Europe - when do you purchase flights and insurance?

[Marthasor]

Hi! We don't leave for our ABD until next July, but I was pricing out flights and I'm wondering when most people buy their flights to Europe? The prices don't seem too bad right now, but I'll kick myself if the prices drop substantially over the next few months! When do you typically buy your flights to Europe? 6 months in advance? 3?

Also, once I buy our flights I will buy insurance. I was just hoping to get people's thoughts on the ABD insurance vs. buying independently through insuremytrip.com.

Thanks!

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

Based on my own experiences buying tickets to Europe for summer travel, the prices will hold pretty steady from now until summer, and they have been high the last few summers. It's unlikely prices will drop substantially, unless an airline has an unexpected sale.

I prefer to chose my own insurance at insuremytrip.

 

[sayhello]

Hi! We don't leave for our ABD until next July, but I was pricing out flights and I'm wondering when most people buy their flights to Europe? The prices don't seem too bad right now, but I'll kick myself if the prices drop substantially over the next few months! When do you typically buy your flights to Europe? 6 months in advance? 3?

Also, once I buy our flights I will buy insurance. I was just hoping to get people's thoughts on the ABD insurance vs. buying independently through insuremytrip.com.

Thanks!

I can't really answer the airfare question. Buying airfare has changed so much over the last couple of years; I don't know what the "rules" are any more. I can say I've never seen any of the airfares I bought go down any significant amount once I bought them.

As far as the insurance question goes, when did you book? If it's been less than 14 days, you can still buy the ABD insurance, and get the pre-existing condition waiver. That's a big deal for me; it might not be for you. You can also get the pre-existing condition waiver from independent insurance companies by buying within 14-21 days depending on the policy. If you wait until you book the airfare, you'll be too late for the pre-existing condition waiver, unless you buy from one of the companies that offers the waiver as long as you buy the policy within 24 hours of paying in full. But those policies usually cost more.

As for the difference between the ABD policy and independent insurance, that really depends on a few factors. I'm getting up in age, and I've hit that threshold where buying trip insurance independently has gotten much more expensive. The ABD insurance doesn't take age into account, so it is a much better deal for me. You'd have to price things out to see how it works for you. If you have kids, a lot of the policies on www.insuremytrip.com include kids for free, so that can make the independent insurance a much better deal.

The ABD insurance is a good policy, but you can usually get better coverage for your money through an independent policy (unless you're "mature" like me). Also, except for your flights, the ABD policy only covers what you book through ABD. So if you book pre- or post- nights on your own, it's not covered by the ABD policy. And your flights, if booked on your own, are only covered if you fly to the city where the ABD starts, and from the city where the ABD ends.

If you want to buy the insurance now, you can always estimate how much the airfare will be. If you under-estimate, you can pay to increase the coverage; if you over-estimate, you can get a refund. If you do get a pre-existing condition waiver, be sure and let the insurance company know within the 14-21 days of the change (increase or decrease) or you'll lose the waiver.

Sayhello

 

[Bobo912]

I booked our flights for next July at the end of August, which seemed ridiculously early, but the price seemed reasonable to me and was much lower than ABD estimated that it would be. It's gone up a little since I booked. I booked far in advance for our ABD to Peru this year, as well, and the price never went down. But it's a gamble.

I purchased the ABD insurance for our trip next summer to Ireland. We're spending 5 days in Scotland before the tour starts. I spoke to the insurance company about adding additional coverage for the pre-tour days and they said I can call them with the specifics once I know exactly what the additional cost will be and add more coverage. I can do this any time prior to the departure date. Don't know yet what the extra charge for more coverage will be. There are 5 plan IDs on the last page of the ABD insurance policy so if you need to make any changes to the coverage you have to call ABD and find out which specific plan ID applies to your itinerary. I'm glad this subject came up because I called right after I booked the trip and since there was no rush to add the extra coverage I forgot all about it. I guess I better call before I forget again.

