Flights via Cunard - or not!

[cruiseluvva]

We need to book one way flights to Singapore.

 

Booking direct Business flights from LHR to SIN via Singapore Air £2213pp. Cunard quoted us £2620pp for exactly the same flights, some airline, same time, I don’t mind them making a bit of a profit, but that’s far too much. And no transfers because we are booking our own hotel.

 

We’ll be booking direct needless to say!

[1980dory]

1 minute ago, cruiseluvva said:

We need to book one way flights to Singapore.

 

Booking direct Business flights from LHR to SIN via Singapore Air £2213pp. Cunard quoted us £2620pp for exactly the same flights, some airline, same time, I don’t mind them making a bit of a profit, but that’s far too much. And no transfers because we are booking our own hotel.

 

We’ll be booking direct needless to say!

Usually that's best.

[cruiseluvva]

23 minutes ago, 1980dory said:

Usually that's best.

We’ve had it work best when Cunard book, but not this time.

[RJChatsworth]

My wife & I have just had the same.  BA Bus Class flights from London to San Francisco and back from Vancouver - £5,140 via Cunard and £4,375 direct with BA on same flights.

 

We have booked with Cunard before as they seem to have had deals with the airlines.

 

I don't know what is happening now.

[cruiseluvva]

21 minutes ago, RJChatsworth said:

My wife & I have just had the same.  BA Bus Class flights from London to San Francisco and back from Vancouver - £5,140 via Cunard and £4,375 direct with BA on same flights.

 

We have booked with Cunard before as they seem to have had deals with the airlines.

 

I don't know what is happening now.

Disappointing that’s for sure.

[LadyL1]

We have had the same, with a single flight from Cape Town to LHR later this year. No transfers as taking an extended holiday in SA after disembarking QE. The upgrade cost was substantial with BA.

This is an “add-on” that has certainly increased in price over the years, from what used to be a very good deal when booking in the UK.

[MCC retired]

We booked a very reasonable $293  1 way fare from Tampa to London using Cunard for our 9/26/19 QM2

[megr1125]

It can work to your advantage.  My Premiun Economy PHL-DUB (a week before I sail) was approx $525.  To buy it from American directly would cost $3500+, so in my case, it worked out very well.

[Chelsea1]

I just booked London Heathrow to JFK business class upgrades for £940 oneway per person through Cunard. The cost of a oneway business ticket is £6,400ppn on American and BA! The cheapest business return was £3,600ppn and I would not be able to use the return leg, so the Cunard fare is a good deal. 

 

They also had oneway Delta Business First upgrade for £640.

 

The Cunard booking Agent was very helpful.

 

 

[Windsurfboy]

Think it all depends on route. 

 

BA is only airline that flies direct to London from capetown,   it's always full in business so they will charge a fortune. 

 

Multiple airlines fly to New York,  so Cunard can get a deal

[Pegase90]

Well . . . we've recently booked for Alaska out of Vancouver, and Cunard quoted flights as follows:

 

£1000 per person economy return from LHR.  Business class upgrades were quoted at the full airline fare PLUS the £1000 economy fare. 

 

When I queried this, Cunard said it was to cover the cost of the airport transfer!    

[Chelsea1]

The prices for the October flights I booked yesterday have gone down substantially (over 50%) since I first enquired a couple of months ago, and there are no current sales for these dates.

 

It probably is worth checking more than once.

[RJChatsworth]

There seems to be a certain misunderstanding by some on this thread about the distinction between booking return flights or booking one way.

 

Cunard,  in my experience, will always be better price wise with one way fares as they have done deals with the major airlines for one way fares.  The major airlines do not normally offer one way intercontinental fares.  They make you pay almost the cost of a return if you want a one way flight.

 

Therefore there is no point in giving examples of one way flights as Cunard will always be best.  My point is I am sure Cunard were much more competitive with return flights than they seem to be now.

 

Can anyone please point me at any intercontinental carriers who offer a genuine one way fare that is half a return fare?

[Chelsea1]

The original post was regarding the cost of a one way flight on Singapore Airlines from LHR to Singapore, where Cunard did not come up with the better price. 

 

The Singapore Airlines price quoted actually looked very reasonable to me as normaly they are very high for oneway intercontinental flights, particularly to Singapore which is a premium route.

 

I think Norweigan offer genuine oneway non-stop transantlantic fares - but they considered a low cost carrier.

