Ticket advice for flying - Cost, Speed and parking/catching a ride

[Jedz123]

So late this coming July my best friend who moved to Albuquerque NM years ago is now moving back to Vermont, he acquired a wife and now soon to be child (next month) out there. Anyway he's had enough of it and is bringing the family back to Vermont.

A moving company is taking care of the rest of the move, his wife is using some of her parental leave to be with her family home in Maui with their baby during the transition, leaving my buddy to take care of their two vehicles and the dog. So he needs a co-pilot to help move back to Vermont. I gladly volunteered.

Also with small child I'm on a limited schedule to help get him back and would have loved to use the excuse to ride out and then ride back. So in that I am now looking to fly out to ALB and then get picked up at the airport and then ride back with my buddy and the Dog.

Trip is planned for end of July as they need to be out of the house by the end of the Day 8/1/24.

Right now from BTV (Burlington VT) to ABQ is going to run me about $270 with 6-10 hours worth waiting in at least 2 layovers resulting in 15 hours of hanging in airports and aircraft. I could just have 1 layover and only endure a 1.5 hour layover and get to ABQ in 8 hours total for an extra $50-$150 more. That's of course if I book today, plan to be booked by the end of the week. Burlington is about 1.5 hours from my house. I could also pickup my car from the airport easily after moving my buddy back home.

The 2nd option is to fly into ABQ from ALB (Albany Int. NY) Cheapest option with the 15 hour Layover heck being $250 but if I wanted to just be doing the jet-setting slog in 7-8 hours I could get to ABQ for $100-$150 more. I have friends and family in Albany so I could in theory get to my flight on time by spending the night with them. Albany is about 2 hours from my house. Not as easy to get my car...

The 3rd option is to fly out of Boston. This is by far the cheapest at $170, 1 layover and 6 hours of airport/aircraft time. I do have a sister-in law that lives in Boston I cold bunk up with for the evening prior, the issues is getting down and / or finding parking. Boston is 4 hours away.

My Q's are.

1. Is there another airport near ABQ that I could fly into for cheaper?
2. Is there a different carrier or more economical way to fly into ABQ?
3. What is the best way to book tickets?
4. Do you guys just pay to park or get rides?

I don't fly often, last time was last year going to Hawaii for the same friends wedding at his wife's hometown. I know I'm in a unique situation as I'm kinda in the boonies here in Central Vermont.

Thanks,

[RichDesmond]

1) Probably not. Nearest major city is El Paso, over 250 miles south. As you've indicated, your airport flexibility is going to be at the east end.

2 &3) I'd just hop online and Google "cheap flights departure airport Albuquerque". Expedia, Booking.com and Kayak should all give you about the same prices/flights. Southwest doesn't play with the outside apps, so you have to go to their site to see what they have.

4) Depends on how long I'm going to be gone. Just a few days and I park at the airport, longer and it's cheaper for me to Uber to the airport.

If you have the schedule flexibility, look at different days of the week to fly. For example, Tuesday is usually cheaper than Monday.

At a guess you'll probably end up on American, or maybe Southwest if they fly into your departure airport. United (my preferred airline) doesn't have many options in ABQ. I've flown my niece out from there to either DC or Newark a couple of times and it always ends up being on American.

15 hour layover sounds crazy, that mean overnight, which you really, really don't want to do. I used to fly internationally a lot for work, worst I ever had was 10 hours at Heathrow. Not fun.

[bwringer]

My Q's are.

1. Is there another airport near ABQ that I could fly into for cheaper?
2. Is there a different carrier or more economical way to fly into ABQ?
3. What is the best way to book tickets?
4. Do you guys just pay to park or get rides?

I don't fly often, last time was last year going to Hawaii for the same friends wedding at his wife's hometown. I know I'm in a unique situation as I'm kinda in the boonies here in Central Vermont.

Thanks,

1) Agree with Rich. Next closest is El Paso, ELP, and that's smaller and a four hour drive. Go to ABQ.
2) You can use Google to find flights for everyone except Southwest.
3) Always book direct with the carrier. Use Google Flights to find the best option, but book directly with the carrier's website instead of some third party. If there's a problem of any kind, the third party won't be any help.
4) I usually get a ride to the airport. Even if the money for parking is a wash, I feel safer with my car at home, but honestly it's not actually that big a worry. YMMV, of course. If I'm not traveling with my wife, I also prefer for my car to be at home in case there's a problem with her car.

I'm not a fan of some things Southwest does, but I am a big fan of their luggage policy, where you get a carryon and a personal item with you in the plane, plus two pieces of checked luggage. Their on-time record is the very best, or close to it.

The disadvantage is that the closest airport SWA flies out of is Albany or Manchester.

I'd also say that upgrading your fare on SWA to get early check-in will help ensure that you're in the A or B boarding group, and so there will be room for your carry-on. On full flights, several folks in the C group will end up with their carry-on checked, which is an asspain.

When you get on the plane with SWA, head to the middle or back instead of just stopping at the first seat you see like most. I like window seats, and I like seeing the wing and engine.

Also, those prices you're finding are excellent. Book quick, but make sure you get a refundable or transferable rate if something comes up.

One other thing I'll mention: if you have several hours to kill during a layover, renting a car and going sightseeing might not be a bad option.

[salty_monk]

At a lot of airports you can park a motorcycle in the Short stay right opposite the terminal and leave it as long as you like for free.I do it most times I'm going on a trip that only requires carry-on. Lock all your gear to the bike & put a cover over the whole lot.
Usually lots of cops around the airport - I've never had one messed with.

One advantage (the only one probably) of using an Expedia type booking agent is you can mix and max different carriers in different directions very easily and just occasionally they will have something you can't get direct.