 

[carpenta]

We are doing the Italy trip as well as Germany next year and have booked our airfare already. We take out insurance when we book. We booked through AAA and used a third party group for they were less expensive. We opted for cancelation insurance for any reason (which is more expensive) just for the fact that one never knows. We paid a couple hundred dollars less for airfare this time than last year but as noted the price is expensive and then it gets really expensive during the high tourist season. The price sometime rises when you fly into one city and return from another as some trips do. Keep an eye on price and some search engine companies you can sign up for E mail notice when the price drops to a certain level.

 

[sayhello]

I booked our flights for next July at the end of August, which seemed ridiculously early, but the price seemed reasonable to me and was much lower than ABD estimated that it would be. It's gone up a little since I booked. I booked far in advance for our ABD to Peru this year, as well, and the price never went down. But it's a gamble.

I purchased the ABD insurance for our trip next summer to Ireland. We're spending 5 days in Scotland before the tour starts. I spoke to the insurance company about adding additional coverage for the pre-tour days and they said I can call them with the specifics once I know exactly what the additional cost will be and add more coverage. I can do this any time prior to the departure date. Don't know yet what the extra charge for more coverage will be. There are 5 plan IDs on the last page of the ABD insurance policy so if you need to make any changes to the coverage you have to call ABD and find out which specific plan ID applies to your itinerary. I'm glad this subject came up because I called right after I booked the trip and since there was no rush to add the extra coverage I forgot all about it. I guess I better call before I forget again.

So you contacted Allianz directly, and they're going to let you add coverage to the ABD policy? What an amazing idea! I never would have thought of that. Thanks!

Note that if you bought the insurance within 14 days to get a pre-existing condition waiver, there's a possibility you might lose that waiver if you make changes to the policy more than 14 days after you actually bought the airfare. I'd ask Allianz about that first before making the change (unless you don't care about the waiver, or didn't buy in time to get it in the first case). I found out when ABD cancelled my trip and I switched to Alaska, and didn't let the insurance company know within 14 days. I fought with them and won, because when I called asking everything I needed to do, no-one mentioned that I needed to let them know within 14 days.

Just sayin'

Sayhello

 

[pihanettie]

To me picking flights is like a game. Prices can change day to day and intraday so I am someone who is at work and takes a quick break as a bit of relaxation to check prices whenever I feel I need a break. So maybe every couple of hours, but at least once in the morning and once in the afternoon. Then maybe once at night. When I find a deal I pounce. The last year or 2 I have noticed little fluctuation. I am not in the industry so it is just my HO but it seems a little like ABD, the price will start to go up once people start booking. Last spring break, the flights were 900 to Fort Lauderdale for a cruise but 1000 for first, so I booked first (just a hundred more) and was going to cancel and switch to economy once the price fell. I also counted the number of remaining seats in economy and daily made the count. The price for first went up 300-400 but economy stayed between 750-950. Never fell more than that and I kept watching the economy seats slowly fill. I booked already for Italy next June. Seat prices have already gone up, 14 seats sold since I booked. I don't think prices will go down, and especially since people are already booking, the prices will probably go up. I hope that is not the case.

 

[Bobo912]

So you contacted Allianz directly, and they're going to let you add coverage to the ABD policy? What an amazing idea! I never would have thought of that. Thanks!

Note that if you bought the insurance within 14 days to get a pre-existing condition waiver, there's a possibility you might lose that waiver if you make changes to the policy more than 14 days after you actually bought the airfare. I'd ask Allianz about that first before making the change (unless you don't care about the waiver, or didn't buy in time to get it in the first case). I found out when ABD cancelled my trip and I switched to Alaska, and didn't let the insurance company know within 14 days. I fought with them and won, because when I called asking everything I needed to do, no-one mentioned that I needed to let them know within 14 days.

Just sayin'

Sayhello

I can't take credit for the idea. ABD told me to call them directly and they didn't tell me my airfare to Edinburgh won't be covered, so thanks for that info. I'm not concerned about the pre-condition waiver, but I will ask when I speak to the Allianz rep again. She did specifically tell me I could change the coverage any time, so she should have let me know if I would lose the waiver, but, of course, people don't always do what they should.

