Announcements of new sales and discount fares continue to stream into our inbox here at Frommers.com. Today we're here to tell you about current savings for flitting about within Texas, more cheap fares to Europe for solo travelers, as well a two-for-one for couples and groups discounts, and a special to the Land Down Under.
Southwest Air recently announced a sale for city-hoppin' within the Lonestar State good for travel through the rest of the year (except for a few near-holiday blackout dates). One-way fares are either $34 or $60 depending on your route and include Amarillo, Austin, Corpus Christi, Dallas, El Paso, Harlingen/South Padre Island, Houston, Lubbock/Midland Odessa and San Antonio. Tickets must be purchased a minimum 14 days in advance, the fares do not include taxes, the ubiquitous September 11 security fee and other charges. You have until September 26 to make your reservations. Prices for individual routes and complete rules and regulations can be found online at www.southwest.com/hotfares/genmkt_texas.html. Be sure to check out www.southwest.com/hotfares/hotfares2.html for Southwest's other sales including travel within the Midwest, within California and a $99 one-way advanced purchase system wide offering.
One of our favorites for offering reasonable rates to Europe is Icelandair, which posts a weekly "Lucky Fares" to London, Frankfurt and Amsterdam and more. Their best deal this week is a route out of Baltimore to either London or Glasgow for a low $265 for a Monday-Wednesday departure. The price goes up to $320 for Thursday-Sunday departures. You have to book by noon on September 24 for travel now through October 31. The selected routes and prices for "Lucky Fares" change weekly. To be notified, you must sign up at www.icelandair.com. Just click on "Customer Clubs" at the top of the mainpage to get started. Don't worry, it's free and it take very little time to join. One of the great things about Icelandair is that all flights are routed through Reykavik, and you have the option for extending your trip a few days with a stay there.
If you're like the majority of travelers, you take a traveling companion with you, be it your spouse, significant other, best friend or possibly even your next-door neighbor. Now Lufthansa is making that easier with its two-for-one offer to any of the nearly 100 airports it serves in Europe. And it's as simple as that; buy one economy class ticket and get the second for free, excluding taxes and security fees. Tickets must be purchased a minimum of 21 days in advance by November 30, 2002 and travel must be completed by January 12, 2003. Reservations can be made either through a travel agent or by calling a Lufthansa representative at 800/399LUFT. Be sure to ask for fare code QNCS1 when booking. Additional information about this special can be found online by clicking here.
Planning on traveling with more than two? Possibly ten? Well, look no further than USAirways, which is offering special discounts for large groups heading to Europe from the U.S. between November 1, 2002 and March 15, 2003. You can find additional information online at www.usairways.com/travel/group/fall_group_sale.htm or by calling 877/874-7687 between 8:30 am and 6 pm EST. Tickets must be purchased either by September 30, 2002 or 60 prior to departure. This could just be the opportunity you've been looking for to set up an across-the-pond family reunion.
Sample roundtrip fares per person based on a group of 10 or more include:
- Philly to Amsterdam $331
- Cleveland to Frankfurt $298
- Boston to Madrid $303
- Seattle to Munich $417
- Pittsburgh to Paris $338
- San Francisco to Rome $426
And finally, we'd like to draw your attention to special fares from Oz carrier Qantas. For some September and November departures you can fly out of Los Angeles to either Sydney or Melbourne for under a grand just as the spring is waning and summer is coming into full force Down Under.
Roundtrip fares for September 19-30, 2002:
- LA to Sydney for $797
- LA to Melbourne for $897
Roundtrip fares for November 17-30, 2002:
- LA to Sydney for $897
- LA to Melbourne for $997
Tickets must be purchased by September 30, 2002. A minimum stay of one week is required with a maximum stay of no more than 30 days. For the whole story, go to www.qantasusa.com/webDeal.php?ID=8.