When to book flights

when is the best time to book fights to Anchorage? We are cruising with Princess SB July , 2018. Flying from North Carolina. Right now the flights are kind of high and I see them getting higher. Just wondering if anyone notices a price drop certain times of the year. I am thinking I should book now . Also another question, 6 adults traveling to Denali for a few days before cruise. Two cars or Van rental . Any suggestions for that area , where is the best place and time. 6 Adults plus luggage! Thanks in advance for all the help.

I am flying out of RDU in June. I've been checking flights, and I notice that others' prices go down when Southwest releases their flights. Right now SW is booking through 6/5/18. They are supposed to release flights through 8/12/18 on Nov 2nd. I'd check everyone's prices at that time.

when is the best time to book fights to Anchorage? We are cruising with Princess SB July , 2018. Flying from North Carolina. Right now the flights are kind of high and I see them getting higher. Just wondering if anyone notices a price drop certain times of the year. I am thinking I should book now . Also another question, 6 adults traveling to Denali for a few days before cruise. Two cars or Van rental . Any suggestions for that area , where is the best place and time. 6 Adults plus luggage! Thanks in advance for all the help.

With Princess EzAir I would book flexible as soon as they come out. Withe Flexible Air you cancel or change up to 45 days before the cruise. Later if you find a cheaper airline ticket you can cancel EzAir with no penalty.

A minivan would hold 6 adults, but not all the luggage.

The only company i know of with large passenger vans is abcmotorhome.

https://www.abcmotorhome.com/rentals.html

See how the price compares with 2 cars. A few days ago Avis had minivans at their downtown office for $60 a day. Prices fluctuate wildly and can reach $200 a day, so i suggest booking 2 cars NOW at the best price you can find, then check frequently for a price drop. (Just ensure there's no cancel fee.)

There isn't a magic time for booking airfares. You just have to do your research, find a price you can work with, book it, and don't look back.

I would book now. Try Raleigh Durham. I think they have cheaper flights than Charlotte.

I am not sure what the current pricing is but demand is high that time of year so it would not surprise me if pricing doesn't go down and possibly goes up.

We book early and as mentioned we don't look back.

Keith

I am not sure what the current pricing is but demand is high that time of year so it would not surprise me if pricing doesn't go down and possibly goes up.

 

We book early and as mentioned we don't look back.

 

Keith

It has went up even since I posted this , so we went ahead and booked, so that is done now to move on to looking at car rental.

Sorry the price went up but glad you booked it.

On the car rental that is one to lock in on the price but keep checking so if the price goes down you can get the reduced price.

Keith

With Princess EzAir I would book flexible as soon as they come out. Withe Flexible Air you cancel or change up to 45 days before the cruise. Later if you find a cheaper airline ticket you can cancel EzAir with no penalty.

Is this the same with HAL? Since Princess and HAL are all under the Carnival umbrella, I am assuming so, but not sure.

We have booked our air they Princess for next June 2018

So far it's lowest price to Seattle from NJ. Waiting for release of Southwest

For our June cruise I booked last week - nine months out exactly. I had watched the airfares of three carriers for several weeks and noted the highest and lowest fares (for five of us in economy). Then one morning the fares on Delta dropped significantly, and I snagged roundtrip first class for $691 apiece. It was averaging $900 pp normally. That made it only a few hundred dollars more to do first class instead, and with economy checked bag fees/TV charges (on some of the planes) it was a much better deal for us. The key is to figure out the flights you want on the carriers available to you, then track them for at least a week. Then when a really low price hits, you will know and can decide whether to snag it or wait and watch for any other changes. It's a game really.

Based on an email I received from Jetblue Vacations, it looks like some flights through mid June 2018 may be released in the next few days. I'm hoping that will include Seattle-Anchorage and knock down some of the other airlines' prices. If so, then I should be able to book our outgoing flights. Current plan is flying RDU-SEA on Southwest using points and buying a cash ticket SEA-ANC.

I am flying out of RDU in June. I've been checking flights, and I notice that others' prices go down when Southwest releases their flights. Right now SW is booking through 6/5/18. They are supposed to release flights through 8/12/18 on Nov 2nd. I'd check everyone's prices at that time.