 

[Marthasor]

This is such great information - thank you everyone!! We are going to Budapest after our ABD, so it sounds like going through insuremytrip may be the way to go as I need that last flight covered. I will investigate both ABD and insuremytrip options.

I feel like I should book airfare now!! We are just trying to figure out how many pre- and post-days we are doing. I don't want to book the airfare and then change it! I'm just wondering - do these look like reasonable prices? We are flying in to Prague and flying back from Budapest and I'm seeing $1327 roundtrip for economy and $3676 for first class.

Thank you so much!

 

[carpenta]

This is such great information - thank you everyone!! We are going to Budapest after our ABD, so it sounds like going through insuremytrip may be the way to go as I need that last flight covered. I will investigate both ABD and insuremytrip options.

I feel like I should book airfare now!! We are just trying to figure out how many pre- and post-days we are doing. I don't want to book the airfare and then change it! I'm just wondering - do these look like reasonable prices? We are flying in to Prague and flying back from Budapest and I'm seeing $1327 roundtrip for economy and $3676 for first class.

Thank you so much!

We flew last year on Luftansa (sp?) airlines for about the same economy price. Their economy is much better than the US carriers. More leg room, better food, free wine and beer with the meal (as much as you want), hot towels to wash your hands, and a German candy bar when you board. If I could afford I would LOVE to fly first class but that is a little out of our price range.spend a few days in Prague as well as Budapest for they are so rich in history and beauty. The people were quite welcoming IMO.

 

[sayhello]

I can't take credit for the idea. ABD told me to call them directly and they didn't tell me my airfare to Edinburgh won't be covered, so thanks for that info. I'm not concerned about the pre-condition waiver, but I will ask when I speak to the Allianz rep again. She did specifically tell me I could change the coverage any time, so she should have let me know if I would lose the waiver, but, of course, people don't always do what they should.

Interesting. No-one at ABD ever suggested I call the insurance directly. I'd ask ABD (and Allianz directly) about the airfare to Edinburgh. That's what I was told by ABD, *but* the policy itself says "Only expenses booked through Adventures by Disney Travel Services, Inc. will be covered, with the exception of airfare". I had one person tell me the "flying to the start city and from the end city", but another did not. I would think Allianz could tell us for sure one way or the other.

Sayhello

 

[Bobo912]

This is such great information - thank you everyone!! We are going to Budapest after our ABD, so it sounds like going through insuremytrip may be the way to go as I need that last flight covered. I will investigate both ABD and insuremytrip options.

I feel like I should book airfare now!! We are just trying to figure out how many pre- and post-days we are doing. I don't want to book the airfare and then change it! I'm just wondering - do these look like reasonable prices? We are flying in to Prague and flying back from Budapest and I'm seeing $1327 roundtrip for economy and $3676 for first class.

Thank you so much!

That looks like a decent price to me. Last year I paid around $1700 including the taxes for our flight from Nashville to Budapest and Munich to Nashville. Price would have been a bit less if flying from the east coast. I looked up the confirmation and I booked on Nov 23, 2011 for a departure date of July 5, 2012.

 

[Marthasor]

That looks like a decent price to me. Last year I paid around $1700 including the taxes for our flight from Nashville to Budapest and Munich to Nashville. Price would have been a bit less if flying from the east coast. I looked up the confirmation and I booked on Nov 23, 2011 for a departure date of July 5, 2012.

Thank you so much and thank you, carpenta, for the Lufthansa suggestion!! I really need to nail our pre- and post-dates down! I want to book! I am looking at Delta because they are the only ones that fly non-stop from the NYC area to Prague. I'll check out Lufthansa for the flight back if I don't take a hit in airfare by Delta for only booking a one-way. Thanks!

 

[pihanettie]

Thank you so much and thank you, carpenta, for the Lufthansa suggestion!! I really need to nail our pre- and post-dates down! I want to book! I am looking at Delta because they are the only ones that fly non-stop from the NYC area to Prague. I'll check out Lufthansa for the flight back if I don't take a hit in airfare by Delta for only booking a one-way. Thanks!

