Month: June 2016

Brexit means it’s a really good time to buy a flight

Brexit means it’s a really good time to buy a flight

Regardless of your personal feelings about whether #Brexit is a good idea, one thing is clear: After the pound fell to its lowest level since 1985, this is a great time to buy that flight you’ve been putting off for a while in the hopes that the price will fall lower – if done correctly.

As I wrote about in this blog’s very first post, a great way to save money on flights is to try booking in different currencies. In other words, if you have the chance, book your flight in British pounds.

While this will vary airline to airline (and not all of them will allow you to do this), most airlines with a strong international presence will have this option. For example, I just now looked up a roundtrip weekend flight on United from Boston to San Francisco, a route I fly quite often. It priced out at $478, pretty typical for a trip with such short notice:

flight1

But after I switched the top from “United States” to “United Kingdom”, it yielded the following:

:picture 2

Based on the current low rate of 1 GBP=1.35 USD, this translates into $438, or a $50 savings, though you’ll want to make sure you book on a card with no foreign transaction fees.

Now, when I checked just an hour ago, the rate was a little higher, at 1 GBP=1.43 USD, so it’s very possible that it could continue to fall as the night goes on. But I wouldn’t hold off too long!

Find a good deal on your flight because of this? Feel free to post in the comments or email me.

Fly to Iceland from the US for just $99!

Fly to Iceland from the US for just $99!

Budget carrier WOW Air has just released another round of $99 one-way fares (taxes included) to Reykjavik from select cities in the US. To be fair, you’ll probably pay a lot more coming back, but your overall trip still should not cost too much, around $400-$500:

wow boswow sfo

Cities featured for now are Washington (DC), San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Boston. As I mentioned when I reviewed WOW Air, it’s certainly not the most amazing flight you’ll ever be on, but it gets the job done for the price.

If you book after September, you might have a good chance of seeing the Northern Lights, though regardless of when you’ll go, you’ll experience some great hot springs, including my personal favorite.

And of course, you can see (and eat!) beautiful horses.