Boston to Le Marche - which airport?

Old Dec 6th, 2016, 05:38 AM
  #1  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Dec 2016
Posts: 4
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Boston to Le Marche - which airport?

Planning a trip to Marche in Sept. '17. Flying out of Boston and would like to use FF miles on either British Air or American. To which airport in Europe?
Thinking London, Munich, Amsterdam or perhaps Venice. RyanAir from the first three into Marche airport, or rent car in Venice for the drive.

Thanks,
Ruth
rutheyes is offline  
Old Dec 6th, 2016, 06:35 AM
  #2  
 
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 10,321
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Bologna is an easy gateway if you can get flights into that airport. It is a short 3+ hour south on the autoroute. It is also a lovely small city to visit itself.
jamikins is online now  
Old Dec 6th, 2016, 07:14 AM
  #3  
 
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 24,817
Received 4 Likes on 3 Posts
I would fly British Airways all the way to Bologna (connect at Heathrow) or American to Rome (connect at JFK).

When you look at RyanAir, take note of which airports it uses and what hoops you'd have to jump through to make connections.
Jean is offline  
Old Dec 6th, 2016, 08:04 AM
  #4  
 
Join Date: Jul 2013
Posts: 1,963
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
I would first try to book AA all the way into AOI (Le Marche airport, formerly Ancona-Falconara). I see flights via Charlotte NC and Munich.

(Note - if you research Italian websites like the AOI website http://www.aeroportomarche.it/en/Pas...stinations-map, be aware that the German München or - in English - Munich in Italian is Monaco, while the Monaco on the French riviera is called Monaco-Monte Carlo)

Knowing how difficult it can be to redeem miles with AA and BA (and most others...), this may not work. Only then would I try Bologna (2 hrs by car) or Rome (3.5 hours by car, or Alitalia flights from FCO to AOI in 1:05h) or Milan (4.5 hrs by car).

From Bologna to AOI it's hardly worth flying, especially since all flights go via FCO. Flights from Milan also go via FCO (Alitalia) or via Tirana in Albania (Blu).

BA flies into Florence, via LHR of course. From Florence, all flights to AOI go via FCO. The drive is about three hours.

I would look to Ryanair only as a last desperate attempt.

Good luck with your redeeming attempts.
michelhuebeli is offline  
Old Dec 6th, 2016, 01:01 PM
  #5  
 
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 24,817
Received 4 Likes on 3 Posts
Some of those multiple connection options would take 24-35 hours door-to-door! One American combo from Boston to Bologna via Heathrow takes a little over 10 hours.

rutheyes, you didn't mention your final destination, but the fast train from Bologna Centrale to Ancona takes under 2 hours with stops at Rimini and Pasaro. The Intercity train makes several stops and takes 2:17 hours. The shuttle bus between the airport and the Centrale station departs every 11 minutes.

There is also a transfer service from the Bologna Airport to several towns in Le Marche, but the last time I checked the departure times were too infrequent to be useful for us.
You can check: http://www.stefanomignani.it/index.php
Jean is offline  
Old Dec 6th, 2016, 02:53 PM
  #6  
 
Join Date: Sep 2010
Posts: 42,574
Likes: 0
Received 3 Likes on 3 Posts
I do not see these flights from CLT or MUC ON American to AOI. Where are they? In fact, the only AA partner that flies into that airport is AirBerlin.

I would not fly south to Charlotte to get to europe from Boston unless that is the only way I could get there using FF miles
Dukey1 is offline  
Old Dec 6th, 2016, 03:48 PM
  #7  
 
Join Date: Jun 2013
Posts: 1,118
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
There's a BA flight through partners, Iberia I think, that routes through Madrid to Bologna.
sundriedtopepo is offline  
Old Dec 7th, 2016, 01:03 AM
  #8  
 
Join Date: Mar 2008
Posts: 1,485
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
I would avoid Ryanair for two reasons. First you will have no connection with the flights from Boston to Europe. Ryanair, for example, does not operate out of Heathrow. Second their baggage charges are very high so this would be a problem if you do not travel light.