Be careful when booking your flights - there is a new b*atch in town since covid.... Basic Economy. No Carry-on luggage, no seat designation & last group to board the plane. They'll make you pay $30-$35 each way for checking a bag.

[Jedz123]

Thanks all for the advice!
I ended up using Google flights which directed me to the airline's site which offered the best deal. I found some "cheaper" airlines but after bringing a back pack and other "hidden" fees the price was negligible to just flying with United out of BTV.
I signed up to the "frequent flyer club" even though it didn't offer much for perks except offer better updates on my flight.
Decided to fly out of BTV as the issue of finding someone to offer my an 8 hour round trip ride to get my vehicle in Boston was looking improbable and my NY options for overnight will be gone on vacations. The other option was to take a bus either to grab my car after the flight or bus ride it down at 3AM, which negated whatever savings I was going to get by flying out of Boston. It also added a 5 hour bus ride to an already long flight day...No thanks.
I spent $350 after fees and insurance (just in case I do need to cancel) for a one way flight out of BTV to ABQ with United, 7 hour day of flying with a 1 hour layover in Chicago. Burlington allows me to find more rides to the airport so I don't have to pay for parking or bus fares. Just a better option all in all. I will look into parking the motorcycle at the Airport but if I can ultimately just park at my Buddy's house and have the bike there to go home with, that would be the most ideal. Since I'm basically getting picked up at the airport in ABQ and driving right from the terminal to VT I only need a back pack with a change of boxers, socks and maybe a tee.
Thanks all for the advice!

[bwringer]

At a lot of airports you can park a motorcycle in the Short stay right opposite the terminal and leave it as long as you like for free.I do it most times I'm going on a trip that only requires carry-on. Lock all your gear to the bike & put a cover over the whole lot.
Usually lots of cops around the airport - I've never had one messed with...

This varies tremendously. Here in Indianapolis, our new-ish airport is widely considered among the best, but they don't have any motorcycle parking and have given zero thought to motorcycles. Makes me sad... every time I've asked the airport authority, the reaction is mostly "WTF? Why would you do that?" I try to ask once or twice a year just in case anyone is keeping track.

They're not even sure whether the automated gates will work for motorcycles (or what to do if they didn't), but they are clear that if I did get through I'd have to park in a car spot and pay the same. Aargh.

At Seattle's airport, there's a great dedicated area for motorcycle parking in the garage. Very interesting assortment of bikes if you happen to get off the train at the wrong spot and need to walk through the garage, at least so I've heard... Legend has it you're expected and allowed to just ride around the gates, but I'm not sure if that's still true. Last time I was there many of the bikes were covered and had been there for several weeks at least.

I also pester the airport authority in Indy once in a while about planespotting opportunities, and the reaction is also much the same: "WTF? Why would anyone want to look at airplanes?"

[RichDesmond]

...I also pester the airport authority in Indy once in a while about planespotting opportunities, and the reaction is also much the same: "WTF? Why would anyone want to look at airplanes?"

Maaaaaaaannny years ago, before airport security was much of anything, ABQ had a very cool observation deck that anybody could go to. Well known in town as fun, cheap thing to do.
It was also a beautiful building, done in the Pueblo Revival style. Visually, it was by far the nicest airport terminal I've ever been in. Of course it's long gone now, a victim of all the security requirements and modernization.

[RichDesmond]

...with a 1 hour layover in Chicago...

1 hour layover is ok at O'Hare if you don't have a delay getting in, but if you do things could get tight. Download an airport map and know your departure gate for the 2nd leg, so that you don't lose any time figuring out where to go.
On a flight with a tight-ish connection I try to sit as far forward as possible.

[Jedz123]

I just got a message the flight schedule was changed, looking like a 2 hour layover at O'Hare now (8AM-10AM). The flight to ABQ was pushed back.
O'Hare is HUGE but a cool airport, we laid over there on our way back from Hawaii.
That's plenty of time to find my terminal, call my wife and have a coffee before making my way to ABQ for lunch time.
Cheers,

[JMHJ]

Maaaaaaaannny years ago, before airport security was much of anything, ABQ had a very cool observation deck that anybody could go to. Well known in town as fun, cheap thing to do... Of course it's long gone now, a victim of all the security requirements and modernization.

Took my wife to one of those one evening after dark, before we were married. Taxiway lights and all that very visible. Sad you can do that no longer. You can still pull off on the side of the road right under a final approach with the runway end not that far away. Did that on one of my bikes one night with a 737 on the way, and it was beyond thrilling (SCARY).

[bwringer]

Took my wife to one of those one evening after dark, before we were married. Taxiway lights and all that very visible. Sad you can do that no longer. You can still pull off on the side of the road right under a final approach with the runway end not that far away. Did that on one of my bikes one night with a 737 on the way, and it was beyond thrilling (SCARY).

There's a road around the Indy airport, but the airport goons will be all over you in about 30 seconds if you stop. But if you time things juuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuust right, it can be pretty cool, especially at night.

[salty_monk]

The parking rules here in LA say you must ride the gates (don't pull a ticket) and don't park anywhere that's marked as a spot for cars & don't get in the way of any access doors etc. Otherwise have at it....

[bwringer]

The parking rules here in LA say you must ride the gates (don't pull a ticket) and don't park anywhere that's marked as a spot for cars & don't get in the way of any access doors etc. Otherwise have at it....

Nice! So civilized and sensible.

I routinely ignore "NO MOTORCYCLES" signs in parking garages, because what they really mean is "NO LOUD MOTORCYCLES". I've never had a bit of trouble or pushback, although I've never tried it in the more uptight environs of an airport garage.

However, I've only been in one garage that allowed parking in the leftover slices of space for free; generally you're expected to pay the same as a Chevy Tahoe.