We've said in the past that it often pays to check an airline's own website rather than an online travel agency like Orbitz or Travelocity. And while this strategy usually applies to foreign airlines and smaller domestic carriers, we were shocked this week to discover that two large U.S. carriers appeared to be keeping their best fares to themselves, with sometimes significant savings.
Delta's Sale to Canada . . .
Delta Air Lines (tel. 800/221-1212; www.delta.com) is extending a previous sale to Canada, so if you didn't grab a fare the first time around, you can do so now. The fares are actually pretty good, and there's still availability. Sample fares (including taxes and fees) departing, to choose an itinerary at random, February 3 and returning on February 6, 2006: Atlanta to Toronto is $257 round-trip on the sale, and the lowest fare on Travelocity is also on Delta for $308 round-trip; and Cincinnati to Montreal is $266 in the sale, whereas on Travelocity the lowest is via Delta for $326 round-trip (this is the first time we've seen Delta not sharing its lowest fares with Travelocity and while it may be simply that the fares weren't loaded on Travelocity by the time we checked, there's an important lesson here: always check the airline's own site). Checking some last closer in dates, namely departing on December 25, 2005 and returning on December 28, 2006, Salt Lake City to Vancouver is $299 round-trip in the sale, while checking Travelocity the lowest fare is on Delta for $391 round-trip. So this sale is definitely one to check out. Travel through February 14, 2006, with blackouts on December 20-24 & 29-31, 2005 and January 1- 3, 2006. A 7-day advance purchase is required. Tickets must be purchased by December 13, 2005.
. . . and Delta's Sale to Europe
The carrier is also having a big sale from Atlanta, Cincinnati and New York to cities such as Amsterdam, Istanbul, London, Milan and Zurich. This sale isn't too bad, but don't expect to save a ton of money; indeed, on some routes the Delta fares are actually a few dollars more than what's otherwise available. Sample fares (including taxes and fees): departing on March 8, 2005 and returning and March 15, 2005, from Atlanta to Zurich is $507 round-trip on the sale versus next lowest $523 on Continental; Cincinnati to London is $475 round-trip compared to $484 round-trip on Continental and US Airways; and New York to Amsterdam will set you back $410 round-trip, compared to $407 round-trip on Continental. Depart between December 26, 2005 and March 31, 2006, and all travel must be completed by April 30, 2006. A 7-day advance purchase and Saturday night stay required. City-specific blackouts apply, so check the site for the dates. Tickets must be purchased by December 15, 2005.
Midwest's Midwestern Markdowns
Midwest Airlines (tel. 800/452-2022; www.midwestairlines.com) is having a sale between cities in the Midwest and cities on either coast, but predominantly to/from Milwaukee, Kansas City and Omaha. The sale generally isn't too bad, but most major airlines are matching it. For example, Kansas City to/from Boston is $178 round-trip, a deal offered by every major airline serving the route; the same goes for Milwaukee to/from Newark for $178 round-trip and Omaha to/from Atlanta for $198 round-trip. The plus side to flying with Midwest is that a majority of the fares are for non-stop service, while the other airlines mostly offer connecting flights, and most only offer the fare through March.
This sale is valid for travel Monday to Saturday through April 30, 2006, except that travel to/from Denver, Florida, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Phoenix, San Diego and San Francisco is valid through February 28, 2006, with blackouts on December 22, 2005 through January 2, 2006, and tickets must be purchased by midnight, December 9, 2005. A minimum stay of either Friday or Saturday night is stipulated. Travel to/from Denver, Florida, Las Vegas and Phoenix is not permitted December 20, 2005 through January 3, 2006.
