Help with ticket to Rome

[vlapinta]

This will be our first time traveling to Europe. We are going for a family wedding in Tuscany the end of Sept. 2016.
We live in NJ so we can travel to Newark or JFK. Any suggestions on which airlines we should look at, and what airport? We are open for suggestions and can fly into a different area of Italy to visit before the wedding also. We are not using frequent flyer miles. Also how far in advance is best for purchasing the ticket?
When we went to Hawaii we got a great suggestion on this board to fly with Alaska Air out of Seattle, which saved us a lot of money. We never would have known about that so I am asking you experienced travelers for Italy.

 

[silentg]

Hi past June, we went to Rome. We flew non stop from Orlando to Dublin on Aer Lingus, we had a 3 hour break then got. Non stop flight to Rome. I talked to a customer service agent at Aer Lingus after I found these flights, our bags were checked all the way thru to Rome, in fact it cost us less to book this way than a direct flight to Rome. Probably JFK would have a similar type of flight. Check them out. Enjoy your trip to Rome!
Silentg

 

[Passepartout]

I think that if I were going to Tuscany for a first trip to Europe, I'd probably go to Northern Italy, perhaps Florence, or Venice, and travel around using public transport as much as possible- trains etc. Only rent a car for your time around Tuscany. Driving in Italian cities is NOT fun! If time allows, train into Rome for a couple of days to see the highlights. There is much to do in that area even saving Rome and the South for another trip.

Look for flights about 10 months out. Alitalia will likely be among the lowest priced airfare. We have found that flying into Pisa to be both lower priced that into Florence or Venice, and actually easier to take the train right from the Pisa airport to downtown Florence than from Florence's own airport. Go figure.

Sounds like a lot of fun in the planning. Both for a destination wedding and a first trip to Europe. Get either (or both) Lonely Planet and/or Rick Steves' Italy guides. They are a wealth of information.

Jim

 

[elaine]

AA has daily nonstop from JKF-Milan. From Milan, it's easy access to Florence, Venice, etc. We have taken this flight a number of times. You could also fly to London, or even Paris, which are sometimes cheaper, stay for a few days and then take a cheap flight to Italy. Lastly, we have even flown JFK-Zurich stayed a few days and then trained to Milan (3.5 hrs) with a "super saver" type train ticket of 25 euros. That was also a very easy connection with fabulous scenery. For Sept travel, I would aim for under $1000 total for both legs and if you get flights that come in at/lower, jump on that price. Otherwise, I would look for sales around May for fall travel.

 

[Jimster]

Pisa

Pisa is a good option to FCO. Delta among others fly there. As mentioned above Milan is also possible but it is a pretty long train ride to Rome.

 

[silentg]

Pisa is a good option to FCO. Delta among others fly there. As mentioned above Milan is also possible but it is a pretty long train ride to Rome.

Yes, I checked Aer Lingus they fly from JFK to Pisa with stop in Dublin
Here is link
https://new.aerlingus.com/html/flightSearchResult.html

 

[vlapinta]

Hi past June, we went to Rome. We flew non stop from Orlando to Dublin on Aer Lingus, we had a 3 hour break then got. Non stop flight to Rome. I talked to a customer service agent at Aer Lingus after I found these flights, our bags were checked all the way thru to Rome, in fact it cost us less to book this way than a direct flight to Rome. Probably JFK would have a similar type of flight. Check them out. Enjoy your trip to Rome!
Silentg

How long is the flight from Dublin to Rome?

 

[Pompey Family]

How long is the flight from Dublin to Rome?

Roughly three hours.

 

[K2Quick]

You can get JFK to Pisa or Rome for around $500 on Norwegian. You'll have a decently long stopover of around 5 hours on the way, though. Be careful when you book on Norwegian to not us the U.S. version of the website - they stick it to Americans - book through the other EU countries version or, better yet, through the Norwegian version for the best pricing (if you're brave enough to negotiate the transaction in a foreign language).

