sites, but because you're not buying your ticket from an airline, if the seller is a fraud, you're money's gone. To be safe, stick to well-known consolidators with a track record.

(Official airline fares are published the "Official Airline Guides" (OAG), the "Air Tariff" or in computerized reservation systems such as Apollo, Amadeus, Worldspan, and Sabre.)

Check the travel sections of major Sunday newspapers and national travel magazines. When you find one offering a suitable flight, check the back issues in your local public library, figuring if the same company was in business and advertising a year ago, it's on the up-and-up.

Know whom you're doing business with.

Of course you can contact the state's attorney-general's office, the Better Business Bueau and the local Chamber of Commerce where the consolidator is located, as well as scour the Web for opinions about certain operators.

And only buy your ticket with a credit card that will protect you against unsavory merchants. Be sure to check your credit card details and know how your issuer deals with bad charges.

Consolidators may not have a wide variety of tickets to choose from. They may only have a Wednesday departure, and you want a Tuesday, but if you can be flexible, you could save hundreds.

On the other hand, most consolidators work in private networks so that the bucket shop you contact will try to find the ticket you want by contacting other consolidators.

Tips.

Consolidator tickets usually fly out of large airline hubs and not small cities, so you'll be better off if you live near New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Washington DC, etc. And when you're dealing with a consolidator specify you want a "net" fare. This way you'll be quoted the the price and what additional taxes may be due.

On the Web you can try to locate a consolidator at the Association of Special Fares Agents (ASFA). It's an international group of discount travel specialists and a good place to start.

Another place to try is the The United States Air Consolidators Association. It's a trade association for consolidators. Members are required to do 10 million in air consolidation business each year and be reliable and trustworthy. Their members accept credit cards and most will waive credit card transaction fees that you may encounter with other consolidators.

Some "consolidator" links

Airline Ticket Consolidators FAQ
The United States Air Consolidators Association
Association of Special Fares Agents
A list of some bucket shops