Everyone wants cheap flights to Germany right? How else are you going to bring your family and friends over to visit while you are here? Your tour in Germany is one of the best times for relatives to travel. They can get a cheap airline ticket and have a free place to stay.
Like any travel option, a quick Google search for cheap flights brings up a gazillion results. Ok really 86,400,00 but who is counting? How are you supposed to sort through all that and get a good deal? Luckily for you, this problem has been sorted through many times over. Currently the best deal comes down to two companies, SATO Travel and ABC Travel.
SATO Travel
If you have been in the military a day or two you certainly know about SATO travel. They handle all the travel arrangements for the military whether it be TDY or PCS travel. What you may not know is that they also do leisure travel. They offer deep discounts for military, DOD civilians, retirees, and immediate family members. You don’t even have to call or visit the SATO office anymore to book. You can do everything online via their SATOvacations site.
Be aware, there are large differences in price between the regular SATOvacations site and their SATOvacationsEurope site. Additionally, the SATO Europe site is the one you must use for flights originating in Europe and all prices are in Euro. The same flight from Denver to Frankfurt booked for a week in April on Delta was 604 EUR (675 USD) via SATO Europe and 1245 USD at the regular SATO site. Just be aware of which site you are on and it never hurts to confirm by calling or sending them an email.
ABC Travel
This is a travel company that operates out of Germany. From their own website, “Established in 1987, ABC Travel Service is a full service agency specialized in the american military travel market.” Many people have had good luck with securing cheap tickets to and from Germany. They offer what is marketed as a 35% discount for military, DOD, and immediate families.
Upon searching those same criteria for the Denver to Frankfurt flight in April I was presented with a lowest price of 714 USD for a delta flight. Obviously that is one trip on one date and there is always more comparison to do. Some people swear by ABC travel while others claim SATO is always lower.
Conclusion
Both companies offer good discounts to military and DOD civilians. Both “should” require some verification of military status but reports of actually being asked for ID are few. If you are buying tickets for family it might be a good idea to send them a copy of your ID as insurance. Both companies websites seem to operate the same. Facebook posts often pop up regarding the legitimacy of ABC travel but I believe that is because they are relatively unknown. Both SATO and ABC travel have offices and contact numbers in the USA and Germany. You really can’t go wrong either way but you should cross shop the two for the best deal. Do you have an experience with either service? Let us know in the comments below.
What is your opinion? Which is the better site to buy cheap tickets? Take a minute and select your choice in our poll below.
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