Virgin OMG never

[Jakejosh4]

After reading these boards for years and having always gone to Florida with a package we bit the bullet and have gone DIY for next year.
Villa booked direct with owner
Universal hotel booked
Cars booked
DCL booked
Tickets booked

Now flights we 4 adults 4 children 9 9 11 11want to fly out on March 19th next year and return 9 th April from London, checked Virgin flights OMG the price is way over £1,000 each no way going to pay that.
We then checked out other airlines indirect but it looks like there are some really dodgy sites out there who say one price on their website then try to get you to ring.

What would those of you with experince do hang on to see if prices will come down bearing in mind its Easter?
Also any recommendations of how to book indirect flights, which airports to use or avoid.
thanks

 

[Kath2003]

You've booked everything else first, and now your flights? That will limit your flexibility and your return date will be the most expensive within the Easter period. The flights are barely out for Easter, so I would hold out. Anything around £550 is a bargain for those dates; realistically you'll be looking at £650-700 as a good price, unless you can be flexible. Cutting a day or two off at each end can save hundreds if there are several of you flying.

All airlines are as pants as each other. Try to avoid flying "back" on yourself to reduce flight time. Look for a minimum 2 hour connection on the outbound, more if you're going through JFK.

We usually go at Easter and haven't even thought about flights, let alone hotels, cars, tickets etc!

 

[chmurf]

you noticed dodgy sites and that's a good start.
many will display a price, then add hidden fees before you know it.

If you book, book through ebookers, expedia, orbitz or direct with the airline.
avoid at all costs sites like edreams, opodo, and sites like that. They advertise low prices but you can end up with higher than expected bills. They're also almost impossible to reach and get answers/solutions when your flight is changed (and it will be changed several times along the way by the airline) ... nightmare ...

no real airport to avoid. Only make sure the schedule is right.
Try to allow at least 2.5 to 3hrs at a US airport on the way out, and 90 minutes to 2hrs on the way in.
Add 30 minutes for JFK ... sigh ...


try not to land to late, and not to take off too early at the end of your vacations.

use kayak to get a sense of flights/schedule and prices, and when you see a flight that's right, expand the list of sites and go through expedia, ebookers or direct through the airline

if you go direct through Delta, they won't allow you to add children, they'll treat everyone as adults, which will have the price rise ridiculously so if you're going for a delta flight, book through expedia, they'll let you add children passengers (cheaper, especially since passenger duty was recently lifted for children)

 

[saintrob]

We always fly with Virgin and tend to get good deals but we use our miles. We've managed to snag a miles + money even for next Christmas. Thomas Cook are reasonable but I don't know whether they fly from London and on your dates.

 

[Jakejosh4]

Thanks Chmurf great advice. Was just looking at Edreams saw flights that were a good price glad I didn't bother. Looks like I may have jumped the gun Kath2003 by booking everything first just wanted to get things ticked off to be honest there is no flexibility on dates anyway. I need to take your advice and hold on we will get there even if I have to row us across lol

 

[misspickle]

We always fly with Virgin and tend to get good deals but we use our miles. We've managed to snag a miles + money even for next Christmas. Thomas Cook are reasonable but I don't know whether they fly from London and on your dates.

Have you booked a package deal for next Xmas?. We are also going next Christmas but waiting on flights

 

[saintrob]

No, I always book DIY. I booked the flights with Virgin Atlantic as soon as they were released.

 

[scoobydooby]

1k for Virgin direct flights for those dates might be bettered but is about normal. Make sure you keep clearing your browsing history before you check their prices daily. They do fluctuate but they are tracking you!!!! Flying is horribly expensive and in my experience, you get what you pay for. I cannot ever fly BA again they were just too dreadful and normally I bite the bullet, book direct with Virgin and know I could have got it cheaper. But in 10 return trips I've only ever had great service from them. So I pay. It depends what matters to you. Flying direct and knowing what I am going to get matters to me. I accept if I was more chilled about it and needed to economise I could save money. Good luck

 

[Woodview]

Have you tried London Heathrow to Dublin ... to Orlando with Aer Lingus ?

