How airlines actually price flights from London to
New York

About 1 in 3 flights from London have twin seat layouts. You can reliably find these by looking for specific aircraft types:

A330s have a 2-4-2 Economy configuration, flown by most Delta and some Virgin Atlantic flights. Watch out for aircraft swaps though.

767s have a 2-3-2 Economy configuration, flown by almost all United flights.

You can also find twin seats on the rear of some 777s (British Airways and American Airlines) where the cabin tapers from 3-4-3 to 2-4-2, but these prized seats usually come with a premium. Why not get it for free by booking a different type of aircraft?

Flights back from New York to London are in the air for a little over 6 hours. By the time drinks, dinner & breakfast service is complete in the cabin, there's less than 4 hours left for undisturbed rest. In business class, you could dine in the lounge and sleep from seatbelt off to back on again (best case: 5 hours 30 minutes undistrubed), but even then you're fighting sleep deprivation until the evening.

Defy jetlag with dayflights. Start and end the day in a proper bed. It's far easier to snap back into the British timezone when arriving in the evening. Plus, modern WiFi-equipped planes means you don't necessarily lose a day's productivity either.

Flights typically take off from New York around 8am and arrive around 8pm in London. The early start helps with re-adjustment to the earlier British timezone, and is still better for sleep hours than any seat or suite on a plane.

Look out for British Airways, American Airlines, Virgin Atlantic, JetBlue, and United Airlines.

Best value: Virgin Atlantic VS26 JFK-LHR. Virgin offers a more generous service on this short dayflight with a decent breakfast and then a hot dinner before landing. Most other airlines offer a breakfast with a small snack before landing, forgetting most dining options will be closed by the time they get into London after landing.

Virgin Premium Economy is also a particularly good option on this flight. Save forking out for business class for another trip, particularly if you're going to be back in a real bed sooner.

Window seats on the right side offer the best views of the New York skyline as you approach. Flights tend to follow coast along Long Island then turn in.

New York airports aren't as well connected as London airports. Most evening flights back to London depart between 8pm and 10pm, which means you'll be travelling out during rush hour traffic if you leave Manhattan in the late afternoon. This affects both JFK and Newark.

Consider these options: Book a later flight and enjoy the early evening in the city, or make your way to the airport earlier in the day and relax in the airport lounges.

If your budget stretches that far, helicopter transfers can zip you over the traffic entirely. When travelling alone, the price difference to a surge-priced Uber can be surprisingly small.

US immigration queues at JFK and Newark can add significant time to your journey, particularly during peak arrival times.

Pre-clear in Ireland or Canada: You can clear US customs and immigration before your transatlantic flight at Dublin, Shannon, Montreal, or Toronto. You'll arrive in New York as a domestic passenger and walk straight out. Montreal is particularly useful as it's roughly en route (adds about 2 hours) and connects onwards to LaGuardia, which is nearer to Manhattan than JFK. Toronto is slightly further out of the way.

Is it faster door-to-door from London? Not necessarily, given London's plentiful nonstops. But for travellers from elsewhere in the UK (Southampton, Bristol, etc.), it can save considerable time.

Global Entry: Wonderfully fast when you have it, but expect a slow process to obtain it. The trusted traveller programme includes TSA PreCheck and gives you access to automated kiosks at US airports.

Check recent wait times at Port Authority customs clearancecbp.gov before you fly to plan your arrival strategy.

Often cheaper than booking flights alone through BA Holidaysbritishairways.com or Virgin Atlantic Holidaysvirginatlantic.com.

What to look for: mid-range Manhattan hotels often show the biggest savings. The websites can be clunkier to use than booking separately, but the savings can be substantial.

Downsides: hotel choice can be limited, and you won't earn hotel loyalty points or benefits. But you might save more than those points would be worth anyway.