Q for those that have ever been to the USA in December

[aussiegirls]

Morning all

I know there are some on here that have family etc in the USA and have been or regularly go in December, also some others that have just been in Dec for a holiday. I have a question for you.

In your experience when is the best time to buy flights? Is it necessary to get in super early and buy flights now or if I wait is it possible that they may come out with a sale?

I am looking to go at the beginning of Dec, so not directly at Christmas, and the prices at the moment are kind of ho-hum (not terrible but far more than I want to pay if I don't have to).

So if any of you can impart some of your wisdom to me it would be very much appreciated.

Thanks

xxx

 

[DizOz]

Aussiegirls,

If you are not too fussed about which airline you fly wait as lower prices will definitely come out.

The time you are looking to travle is not too busy so I would leave it a little longer and V will come out with some specials.

 

[queenie82]

It depends a bit on what you want to do.
If it is just LA and back then I would wait.
If it is more complicated and you want stopovers then I would go earlier rather than later.

When we booked for our trip last month we booked about early march and getting the flights we wanted was very restricted already. We were Syd-SFO-MCO-LA-Syd with United (our preferred airline...others may loathe them but again we had great flights.)

We left the 28th nov. We had a layover in SFO and then had a stopover in LA on the way back.
[I will NEVER go through LA again...I will go to SFO and drive to Disneyland if I want to rather than go there]

It is the cross country flights that can complicate things. We had to take the 31st Dec for the MCO-LA bit because the only other date available for that price was the 16th.

A few months later another deal came out that was better for going to MCO and back...but we wouldn't get the stopover in LA. So...I mean if that deal had come out first we would have done that probably. But I was glad doing the stopover so we could do DCA before they pull apart and reconstruct DCA.


I'm sure I've confused you but basically....if you are wanting simple I would wait.
If you want stopovers and there is a good deal I would take it

 

[aussietravellers]

We bought our flights for this last December, departing December 9th on December 4th, yes just 5 days before we left ! With V Australia. The fares going over were sooooo cheap we just couldnt resist, hence why we booked a last minute trip. Qantas had an $800 and something one way which we thought was pretty good, but then we found the V Australia which was even cheaper and quite a bit cheaper, less than $600, so we just booked it, then booked some accommodation, packed and left for two weeks. We had already bought our tickets for next September as there was a special, we actually bought those before the December trip.

We couldn't believe how cheap the flights were the week before we left. Compared to the fares for January they were three to four times the price, it was crazy. If I had a planned trip though I don't think I could risk waiting until the last minute. But the year before we were booked to go to Europe and there was a problem flying through Bangkok, so last minute, like within a few days of flying out, we changed to Qantas for almost half the price we had originally paid on the other airline. We got a refund for the other flights due to the problems, but again, bargain last minute flights.

 

[Willow25]

We go almost every year in December. I agree with the other posters about it depending on what you want to do. If you are only going to LA then I would definitely wait because much, much better fares will come out. We usually book about three months beforehand but this year I will book as soon as a good fare comes out as we are heading to Orlando and Portland. Good luck and let us know if you see a good fare.

 

[aussiegirls]

Thanks for your help guys. I think I am going to wait. I was going to fly into New York (then into Canada from there) then have a stopover in LA for a few weeks before we head home.

If the NY ticket is going to stay pretty pricey then we will just go to LA and not do the whole east coast thing. So either way we will still go to Disneyland.

So I am going to wait and see what they come up with - hope it's good

xxx

 

[aussietravellers]

TIf the NY ticket is going to stay pretty pricey then we will just go to LA and not do the whole east coast thing. So either way we will still go to Disneyland.

I think you will find that there will be deals on NY flight too. We looked at the VAustralia flights to NY when we went to LA last month (which we booked 5 days out) and it was only a couple of hundred extra for the Aust/NY flight which stopped in LA anyway. With the NY return flight, you get a free stopover, so you could do Syd/Bris/Melb to NY then do the stopover on the way home, so NY to Syd/Bris/Melb but stopover in LA, so it's sort of counted as one flight but you just stopover in LA as they fly through there. Does that make sense or am I rambling.

Anyway don't rule out NY flights, I priced LA flights then NY/LAX seperately with an american airline and it was HEAPS more expensive to do it that way.

 

[aussiegirls]

aussietravellers, you are making perfect sense. In fact that is exactly what I was thinking of doing. Flying straight to NY (via LA of course) and after a few weeks there come back to LA and have a few weeks there before coming back to Sydney. I know that with V Australia the first stopover is free, no matter how long you stay for but I am not sure about the other airlines.

