Opinions wanted...

[mumzie2three]

I need a one-way flight from Tampa to Boston (or NH or RI) around April 20th (give or take a day). Right now Airtran has the best price at $104 non-refundable. Should I take it or should I wait for Southwest's April fares to come out? I don't fly often enough to know what to expect in the way of deals or average pricing between companies. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[debster812]

That's the Friday of April School Vacation here in MA, when people are starting to head home. It's liable to be tough to get a 'great' bargain around then. Personally, I would book the $104 on AirTran and be done with it, but that's just personal preference.

That being said, keep an eye on www.kayak.com and run a search every day. Thanks to a fellow DISer, last year for April vacation, DS and I flew BOS-RSW (Ft Myers) for $84 each way.

 

[mumzie2three]

The biggest reason I'm hesitating is that the Airtran isn't non-stop. Otherwise I would probably jump on it. I'm sort of hoping that flying out of Tampa I might get a better price than flying out of Orlando.
I know what you mean about checking every day. My hotel price dropped $50.00 per day! And I found a rental car for a hundred less just by checking everyday. My husband thinks I'm nuts/obsessed.

 

[salmoneous]

SW may be cheaper, it may not. You can never tell for sure. Personally, anytime a flight is under <$200 R/T ($100 O/W) I stop looking and lock in that rate. $104 is close enough that I would normally say go ahead and take it. However, I just saw your post that the Airtran isn't non-stop. That's a whole nother ball game. It's almost always worth waiting for a non-stop flight. Hold out for SW, and cross your fingers over the price.

 

[ro80]

did you check Spirit or Jet Blue ???

 

[HeatherC]

I also say take it....even if SW is cheaper, it will probably only be by about $20. If you only need one ticket, that's not that much. But if you really want a non-stop, hang in there and hope for the best. My guess is that it will go higher for that weekend since most of the NE schools are on vacation then.

HeatherC

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

If you must buy your ticket so early (I wouldn't), $104 isn't too bad. Keep in mind that SWA doesn't fly to Boston, so if you took them, you'd have the added expense of transportation from New Hampshire or Rhode Island to get to the city.

 

[Lewisc]

What airport do you want to fly into? If you prefer BOS then I'd book airtran now.

If one of the SW airports is the same or better I'd wait. You're flexible give or take a day. I'd think you'd be able to book a N/S flight for $100 or less.

 

[mumzie2three]

I actually have 4 tickets to get. And I'm getting more flexible all the time.
Sat and Sun seem to be the most expensive so now I'm even looking at postponing coming home until Mon the 23rd. I'm also open to driving back to Orlando (that's where we are starting our vacation).
As for which airport? Last time we flew out of Boston we had a friend drop us off. We have relatives in NH so getting a ride home from there isn't too big a deal. RI might be a little trickier.
Normally I don't have this issue because I ignore the school vacations, but I thought this year I would try to go with the flow.

 

[Donald is #1]

I actually have 4 tickets to get. And I'm getting more flexible all the time.
Sat and Sun seem to be the most expensive so now I'm even looking at postponing coming home until Mon the 23rd. I'm also open to driving back to Orlando (that's where we are starting our vacation).
As for which airport? Last time we flew out of Boston we had a friend drop us off. We have relatives in NH so getting a ride home from there isn't too big a deal. RI might be a little trickier.
Normally I don't have this issue because I ignore the school vacations, but I thought this year I would try to go with the flow.

I wouldn't be concerned about getting home from either NH or RI. The long term parking rates at both airports are very affordable (NH is just $8/day). So you can easily leave your car at the airport. I have left my car at Manchester many times (& RI once) without any problems.

 

[canwegosoon]

If you can handle the waiting game...I would wait for SWA and Pray for a DING. I do remember last year there were Dings and sales available. Plus what will it cost you to get from Tampa to Orlando?

 

[mumzie2three]

Ok, here's the whole story.....This past May we went to Disney for 10 days during which we celebrated my DD's 18th birthday. My IL's (2nd marriage) live in Clearwater so my DH and the 2 little ones went to spend a night at the IL's, while me and DD went to Downtown Disney. etc. The IL's weren't very happy with the time that my DH spent with them and the fact that I opted out of the visit.
So I'm planning to visit them over the April 2007 vacation BUT I still want to do things that will be fun for me and the kids (no teen this time). So the original plan was to fly to Orlando first and see US/IOA for a few days and then (in a rental car) drive to Tampa to stay with the ILs and fly home from there.
But then I come here and start reading the boards and now I'm thinking about adding a little R&R to the end of the trip. So if I find a better fare/non-stop flight from Orlando I will drive back there and spend a few more days at the Nick Hotel.
I think I'm going to take a chance and wait for SWA to come out with their fares, unless I get lucky prior to Dec.