canuckrtw

A friend and I have a small window of time from the last week of June until the second week of July to travel to Europe. We would like to go from Croatia up to Germany via train- so we need to fly from Toronto, Detroit, or Buffalo into Dubrovnik and leave from Berlin.

Prices at the moment seem to be around $1400 (multi-city)- is now the best time to book or should we wait? Our fear with waiting is not only that flight prices may rise but also that hostels may book up.

We are both students but over the age of 26.

Any advice from experienced international flyers on how to do this as low-cost as possible?

WillTravel

How essential is it that you have exactly those cities in your as your start and stop points?

canuckrtw

The tricky part is that we'd like to do Dubrovnik, Hvar, Split, Budapest, Vienna, Prague AND Berlin all in 3 weeks, spending at least 2-4 days in each. Given the set-up of the cities, I though starting at one end and going by train would be most efficient?

If at all possible, we'd like to be in Hvar on a weekend (if anyone has been to Hvar in the summer, can you confirm that the nightlife on the weekend is unparalleled? Haha)

One of the other options we are considering is flying into Prague and leaving via Berlin (just doing Prague then skipping down to Dubrovnik and work back up)- that option will cost us approx. $1150.

Romelle

Summer travel to Europe is going to be on the high side, and there is no getting around that.

There are cities that are less expensive, and dates that can be lower so do your research first. When you've settled upon a few routings and a few dates, then it is time to watch.

There aren't any really clear and consistent patterns in rates. But if there is a low spot, it seems to be about 2 to 3 months out. On the longer side for international travel and on the shorter side for domestic.

There are a number of web sites where you can set "fare alerts" and when there is a dip in price you will get notification. You certainly don't need to do all of these, but you might consider doing at least 3 or 4:

Kayak
FareCompare
Southwest
Yapta
TripAdvisor
Travelocity
Expedia
Orbitz

There probably are more, but this is the list I use. And I never have all of them set. I just wanted you to have some options, as you might find some of the sites more comfortable than others.

When you get an alert and see something lower than what you know the range to be, don't hesitate.

Or if you never get any alerts, when you get as close as that 2-3 month range, just bite the bullet and make your purchase.

And after you've made the purchase, don't second-guess yourself. There can be last minute sales but, unless this trip really is optional, you don't want to wait. There really are very few summer last minute sales. And your point about the hostels booking up is valid.

Romelle

PS - Before you book any air, you might spend some time with www.raileurope.com and some of the other rail travel sites to make sure the rail travel is feasible. My personal favorite is www.seat61.com.

PPS - Your itinerary is sort of ambitious. Doable at your age, but you might enjoy a city or two less and a little more time in the remaining ones.