Judy

Hello All, we were going to fly from Edinburgh to Kerry(Killareny) in August. Aer Lingus was extremely expensive, so I did a search of differant alternatives(Ryannair, easy jet). So far, nothing less than 400$ for 2, ONE WAY. I was thinking of going from Glasgow to Shannon and that rate was not much better. Do you think we should just fly to Dublin, pick up a rental and drive to Dingle? I know it is not a short trip. I really did not want to fly to Dublin, because we are flying home from Dublin after spending 3 days there (after 3days -Dingle and 3 days- Galway). <BR>Both time and money are a factor in this decision. What would you do? Change everything around? Judy

frank

Did you try searching for flights from Prestwick in Scotland?Often used by Ryanair, train link to airport.

Judy

Yes, Frank, and I think the best route would be from Prestwick-Dublin, and pick up a car in Dublin, spend the nite along the way to Dingle somewhere. Thanks for the feedback. Judy

Cathy

Judy, <BR>Keep an eye on the Ryanair web site as 1. They have specials and 2. they are adding new routes so you might be able to fly from Glasgow to Shannon. <BR> <BR>However you could fly Glasgow London and then London Shannon instead of driving from Dublin to Dingle. <BR> <BR>If you opt for the drive then stop over in Kilkenny. <BR> <BR>The last option would be to se if you could fly out of Shannon to the States on your flight home and therfore reduce the need to go to Dublin. <BR> <BR>Hope this helps <BR> <BR>Cathy

Judy

Thanks so much for the advice Cathy! I just pulled our all my maps and brochures trying to figure this thing out. We have to depart from Dublin. It is frequent flyer tkt, and I already changed it once, PLUS it is a direct flight to Atlanta, with good seats! If nothing pops up on Ryanair., we will fly into Dublin.....stopping at Kilkenny? Then driving onto Dingle the next day,,,,, I think that is the tentative plan. Judy

xxx

One-way tickets in Europe are expensive as they are generally "open" tickets intended for business travellers. Have you checked out the Super Apex fare for a low cost RETURN ticket and just ditch the return - it can cost half of the one-way fare. <BR> <BR>Also, because of the way airlines price tickets it might work out better if you buy the entire ticket from one airline rather than trying to buy a separate ticket for internal travel within Europe. (A word of caution: This may only work if you are travelling schedule rather than charter and may only work for full-price, rather than restricted fares. <BR> <BR>Here's an example: I was travelling to London on business and staying a week. I decided to go to Dublin for the weekend. The cost of the ticket (NA-London-Dublin-London-NA) was $20 CHEAPER than (NA-London-NA). I also took a side trip to Rome when I was in London for only $50 extra when the round trip fare from London to Rome is about $500 at least. I don't really understand the fare structure well but it seems that when travelling from NA, they price based on the furthest leg and there is only a small differential travelling between NA and most western European cities. This is where a travel agent can help - they can check out all the options and make a recommendation on the lowest cost. <BR> <BR>Hope this helps. The first option, by the way, in "frowned upon" by the airlines but I'm not certain that they have do anything about it (just in case they can, I am posting anon). There was talk that they would fine the travel agent or, if they caught up with you suspend your frequent flyer benefits. <BR> <BR>

x

One-way tickets in Europe are expensive as they are generally "open" tickets intended for business travellers. Have you checked out the Super Apex fare for a low cost RETURN ticket and just ditch the return - it can cost half of the one-way fare. <BR> <BR>Also, because of the way airlines price tickets it might work out better if you buy the entire ticket from one airline rather than trying to buy a separate ticket for internal travel within Europe. (A word of caution: This may only work if you are travelling schedule rather than charter and may only work for full-price, rather than restricted fares. <BR> <BR>Here's an example: I was travelling to London on business and staying a week. I decided to go to Dublin for the weekend. The cost of the ticket (NA-London-Dublin-London-NA) was $20 CHEAPER than (NA-London-NA). I also took a side trip to Rome when I was in London for only $50 extra when the round trip fare from London to Rome is about $500 at least. I don't really understand the fare structure well but it seems that when travelling from NA, they price based on the furthest leg and there is only a small differential travelling between NA and most western European cities. This is where a travel agent can help - they can check out all the options and make a recommendation on the lowest cost. <BR> <BR>Flying into Shannon may give you more options and therefore cheaper fares and have you considered flying home from Shannon? <BR> <BR>Hope this helps. The first option, by the way, in "frowned upon" by the airlines but I'm not certain that they can do anything about it (just in case they can, I am posting anon). There was talk that they would fine the travel agent or, if they caught up with you, suspend your frequent flyer benefits. <BR> <BR> <BR>P.S. just read your last note. Obviously suggestion 2 will not work as you are using points but you can use points to do the Scotland-Ireland flight. From experience, my airline charges,in points, for a return ticket, not half for one-way. <BR>