Business Class Airfare tips and tricks?

[bigreader]

I’m the original poster. I’ll add one suggestion that I’ve looked at several times, but never implemented yet.

Iceland Air flies from a few North American airports to Europe. Most (all?) of their itineraries stop in Reykjavik, Iceland on the way over the Atlantic. This makes for a more pleasant Atlantic crossing by breaking it up into 2 segments (I.e. less continuous time crammed into a seat on a plane). They will even let you spend multiple days in Iceland before continuing on to mainland Europe.

With Iceland on my list of desired travels, One of these days I may take advantage of this allowable multi day layover on my way to Europe.

Without Iceland, I usually start my itinerary research with flights into Dublin, which is about the closest city you can get to from northeast USA. Then from Dublin, I look for a lower cost airline on to my final destination on the continent. I’ve done this twice so far. One time I spent a night in Dublin and once I just laid over for a couple hours. This approach also usually costs me less frequent flier miles that a direct flight all the way into the continent somewhere.

Stop in Iceland, for sure. It's unique.

I use a variation of your strategy and it works. I fly from the US West to NYC either in coach or with miles and then take business class to Europe. As with you, I occasionally need to plan an overnight in NYC.

As others have mentioned, I use Google Flights and the FlyerTalk site has good leads on low fares. I have also had good luck with a site called FareBoom. I have purchased a number of lower cost business class tickets from them and all was legit.

BR

 

[NW-Bound]

We are not big and tall people, and don't need more space than a coach seat, as long as the next passenger does not infringe on our space. However, for a long flight, if I could recline the seat further so I could sleep, that would help a lot.

My wife and I have made an agreement that we will only fly business class from now on. I have been doing only one long foreign trip of 6 to 8 weeks each year, so the additional airfare cost will not be too bad.

 

[RunningBum]

I LOVE Iceland- have been there twice and it's a easy flight form Boston. One caveat- the airport is actually Keflavik and it's a bit of a haul into the city, but they have decent bus service.

It's a bit of a haul anywhere. Given limited time, I'd rent a car and do the Golden loop, skipping the city. Nothing wrong with the city, but I enjoyed seeing the land a lot more. Though you can do that by bus or van too.

 

[Freedom56]

Here are some great deals:

You can now fly from LAX to GVA or BCN (and many other cities) for $1535 return on Swiss and Lufthansa Business Class. Departures from other cities are also available. The lowest price we ever paid for that route on those airlines was $3750 many years ago. That fare starts mid August 2021 and goes all the way out to March of 2022. If they offer those fares for May-June of 2022, I will pull the trigger and buy them. I figure by May-June next year, the variants will have run its course through the anti-vaxxer communities.

 

[PaunchyPirate]

Here are some great deals:

You can now fly from LAX to GVA or BCN (and many other cities) for $1535 return on Swiss and Lufthansa Business Class. Departures from other cities are also available. The lowest price we ever paid for that route on those airlines was $3750 many years ago. That fare starts mid August 2021 and goes all the way out to March of 2022. If they offer those fares for May-June of 2022, I will pull the trigger and buy them. I figure by May-June next year, the variants will have run its course through the anti-vaxxer communities.

I will keep an eye on this looking for similar for east coast departures.

While I was playing around with Lufthansa’s website, I did a test booking for Newark to Zurich. I found a nonstop round trip for $2950. It is for United flights booked as Lufthansa flights. Out of curiosity, I decided to see how much United was selling the same flights for. United wants $3700 for the same flights. Both options are Business Class.

Is this common? Airline partners selling flights for less than the flights’ actual operator? If so why do they do it?

 

[NW-Bound]

Airfare pricing is a mystery to me. The last time we went to Europe, I saw that the airfare LAX to BCN was less than LAX to CDG, yet the LAX-BCN flight had a stopover in CDG.

However, if you want to fly LAX-CDG but book the lower-fare LAX-BCN and walk off at CDG, the airline will raise a ruckus and cause you trouble.

 

[Freedom56]

I will keep an eye on this looking for similar for east coast departures.

While I was playing around with Lufthansa’s website, I did a test booking for Newark to Zurich. I found a nonstop round trip for $2950. It is for United flights booked as Lufthansa flights. Out of curiosity, I decided to see how much United was selling the same flights for. United wants $3700 for the same flights. Both options are Business Class.

Is this common? Airline partners selling flights for less than the flights’ actual operator? If so why do they do it?

Where are you looking? I get $1525 return business class from EWR to GVA on United and Swiss. You can book directly with United. It's $1824 from EWR to ZRH.

This is an example:

https://www.united.com/ual/en/us/fl...-9140-42ff-99d7-1dfb5eab86dd&vendorQuery=True


https://www.google.com/travel/fligh...vTENKdXhDUkFDR2dOVlUwUTRISENic1FrPRIGCAEQABgA

 

[Freedom56]

Airfare pricing is a mystery to me. The last time we went to Europe, I saw that the airfare LAX to BCN was less than LAX to CDG, yet the LAX-BCN flight had a stopover in CDG.

