CVG to Riga

[Arty]

Hi... I'm completely new to the whole Name Your Own Price thing, and I've been unable to find any tips on flying to Latvia. In general, the flights are pretty expensive, but I did find a decent deal three years ago. I'm just wondering if anyone may be able to give me any sort of tips on bidding on a flight such as this?

Thanks for any help-

Arty

[Romelle]

Are you planning to go to any other adjacent countries? I looked into the general area last year, and found a mileage ticket into Helsinki, and departing from Warsaw. TIckets to Riga were considerably more expensive.

Romelle

[thereuare]

Welcome to BetterBidding!

In addition to Romelle's questions/comments above... what are your date(s) of travel? What is the best rate you're able to find thru conventional booking channels? How much savings would you need to see in order to make an opaque purchase worthwhile?

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.

[Arty]

I'm looking for fly around May 31st, though I'm willing to be a bit flexible on the dates, and stay for about two weeks. The best I've found so far is 973 dollars. I don't mind making any stops in crazy countries. In fact, I sort of hope for layovers in an exotic country. I just want to know I can eventually make it to my final destination. I am, however, not financially well off right now, but I need to make this trip.

Thanks again for your help!

[thereuare]

Is the $973 all-in? What is the breakdown of base fare vs. fees/taxes?

How much would you need to save to make an opaque purchase worthwhile?

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.

[Arty]

Yes, it was ~973 for everything. I can't remember the breakdown entirely, and I unfortunately don't remember what I selected for options to get that price. I'd really like to get a ticket for around 450-500, if at all possible. I'm just not familiar with how much is too much to want as a discount.

Please tell me exactly what else you need to know and I'll be happy to fill you in.

[Arty]

Airline Ticket Cost: $615.00 per ticket

Airline Ticket Taxes & Fees: $384.10 per ticket

There we go, I found it.

[Arty]

Are you planning to go to any other adjacent countries? I looked into the general area last year, and found a mileage ticket into Helsinki, and departing from Warsaw. TIckets to Riga were considerably more expensive.

Romelle

No, it must be Riga or at least Stockholm. I'm not sure about Tallinn or Vilnius, but we may be able to take a bus from one of those cities to Latvia. We are visiting family in Riga.

[thereuare]

Using the techniques in this Priceline Airfare Re-Bidding thread (in particular see the second post in the thread) you can get an almost unlimited number of bidding opportunities.

I'd start at $400 and increase $25 per re-bid until you get to $550 or so... then start increasing my lower amounts. NOTE that in the current environment deals on airfare can be hit or miss (mostly miss) and it's certainly worth a shot, but i wouldn't be too optimistic.

Please use the PRICELINE and HOTWIRE links on the board to begin your travel purchases.

[Romelle]

No, it must be Riga or at least Stockholm. I'm not sure about Tallinn or Vilnius, but we may be able to take a bus from one of those cities to Latvia. We are visiting family in Riga.

The buses from Tallinn and Vilnius are reasonably inexpensive and frequent. Also really nice (even free cappucino and newspapers on board!). However, I suspect the airfare from CVG to either of those two cities will be similar to CVG-RIX.

While airfares are really unpredictable, there can be a "sweet spot" about 2 - 3 months ahead when sales are offered. Before that is usually higher, and after that they tend to start going back up again. There can be sales shortly before departure, but rates can also go really high.

You certainly can safely bid at the low end now (the $400 thereuare suggests), and gradually work your way up.

You might get subscribed to some of those "fare trackers" too where you get an email alert if the fare changes.

Romelle