More Flying Anxiety- This Time for Italy

[WinniWoman]

Well, so our travel agent contacted me regarding airfare for the Italy trip in October. Of course, another nightmare itinerary. She said our 16 day trip (a tour with Odyssey Unlimited) has limited options. We are going the day before the tour starts so we have to arrange our own airfare. (the tour starts the following evening with an orientation dinner).

Essentially we would fly out of Boston on Luthansia at 8pm. Mind you Boston is two hours away. We will have to hire a car service to take us down there because we don't drive in Boston or at night. And we will be too tired anyway both ways. More $$$$$. Will get a wheelchair at the airport.

This flight goes into Munich. But here's the killer- a 6 HOUR Layover! After like a 8 hour flight! I cannot imagine not being able to lay down after that long coming from our home in NH! Then we fly to Catania and transfer on our own to the hotel in Taormina. Mind you I have a bad back. My husband just turned 70 and I am 68.

So refundable economy class tickets are $1317 per person. Without refundable is $1062 per person. 1 free checked bag and 1 carryon per person. I did not ask her what modifying the trip insurance would cost instead of having refundable tickets but I will. We would have to pay for seat assignments $45-$55 per seat! We need at least aisle seats.

Going back home the tour company transfers us to Naples. The connecting flight in Munich just gives us 1 hour for our flight back to Boston! UGH!

So we dare to ask what premium economy and business class cost. HOLY COW!

Business= $3662 per person non refundable and $4272 refundable
Premium Economy=$2432 pp non refundable and $2882 pp refundable

I mean is this what people pay or go through to take a vacation to Europe these days? Those are more than the tour itself!
Is it necessary to book a flight this early? Could it be there would be better flights in the future?

She had an alternate on Delta. It would be Boston to Rome to Catania. Don't have all those details including pricing.
Problem is going back home the tour company transfers everyone to Naples, but our Delta flight would leave the next morning from there at 6am! The only flight! So we would now have to stay over in Naples. Then the next morning fly to Paris and there would be a 3 hour layover for Boston. We don't like that either.

I consider all this Chinese- umm- Italian torture. I am so bummed out I cannot tell you. Plus we already paid $850 for trip insurance, (and I should have listened to Tuggers and not taken it out right away) so we would lose that if we cancel this trip, plus half of the hotel rate we paid for the one day early arrival. If we cancel before July we would get our $950 tour deposit back.

Really I am sick over this and don't know what to do. This was going to be our last hurrah mainly because we hate flying because of exactly this type of thing. Was hoping we would be surprised and it would be much easier. Tried to think positive. Why does it have to be this way?

 

[DaveNV]

Do you have to fly that itinerary or airline? Since you're arranging your own airfare, can't you get a different carrier to get you there?

Dave

 

[Luanne]

All I can say is when my daughter and I went to Switzerland a couple of years ago we flew United's Polaris Business class. Yes, it was expensive, but so worth it. It gave us access to the Polaris lounges, which were wonderful. It was also great to have the lay flat seats so we could sleep.

In looking at travelocity.com to see what other possibilities there may be I'm seeing quite a few options with much less of a layover, and also cheaper for Economy. That might change if you book direct as I've found that sometimes the flights shows on travelocity don't always exist. But it might give you an idea of some other options. In looking more closely the cheaper prices are for what you might call basic economy with seat selection and checked bags all costing extra.

 

[Ken555]

Take a look at Level Air (flylevel.com). They have Boston flights to Italy via Barcelona. Premium Econ seats are about $900 each way per person with a seat reservation in October.

I’ve flown premium many times to/from Europe (just returned last week on Norse Air) and I’ve paid $515-1000 each way, depending on itinerary and destination averaging across all trips of about $725. I will not fly economy from Los Angeles to Europe any longer and premium is great.

You should absolutely make your own flight arrangements. Be flexible. If you don’t want a long layover, and there isn’t any other option, then consider flying to the gateway city and spend a night or two there, relax, explore, eat good food, and then fly home, etc. Barcelona is a great city, so adding a few nights there after Italy would be a great option especially since you could have a nonstop flight from there to Boston.


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[WorldT]

What kind of trip insurance did you buy that cost $850? Was that a typo?

 

[WinniWoman]

The travel agent is making the flight arrangements for me, not the tour company. This is not affiliated with the tour company. This is our own flight arrangements.

She said this is all there is. Not a lot of choices. Keep in mind our tour starts in Catania, Sicily, not the mainland of Italy.

 

[Talent312]

When choosing your seats, you may be able to upgrade individual flight-segments for a lot less. Last year when flying to Amsterdam, we did that... We bought business class seats only for the segments over-the Atlantic. The opportunity to lie flat was too good to pass up.

BTW, for the extended layover in Munich, the airport itself has a lot to offer, including a good open-air restaurant in the middle between two terminals, where we dined while staying at the Airport Hilton.
.

