Confessions of a YYC Travel Junkie

[tete]

Menorca was amazing. That deal was amazing.

[Flamenspiel]

Originally Posted by cmyden

A good blog post about this:

http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.c...t-of-business/

Thanks cmyden!

[uofaflamesfan]

Is Air Canada Rouge as bad as the reviews make it out to be for transatlantic flights?

Looking to fly to Spain in July - is it worth paying extra for another airline?

[TheAlpineOracle]

Originally Posted by uofaflamesfan

Is Air Canada Rouge as bad as the reviews make it out to be for transatlantic flights?

Looking to fly to Spain in July - is it worth paying extra for another airline?

I've never flown Rouge transatlantic, but I have to Vegas a couple of times. Would avoid it like the plague. If you are a short person though, if it saved you a couple of hundred dollars I would consider it. Seats aren't that bad other than pitch.

[TheyCallMeBruce]

Probably the best deal I have ever seen for a flight to Singapore. You'll just have to contend with possible physical abuse by United though

http://www.yycdeals.com/calgary-to-s...ncluding-taxes


United Airlines is showing flights from Calgary to Singapore for $692 CAD roundtrip including taxes.

[Wormius]

Why is Rouge so bad? I don't recall ever flying it, but what is it like compared to a Tango flight?

[Lubicon]

Originally Posted by Wormius

Why is Rouge so bad? I don't recall ever flying it, but what is it like compared to a Tango flight?

Seat pitch mainly from what I hear. 29" on narrow bodies and 30" on the wide bodies.

[Fuzz]

The seats are quite hard as well. Older planes, so noisier, no power outlets so with no entertainment, make sure you have a full charge. On top of that, you get the usually Air Canada levels of service. If nothing goes wrong, it's fine. If it does, and in my experiencing, that's about 70% of the time be prepared for a really sucky day or 2.

When I go to Europe, it's KLM first, and I'll consider Westjet and BA, depending on final destination. Really anything direct from Calgary to Europe is my priority, figure out the rest from there. I'd rather not transfer in Canada or US. I've found the price is only $100 or so more for other airlines, which IMHO is worth it to avoid the AC lottery.

[Hanni]

Originally Posted by uofaflamesfan

Is Air Canada Rouge as bad as the reviews make it out to be for transatlantic flights?

Looking to fly to Spain in July - is it worth paying extra for another airline?

We ended up on a Rouge flight from Rome to Montreal a few years ago (booked with points, didn't know when booking) as mentioned they are older planes, not real comfortable, TV's in the roof instead of seat back. Wasn't horrible but not a great experience either.

[STeeLy]

Originally Posted by Wormius

Why is Rouge so bad? I don't recall ever flying it, but what is it like compared to a Tango flight?

Only flown short distance Rouge (YYC-LAS-YYC) on the A319

29" seat pitch, as a 5'7" average sized person, it was cramped... No power outlets on the A319 (no surprise, short haul). The IFE system took a little bit of time before I could get it working.

I find the seats about just as tough/stiff as other airline seats, but it was still uncomfortable.

[Calgary14]

Rouge - probably one of the most uncomfortable flights Ive taken, and I've flown Allegiant. Nothing went terribly wrong it's just the service, seat pitch etc.

With that being said - I'd still consider Rouge if it was the cheapest option by far, and only for short flights under 4 hours.

I imagine this is what Westjet's new low cost brand will be like

[brocoli]

Hey cmyden,

what should I be looking at for prices to Argentina in the fall (October). Right now it's looking like $1600. Is that close to par or should I hold off a bit?

[cmyden]

Originally Posted by brocoli

Hey cmyden,

what should I be looking at for prices to Argentina in the fall (October). Right now it's looking like $1600. Is that close to par or should I hold off a bit?

The average bottom price from Calgary to Buenos Aires is somewhere in the $1300s CAD roundtrip these days. So $1600 isn't *too* out of line, depending on who you're flying with, number of stops, etc.

It's been a long time since there's been any really interesting price drops to Argentina! (May of 2015, when they dropped into the $800s).

[Fuzz]

Is there a reason, when looking through Google flights that when i select a start date, it only shows return flights for 30 days? It must be possible to do longer stays, correct?

