Flights to Europe for less than $1000

The $1,000-airfare ceiling has been broken to overseas destinations! Here are three of the best bargains:

• $636 Shannon, Ireland; $643 Cork or Dublin, Ireland: Valid on Oct. 27-Dec. 12 or Jan. 9-March 27, 2014 departures. Travel Sunday-Thursday east; Monday-Thursday west. Travel on other days of the week is $30 more, each way. Stay one weekend or up to one month. Rates to these three Irish cities have been fluctuating for days — with today's rates the lowest. It's unlikely the rates will fall further, so act fast on these prices. One flight connection is required in Newark, N. J. or Frankfurt, Germany. Stopovers are not permitted.

• United Airlines gets you to Buenos Aires, Argentina at a round-trip rate of $909 - now through Aug. 22, 2014 - and without the hassle of blackout dates. Give at least a two-week advance purchase notice. Stay at least one Saturday night or up to one year. Compare to other carrier rates of $1,300 during peak season. Remember that Argentina experiences opposite seasons to the states. So consider going south to summer temps this winter. Buy tickets on this deal immediately! United serves Buenos Aires with one stop service in Houston, Texas.

• USAirway's round-trip rate of $1,020 to Rio de Janeiro or Sao Paulo, Brazil are valid on trips started on or after Nov. 24 and completed on or before Feb. 20, 2014. Travel any available day of the week and plan to be away at least any three nights. No holiday blackouts! Purchase by Oct. 11. USAirways serves these Brazilian cities with one-stop service in Charlotte, N.C.

Every seat on every flight is not offered at the lowest rate. On some departures or days there may be few or no tickets available at the lowest price. Since only a limited supply of seats is available, act quickly to make your purchase.

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, Orbitz or Travelocity, etc.

Airlines can discontinue or pull a sale price without notice when the offer does not have a “ticket-by” date or when the offer is deemed “sold out.”