part two - air tickets
I continue to plan my Christmas trip to New York. In first part I chose the places I wanted to see in New York, planned them out itineraries and figured 7 days would be enough. The deadline has to be around Christmas and New Year's Eve because I want to catch the Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center and New Year's Eve in Times Square. So it's time for the plane tickets. I thought I'd start thinking about them in July. Mistake, big mistake.
PROMOTION on airline tickets!
When planning a trip, it's a good idea to keep an eye on how airfare prices and promotions change throughout the year. I sometimes check airfare prices on skyscanner.cz or google flights.
I usually keep an eye out for flight deals in my Facebook feed, where I have a page. travelwithme.com, Honza's tickets a Special flight tickets. I dare say that I won't miss any better events this way.
Thanks to this, I learned about the Turkish Airlines promotion for many flights, including flights to the USA. So there is no choice but to explore it. At the same time, I already have experience with Turkish Airlines with a flight from Prague to Istanbul and back, where I was satisfied. Moreover, they even have two checked 23 kg suitcases with hand luggage as part of the ticket. Let's go.
How to choose a flight ticket?
I know that the usual price of round-trip tickets for non-low-cost airlines usually ranges from 15,000 and up. At the same time, I know that during Christmas they are some of the most expensive flights, so I can say goodbye to this price. Especially if I want at least one checked bag.
I choose a flight ticket directly on the airline's website, i.e. Turkish Airlines here. I choose a date when I want to fly approximately and then I gradually look and move on to the days when the price is more favorable. I want approximately a week, over New Year's Eve and New Year's Day. Another criterion is the transfer and the total length of the flight. Here I want to manage with one transfer at most.
I found it! Date from December 21st to January 5th. Price around 13,000 CZK, suitcases included. Decent price during the holidays. The only thing that bothers me a little is the arrival in NY at 10 pm. If I add waiting for the suitcase and the trip from the airport, I would check in at around 1 am. Well, an earlier arrival would be better.
And also, what will I do in NY for 15 days when seven is enough? Choose another flight that will be 5,000 CZK more expensive? Or wait for the next event? If there will be one? No certainty these days.
But what else should we see in the USA?
Los Angeles in the game
Among the Turkish Airlines flight deals, I was interested in Los Angeles. It will probably be warmer there than New York, it's the second largest city with lots of interesting places. So why not combine them somehow.
I found through search engines that a flight between LA and NY will cost around 6,000 CZK during the holidays, if I'm lucky, maybe even less. That's not bad.
A multi-city ticket can be booked on the route Prague – Los Angeles and the return flight New York – Prague. Both with a stopover in Istanbul. Yes, it will make the trip a little longer, but the total price came to 14,229 CZK. I'm buying it. Of course, I'm not paying to be able to choose seats on the plane. I'll either get some assigned at check-in, or I'll change them if possible for free. But I don't want to spend another 100 or so EUR on them.
The only thing that is a bit impractical is that I will spend the night at the airport in Istanbul on the way there – 8 hours of waiting. But, I came across a great website sleepinginairports.net, where I read that you can spend the night at the Istanbul airport without any problems. There are sleeping zones where you can sleep on a couch, or in a closed capsule (7 EUR per hour) or in a hotel right at the airport. So, no problem. I'll survive 8 hours.
I still have to decide how long I'll be in Los Angeles. So, just like I did with New York, I'm going to read various websites, look at maps, and look for places and attractions I want to visit. From that, I'll create an itinerary and see how many days it will be.
Then I can buy flights from LA to NY and also start looking for accommodation. More on that next time.