Airfares to Europe...OMG!!!

[shukapaw]

We live in Alaska and are to flying to Europe on mileage I've accumulated over the years. Frequent flier miles seem to be worth less and less each year so we decided it was time to cash some in. We treated ourselves and booked Business Class. We fly into Barcelona ON American Airlines for a 12 day NCL Cruise and fly out of Paris on Air France after a 12 day Princess cruise

 

We are generally pretty budget-minded in everything we do. Since I got the airline tickets "free", I thought I'd check to see what they would cost if we actually paid for them. I did mock bookings and I was stunned. For the two of us to fly Business class from Anchorage to Barcelona and then return from Paris to Anchorage would have cost us just over $29,000. YIPES!! I can guarantee you that I would NEVER pay that kind of money for airlines.

 

Brian

[Tony1878]

LHR is notorious for absurdly high airport taxes. Can you get to Southampton via another airport? Is Gatwick as expensive for you? Could you fly into Ireland, or Northern Ireland and take a ferry? (although those are not inexpensive either - still, it's an adventure.)

 

Maddle

 

I live in the UK, try pricing flying into Manchester.

If you are staying over for a few days prior to departure, you are only 30 miles from Liverpool, check us out :)

You can get a direct flight from Manchester to London or Southampton, alternatively you can jump the train as well (2 hours to the centre of London).

Best rail ticket prices are 12 weeks before departure.

[Cruise Junky]

We live in Alaska and are to flying to Europe on mileage I've accumulated over the years. Frequent flier miles seem to be worth less and less each year so we decided it was time to cash some in. We treated ourselves and booked Business Class. We fly into Barcelona ON American Airlines for a 12 day NCL Cruise and fly out of Paris on Air France after a 12 day Princess cruise

 

We are generally pretty budget-minded in everything we do. Since I got the airline tickets "free", I thought I'd check to see what they would cost if we actually paid for them. I did mock bookings and I was stunned. For the two of us to fly Business class from Anchorage to Barcelona and then return from Paris to Anchorage would have cost us just over $29,000. YIPES!! I can guarantee you that I would NEVER pay that kind of money for airlines.

 

Brian

 

Looks like you priced out two one way tickets. You need to do a multi-city instead. There's no way it's $29,000

[susiesan]

Shukapaw got lucky with the miles tickets. If you tried to get award seats now on AA to anywhere in Europe on AA metal you will not find any .AA has severely cut back on these seats. They must think they will sell them to dumb suckers at inflated prices so they aren't making any seats avaluable for award redemption.

[AE_Collector]

Airfare is based on supply and demand not the price of fuel.

 

Just like cruises.....

 

Terry

[Woobstr112G]

Just starts thinking about a cruise in Europe in May. Then checked the airfare...OMG! We cruised in Europe both in 2013 (roundtrip ticket was around $900 due to a Princess EZAir special) and last fall and our roundtrip ticket was $1,200. Both of these trips were into one city and home out of another. Just checked for air today for Southampton departures, and a simple roundtrip London ticket was over $1,700!

 

With the price of oil so low, I am shocked by this and we now don't plan to cruise in Europe this summer unless something gives.

 

Am I missing something?? I would also assume the cruise lines may have trouble filling the ships with the air fares this high.

 

have you priced flights via a consolidator.....?

 

Bob

[shukapaw]

Shukapaw got lucky with the miles tickets.

I grabbed them 330 days before travel.... right when they first became available. Otherwise, award tickets are near impossible to get.

 

Brian

[azbirdmom]

Keep watching the fares. We fly United and I checked the fares daily for our trip this past April. PHX - LHR was running at consistently $1500, then one day it was $850 and I grabbed that. Most of that was taxes and in fact if we used miles to fly for free, the taxes would have been around $600 per ticket plus the miles. I've never seen taxes as high as LHR, but if you have patience to wait it out, you will hopefully have the same thing happen to you.

[S.S.Oceanlover]

I was looking at a PHL to Venice RT flight earlier and it was crazy high. $1400pp.

 

Using Kayak I got a price of $788pp on Aeroflot. Never heard of them since i don't usually fly anywhere out of the U.S.

 

Anybody have anything good/bad to say about this airline.

 

I see it's a Russian airline and it stops in Moscow on the way and coming back.

