Everyone's experiencing airfare sticker shock this year -- not only on domestic travel, but even more so when exploring the cost to travel to Europe.
Trips that once cost $700-$900 for summer visits now are typically $1500. At rates that high, a family of three or four might decide instead to stay home and purchase a nice used car.
But a bit of relief has come about with a newly released sale from British Airways.
This latest sale is significant enough to reconsider a trip across the pond with most destinations falling under the $900 mark for travel from Aug. 26-Dec. 23 or Jan. 5-March 31, 2013.
In a big surprise, round-trip rates to Rome, Italy are one of the least expensive destinations on the list.
$820.30 Madrid, Spain
$836.30 Rome
$856.30 Oslo, Norway
$856.50 Milan, Italy
$858.00 Lisbon, Portugal or Shannon, Ireland
$861.40 Stockholm, Sweden
$866.40 London
$867.70 Budapest, Hungary
$872.40 Brussels, Belgium
$873.80 Nice, France
$875.80 Amsterdam
$881.10 Zurich, Switzerland
$890.70 Athens, Greece
$895.60 Edinburgh, Scotland
$898.40 Paris
$920.30 Munich
$928.20 Frankfurt
Plan to stay at least one Saturday night and return within 180 days of departure (stays of up to one year permitted to U.K. cities).
British Airways serves most of these destinations with connecting service at London's Heathrow Airport. Stopovers in London are not permitted.
This BA sale has a ticket-by date of July 25. But if history repeats itself, this sale is likely to vanish before the weekend. Act fast -- as in now!
Sale airfares are always subject to change. Every seat on every flight is not offered at the lowest rate.
I recommend starting the search for available seats at Kayak.com vs. calling an airline directly. You can also search for the sale at travel websites such as Expedia, Travelocity, etc.
Clara Bosonetto is a retired travel consultant.
About the Author
