Originally Posted by
kevinsac
I was surprised that Z fares (even on the 747 new config UA 900-901 SFO-FRA-SFO) are around $2600 to $3000. Throw in $1000 and 80,000, I could upgrade to F.
It's not just United; I don't know who started this little fare war, but you can generally get to Europe for $3,000-$3,200 from SFO on a variety of carriers. United seems to undercut the competition by $200-300. $2600 is quite low, though. The least I've ever paid for a Business class ticket to Europe was from SFO to Spain on British Airways for $3k. I used a 2-for-1 voucher I had, and got us there for $1500 a piece -- can't beat that!
Fares to FRA from SFO for a random week at the end of July:
UA/ LH: $2639 through ORD and BRU
AC: $2688
DL: $2711
KL: $2712
LH: $2717
AF: $2733
UA: $2737
What I find really amazing (and I've noticed this since they started flying to SFO) is that LX is pricing out at $11k for the same dates.