Q. We'd like to visit Europe in late fall/early winter. What travel periods will be the cheapest?

A. Although there were several excellent sales for travel to Europe this past spring and even summer, fares to most destinations went up and have remained there, even for fall travel. We can't see that there's much downside to waiting for prices to fall. In past years, fares to Europe have decreased for travel between November 1 and December 17, and especially for travel just after the New Year through late February. We would not be surprised to see this pattern repeated, but there are a lot of variables at play here, such as fuel prices, and even the unemployment rate. And keep in mind that fares vary widely depending on your destination. If Paris is out of reach, take a look at Frankfurt; if London is high, consider Dublin. It's pretty easy and inexpensive to travel between European cities on cheap airlines such as Ryanair and easyJet.