US-to-Europe flight ticket = US$1200?? (SFO->CDG, FCO->SFO; roundtrip; April 2007)?

Question

I am trying to purchase a round-trip ticket for my Europe backpacking trip in April 2007:

- San Francisco (SFO) to Paris, France (CDG) on 4/9/07 (Mon)
- Rome, Italy (FCO) to San Francisco (SFO) on 4/22/07 (Sun)

I did several searches and it costs about US$1200. It is a lot more expensive than I expected, probably because of the following reasons:

- Need non-stop flight for SFO->CDG
- Need to arrive/depart at different airports in Europe (CDG, FCO)

I found out that it's only April 2007 that is that expensive. I did searches with the same settings for Jan/Feb/Mar 2007 and it costs a lot less (US$800) ... why is that? (I don't think April is considered holiday season yet) and what can I do to get a cheaper ticket (with the above requirements)? Thanks.

Answer 1

Well, having strict requirements doesn't help of course. April is not high-season but it is more in demand than March. Trying moving the arrival and departure days to see if you can pick up a better price. Usually you can find published rules for the fares and it iwll tell you exactly what days are chepaest and for what dates the fare is valid. You might be able to save some money by moving your departure date to earlier in the month.

But in general, what is probably going to kill you is the requirement for direct flights. Everyone wants direct flights, so of course they are more expensive. I suggest you look at one-stop itineriaries just to understand the difference in price.

Answer 2

that does seem like a lot. i was in the CAA (AAA) office the other day and i saw this thing where you go backpacking across europe for about 23 days. and you have lodging and food and airfare for about 1500 altogether. so i would say your best bet would be to go thru a travel agent. or at least ask them questions so you don't have to pay them a fee. i think things were more $$ in April is cuz it's close to spring break maybe? honestly i don't knnow that one. but airline tickets fluctuate daily(online) so check back many times. and at diffrernet times of the day.

i once needed a round trip ticket to the states and i waited a while and they went from 250 to 196. so keep looking. good luck and have a good trip!

Answer 3

technically april is the start of the high season. I would look to buy a couple one ways. Flying from Italy to the US is pretty heap. Try Alitalia airlines.

Fly into London as its cheaper then take the train to Paris.....

FLy into Dublin and get a Ryanair flight to Paris... i recently got on for 10euro.

$1200 isnt bad, but you could do better if you have the time.

Answer 4

whoa dude that way to much, try purchasing two one way tickets instead of both all together. The price of tickets can fluctuate a lot form day to day for a lot of reasons. try yahoo travel with the option that your travel dates are flexable, you can usually find the dates you want anyway....