I will be traveling to London this summer from Columbus, OH. Currently I’m trying to figure out the least expensive way of getting there. I figure I’ll have to get to either Chicago, NY, or Washington first any way I slice it.
Apart from that, some people have recommended flying standby (since I’d have the time) to get a cheap(er) flight to London.
I don’t know though. That sounds a tad risky. What do you fellow Dopers recommend?
??
You have to have a ticket in hand to fly standby, so I don’t know what your friends are suggesting. You can often find a good rate at the last minute (check on the airline websites on Wednesday mornings) a week or two in advance, but you are taking a big risk that a flight to your destination will be available.
Best advice is to find the cheapest ticket you can now and just book it. Travel to Europe is still cheap.
The travel might not be too pricey, but with the dollar the way it is at 1 UKP = 1.81 USD, London is going to be pretty expensive just now…
I’ve never used it, but you might try Priceline.com. You may be able to name a price considerably cheaper than standby.
You’re planning to fly at the busiest time of the year, which is the most expensive. If you can be flexible in your travel dates, then try contacting a real travel agent. They sometimes offer good deals. If you want to do it all yourself, go to one of the discount ticket sites and spend a long time altering your travel dates by a day or two or three each way.
Waiting until the last minute isn’t always a good idea, especially on busy international routes. I just checked some costs on priceline. Travelling tomorrow would cost ~$2000, but the first flight I looked at in July was ~$800.
The cheapest flight I ever got to London was under $400 return from Austin, so you just have to shop around and be patient.
Flying standby is rare these days. I think for most airlines the only passengers who can do it are airline employees or their relatives.
You could always try packing yourself in a crate and having yourself shipped. I hear that’s pretty cheap.
I’ve never heard of anybody even attempting to get a standby ticket transatlantic. Googling around suggests there’s little chance of getting a good deal, anyway. The only way to be sure of getting a decent deal is to keep checking online every day, and when a decent price appears, jump on it.
Priceline can be a good deal. I got a ticket from Washington, DC to Belgium two summers ago for about $650 (with taxes) on Priceline, when the lowest price on Orbitz and elsewhere was about $200 higher. Travel in the summer sucks, so don’t expect to get low-low-low price tickets.
Like others, I suggest shopping around the internet, and when you get a reasonable price that you can afford, buy it. Flights can often be full in the summer, so you might not have a second chance.
WAG - Buy your cheap ticket now. On the day of your flight if they are overbooked, you might get bumped and denied boarding. If you play your cards correctly, the cash compensation should reduce the overall cost of your ticket.
I think there may be two definitions of “standby” in this thread. “Standby” as I know it typically means you already have a ticket and are trying to get on a flight on the same airline to the same route but just at a different time that day. It used to be free if there was space and it was on the same day (something I used to do quite often), then several airlines decided to start charging money for the “inconvenience” to them.