How to Book Flights for Large Groups and Events

Group Booking Fundamentals: How Airlines Handle Groups

Most airlines define a "group" as 10 or more passengers traveling on the same itinerary. Below that threshold, individual booking — each person booking separately or through a standard booking interface — is the default approach. Above 10 passengers, airlines offer dedicated group booking desks that provide contracted block space, specialized pricing, and payment flexibility unavailable through standard booking channels. Understanding this threshold and its implications determines which booking strategy applies to your specific situation.

Airlines' group departments hold block space on flights — a number of seats reserved for a group contract — for 30–60 days without full payment. A typical group contract requires a 10–20% deposit at booking and full payment 60–90 days before departure. This deposit structure allows event organizers to confirm flight arrangements before collecting payment from attendees, reducing the organizer's financial risk. The trade-off: group fares are typically 3–8% above the lowest available published fare at time of booking, because the airline prices in the flexibility it's providing and the administrative cost of block space management.

The key benefit of group booking beyond deposit flexibility is seat holding. When you call an airline's group desk and request 25 seats on a specific flight, the airline holds 25 seats in your name for weeks without requiring individual passenger names. Passenger names are due 30–90 days before departure (timelines vary by carrier). This allows organizing a group trip before you know exactly who is attending, confirming the logistics, and then collecting names and payment from confirmed attendees. Individual booking for a group of 25 would require all participants to book simultaneously and hope the same price is available — in practice impossible.

Group Fares vs. Individual Booking: When Each Wins

For groups of 10–20 on routes with competitive fare environments — domestic US routes, European routes with multiple carrier options — individual booking often produces lower total costs than the airline's group fare. If Delta's group desk quotes $380 per person for Atlanta–Seattle but the same flight shows a published fare of $310, booking 15 tickets individually at $310 is $1,050 cheaper than the group rate. The risk is that published fares may rise or seats may become unavailable between when you first check and when all 15 passengers book — a risk that can be mitigated by using a travel agent who can hold multiple seats simultaneously.

Group fares become cost-competitive and organizationally preferable in four scenarios: (1) groups over 20 passengers where holding block space has significant value; (2) international long-haul routes where per-ticket savings from group discounts are larger in absolute dollars; (3) holiday and peak season travel where flight availability is scarce and block space reservation guarantees supply; and (4) events where the group must travel together and cannot risk individual ticket availability varying between bookings.

Consolidator group specialists — Priceline's group desk, Travel Leaders group services, and airline-specific group specialists like Delta Meetings & Conventions — negotiate block space at rates not available through direct airline group desks for large conferences and corporate events. Groups of 50+ booking 3+ months in advance can often access rates 10–15% below published fares through consolidators that have ongoing commercial relationships with airline revenue management. These services are appropriate for large event organizers rather than leisure groups, as they require significant advance planning and commitment.

Practical Booking Strategies for Groups Under 20

For groups of 10–19, the most effective strategy is coordinating a simultaneous booking window. Designate one person as the lead booker, share the target flights and dates, and have everyone book within the same 30-minute window. Fare algorithms detect booking volume and begin raising prices when multiple purchases occur on the same route — booking simultaneously rather than sequentially minimizes the pricing response. Using incognito browser windows across multiple devices, with everyone clearing cookies before the coordinated booking window, reduces the chance of personalized pricing affecting individual members.

Credit card travel agents — American Express Travel (accessible to Amex cardholders) and Chase Travel (for Sapphire cardholders) — can hold multiple seats on the same flights and sometimes coordinate group bookings through their group services divisions. Amex's concierge service for Centurion and Platinum cardholders can handle group coordination including seat block holds for smaller groups (8–15 passengers) that don't reach airline group desk minimums. The service is most valuable for complex international itineraries where seat hold requests go through the airline's commercial desk rather than the public booking interface.

For groups using frequent flyer miles for award bookings — a common scenario for destination weddings or event travel where attendees have miles banked — the challenge is finding award space in sufficient quantity. Airlines release 2–4 award seats per flight typically, meaning a group of 10 on the same award flight requires booking multiple departures or accepting that the group travels on different flights. Staggered departures with a 3–6 hour window between earliest and latest arrivals is often more practical than insisting every person travel on the same flight when award space doesn't accommodate the full group.

Seat Coordination for Group Travel

Seating a group together is the most common frustration in group bookings. On individual bookings, airlines assign seats independently and the group ends up scattered throughout the cabin. The solutions: (1) book all tickets through a single reservation — most booking platforms allow booking up to 9 passengers per transaction, so two transactions for a group of 15 can coordinate seat selection in the same booking session; (2) use the airline's seat map to select adjacent seats immediately after booking, before other passengers fill preferred seats; (3) for groups over 9, booking through the airline's group desk specifically to ensure block-seated space.

Exit row seating for groups has special considerations. Exit row seats require occupants to be physically capable of operating the emergency exit and willing to assist in evacuation — a blanket statement signed by group organizers doesn't substitute for individual airline assessment. On a managed group booking, airlines may assign the group to non-exit row seats by default to avoid individual eligibility questions; exit row requests need to be made for specific identified passengers. Bulkhead rows — typically available for group block seating — provide legroom advantages without exit row eligibility requirements.

For destination weddings and large family gatherings, the "section booking" strategy works on many widebody aircraft. An Airbus A330's economy cabin is typically 8 seats wide (2-4-2 configuration) — 14 passengers can occupy two full rows in the center 4-seat section plus the two 2-seat window sections, effectively creating an informal "group zone" in the middle of the cabin. The seat selection interface allows coordinating this layout across multiple reservations when the seats are available. Arriving at the airport together and gate-checking with the agent can sometimes facilitate seat reorganization if the flight is not completely full.

Managing Groups Through Irregular Operations

Disruptions — delays, cancellations, and diversions — hit groups harder than individuals because the airline's rebooking system processes passengers individually rather than as a group unit. If a group of 20 misses a connection, the automated rebooking system may route each person to a different available flight rather than holding all 20 for the next flight with sufficient seats. Proactive intervention at the gate desk — identifying yourself as part of a group, providing the group booking reference number, and requesting the agent handle the group together — is necessary in almost every significant disruption scenario.

Designating a single group leader with full access to all booking reference numbers and passenger names is essential for managing disruptions. The leader should have the airline's group services phone number saved (different from the general customer service line) and be empowered to make rebooking decisions on behalf of the group without waiting to consult every member. In a rapidly evolving disruption where rebooking options disappear quickly, a single decisive point of contact produces better outcomes than democratic group decision-making under time pressure.

Travel insurance for groups should be purchased individually, not through a group policy. Individual travel insurance provides each person their own coverage certificate, claim history, and independent protection — a group claiming collectively may face coverage denial based on the weakest claim in the group. Each traveler purchasing their own policy (coordinating to use the same insurer for consistency) is the correct structure. For destination weddings and events, group trip cancellation coverage protects against scenarios where the event itself is canceled — the wedding venue floods, the resort closes — triggering mass cancellations that individual "covered reasons" policies might not address. Event cancellation insurance, available from specialist insurers, covers this specific risk.