Help please with airline ticket game!

[UMTerp]

Thanks for any and all help in advance!

Could anyone shed some light on how far in advance I need to start checking for airline tickets? It seems that some open up dates 330 days in advance or something like that and some others open up later. I will need to purchase two one-way tickets for everyone in my family for the DCL repo cruise next August. I really don't know where/when to start looking.

We will be flying out of the Washington, DC area to LA area and from Orlando area back to Washington, DC area two weeks later (if that makes a difference).

Thank you!

UMTerp

 

[Dizzyworld]

I don't know is this info will help....this year Southwest opened up the dates in August near the end of March. You could buy one way tickets only for the same price as if you were buying a round trip. At different times over the last few months, the price has dropped too. Depending on which catcgory the tickets were bought, I was either refunded to my credit card some of the money. Other catagories, gave me a credit with Southwest that I can use it or loose it by the date the tickets were originally bought (March). Sales are usually Tues. to Thursday. Have fun.

 

[Jestocost]

Unless you're using frequent flier miles or are afraid flights will sell out, I'd suggest not rushing to book at the 330 day mark. Over time, there are bound to be sales and at some point well after that (possibly March, as Dizzy indicated) SWA will release schedules and fares from BWI. That tends to push the price down across the board. More important in your case, SWA often is the best bet for someone not booking round trip tickets. The major airlines are likely to slaughter your budget with their one-way prices. I'm not sure what other low-fare carriers serve LA and/or MCO out of the three DC-area airports, but you'd be wise to check those out too. I'm talking JetBlue, AirTran, Song, etc. I think there's a new carrier out of DCA too, but I'm blanking on the name.

SWA actually flies a couple of non-stops per day from BWI to LAX. They also fly to Orange County, and there are direct flights, but no non-stop flights.

 

[NotUrsula]

You also should be able to fly JetBlue with that itinerary. They fly into Long Beach, which would be perfect if Dulles is OK for you.

Long Beach is a tiny, easy little airport, and it is almost right across the street from the cruise ship terminal. Remember to figure in the cost of ground transport from LAX to Long Beach when you are pricing; even if JB is a little more, it might work out cheaper.

 

[pumpkinboy]

Originally posted by UMTerp
...We will be flying out of the Washington, DC area to LA area and from Orlando area back to Washington, DC area two weeks later (if that makes a difference)...

Wow!, sounds like a great trip. As NotUrsula notes, JetBlue flies directly from Dulles to Long Beach, right near the terminal. Here is the JetBlue Link.

Now the return from Orlando is tougher bcs JetBlue is not yet flying MCO to IAD, but might start at some point. United's low fare carrier TED might do the trick, but I have found their site hard to use and their prices higher than others. I notice that AirTran flies non-stop MC to IAD and this fall I'm getting one-way fares around $90, so that is also do-able. The nice thing about the low cost carriers is that they generaly price tix one-way, which is what yo're looking for anyway.

Good luck!

 

[UMTerp]

Thank you so much for your help everyone! It looks like I can afford to wait until about March timeframe! I will check all of your suggested options at that point!

I really appreciate your responses!

Thanks,

UMTerp