Hotwire airfares - any way to second-guess?

[WillTravel]

I've tried various dates for SEA - CDG leaving in late June and coming back in mid-July, or leaving in late August and coming back in early September.

The cheapest conventional fares are in the range of $1000-1100 total, and British Airways seems to be the cheapest.

However, there are also Hotwire fares in the range of $640 - $680 total on some dates.

I know that Hotwire is an opaque booking service, and you don't know who it is until you buy. However, is it fairly likely all of these cheap fares in the same general range are with the same provider? Any guesses as to the most likely source, or any way to make an educated guess?

[thereuare]

This thread discusses a technique that can be used for airports with only limited coverage for the route you intend on flying (especially if many flights are 'prop' and you select 'jet only'): Hotwire Airfare Tip

[WillTravel]

That would work in some instances for sure. I wondered if certain airlines are more likely to dump inventory at firesale prices, but I guess there's just no way to tell, particularly when there are so many carriers servicing the route.

It would be nice if the airfares had those Hotwire amenity icons also, but I guess that would give the game away :).

[WillTravel]

Just to close up the subject, I decided not to go with Priceline or Hotwire after all. I got a good deal from the BMI site directly, on Air Canada flights, nonstop YVR-LHR in July. Considering convenience (I can avoid the long trek to Seattle), frequent flyer miles, the nonstop flights, and price, booking directly won in this case. I wanted to jump on this fare quickly, because it had come down several hundred dollars.

Unfortunately, the deal I got from the BMI site was better than Travelocity or Expedia in this case, although I did check both of these via SavingsBarn.

With any luck, I hope to be making Priceline bids for Europe sometime soon :).