Tagged With "airline tickets"
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Re: Finishing college. Need help planning trip to U.K,
I frequently fly from NY JFK to Manchester UK. With Delta ! I know you are in Chicago but will Delta do you a thru Ticket ? We'll sort your Visit to Penny Lane, Strawberry Fields and The Cavern Club nearer the time!
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Re: Finishing college. Need help planning trip to U.K,
Wow, this is turning into a real education!! I checked with my uncle and yes, I can fly Chicago to Manchester and return from either London or Paris to Chicago. The ticket is free to him and he said he would cover any fees as a "graduation gift to me" (he's a pretty cool dude!), but I don't want to burden him with a heavy departure fee, so maybe Paris would be the way to go. I'd like to leave about Friday, May 9th and return 4 weeks later, June 6th. A few days later and returning a few days...
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Re: Finishing college. Need help planning trip to U.K,
That's helpful too, Rob. So with your guys advice, I'm thinking of the following plan, which still has holes I need to fill. I actually like the idea of Paris more than Scotland for this trip, plus I worry about the cost of travel to Scotland back so unless I can get a really cheap plane ticket or train ticket to Edinburgh, I think I'll drop that and focus on eastern UK and then on to Paris. So this is where I'm at now: 1) Arrive in Manchester. Maybe ??2 days 2) Travel Liverpool. 3 days 3)...
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Re: Finishing college. Need help planning trip to U.K,
or more. This is one case where he might be better off with a Ryanair or the like to Amsterdam and then an AMS-JFK ticket separately. Price it out both ways...
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Re: Finishing college. Need help planning trip to U.K,
Everyone's been very helpful! I can't tell you what a great welcoming and helpful group of people you are. My uncle is an employee of Delta, so he has some kind of free ticket that requires me to fly on Delta only (no partners). I will have him check into the dates. I like the idea of flying up to Manchester, slowly working my way to London then returning from Paris. I think going to Amsterdam is more than I can bite off now, plus I want to spend the time seeing stuff, not traveling all the...
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Re: Finishing college. Need help planning trip to U.K,
Hi everyone! I'm back. Just arrived at my parents home for Thanksgiving. Not had a lot of time to work on this trip since I last visited TravelGumbo, but some progress to report. I have a firm ticket reservation for Manchester, returning from Paris, though a few days off the dates we talked about. But 29 days in Europe! Whooppeee!! I have a guidebook from the Library which I'm going to go through this long weekend (one by Fodors). I think this will help. Anyone know of a good pocket size...
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Re: Air Miles vs Low Fare Airline
We flew Norwegian in May, Orlando-Oslo and were really impressed. The 787 made such a difference and we arrived feeling fresh. The moister air, bigger windows and lighting made a world of difference in how we felt post trip. We brought a decent sized carry-on and personal bag each for free too. As far other extra fees, we didn't pay any. They charge for food or drinks, but we just bought those at the airport. And I think they also charge for blankets, but we brought jackets to cover with and...
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Re: Air Miles vs Low Fare Airline
This is sounding very promising, Rob. I can think of no reason to pay more money to pay with miles than for a ticket on Norwegian. I have enough miles to go around the world and only the first leg (or last, depending) is more expensive using miles. It makes no sense. So you were able to carry on your main bag plus a smaller one? I'm speaking of the limits for discounted coach tickets (aka "steerage").
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Re: Air Miles vs Low Fare Airline
Amazing the way these calculations work out. We're going to England next spring, using American Airlines points. The flight selection offered us flights on British Airways and American. The AA flights cost the points plus government fees. The BA flights cost the points plus the government fees, plus enough surcharges to make a $1000+ difference. If I only had the BA flights, I'd certainly rather find a low-cost carrier! It will be interesting to see what happens in the coming year as Aer...
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Re: Air Miles vs Low Fare Airline
The carry-on limits are posted on the site. Still we were a little worried but there were no problems. We each took a carry-on and a personal bag on for free. A note that my same carry-on was too big for Air China so Norwegian had decent limits.
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Re: Air Miles vs Low Fare Airline
The website states the limits for a carry-on bag are (approximately, stated in cm) 21 x 16 x 9 inches, and 10 kilos/22 pounds. Plus a "small" item that fits comfortably under the seat. Were your bags within these guidelines, Rob?
