Thanks everyone. I think maybe I was just booking too early, because they do seem to be coming down. Unfortunately my dates aren’t that flexible - going to Berlin Marathon on sept 21 and husband wants to stay for Oktoberfest in Munich Sept 25. So we are looking at sept 18-28. Those are still around $4500 to get to Frankfurt plus some cheap connections booked separately. But better than $8000!

If you play with your dates a little you may be able to get your fares down to around $3500

Also we were in Berlin late last year and were told that the city fills up during the Marathon so hopefully you have already made your hotel reservation. Munich will also be crowded. Flying into Berlin and out of Munich should work best for you

Airfare alert $2227 for business class IAD-BER RT TAP and Turkish July to May according to Going. Book within 2-3 days. Similar flights out of EWR. May have to play with dates