Flight bookings for family trip to US Sept '13.

Hi,

I'm starting to plan a trip from Sydney (Canberra but lets forget that for now) to Denver.
3 adults, 1 child (4 y/o) and 1 child (1 y/o).
At this stage we are looking at travelling around mid September 2013 for 4 weeks.
I've read several posts relating to O/S flights here all with some good bits of info.
I've been told to try and fly into Dallas F/W instead of LA as it's "easier" to clear customs and conecting flights will be cheaper (and prices are around the same). However when searching for good deals on flights most are SYD - LA and not Dallas.
I know it's still a while out from trip but just trying to get an idea of when the best time to fly is, with who, and when the deals will be comming out?!?!

Main Q's are:

  • When travelling involves kids, am I better off going to see a travel agent or trying to nut it out myself online? (time is no issue)
  • Is Sept. a good time to fly if looking for a good deal?
  • When is a good time to start looking for/booking cheap flights? Airlines? Websites?
  • Is there any telling when deals may be released by airlines and how far out from actual travel?
  • Thoughts on LA or Dallas?
  • If getting a good cheap deal on flights is it going to be possible to fly into Dallas but fly out from LA?
  • Cheap domestic flights in US? (southwestern??)

Thanks!

Comments

  • Some of Sept was a good time. I booked 13 Sept 2012 this year, this being a week before school hols in NSW. Now booking on the 14th would have cost me much more. So you really have to play with Dates. But school holiday time is always more expensive, unless something else intervenes, and a few days before tends to be more expensive.

    Also look at a ticket that may give you a stop over so you can fly say to Dallas, but stopover in LA on the way back. This all a matter of economics and the deals being offered. Plus in time saved you are going to trade off the total time as Dallas is further East than Denver, say it adds more than 1 hour of travel time, that will make up for the time lost in LA customs.

    US domestic fares arent always that cheap, it just depends on where you are travelling to and when.

    Clearing customs in LAX can be a pain. That said my last 2 trips were relatively fast (relative being the compared to previous 2 hours waits).

    My experience is that you cant book more than 12 months in advance, and the cheap fares could come on at any time, but most times no more than 3 months out. (The Expedia ireland deal here was a bit weird and was outside that time frame) Gone it seems are the advance purchase deals of years ago. Plus you have to pay in advance, so there's lost interest etc

    Airlines get nervous about 3-4 months out if the bookings are slow and offer deals. But again depends on demand which depends on how many eggs are laid by a chicken on a 23 degree day in Tashkent. ie we dont know ahead of time.

    Also checkout http://www.australianfrequentflyer.com.au. Become a member free and ask for hints and tips there. There are many who really do have clues on trip bookings, cars, hotels, etc

    If you are adventuresome and depends what you plan to do in Denver, you can fly to LAX, rent a car and drive to Denver, via Vegas and I70. One of the prettiest trips you can ever do. Theres also a slight detour to Zion NP and Bryce canyon. Google this to see what I mean. 3-4 days with stop overs. Then come back via Santa Fe, and Grand Canyon. But it depends on the need for the 4 weeks in Denver or you could extend your trip for a few days.

    I booked a car with Alamo last year for $280 for 4 weeks and already have one for $380 this 4 week trip, but you might want a larger car than we had, Toyota Corolla

    Hope that helps

    • Hey ozpete, thanks for the reply.

      I’m pretty flexible with dates as long as the 2 weeks of ACT school holidays (28/9 – 13/10/13) are included. The earlier the better though to get in more regular season baseball as I don’t know who will be in the play-offs next year yet. : D

      My original thinking is fly into Dallas then connect onto Denver. On the way home we would leave Denver a week or so in advance and drive to LA via Vegas etc. We have friends in Denver so accommodation, car and local knowledge are already sorted which is a big help.

      Will check out AFF and the driving route you mentioned, sounds awesome and exactly what I was thinking.
      I also stumbled across this site if anyone is interested.
      http://www.roadtripamerica.com/

      Thanks again!

    • Just out of interest, how much did you get your ticket for and how far in advance did you book? Also who are you flying with?
      Enjoy!

  • Cars can be a little expensive for one way travel, so round trip is far better and saves quite a bit of cash and flying costs for 3 adults & 2 children.

