Cheapest Airfare Seattle -> Fairbanks ?

[lbeck]

We're all set to do the one-way Princess CruiseTour 2S from Fairbanks to Vancouver on June 16. I decided to book my own airfare since having Princess or an agency do it seemed inordinately expensive. I know that having the cruise line or agency book the flight is less risky, but I have decided to mitigate those risks by buying the trip insurance and leaving myself plenty of time prior to cruise departure.

Now... I've found RT flights from RDU <-> SEA for around $200 all year, and we may use frequent flyer miles for one ticket (if United stays in business). Getting from Seattle to Fairbanks where the CruiseTour starts is another question. Best airfare I've seen is $378 RT or $500+ one-way. We'll of course do the RT option and just leave the return trip unused. However, I've been searching the Internet since September and haven't found any kind of savings. Maybe there's just not enough competition for the Alaskan routes to spawn fare wars. I also tried priceline.com. I think I put something like $275 and got no takers. Travelocity's "fare watcher" email notification service hasn't shown any price variation since September either.

Is the bottom line that I need to bite the bullet and pay the full price for the AK portion of the flight itinerary, or has someone found a secret way (other than hijacking) to do it?

 

[Nurse Nancy]

Hi, Lee! If you are flying into/out of Seattle, how are you getting back to Seattle from Vancouver after the cruise? Since we are doing the same cruise as you (just a little earlier in June), maybe you can help me with some of the logistics. I, too, have found better prices RT to Seattle over Vancouver, and like you, I am still searching for the Seattle/Fairbanks flight. I keep reading on this forum that Vancouver is a great destination. How did you choose Seattle over Vancouver?

Please keep me "posted" (pun intended) if you find anything, and I'll do the same.
Thanks!
Nancy

 

[lbeck]

Thanks, Nancy.

You're right. Our trips are very similar except you are leaving a couple of weeks earlier than I. I responded to a thread that you started elsewhere on this forum. I figured that you may have gone the conventional routine of letting the TA book your flights.

We will be traveling with two other couples, and they did let a local TA do the entire booking. There is some convenience in that approach, and there is less risk since I think the TA accepts some responsibility for getting you to the ship if you give them full reign. However, their total RT fare was around $800 PP. As I mentioned, I was aware that I could do the RDU-SEA portion for around $200 RT PP since I’ve been watching that fare for close to a year now. So even if I need to pay the $378 or whatever full fare then I’ll still be ahead of the game.

The other factor that entered into the equation is that my wife has never been to the Pacific Northwest and we’ve decided to spend a couple of days in Seattle either before or after the AK portion of our trip. It will depend on the flight arrangements that I arrange, but afterwards preferably. My ideal itinerary would be to fly RDU-SEA, then SEA-Fairbanks a day or so ahead of the beginning of the CruiseTour. This will allow us to look around Fairbanks a little and to have plenty of buffer in case of delayed flights or other unexpected contingencies. Then, following the cruise, we would likely take the bus from Vancouver to SEA, but we may rent a car in Vancouver, depending on the difference in cost and other factors (one or more of the other couples may join us in that portion of the trip). Renting the car in Vancouver of course gives us an opportunity to have a brief visit there.

The primary reason for not doing RT RDU-Vancouver is as you surmised – the cost. We have a competitive market RDU-SEA but not to Vancouver, so I can absorb the car rental, motel, and some other expenses with the difference in cost.

My final itinerary will depend largely on the flights that I actually arrange. I’ve purposely left some flexibility since I may need to travel midweek or whatever to get the best airline fares. I’ll arrange the rest of the trip around the bookends of my RT RDU-SEA.

I’ll try to remember to let this thread know what I finally decide. I’m starting to think, though, that I may need to purchase my SEA-Fairbanks ticket full price. I’ve tried all my tricks and haven’t seen the fares budge in the 3-4 months that I’ve been seriously shopping. I was hoping that maybe one of the seasoned AK travelers on this forum may have some tips.

 

[lbeck]

Please keep me "posted" (pun intended) if you find anything

I finally booked my flights, and I saved more than $500 ($250 each for me and wife) over what the other couples paid through the TA. they get a little more peace of mind in that the TA presumably will work with them if the air part of the trip gets messed up due to travel delays, etc. However, I'm planning on arriving in Fairbanks two days early so there whould have to be really major delays to prevent my on-time departure on the Princess CruiseTour.

I was unable to find any substantial reductions in a RT for SEA<->FAI, but I did notice that AA and a few other airlines in addition to Alaska Air fly into FAI. AA is big in RDU so I accessed the AA site and entered my multi-city itinerary and found that they will construct an itinerary RDU->FAI, then SEA->RDU at a substantial savings over buying the round trip SEA<->FAI.

I paid $1033 for my tickets and the other couples are paying close to $1600 per couple for theirs.

 

[BayouGal]

Maybe my group should fly from N.O. to ANC by way of RDU! ;-)

Thanks for the info, Lee! We will definitely be checking with AA.

 

[cruisegary]

If you are doing New Orleans, check out America West. Doing NO - SEA and ANC backc to NO for $400. Also check out Southwest airlines part of the way.

Alaska Air has been running some specials between Fairbanks or Anchorage down to Seattle.