Best Way to find Discounted Business Class tickets

[neil_gardner]

Does anyone have any tips on how to "uncover" discounted business class tickets.

I'm planning to fly to the UK in Mar/Apr/May with my wife and we want to travel in Business. Does anyone have a source where I can see all the availabe fares. I am not bothered so much with the routing and I collect on both OW and SA, so the airline isn't really an concern (as long as it's not someone like Garuda!).

Most of the internet-sites try to route you threugh the traditional airports of BKK and SIN but am happy to try anything once.

Thanks

 

[NM]

The best deals I find are the Round-The-World and similar fares. On OneWorld airlines, the list price for a 4 continent RTW fare is $9169 and that is somewhat less than the SYD-LHR-SYD business class fare. And of course permits way more travel and will earn top-tier FF status on some programs.

I have been using business class RTW fares for many years now in place of point-to-point business class fares.

The OneWorld Circle Pacific fare is best value for business class to the USA. Unfortunately for UK you have to go to the OneWorld Explorer RTW fare. Corporate discounts can apply to these fares as well.

There are often mixed class fares advertised through the on-line travel agents. These can be something like QF Economy to Tpkyo (NRT) and Business Class on to Europe with a European carrier (SAS, Swiss etc). I have also seen joing QF/AY (Finn Air) via Bangkok.

 

[neil_gardner]

Bestflights (www.bestflights.com.au) have just emailed me an offerwith Thai for $5k to London if departing by end of March. Will try them tomorrow for availability....

Will let you know how I go.

 

[aspro2]

The business fares on TG are often tempting, but TG business class can be a severe disappointment -- I'm speaking as someone who usually flies economy (cruel world!), and just once paid for a business class ticket. Stepped onto the plane and wanted to cry for my money back. I wasn't expecting lie-flat beds or anything, just some comfort... but the seats had poor recline, no leg rests, fixed arm rests, and the service, entertainment and food were all very disappointing. I believe there are a few planes with newer seats, but from what I've seen in various forums, not many people have had the pleasure (might be wrong, dunno).

Lufthansa has a standard business fare for A$5230 (bestflights has it for 5122), using TG to BKK and LH to FRA and MUC, and including two sectors within Europe. There's a catch/tip here, though: LH's old business class is better than TG's, but if you want to experience LH's new seats, they're only available on the MUC flights from BKK -- for which the connection at BKK is either too tight (30-40mins) or terribly long (17 hours), depending on which flight you take from Australia.

This fare also allows UA via LAX/SFO.

Otherwise, I would definitely consider the mixed class fares with Cathay/Swiss (approx 4100) or SAS+QF/SQ/TG (range 3300-4000)

 

[neil_gardner]

Thanks Aspro. One thing I forgot to mention is that we will have a 4 month old at the time....Thai have just told us that there is no infant discount (usually 10% of adult fare) in their Business Class...therefore another $5k for a passenger and no seat for baby Harry, he has to sit on our knee! Thanks but no thanks. :x

KLM are doing $5k via KUL and AMS....Does anyone have any experience of the Business class...

 

[neil_gardner]

In the end I booked a mixed ticket, economy with TG to BKK, then J class via Copenhagen to Manchester with SAS, Back through CPN to BKK with SAS (travelling without the wife and child so will stop over to call into our Asia office ) and finally QF to Melbourne.

In total about $3800 per pax + taxes ($400!!) and only $400 for the nipper. Not a bad deal, Star Alliance and One World all the way - KLM was always going to be difficult as all those miles would be wasted !!

Apologies now to anyone in Business Class if we can't keep Harry quiet! :wink:

 

[NM]

Hmm, I wonder how much BA's World Traveler Plus would have been?

 

[neil_gardner]

BA's WTP was around $3500 plus taxes, not sure of the infant fare. Did have diffculty getting any availability for the times we were looking for.

Have seen the seats and am not sure if the extra leg room is worth the extra dough - but i do know they have the games in WTP on the IFE that you can't get when in BA Business :? . Am interested in peoples opinions of WTP - almost the same price as the mixed tickets I got but for only 25% extra miles) but I get double miles on SAS for busienss and a 25% status bonus on top of that.

As I've discussed in other threads, I hate the transfer at LHR from T4 to T1 with a passion. At CPN we literally arrive at one gate in T3 and depart from the next gate along. Much easier with a small infant, especially as Mrs G. is travelling back on her own.

Also I was keen to boost my Star Alliance points - see thread on BMI FFP - as QF have just comped me another year in Gold and I don't think I've got much of a chance of retaining it at year end so am going for broke on SAS/SQ/TG/ANZ for the next 12 months!

 

[aspro2]

I've flown WTP twice, now two years ago. The WTP cabin felt markedly more 'relaxed' than the WT cabin (hardly surprising), and the extra legroom was great (I'm long-legged). BUT, the fact that the food is the same small portions as in WT was one detractor (I'd already heard about BA's stingy Economy catering). AND probably most importantly for me, the much-looked-forward-to leg rest was pathetic, such that when fully extended it just touched my ankles -- the seats are too shallow for long-legged people, so the leg rest is a disappointing irrelevance. :cry: