In flight-planning hell! Desperately seeking advice...

I would definitely go with Delta/Air France but be advised that Air France's carryon size is smaller than Delta's. The same may well be true for Lufthansa, since the smaller carryon size is common on European airlines. In 2019, Air France did not weigh our bags but did put them in the sizer at the gate.

What is the timing of the flights? Is one more convenient?

Any significant land cost ( e.g., parking) difference Seattle vs Vancouver?

I agree with your comment that what I have seen here relating to comments about Lufthansa has been negative, while Delta usually is on the positive side.

Presumably the flight to London is an overnighter, so the Comfort+ seats might make getting some sleep easier and everyone arrives a bit perkier and less grumpy?

The lowest price is not necessarily the best deal.

Assuming that Joe's variables turn out to be a wash, I'd go with the fare that saves c. $1300. You can use that money in a lot of ways on this trip. You know your kids, but at those ages I'd think they could handle a short layover in Munich. Maybe you should let them decide how to spend the fare savings on the trip! ;-)

It would really help if you included the dates of your flights. It makes a difference.

I notice that you aren't considering Icelandair or British Airways. Is there a reason for this? Icelandair has a sale through tonight for flights completed by May 15th. Might work for you or might not.

British Airways (I just picked random dates in June) is currently $3525 Vancouver to London, Paris to London to Vancouver RT for your family of 4. They do charge for seat selection if you desire.

When is this trip?

I don’t know if this might be helpful. But British Airways just announced a fare sale, for purchases by January 31. You might take a look. For Seattle-London (or Vancouver-London) it would be a nonstop overnight flight; for the return from Paris on a daytime flight you would change planes in London.

Carol and I were posting at the same time. I assumed your trip was in August and checked British Airways, and came up with a similar price for 4 ($3880); a small difference probably due to different days selected. I did choose the “economy Basic” which is carry-on only, but that is what you want, right? And BA has a more generous carry-on size than other Euro airlines.

You do have to pay for seat selection if you wish to choose in advance, but that is true of regular economy (and Premium Economy and Business class) as well

The flights I chose were at reasonable times and a choice of 2.5 hour or 5 hour layover at Heathrow on the way back from Paris (the longer layover is less $$$). One nice thing about this, apart from the price, is that the long flights (BA 84-85 are on the A350, which is a favored plane these days—-design features and ventilation system that increase comfort and reduce jet lag.

So sorry, we are traveling this April! We leave on March 30 (hoping for a later flight time) and come home on April 13.

A couple of comments for what they are worth:
I’m not a fan of backtracking (going east to Munich only to have to go west back to North America) + layover. But I know it’s a better deal.

If you do opt for AC and Lufthansa, the flight to London will probably be okay. The flight back from Munich is on a newer plane that Lufthansa bought from Philippines Air to use on its Munich to Canada routes so it should be a bit nicer? We will be flying that route in September.

You are flying Easter weekend so the border even with Nexus might be a bit busy?

I checked British Airways, and the best option I could fine (basic economy, not including paying for seats) would be $4928 USD. Plus it involves a 6 hour layover in London. Boooo.

I did check Iceland Air earlier today because I knew about their sale, but there's nothing out of Seattle for those days, and I just checked Vancouver for departure/return -- there's a decent option out of Vancouver, leaving at 3:35pm (not quite as late as we'd like, but it's okay), but the return options on April 13 are pricey and don't get into Vancouver until after midnight, which isn't good at all.

Ok, that brings the price up a bit—-I am seeing $1173 per person, or $4692 for 4 on those dates.

Depart YVR (Vancouver) at 20:50 on March 30, on BA 84; arrive in LondonMarch 31 at 14:10.

Coming back, you have a few choices, but I like the 14:10 departure from Paris to Heathrow, which gives you a 2 hour 50 minute layover before the 17:15 departure of BA 85 to Vancouver. You could have a 6-hour layover if you prefer.

Or you could fly American Airlines Paris-Dallas and Dallas to Vancouver, with a 4-hour layover in Dallas. Your choice.

Lola, strangely, when I price that same flight out, I get a price of about $4930 USD.

Have you checked WestJet? I am thinking out of Abbotsford. It means that you have to change in Calgary, but probably direct to Paris from there on the Dreamliner. I see a flight on March 30.

Looks like WestJet doesn't fly from Paris to Vancouver on weekends...at least in April!

I have done many Air Canada flights overseas, always choosing the bulkhead seats in economy and have managed to sleep thanks to the extra leg room. Well worth the extra cost. I have also flown Delta Comfort and found that they are comparable to AC. However this was in the pre-Covid days. I did one flight with Lufthansa and was not impressed. The plane was packed and seat pitch was less than AC.

I know AC has had staffing and other problems since resuming service after Covid, particularly domestic flights. But it seems that so has every other airline.

Westjet flights from Vancouver or Abbotsford via Calgary to London go to Gatwick and don’t start operating until around 25th April.

A difficult choice for you, for sure. The cost of Parking in Vancouver (approx Cdn$150 - Cdn$230) should also be considered.

