Best websites/methods for finding cheap airfares to Europe from U.S.

[ObviouslyNotAGolfer]

We are visiting France (Paris, St. Malo area, Carnac/Vannes) for about three weeks in late June - early July timeframe. Our exact dates are not set in stone and we have some flexibility that I hope will result in a lower airfare. The fares I'm seeing are a bit expensive (2 x economy rt = 2500 - 3000$) and we have looked at various third party sites (Expedia) as well as websites for Air France, Aer Lingus (I have other business in Ireland), Air Tahiti Nui, etc.

Facepunch me? No, not really. We can afford it, are frugal in many other ways. Travel, in addition to FIRE is one of my major motivations for adopting some of the principles of mustachianism! ;)

I would probably prefer to fly nonstop on AF, partly also because I want to fly on the A380 before they retire it. The cheapest fares I'm seeing now are BA--but of course, you get what you pay for, and I avoid LHR at all costs, especially for making connections. Iberia through Madrid is also quite inexpensive, and a few layover days in Madrid would certainly be interesting if that could be arranged. However, I see on Expedia that this flight is actually very poorly rated.

I am not enthused about trying any budget/charter operations with a la carte everything. Again, you get what you pay for and I have read a lot of very poor online reviews for some of these carriers. I will not accept more than one connection.

Hence, my questions:

What airlines/flights do you recommend from LAX (or North America)? Which to avoid? Any experiences with Iberia? Air France?

I've heard from several friends in the aviation world (e.g., pilots) that CDG is an absolute hellhole. Is it much more preferable to fly into/out of Orly?

What website do you prefer for finding affordable airfares?

Thanks!

[Parizade]

If you can be flexible about your dates I would always use Google Flights. I plugged in a 3 week roundtrip LAX to Paris and used the price graph to see what dates are the most affordable. In June you could get 2 adult economy rt tickets for $1452 (Jun 5-26), but if you wait until August you could get 2 rt tickets for $1005 (Aug 12- Sep 2). I saw flights in May for even less.

[ObviouslyNotAGolfer]

Thank you! Looks like a very promising tool.

[kpd905]

I already have all of my vacations booked for the year, but I subscribed to https://scottscheapflights.com/ and they have sent me a really tempting flight deal almost every day since I signed up.  I just went for the free version, which lets you pick your area of the country.  The premium membership narrows it down to just your closest airport.

[FireAnt]

Ditto on Scott's Cheap Flights and Google Flight. I just caved this weekend and got the paid version for SCF... we'll see!
Travelzoo and Skyscanner are additional options. I love Skyscanner because you can put "everywhere" as the destination and it will tell you where there are decent prices to currently.

[Versatile]

I like Skiplagged. Give them a try.

[nnls]

I usually use skyscanner or google flights.

[sparkytheop]

When I'm looking for literally anywhere anytime, I have used Kayak.com's explore option.  It pops up with a map of flights (you can set the budget limit) and you go from there.  My trip to Sweden in April (from PDX, with a layover at LAX) was $370 round trip.  It uses American Airlines and Finnair.  I did pick the pretty bare-bones option though (limited weight carry on and personal item only).

[oldtoyota]

I'm flying to Paris about the same time and found flights for $800 each from the east coast using Google Flights.

I always take a look at the Icelandic airlines for deals, too. This time, though, Air France won.

[gmp029]

I like ita matrix for searching.

https://matrix.itasoftware.com

Are you in a hub city with direct flights, or are you willing to drive a short distance to get to a hub if you find a good deal?

Also a fan of The Points Guy blog, but I have never been able to cash in on any deals they post. 

Sent from my Pixel 2 using Tapatalk

[BussoV6]

Skyscanner or google flights. However, after you have decided on which flight, go to the airline's own website and doublecheck their price. Every now and again it is still cheaper...

[Linea_Norway]

Normally I would recommend having a look at https://www.norwegian.com/us/. They tend to have occasional cheap flights. But for the moment they are not allowed to fly their transatlantic airplanes (B737 Max8), because of the accident with the same aircraft type in Africa.

[Loren Ver]

I use Kayak.com too and I like skyscanner.com for just looking around.  They also let you search nearby airports.  Sometimes it is cheaper to fly nearby and then take a train to where you want to be.

I also do a double check on the specific airline website and book through them, as they usually have the price listed. 

[EngagedToFIRE]

Normally I would recommend having a look at https://www.norwegian.com/us/. They tend to have occasional cheap flights. But for the moment they are not allowed to fly their transatlantic airplanes (B737 Max8), because of the accident with the same aircraft type in Africa.

I'm not sure how many, if any, transatlantic flights Norwegian does with the 737 Max8.  They use the 787 Dreamliner for transatlantic flights which are unaffected.  I don't know their operations that well, other than we have flown the 787's with them multiple times.  Maybe they use the Max8 for the shorter northern transatlantic routes?  There are still options though to use Norwegian and avoid the Max8.

