Strategy needed for airfare (cheap!) to Europe ...
Feb 16, 2008, 12:43 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2002
Posts: 632
Strategy needed for airfare (cheap!) to Europe ...
Planning about a 2-1/2 week trip to Europe with my daughter. We are flexible on dates, would plan it for sometime after the second week of July.
We are also somewhat flexible on airports - preferring north west, eg Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam, but if it made a big difference would consider other somewhat western airports.
Is there a good website that allows fare comparisons accross airlines/airports/dates?
Would there be any airports you would consider cheaper to fly into as a matter of course? Is it cheaper to fly any particular day of the week?
We could leave from any of: Dulles, Baltimore, Philly, NY airports, possibly Atlanta or Charlotte.
Any advice appreciated, thanks!
We are also somewhat flexible on airports - preferring north west, eg Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam, but if it made a big difference would consider other somewhat western airports.
Is there a good website that allows fare comparisons accross airlines/airports/dates?
Would there be any airports you would consider cheaper to fly into as a matter of course? Is it cheaper to fly any particular day of the week?
We could leave from any of: Dulles, Baltimore, Philly, NY airports, possibly Atlanta or Charlotte.
Any advice appreciated, thanks!
Feb 17, 2008, 5:55 pm
#5
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: MSP
Programs: DL Gold, DL MM 8/22/16!
Posts: 2,563
www.farecompare.com to get started. However, don't let the fare numbers get you too excited, as they are almost always lower than what you can really find. They will give you some general indication of where things are cheaper though. Especially the map for a rough first start.
Lots of good fares to points in Germany. AMS and FRA often tend to be low. Sometimes London. If you can find a good fare to Dublin, you sometimes can add on a really cheap Ryan fare for the rest of the trip.
www.travelocity.com will give you the calendars showing which days the fares are offered. That will let you see the pattern of which days are less expensive.
Do of course look at the whole package though. Some cities are much more expensive than others. Hotels in places like Munich and Brussels and Berlin and Budapest can be significantly lower than those in London and Paris and Rome. www.hotwire.com and www.biddingfortravel.com could help you sort this out.
Airfares drop in the fall if you can wait that long. (And of course are much lower in the winter.)
Romelle
Lots of good fares to points in Germany. AMS and FRA often tend to be low. Sometimes London. If you can find a good fare to Dublin, you sometimes can add on a really cheap Ryan fare for the rest of the trip.
www.travelocity.com will give you the calendars showing which days the fares are offered. That will let you see the pattern of which days are less expensive.
Do of course look at the whole package though. Some cities are much more expensive than others. Hotels in places like Munich and Brussels and Berlin and Budapest can be significantly lower than those in London and Paris and Rome. www.hotwire.com and www.biddingfortravel.com could help you sort this out.
Airfares drop in the fall if you can wait that long. (And of course are much lower in the winter.)
Romelle
Feb 23, 2008, 11:29 am
#7
Join Date: Jun 2006
Location: BOS
Programs: DL PM, WOH Discoverist, Hilton Silver (working on hotels this year)
Posts: 267
Aer Lingus to Dublin should always be one of your first stops when checking for cheap airfares to Europe. Out of your quoted airports, they fly from Dulles, and they are offering some specials for the summer in the $600 range right now. They are also pretty cheap for connections through Dublin to the continent, or you can leave yourself a comfortable layover and buy a Ryanair ticket to connect. Enjoy!