Crazy Fare Deal: $197 San Francisco to Europe, More City Pairs Available

This morning, Fly4Free shared a deal to fly economy class from Europe to many cities in the US, Canada, and the Caribbean for as low as $135. There are some clever ways to utilize this deal which we will discuss later but, for now, let’s look at how you can get to Europe for less than $300 (or even $200).

Air Canada is showing flights from cities including Chicago, New York City, San Francisco, and Washington, DC. Available dates will vary based on city, but I’ve seen departure dates as early as September 6 and as late as May 2018. This should give you plenty of options based on your schedule.

Remember: You have 24 hours to cancel flights booked from the US and get a full refund, so you can book now and see if you can make the dates work. As always, hold off on booking hotels and making other plans until it’s confirmed that the deal will be honored by the airline.

Unlike low-cost carriers such as Wow Air and Norwegian Air – which often run cheap flights like this to Europe – your booking includes a checked bag which makes this even better. However, these economy class fares do not come with a seat assignment immediately.

You can select a seat for around $20-30 if you want to ensure you can sit with a companion or just really want a window or aisle seat. Even selecting a seat, these fares are still great deals.

Here are a couple examples:

$197 – San Francisco to Berlin

$223 – Washington, DC to Oslo

You’ll see many suggest searching on Momondo or Priceline and booking through them. However, these fares are very low and there’s a chance Air Canada will not honor them. To give yourself the best chance of Air Canada honoring the fare, I strongly suggest booking directly with Air Canada.

As an example, I booked the ANA business class fare deal a couple weeks ago directly through ANA. The fare is being honored so I’m all set to take my trip but those who booked through third party online travel agents (OTAs) such as Expedia, Priceline, etc. did not have their bookings honored.

Save yourself the hassle and book this deal directly with Air Canada.

Now, what bout booking from Europe to the US. You have a few options for doing so…

You could find a good fare on a low-cost carrier (Wow Air or Norwegian Air) to get you to Europe, then use the Air Canada booking to get home. You could choose not to take the return flight back to Europe or schedule the return far enough out that you can take another trip to Europe. To get back to the US (again), you can book another flight on a low-cost carrier.

Alternatively, you could book your initial flight to Europe with miles and do the same on the return to the states after your second trip to Europe.

Using low-cost carriers in addition to this deal, you could potentially get two trips to Europe for under $600! If you choose to combine this deal with award bookings, you could get two trips for less than $300 and some points.

Either way, you’re getting a great deal.

Let me know if you book one of these fares! Maybe I’ll see you in Europe.