Be Patient When Booking Business Class Fares For Next Year

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I’m not normally one to make too many predictions when it comes to the direction in which airline fares will go but right now I think I have a fairly good idea of what to expect (fare-wise) for 2017 so I thought I’d share my thoughts.

Patience is going to be the key to snagging the best Business Class deals in 2017 but I think that those prepared to wait will be well rewarded.

Europe – Asia Business Class Fares

Travelers looking to fly between Europe and Asia don’t normally have to wait too long for a good Business Class deal to turn up with Qatar Airways and Finnair usually falling over themselves to offer some truly excellent deals for flights in some of the best Business Class cabins around. And I can only see this getting better.

Airlines flying to Asia don’t seem to be showing much capacity discipline right now with the likes of Finnair announcing increased frequencies and capacity on routes to Hong Kong and Tokyo for summer 2017 and Qatar Airways adding capacity on both short haul routes (like Doha t0 Dubai) and on routes between Europe and the Middle East (Helsinki – Doha).

Qatar Airways A320 Business Class – even the narrow-bodies have good seats

Increased capacity can only be a good thing for travelers with airlines forced to keep pries low to fill the planes. Combine this with the low cost of oil (which is showing no sign of going anywhere anytime soon) and I suspect we;re in for another year of fantastic low Business Class fares between Europe and Asia.

Europe – USA Business Class Fares

Those of us who spend a lot of our time flying to and from the US don’t see quite as many Business Class sale fares as travelers flying between Europe and Asia but, thanks to airlines like LOT and SAS, things may be about to get a little better.

Back in November 2015 we started to see some great Europe-USA premium cabin fares for summer 2016 with British Airways offering First Class to Las Vegas at under $2,700 RT and a plethora of Business Class fares (with a variety of airlines) starting from around $1,300 RT…and I don’t see why 2017 should be any different.

The American Airlines 777-300ER Business Class seats are one of the best across the Atlantic

Right now it looks like the cheapest summer 2017 Business Class flights from Europe to the US are around $1,800 – $2,000 depending on how far west you want to travel….but I wouldn’t be looking to book at those prices.

With airlines like LOT adding flights from Warsaw to Los Angeles (and SAS adding flights from Stockholm as well) we should have more capacity between Europe and the US than we did in 2016…and as bargain fare hunters that’s great news for us.

With more capacity on some very desirable routes between Europe and the US there’s no reason to think that we won’t see a repeat of 2016’s fares in 2017 – there’s even a chance we’ll see fares that are even lower – so don’t rush to book your flights unless you absolutely have to.

Use Award Flights As Placeholders If You Can

Clearly there’s no guarantee that 2017 Business Class fares will be as low as in 2016 (although I strongly believe they will be) so it’s a good idea to have a backup plan.

One option is to snap up award flights for the dates that work best for you (if you can find them) and then keep a careful eye on fare prices. If the fares drop to the levels we saw in 2016 then you’ll almost certainly be better off cancelling the awards and booking with cash but at least you have an insurance policy if they don’t.

Note: Before you employ this tactic don’t forget to check how much it will cost to cancel an award ticket and make sure you factor that in to your calculations.

Try to snag the hard-to-find AAdvantage awards to insure yourself in case you miss out on the best deals

Bottom Line

Patience and timing grill be key to getting the best Business Class fares in 2017.

Historically fares to Asia can be excellent close in to departure (a month out) while summer Business Class fares to the US are usually best no closer than 6 months out (with a few exceptions). With that in mind I would be prepared to wait and wait and wait if I was looking to snag a great summer fare to Asia but I probably wouldn’t wait past February if I was looking to book a great summer Business Class fare to the US.

Here’s how I see things (other may have their own ideas):

Price-wise I’d jump on anything to the East Coast or Chicago that was in the $1,300’s and I’d snap up a fare under $1,750 to the West Coast…prices may get marginally better than that but, if you pass, you’re running the risk of missing out on a great fare for a saving that probably won’t change your life.

With Asia fares it’s a lot harder to set general price targets as prices vary a lot more by destination. My one hard and fast rule is that I refuse to pay more than $1,500 RT to Bangkok as I’ve seen way too many fares lower than that in the past 12 months. The better fares to China are generally under $1,700 while Tokyo and Singapore (of the more popular destinations) are usually more expensive so I’d adjust my thinking for those.