April 26, 2004 -- Hunting for decent fares to Europe today, we stumbled upon one of the strangest promotions we've seen. If you're a brilliant budget traveler making your way across the Continent, you may be able to win your weight in cheese; even if you don't, you'll get some pretty swell bus fares.
You'll probably need those low bus fares, too, because fares to Europe are starting to climb. This week, we saw some Aer Lingus fares to Ireland in June that are double what the airline was charging in March -- then again, that's par for the course, and fares will probably be even higher for July and August trips.
For trips departing the US between June 1-20, these are the best fares you'll find right now for Ireland in late June. Fares are the same to Dublin and Shannon, and they seem to be unevenly available right now (in other words, some dates have sold out.)
- From New York or Boston: $596 (matched by American Airlines)
- From Chicago: $646
- From LA: $676
Buy these fares online at www.aerlingus.com by clicking on the link near the top of the home page that says "USA".
A Truly Cheesy Promotion
Do you like cheese? No, I mean, do you really like cheese? Pressured by cheap air and rail fares, European long-distance bus services are clearly feeling the need to prove their worth right now. In the UK, National Express () and Megabus (www.megabus.com) are slugging it out with £1 fares between various UK cities -- that's under $2 to go from London to Brighton, Manchester or a dozen other cities, or to ride between several popular Scottish destinations. If you're trying to save money on a UK trip, take a very good look at the bus.
Here's the cheesy part, though. National Express wants to make the point that when you factor in getting to and from airports, even Ryanair can't beat their £12 ($21.25) each-way fares to Paris and Amsterdam. These "Heart 2 Heart" fares are very highly restricted -- they become available 30 days before travel and sell out quickly, so if you want them, buy them online in advance.
They're so convinced their fares are the lowest that they'll send anyone who finds a lower fare their own weight in cheese. () That'd be Brie for Paris, and Edam for Amsterdam. You have to be traveling on public transportation, of course, not in your own car, and you have to be going city center to city center. If you can pull off an itinerary that takes under 12 hours each way and costs less than £27 return, well, the wheel is yours.
Here's what they're so confident. The taxes on most airfares between the UK and the Continent come out to about £27 -- and that's before the actual fare, and without getting to or from either airport. The "Super Saver" ferry fare from Dover to Calais crossing the English channel is about £29 roundtrip. If anyone has any truly witty ideas (we're sure hitchhiking is out), we'd love to hear them.
The problem for time-strapped Americans, though, is that taking a Eurolines bus from London to Paris or Amsterdam takes 9-10 hours each way, including a built-in ferry crossing. Compare that to the 2 hour, 40 minute run to Paris on the Eurostar train, or the six-hour train ride or one-hour flight to Amsterdam, and you see how you're trading money for time here.
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