kick in the butt

[flygirl]

I'm kicking myself in the butt these days because I refused to pay for high air fare back in Jan to go out west (Montana) when it was $519. Now that it's up to $650....I'm sweatin' bullets & feeling stupid. So now do I wait & see if they drop alittle or bite the bullet, forget about the mortgage payment & the U.I.bill (who needs lights anyways) & pay UP ?
any opinions & who was smarter to buy early ...& where ya going to ?

[mtdreaming]

Flygirl...I'm in exactly the same driftboat (so to speak)! In past years I have lucked out waiting until the last minute, but it appears that won't be the case this year. The only ace in the hole I have right now is a mess of frequent flyer miles on Northwest. They currently have a sale going that'll get you out there for somewhere around $219 plus 10,000 miles. If you are flexible and have the miles, try playing around with the dates. These discount tickets are kind of tough to come by, but I did get out to Bozeman to ski in March on this deal. Another option you might want to try is flying into one of the "non-vacation" cities like Great Falls, Butte or Helena. I have found some good deals in the past doing this. The drive is beautiful and I have found some smaller, lesser known waters along the way that have proven quite productive.

[h.ridley]

:D flygirl: I found the same problem, and I don't have sky miles. My wife and I and my 14 year granddaughter are going out there june 25. We found an inexpensive flight into Salt Lake City. It's a non-stop so also less flying time. We'll rent a car there and drive to West Yellowstone. Same on the way home. I know it's a long drive, but worth it. Last year we went to Lees Ferry Az. by way of Las Vegas. FYI-Delta, leaves at 7:15 am. and arrives at 10:30 am. I should be fishing the Madison at about 5:00pm. By the way, my granddaughter will be starting her flyfishing career in Montana. Cool, huh.
Howie


Life is what happens while you're busy making other plans. J.L.

[AvoDrake]

Flygirl my experience is that booking way in advance does not always yield the absolute best price. When I looked on Hotwire just now for my August Montana trip it said:

"Our Discounted Fares aren't yet available for these travel dates.
Airlines offer their best fares within 60 days of travel"

I don't use Hotwire to book as I need set times, but it gives me an idea of of what the "floor" prices of flights are. Recently in my trips out west this price difference has not been that large say ~ $100 cheaper than regularly scheduled flights so I imagine these flights are regularly full - I know the ones I fly usually are.

Just looked on Orbitz flying from either Boston, Providence or Manchester and they all came in around $570 RT for an August 18th departure. Usually Manchester and Providence will be slightly cheaper. Personally I am going to wait - I don't think prices will come down much, but at this price I don't see them shooting up much higher so I think I will take the risk and start looking to book in June. (Reminds me to look at seat selection - if aisle seats start looking full I will book as I hate getting stuck on the inside of long flights)

I am going to spend a week at the Slide Inn on the Madison with 2 of my best friends. We meet out west every year for a week of fly fishing. We are returning to the Yellowstone area this year because we were like kids in candy store out there last year with all the options. Where you going flygirl?

Yeah electricity, roof over your head, warm bed all over rated when Montana is calling *s*!!

[flygirl]

AvoDrake , When I checked flights out to Bozeman in Jan. they were $519-550.....so I waited hoping for a deal but no go. I just bit the bullet & picked up a flight on Delta for $578. Water under the bridge , I'm not going to brood about it , it just means I'm going to have a good time.
There are 5 of us leaving Hartford 8/5 to fish the Ruby river. we're staying at Upper Canyon Outfitters for the week. We connect with 3 others so we get a deal for the 8 of us. Now I have to go fishing as much as possible here & practice my casting so I'm ready for the rivers THERE. Sounds like a good excuse to ME. ! :D

[AvoDrake]

That looks like an outstanding location being right on the Ruby with the Jefferson close by. Nothing like having cabins right on the river and hearing the sounds of the river when you wake up in the morning. Look forward to seeing your post on this trip when you return.

I love going out to Montana after fishing micro stuff on 7x on the Farmington. 4-5x tippet looks like rope after doing that all summer and throwing big hoppers and crickets is a lot of fun after squinting all day trying to see tiny BWOs.

[AvoDrake]

Just booked my flight flygirl and I ended paying $600 to Bozeman from Boston on NW. This same airfare at same time and same airline cost me $450 last year.

Was going to go with United and one day later the flights I wanted jumped from $600 to $780.

Time to start tying some hoppers!