From United: D.C. to Madrid for Spring/Summer
We've barely washed away the stink of last summer's chlorine, so it seems a little premature to start planning trips for next spring/summer. Still, we can't ignore United's (tel. 800/241-6522; www.united.com) current sale from D.C. to Madrid, good for Monday through Thursday travel, until August 29. You'll find the cheapest fares of the sale available from March 26 through May 13, with higher sale fares from May 14 through August 29.
Fares require a Saturday stay, with a maximum stay of 90 days. Book your tickets by October 31!
- Washington, D.C. to Madrid $499, nonstop, incl. all taxes, for spring travel
- Washington, D.C. to Madrid $599, nonstop, incl. all taxes, for summer travel
St. Croix & St. Thomas Sale From American Airlines
Fight off those fall temps a little longer with a trip to St. Thomas or St. Croix. American Airlines (tel. 800/433-7300; www.aa.com) just so happens to have a sale, good for Monday-Thursday travel through December 17. Fares require a 2-night minimum stay, with a maximum stay of 30 days.
All fares must be purchased by November 3, and include:
- Nashville to St. Croix $465
- New York to St. Thomas $292
- Miami to St. Thomas $230
- Chicago to St. Croix $439
- Norfolk to St. Thomas $407
- San Francisco to St. Thomas $453
South Florida Sale to the Caribbean & Latin American
American Airlines (tel. 800/433-7300; www.aa.com) is back with their standard Caribbean & Latin America Sale from Miami and Ft Lauderdale. Fares are valid for travel through December 10, Monday-Thursday, except for blackout dates November 20-30. Tickets require a 2-day minimum stay, with an allowed 30-day maximum stay.Book by October 26, 11:00am ET. Fares include:
- Miami to St Croix, USVI $344, nonstop, incl. all taxes
- Miami to Aruba, Aruba $346, nonstop, incl. all taxes
- Miami to Barbados, Barbados $380, nonstop, incl. all taxes
- Miami to Bogota, Colombia $347, nonstop, incl. all taxes
- Miami to George Town, Bahamas $305, nonstop, incl. all taxes
- Miami to Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands $281, nonstop, incl. all taxes
- Miami to Guatemala City, Guatemala $244, nonstop, incl. all taxes
- Miami to Managua, Nicaragua $249, nonstop, incl. all taxes
- Miami to Marsh Harbour, Bahamas $305, nonstop, incl. all taxes
- Miami to Medellin, Colombia $292, nonstop, incl. all taxes
- Miami to North Eleuthera, Bahamas $305, nonstop, incl. all taxes
- Miami to Panama City, Panama $234, nonstop, incl. all taxes
- Miami to St Kitts, St Kitts & Nevis $394, nonstop, incl. all taxes
- Miami to St Maarten, Netherlands Antilles $423, nonstop, incl. all taxes
- Miami to Treasure Cay, Bahamas $305, nonstop, incl. all taxes
Fares to Fly By from Virgin America
Virgin America's (tel. 877/359.8474; www.virginamerica.com) latest round of Fares to Fly By range from $40 to $100 each way. Travel between October 23 and March 10, minus blackout dates November 25, 28, 30, December 17, 18, 23, 23, 26, 30, and January 3.
Fares must be purchased by 11:59pm on October 27.
- Boston to San Francisco $200
- New York to San Francisco $200
- San Francisco to Las Vegas $80
- San Francisco to Los Angeles $80
- San Francisco to Santa Ana $80
- San Diego to San Francisco $80
- Seattle to San Francisco $80
- Seattle to Santa Ana $120
- Seattle to Los Angeles $120
- Ft Lauderdale to Los Angeles $200
- Washington, D.C. to San Francisco $200
On many routes, you'll find other airlines (Southwest, United, Alaska, and so on...) are matching.
Midweek Madness Sale to/from Arizona
Fly to/from Arizona on the cheap with the Midweek Madness sale from Alaska Airlines (tel. 800/426-0333; www.alaskaair.com). Sale fares are valid for Tuesday and Wednesday travel through February 10. Blackout dates are December 18-21, 23, 26-28, and January 2-4. Tickets must be purchased by October 30.
Remember, these fares are reversible:
- Phoenix to Bellingham $138
- Phoenix to Eugene $138
- Phoenix to Medford $138
- Phoenix to Pasco $138
- Phoenix to Portland $162
- Phoenix to Redmond $138
- Phoenix to Walla Walla $138
- Phoenix to Yakima $138
- Los Angeles to Flagstaff $138
- Los Angeles to Prescott $138
Southeast Asia Sale from Honolulu
The China Airlines (tel. 800/227-5118; www.china-airlines.com) sale from Honolulu to Southeast Asia is still up for grabs, for travel this fall. Fares are valid for outbound travel on Thursdays and Sundays through November 29 at the latest, although dates of travel will vary by destination. Fares must be purchased by October 31, and include:
- Honolulu to Bangkok, Thailand $778, incl. all taxes
- Honolulu to Hong Kong, Hong Kong $762, incl. all taxes
- Honolulu to Taipei, Taiwan $751, incl. all taxes
Air France Ups Fees for Checked Bags
Flying to France this Fall? Starting November 1, Air France (tel. 800/237-2747; www.airfrance.com) will charge a $50 fee for checking a second bag, weighing up to 50lbs (23 kilos). For passengers departing from Europe, this fee will be €50. Bags weighing between 50lbs and 70lbs will now cost $100 (or for European departures, €100), up from the previous charge of $50. For checking a third (or additional) bag up to the allowed weight of 50lbs, passengers will be charged $200 (or for European departures, make that €200). These new fees apply only to passengers traveling in Economy Class between the US and Europe, as well as Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, and Turkey. Passengers are allowed to check one free bag, weighing up to 50lbs.
Passengers flying in First or Business Class are exempt from these new baggage rules. Also, those flying Economy with Gold, Silver, SkyTeam Elite, or Elite Plus status are allowed 2 pieces of checked luggage at no cost, provided bags do not exceed 50lbs each.
Club 2000, Skipper members, and those traveling in Premium Voyageur Class are allowed 2 pieces of checked luggage at no cost, provided bags do not exceed 70lbs each.
More info at AirFrance.com.
Panic in the Papers: Will Holiday Travel Really Cost You as Much as They Say?
If you've been watching TV and reading the papers lately, you've seen the dire warnings that peak holiday travel airfares have been marching in only one direction: up. Buy today or you'll pay more tomorrow!
Of course, we at Airfarewatchdog have dedicated our working lives to tracking airfares, and we know that fares go up and down as airlines test the waters to see how much passengers are willing to pay. Not only do fares go up and down, but the airlines employ sophisticated computer programs that adjust the number of seats at the lowest fares. So one moment there might be just one seat or no seats at the lowest fare between, say, Newark and San Francisco and then next minute there might be 5 seats.
So when the New York Times reported in an October 15 front page article that "Holiday Airfare is Soaring Daily" and a flight departing Nov. 25 and returning Nov. 29 from Newark to San Francisco that was $504 on Sept. 18 was $770 if bought last Thursday, we decided to track that and other routes mentioned in the article to see if they would go down in price. Check out our findings so far here and here, and follow along in our blog as we update.
Additional Reporting by Tracy W. Stewart
George Hobica is a syndicated travel journalist and blogger whose website, www.airfarewatchdog.com, tracks unadvertised airfare wars and fare sales, including the most helpful and always updated Top 50 Airfares.
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