 

Bill

[Shogun]

Hi

 

This airline used to have a poor safety record, used to be referred to as airoflop

 

Yours Shogun

 

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Forums mobile app

[I object 2]

Hi

 

This airline used to have a poor safety record, used to be referred to as airoflop

 

Yours Shogun

 

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Forums mobile app

 

That doesn't sound very promising! :)

 

Jan

Edited January 9, 2015 by I object 2

[SwissDave]

That doesn't sound very promising! :)

 

Jan

 

The operative words in Shogun's post are 'used to'. :)

 

They are now as good as any western airline, and use Boeings on international flights.

[PRINCESSTHE BEST]

Flight prices are horrendous from the UK to the U.S. Too. I wanted to book 2 California Coastal cruises b2b, but the cost of the flights were higher than the cruises.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[latebloomer56]

If we were retired we would sail to England do our Med. trip then sail back (if possible). I'm sure it would be only a little more than RT air Bos-London. Oh well 42 more months (was 21 but health ins. from town changed).

We booked EZAir but are looking at going to Southampton not Heathrow it involves a 3 hour layover though and I'm not thrilled with that. What we save would be spent on a hotel not just after as planned but before as well. We think EZAir is high and I didn't like this years ago but have been told it has improved.

[Woobstr112G]

Just starts thinking about a cruise in Europe in May. Then checked the airfare...OMG! We cruised in Europe both in 2013 (roundtrip ticket was around $900 due to a Princess EZAir special) and last fall and our roundtrip ticket was $1,200. Both of these trips were into one city and home out of another. Just checked for air today for Southampton departures, and a simple roundtrip London ticket was over $1,700!

 

With the price of oil so low, I am shocked by this and we now don't plan to cruise in Europe this summer unless something gives.

 

Am I missing something?? I would also assume the cruise lines may have trouble filling the ships with the air fares this high.

 

Not knowing what your dates are, I just did a phantom booking (discount online site) from ATL to LHR. The dates I used were departing May 7th and returning on the 23rd. The average coach price was 1083......

 

Bob

Edited January 9, 2015 by Woobstr112G

[sunsetbeachgal]

Not knowing what your dates are, I just did a phantom booking (discount online site) from ATL to LHR. The dates I used were departing May 7th and returning on the 23rd. The average coach price was 1083......

 

Bob

 

I'm encouraged by these responses, so will go back on Kayak to look! Sounds like you need to look every day and check all airports within several hours drive.

[Woobstr112G]

I'm encouraged by these responses, so will go back on Kayak to look! Sounds like you need to look every day and check all airports within several hours drive.

 

If you'd care to, send me an email and I will send you the site. Email link is in the bottom of my signature.....:):):)

 

Bob

[susiesan]

Best days of the week to search for airfares are Tuesday and Wednesday. Also try to fly on these days plus Saturdays for the best prices. And send up a fare alert on yapta.

[Colo Cruiser]

I'm encouraged by these responses, so will go back on Kayak to look! Sounds like you need to look every day and check all airports within several hours drive.

 

Checked Kayak and several additional at the same time and they were $2000 more then Princess. :eek:

[Tyskie]

We booked Princess EZ air.............I wanted non-stop JFK-Venice and same for the return home Barcelona -JFK, Delta was on the only airline it seems that has a non-stop. That said, we got for $1144.pp - I keep watching Delta and some of the other sites to see if it goes down. Princess will adjust. I do think being near a major city does help.

 

Good luck with your searching!

[holula]

LHR has always had crazy high taxes but some of these recent fares are absolutely insane. For the Olympics in London in 2012 my friend flew LAX-LHR for $1200 return. Now I can't even find that from Florida. Flying into anywhere but LHR is almost always cheaper, even if you have to book another flight from that airport to London.

[Colo Cruiser]

Can someone tell me on Kayak it lists a "hacker fare" next to some of the prices. What does this mean?

[bhopal21]

Can someone tell me on Kayak it lists a "hacker fare" next to some of the prices. What does this mean?

 

That combines one way fares on different airlines to save you money.

 

Mike:)

[Colo Cruiser]

That combines one way fares on different airlines to save you money.

 

Mike:)

 

 

Thank you sir!

[bhopal21]

Thank you sir!

 

Es no problemo, amigo.

 

Mike:)