Paris – the CIty of Lights…who doesn’t love that grand old city!?  In 2009 our daughter was turning 12 and it seemed like the right time to start planning an overseas trip.

I  hadn’t yet learned all of the valuable resources for finding good ticket prices and even better, nearly free tickets via frequent flyer programs. Nevertheless, I eventually noticed some flights on American Airlines (AA) to certain cities in Europe for about $425 roundtrip departing from Detroit (DTW).  Since that was a very good price, and DTW is only a 3 hour drive from our home in Dayton, OH, I jumped on it!

I chose Paris for several reasons.  One, I had been there before as part of my high school language club’s trip to Europe and absolutely loved it.  Two, my wife and daughter had frequently mentioned Paris, and it fit within their interests in the arts.

To make it even better, AA had a 6-months no-interest offer if the tickets were purchased with their AA “store credit card” (i.e., not a Visa/MC/etc)  That meant I could wait and use my tax return to finish paying off the airfare costs.

More on our trip in upcoming installments…