Booking Flights.

[cally73]

Hi I am booking my Aug 2010 holiday DIY, for the first time. As a general rule are the flights cheapest as soon as they are released or do they tend to start off more expensive then drop a little? I am aware i would be able to get a better deal by flying indirect but we will have 2 under 5s with us and I want the easiest journey possible. We will probably fly from Manchester. Thanks in advance.

 

[wayneg]

There are no rules to flight prices. The airlines will do anything possible to get the most out of people. Sometimes I have booked as soon as they are released and had great prices other times waited 3-4 months because they were too high and they have dropped. You need to know roughly what to pay, set your price and go for it as soon as you see them below that price.

If you want direct from Manch your only option is Virgin (unless you want a 2 week charter) Virgin in August will be around £700-800pp unless you have any Virgin miles to use, sometimes we use them othertimes we can't. Indirect you should be able to get something for around £500ish but I spend hours searching last few years picked up some great prices, August 06 £335 with BMI, August last year used Virgin miles out and BMI home for £336 total. This August £456 Business class with Delta.

I know it not an easy journey but check London prices. Last Oct half term we went from Heathrow for £240, less than half Manch prices and a third of Virgins direct prices.

DIY you really need to be flexible to get the best prices, If you are going to say only Virgin on only this date then the cost will be high.
Unfortunately August is the hardest month to get deals.

 

[Cinderella]

Hi Cally - flights can be difficult. I usually keep an eye on them and wind up booking about 3 months out. Because you're planning well ahead, it would be a good idea to start watching 2009 flights to get an idea on how far out they'll come down for your time of year.

Do you have to go in August? I have been at that time of year with two little ones and the heat and humidity is intense. Plus the parks are crowded. I am going in June this year and that will be hot and busy enough.

If you could swing it, late October is a lovely time of year to go for nice weather and fewer crowds. But if you can't - any time in Disney is great

Back to the flights - Virgin are brilliant. They have a lot to keep kids amused with seat back TV's, lots of films and games etc. Some other airlines do have seat back TV's. When you're researching flights, check out the type of plane and look it up on seatguru.com to see if that plane has the seat back TV's. It makes the flight a lot easier with kids.

I try to fly with Virgin from Manchester when I can. But if prices are cheaper, I fly with another airline and sometimes get a regional flight from Newcastle if possible.

Changing planes in a US airport isn't too awful, so long as you allow yourself time between flights. And one bonus I have found is that you go through customs at the airport you arrive into. So once you get to Orlando, it makes things a lot quicker.

To monitor flight prices, I use sites like Orbitz, Expedia, Virgin's own site and farecompare.com