Very High Upper Class Fares To St.Lucia

Hi everyone,

I feel guilty that I never replied to let all the helpful members about my flight to St.lucia after Hurricane Tomas. It was all OK in the end as Virgin came into line with BA and allowed me to fly out later than had been planned at no extra cost.

I am here with another query.

I go out to St.lucia twice a year for about 3 months and am planning a trip in late July or early August. The upper class fares have risen sharply in the last couple of weeks to around £2,400-£2700.

This seems very high and I was wondering if there is anything I can do to pay a little less than this. Can Virgin Atlantic track my use of their site and keep offering high fares? or can I get any cheaper deal with a reputable travel agent.

I do not know what to do. A friend suggested that I wait until much closer to the dates on which I would like to go. the opposition seem to have the same high fares as well.

Any advice would be appreciated.

What dates?

Can Virgin Atlantic track my use of their site and keep offering high fares? or can I get any cheaper deal with a reputable travel agent.

You could clear your cache and cookies and start your search again but also look on a site like expedia and see what they quote as a fare but you probbably won't find that much of a difference.

I do not know what to do. A friend suggested that I wait until much closer to the dates on which I would like to go. the opposition seem to have the same high fares as well.

Yes the closer to departure date the more expensive the tickets as all of the lower fares have either been bought or have timed out due to their advanced purchase rules.

Of course another risk is that there are then no seats at all on the dates you want to flu.

However you need to factor in is that on the LGW 747s there are only 14 seats in UC so not leaving many seats to be sold at the lower fares.

Dates for my flights are depart on 26th July and return 18th October.

28 JULY looks particularly busy - FlightStats shows Y and PE as full although VS still selling seats in Y.

Tough one.

Expertflyer gives you



VS 31 0 LGW 26/07/13 11:45 AM UVF 26/07/13 3:30 PM 744

67% / 87m

J5 C5 D3 I2 Z0 W7 S7 K0 Y9 B9 R9 L9 U9 M9 E9 Q9 X9 N6 O4

So it looks like all the Z's ( the cheapest upper fare code ) have been sold in upper leaving only 2 seats in I which is the next fare code up, thus the higher fare which is in the region you are being quoted. Think I gives you limos though.

There are plenty of Z's available on the return section.

If you can shuffle your dates a little, it might drop the fare by a couple of hundred if you can find a Z on the way out.

David

I am not very experienced at finding particular types of fare. Can you tell me how to find Z fares and how to know how full the planes are?

I never know which 747 they will use. I think it is generally congiguration 1.

Is it a good idea to speak to the airline for assistance in trying to find cheapest flights?

You can tell I am a bit of an innocent in all this!

Thanks for the assistance. I can be completely flexible re dates.

Anniel

There is a G fare for your return journey in October. If you've got some FF miles or can buy some it maybe worth giving FC a call to book an upgradeable Y or PE seat for the return which could bring the total price down.

Jill

I do think it best to call the Premier Team (Gold or UC line) at VS and do a search around your preferred dates to see if lower fare classes and therefore lower prices are available. It's probably going to be the quickest way for you to find an answer.

It generally does pay to plan further ahead to get those Zs - especially since the outbound date is of course earlyish in the school summer holiday so will be popular (as you've seen with both BA and VS).

Thanks Jilly. How did you find that information about availability or is the info.only for people working in the travel industry.

I found that I can fly PE out and UC back for about £1750 which would appear to be the best I have seen so far....is FC the Flight Centre.

How does an upgradeable PE booking work?

Sorry for all the questions!

Thanks

Anniel

The information is readily available on the Virgin Atlantic website, just search for 'flights with miles' instead of lowest fare etc.

As suggested give the FC (flying Club)a call and they should be able to give you the cheapest options.

Jilly

Thanks for all the advicd. I did ring the Flying Club and then booked my flights.I am going UC both ways and got a reasonable fare by upgrading from PE on the home journey (£2027)

I have chosen seat 7A as seat expert says there is more room. I generally sit in 9K but have gone for this change. 6A and k are naturally taken at this stage.

Any opinions on seat choice...8K is also available. I do not want to be near the bar!

Now I have to think about my flights in December-March!

be pleased to hear of your opinions on seat choice.

Well done, sounds like a good deal.

Assuming you're flying on your own, I'd suggest going for row 8 or 9.

Remember the further front you are the closer you are to the seat opposite (indeed in row 6 your feet are virtually touching). Great if you're with a companion but not if you're solo. A seat on row 8 or 9 puts you a good distance from the passenger opposite but not too near the bar.

Don't know why Seat Expert recommends 7A - the UC suites are all the same space-wise AFAIK (I stand to be corrected though).

Thanks Gumshoe,

I have now chosen 8K...more distance from the seat opposite.

Anniel

I usually go for 10K , one down from the bar, and have never ever had any problems re noise from the bar. On the Gatwick fleet, there's only 2 seats there and it's a little narrow at each side, so it doesn't really lend itself to noisy crowd situations.

Enjoy your flight and your 3 months in St Lucia - very jealous

David.