December flight

[Margaret]

Hi, I'm looking to book flights for our daughters wedding which is 22nd Decemberthis year [msnsmile2]. I've been phoning round a few places today and am quite surprised at the prices I've been quoted (cheapest £720 BA) We really need to fly out on the 18th or 19th because of work commitments and want to opt for direct flights. I know that it would be cheaper to go indirect but because its Christmas, I'm aware that bad weather could upset plans. Is it best to go book now or would I be better off waiting until later in the year when they have flight sales?
I know it's like asking how long is a piece of string[msnwink]
Any advice would be gratefully received
Regards
Margaret

[ShirleyD]

That is a hard one Margaret as that is a peak weekend for Christmas

[MarkJan]

Do you have any aimiles or frequent flyer miles which you could use to get the price down?

[steph_goodrum]

The day the schools break up is usually the price break time and after that it is usually near on impossible to get something reasonable. As you have a fixed date for the wedding I'd suggest just getting dates that suit and at least you know you wont be left without a flight. If you can travel midweek that can save a bit but as you say because of work you may not have a choice.

[ellie]

I think you would be very lucky to get any reduced prices at such a peak time, but only you can decide whether to take the gamble and wait. If you have a limited time slot to fly in then sometimes you just have to bite the bullet to get the dates you want.

Virgin have increased their prices even for early December - even as far back as December 13th is coming out at round about the £789 mark. They really have no need to put peak dates in a sale, so even if you wait you could find that the cheapest seats have gone, and flights could be more than that. £720 actually sounds quite a good deal when compared to Virgin.

As for indirect flights, if you go with someone like US Airways then you will fly into Charlotte which is less likely than Newark, for instance, to be snow bound.

[Katys Grandad]

I'd certainly hang on for a couple of weeks because not all airlines will have fares for that far ahead at the moment.

There are lots of options for connecting itineraries avoiding the possibility of bad weather disrupting your plans including Atlanta (Delta), Charlotte (US Airways), Dallas & Miami (American) to name but 4.

[SteveandJan]

Hi Margaret, it is peak time and don't forget that although the price of the ticket is fairly high, tax represents a huge proportion of the ticket price so the airline cost of the ticket is still very good. Orlando is a very popular destination so Airlines don’t usually have many seats left in peak time and that is school holidays too. We often fly indirect, albeit at a different time of year. If you did miss your connection they put you on the next flight anyway as internal flights are plenty and often. As Ellie said, we often use US Airways and connect in Charlotte. Hope that helps.

[chrissb]

Some airlines like KLM and United do not have their flight prices out yet so it might be worth waiting until they do. However the Christmas flights go VERY, VERY QUICKLY so I would check either online or with a good travel agent and book ASAP when all these prices are available. I doubt that there will be any cheep flights available in any flight sales and looking at the BA price you quote it means that their cheapest rate seats have already gone.

[lafifille]

You also want to check alternative airports: Tampa is oftencheaper than MCO. I just simulates a London to Tampa round-trip Dec 18th return Jan 1rst (2 weeks) and it came out 665£. Of course I'm just assuming you're flying out of London, and the return date may be different. Just food for thought....Good luck!

[Sniff]

<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by SteveandJan
If you did miss your connection they put you on the next flight anyway as internal flights are plenty and often. [/quote]
That's true most of the year but also don't forget that at Christmas half the US population is probably on the move too. If you miss your connection you will be waitlisted for the next flight, but those already booked on that flight will have priority, and as it's such a busy time it could be tricky.

We were in Orlando Dec08-Jan09 and the outbound transatlantic flight was late getting into Philly so we missed our connection. Despite it being the airline's fault, we still had to overnight in Philly, as although there were many flights there were no seats. We eventually get to Orlando the next day, but we had to go via Pittsburgh.