When to book flight to Europe?

[mtebor]

Basel to Amsterdam in June booked and paid!

 

Now for the last part, booking flights. We will be flying into Munich 10 days early and will also visit Zurich before the cruise.

 

Currently airfare is running about $800pp and I was wondering if airlines run deals around Christmas time? I was hoping for a Black Friday sale, but didn't see anything. Maybe there is a cheaper airport to fly into instead of Munich but must leave out of Amsterdam.

 

I was told the best deals are about 4 months out which means February but I am the type of person that books everything far out and don't want to get caught if that isn't the case.

 

Thanks for the help

[jpalbny]

We fly to Europe for vacation as often as we can and the answer to your question, from our experience, is that it varies. If somebody could tell you exactly when the cheapest airfare is, why would anybody pay more than that? Airline pricing is a mystery and the best answer that I can give you is to search around, and when you see a fare that you're happy with, book it. Then don't look back. Summer is popular so you may not find a better deal, or you may get lucky.

 

Definitely search other airports if they can work for you. Try airports where you could take a train to your final destination (we often fly to Frankfurt and take a train but Munich would be a little far for that). Did you check Zurich?

[ewizabeff]

In my experience, the great deals for Europe (about $400-$500 pp in economy) are roundtrip fares. You're looking to book a multi-city itinerary. For that, $800 sounds like a good price to me.

 

I generally find deals by following The Flight Deal - it's a great resource if you live near one of the cities they routinely cover.

[6rugrats]

You want to travel during June, which is a very popular travel month to Europe. I don't usually see fare sales for summer travel.

I think that price, if it's round-trip, is pretty good. Although often recommended, I've often found train travel in Europe to be more expensive and time consuming than just flying directly to where you want to go.

[mtebor]

Thanks everyone!