First Class Trend Monitor: Many Fares Between Europe & U.S. Continue Nose-Dive

• Good for many travelers, short-term: Front-cabin seats plunge to more destinations
• For many other travelers, Low-Fare Side Effects emerge at the same time

For years we were programmed to travel during specific times of the year to get the best premium cabin airfares: over the summer, and during Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter. This all changed two years ago with the EasyUp Business Class fare revolution introduced by Delta and SkyTeam members, then intermittently followed by oneworld and occasionally by Star Alliance airlines. While the fares are not available all the time or for every route, the almost unbelievably low Business Class fares—very often little or no more than economy—have been snagged by many who know the when, where, who, and how to land them.

First Class Fare Trend Follows Business Class Fare Trend, Relatively Speaking

We see a similar revolution in First Class fares to/from Europe. The new fares are certainly not cheap, even with the required advance purchase and a Saturday-night or other minimum stay (restrictions for this cabin—and corresponding discounting—didn’t even exist long ago). Where fares have historically hovered in the $13 to $20K troposphere—and still do on some routes—over the last couple years, on many routes they have plunged 50% to 75%. We’re now seeing deep discounts offered on new routes almost by the month.