T8191

... to where?

clarkeysntfc

Are we anticipating a late May Bank Holiday sale this year? I seem to remember that BA usually has one around the end of May / start of June.

PETER01

You can see historical sales here

The Ultimate BA Sale Fare Archive | Continental Club Blog

but there is no guarantee when one might come along. I always say this, have a look at ba.com and click on 'Find our cheapest fares'

Lower fares are not always advertised and I very regularly see fares go up and down there like a yoyo so don't always wait for an 'official' sale.

CharlotteC

allturnleft

It seems the sales are less this year
There does seem to have been a serious one since Jan
do American Airlines sales always sync with BA?

Whats the best ex EU at the moment?

pomkiwi

It will depend on where you want to go - Google Flights is a great tool for comparing fares.

Brisbane Road

Just a quick word on this for using other sites to book flights and to shop around for a decent deal.

I had booked my missus a flight to come for a 'long' weekend from NYC as we both have bank holidays in late May. As she's not BAEC and the Household account is full- I wasn't really bound by any airline and usually I stick her on Norwegian (I'm a generous other half) but it was more expensive for some reason and Google flights were showing Air India cheapest at £550 or so. BA/AA showing £770+

Went onto Kayak.com and after a bit of searching and playing with a few filters, snagged a BA ticket (operated by AA) with absolutely perfect flight times that we were looking for to maximise her time in London for £480 via OmegaFlightstore. Having done this once before through Kayak (all be it different provider) I had no worries about the third party as apparently they are 'authorised' sellers of these and had a good rating on TrustPilot. Within minutes I had the confirmation email through all ticketed.

So point is, shop around a bit if you're looking for a truly low fare if you can't find it on Google Flights/BA.com. And I'm pretty sure on most of these sites you can put in your frequent flyer number too.

Globaliser

One thing to be aware of, though, is that you may not be buying a published fare and the T&C may be different from those you would get if you bought directly from the airline. (I say "airline" in general, because this isn't BA-specific.) For example, the fees and charges to change the ticket may be markedly different from those which BA would charge, and some agents may add hefty fees of their own to anything that the airline might charge if any change needs to be made; in addition, you could for example find that the ticket can't be upgraded using frequent flyer miles/points. It can often still be worth it to buy these discounted tickets (particularly if the T&C are particularly favourable for your circumstances in addition to the price being attractive), but you need to do it with your eyes open and be aware that you're not necessarily getting the same thing as if you bought a ticket from the airline, rather than simply being seduced by the low price.

Brisbane Road

Definitely. Well said Globaliser. Read the T&Cs and be wary of what you're buying. But if you're comfortable and assured with dates/no need desire to upgrade ticket etc then these are options to look at if trying to find a really cheap fare.

Just another quick point on Kayak. Google Flights is currently showing £713 for NYC to London 25th May- 28th May. Kayak shows £495 and booking directly through American Airlines website.

Globaliser

That's a POS issue. If you use ITA, you can see the £495 price using a UK POS, and also the £713 price using a US POS.

I don't know whether Google Flights allows you to change the POS, but this is one of the ITA features that makes it such a very powerful search tool. In your case, this could explain the price difference - which in turn means that you might have been able to get the lower fare simply by phoning BA in the UK.

Brisbane Road

Gotcha, cheers for clearing that up. I'm no IT expert!

PAL62V

Interesting - I just booked a LHR-EWR return in Nov over Thanksgiving. BA were offering a very good fare in Y of around £375, I could only save a few extra ££s on ITA going ex-EU but Kayak found the same tickets (again at Omega) for £336. I know these are not premium fares but the principal remains the same. At that price Y is a no brainer for me for a what is basically a short long-haul. I didn't check the T&Cs too closely although I have bought from them and a few other online TAs before with little problem. Idid check the price in J and it was not a particularly decent fare.

adrianlondon

When using a third-party, make sure they're selling a return rather than two singles. If not, it will be a hassle if one of the flights gets cancelled or re-scheduled.

PAL62V

Mine are on the same PNR and I would have thought that two singles would have cost more anyway?

Brisbane Road

Yeah glad to hear it worked out for you too. I'm no advocate of any site in particular but from experience, Kayak is the best when looking for the absolute cheapest fare. And as you say £336 is a real bargain.