Economy Airfare Deals from London for 2010
As we have just entered 2010 (and happy new year to readers) lets take a look at the airfare market from London to see if there are any decent economy class offers available. Looking back 2009 had some spectacular deals – however, as airlines have cut schedules this winter and with business class revenue remaining under pressure, it is likely that economy prices will be firmer during 2010.
So what’s on offer currently? Unfortunately nothing really outstanding – but lets summarise the market…
As always British Airways is holding its January sale to destinations worldwide – this runs until 26 January. Standout fares are:
Rome £49 one-way
Moscow £109 one-way
Cairo £269
Hyderabad £346
Mumbai £349
Nairobi £399
Montego Bay £399
Travel dates vary, check on BA’s site. Note, bmi currently has a “sale” fare to Moscow for £214 return.
Predictably Virgin Atlantic is also holding a sale with similar fares on routes that overlap. They also have a reasonable £669 economy fare to Sydney for travel between 16 April and 20 June. Premium economy is available at £1,148 for the same dates.
Emirates has a £592 fare to Perth, Australia from London Heathrow for travel between 20 April and 30 June. Book by 1 February. You can also fly to Sydney for £678 or Melbourne for £667.
Malaysian Airlines has sale fares to Sydney, Perth and Auckland for £639 – book until 18 January for travel between 15 April and 31 May.
The cheapest fare Down Under: Netflights has a £563 fare from London to Perth with Royal Brunei and £577 to Brisbane during April. An acquaintance recently flew with them to Oz and reported service was pretty good – just watch the layover connection time in Brunei as some of the cheaper fares can leave you waiting overnight at the airport. (There is also a refuelling stop in Dubai).
Air New Zealand has flights to Hong Kong for £417, book by 27 January and travel between 21 January and 31 March. Qantas can get you to HKG for £422 on similar dates. They also have a £613 fare to Perth, £659 to Melbourne and £668 to Sydney between 16 April and 20 June.
Swiss has some very limited availability fares from London: Mumbai £337, Hong Kong £396 and Shanghai £410.
KLM can get you to Kuala Lumpur for £465 and Singapore for £479, book by 1 February. Check dates on klm.com.
Air Transat-Thomas Cook have one-way flights from London Gatwick to Toronto (£129) and Vancouver (£149) – limited dates available. Note Air Transat uses an Airbus A310 whereas Thomas Cook operates A330 equipment.