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Re: Air Miles vs Low Fare Airline
I think that's very similar to American Airlines carry-on allowance. A lot better than EasyJets etc. Whether my bag was over, I can't say. My original bag was lost by Megabus, if you can believe it, so I had a different bag and clothes than what I was planning on The thing about the 787 is there's actually room for the carry-on. in the overhead.
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Re: Air Miles vs Low Fare Airline
I've checked my bag for years but it sounds like in this case it'd be worthwhile to pack light and carry it on. My usual, without trying, is about 13 kilos, so 10 isn't a huge stretch. Sounding like an interesting possibility.
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Re: Air Miles vs Low Fare Airline
I was just reading a Chris Elliott piece on when people get so fed up with air travel they stop flying altogether. He interviewed a man who owned a travel company, Spencer Carlson and the positive airline example he gave was Norwegian. So it seems like my good experience is the norm with them. Here is this link: http://www.seattletimes.com/li...-to-take-it-anymore/
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Re: Air Miles vs Low Fare Airline
I can live indefinitely with 2 sets of clothes, 1 to wear & 1 to wash, 1 extra pair of shoes, all in a day pack. I wouldn't necessarily WANT to do it, but I could, rather than stop flying if, say, the airlines reduced baggage limits to 10 pounds altogether. It's the same old story, I figure, if for any reason, you can't or won't travel (time, money, fed up, whatever), you just don't want to enough. One excuse is as good as another. Good to hear about Norwegian. I repeated the exercise...
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Re: Air Miles vs Low Fare Airline
Continuing my search for an economical way to use my miles and avoid absurd fees, I tried a combination of 2 one-way flights, one with miles, one on Norwegian. One way on Norwegian is as low as $286. If I avoid using BA with points, flights on AA to Paris are 20,000 miles (before May 15th) plus a $5 fee (excellent!) but with a stupid schedule, 3 flights and 2 days to get there. And 1 possibility available. All the rest are BA flights, $326 in fees + 20,000 miles. Next thought, why is AA...
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Re: Air Miles vs Low Fare Airline
The AA-BA mashup is tricky, yes, but not as devious as it may seem. Between New York and Paris, for instance, AA has only two non-stops a day; BA has a half-dozen (or more, including Open Skies). And, BA has many seats LON-PAR, so availability is greater. A similar situation exists on this side of the ocean, where BA feeds many AA domestic flights. It's sometimes possible to get around better if you don't mind one stop...we've used AA to Madrid paired with Iberia to Paris (Iberia's charges...
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Re: Air Miles vs Low Fare Airline
Call it whatever you like, but I seem to have missed your point. But, no matter, MY point was simply that I see no excuse for charging astonishingly different prices for the same product, transportation from point A to point B, on partner airlines ostensibly selling the same thing.
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Re: How do you buy your travel?
Few more thoughts, following HistoryDigger and DrFumblefinger... 1. Definitely check all your affiliations on car rental; after years of getting better price through AAA than any other way I knew, I recently found that going to the same vendors through USAA (my car insurance) gets me even better. 2. Not only does Priceline have good pricing on cars, I've often found I can get 30-40% lower through their blind-bidding (Name Your Own Price) service. 3. RailEurope is something of a red flag for...
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Re: I get to Boomerang to Spain ! Cheap !
Wow ! That is a good deal. I need to drill down through those redeem mileage programs and see what I can learn. Thanks for this valuable lesson.
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Re: I get to Boomerang to Spain ! Cheap !
Thanks for pointing this out! By the way, it is also possible to take a free stopover on the international end. For example, a couple of years ago, we flew from NYC to Copenhagen (the routing) but with a week stopover in Stockholm along the way. We've used that kind of routing a number of times. Adding to your point about Britain: Many of AA's European cities are actually served by their closely-tied partners, British Air and Iberia. With a little persistence, you can find flights that don't...
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Re: I get to Boomerang to Spain ! Cheap !
So, PHeymont, when you stopped for the week in Stockholm which airline was it and what fees were you charged for the stopover? You mention Madrid. Presumably that was a different trip, so same questions on that one. Also, can these stopovers be scheduled on the AA website or must you speak to an AAdvantage customer service person and pay the ($25?) fee?
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Re: I get to Boomerang to Spain ! Cheap !
Originally Posted by PortMoresby: .... can these stopovers be scheduled on the AA website or must you speak to an AAdvantage customer service person and pay the ($25?) fee? I scheduled my flights using the website. When you go to the AAdvantage booking site there are three choices: round-trip, one-way and multi-city. When you choose your flights you see boxes showing the number of miles per leg. The leg between Dallas and San Francisco showed no miles. There was also some kind of comment to...
