Urgent Question regarding flight from Hungary
 

Hi everyone,

I received so much help from everyone on this board when i was planning my trip to Paris that I thought that this would be a great place to get some information to help a friend who needs some answers quickly.

A friend of mine's wife and 2 children (twins age 7) have been waiting in Hungary (their native country) to receive their permanent residency papers to come to Canada. They have recently been granted residency and want to leave Hungary ASAP to get back to montreal because my friend, (the husband and father of the people in question) is still in Montreal.

They have been searching everywhere for the cheapest fare and so far the best price they have found is 1264$CAD for a return ticket from Hungary to Montreal. The one way tickets are running for about 2000$. Would they be able to purchase a return ticket and simply use the first leg of it to get here? Or are they forced to use the second leg of the ticket??

I'm sure someone has answered this question before but my friend needs answers quickly, because he desperately wants his family to come home as soon as they can.

Thank you all soooo much!! I appreciate any suggestions you guys have.

Layla

Ryanair fly from Balaton airport near Keszthely to Stansted airport near London. On 15 August, for example, they leave Balaton at 0950 and reach Stansted at 1115. The fare is 25,000 florins or 89 euros, and taxes are about thirty euros. Stansted, Liverpool Street, Circle line, Embankment, Hammersmith, Heathrow costs about 20 euros.

Ben Haines, London
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Technically the airlines don't want you to buy a cheaper R/T ticket and discard the second leg as opposed to buying more expensive O/W fare tickets but realistically, what can they do?

There is no way they can make a person use the second leg and I have yet to hear of any DOCUMENTED instances (not, "I heard..." instances) in which anyone wa forced to use a second leg or prosecuted because they did not do so.

Nobody can force you to take the second leg of a trip.

Let him check for cheap flights from Hungary (Budapest or Balaton) to big European hubs like London, Paris, Frankfurt, etc. via www.whichbudget.com .

I agree w/ Stardust and BenHaines. It will probably save them hundreds of dollars if they fly a low cost carrier to London or some other major hub and then from there to Canada.

Because they are booking last minute, fares will be higher, but not having firm dates will help a little.

You'll have more days to pick from if you take an EasyJet flight from Budapest to Luton.

Thank you all very much...I will be sure to tell him all that you have told me. I will suggest a smaller airline to a HUB city, and then a cheaper flight. That might work, however I think that he is leaning towards booking a RT flight and not using the last leg of it.
If anyone has any other suggestions, keep em coming.
:)
Thanks again!

No-one says he can't book an even cheaper RT flight from one of the hub cities to Montreal...
The small airlines just charge by the flight, so with them it's no use to buy a return flight.

Zoom Airlines permits booking of one-way trans-Atlantic flights for a reasonable price. There are seats available now for a flight on August 28 from London Gatwick to Montreal for 236 pounds including all fees.

thanks again everyone, I think he is settling with a one-way ticket that he found on travelocity, its 1300$ each person and it leaves Budapest on the 26th and stops shortly in Zurich, then continues on to Montreal. This saves them the hassle of taking a plane to a different city and making other arrangements and he is happy because its less of an ordeal for his two children (twins age 7).
Thank you all for your help!
I truly appreciate it.

Layla

As long as the husband buys a return ticket <b>from</b> Hungary <b>to</b> Montreal, the second leg does not need to be used.

But he cannot buy a return ticket <b>from</b> Montreal <b>to</b> Hungary and only use the second leg. I remember the case of a woman from Montreal who bought a return ticket from Montreal to Orlando, but did not fly down from Mtl. When she arrived at the airport in Orlando to return, they refused to let her board. You <i>have</i> to use the first leg of a ticket in order to use the second one.

Why does your friend not try to find a flight from London, Paris, Amsterdam, Munich or Frankfurt to Montreal and then from Budapest to one of these cities? It might be a bit cheaper.