Just curious if flights to Anchorage would really go down due to SW releasing flights. i have not found a

way to get to anchorage on SW...and I would love to because we can fly free with points and companion pass!! Best i can do us get to Seattle on SW.

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Just curious if flights to Anchorage would really go down due to SW releasing flights. i have not found a

way to get to anchorage on SW...and I would love to because we can fly free with points and companion pass!! Best i can do us get to Seattle on SW.

 

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My guess is that SW releasing flights would not impact Alaska prices since SW doesn't fly there. Jet Blue does, but I don't think they are cheap to and from Anchorage.

There aren’t many cheap flights to Alaska.

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Just curious if flights to Anchorage would really go down due to SW releasing flights. i have not found a

way to get to anchorage on SW...and I would love to because we can fly free with points and companion pass!! Best i can do us get to Seattle on SW.

 

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Maybe I worded it wrong. I'm waiting on Jetblue to release on 10/1 to see if that reduces the Seattle-Anchorage prices. When Sw realsed their flights through 6/5/18, some RDU-SEA flights went down; I know for sure Alaska Air's prices went down. My plan is to fly to Seattle on SW points and buy a cash ticket on another airline for SEA-ANC.

SW releases more flights in early Nov. Hoping that will reduce my return flight price.

Jet Blue does, but I don't think they are cheap to and from Anchorage.

This summer they had SEA-ANC flights for $99 and $109 one way at one point. That's pretty cheap to me. :D Alaska was jsut a few dollars more at the same time. Since we get a free checked bag w/ Alaska (I have an Alaska Air cc), I prefer to fly them and hope JB's release drops Alaska's price.

Maybe I worded it wrong. I'm waiting on Jetblue to release on 10/1 to see if that reduces the Seattle-Anchorage prices. When Sw realsed their flights through 6/5/18, some RDU-SEA flights went down; I know for sure Alaska Air's prices went down. My plan is to fly to Seattle on SW points and buy a cash ticket on another airline for SEA-ANC.

 

SW releases more flights in early Nov. Hoping that will reduce my return flight price.

What you are doing is somewhat risky because there is a huge difference between separate ticket flights and connecting flight. With separate tickets, SW is not going to check your luggage to ANC. You would have to go back to baggage claim, collect your bags and then check in all over again in Seattle and go through security. You would also need to schedule more extra time between flights in case of weather problems or any other problems that would cause a delay between RDU and Seattle. You are also talking about changing planes twice unless you can get a direct from RDU to Seattle that matches up well with Sea-Tac to ANC. You could be playing with fire here all to save a little money. You also could be adding serious hours to your journey. Only you know if the risk and inconvenience are worth it. Since your flight to Sea-Tac is on points, maybe it is. You just might want to leave 3+ hours for the change and hope for good weather and no other delays.

What you are doing is somewhat risky because there is a huge difference between separate ticket flights and connecting flight. With separate tickets, SW is not going to check your luggage to ANC. You would have to go back to baggage claim, collect your bags and then check in all over again in Seattle and go through security. You would also need to schedule more extra time between flights in case of weather problems or any other problems that would cause a delay between RDU and Seattle. You are also talking about changing planes twice unless you can get a direct from RDU to Seattle that matches up well with Sea-Tac to ANC. You could be playing with fire here all to save a little money. You also could be adding serious hours to your journey. Only you know if the risk and inconvenience are worth it. Since your flight to Sea-Tac is on points, maybe it is. You just might want to leave 3+ hours for the change and hope for good weather and no other delays.

I know we need to allow plenty of time between flights. Looking at two SW flights right now. One flight gets to SEA at 2:30, and one gets there at 4:00. If we end up with the later flight, I will be booking one of the later flights to ANC, 7:30 or later. Might even do that with the 2:30 flight to be safe.

The trip is expensive enough as it is. I've got to save money where I can. Based on current prices, this saves over $200 each (3 people).

I know we need to allow plenty of time between flights. Looking at two SW flights right now. One flight gets to SEA at 2:30, and one gets there at 4:00. If we end up with the later flight, I will be booking one of the later flights to ANC, 7:30 or later. Might even do that with the 2:30 flight to be safe.

