Sheepie87

Hi Fodorites! Wondering if you all could help me with a dilemma. It's a common one: Buy now or wait.

I want to take my dad to Italy next spring, but I just enrolled in a teacher cert course so I don't have the flexibility of dates I thought I had. I can leave May 18, 2009. What I'm finding is that it's actually cheapest to do an open jaw into Heathrow (because I'd love to do London with him too--he'd love it) and out of Rome on BA for a little over 1000 dollars. Seasoned travelers--is this reasonable? Should I wait a few months and check back?

I know this question gets asked a lot but I would really appreciate your input.

gregeva1

It depends on if you have $2000 to give away for a 11 month period. $1000 isn't bad and with all the fuel costs going up I think it's a great price for travel in May 2009. I paid $930 per person 2 years ago for RT from Chicago to Budapest and back from Brussels in May.

ira

Hi S,

$1000 isn't at all bad for mid-May.

Have you checked www.kayak.com and www.1800flyeurope.com?

Sheepie87

Hey, thanks for the replies. Ira, I actually found all of this through Kayak. Like I said in my OP, I was planning to take my Dad, but now he doesn't want to go (fear of flying asserting itself again. I quote "I'll get around to it!&quot so now I'm just messing around on the student sites to see what I can get.

Just curious--why is it so much cheaper to fly to Heathrow and out of Rome? I tried Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Paris, and Milan, and Heathrow always comes out cheapest--even over a DF to Rome. This seems sort of odd to me ...

ira

Hi S,

Too bad about your Dad.

Maybe you could book an Atlantic crossing on a ship.

>why is it so much cheaper to fly to Heathrow and out of Rome?

Competition.