When I checked there was a huge hit for one-way, and that was for multiple airlines (don't remember if it was all or not but I think it was - that was an option I considered as well).
I agree, those airfares sound reasonable. I've done first, business and economy and those flat bed seats are heavenly. I try to fly with the flat beds to Europe since those flights are at night, return is during the day so premium economy is fine for me. But if you do that check the airlines because not all first or business are flat bed, some are angle-flat and you slip down. Some are just recliner. Also, look at the time of departure. Some you will be effectively sleeping for only a few (like 3) hours (not worth in flat bed price IMHO). Seat guru is a good place to check give you more details.
I am flying from Houston to Montreal (first class is already sold out for my flight in June), then Air Canada to Rome (first, flat bed). Return Venice to Houston through Frankfurt (Premium Economy). I purchased in August for 2500. Today I can't price out that exact route since the one segment is full but the cheapest is 3700. Economy back then was 1500. Today it is 100-300 higher. And like I said people have purchased tickets at those prices, so there is no incentive for the airlines to bring them down. Also, you also may want to book now because the good seats are going. The return flight from Frankfurt to Houston has 49 PE seats, 15 are gone (almost all of the paired window seats - the seats remaining are the seats in the middle in the 2-3-2 configuration). Plus if you want to get on the waiting list for the upgrade, the earlier the better, but usually no upgrades are available by the time the flights come around.

 

[Marthasor]

When I checked there was a huge hit for one-way, and that was for multiple airlines (don't remember if it was all or not but I think it was - that was an option I considered as well).
I agree, those airfares sound reasonable. I've done first, business and economy and those flat bed seats are heavenly. I try to fly with the flat beds to Europe since those flights are at night, return is during the day so premium economy is fine for me. But if you do that check the airlines because not all first or business are flat bed, some are angle-flat and you slip down. Some are just recliner. Also, look at the time of departure. Some you will be effectively sleeping for only a few (like 3) hours (not worth in flat bed price IMHO). Seat guru is a good place to check give you more details.
I am flying from Houston to Montreal (first class is already sold out for my flight in June), then Air Canada to Rome (first, flat bed). Return Venice to Houston through Frankfurt (Premium Economy). I purchased in August for 2500. Today I can't price out that exact route since the one segment is full but the cheapest is 3700. Economy back then was 1500. Today it is 100-300 higher. And like I said people have purchased tickets at those prices, so there is no incentive for the airlines to bring them down. Also, you also may want to book now because the good seats are going. The return flight from Frankfurt to Houston has 49 PE seats, 15 are gone (almost all of the paired window seats - the seats remaining are the seats in the middle in the 2-3-2 configuration). Plus if you want to get on the waiting list for the upgrade, the earlier the better, but usually no upgrades are available by the time the flights come around.

Holy Shlomoly! You are right - HUGE hit for a one-way. It's DOUBLE the price than a round-trip ticket. Ok, it's Delta all the way for us. Can't be that bad, right? (please say yes! We need at least one non-stop!).

I'll check the reclining vs. flat seat as well - thank you for the advice! I'm now just trying to figure out return times. We can get a flight out of Budapest at 10:10 am, but that will mean we have to rush our morning to get to the airport. OR we could fly out at 1 pm, but that means a longer layover and we won't arrive stateside until about 8 pm, which will be 2 am Budapest time, PLUS going through customs. Hmm - think I better do 10:10 am

 

[pihanettie]

Forgot to mention about insurance:
If you are a USAA member, go through them. Same policies as other sites but much cheaper. It was only 250 for our trip to Italy before airfare. Once I added the air and the cancel for any reason clause, it went up to 600.

 

[sayhello]

I can't take credit for the idea. ABD told me to call them directly and they didn't tell me my airfare to Edinburgh won't be covered, so thanks for that info. I'm not concerned about the pre-condition waiver, but I will ask when I speak to the Allianz rep again. She did specifically tell me I could change the coverage any time, so she should have let me know if I would lose the waiver, but, of course, people don't always do what they should.

