We are going to France in June. Do you have experience or rules of thumb, on when to purchase tickets? Right now we are seeing ~$1730 RT per person. Is this likely to go up? or down?
Additional info: Two passengers flying from Seattle to CDG, standard coach seating. We are experienced domestic flyers, but limited international experience. We are curious if there is a general trend known among international travelers about airline pricing 6 months out versus closer to the travel date.
I don't think anyone has a crystal ball, but folks may be more willing to give opinions if you tell us your US airport and whether you're looking at regular Coach tickets or something else.
I found $1300 RT for random dates in June with Icelandair. I know you can do better than $1700.
Mary, I agree with Carol. That's a bit steep. You could go to Google Flights and Skyscanner, and set up price notifications via email.
I just went to Google Flights and they have tickets for around $1000.
Maybe? A couple of questions
Will you only do nonstop? if you can only do nonstop you’re not getting as many deals because I think there’s like one carrier doing that route so they know they don’t have to get incredibly cheap.
Are you only willing to fly selected carriers? . For example, I generally try to fly Delta most of the time because I’m in their frequent flyer program. I can use the lounges, I get some other benefits. I’m willing to pay a slight premium for that, not a huge premium, but a slight premium.
Are your dates flexible. If you can only go on day one and return on day two and there’s no wiggle room on either side of that that can impact you. , a lot of times it’s cheaper to fly internationally during the week that it is Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday.
Also you’re going at peak season so don’t wait too late. I know people will.tell you 60 days is the magic window. There is no magic window and actually for a flight I’m taking at the end of February I bought it about 120 days in advance and at 60 days it was twice what I paid. so the 60 to 90 day window that some people will tell you about is a myth especially for peak summer Season.
There used to be rules of thumb about this stuff and now they've all gone out the window. Really the only answer is to start tracking flights in Google and also to do some historical research there to see what a quote on quote good Fare is.
The other part of the equation is, what kind of ticket are you looking for, the very very cheapest available? A lower level of economy, a higher level, premium economy, do you want the ticket to be refundable, do you need the ticket to be refundable, do you have an airline or alliance preference,? As you can see there's a lot to consider here
That seems high for Seattle-to-CDG for a standard coach. We fly the Comfort Plus section of standard, and those seats are more in the price range you’re stating. Delta flies non-stop from SeaTac to CDG (lived near Seattle for 30 years), and I definitely recommend doing a non-stop flight. It simplifies everything, and once you’re on the plane, you don’t need to make any connections.
June 21 is the France music night, if you will be there during that date. There’s outdoor musicians - casual, fun night to wander and enjoy them. We were in Paris for that one and heard several different genres within a mile walk.
Also, there’s gorgeous light/music shows at night illuminating the fronts of the cathedrals. I saw the ones at Chartres, Le Mans, Rouen and Nancy (this location does a surround of their Stanislas Square). They’re free, and watched them multiple nights.
maryanddon, don't know how tech savvy you are or if you're aware of Google flights, but just in case, here is a link to it. The nice thing about Google Flights is that it will show you most airlines that are flying, and you can also request flight info for open-jaw tickets (fly into one city and leave from another). https://www.google.com/travel/flights
A nice feature of Google Flights is that the calendar will show you prices for each day during a month. It looks like in June prices go up over $1000 starting June 10, though one can find a few scattered days after that for less.
I used dates of July7 and July 21 for a test. The cheapest is Aer Lingus, with one stop, for $997. I did not go to the airline site to confirm that.
The Delta non-stop to CDG for the same dates is $1600.
Thank you all very much. Your inputs are really helpful! We are looking at google flight, and playing with the dates. We are seeing lower prices! We sure appreciate the collective knowledge.
