It’s a mystery to most of us why airfare prices fluctuate so wildly. In this video, CNN’s Richard Quest (yes, I know, some people do find him irritating) explains why that is, and describes a newish way that you can score an upgrade.
Although it often seems prohibitively expensive, air travel has actually become far more affordable in recent years. A flight from Sydney to London, for example, costs roughly the same as it did 30 years ago, despite inflation.
And flying to Europe is about to get even cheaper for Australians, with Singapore-based airline Scoot offering flights from the east coast to Athens for less than $1000.
But cheaper isn’t always better …
The first time I flew business class, it was from Brisbane to Perth. Somebody else — a publicist promoting a play she wanted me to see so I could interview the star* — was paying, so I’m not sure what it cost.
I was, however, shocked to see the difference between the economy and business class fares currently being offered by Qantas for the same flight.
It certainly seems counterintuitive, but sometimes you can get an airfare bargain by travelling further than you intended.
For example, return flights from Australia to London are often cheaper than fares from Australia to Dubai, which is the stopover two-thirds into the journey.
