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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to think that £744 for a flight to Boston is a complete and utter rip-off?

28 replies

wiggletastic · 26/05/2009 19:25

Totally shocked at finding this was the cheapest for one adult to fly to Boston in July. In economy! For two of us plus one small DD it would be over £1600!!! We are now not going and I am well pissed off.

I know the pound is crap against the dollar just now, but when I looked at the same flight last year, for May this year, it was only £260 each. How can it have gone up nearly 300%?

Grumble, grumble, grumble.....

OP posts:
totalmisfit · 26/05/2009 19:43

god that's awful - it's really not that far.

you would have thought they'd be slashing their fayres at the moment...

oldraver · 26/05/2009 19:44

My folks have just booked for us to go to Florida in January and the the fuel surcharge was HALF the fare again

thisisyesterday · 26/05/2009 19:44

because it's school holidays I presume?

icedgemsrock · 26/05/2009 19:48

have you tried martin lewis' site? I saw a programme about it and if you are flexible about when you can travel you may well get it cheaper. You may not though but worth a try. There will be info on his site.
Good luck hope you get to go to Boston it's a fabulous place.

CMOTdibbler · 26/05/2009 19:54

It's because you were looking further in advance before, and it was out of peak. The way air fares generally work is that there are a certain number of seats at a low price, then another block at another, and so on. They also cut off at certain times before the flight - so at 3 months, 2 months, 21 days, 14 days the prices go up.

BA is showing 544 on their online, and you may well be able to get it cheaper by doing a car or hotel package. When I went to Boston in November, I saved 200 quid by booking (but not using) car hire with my flights

Original poster
wiggletastic · 26/05/2009 19:55

I will try the Martin Lewis site, thanks for the tip. I guess school holiday time might have something to do with it as well as the pound/dollar ratio.

Our friends have moved to Boston and have just sorted out a rented house so have asked us to visit. We haven't seen them since last summer because they have been living in Switzerland, and they now have a new baby that we have not seen and they have not seen our DD. I was really looking forward to going but we just can't afford that much money. Its very disappointing.

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gerontius · 26/05/2009 20:58

If you look on skyscanner.net, it's cheaper (although I don't know exactly when you were planning to go, I looked for the whole of July). It gave me £423 direct and £313 indirect per person.

Original poster
wiggletastic · 26/05/2009 21:04

Wow, thats good gerontius. I tried Travelocity and got £580 so that is much better. I forgot to mention, we are flying from Glasgow, so will have to go via London, Amsterdam or Dublin, which makes it more expensive too.

Was that with BA you got the package CMOTdibbler? I tried just flights with them and it was nearly £800 each.

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elkiedee · 26/05/2009 22:06

It sounds awful and very disappointing, and I can understand you can't afford it.

The exchange rate is worse.
You're travelling in July not May.
You were hoping to book much closer to the date you would have travelled.

All of those things make a huge difference to the price.

elkiedee · 26/05/2009 22:34

Hope you manage to find something

glastocat · 26/05/2009 22:40

I sympathise. Two years go I had to pay £1600 for four returns from Cork-Paris.( Its only a 90 minute flight, but Aerlingus have a monopoly on the route so I had to pay. Thats why I don't mind Ryanair, at least they're honest about shafting you.

YanknCock · 26/05/2009 22:45

kayak.co.uk is good too (recommended on money saving expert)

MichKit · 26/05/2009 22:48

YANBU... DD, DH and I are planning a trip to Canada. The price of one flight to Vancouver is now £965 with BA It'll have to be one of us not going, as we just can't afford that much. Plus, we have to pay more to get to where DH's parents' place!

SomeGuy · 26/05/2009 23:59

It's not unusual TBH. Supply and demand. July is absolutely the worst month to fly for many places. Sometimes August.

Prices can get even higher though, so beware, don't leave it.

Original poster
wiggletastic · 27/05/2009 10:26

glastocat and MichKit - that is shocking . Could you go to Canada with one of the cheaper airlines MitchKit - Zoom for example?

Thanks for the advice and sympathy guys. We are now thinking about going in September instead but it is still £380 each and we have to go via Amsterdam. Do you think we could ask our friends to move back to Switzerland? It was lovely there.

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MichKit · 27/05/2009 10:43

Sadly no, wiggletastic. Zoom went out of business last September, and the only other cheap airline doesn't operate in the summer (??) Air Canada has a monopoly on most of the in-Canadian routes so they are a profiteering racket for sure! We can't go at any other time, as DH starts teaching in September and we only get July and August off. Both peak times

Good luck on your Boston trip, hope you get a good deal!

scienceteacher · 27/05/2009 10:45

Are you sure you can't find cheaper?

We flew to Boston in July 2 years ago and it was about £3500 for our family of seven. We are going to Toronto this summer and it is just under £4000.

After a sharp intake of breath and cursing the world economy, I reckoned that this year's prices aren't that bad - Toronto is further than Boston and another of our DCs counts as an adult and it is two years further on.

Original poster
wiggletastic · 27/05/2009 11:20

I checked Globespan for you MichKit and they are cheaper ( but not cheap! - £648 from London to Vancouver) but the July flights are all sold out.

I have now found a flight through www.kayak.co.uk to Boston in September for £312 so that could be the one. The Kayak site is good, it shows you the cheapest flights for any month so if your dates are flexible you could save quite a lot. Thanks for the tip Yankncock!

OP posts:
Phoenix4725 · 27/05/2009 11:42

its not just the flights i find its the airport taxes that bump flights up ,for me to fly to chcargo with dc and see bfits costing morein taxes than flights

YanknCock · 27/05/2009 11:45

Oh god, do NOT take Globespan anywhere! They are vile!!!

MichKit · 27/05/2009 12:45

I am going to look at Kayak now. I tried Globespan too, but they were all sold out. Plus the ILs took a flight here with them last year and they said it was not that good, particularly the service, and the seat room was nowhere near enough. It doesn't really matter to me as I am only 5'1, but DH is 6'3, and needs loads of leg room

I was really annoyed with ebookers by the way, did you know they charge FULL adult taxes for a LO on a lap? No other travel website does that!!!

VeryAnnieMary · 27/05/2009 12:51

Boston is fab, am v , hope you get to go.

infin · 27/05/2009 14:08

I've found £598 with Canadian Affair here
There is a budget carrier in canada...it's called Jet

infin · 27/05/2009 14:09

£598 to Vancouver that is! And WEST Jet!!

Original poster
wiggletastic · 27/05/2009 14:14

I know VeryAnnieMary, I have been once before and think it is a great city. We were hoping that now our friends are living there we could maybe go once a year but it will need to be outwith the school holidays obviously. That will be ok until DD goes to school!

Any luck with Kayak MichKit? That looks like not a bad deal infin has found for you. Hope you get something.

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