 

 

The trip is expensive enough as it is. I've got to save money where I can. Based on current prices, this saves over $200 each (3 people).

Good luck and I don't blame you for looking at that option. There are three of us and we're doing what you're doing in reverse. On our flight home, I justified $367 ANC-BOS by doing a red eye and saving on a hotel room in Anchorage on our last night. I'd rather spend money on the vacation than in getting there or getting back. That $600 you save is a nice day with a great excursion at one of your ports.

I would love to do a red-eye but my two traveling companions are horrid snorers and are afraid to sleep on a plane. :D Plus one uses some kind of oxygen machine when she sleeps (not a cpap). She's renting a small machine to take with us, but it plugs in and I don't know if they have outlets on the planes (doesn't run on batteries).

I would love to do a red-eye but my two traveling companions are horrid snorers and are afraid to sleep on a plane. :D Plus one uses some kind of oxygen machine when she sleeps (not a cpap). She's renting a small machine to take with us, but it plugs in and I don't know if they have outlets on the planes (doesn't run on batteries).

Virtually no domestic US planes have electrical outlets and she would need to get advance approval from the airline anyway.

I'll mention one thing. Getting an Alaska Airlines-branded Visa card (Bank of America) will give you 30,000 Alaska Airlines miles and an annual $99 ($121 after taxes) companion certificate. One person pays the going price, the other pays $121. Alaska flies nonstop from RDU to Seattle, and all Alaska tickets to Alaska from anywhere in the lower 48 allow a free stopover in Seattle.

Also, 30,000 miles might be enough for a round trip for the third passenger, or close to it (Alaska uses a sliding scale, 12,500 to 20,000 miles one way) so it could work out like this for an open-jaw RDU-xSEA-ANC//YVR-xSEA-RDU (meaning you'd cruise to Vancouver then fly back to RDU from there, via Seattle) -

First passenger, normal coach fare, say $750 all in.

Second passenger (companion), same itinerary, $121

Third passenger, using miles (taxes only), say $20.

Total for three, $891. Divvied up, $297 per person. Your Southwest miles would be intact for other trips. You'd get another companion certificate the following year, good for travel on Alaska Airlines/Virgin America planes anywhere they go, including California, Hawaii, Mexico...

If interested - https://www.applyonlinenow.com/USCCapp/Ctl/entry?sc=VACTJ5

I already have that card and was going to use that for our return flight. Right now a RT flight is 60K flights, so I only have enough for a one-way ticket. Alaska has a good nonstop flight SEA-RDU flight that I am hoping to book (8:15 AM - 4:25 PM). We all have to work the next day, and they have a bit of a drive to get home. Right now the cash price is $304. Hoping it will drop some once SW releases their next set of flights in November. I will book one points ticket, one cash ticket and one companion ticket. Not the best use of a companion pass, but the annual pass in my wallet expires April 2018, so I might as well use it.

OP, sorry to ahve hijacked your thread. One possibility for car rental is a compact and one a little bigger. you can put 4 adults in the compact and the other tow and most of the luggage in the other. I've been seeing a real cheap price for a compact w/ hertz downtown ANC location.

I already have that card and was going to use that for our return flight. Right now a RT flight is 60K flights, so I only have enough for a one-way ticket. Alaska has a good nonstop flight SEA-RDU flight that I am hoping to book (8:15 AM - 4:25 PM). We all have to work the next day, and they have a bit of a drive to get home. Right now the cash price is $304. Hoping it will drop some once SW releases their next set of flights in November. I will book one points ticket, one cash ticket and one companion ticket. Not the best use of a companion pass, but the annual pass in my wallet expires April 2018, so I might as well use it.

 

OP, sorry to ahve hijacked your thread. One possibility for car rental is a compact and one a little bigger. you can put 4 adults in the compact and the other tow and most of the luggage in the other. I've been seeing a real cheap price for a compact w/ hertz downtown ANC location.

No problem, I enjoyed reading all the suggestions. I went ahead and booked our flights with Delta with just one connection each way. Still looking at car rentals. Thinking about renting a 12 passenger van , the new Ford transit. Hertz and Budget has those .