I would second flying to Bologna with British Airways (via Heathrow).
nochblad is offline  
Old Dec 7th, 2016, 06:40 AM
  #9  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Dec 2016
Posts: 4
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Thank you all for your kind suggestions. I am finding availability using FF miles on AMERICAN site into Bologna. 10 hours. Connections in London. I am wondering how iffy the driving is in that city? We have driven in Italy (lakes region) and in the Azores and in Puerto Rico where it was very dicey with narrow roads and crazy drivers. Perhaps we should spend the night in Bologna and take the train down to Ancona and rent a car there to see Le Marche and a bit of Umbria. Right now we are thinking of basing it in Sarnona. Again...thanks for great ideas. I think we will nix RyanAir. Had an experience in which US flight was delayed by a lot and we missed Ryan connection. Since Delta isn't responsible for other airlines getting us to our final destination, we had to re-purchase our flight from Frankfurt to Dubrovnik and it was not cheap! Lesson learned, stick with one airline from start to finish!
rutheyes is offline  
Old Dec 7th, 2016, 06:50 AM
  #10  
 
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 10,321
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
We have spent the night in Bologna and taken the train to Pesaro to get a car and it was easy. Just make sure the car rental places are open when your train arrives (the one at the Pesaro station closes in the afternoon and wasn't open on Sundays.

The driving from the airport out of Bologna is dead easy. You just get onto the tolled highway and off you go. But if you will be jetlagged you probably should stay the night in Bologna.

It really is a beautiful city with wonderful food - well work a night. You can see our pics of Bologna here:

https://flickr.com/photos/[email protected]

We have also spent over a month in Le Marche over the last 4 years and you can see our pics here:

https://flickr.com/photos/[email protected]

If you click my username you can find our 4 trip reports about the region.

Enjoy your trip!
jamikins is online now  
Old Dec 7th, 2016, 06:55 AM
  #11  
 
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 7,919
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
I live in Le Marche, and often travel to the US. We live fairly near Ancona, in central Le Marche, so my preferred airport is Ancona (which is really in Falconara). If your final destination is in the northern part of Le Marche, Bologna becomes more attractive, and if in the southern part, you might check Pescara.

When flying into Ancona from the US, your choices are United/Lufthansa with a change in Munich, or Delta/Alitalia with a change in Rome.

We sometimes fly Ryanair to London, but in that case I prefer to spend the night in London, because Stansted is a long way from Heathrow, and the connection isn't protected. Unless I have some reason to do something in London, I wouldn't take this route.

The main problem with taking the train from Bologna is that the faster trains don't stop at the smaller stations. If you're going to some place near Ancona, you can rent a car across from the Ancona station. If your destination is not near Ancona, and especially if it's south of Ancona, you'll have a much longer train ride, and probably one or more changes of train, at stations that have stairways and no escalators. Or you could get off at Ancona and rent a car there, but some parts of Le Marche are a long drive from there, which, added to your flight and the train ride, results in a very long trip.
bvlenci is offline  
Old Dec 7th, 2016, 06:57 AM
  #12  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Dec 2016
Posts: 4
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
The FF option would have us arrive LHR 6:50 AM with departure for Bologna at 8:155 AM. Would this be cutting it tight? How much time should we allow for layover in London? We don't need to do customs until final destination, right?

TX.
rutheyes is offline  
Old Dec 7th, 2016, 07:05 AM
  #13  
 
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 7,919
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
I'll just add that sometimes we fly into Milan or Rome and take the train from there.

It's a long train ride from Milan,and usually with a change of train in Bologna, but in compensation Alitalia recently has had very low prices in business class on some flights into Milan, and their business class is great.

The train from Rome is not bad, and we don't go all the way to Ancona. In fact, one of my daughters, who already has to take two flights to get to Italy, prefers to take the train from Rome rather than deal with a third flight.