Well, I just called Allianz, and got a completely different story. I was told that they could not tell me which parts (airfare, etc) were covered and which weren't, and that I could not make any changes to the policy anyways, since it's a special policy made just for Disney.

Well, poops. Let me know if you get your policy changed, and I'll call back... Or maybe I should just call back anyways, and see if the next person gives me a different answer.

Sayhello

 

[Bobo912]

I just spoke to both Allianz and ABD. I got somewhat conflicting stories, but I think in the end it's all good. From the very nice Allianz rep - there are no restrictions against changing travel dates or adding additional coverage. I'm sure I don't have all the details exactly right, but she said ABD doesn't send the policyholder information right away. They hold it and send it in a batch (I don't think that is the word she used, but it conveys the meaning, I think ) So Allianz can't modify the coverage. She said I would need to call Disney and have them modify it. Of course, ABD had already told me to call Allianz. So I called ABD again and spoke to a very pleasant and helpful vacationista, who told me that Allianz can change dates and add additional coverage. She said they have run into this issue before and if I needed to add more coverage and the Allianz rep claimed they couldn't do it, to call ABD and they have contacts at Allianz who can take care of it.

And here's the story from ABD on which flights are covered. If you have multiple flights under the same confirmation number they are covered. She also told me that the segment leaving the US is covered regardless of whether the final destination is the origin of the ABD. So in my case I am flying on Delta from Nashville to Edinburgh and from Shannon to Nashville and those flights are covered. I booked a separate flight with Aer Lingus (different confirmation number, obviously) from Edinburgh to Dublin (where the tour starts) and that isn't covered, which is okay with me because it was really cheap.

Clear as mud, right?

 

[sayhello]

I just spoke to both Allianz and ABD. I got somewhat conflicting stories, but I think in the end it's all good. From the very nice Allianz rep - there are no restrictions against changing travel dates or adding additional coverage. I'm sure I don't have all the details exactly right, but she said ABD doesn't send the policyholder information right away. They hold it and send it in a batch (I don't think that is the word she used, but it conveys the meaning, I think ) So Allianz can't modify the coverage. She said I would need to call Disney and have them modify it. Of course, ABD had already told me to call Allianz. So I called ABD again and spoke to a very pleasant and helpful vacationista, who told me that Allianz can change dates and add additional coverage. She said they have run into this issue before and if I needed to add more coverage and the Allianz rep claimed they couldn't do it, to call ABD and they have contacts at Allianz who can take care of it.

And here's the story from ABD on which flights are covered. If you have multiple flights under the same confirmation number they are covered. She also told me that the segment leaving the US is covered regardless of whether the final destination is the origin of the ABD. So in my case I am flying on Delta from Nashville to Edinburgh and from Shannon to Nashville and those flights are covered. I booked a separate flight with Aer Lingus (different confirmation number, obviously) from Edinburgh to Dublin (where the tour starts) and that isn't covered, which is okay with me because it was really cheap.

Clear as mud, right?

OK. Thanks! That actually does make sense. The fun part, I guess, will be finding someone at ABD who knows how to get the coverage changed. Thanks for finding this out! I'm *thinking* of flying in (and maybe out) of London, and taking the train to Edinburgh, but, like your flight, it's not that expensive, so I'm not so worried about it. But it's nice to know the US to Europe legs of the trip are covered!

Sayhello

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

We flew last year on Luftansa (sp?) airlines for about the same economy price. Their economy is much better than the US carriers. More leg room, better food, free wine and beer with the meal (as much as you want), hot towels to wash your hands, and a German candy bar when you board. If I could afford I would LOVE to fly first class but that is a little out of our price range.spend a few days in Prague as well as Budapest for they are so rich in history and beauty. The people were quite welcoming IMO.

The pitch (legroom) on Lufthansa's widebody jets is 31" on most planes, no more than most other carriers. I have flown them many, many times in economy and business class and the only thing better about them than US carriers is that occasionally, you get better food. United E+ seating is much more comfortable. Lufthansa's boarding process is a mob scene. Every time!