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Re: I get to Boomerang to Spain ! Cheap !
Similar to WorkerBee's experience, I've done these bookings using the Multi-City function, which allows you to specify a date for each segment. It didn't require assistance. Actually I've never had to pay a fee for help when booking something that could not be done on line, but who knows these days. I've done these stopover trips a number of times (NY-Budapest/open jaw/Prague-London w/stopover and then back to NY, etc.) The AAdvantage desk agents, by the way, are some of their best and can...
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Re: I get to Boomerang to Spain ! Cheap !
All potentially very useful information. Many thanks, Gurus.
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Re: I get to Boomerang to Spain ! Cheap !
All things to be watched closely, by the way; by January the new AA will start rolling out updated program rules and procedures for what will be a merged program. We'll need to watch closely to see what changes!
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Re: I get to Boomerang to Spain ! Cheap !
WorkerBee, how long will you be in Spain, and when? We're going for 8 days (not counting the travel days) in February. We'll be in Seville, Cordoba and Granada. Gumbo fans would love to hear how your trip is going and to see pictures along the way!
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Re: I get to Boomerang to Spain ! Cheap !
I will be there about a month, from February 12 to March 12. I will be in Madrid for a few days after I arrive and then off to Girona and environs for a few weeks. I may wander into southeast France for a few days as well before I return to Madrid for a couple of days before I fly out.
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Re: I get to Boomerang to Spain ! Cheap !
I envy your trip! We'll overlap in time, but not in place. If you do add France to the itinerary, you might want to look into the new TGV service from Barcelona to Paris that starts this month. I'm not sure of its route as it leaves Spain, but it might go where you want to!
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Re: I get to Boomerang to Spain ! Cheap !
Originally Posted by PHeymont: I envy your trip! We'll overlap in time, but not in place. If you do add France to the itinerary, you might want to look into the new TGV service from Barcelona to Paris that starts this month. I'm not sure of its route as it leaves Spain, but it might go where you want to! For some time the AVE has run from Madrid to Figueres which is north of Barcelona and Girona. The TGV has been running from Figueres to Paris for some time as well. I'm told that it takes...
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Re: I get to Boomerang to Spain ! Cheap !
It required 40,000 miles for a round-trip economy ticket. All were in-seat miles and all were from a few years ago.
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Re: I get to Boomerang to Spain ! Cheap !
Now I know why your handle is WorkerBee. Persistence and hard work get the job done! Well Done!
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Re: I get to Boomerang to Spain ! Cheap !
Originally Posted by WorkerBee: It required 40,000 miles for a round-trip economy ticket. All were in-seat miles and all were from a few years ago. That's one of the things I like about AA...aside from the one-way awards. When everyone else was 50K to Europe, they were 40K offpeak and 60 peak. Now everyone else is 60K peak, and AA still has the winter bargains. Hope it lasts!
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Re: I get to Boomerang to Spain ! Cheap !
Wonderful piece of planning WorkerBee ! Missing off London to avoid the $18 Departure Tax for Spain seems a bit severe. I presume your return journey is more direct.
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Re: I get to Boomerang to Spain ! Cheap !
$ 18 ? I am puzzled by this. When I have taken flights from London to the US, the tax has been more like $ 150 - $ 200. It was worth it to spend time in London, of course. Still, it was not a small amount.
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Re: I get to Boomerang to Spain ! Cheap !
The UK departure tax is "Banded" into distances and economy / regular / 1st class. London - Spain is only a short distance.
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Re: I get to Boomerang to Spain ! Cheap !
Well, but if Spain is the destination, passing up UK makes sense. On the other hand, APD leads to calculations such as Flying NYC-LON-Continental Europe: No problem; as long as your time in UK is less than 24 hours, you are a transit passenger and don't pay APD. Flying Continential Europe-LON-NYC: Not so good; you pay the APD on the trans-Atlantic leg, and that's high. The other issue with this is not APD at all; flying to the Continent through Madrid or Barcelona tends to be cheaper because...
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Re: I get to Boomerang to Spain ! Cheap !
Garry RF and PHeymont - Thank you very much for the information. In this case, APD is not incurred - Flying NYC-LON-Continental Europe: No problem; as long as your time in UK is less than 24 hours, you are a transit passenger and don't pay APD. In this case, there is an APD, even if the transit is less than 24 hours ? - Flying Continential Europe-LON-NYC: Not so good; you pay the APD on the trans-Atlantic leg, and that's high. Concerning the third item, this explains why Worker Bee had a...
