Originally Posted by
KATERGOO
Normal fares are getting so high that it becomes worth buying 8 coupons that you might not all use.
For exemple, Paris-Athens 23 June - 23 July is currently priced at 1043€ return in flex. 8 coupons cost 840€. If you had taxes, it's about the same.
1000€ for a return CDG-ATH is a common fare these days. I find it a crazy price. I just wonder how Aegean manage to fill the flights ?
This is more of a "I have no other chance" scenario, I can't imagine these prices being true during the entire time that those flights were bookable! This is also why we "had to" buy a pass a little less than 1 year ago, just the first one-way was already making up over 80% of the price of the entire 6-flight pass. I was on the same flight, but with a ticket purchased over 9 months in advance, that cost effectively less than 1/6th of that.
But if it's 1000€,
which in fact it isn't, you just took the most insanely priced flight of the day for reference, you can even fly both legs in
business class for under 667€ on those dates!
or in economy (flex is always assumed) for half the cost you mentioned, just different hours than those with the insane prices, still direct, still Aegean, still 23/06-23/07.
or if you'd be willing/able to shave 2 days off your trip at beginning and end, you could book the return it for 420€.
And these are all undiscounted prices, on which you could theoretically apply a discount code and reduce them further (I have such a 20% discount code in my account, unfortunately it's connected to my account and can't be used by others, I'll probably end up not using it), whereas the pass doesn't allow for any such discounts.
then it's worth looking into alternatives (other airlines, connecting flights etc.). It seems that the loyalty scheme is working quite well though (hey, I'm "loyal" too, but just saying).
ariadgr_ I find it very hard to believe that any student has enough time for 6x return per year. Summer, Christmas and Easter holidays surely, perhaps depending on the country there'd be another opportunity to travel, but even so (4 returns would be good enough for the 8-flight pass, but still not close to the 12-flight pass), this would mean that student would only be travelling between those two places and nowhere else. And, as a former student, who didn't get to travel much due to budget reasons back then, and currently "family man", who currently can't travel because of other, obvious reasons, I'd definitely recommend to any student, who might think "ah, I'll go to those places or take that vacation later, when I'll be (financially?) able", to move those future plans to the present asap! I used to hate the idea of owing money, but
if you don't mismanage what banks might lend you, you'd be doing yourself a huge favour.