Spirit's Big Sale
Spirit Airlines (tel. 800/772-7117; www.spiritair.com) is having a huge sale between all cities it serves. Fares start as low as $38 plus tax round-trip between Ft. Lauderdale and either Orlando or Tampa (compared to $98 round-trip on major airlines such as Delta, Continental and United). Other great fares included in this sale are: Detroit to St. Thomas for $198 round-trip versus $438 round-trip on Delta (travel through Dec 12 only); Atlantic City to/from West Palm Beach $158 round-trip versus $260 round-trip on Delta; and Providence, RI to Cancun for $198 round-trip versus $236 round-trip on Continental, Delta and US Airways. However, some fares are either matched or lower on other airlines via Travelocity: Chicago to Cancun is $198 round-trip in the sale, whereas ATA is offering that route for $178 round-trip; Atlanta to/from Ft. Lauderdale is $158 round-trip during the Spirit sale but is $148 round-trip on AirTran, US Airways and United; and Atlanta to Cancun is $178 round-trip, but is matched by American. The sale is for travel on Tuesday and Wednesday between January 9 and March 29, and the ends on December 11, 2005 at 11:59PM EST. Also keep in mind that service to/from Atlanta starts on February 16, 2006; Dallas/Fort Worth on January 10, 2006; Grand Cayman on February 16, 2006; Grand Turk on February 19, 2006; and Providenciales, Turks & Caicos on February 16, 2006.
Australia on United
United Airlines (tel. 800/538-2929; www.united.com) is having a "Holidays Australia Sale," which is rather good, depending on the travel dates. With a name like "Holidays Australia Sale," you'd think you'd get a good fare traveling around the holidays, but not really. Their lowest available fare between Los Angeles and Sydney (with taxes and fees), departing December 23, 2005 and returning on January 1, 2006 is $1,552 round-trip, while the lowest fare we found on Travelocity is $1,400 round-trip on Qantas Airways. However, changing the dates to departing on December 13, 2005 and returning on December 20, 2005, the UAL fare goes down to $1,017 round-trip. Even so, Qantas is a smidgen lower on Travelocity at $1,015 round-trip. Boston to Sydney fared better on the same dates at $1,269 round-trip, with the next best deal on Travelocity being another United fare at $1,414 round-trip. But on the same route leaving December 23 and returning a week later we got a good deal at $1,301 round-trip with this United sale, versus a next lowest on Travelocity on United at $2,021 round-trip. So this means the sale is good, but as always check both third-party sites like Travelocity as well as the airline's own site before making the reservation and don't take a "sale" at face value. A 7-day advance purchase and 5-day minimum stay is required. Travel through January 1, 2006, with no blackouts. Tickets must be purchased by December 20, 2005.
To the Caribbean on American
American Airlines (tel. 800/433-7300; www.aa.com) is having a sale on the Caribbean (Aruba, Barbados, Freeport, Grand Cayman Island, Kingston, Montego Bay, Nassau, Providenciales, and St. Maarten) from a wide range of cities in the US. The fares aren't bad, depending on your city pairs, but if you're thinking of a last minute fare to the Caribbean over Christmas and New Year's, you're not likely to find any deals, although it's not an impossibility. For example, after checking a few cities, we got lucky with a Ft. Lauderdale to Nassau fare departing on December 23 and returning on December 29, 2005 for $201 round-trip although Spirit has the same dates for $190 round-trip via its own site or on Travelocity. However, looking later in the year, departing January 25 and returning on February 1, a round-trip fare with taxes and fees between Denver and Aruba was $637 round-trip during this American sale, with the next lowest fare on Travelocity at $726 round-trip on United. Searching for departures on March 21 and returns on March 28, 2006 between Houston and Grand Cayman returned a fare of $469 round-trip on American, while US Airways offered the same route and dates for $477 round-trip via Travelocity. So all in all, this American sale is decent depending on your destination and travel dates. Travel through March 31, 2006, with a 2-night minimum stay and a 30-day maximum stay. Tickets must be purchased by 11:59PM CST, December 15, 2006.
George Hobica is a syndicated travel journalist and blogger whose website, www.airfarewatchdog.com, tracks unadvertised airfare wars and other fare sales.
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