canada_sept_06

Hi there,

Anybody knows of the cheapest ways to cross the atlantic from London to San Francisco? The only two that I've found so far are British Airways and Virgin, however both of them are quite expensive to spend New Year's Eve in San Francisco. I was also thinking of travelling through Canada with Zoom airlines but does not seem to fly around those dates. Any help please? Thanks.

Manc

how much is
"quite expensive"?
how much do you consider cheap?

Big D

doubt you will get a cheap deal over Christmas or New Year - one of the more expensive times to travel i think

lauriejane

The only thing I can think of right now is a courier flight. I have found some of them on CheapTrips.com and I know there are many more websites that feature them. The catch is that you have to travel light, only one carry on bag, no bags checked. And, of course, you have to travel with the packet they give you, though you do not actually have to physically carry it with you.

BritGuyTN

Yeah, I think the whole thing is fundamentally a fair bit of cash.

Sort of like saying, "i want to own a ferrari but it seems quite expensive'

It is something like an 5500 miles as the crow flies

canada_sept_06

Thanks for your answers but can you name some budge airlines cheaper than British Airways or Virgin to travel from London to San Francisco around January? Thanks

Bob

There aren't any...it's a long flight, going to be expensive...

but you could try iceland jobby with a stop off there and flying into montreal and connect again from there, or from within the US...

AdobePinon

There are no budget airlines to the US. You might also look at United, if you can actually stand to fly with them.

BigDavyG

Aer Fungus are about as budget as it gets.
Unfortunately they are also shithouses.
Check out kayak or mobissimo as per usual.

Englishmum

Or fly Air India from Heathrow to JFK. Clear US immigration and customs.
Then fly with budget airline JetBlue to Oakland (just across the bay from San Fran - approx 15 miles away). It's the best domestic US airline that I've flown with.

http://www.jetblue.com (you have to book online on their website).

Actually there are a couple of 'budget' airlines crossing the pond.....but they are for business class passengers. One of them is MaxJet from Stansted airport...don't think it goes to San Fran though.

Bob

Spirit Airlines aren't bad for cheap deals across the US and neighbouring countries....sounds a bit dodgy, but a cousin flew with them, bargin tickets...but once you've booked, you can't transfer or anything like that...

http://www.spiritair.com

http://www.cheapflights.com/airlines/spirit.html

BigDavyG

That makes absolutely no sense - can you elaborate ??

AdobePinon

Seems like a lot of work. Would that really work out cheaper?

canada_sept_06

Sorry about the question, but it's my first time flying to US. What do you mean "clear US immigration and customs"?

By the way, thank you again.

Englishmum

Maxjet and Eos are small airlines crossing the Atlantic with all seats being business class ie. having dedicated lounges at the airports and the larger seats and cabin space in the plane as on the major airlines.

These aircraft do not have other cabins ie. First, Economy Plus or Economy - the whole cabin is business class. For example, my husband flew in Club class on a BA flight to London last month from Newark to work at his company's HQ in London (he kindly let me have his seat on the return trip and he sat in my economy seat LOL - the trip coincided with my cousin's wedding) and it cost $5127.

Maxjet flies from JFK to Stansted and the business class fare would have been approx $1500 (sometimes they have an offer going on, I've seen prices of $999 round trip).

However...their fleet is tiny and if there is a mechanical problem, they don't have any extra planes to put into service so you are likely to be stranded for some time.

Here's the info on Eos and Maxjet:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eos_Airlines

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MAXjet_Airways

and next January a new airline, 'Silverjet' will be flying between Luton airport and Newark, NJ (New York metro area). Business class flights will initially cost $999:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silverjet