Turning left on planes to enjoy business-class cabins need not break the bank in the coming months – if you play your cards right.
Analysis of fares reveals savings of as much as 63 per cent in July and August, with substantial reductions common on most routes and aviation experts explaining that corporate travel has fallen off dramatically during the summer holidays.
The biggest deal, found on Google Flights earlier this week, featured Virgin Atlantic return flights from Manchester to New York – offered for £1,538 compared with the standard average price of £4,200 (see graphic).
Meanwhile, London to Boston on JetBlue was 53 per cent lower at £1,437 (instead of £3,075 usually), London to New York, also on JetBlue, was from £1,446 (instead of £2,725) and Edinburgh to San Francisco was from £1,996 on Scandinavian Airlines (rather than a typical £3,475).
‘Business travel goes down in the summer as business flyers don’t like being on planes when leisure travellers are around,’ says Gilbert Ott, of Godsavethepoints.com, revealing that the glut of offers is especially noticeable due to corporate travel still failing to have bounced back post-Covid.
So, here’s our ultimate guide to tracking down some of the most tempting business-class fares.
Use comparison sites
Flights and Skyscanner.net are excellent for comparing business-class fares. With the former, simply adjust the tab to ‘business’ and select non-stop flights or specify how many stops you’re willing to make.
Turning left on planes to enjoy business-class cabins need not break the bank in the coming months – if you play your cards right
Then click on ‘View price history’, which shows the typical range of prices, with green being low, orange ‘typical’ and red expensive.
On Skyscanner, there’s a similar traffic light system – although historical price comparisons are not possible.
It’s easier to compare airline prices and journey times and you can also adjust the maximum journey time more simply.
Price tracking
With Google Flights and Skyscanner, it’s possible to set ‘price alerts’ for updates on the cheapest fares for specific routes when travelling business (or economy) class.
These are a great way to pounce on lowest prices, especially when planning ahead.
Book early
There are different schools of thought among aviation experts on the best moment to nab business-class flights, but the growing consensus is to book as early as possible – ideally 10 to 12 months ahead.
Fares are only released as far as a year in advance, although this varies by airline.
BA business-class non-stop flights from London to New York are currently from £1,420 next March, while they’re as much as £8,580 later this month.
The growing consensus is to book flights as early as possible – ideally 10 to 12 months ahead
Check the ‘sweet spot’
For low long-haul business-class fares, some experts also say the period between three to five months ahead of travel is best.
This is when such ticket prices traditionally dip, says Rob Burgess, of headforpoints.com, the frequent flyer/hotel loyalty programme website. So this is worth checking too.
Consider a package
Sometimes, airlines will boost business-class sales by making their package holiday offerings in business particularly tempting.
For example, BA Holidays has seven nights with business-class flights from £4,915pp staying at Dream South Beach in Miami this June, while fare-only returns are from £4,668pp.
So the extra cost for the hotel is a mere £494 for seven nights or £247pp based on two sharing. Turkish Airlines, Virgin Atlantic and Qatar Airways also offer packages.
‘They’re always worth checking if you’re intending to stay at a hotel,’ says Rob Burgess at Head for Points.
Make a bid
Airlines such as SAS, Virgin Atlantic, Etihad, Cathay Pacific and Qantas now allow travellers with seats booked in economy or premium economy to bid online for a business upgrade – made available between two and seven days before a scheduled flight (and sometimes as close as five hours before).
‘Know your number – how much you’re willing to spend and don’t exceed that,’ advises Tamsin Cocks, of Business Traveller magazine.
Also be aware that most airlines do not allow bids jumping two classes from economy to business. You will need to do so by already having a premium economy ticket.
For low long-haul business-class fares, some experts also say the period between three to five months ahead of travel is best
Download airline apps
If you’re interested in a lastminute upgrade, these are most easily monitored via airline apps.
Go from Europe
This may not suit everyone, but business flights can be considerably cheaper from outside the UK.
By doing so, you will also avoid Air Passenger Duty for long-haul flights of as much as £224.
For example, to travel from London to New York in June for a four-night getaway with business-class seats on Aer Lingus was £2,331 on Skyscanner.net. But from Dublin on the same dates, it came to £1,512.
Get newsletters
Airline newsletters will inform you when ticket sales are starting – be ready to pounce as the best deals go quickly. It’s also worth signing up to luxuryflightclub.com. Its motto is ‘fly business class, pay economy class’.
By joining frequent flyer clubs, you can gather a stash of points for future upgrades
‘Error fares’
These are when pricing mistakes are made online by airlines – sometimes when a ‘0’ is even missed off.
‘Error fares do happen but disappear very quickly and airlines do not always honour them,’ warns Nicky Kelvin, from thepointsguy.com.
Sign up for email alerts from the likes of kayak.co.uk, hopper.com and secretflying.com to find out about them. Also check forums such as flyertalk.com.
Be a frequent flyer
By joining frequent flyer clubs, you can gather a stash of points for future upgrades.
Upgrading from premium economy to business might typically require 20,000 to 30,000 Avios points, while you’d need 65,000 points to upgrade from economy to Virgin’s Upper Class cabin on a London to Washington DC flight.
‘You can find the absolute best deals on business-class flights by utilising points and miles,’ says Nicky Kelvin, from thepointsguy.com.
This article was originally published by a www.dailymail.co.uk . Read the Original article here. .