Jenn, my prices were Economy Basic, which is fine if you only want carry-on luggage. And I picked the least expensie of the several home-bound choices I saw, although there was slight price variation. And the prices were quoted in CDN$, so I had to convert them to USD.

What I did not do is check prices flying from Seattle—-although I suspect they could be higher than Vancouver.

If it were me, to save a few bucks yet ensure a relatively pleasant trip, I would take a modified version of option 1: Virgin Atlantic Economy Delight nonstop to London outbound at 5:15; for return, CDG to AMS at 11:45 on Air France, then Delta DL145 to SEA at 15:15, arriving SEA 16:40, Economy, $4,442 muti-city on the Delta website . Shouldn't be any seat reservation fees; you didn't seem to mind a stopover on the way home.

Traveling with kids in tow, I would check baggage to make it easier to navigate the airports. I would not select a basic economy fare, as I would want the ability to change the flight without change fees.

I would go with option #1, especially considering you are flying with kids. Non-stop flights are always my preference, and IMO are worth the extra dollars. Also, I would not want to be in economy for an overnight transatlantic flight. Delta Comfort+ should provide you with a much better travel experience. Hopefully that will provide you with kids who are not so tired and grumpy upon arrival. At this point, all of the flight shopping is causing you extra time and anxiety, so my recommendation is to just bite the bullet and then try to not second guess yourself. Have a wonderful vacation!

The question really is whether it’s worth spending $1300 to reduce travelling time and also to travel in a bit more comfort.

Only you know that! If I could afford the difference I would pay it. I do think it’s worth flying non-stop if cost is not the most critical factor.

I agree with markcw-Virgin is our preferred airline for flying to Heathrow.

Have you considered shuttle to SEA for better options?

Also, book directly with airlines! If you had booked the flight with Delta, they would not have just canceled, they would have offered different flights for same price.

Goodness, you all have been so incredibly helpful!!!! TravelBug 79 hit the nail on the head in terms of how I've been feeling -- and you were totally right. That said, Markcw's flight option with the connection in Amsterdam was new to me, and when I went back onto Delta's site, I saw that option farther down the page. For some reason I thought the flights were listed in order of price (low to high), so once I saw pricey fares, I didn't scroll down any further. This time I did, and saw that flight option! Yes, nonstop would be easier, but a brief stop in Amsterdam is worth $1300 to me. My kids can deal. I called Delta, spoke with the nicest and most helpful woman EVER, booked the flight, no seat selection fees, checked bag is free (which we will take advantage of on the way home!), and I feel sooooo much better! This feels like absolutely the right choice!

So we're Delta on the way to London, nonstop from Seattle, Comfort+ seats; Air France from Paris to Amsterdam, 2-hr layover; Delta from Amsterdam to Seattle in economy main. Grand total: $4378! Hooray!!!!!!!!

Thank you ALL!

Jenn, that is wonderful news and I am so glad that the forum helped you find your solution. What a great experience this will be for your family!

Congratulations. You did well.

Just a note for others searching for flights—-on most airline websites (not 3d party websites) the flights are listed in order of departure time, not price. So it is well worth scrolling down all the way through the list.

Delta's was listed neither in order of departure time nor in cost! Unless my settings were wonky.

Just looked at the Delta site and did a SEA-CDG request.

The default order is Trip Duration on Delta planes.

Once all Delta only options are presented it starts showing options using Delta and partner airlines planes/flights ( "mixed metal")

In the upper right corner is a 'Sort" button on the page where it starts the options list, to let one customize how the flights are presented.

Other airlines may have different default settings.

Try ASAP Tickets Consolidator if you are 100 percent sure and buy travel insurance it can save you money I have used them without a problem and you can specify you dint want Basic Economy.

Hope it helps.

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE do not use these "ticket consolidators" THe days of airlines using consolidators to sell unwanted seats are gone with the internet. If you cannot find an airfare on the airline website don't believe the lure of the "cheap airfare fairy" (She's even less real than the Easter Bunny)

For your reading enjoyment with "ASAP"

https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g1-i10702-k14394938-Is_ASAP_Tickets_a_reliable_company_to_purchase_flights-Air_Travel.html
https://www.bbb.org/us/ca/south-san-francisco/profile/travel-agency/asap-tickets-1116-72752/complaints

What Carol said.

Even years and years ago people had trouble with third party bookings of airfares.
During and after the pandemic it got worse.
Please only book directly with airlines themselves

About 15 years ago I booked a flight through Expedia.
Then I spent many hours on the phone to agents in Egypt when they screwed it up.

Right in ASAP's Terms and Conditions (in TripAdvisor link) is a massive red flag: If you purchase a fare that allows changes or refunds and need to take advantage of that feature, ASAP will charge you $250 to process the change/refund. That's in addition to whatever fee the airline may charge.

The BBB link highlights the pernicious "tip" of unspecified amount that may somehow be added to the price of tickets. Who ever heard of tipping an online agency selling airline tickets? Who would knowingly do that?