 

[WinniWoman]

What kind of trip insurance did you buy that cost $850? Was that a typo?

We got the insurance through Travelex with the travel agent and I insisted on “cancel for any reason” (which gives you half back for uncovered reasons if applicable) due to my worry about wars and pandemics.

Also our tour is very expensive for 16 days. Like $9000 without the airfare. No way would we want to lose that money should we have to cancel.

 

[WinniWoman]

When choosing your seats, you may be able to upgrade individual flight-segments for a lot less. Last year when flying to Amsterdam, we did that... We bought business class seats only for the segments over-the Atlantic. The opportunity to lie flat was too good to pass up.

BTW, for the extended layover in Munich, the airport itself has a lot to offer, including a good open-air restaurant in the middle between two terminals, where we dined while staying at the Airport Hilton.
.

Yes. The business class fare quoted is just for the transatlantic flight, not the connecting flight.. sigh…

 

[Ken555]

She said this is all there is. Not a lot of choices. Keep in mind our tour starts in Catania, Sicily, not the mainland of Italy.

Level to Barcelona, spend a night or two, then nonstop Barcelona to Catania. This isn’t difficult. Sounds like your travel agent really isn’t giving you the best of advice.

Vueling has nonstop BCN-CTA departing at 1:05pm on Oct 9 (random Oct date) starting at just $47 without bags, etc. I’ve flown them many times and typical one way fares in Europe is about $125-140 with bag, seat, etc.


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[WinniWoman]

Do you have to fly that itinerary or airline? Since you're arranging your own airfare, can't you get a different carrier to get you there?

Dave

This is not the tour’s airfare. This is our own arrangements- just I am having the travel agent handle it. She said there are limited options.

 

[WinniWoman]

Level to Barcelona, spend a night or two, then nonstop Barcelona to Catania. This isn’t difficult. Sounds like your travel agent really isn’t giving you the best of advice.


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Thanks. I’ll mention this to her. We are going the night before the tour already. That’s why we couldn’t use the tour company airfare. Have that hotel in Sicily booked and paid for already, so we just want to get there and transfer to our hotel. ( transfer we also have to pay for since it’s the day before the tour)

If we could get a much shorter layover in Barcelona than 6 hours in Munich that would be great. And at least premium economy at a reasonable cost.

 

[ScoopKona]

I would fire this travel agent. Wouldn't think twice. Kayak would do a better job.

 

[Ken555]

Thanks. I’ll mention this to her. We are going the night before the tour already. That’s why we couldn’t use the tour company airfare. Have that hotel in Sicily booked and paid for already, so we just want to get there and transfer to our hotel. ( transfer we also have to pay for since it’s the day before the tour)

If we could get a much shorter layover in Barcelona than 6 hours in Munich that would be great. And at least premium economy at a reasonable cost.

The best fares are often a compromise with either travel duration or itinerary. Even though you’re arriving a day early, if saving $$$ means going a day or two earlier than planned and spending a bit on a hotel in another city, then I suggest considering that option. And you’ve got it easy from the east coast! I just spent ~12.5 hours on a plane for a nonstop flight - which is one of the reasons why I try my best not to have connecting flights going to or from Europe. Boston to Europe is just ~8 hours.

I seem to recall you had a similar issue with a previous trip. Do you know how to search at google and elsewhere for flight options? Don’t rely on your travel agent to tell you the options.


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[Ken555]

I would fire this travel agent. Wouldn't think twice. Kayak would do a better job.

Ya think?


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[WinniWoman]

Level to Barcelona, spend a night or two, then nonstop Barcelona to Catania. This isn’t difficult. Sounds like your travel agent really isn’t giving you the best of advice.

Vueling has nonstop BCN-CTA departing at 1:05pm on Oct 9 (random Oct date) starting at just $47 without bags, etc. I’ve flown them many times and typical one way fares in Europe is about $125-140 with bag, seat, etc.


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Looks like they only fly on certain days for this. Really now we would have to pay for more hotels and food and extends an already too long vacation. I just want to get there via a shorter connection going and a longer connection going home and wish we could have premium economy at the very least without it costing an arm and a leg.

 

[Ken555]

Looks like they only fly on certain days for this. Really now we would have to pay for more hotels and food and extends an already too long vacation. I just want to get there via a shorter connection going and a longer connection going home and wish we could have premium economy at the very least without it costing an arm and a leg.

Once again, if you want the best fares you need to compromise based on what’s available. You could even take a cheap(er) flight from Boston to the UK or Dublin and get there in six hours (I’ve done that route in economy - no more difficult than flying to Hawaii for me), then spend a night there and continue. So many options, but if you restrict yourself to a set timeline then guess what? You have to pay for the privilege of your schedule. That’s the way this works! Have fun, good luck.