I loved V Australia when I flew them last time anyway so they would definately be my carrier of choice this time around too

xxx

 

[shushh]

I am reading this thread with extreme interest as we are planning to go the states leaving Dec 10 this year.

I wasn't sure how best to buy the tickets as we're going to Orlando first, and then New York, down to Washington DC and then back down to Orlando. But we'll be flying home from LA as we're doing a Panama Canal cruise.

Is there a difference in say buying a fare to LA and then buying a separate domestic fare from LA to Orlando or is it better to buy SYD to Orlando even though you have to change planes regardless.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

 

[SnowWhite09]

Thanks OP for asking this question because we are going in December this year and I was wondering exactly the same thing. V Australia is also our carrier of choice as they were absolutely fantastic when we flew with them in May last year. Thanks to everyone else for their advice on this subject.

 

[Kalice]

Hi, we booked for December/Jan in June. We booked two pax with points and paid for 3. Can't rember what we paid now, but we were pretty happy. Found it cheaper to fly directly to LAX and book our internal flights with Priceline, although we did spend some time on the west coast before heading east. Initially I booked some flights on Priceline, however found it better to use them to get an idea of prices and carriers. I then booked most of our flights directly through the airlines. We booked a couple of flights using southwest as they allow two pieces of checked baggage free (per passenger). However, seats are not allocated you get a boarding number and hope for the best. We got priority boarding as we had 3 children under 12. Enjoyed our train travel best, as we found it much more relaxing especially not having to go through all the security stuff each time.

 

[shushh]

Kalice, where did you catch the train from and to? We are seriously considering taking the train from NY to Washington DC after Christmas. Any insight into how the check baggage thing works on Amtrak?

 

[Kangarucci]

We caught the train from Washington DC to New York and found it to be a great way to travel. Relaxing and not claustrophobic. No security check in that I can recall.

We had 3 suitcases plus we each had a backpack (4). Plenty of room on board. Can wander down the aisle and have a refreshment carriage. The train arrived at Penn station where we grab a cab to our hotel, radiocity apartments- maybe about $10 (don't hold me to that).

Would do it again from New York to Boston.

Cheers

 

[queenie82]

Kalice, where did you catch the train from and to? We are seriously considering taking the train from NY to Washington DC after Christmas. Any insight into how the check baggage thing works on Amtrak?

Can't tell you about the baggage situation but I loved the train from NY - DC
Just so simple and easier than a plane

Is there a difference in say buying a fare to LA and then buying a separate domestic fare from LA to Orlando or is it better to buy SYD to Orlando even though you have to change planes regardless.

We always prefer a ticket to NY or to MCO (or whichever) and get stopovers so long as you can get a good deal.
The easier part of it in my experience is that you are sure of the baggage allowance the whole way.
The baggage allowance will be different on every flight you go on individually. But if you do SYD-NY open jaw with 2 stopovers you will have the international allowance of luggage the whole way.

Whichever way you do it, it is better if you use the same airline as they will help make transitions easier if you are delayed etc.

 

[Kalice]

Kalice, where did you catch the train from and to? We are seriously considering taking the train from NY to Washington DC after Christmas. Any insight into how the check baggage thing works on Amtrak?

Hi, We travelled on the 27th of December, returned on the 30th. We simply put our luggage in one of the alcoves, these are at the front and back of each railcar. Not sure what it would be like if the train was really busy, our trip. On our return trip we grabbed one of the booths in the dining car, this meant we could play cards etc. The normal seating configuration is more like a bus. Union station (DC) is worth an hour or two on its own, it's a beautiful station with great shops.

Our hotel was close enough to the metro that we actually wheeled our cases to the metro on the return journey and caught the train to Union station. We also took Amtrak from Anaheim to San Diego, great way to travel.

 

[shushh]

We caught the train from Washington DC to New York and found it to be a great way to travel. Relaxing and not claustrophobic. No security check in that I can recall.

We had 3 suitcases plus we each had a backpack (4). Plenty of room on board. Can wander down the aisle and have a refreshment carriage. The train arrived at Penn station where we grab a cab to our hotel, radiocity apartments- maybe about $10 (don't hold me to that).

Would do it again from New York to Boston.

Cheers

Hi, We travelled on the 27th of December, returned on the 30th. We simply put our luggage in one of the alcoves, these are at the front and back of each railcar. Not sure what it would be like if the train was really busy, our trip. On our return trip we grabbed one of the booths in the dining car, this meant we could play cards etc. The normal seating configuration is more like a bus. Union station (DC) is worth an hour or two on its own, it's a beautiful station with great shops.

Our hotel was close enough to the metro that we actually wheeled our cases to the metro on the return journey and caught the train to Union station. We also took Amtrak from Anaheim to San Diego, great way to travel.

