UK/Irish Vegas travellers - how do you book?

I fly from Dublin these days and tend to book with British Airways or via an agency (Travelup for example) I look for return flights under €550 (£450)

Where do you book? And what kind of airfare do you pay?

 

I'm amazed you can get a return for that these days. The cheapest I ever get is 600 in the dead of winter from Manchester.

 

Skyscanner is great for finding good deals Wigwam

 

Virgin airmiles are my friend for this years trip - £400 for LHR / LAS return premium economy which is a 'Brucey Bonus'.

 

direct flights with virgin for 7-800 return hotel seprate, expedia sometimes do a deal of the day virgin flight and luxor was once 645 in sept even if you dont want to stay at the hotel its a good price for a direct flight from manchester

 

Ah, right. Yeh, I use Skyscanner but I'm selective about who I will book with. There are countless reviews online of people booking the really cheap tickets for their flight off there and finding they don't actually have a ticket.

https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/omegaflightstore.com - that's a common one that comes up. It's a shame really, Skyscanner used to only have reputable ticketing companies on it and now it seems to allow anyone on to use it.

 

I thought skyscanner just searched the airlines directly, there shouldn't be any agencies on there although my searches are generally quite focused around Vegas and West Coast USA. This year Virgin airmiles have been my friend, buoyed by lots of hilton bonuses, topcashback and tesco clubcard points.

If you plan ahead you can wait for the tesco conversion bonuses to virgin airmiles (normally 20-30% two times per year) and then wait for the rewards sale and end up with a great bargain

 

Nope, it searches travelup, lastminute and loads of other aggregate sites as well.

 

It does Wigwam.....I found a great deal with Travelup for my last trip a few weeks ago (£400 return from Dublin-Vegas via LGW)

 

Virgin and BA have had a nice little cartel going for the last few years, their prices are ALWAYS within 50-60 GBP of each other. I have paid 600-800 GBP for the last few years, mostly with Virgin. I have been indirect via MSP,SLC,DTW,ATL, and it is a pain in the ass, I,d rather pay 150-200 more to go direct. I have a truckload of VA miles, but can never seem to get an upper class return (not worth using miles in eco!) within the days I want to go. I always book direct with the airline, my hotels are all comped.

 

Have you tried looking at VA award availability from LA and SFO, its better but not great although i did manage to bag one for december which i'm looking forward to!

 

They certainly do! I prefer Virgin's service out of London to BA's; the one this month was an old 777 with 80s style screens on the back of the seats in econ! Aaaaah looking forward to the days when I can go first (must work harder!)

 

I suspect that is more to do with staying competitive and trying to pinch sales from each other rather than any kind of cartel. Those airlines hate each other and have sued each other and smeared each other several times over the last 25 years.

 

I fly with BA Dublin > London > Vegas every Thanksgiving weekend, most I've ever paid is €530. €476 in November coming, Thursday - Tuesday, usually connect out of Gatwick but it's Heathrow this year, meaning I'll be hitting the town a lot later than usual.

 

Sounds about right Carra, some great deals out of DUB! I'm looking to go early Nov this year as well for a 5nt stay

 

Sorry if I sounded negative about skyscanner by the way, it's still my go to flights website but some of the affiliates they are allowing in now seem a bit dodgy.

Saying that, I believe a lot of people have had good luck with the really cheap deals from omega and gotogate etc. Just be prepared to re-book and claim the money back if it goes wrong.

 

Sound advice, thank you wigwam

 

I think that originating your flight in Ireland probably has a price advantage through the reduced taxes you can then pay. The flight tax for UK travellers just keeps getting bigger all the time.

As for me, I like my comfort so I usually wait until BA has a sale on business class flights and book then. I'm flying out next week, but booked the flights back in January when they were as low as BA business ever gets - but still not what you could reasonably describe as cheap. Luckily, the hotel is comped so all I need to do is cash in an event at the World Series to cover my flight costs. Wish me luck.

 

I usually fly from Gatwick with Virgin. It's near my parents house so easy to get to and I've always had a pleasent experience flying Virgin. In the past I've managed to snag flights for under £600 direct in April and June but that was 2013 and before. I just can't be bothered changing at Dublin etc it's a long enough flight as it is so I just want it done and dusted with one flight.

I usually scour for a good direct price beforehand, making sure there's no big events on (Memorial Day etc) as I don't like Vegas when it's packed. Once I've booked it I'll compare all hotels and try get vouchers codes for them, keeping an eye most days to see if I can cancel and rebook directly.

I also try to overbuy dollars heavily before I leave if the price is 'good' (over 1.65) this way I usually come back with money and can put it towards another trip. At the moment the exchange rate is 1.5 but I've got enough in reserve to go without purchasing any extra dollars as the rate stinks.

Unfortunately, Vegas and travel in general is becoming more expensive every year so going every other year will probably become a thing of the past soon.

 

I go to Vegas twice a year and up to this year always flown Direct with Virgin Gatwick to Las. Have always noticed BA and Virgin are about the same price.. No competition between them. Certainly I would insist on flying Direct its far too much effort to change flights. This June I am flying Direct from Manchester with Thomas Cook which was nearly £200 cheaper than the others even though they were supposed to be on sale ,so look at their prices.( Admit not checked myself recently) Yes I would then book a hotel either through a discounter or direct or check this site... Fortunately i get comped on the Hotel so my only real expense is the flight.