Joe Brancatelli is editor and publisher of JoeSentMe.com, a
non-commercial Web site for business travelers.
INTERNATIONAL ITINERARY: Get ready for the Heathrow land rush
British Airways opens Terminal Five at London/Heathrow Airport on March 27, just two days before the U.S.-E.U. Open Skies treaty becomes effective. The result? An unprecedented land rush at Heathrow. As British Airways begins a month-long effort to consolidate most of its flights at Terminal 5, U.S. carriers once shut out of Heathrow will pile in.
Beginning on March 29, Continental will launch Heathrow flights from its Newark and Houston/Intercontinental hubs; Delta Air Lines will add flights from hubs in Atlanta and New York’s Kennedy Airport; US Airways will launch from Philadelphia; and Northwest will fly from its Detroit and Minneapolis/St. Paul hubs.
Meanwhile, Air France and Delta will code-share on new service between Los Angeles and Heathrow, and United Airlines will add new flights from its Denver hub. But that’s not all. By the end of April, American Airlines will shift its Dallas/Fort Worth and Raleigh-Durham flights from London/Gatwick. Also moving from Gatwick to Heathrow: BA’s DFW and Houston flights. And in case you didn’t have enough Heathrow options, Northwest says it will launch flights from Seattle in June. Meanwhile, back at Heathrow’s Terminal 5, British Airways says its flights from Miami, Los Angeles and San Francisco move on that March 27 opening day. The other BA flights from the United States will switch to Terminal 5 from Terminal 4 on April 30.
FARE FINDER: Bargains and bank-breaking destinations this month
The best bargains on the route map late this month are likely to be in Florida and the Caribbean. Now that the weather is finally warming up nationwide, U.S. travelers begin abandoning their dreams of flights to sunnier climes. Right after the Easter and Passover holidays, watch for falling airfares to Florida and the Caribbean. And pay attention to hotel and resort deals as hoteliers offer room-rate reductions and value-added packages to keep their properties full. The best bargains will last until about late June.
The last of the winter fare sales to Europe (and especially London) will dominate the international landscape during the next few weeks. Prices won’t be as low as they were in dreary February, of course. And the airlines may not give much notice of sales — the lowest prices may only be available for purchase a day or two at a time–but the bargains will be the best you’ll see until November. And beware of promotions for an "April in Paris" getaway. The lyrics of the popular song notwithstanding, it’s actually chilly and rainy in the City of Light in April. But that doesn’t stop some travel packagers from selling the melodic fantasy of "chestnuts in blossom" and "holiday tables under the trees."