Europe Airfare

[Suzanne123]

I need to get from PHL or BWI to Lyon at the end of August for my Rhone River cruise. I thought I would wait awhile to get my plane ticket because the airfare was around 1K when I booked in December, but it seems to be getting worse every time I check! I know you don't have a crystal ball, but would you bite the bullet and just book something now or wait a little longer? I have no experience with air travel to Europe. Thanks.

[cmthomas]

First, I would forget BWI. Their only trans-Atlantic service is one flight with British Air. Suggest you expand your search to include both PHL and IAD (Dulles). Also, take a look at http://www.1800cheapseats.com/. I bought tickets for a river cruise in October through them and saved $300 per person over the costs for the same flight on the same airline by booking with the airline directly. Keep in mind that August is still the "high season" so expect higher costs. You may be able to reduced your costs by flying to Paris and taking a train to Lyon.

 

Clarence:)

[cmthomas]

There is a good article in this morning's New York Times about airfares that you might find helpful. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/15/travel/15pracdeals.html

 

Clarence:)

[VAGuy]

A good website for basic information for flights is http://www.itasoftware.com. The developer of this website is the developer of any number of the airfare websites including Orbitz, etc. You cannot make a booking directly from this site, but there is a wealth of infomation available. Today round trip prices from Dulles to Lyon show $878 (one stop) while prices from Dulles to Charles de Gaulle show $753 using Air India (one stop) or $796 on American (one stop). You may want to consider flying into Charles de Gaulle (Paris) and taking the highspeed train (TGV) to Lyon. Advance purchase for a one way ticket at http://www.tgv.com can be had for 25 E or about $34 US. You can also check rail fares at http://www.raileurope.com.

 

Hope this info helps. :)

[Suzanne123]

You guys are great! Thanks for the tips.