[cruiseluvva]

21 minutes ago, Chelsea1 said:

The original post was regarding the cost of a one way flight on Singapore Airlines from LHR to Singapore, where Cunard did not come up with the better price. 

 

The Singapore Airlines price quoted actually looked very reasonable to me as normaly they are very high for oneway intercontinental flights, particularly to Singapore which is a premium route.

 

I think Norweigan offer genuine oneway non-stop transantlantic fares - but they considered a low cost carrier.

Yes I think the airline price is very good, although one way flights to Asia are always priced much better than one way flights to the USA. I fully expected Cunard to add a little to the price for providing the flights, but £800 seems excessive.

 

So for us, it’s much better to book direct with the airline.

[Chelsea1]

That is interesting to know about the Asia flights - we have only done cruises within Asia so normally fly into/ out of Hong Kong and Singapore, with return flights. I just assumed one way would be very expensive.

 

Good to know for the future as I would love to fly out to Singapore (on Singapore Airlines) and cruise home, time permitting in the future!

[cruiseluvva]

We've done that and from HKG, this time our flight home from HKG is on miles.

[Fairgarth]

3 hours ago, RJChatsworth said:

Can anyone please point me at any intercontinental carriers who offer a genuine one way fare that is half a return fare?

 

Sorry, not intercontinental, but trans-Atlantic I believe would include Aer Lingus, TAP, Turkish, Icelandair and Norwegian (who, according to rumour, may be on the brink of going bust).  Could be others.  Air Transat?

[Scotraveller]

I usually book my own flights, but the deal on T/A including flights out to NYC is very good but my question is, do they give options on airlines? I have Gold status with BA and would get to use lounge etc etc and am happy to travel economy this once out to New York due to short flight etc. I wouldn't use Cunard's fares if they weren't with BA so is it a risk to just include flights with them? My flight for next October are obviously not on sale yet - hence the question about including the flight now and not knowing flight details.

[newjoisey]

We have used cunard air once,yes it was more expensive,but no hassles or drama. I would use them again regardless of price . 

[Windsurfboy]

If you are flying out the same day use Cunard for security. 

 

Avios can be a good way of "buying" a one-way fare if you can get two tickets. But only value for money in Business.  

[cruiseluvva]

1 hour ago, Windsurfboy said:

If you are flying out the same day use Cunard for security. 

 

Avios can be a good way of "buying" a one-way fare if you can get two tickets. But only value for money in Business.  

We’d never ever fly the same day. But in this case, we are staying in Singapore for  several days prior to embarkation, meeting up with our son and his partner who live in KL. Eventually, we decided on Qatar flights, because while a little more expensive, are absolutely our favourite.

 

We’d not choose BA, particularly in Business, at least not until they roll out their new seating. Hate their Business cabin.

Edited August 28, 2019 by cruiseluvva

[3rdGenCunarder]

9 hours ago, Scotraveller said:

I usually book my own flights, but the deal on T/A including flights out to NYC is very good but my question is, do they give options on airlines? I have Gold status with BA and would get to use lounge etc etc and am happy to travel economy this once out to New York due to short flight etc. I wouldn't use Cunard's fares if they weren't with BA so is it a risk to just include flights with them? My flight for next October are obviously not on sale yet - hence the question about including the flight now and not knowing flight details.

 

You can choose your airline and day/time of travel. But it has to be an airline with which Cunard does business. It's called a "deviation" and you're allowed one, meaning whatever you want, ask for it all at one time. (This is the rule for US booking. It may be different in other countries)

 

I'm in the process of finding a flight to London, and the one-way fares are more than a round-trip (return). I think NY-London Cunard uses Virgin Atlantic. 

 

[Scotraveller]

Thank you. Since I'm at it and a T/A virgin, can someone tell me if I use the Cunard flights they fly over to New York on the same day as the sailing? It's not very clear and I would have expected the flights to be the day prior due to any delays etc. As others have said, one-way flights really are expensive and even using Avios it is not particularly cost-effective compared to the Cunard fare so looks like I will just take their package.

[Windsurfboy]

Some airlines let you mix your class of travel, so a business class fare on the way out and an economy on the way back is cheaper than a single business class which is always on the most expensive basis.. It may be cheaper than cunard fare. If you are sailing from home then just book flight in opposite direction.

 

You can then not use return.  The airlines frown upon this,  so don't do it to often.

 

If you use Cunard you can choose to fly as early as you wish, up to 3 months