Flights Direct From Dublin to MCO on Saturdays .

 

[Elise79]

If you are flying in the Easter holidays and you want to go direct it will cost you unfortunately. If you would consider indirect then keep looking and you will probably find something more reasonable

Last Easter we went into and out of NY which while being more expensive than term time was any where near as bad as MCO however we were spending time in NY too.

 

[maclondon]

can you book miles + money - always works out the best way to use miles.
as you'll never get reward flights at easter.

all the airlines have sales - its just the risk that they wont have flights on the exact day you need.
can you move your dates by day or two?

 

[london75]

Try Hipmunk.com, great for searching combinations and ranks flights by more than just price such as airline ratings, convenience and duration. You click through to book with the airline still so no worries on hidden extras unless the airline themselves impose them.

 

[melidy]

My partner works for Virgin Active and they release discounts periodically, so I was routinely checking Virgin Atlantic prices for our trip thinking they'd work out pretty reasonable with discount. We are going at a much quieter time of the year and the cheapest I could find when his discount was released was in the £700 ballpark... So I checked Skyscanner and managed to get us direct flights for just under £500 each.

Skyscanner is one of the best comparison sites out there I found, and they pull in current prices from a lot of sources. However, I recommend rather than following the link to the airline they suggest, to go direct to the airline website and plug your dates in there. We saved an extra £30 p/p just by going direct to the airline websites... All extra money that can be spent in Disney!! Plus you can sign up for email alerts, and they'll tell you when the prices come down. Which since you have a while to your trip they will come down .

You just have to try and book in the 'golden' window before the prices start to increase again. Check out MoneySavingExpert's article on cheap flights, all the information is there!

 

[Kath2003]

We booked yesterday to return on 9th April - that was the killer in terms of price. That said, American Airlines seem to have a number of indirect for £600-650. If you can be flexible, you can get some good deals - we managed to get direct from LGW-MCO and then an indirect return to Heathrow (a pain if you're taking a car to the airport; we aren't).

 

[BudgieMama]

You just have to try and book in the 'golden' window before the prices start to increase again. Check out MoneySavingExpert's article on cheap flights, all the information is there!

Do you have a link to that article please? I'd be interested to read it!

 

[Kath2003]

Don't know if you're looking today but just seen a few pop up for your dates for £525-550 with American. 1 stop each way; ORD or MIA are your best bets; DFW also available which I would accept if the price were good. Look for 3 hours on the outbound connection and 2 on the way back. There's plenty to choose from at the moment. Haven't seen prices like those in a while. Anything under £600 is an absolute bargain at that time of year.

 

[Jakejosh4]

Hi Kath2003 I am still looking and have seen decent flights under £600 but wasnt sure if i could get direct for around that if i wait. I really hate taking off when we fly so was trying to avoid indirect but think you maybe right with the price will have to bite the bullet and go for it.

 

[Kath2003]

I've done Easter 5 times in the last 6 years (and just booked for 2016). Trust me - you won't get direct for anything like £600. Anything around the £900 mark would be a good deal.

Indirect isn't that bad. You "save" time on the outbound flight because you clear immigration and customs at the first stop (assuming it's in the USA, some cities in Canada or Dublin) which then means you just walk straight out of the airport when you arrive in Orlando. It's a bit more of a pain on the way back but the return flights are shorter anyway.

We are flying direct to MCO next year for the first time a decade. I am not looking forward to it, particularly...We are indirect on the way back.

 

[LiquidSunshine]

Do you have a link to that article please? I'd be interested to read it!

@BudgieMama - think it might be this one:- http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/travel/cheap-flights

 

[melidy]

@BudgieMama - think it might be this one:- http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/travel/cheap-flights

Yes, that's the one... I'm never sure which sites are allowed to be linked to and which ones aren't! Hence why I didn't include a link in my original post. Thanks Jemma!