I must say if your flying with that airline you have much more to worry about than liquids that must be checked. I flew with them last year,they cancelled the flight,then put us in a hotel nearly 2 hours away,the next morning rounded us up for 6 a.m. ,we sat on the runway until noon. They then told us when we got in Milan at 2 a.m. someone would be there to help us. NO ONE NO ONE and we tried to get help from airport personal they refused to help. I was told when they come to America if they did not speak english they would get no help, so seeing we couldn,t speak fluently they would not help.By the way on the flight going to Italy I don,t believe we saw the steward more than three times, they hide in the back.The managers lied about everthing.I in the future will spend a little extra money and travel with another company. By the way I had all types of insurance to cover these problems ,not one helped.Forget the cash I lost 2 days in Bellagio how can you put a dollar value on that.Afterwards I spoke to many who would never use that carrier after they had their personal nightmares .Good luck I hope you have none of these things go wrong.

I am flying on Alitalia next week. It will be my first time.....but I am reading lots of bad things about it. I am on a direct Newark to Rome flight.....
Any special tips and/or suggestions?

I have NOT read lots of bad things but maybe we should be concerned. Where are you getting the Bad Info? HELP FOdorites and come to our aid!!

I am also flying Alitalia from JFK next month. I have heard quite a few bad things about them on this, and other forums. However, my husbands son flies Alitalia with his in laws every August without any problems and my cousin just came back last Saturday and had almost no complaints. She did say the food was awful (isn't all airline food?) and the flight attendants do indeed disappear after ther first food service. These are evening flights so I guess they want to rest just as the customers do. I would hope that if the call button was pressed they'd respond, no? I'll guess I'll learn first hand next month! I am taking a 22 inch carry on so lost luggage should not be an issue but you never know. They might make me check it. Someone suggested I pack half my clothes and half my husbands in one suitcase instead of us each packing our things individually in case a bag gets mis handled. I find this to be a great idea. Although, I would not have a hard time shopping for new clothes in Rome! Unfortunately, we have no control over the situation so we shouldn't make it ruin our vacation!

Hopefully, someone will post a GOOD story about Alitalia! Maybe that someone will be me.

If you look, you will find a horror story out there about every single airline out there! I have read them too!! And they have all scared me at one time or another!!

Nonetheless, I have flown Alitalia a total of four times, each without any major problems or difficulties.

Long-haul economy class flights are all hellish to me, for obvious reasons. But bad customer service, check-in nightmares, lost luggage, and the slew of problems that are all a part of of the wonderful (heh) world of air travel can happen at any airline.

Bottom line...pick the flight that works for your schedule and budget and go for it.

I totally agree with faredolce. We've had bad flights, poor service, and missing luggage with British Airways, American, and Delta. However, our recent roundtrip flights on Alitalia ( JFK-Milan) were problem-free. Go with whichever airline best suits your budget and schedule, keep your fingers crossed, and hope for the best. Getting there is NOT half the fun.

Good advice. All can be great or terrible....

We have used Alitalia several times to travel to Italy. Past experiences (mainly attendants being very rude)were not so good. However, this past July we were pleasantly surprised with how helpful and pleasant the attendants were on our flight. Even the food was pretty good and one attendant sang Italian songs while serving!

They did weigh the checked bags but, even though we knew that one of us (there were 4 of us traveling together and it was not me!)had a slightly overweight bag, nothing was said to us. They did not weigh the carry-on bags.

The one thing you need to know about Alitalia is a reserved seat is not really reserved. Shortly before our departure date, we called to confirm and found out our seats were changed and we no longer had window/aisle seats but were instead in the center section of the plane. We were told that nothing could be done since the plane was full. However, when we arrived at Logan (we got there early), we were able to change the four seats to window/aisle so it all worked out for us.

We traveled before the new restrictions so I can't help you with that.

I made other comments about Alitalia in my trip report so you might want to check there also. All in all, we enjoyed our flights on Alitalia in July.

Have a great trip!

Hi all! Not to be discouraging but just to give a warning that on the Italian news website I read daily Alitalia employees (pilots and other airline workers) are threatening wildcat strikes this autumn. The article wasn't real clear. Italian law states that strikes must be declared in advance regarding the date and the time period of the strike so I am confused about the term "wildcat" as it wasn't clear whether that meant strikes without the required advanced announcement or not.

