Hello again!
I've got another question. I'm noticing that if I stay one extra day in England (arriving on a Sunday and departing the following Sunday), it seems to make my plane fare at least $100 cheaper. Say, $808 vs. $989.
I kind of remember fares being less domestically if you stay 7 days or more. Is this standard-true for international flights as well?
Thanks, folks!
Supply and demand. Search for your airfare on itasoftware.com and choose the one month option instead of specific dates. You will see a lot of peaks and valleys for airfare pricing. If you are flexible with your dates, you can often times save money. You don't actually book flights on itasoftware.com but you can see where the best prices and carriers are and then book directly with the airline.
Many airlines have re instituted the Saturday night stay requirement. This means you pay more for your flight if you do not stay over a Saturday night at your destination. So Sunday returning Saturday does not meet the requirement while Sunday returning next Sunday does.
Or it could just be that more people want to fly on the Saturday you picked than on the following Sunday as others mentioned.
This may be a factor of flying on a Saturday, as answered in your prior thread.
It's probably because Saturday is the "return to USA" day for business travelers to Europe. I used to squeeze an extra day or two out of my employer because the bump in airfare combined with the OT to travel home on Saturday (or Sunday) was substantially more than the per diem to leave me there over the weekend. (Boo hoo, broke my heart…)
If you are REALLY flexible, departing to Europe mid-week can really drive the cost down. That is why you see a lot of guided tours begin and end on seemingly odd days.
But a hotel room for that extra night will cost you more than $100. Different days of the week have different air fares just about everywhere--supply and demand.
I can often find the $100-$125 USD clean and safe hotel room in most locations though I tend to go for chain budget business options (Ibis, Holiday Inn Express, Motel One, etc.) more than most folks here. And if you're traveling as a party of two, it's a $125x2= $250 airfare difference offset by the $125 a night for a double room option and if you each modestly, you're coming out ahead by staying the extra day.
