travelbunnies

Hi. We're planning our 2nd trip to Italy for Sept, 05 (fly into Milan and out of Rome.) Started to look at airfare Cleveland-Milan-Rome-Cleveland, and depending on dates, ranges from $682-$832.

Should we book this far ahead, or should we wait and assume fares will come down a bit? When we traveled to Italy last October, best ticket price we could get RT Rome was $650/PP, so I'm thinking if we could get for around $700 this time around for Sept, not too bad. Wanted to secure our dates so we could start booking accommodations.
Thanks for your advice.

SusanP

I just booked my flight for next Sept last week using my Capital One miles, Syracuse into Venice and out of Rome. The price would have been $870, so yours don't look too bad, especially at the lower end of your range. Obviously, I didn't wait because I was using miles, but just thought this would give you a comparison. And of course, there's no way to know for sure if they'll come down.

ira

Hi tb,

682 is pretty good. I don't expect that it will go below $600.

The best I can find out of Atlanta right now is $786.

buongiorno

It's funny how much we labor over our flight costs when all is said and done, it probably represents less than 25% of the total trip cost. The savings over the cheapest you could probably get the fare for compared to what you may be seeing now probably won't amount to 5% of your total trip cost.

I do the same trying to find the best fare and I agree that anything under $700 is a deal. We got lower fares on USAir but are waiting to see if that time bomb blows up before our trip in the Spring. Good luck!

kismetchimera

$682.00 is a very good price for traveling in september, take it..
I paid 755 , which I think is also a good deal for an open jaw ticket,SAT to FCO and CDG to SAT, comingback June 25th..

TopMan

Assuming (and this is a big assumption admittedly) that you have looked at every major search engine such as Orbitz, Expedia, etc., as well as the aggregators such as mobissimo, farechase, cheapflights, kayak, and the user fee-charging Qixo....or have you?

rex

<<It's funny how much we labor over our flight costs when all is said and done, it probably represents less than 25% of the total trip cost.>>

25% is about right for most people, and thus, it is for many people, the single largest expenditure. Done right, it might be as little as 10% nd I have been on business trips for which it was closer to 40-50%.

It's just as important to get the best bang for the buck for air travel to/from Europe as it is for the four other major trip cost items: lodging, intra-Europe transportation, meals and attractions. They don't always go in this order, and the one most carelessly overlooked (it seems to me) is intra-Europe transportation.

And of course, shopping can be 1% or 75%.

Best wishes,

Rex

elaine

It seems to me that the percentages of each component can vary widely depending on the length and the style of the trip.
Almost everyone wants to spend as little as possible on airfare, (as little as 0 if mileage points are used) but once arriving, the hotels booked, the meals eaten, the shopping,and the additional travel, can vary widely in costs and percentages, don't you think?