Not specific to Alitalia, but yes most airlines do weight both carry-on and checked luggage right as you check in. As far as what you need for 3 weeks, I suggest downsizing all cosmetics and toiletries (don't take full size anything) into smaller containers, taking only what you need for the trip, packed into ziplock bags works well.

I did not want to scare you I am sure there are many, many, nightmares when flying,I guess these mishaps are all too many,but I was very upset not only did we have to endure this nightmare ,but we did not even get an apology, in a written letter they basically said,these conditions are common and don't expect a red cent from us.I also had to pay the night lost at the Metropole which was already booked , the hotel in Milan was over 300 euros and 60 euros in taxis,I also gave 20 euros to a person at the milan airport to help me get a hotel at 2 a.m.I lost over 2 days in beautiful Bellagio which hurt the most and over 650 dollars in expenses ,and by the way we spent the night of our 37 th anniversary in an airport until 4 a.m. and we had three hours sleep in 2 days. We are not young kids and have some medical problems,it was nightmare for us,and not even once did I here "we are sorry"!!!That might have been nice.Is far as I am concerned they are a classless company.

All in all, I feel Alitalia is a good airline, and I would fly them again. Customer service in the front office is lacking if you should need assistance for lost luggage (ie-reimbursement), but otherwise, customer service throughout is excellent in my book.

They helped us keep our luggage light during our trip by holding most of it for us, and at the end, drove our luggage home from the airport 2 days after our return to ensure we were well rested, even taking our luggage on a tour of NYC so we wouldn't have to retrieve it from the airport! What a deal!

Seriously though, if you've already purchased your ticket on Alitalia, stop worrying. There's nothing you can do about it now, the people there are very nice, and you're only going to face the same fears that you'd have faced booking on another airline.

I even faced a strike on Alitalia once, and they did all they could to help me get home. If that's an airline to be worried about, then I have nothing more to say.

I flew Alitalia in August from Toronto to Venice, connecting in Rome, and returned from Rome to Toronto. My one checked bag to Italy was weighed as were my two checked bags (one filled with books and new clothes) returning. No problem with carry-ons, other than the now-common check for liquids. In fact, on the return trip, I had my purse, my totebag for my laptop computer and a large Ferrari shopping bag filled with items from the duty-free shops that I was able to carry on, including one bottle of limoncello and one bottle of Crown Royal. I was able to fit my purse and laptop/totebag under the seat in front of me and the shopping bag in the bin above me.

After reading the negative comments about the flight attendants and the conditions of the planes, I was concerned about what to expect. However I was pleasantly surprised, the flight attendants were professional, not overly friendly, but not rude either. I had ordered a special meal (low cholesterol) each way and received it first, steaming hot.

For sleeping, I had taken my own silk blanket and covered their pillow with my own silk pillowcase. I used their blanket as a back roll. There were two babies in the row in front of me and it seemed that the flight attendant was very accommodating with the parents to ensure the comfort of everyone. Thankfully I had my noise-reducing headphones and my Ipod to help me sleep through any crying.

When I checked in, in Toronto about two and a half hours early, I was able to walk right up to the desk. I had been assured that I would have a seat in Row 11, but when I received my boarding pass, I was near the back of the plane. I nicely told the check-in woman that I had called Alitalia when I had booked my ticket on Expedia and the customer service representative had assured me that I would have one of the window seats in Row 11. I wasn't rude, but I was firm that I really wanted the promised seat. Magically, my seat became available - I guess it's true that you can get more with honey than vinegar. I received the promised Row 11 window seat on the return flight to Toronto without any discussion.

The one problem I had with the condition of the airplane was that the sound system on the return flight didn't work at my seat. I just listened to my own music and tried to nap as much as possible.

I was also nervous about losing my checked luggage, but thankfully, I received everything on both ends of the trip. I would probably fly Alitalia again and would recommend it as much as any other airline that I have been on.

Yikes, Alitalia does have a bad reputation. How could flight attendants from a country where everyone is so friendly be so rude?

I am booking a return flight from Rome to Newark TODAY so this scares me. My flight to Rome will be in Air france with a connection. At least if the French are rude, they will still give me good wine!

Air France is no better and in some cases worse ( impossibly tight connections) than Alitalia. Just hope for the best and have a glass of wine once you reach your destination!

Alitalia use to be a fabulous airline. Beautiful personable FA's and counter/gate personell, fantastic food and wine etc. But due to all the economic woes Alitalia has had these past years the employees are not happy campers. But neither are Delta employees, at least in my experience. And I will never fly with Horizon again.