[Linea_Norway]

Normally I would recommend having a look at https://www.norwegian.com/us/. They tend to have occasional cheap flights. But for the moment they are not allowed to fly their transatlantic airplanes (B737 Max8), because of the accident with the same aircraft type in Africa.

I'm not sure how many, if any, transatlantic flights Norwegian does with the 737 Max8.  They use the 787 Dreamliner for transatlantic flights which are unaffected.  I don't know their operations that well, other than we have flown the 787's with them multiple times.  Maybe they use the Max8 for the shorter northern transatlantic routes?  There are still options though to use Norwegian and avoid the Max8.

You are right that the other aircraft types are not affected.

But I heard on the news that they use Max8 also on transatlantic flights. I checked in the paper that says they have 18 x B737 Max8 and 114 x B737–800. And the dreamliners as well.

[ObviouslyNotAGolfer]

Thanks for your replies. I am almost certain Norwegian uses only the 787 (and not the 737-Max) on the LAX-CDG route. I doubt any 737 has the range to fly that distance fully loaded--fortunately! 11 hours on a 737 would just suck!

We are considering Norwegian, but for all their reputation as a discount carrier, they seem to have pretty good service. However, when you add the cost for checked luggage, etc., the fares are not much (if any) cheaper than anyone else.

[liz lemon]

I would probably prefer to fly nonstop on AF, partly also because I want to fly on the A380 before they retire it.

***

What airlines/flights do you recommend from LAX (or North America)? Which to avoid? Any experiences with Iberia? Air France?

I've heard from several friends in the aviation world (e.g., pilots) that CDG is an absolute hellhole. Is it much more preferable to fly into/out of Orly?

I've flown to/through CDG many times over the last several years, mostly for work and occasionally for pleasure.  People love to hate on it, but I think it's a perfectly fine airport -- in fact, I'd go so far as to say I like it!  It can be a bit of a pain to make connections, thanks to ongoing construction, but it sounds like that would not be an issue for you.  There are also many easy and inexpensive ways to get from CDG to the city, including the Air France bus, RoissyBus, and RER.  I'm much less familiar with Orly, but did fly in there once last year.  I thought it was fine, though the terminal I arrived at was a bit run down.  We ended up taking a taxi to the city, because there was a fairly inexpensive flat rate -- I'm not sure about public transportation options from Orly.

All my flights were on Delta or Air France (from JFK), and I was happy with both.  The A380 is fun - if you can find a decent price, I'd say go for it!

[BrightFIRE]

Check out https://www.theflightdeal.com/category/flight-deals/lax/ I pre-selected the LAX dropdown for you. They are frequent flier nerds, so they will be very clear if the flight is basic or regular economy, how much bag fees are, etc. They always suggest you use ITA Matrix to search for flights, but you can't book on the site itself. I've gotten lots of great deals from them, but usually when I didn't have a destination already in mind.

Also, summer flights are nearly always more expensive than shoulder season, so that's probably why you're seeing high fares. If you can swing it, try to book at least 6 months out for international for the best deals.

FYI, Google bought ITA Matrix a few years ago and uses the same tech to run Google Flights, but Matrix has more detailed options for the hardcore experienced flier. Google Flights also has an Explore feature I've used often.

[ObviouslyNotAGolfer]

Tried to reserve on Norwegian TWICE with my Citibank Master card =

FAIL!

FAIL!

Extremely frustrating!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Citibank rep said that MasterCard is denying the charge because they don't find the vendor database to be "safe", and CItibank has nothing to do with this.

WTF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[ObviouslyNotAGolfer]

Just used my AMEX Blue and it went through with no problem. So I get 1% back instead of 2%. Not worth it to use my Citi for this one!!!

Thanks again for your help. Total on Norwegian came to aboot 2300$ incl. checked bags, seat assignment, priority boarding (Facepunch me! LOL), and cheap (24$ total) cancellation insurance. Woohoo, we're going to France!

[Linea_Norway]

Have a nice trip.

About the cancellation insurance, I never buy that. Cancellation for aickness or important things are usually covered by my normal travel insurance. Please check for next time whether you don't overinsure.

[ObviouslyNotAGolfer]

Well, this covers sickness and/or death of a passenger or family member, for 24$ total.

Anyway, I have heard good thing about the Airline, and I was pleased to see our seat reservations were included and they did not try to nickel and dime us for too many things. AF would have been 200 more even before paying extra for seat assignments.

[Threshkin]

We use Cheapo Air mostly for our flights to Asia. 

On our last trip there we used Vayama.  The fare was great but their interface into Air China sucked.  I had to call AC directly to get seat assignments and check in.  Even then it was not easy.  Lots of hold time and lengthy explanations.  Not likely to use them again.

[Keith Maison]

Kiwi and skyscanner are my go-to services