The latest on one of the most volatile routes—plus what’s in store for the holidays

Most airlines are still offering summer Business Class fare discounts between now and the end of August. Most require a 30- to 42-day advance purchase, but Continental still offers a 14-day advance. American, Northwest, and United are offering 14- to 21-day advance fares.

Latest Development

British Airways has gone with an unusual move, offering its summer fare for travel all the way through Dec. 31! Currently, Los Angeles-London is $2,912 (reg. $5,032) and New York-London is $1,976 (reg. $3,192), with a ticketing deadline of July 21. These fares are upgradeable with one of my favorite strategies. (See FCF Mar. 2008 for more.) Virgin is only matching the fare for travel Aug. 6 to Aug. 31, 2008.

Fly From (or via) Canada

Air Canada has started offering special Business Class fares to Europe that only require booking seven days in advance. Fares start at about 50% less than usual!

Best Seats

You know how much I like British Airways and Virgin Atlantic. See April’s FCF for a breakdown on best values by alliance.

Year-End Holiday Travel

It’s not time to bite—that’s my take on getting the best value for the holiday season. Continental wins the 2008 Early Kickoff Award. It’s offering round-trip Business Class fares to Europe starting at just $1,020 (plus taxes) for Thanksgiving travel (outbound Nov. 23 through Nov. 29; return Nov. 27 through Nov. 28 or Dec. 2 through Dec. 4) and $1,220 at Christmas and New Year’s (outbound Dec. 20 through Jan. 2, return Dec. 25 through Jan. 9).

But savvy travelers know the gravy is still coming.

You see, Mass Market Carriers (MMC) routinely launch fare sales far in advance to snag the jumpy traveler. There’s usually a fare match by a Premium Service Carrier (PSC) or two, which makes it seem that it’s time to pull the trigger.

The problem with jumping at Continental is not the fare, it’s the carrier’s Business Class cabin. It’s inconsistent. In fact, the carrier offers three different seats to Europe, two of them are way below average.

So hold your fire and let Continental do the work for you. (If you have already purchased a Continental ticket, you can cancel it for $300 and use it towards a better deal in the future.) This sort of offer makes competitors come up with matching fares. Unless you’re a Continental loyalist, wait for the competitors to cast their lines. Availability is wide open at the moment. And remember, you can earn CO miles on other SkyTeam members.

[aside headline="" alignment="alignright" width="half" headline_size="default"]If you must book on Continental, make sure to fly one of its B777s flying from Houston to Paris and also some London flights. From New York/Newark, only some of its flights to Frankfurt, London/LHR, Paris, and Rome operate with B777s, so make sure to double-check.[/aside]

Always Remember

As with most of the opportunities to Europe, if you can’t find a heavily discounted ticket to your intended destination, consider buying a ticket to London (Paris can be good at times, too), or start your ticket in New York. When other low-cost options aren’t found, this is a way to piece together inexpensive fights to and from the two continent’s low-cost hubs. Flexibility on dates is also something to keep in mind when price is the driver.