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Re: I get to Boomerang to Spain ! Cheap !
I'm not sure on your question about WB's trip, because it depends on routing. From NY, AA most often uses their own seats for the ocean hop, but does use some BA seats from Newark. Other cities...not sure how many BA seats used in that direction. And sometimes it's a matter of class. For instance, last year flying home from Paris, there were AA seats in business class available non-stop, but economy was only available on BA Orly-London-Newark.
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Re: Spain or Portugal?
Portugal's rail system feels a bit worn in places, and some trains look terrible from outside...but the interiors are clean and the system seems to work. Not a terribly large country, so that time between the two largest cities (Lisbon and Porto) is about 3.5 hours. If you add in getting to the airport early and getting in from the airport at the other end, it's probably faster than flying. Other significant points in Portugal also have reasonable rail service, including Coimbra, the...
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Re: May 31, An Epic Reenactment in France.
I suspect not. There was a question, a few years back when Eurostar came into London's Waterloo Station from Paris, whether it was to make the point to every French person who bought a ticket.
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Watch those search engines: the big ones are not always best!
I was just booking a one-way trip from Barcelona to Marseille for next summer hoping to use some points sitting on a bank-based (but not airline-affiliated) card. Imagine my shock when the ticket (which I knew should cost about $89) showed up as...
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Finishing college. Need help planning trip to U.K,
Just found this website and I hope you guys can help me out. I'm finishing my Masters (Architecture) this spring and have a job lined up starting July 1. The job has little holiday time (2 weeks first 2 years), so I want to make a trip to...
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Can an Airline Video be TOO Funny?
I would have said "I doubt it," but WestJet's April Fools video has certainly stopped everyone here from getting on with their day...have a look. The scary part is...you could almost imagine it happening. 'Nuff said: And if that's not enough, here's...
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Song at 35,000 feet
Southwest airlines posted a fun clip of a band (the Black Cadillacs) performing a song they wrote in Memphis, in a 737 flying to Memphis. The plane's public address system provides far from a perfect sound environment, but the passengers seem to...
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October - A perfect month to explore Udaipur and nearby sites
Udaipur, which is also known as the lake city of India, is a beautiful and romantic tourist destination, in the state of Rajasthan (INDIA). Udaipur has been the home of the Mewar Kingdom, which has built a strong empire from 11th to 20th century and has not surrender to major empires in India like the Delhi Sultanate, Mughal, etc. Now as said in the title, October is the best month for a couple (or family traveler) to explore Udaipur, as the weather is quite good (not hot or too cold). And...
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How to Plan the Perfect Summer Festival
Summer is here and the time for festival-goers to once again enjoy a full schedule of festivals and events – including yours! But you need to get it right, as poor performance makes for a poor impression. With your festival’s reputation dented, it can be hard to gain support for future events. Here are a list of some of the do’s and don’ts of festival planning. What would you add to the list? On the DO list… Keep attendees and staff hydrated – and that means having plenty of refreshment...
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Edinburgh, Scotland for 2.5 days....help!
Hi- we will be travelling to Scotland the end of September and I am trying to get my itinerary together for Edinburgh. We will only have 2.5 days here and I want to make the most of it. We are staying near the Waverly Train Station so I think we are close to a lot of the major sites. I need one thing Sunday afternoon when we get there before we get ready for dinner. Can anyone help? I was planning Monday and Tuesday being our "pound the pavement" days but not so much that we are overwhelmed.
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Car Rental: Making it a bit easier
One of the worst moments in travel, for me, is getting there, getting off the plane, getting the bags, and then waiting forEVER at the car rental counter. I usually rent from Hertz, unless the price difference after my discount is big, and the main reason is Gold service that lets me bypass the counter, get in the car and go. Other companies have similar 'membership' arrangements. But I just found that it's worth checking around if you're renting from not-your-regular company; things are...
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Best Ways To Save Money During Your Travels
It’s definitely very possible to live life to the fullest. You can travel the world while you are young – don’t wait for you pension. You can see everywhere and everything you want to, following some intuitive money-saving tips. This article gives you the best advice, including some tips from experts! Talk to locals Locals have the best advice on what the best and most affordable attractions are in town. Making friends with locals is even better, as it secures connections across borders.