Still trying to decide whether to book my airfare

I found a good deal for a flight to Seattle for $407 from New York. It's one stopover in each direction (I would have like no stopover but I'm sure its going to cost more). The times are perfect coming and going but I still have 9months before my cruise. The site I'm using (kayak) says to buy, but my mind is telling me maybe the prices will drop as new schedules come out. Not sure what I want to do :confused:

I found a good deal for a flight to Seattle for $407 from New York. It's one stopover in each direction (I would have like no stopover but I'm sure its going to cost more). The times are perfect coming and going but I still have 9months before my cruise. The site I'm using (kayak) says to buy, but my mind is telling me maybe the prices will drop as new schedules come out. Not sure what I want to do :confused:

Check Princess EZAir and see what they are offering, I think you can make changes easily and you don't pay until your final payment. I had a great experience with my flight from Heathrow.

The experts are over on the Cruise Air board.

Personally, I prefer to book direct with the airline or via Princess. The fewer go betweens there are the better, in my mind. The only reason why I book through Princess (when the price and times are good for me) is for the added transfers and the airfare falls under their insurance (provided you buy it, of course) so the whole trip is covered.

Booking through third parties can add all sorts of complications, which the experts can explain far better than I can :o

There is no magic way to know what prices are going to do, its supply and demand, so as seats are bought, prices go up. We've been burned a few times playing the waiting game, I don't do that any more. I research and budget for a reasonable price and when I see it come up, I book it.

The third party was Kayak but then when I went to the airline site directly it was the same price so I would book it directly through the airline.

$407 is a pretty good deal. If you wait too long, the price will likely go up, not down.

We cruise next April. The last two years we drove from NJ to Ft Lauderdale because the flight prices were ridiculous. Jet Blue had a pretty good deal for next April, certainly less then the cost to drive, and I jumped on it through Princess even though Princess was about 40 dollars more because their Insurance covered the flight.

I've read that the best time to book flights are Tuesday's at three pm because that's when the airlines changes their rates to meet competition and another article said 54 days out. Who knows except you what is your price point.

It's been my experience if you see a good price, book it. I've seen my fares go up sometimes as much as $300 a person if I waited. I'm not sure which airline you're booking, but one of the reasons we always fly Southwest is there is no change fee, so I book knowing that if the fares do go down, I won't have any additional charges and the difference will be returned to me as a flight credit.

So I booked it at the $407 on American. When I saw 4 seats left this morning from when I had looked at it last night I decided to book it. I don't think it would go down that much more plus I did like the times.

I purchase air as soon as my cruise plans are certain. In my recent experience, prices are just as likely to go up as down, so if you're pleased with the total cost of your trip, book your air.

So I booked it at the $407 on American. When I saw 4 seats left this morning from when I had looked at it last night I decided to book it. I don't think it would go down that much more plus I did like the times.

I think you did good.;)

Mike:)

So I booked it at the $407 on American. When I saw 4 seats left this morning from when I had looked at it last night I decided to book it. I don't think it would go down that much more plus I did like the times.

You could get a nonstop flight out of Newark on Alaska Airlines for about the same price..

You could get a nonstop flight out of Newark on Alaska Airlines for about the same price..

I checked that already. It was $673.00 out of Newark nonstop. That's an extra $275.00 I would have had to spend. Plus I didn't like the times either on the return flight.

You did the right thing: if the price is right and the times are good, book it--the price is only going to go up.

I checked that already. It was $673.00 out of Newark nonstop. That's an extra $275.00 I would have had to spend. Plus I didn't like the times either on the return flight.

Yeah, I didn't know your exact dates. I used 6/8 - 6/16 and found it for $202 each way.. But as you mentioned those were the less desirable times.

Totally agree with f-mattox! Now you can relax regarding the airfare and look forward to the cruise!

We used Princess E-Z air for our Eastern Med Cruise. Both flights were one stop, Paris going and Amsterdam coming back. Cost was $400 less per person vs booking with Delta, and it was the same flights. Go figure, and it was Business Class with lie flat sleepers.

I hope you're flying in at least a day before your cruise. Some of the Alaskan itineraries don't allow for "flying to the next port" due to the PVSA.

We always fly in the day before because you never know.

I find that airfare prices are lowest between 30-45 days out...