However, if you want to fly LAX-CDG but book the lower-fare LAX-BCN and walk off at CDG, the airline will raise a ruckus and cause you trouble.

That is pretty common. LAX to ZRH is more expensive than LAX to GVA with a stop-over in ZRH. LAX to LHR is more expensive than LAX to GVA with a stop-over in LHR. Airlines have pretty silly fare structures.

 

[DrRoy]

We are OK with coach for the most part, but if we have an overnight flight, we have started buying 1st class or business to make it more comfortable to sleep.

 

[Freedom56]

The $1535 deal is gone but British Airways has flights from LAX to GVA and many other cities in Western Europe for $1961 (return) on business class (A380 and B777) all the way out to early June 2022. COVID appears to take a seasonal downturn during the May/June Period and we should have the spread under control by next May/June. I'm going to keep monitoring prices. As long as people get spooked by the Delta Variant, they will hesitate before booking international flights way into the future which will put pressure on prices.

 

[Sunset]

T.... As long as people get spooked by the Delta Variant, they will hesitate before booking international flights way into the future which will put pressure on prices.

I'm spooked about the D-V , even for a TA cruise, as the big issue is a country could close to visitors.

I might wait until after the summer to book, and see how the D-V is doing even here, Europe and UK.

 

[sengsational]

I’m not sure if anybody else suggested this, but doing the transatlantic cruise one way, and flying first class/business class the other way, AND buying your air tickets through the cruise line.

We have cruised several times in Europe, and we’ve always bought our business class tickets through the cruise lines. They often have ridiculously reasonable airfares for overseas flights. They can be more than 50% lower than the publish fares based on their contract. And depending on the cruise line, you don’t have to pay for the flight until you pay your final payment on the cruise. We have twice cruised across and flown back….and it’s been wonderful. Cunard and Viking got us very good fares.

That's a great idea! I had noticed, a time or two, that the price-bump for adding business class air to the cruise price was cheap, but that idea fell out of my head. I need to keep that in mind.

That is pretty common. LAX to ZRH is more expensive than LAX to GVA with a stop-over in ZRH. LAX to LHR is more expensive than LAX to GVA with a stop-over in LHR. Airlines have pretty silly fare structures.

Skiplagged is a site that will give you the option to walk-off (hidden city). You can't really use the technique for the first part of a round-trip, but there's not much they can do if you "miss the last leg" on any single ticket. I don't see a way to specify business class, though.

 

[FIREarly]

I found that flying across the pond, business or first, from Toronto was way cheaper.

Are US Citizens allowed in Canada again?
Thought we were not currently allowed due to COVID rules.

 

[Koogie]

Are US Citizens allowed in Canada again?
Thought we were not currently allowed due to COVID rules.

We're probably letting in fully vaccinated Yanquis by the middle of next month.

Unless the gubmint changes their mind.

Which, you know....

 

[Old Microbiologist]

We switched to flying only BUsiness class and don't bother dealing with points etc. I use Matrix to search for flights and fares and work from there.Matrix - ITA Software by Google It lists the actual costs for each flight and you can hammer together something useful and then book it either by phone with the airlines quoting the flight numbers or try and find it using Expedia or similar. I prefer to use the airlines directly as you get a better fare base class for refunds should something go wrong. Expedia or similar is really just an intermediate fare booking agency and tack on a fee for something you can do yourself. They also use fare classes that don't refund or are very difficult to get a refund. Generally, when booking business class you do get better service. I don't care at all about the food as I am practicing the one meal a day (OMAD) Keto diet (not my wife though). I don't break my diet even when traveling. But, the bed is a must for us. We can generally expect to get fares around $2500 for long flights. Anything shorter than 2 hours I just go cheapo as in Europe where we live Business class for short-haul flights is the same compartment just 2 people per 3 people seating. That is unless we need the extra baggage weight (3 bags) then we opt for Business. My wife is a professional photographer and carries a large amount of equipment and sometimes I am also carrying my large drone all of which is problematic but you get a lot of allowances (and far less hassle) flying business class. You also get preferential treatment at the security.

 

[Unpaintedhuffhines]

That's a great idea! I had noticed, a time or two, that the price-bump for adding business class air to the cruise price was cheap, but that idea fell out of my head. I need to keep that in mind.

Skiplagged is a site that will give you the option to walk-off (hidden city). You can't really use the technique for the first part of a round-trip, but there's not much they can do if you "miss the last leg" on any single ticket. I don't see a way to specify business class, though.

While not illegal, skiplagging is against air carrier rules (at least in the US). Probably no big deal if you do it once or twice, but I’d be afraid if I did it regularly that they might catch on. And as noted, they will cancel any remaining portion of your ticket.

 

[athena53]

You also get preferential treatment at the security.