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[WinniWoman]

The best fares are often a compromise with either travel duration or itinerary. Even though you’re arriving a day early, if saving $$$ means going a day or two earlier than planned and spending a bit on a hotel in another city, then I suggest considering that option. And you’ve got it easy from the east coast! I just spent ~12.5 hours on a plane for a nonstop flight - which is one of the reasons why I try my best not to have connecting flights going to or from Europe. Boston to Europe is just ~8 hours.

I seem to recall you had a similar issue with a previous trip. Do you know how to search at google and elsewhere for flight options? Don’t rely on your travel agent to tell you the options.


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Yes. I have always booked our own airfare. ( except last year i had the agent handle everything for our Collette tour to South Dakota) ) I Just did it for our Florida trip we took last week but for this I let the agent do everything.

 

[WinniWoman]

Once again, if you want the best fares you need to compromise based on what’s available. You could even take a cheap(er) flight from Boston to the UK or Dublin and get there in six hours (I’ve done that route in economy - no more difficult than flying to Hawaii for me), then spend a night there and continue. So many options, but if you restrict yourself to a set timeline then guess what? You have to pay for the privilege of your schedule. That’s the way this works! Have fun, good luck.


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Thank you. Much appreciated. All good suggestions.

Yea. It’s the tour schedule that I have to work with.

 

[ScoopKona]

One other avenue to pursue -- Icelandic air. You probably don't need a stopover in Iceland like my wife and I do, flying from Hawaii. But Icelandic will sell you both legs of a "Your city to your destination" flight, with a stopover at KEF for no extra charge. They won't get you as far as Catania -- because they only do the big cities. But they could get you to Palermo, and then you arrange the final leg of the trip.

We enjoy the "12 hours from Hawaii to KEF, soak in the Old Pool, head to our destination" itinerary. It's usually close enough to the cheapest price that we don't care. Your mileage from Boston will almost certainly vary.

 

[WinniWoman]

One thing I do know is if we don’t go this year, we won’t ever go. Our patience for this kind of travel is just not there. We are not very experienced with fast paced airports or foreign countries and how everything works. That’s why we chose a tour for this trip. We are pushing ourselves to do this as it is. It would be only our second time in Europe. Our first to Scotland in 2012 was a nonstop to Edinburgh and we got in a car and drove to a resort for the week. Independent travel.

We’re older now and i have back issues and my husband has his issues. Our passports expire in 2026 and I doubt we will renew them. Only one stamp in them. lol!

 

[b2bailey]

One thing I do know is if we don’t go this year, we won’t ever go. Our patience for this kind of travel is just not there. We are not very experienced with fast paced airports or foreign countries and how everything works. That’s why we chose a tour for this trip. We are pushing ourselves to do this as it is. It would be only our second time in Europe. Our first to Scotland in 2012 was a nonstop to Edinburgh and we got in a car and drove to a resort for the week. Independent travel.

We’re older now and i have back issues and my husband has his issues. Our passports expire in 2026 and I doubt we will renew them. Only one stamp in them. lol!

I agree you should take this trip.
But first, Breath In....Breath Out.
Stop worrying over the price.
A few years from now, you won't even remember the $ spent.
Do whatever works best for you -- I would never consider a 6 hour layover.

Do I understand correctly that the insurance will only cover your flights if the Travel Agent books them?

I want to add that in the past 25 years of travel I have NEVER used a Travel Agent.

I'd be interested in a survey on the topic -- how many times in the past 25 years have you used a TA?

 

[slip]

I'm going to go a different route for you, just cancel the trip. Order a pizza and get a bottle of wine and relax. Sometimes, the answer to a stressful trip is to stay home.

This is the time in your life to enjoy yourself so if the trip adds stress, cancel and relax.

 

[b2bailey]

I'm going to go a different route for you, just cancel the trip. Order a pizza and get a bottle of wine and relax. Sometimes, the answer to a stressful trip is to stay home.

This is the time in your life to enjoy yourself so if the trip adds stress, cancel and relax.

I disagree. Ponder what's at the bottom of her posts:


"Life is either a daring adventure, or it's nothing" - Helen Keller

 

[davidvel]

I agree you should take this trip.
But first, Breath In....Breath Out.
Stop worrying over the price.
A few years from now, you won't even remember the $ spent.
Do whatever works best for you -- I would never consider a 6 hour layover.

Do I understand correctly that the insurance will only cover your flights if the Travel Agent books them?

I want to add that in the past 25 years of travel I have NEVER used a Travel Agent.

I'd be interested in a survey on the topic -- how many times in the past 25 years have you used a TA?

Never for personal travel. The problem with travel agents is that not all airlines/fares provide a juicy commission, and understandably they want to get paid for their work. So travel agents don't show you all availability and often the best fares.

If OP shared her dates I am sure the TUG sleuths could see what options there are.