 

[silentg]

How long is the flight from Dublin to Rome?

We had a 3 hour layover, then the flight was 3 hours.
We flew overnight from Orlando to Dublin, arrived in the morning, had breakfast at the airport then went to the gate. We arrived in Rome and got to our hotel had a nap and then dinner. I would do this again. bTW WE FLEW BACK TO Dublin after 6 days in Rome and spent a week at our timeshare and then flew home non stop to Orlando.
Silentg

 

[pedro47]

Suggestion Only & My Humble Opinion Only:

If we are going to fly from The United States to Rome again. We will be flying first class. The room & leg space, the comfort, the food and service are well worth it to us.

This is my suggestion & humble opinion only. Money is a key factor; I understand. Please do not beat me up for expression by opinion to the OP.

 

[taterhed]

Suggestion Only & My Humble Opinion Only:

If we are going to fly from The United States to Rome again. We will be flying first class. The room & leg space, the comfort, the food and service are well worth it to us.

This is my suggestion & humble opinion only. Money is a key factor; I understand. Please do not beat me up for expression by opinion to the OP.

I would strongly consider this, but: make sure the 'first class' you're upgrading for is worth it. Many aircraft (737 ugh) have very marginal first class for the $$$. On the other hand, some 'business first' seats are not that much more money and offer very good room/food/drink (well, relatively good) for the dollars spent.
Lot's of web sites for advice including Flyer talk.

 

[Ken555]

Be careful when you book on Norwegian to not us the U.S. version of the website - they stick it to Americans - book through the other EU countries version or, better yet, through the Norwegian version for the best pricing (if you're brave enough to negotiate the transaction in a foreign language).

FYI, did this trick a few days ago for a friend needing a ticket from London back to California. Saved ~$300 on their premium class ticket. US site wanted $1195 one way, Norwegian site was just ~$860 (before credit card fees). Other friends did same for coach from JFK to Europe and saved ~$100 or so. I read about this trick online and it seems to be accurate.



Sent from my iPad

 

[artringwald]

We flew Delta to Europe last October, and the comfort economy was 90% as good as 1st class and 60% of the price. The seats were 2-5-2, so we got a window and isle seat next to each other.

Google Flights has a very nice map view that will show you prices for various cities. Here's an example:

https://www.google.com/flights/#search;f=JFK,EWR,LGA;t=FLR,FIR,ZMS;d=2016-09-13;r=2016-09-30;sc=p;mc=m

 

[Pompey Family]

We flew Delta to Europe last October, and the comfort economy was 90% as good as 1st class and 60% of the price. The seats were 2-5-2, so we got a window and isle seat next to each other.

Google Flights has a very nice map view that will show you prices for various cities. Here's an example:

https://www.google.com/flights/#search;f=JFK,EWR,LGA;t=FLR,FIR,ZMS;d=2016-09-13;r=2016-09-30;sc=p;mc=m

Bear in mind that first class on European, Middle Eastern or Asian carriers is a world away from first class on US carriers and the price reflects that. First Class on British Airways for example is a completely different experience to economy or premium or even business.

 

[SMHarman]

We flew Delta to Europe last October, and the comfort economy was 90% as good as 1st class and 60% of the price. The seats were 2-5-2, so we got a window and isle seat next to each other.

Google Flights has a very nice map view that will show you prices for various cities. Here's an example:

https://www.google.com/flights/#sea...R,FIR,ZMS;d=2016-09-13;r=2016-09-30;sc=p;mc=m

Economy comfort is 90% as good as domestic first.

A quality international business product, even the new AA business is much much better and much more expensive

Open skies and compagigne are more e economical business propositions.

 

[AnnaS]

Now for me, First Class is nice without a doubt and have flown a few times (not international - which is when it would be best ) - but I would prefer a direct flight. Once you get this chicken on the plane, I am not going back down only to go back up again!

Enjoy Italy, the wedding and all the planning. We plan on going next year.