Europe

Free Upgrade to Britain and Ireland for AAdvantage and Oneworld Elites

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Beginning April 30, American launches daily non-stop service from Chicago to Shannon, Ireland. On this route and its existing Boston-Manchester, England service, American operates B757s with 188 economy class seats and 22 “First Class” seats. Service runs through Sept. 30 to Shannon, all year long to Manchester.

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Here’s the deal on those First Class seats: They’re sold at economy class prices (as low as $600), but are reserved for travelers with Priority Seating privileges—specifically, AAdvantage elite members, other Oneworld elites, and customers of travel agencies that have volume contracts with American. Why? Rather than reconfigure the aircraft for only two routes that are dominated by economy class summer leisure travelers, the airline has opted to use Boeing 757s that normally service domestic routes. Eat dinner before departure and pack a lunch on the return, as the in-flight service is economy only. Don’t expect the flight attendants to pay special attention to you either. It’s certainly not the best possible service to Europe. However, at the end of the day, for many it will be hard to resist the price. Keep in mind that the eastward flight from Boston to Manchester is only six hours and twenty-five minutes).

There are many low domestic First Class fares offered to both Boston and Chicago from the West Coast and even lower from the Midwest. Manchester is a good city for making connections to the Continent. EuropeByAir.com offers $99 flights to 17 cities non-stop from Manchester, including Barcelona, Brussels, London, Malaga, Mallorca and others. In addition, there are many flight options with British Airways and BMI.

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