On the westbound route, we'd definitely prefer to fly out of Ancona, because otherwise we always have to go to the departure city (Rome, Bologna, or Milan) a day ahead of time, because flights to the US leave early in the day. Again, if we have some reason to be in one of those cities, this is not a problem.
bvlenci is offline  
Old Dec 7th, 2016, 08:06 AM
  #14  
 
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 7,919
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Yes customs would be in Bologna, and your luggage would be checked through. Is that 8:15 or 8:55? If the former, it should be fine. If it's 8:55, no worries. Anyway, they'd just put you on the next flight to Bologna if you should miss the flight. That's the beauty of a protected connection.
bvlenci is offline  
Old Dec 8th, 2016, 12:39 AM
  #15  
 
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 7,919
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
I just noticed something else.

If you fly into Bologna, and rent a car at the airport, you wouldn't have to drive in the city at all. The route to Le Marche would be on the A14 autostrada, and there is a ring road that connects the airport to the autostrada. It's an easy drive, but if you're going to central or southern Le Marche, it may be a longer drive than you'd care to do after an overnight flight.

If you spend the night in Bologna, you could rent a car at the train station. Getting out of town from there isn't super easy, but neither is it terribly difficult. If you go back to the airport, you'd have an even easier drive.

Or you could take the train to Ancona and rent a car at the station there.

A lot would depend on where in Le Marche you're going, which you haven't told us. From northern Le Marche to southern Le Marche is about two hours by train or car. Bologna is convenient for northern Le Marche, but not so much for southern Le Marche.
bvlenci is offline  
Old Dec 8th, 2016, 01:24 AM
  #16  
 
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 10,321
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
She told us she is going to Sarnano (I think).

The drive from the train station is pretty straight forward. You have an almost straight shot out to the highway, and then you just get on the toll highway. We have done it many times.
jamikins is online now  
Old Dec 8th, 2016, 01:57 AM
  #17  
 
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 7,919
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Oh, sorry, I missed that. I see now that she said "maybe" Sarnano.

Sarnano is actually closer to Rome than to Bologna, and it would probably be easier to find air connections to Rome than to Bologna.

Sarnano was one of the towns which suffered damage from the recent earthquakes, but I don't think it was extensive. They really need a boost, so any tourists in that area will be very welcome. It's a very beautiful region. We spend part of every summer in that same general area, a bit to the north. Our summer home actually had some minor damage, too.
bvlenci is offline  
Old Dec 8th, 2016, 06:07 AM
  #18  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Dec 2016
Posts: 4
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Goodness, so many choices. In my readings of Bologna, I think we would like to spend a few days there! Now I am torn between spending one night on the coast, say Pesaro or Ancona where we would rent our car, or drive on to Gubbio for a night. Then drive to Sarnano (decided on that) for 3 days. Return the car and stay a night, train to Bologna for 3 nights.

Can any of you weigh in on coastal Marche regarding which town to linger?
rutheyes is offline  
Old Dec 8th, 2016, 02:24 PM
  #19  
 
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 7,919
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
On the Adriatic coast, I think Senigallia is the nicest town to spend a night. It has a lively old center, and great restaurants. You could easily take the train to Ancona in the morning to get your car.

In fact, if you stay a few nights in Bologna at the beginning of the trip, and then travel directly to Ancona to pick up the car, you could spend two nights in Senigallia or the vicinity, visiting some of the charming small towns in the hinterland of Senigallia, such as Mondavio, Corinaldo, and Serra de'Conti, before proceeding to Sarnano. I think this might be more rewarding than driving to Gubbio for one night.
bvlenci is offline  
Old Dec 8th, 2016, 11:32 PM
  #20  
 
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 10,321
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
I completely agree with bvlenci! The area around there is lovely with some great wineries you can visit!
jamikins is online now  

Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Manage Preferences - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information -