And some airports such as Heathrow have preferred queues for Immigration that Business Class passengers may use. Those shorter lines have saved my rear end a few times when I was in danger of missing a connection. I even pointed out that option to a couple of travelers in an O'Hare TSA line who were rushing to make a flight- I asked if they were flying Business and they were, but didn't know they could use the shorter line.

 

[bevette]

I recently learned an awesome technique for discounted business class airfare. This works for coach pricing as well. I’ve only confirmed it works on Expedia so feel free to try on Orbitz, etc. Start with a private/incognito browser window. Then open Expedia and price your preferred business class round trip flight. This will give you the baseline fare you want to beat. Next, switch over to the package deals section and price the exact same itinerary with a hotel bundled in. The package deal price for the exact same business class flight plus a hotel is cheaper than the standalone business class flight. You can bring the price down even further by adjusting the dates of the hotel stay (which you won’t use anyway - you’ll just select the least expensive hotel option). Change the hotel date range to just a one night stay. This will not affect your flight dates. Sort the results in descending order and you’ll see yet another price drop.

I’ve not tried this for international itineraries, but it’s completely reliable for domestic.

 

[sengsational]

While not illegal, skiplagging is against air carrier rules (at least in the US). Probably no big deal if you do it once or twice, but I’d be afraid if I did it regularly that they might catch on. And as noted, they will cancel any remaining portion of your ticket.

They can have all the rules they want You give them too much credit. Detecting the activity would require database flags and such. Then what would they do? Refuse to take your money? If they sold you a ticket and refused to let you board, they'd be in big trouble. Maybe they'd confiscate your airline miles. I don't have any to confiscate. Maybe they'd just refuse to take my money next time. Ho-hum. Their pricing is inane and I'm going to take advantage of it if the opportunity arises.

 

[athena53]

They can have all the rules they want You give them too much credit. Detecting the activity would require database flags and such. Then what would they do?

There have been some well-publicized cases, typically resulting in confiscated FF miles and/or demands for the price you should have paid according to their warped rules, but as Unpiantedhuffhines noted, they're unlikely to detect one or two infractions. The publicized cases have been a pattern of repeated activity.

 

[NW-Bound]

I just don't get the reason for airlines to price flights with layover the way they do.

Surely, there has to be an economic reason that makes sense to them for doing so, but what is it?

 

[SecondCor521]

I just don't get the reason for airlines to price flights with layover the way they do.

Surely, there has to be an economic reason that makes sense to them for doing so, but what is it?

I think generally it has to do with two things:

1. The degree of competition at the relevant airports (the intermediate and the final airport).

2. Other factors, such as whether the intermediate airport is a hub, enabling larger objectives for the airline in question.

I don't think I could explain it any further though, so please don't ask!

 

[SecondCor521]

They can have all the rules they want You give them too much credit. Detecting the activity would require database flags and such. Then what would they do? Refuse to take your money? If they sold you a ticket and refused to let you board, they'd be in big trouble. Maybe they'd confiscate your airline miles. I don't have any to confiscate. Maybe they'd just refuse to take my money next time. Ho-hum. Their pricing is inane and I'm going to take advantage of it if the opportunity arises.

I think they can blacklist you. They certainly have that right in the US; maybe not the EU.

I personally don't take the risk, because I plan to fly for a long time and burning bridges with the major airlines might result in me having limited choices later on if I burn more than one bridge. I already have limited choices given where I live (near a regional airport with only a few major airlines servicing us).

But I can understand and appreciate those who do, especially if it's on an airline you don't intend to fly regularly and the savings are great.

 

[NW-Bound]

I think generally it has to do with two things:

1. The degree of competition at the relevant airports (the intermediate and the final airport).

2. Other factors, such as whether the intermediate airport is a hub, enabling larger objectives for the airline in question.

I don't think I could explain it any further though, so please don't ask!

A real life example:

1) Airfare from A to B (layover), then to C is $2100

2) Airfare from A to B is $3200, same airline, same flight leg as 1), same flight, same day

The cost to the passenger for the leg B-C is -$900. A negative cost! They lost money carrying passengers for the 2nd leg. How does it compute?

PS. If you booked the flight A-B-C, then walked off at B, they would cancel your return flight. On the Web, they say that if you booked the return trip separately, you would be safe. If I do this, I would use another airline for the return trip to be safe. Maybe with luck, I could find a cheaper airfare for B-A-D, which was cheaper than B-A?

Lots of game playing.

 

[PaunchyPirate]

A real life example:

1) Airfare from A to B (layover), then to C is $2100

2) Airfare from A to B is $3200, same airline, same flight leg as 1), same flight, same day

The cost to the passenger for the leg B-C is -$900. A negative cost! They lost money carrying passengers for the 2nd leg. How does it compute?

One reason it may possibly compute is because Airline #2 offers a direct flight from A to C for $2100. Or Airline #2 has flights from A to D to C for $2100. And no other airline offers a competing flight from A to B.