EDIT: nevermind, I can do it it just doesn't show prices in the calendar past that date.

[HOWITZER]

Originally Posted by cmyden

The average bottom price from Calgary to Buenos Aires is somewhere in the $1300s CAD roundtrip these days. So $1600 isn't *too* out of line, depending on who you're flying with, number of stops, etc.

It's been a long time since there's been any really interesting price drops to Argentina! (May of 2015, when they dropped into the $800s).

I'm going to piggy-back a bit here, and ask what is typical from YVR?

I'm teeing up a couple trips to either Buenos Aires or Rio. It looks like Vancouver to either bottoms out around:

• Buenos Aires - ~$1,300
• Rio - ~$1,500

Can prices be expected to dip below that with any frequency?

[cmyden]

Originally Posted by HOWITZER

I'm going to piggy-back a bit here, and ask what is typical from YVR?

I'm teeing up a couple trips to either Buenos Aires or Rio. It looks like Vancouver to either bottoms out around:

• Buenos Aires - ~$1,300
• Rio - ~$1,500

Can prices be expected to dip below that with any frequency?

Prices are pretty similar from YVR to Buenos Aires (EZE) as they are from Calgary. It's probably about $50 cheaper on average from YVR.

There were some pretty amazing prices to Brazil from across Canada in 2015/2016...

http://yycdeals.com/calgary-to-rio-d...quired-in-june

But since about mid 2016, the only notable price drops from Calgary or Vancouver to anywhere in South America have been Aeromexico's flights to Peru, Ecuador, and Colombia.

[Ozy_Flame]

cmyden - seeing a lot of deals recently to other places in Asia, but not Tokyo . . . Know of anything existing/coming up that may offer good flights (direct or not) to Narita or Haneda? Looking to book New Years or beginning of 2018.

[rubecube]

I've been looking at booking a multi-city trip from YVR to Bogota, Buenos Aires, and Rio for next February and am wondering if I'm doing it the most effective way. Using the ITA Matrix, I see that airfare will cost roughly $2000. Are there any other sites I should be checking or different methods I can use to find cheaper flights?

[me_dennis]

cmyden, do you have any knowledge/experience with taking a train from paris to barcelona?

We are going on a transatlantic cruise, starting in barcelona and ending in NYC.

I'm thinking of flying into Paris and staying a few nights, then taking a bullet train to Barcelona a day before our cruise departure.

What is the best way to book a one way train ticket for 2 adults and a 1 yr old? We are leaning towards the train route because we haven't travelled by train before, and also with all the baggage we'll be packing for an 11 night cruise, plus all the baby stuff (stroller, car seat, etc), Easyjet/Ryan air would cost an arm and a leg for baggage alone.

Do you have a recommended website to book train tickets? Do you know if there is much waiting time for security/customs, etc?

I've never taken a train before in Europe, so any tips/advice is appreciated.

[tete]

Originally Posted by me_dennis

cmyden, do you have any knowledge/experience with taking a train from paris to barcelona?

We are going on a transatlantic cruise, starting in barcelona and ending in NYC.

I'm thinking of flying into Paris and staying a few nights, then taking a bullet train to Barcelona a day before our cruise departure.

What is the best way to book a one way train ticket for 2 adults and a 1 yr old? We are leaning towards the train route because we haven't travelled by train before, and also with all the baggage we'll be packing for an 11 night cruise, plus all the baby stuff (stroller, car seat, etc), Easyjet/Ryan air would cost an arm and a leg for baggage alone.

Do you have a recommended website to book train tickets? Do you know if there is much waiting time for security/customs, etc?

I've never taken a train before in Europe, so any tips/advice is appreciated.

I've just booked train tickets via the French rail site SNCF in the past. You can take the TGV from Paris to Barcelona - I think it's about 4 hours? I'll give you a warning, there is not a lot of luggage storage area in most trains, I'd strongly suggest travelling with a very small umbrella stroller and not bringing the car seat. Even though I am crazy anal about car seat safety here in Canada, I suck it up and travel without one for my kid for overseas travel - if we need one for a rental car, I rent one there. Most taxi drivers will not be thrilled with you trying to install one in a cab.