Cheaper way to fly into Copenhagen?

[canuckcruiser00]

I was just curious if anyone can suggest an alternative route (which is cheaper) as opposed to flying into Copenhagen directly?

 

For example, maybe if you fly into London, and then into Copenhagen? (I'll be flying in from Toronto, if that makes a difference)

 

Anyone have any experience with this?

[Twickenham]

Airfares vary greatly depending on day and time of year. While it was once true that flying into either London or Paris was considerably cheaper from NA than other European cities, this is no longer necessarily the case. For example, I am planning a European trip for next year, and while checking my various TA flight possibilities, found that I could fly from YUL to Prague for around the same amount as a YUL-LHR flight.

 

That being said, I did just get an email from Icelandair announcing a seat sale for this April; they fly seasonally out of YYZ, so you may want to check them out.

 

Also, check the ITA site: http://matrix.itasoftware.com/cvg/dispatch/ . You cannot book on the site, but you can search all your various flight possibilities.

[canuckcruiser00]

Thanks for the input (especially that last link!)

 

The Icelandair fares look awesome, but my TA told me that they're very unreliable...is this true?

(or did she just want more commissions lol)

[YXU AC*SE]

Finnair (flying via Helsinki) appears to be matching Icelandair's price (at least for the dates in July I randomly I checked via ITA). If you live west of Winston Churchill, flying out of BUF might be an option that I would chase down as well. As you have found, there usually is a price premium for convenience.

 

Scott.

[YXU AC*SE]

... but my TA told me that they're very unreliable...is this true?

 

Relying upon an airline's own press release (dated 29 June 2009) may somewhat seem like letting the monkey be in charge of the peanuts, however FWIW ...

 

Icelandair ranked highly in the new Association of European Airlines (AEA) consumer report. According to the report, Iceland’s oldest and largest airline was the only European airline not to cancel a single flight between November 2008 and this March.

 

Icelandair was found to be the second most punctual European airline on long haul routes and the third most punctual on short and medium haul routes – an important statistic for an airline that serves so many of its passengers with short stopovers at its hub airport as they fly between Europe and North America.

 

Icelandair was also ranked the sixth best airline in Europe when it comes to the reliability of reuniting passengers with their luggage at the end of their flights. Once again, as so many Icelandair customers take two scheduled flights with the company at any time instead of just one – this is indeed a statistic the airline can be proud of.

 

Icelandair is the airline connecting 18 of Europe’s major cities with seven top destinations in the USA and Canada through Iceland’s main hub, Keflavik International Airport.

 

All Icelandair planes were recently updated with new, more comfortable seats and individual seat-back entertainment systems for every passenger. Despite the improved quality, Icelandair still regularly comes top on searches for cheap flights to New York and all its other destinations.

 

Flights to Europe with Icelandair are of a similar distance to normal and don’t take much longer, despite the pleasant stop. The company even allows you to spend a few days in Iceland with no extra airfare if you choose.

 

For the purposes of the AEA survey, flights are considered to be on time if they take to the skies within 15 minutes of their scheduled time.

 

More details on Icelandair are available at http://www.icelandair.com

 

Scott.

[canuckcruiser00]

Ha!

Thanks, Scott....I will definitely reconsider them, because searching through the forums gave me nothing but positive comments

(and the savings are just HUGE!!)

 

I did price an alternative route - Toronto to London ($600CDN with taxes) and then London to Copenhagen ($106) - ended up being $710ish CDN altogether.

 

Icelandair is about $425 plus taxes, so I'll be saving $200. Not too shabby I suppose.

[ab0si]

FWIW, my opinions...

 

Icelandic Air is more reliable than most other airlines. Also, the connection in Iceland is easier than making a connection anywhere else. You can also break the trip to spend a few days in Iceland without increasing the airfare.

 

That said, FinnAir is a very good airline. If you are flying Biz class, I would go this way (Icelandic's front of plane is a poor value -- they keep saying they are going to change the seats but to my knowledge, they have not done anything yet.

 

Another url for your consideration. kayak.com. It uses the ITA database and you might find it easier to use.

[DougYWG]

We flew London - Copenhagen last summer to pick up Azamara. Got a real good deal on the BA website for LHR - CPH. Can't remember exact price but it was a steal.

[canuckcruiser00]

I was actually able to price out a pretty good rate with my TA - roughly $1200CDN, round trip (Toronto > Copenhagen, and then Rome > Toronto) on a non-stop flight. Not too bad I guess.