    LAX often has cheaper prices. One trick is to book ahead, but you dont pay until you get there. Then check again, if you find prices are now lower, make a booking then cancel the old one.

    Rates go up and down. The same car I booked about 3 weeks ago is now double. It will probably go down again, so I check this weekly and will rebook if its lower than my existing booking.

    Join their frequent renter clubs for discounts and other coupons. Its free. I found Alamo the best in the past two years. Also you get to choose your own car off the lot in a certain class. We could have had a more family friendly Kia Soul for the same as the Corolla

    You should have Car rental insurance, now check the wiki here http://www.ozbargain.com.au/wiki/category:travel
    That explains it all. I have booked mine with Questor for $A160, and that covers a full year anywhere in the world.

    The wiki explains why this a better deal than the car rental or your credit card coverage.

    Take into account NSW school hols as well as that probably has greater impact on fares than the Canberra schools, although I would expect these to be around the same. (also private schools start earlier hence the greater timespan)

    The fares I got was with Expedia in Ireland - with Qantas for $850 but thats the lowest I have ever had to the USA and its a loop hole that might have closed. Found here on Ozb of course. Personally great as I have a lifetime Qantas club membership I can use.

    Also stay overnight in Vegas and avoid Fri/Sat and sometimes Sunday, you can get fabulous rates M-Th Got some last year for $30 a night. Same rooms hotel cost $120 on Friday. Its also less crowded getting around.

    Enjoy

    Oh and BTW even if you are staying with friends having your own transport really helps in the US and if you can get it for around the $120 a week rate, its probably cheaper than the 1 way rental fee which can be in the $500 vicinity.

  • If you decide to rent a car from LA it can pay to check the rates both for airport pick up and for non airport as the additional airport taxes can really add up for a longer rental. I've found kayak.com useful in researching car rates (found a Jeep Grand Cherokee for $14/day last visit)

    • Great deal, just need to be careful, some of the off airport and small companies dont allow cars to leave CA/Nevada. If its an off airport major then that probably would be ok

  • If you do have to land in LA, I strongly recommend staying a night there. Having gone to the US thrice for holidays, the second time we went straight to a connecting flight for Florida. It was hell, having just got off a 13-14 hour flight (although obviously Dallas isn't quite as far as Orlando). Google says it's 2 hours 55 minutes though, and that will feel a lot longer immediately after the trans-Pacific flight.

    Google does say there's a daily Sydney - Dallas flight, takes 15 hours 20 minutes - so you're in luck if that's what you're after.

    To address your specific questions:

    • Travel agent or not is really a preference thing. Even if you're using a travel agent, it's worth doing your own research
    • September is a fine time to travel to the US, but obviously play with dates where you can
    • You're never going to be starting your research too early, but by early January you should see most of the deals that are going to be available
    • Deals by airlines are unlikely. Just look for the best price you can find now
    • If you intend to spend time in LA, stop there first. Get over some of that jetlag
    • You should be able to find pretty decent one-way flights, so don't worry too much about linking the arrival and departure airports
    • Look online for cheap US domestic fares. I must admit I never found anything amazing, but it's worth looking.

    Ozpete mentioned Vegas, and we've been there every time we've gone to the US. First trip (1997), Vegas was incredibly cheap. Since then it got progressively more expensive, but I expect they've cut their prices again in the last couple of years. Basically, most things were subsidised by the gamblers, and in a recession I expect the casinos have probably gone back to that business model.

    Stay on The Strip. You can spend a day or two just checking out the hotels, they are HUGE. I'd suggest stay in a mid-range hotel rather than Circus Circus - it's a bit of a dive compared to the others. As Ozpete says, Monday to Thursday. And while you're there, do not say "Yes, I'd love to hear about a cheap condo". Do see the jousting at the Excalibur if it's on. See the pirate battle at Treasure Island (free for passers by). Etc.

  • If you're going to the national parks, buy a yearly pass, it'll pay for itself after 2 parks.

    also check expedia.ie there's been a few sub $1000rtn deals posted with Qantas on that site.
    (Not sure why Ireland has cheap Qantas flights from Oz->US, but who cares eh?).

    Dallas is a really friendly city, much more then LA

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