sbc94523

Hi, Planning a family trip to DCA for middle of June 2008. Couple questions:

1. On the return flight (SEA-OAK), I have a choice of Flt 334 or 392. Flt 334 has a connection time of 57 mins. Is this enough time or should I take the Flt 392 (2.5 hrs)?

2. Currently the flights are running about $535 in economy. Any chance the fares will drop or this as good as good its going to be?

COpltASgldPHX

The east coast and especially the northeast (DCA/EWR/BOS) is infamous for departure delays especially during the summer months. If your flight out of DCA is in the early morning or late afternoon it is not unusual to have 45 minutes to 1 hour from push-back to wheels-up. I would err on the side of caution and book the later connecting flight. You'll have time to stretch your legs and have a meal in SEA.

Although I commend your loyalty to AS, they are not competitive in the OAK-WAS market. Currently the lowest AS fare is 488 round-trip which, after taxes and fees, is your $535 ticket. DL's lowest fare is $182 less, and CO and AA both have fares that are about $150 less than AS. I would shop around and consider all of your options before buying.

sbc94523

I'm using points program to pay for the tickets(25K pts ==> up to $500, pay any > $500). I selected AS to avoid connecting in weather prone cities.

Eastbay1K

You can probably figure on at least a couple of schedule changes between now and then no matter what you book. 57 minutes for a single person that can run through terminals, or might need a rebooking on a later flight is different than a "Family" (you don't say how many, or ages). Also, you could end up in the N gates, which while it isn't that far, eliminates your ability to run if you suffer a delay.

I haven't had too much delay in the early AM DCA or EWR flights to SEA. All that said, I'd take the longer connection. When there is a schedule change (and if it makes your connection even longer), you can ask to rebook if there is a more palatable selection.

channa

I wouldn't burn 25K points on this route. The fares in this market routinely go down to $198+ RT, sometimes less. If you're reasonably flexible on dates/airports (SFO/OAK/SJC-DCA/IAD/BWI), you'll get something in that range for sure, maybe less.

In the last few months, we saw this fare at a low of $129 RT, and earlier this year once at $88 RT and even once at $75 RT.

Save the points for an expensive market.

EIPremier

I don't think 25k points is a bad value, esp over summer. Finding low fares for exact travel times and dates has become quite challenging lately.

sbc94523

Unfortunely, I'm limited to times when the children are out of school.