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See more for less with cash-saving detours
Posted Online: May 10, 2009, 12:01 am
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By Tom Parsons
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We've been seeing some great fare wars, but the sales haven't covered all destinations. Travelers need to be creative when searching for the best fares. Before you book, study the map and compare prices to nearby locations. Alternate cities may enable you to see two destinations for less than the price of one. Airfares from Dallas to Canada have been more than $500 round trip in recent weeks. Instead of paying $559 to fly to Montreal, fly to Burlington, Vt., for $198 and enjoy some Ben & Jerry's ice cream before continuing to Montreal. Rather than pay $519 to fly to Toronto, fly to Buffalo, to which fares have ranged from $128 to $158 round trip in recent months. You could see Niagara Falls en route to Toronto and get three destinations for less than the price of one. Both Burlington and Montreal, and Buffalo and Toronto are about 100 miles apart. Round-trip travel from Dallas to Victoria, B.C., has been about $800, but you could fly to Seattle for $238 to $278 round trip. Sail on the Victoria Clipper (1-800-888-2535; www.clippervacations.com) from Seattle to Victoria (about three hours) for $100 to $150 round trip. You also could fly to Seattle and take the Amtrak Cascades train (1-800-872-7245; www.amtrakcascades.com) to Vancouver for $70 round trip, instead of paying $485 round trip to fly to Vancouver. Round-trip flights from Dallas to Honolulu have been in the $489 to $519 range, yet Kauai and Kona have been as high as $800 round trip. Consider flying to Honolulu, seeing Pearl Harbor and then taking an inter-island flight for $129 round trip. The only reasonable Caribbean fares we've seen continuously are those to San Juan and St. Thomas. If you want to go to another Caribbean destination, consider flying to Miami, San Juan or St. Thomas, and then flying to your final destination on a separate ticket. For example, Dallas to Tortola costs more than $600 round trip. If you fly to San Juan, however, you'd pay about $300 round trip, and the San Juan-Tortola leg runs $160 round trip, saving you at least $140 per ticket. Some European destinations can cost nearly double the price of the cheaper cities. Zurich has run about $689 round trip from Dallas, while fares to nearby Italy have averaged $1,059. Zurich and Milan are only 180 miles apart -- a picturesque drive or train ride. If you plan to buy a European rail pass and want to visit several cities, including Vienna, consider flying to Munich instead. Round-trip flights from Dallas to Munich have been $689 to $789, and as low as $598, while Dallas to Vienna has been $1,189 round trip. You could pay for that rail pass with the savings. Tom Parsons is publisher of BestFares.com: www.bestfares.com 
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