Good to hear of your good experiences! So you didn't have pre-allocated seating then? We'll be heading to DC from NY on the 28th Dec so hopefully Kalice it won't be too busy as well. Do the metros all stop at Union station as well?

Still waiting to hear back from Amtrak re: checked luggage. Keen to use it if they do offer it as we'll be travelling with 6 young children all up.

 

[Kalice]

Good to hear of your good experiences! So you didn't have pre-allocated seating then? We'll be heading to DC from NY on the 28th Dec so hopefully Kalice it won't be too busy as well. Do the metros all stop at Union station as well?

Still waiting to hear back from Amtrak re: checked luggage. Keen to use it if they do offer it as we'll be travelling with 6 young children all up.

When we left Penn Station we mentioned we had four children and were offered assistance. A porter grabbed our luggage and we were seated early. Much to our surprise we were put in a business class car. No such luck on the reverse.

DC has a couple of train lines, I dont think they both stop at Union station. It would be easy to swap lines. Although with six kids I don't know how easy it would be. Our older ones could easily wheel there own suitcases. The metro in DC was really easy to use, we found the subway ticketing confusing!

 

[DVCAustralia]

No one has mentioned it yet so I thought I should do so.
Since you are doing the Panama cruise you will end up having a 'hole' in your international air ticket. Whilst this can obviously be solved in ticketing it is not really compatable with the discount fares being released recently. It would be worth making enquiries with a good travel agent about options.
Firstly I would recommend pricing it as a cheap LA fare and then domestic fares for LA-Orlando, Orlando-NY and DC-Orlando, with train NYC to DC. A quick search on Expedia using dates around the time of your trip shows direct fares of about US$240 (10/12), from US$99 (20/12) and from US$115 (3/1), showing a possible total of less than AU$500.00 for the three flights. With three flights another option that used to work out well was coupons linked to the international airline you fly but these are not as good as they used to be and on these routes there are a number of airline options so the fares should be quite low. Obviously the ridiculous baggage fees on domestic flights not part of an international ticket would need to be taken into account but Southwest still includes two bags and is one of the largest domestic carrier.
Remember planning is half the fun!!!

 

[shushh]

Thanks DVC Australia for your input. I was wondering the same thing as well, whether or not the SYD-LAX return plus extras would be cheaper than the open jaw ticket. I am most worried about my connection from LAX to MCO. If something would to go wrong, I want the reassurance of booking it as one ticket so that they are obliged to help me, rather than me floundering with 3 children at an airport which really isn't too friendly. I was told that they do have specials on through fares to MCO so we probably would go for open jaw SYD-MCO, then LAX-SYD.We've solved part of the luggage problem by going to Florida 2 days earlier and returning to the same hotel. They will hold our luggage for us so we don't have to drag all my shopping to NYC and DC! This will also give us some leeway in case of bad weather.

 

[aussiemickeys]

We did the Washington DC to New York train trip this past December & thought it was great. Some parts were very scenic & we seemed to pass through a lot of towns, so my head was swivelling trying to see as much as I could.
A couple of things I recall. There was a choice of two train types (one an express & more expensive). We chose the other. We left about 7.30am & arrived into Penn Station before lunch. We did not reserve our seats (& in the waiting area I became concerned about this because there seemed to be a LOT of people) - but it was a long train, so when we got on we had our pick of seats. We actually had two seats each for quite a way, but as it got closer & closer to New York it started to get full (the last 20 minutes there were a few people that had to stand).
They told us that we could not check our luggage (I don't know if we got incorrect advice or not), so we took it with us into the carraige. We had 4 huge suitcases & I nearly had a bit of a panic when I first got on & didn't see anywhere to store things (except the overhead area- which while a generous size, was never going to be big enough for cases). Then the penny dropped that we had got in at the wrong end of the carraige & just had to walk to the other end where there was a storage area for bigger cases - PHEW!
Just be aware that at Washington the platform is lower that the train so you have about 3 or 4 steps up to get in (not a lot of fun trying to get the cases in, but not a huge deal either - usually someone around will offer to help). At Penn, the platform is level with the train, so much easier to get off.
There is a taxi line directly in front of the station, so that part is very easy as well.
We really enjoyed our first train experience in the US & from that would love to do more of it.

Just remebered something about the Airlines charging for checked bags. We had booked with Qantas & American Airlines (partner airlines). Even though we did some little side destinations as well, whenever we pointed out that we were originally on an Internation return flight ticket, they waived any checked bag fees. That saved us a few hundred dollars which we weren't expecting!

Hope this helps.........