I don't fly Alitalia anymore but if they were still flying out of SFO I would probably fly with them if for no other reason than curiosity. Even when Alitalia was a wonderful airline the joke was Alitalia stood for "always late in takeoff and late in arriving"..and that was true, lol.

And one time when NW "lost" an Italian teen who had visited with us for a couple of months while he was flying back to Italy I finally out of desperation called Alitalia for help as all I got out of NW was "we have no idea where he is". His poor mother in Italy was ready for a nervous breakdown..Alitalia called me back within the hour to inform me that F had been "stuck" at Amsterdam for 12 plus hours..they had tracked him down there and had their people put in on an Alitalia flight to Italy. I was astonished and thanked and thanked them and was told "signora, we ALWAYS make sure our children get home to Italy!" Too sweet!

I almost always fly United. If you want to see a disgruntled employee, try them!

My flight to Rome on Air France has a 3 hour connecting time. Thats enough to let me relax in the lounge or wander around!

They lost all of DD's luggage with her journal and copy of Billy Joel concert at the Collesium. Still hoping it will turn up.

But after two months in Israel, she was thrilled with the meal.

P.S. When I go to Europe, I almost always fly on Lufthansa with connections in Frankfurt (from Newark and Los Angeles). I have to say their attention and service has been nothing but excellent. On time departures, professional flight attendants, good entertainment, etc. Last year I flew in First Class to Frankfurt from Newark and although the service was exceptional, the seats weren't so cozy. I also prefer flying on a Boeing Jet rather than an Airbus.

Thanks for all the tips. I read most of the bad reviews of AZ on Skytrax. I realize that every airline has it's problems, but it doesn't seem that many posters on Skytrax has anything nice to say about Alitalia!! That's why I was worried.
And on the AZ website, it says your carry-on bags can't weigh more than 11 pounds!! WHAT? 11 pounds is nothing! Probably 2 books and my purse weighs more than 11 pounds!!

One other question......someone on another board just said that she doesn't think you can bring one of the "roll-aboard" rolling suitcases on board as a carry-on. Is this really true?

If so, I'll have to re-pack everything in a duffle/tote-bag.

1. Check in for your flight early and do any seat changing then. We had reserved aisle seats but when we checked in we had been moved to a horrid tiny section for our trip to Italy. Coming home we asked to be changed and the gal not only gave us good aisle seats, she couldn't understand why we had been changed to begin with.
2. If you have a connecting flight in Italy to a smaller flight (we were Milan to Pisa) you have a very good chance that at least one of your checked bags will not make it with you. If you are staying in your final destination for several days they will probably get it to you on day 2 or 3. We were not. On day 6 we drove back to Pisa to pickup my bag - it had many adventures during those 6 days.
3. Yes pack half of your things and half of your husbands in each suitcase, so if one suitcase doesn't make it you can still function. Thankfully I was traveling with a friend - I can't exactly wear my husband's clothes.
4. If your luggage doesn't get there work on your own personal attitude to try and not let it spoil your trip. Italy itself was a dream come true. The wine and food helped my attitude alot!

We have a connecting flight and I am worried. DO I need to check the seat assingments for that portion of the trip too? DId you use a rolling carryon? Maybe we will only check one bag and carryon 2...

ANy suggestions???

Alitalia just had another strike today, from noon to 4:00pm. Very unhappy employees, especially since Alitalia is going to lay off more employees. If flying with Alitalia do keep abreast of the news regarding strikes. And yes, if flying with someone else do split the clothes between both suitcases.

I just came back from Italy and have to say Alitalia will not be on my most favored airline list. We missed our connection in Heathrow due to a combination of late flight arrival and longer than expected security lines at Heathrow. I would have expected this to be a common occurrence at Heathrow given the recent heightened security issues but Alitalia was really clueless. We received conflicting information concerning taking a later flight and the whereabouts of our luggage. When we finally got re-ticketed, the Alitalia employee simply took a post it note and wrote "standby" on it and placed it on our ticket. We were then told to then go to the super long luggage check in line (we had none) to get our boarding pass. After going through another security line that was borderline chaotic (some people really don't know they have to give up their liquids, gels, chapstick, etc. because different airports have different rules) we waited until all people boarded the flight to Rome. No one called for standby so we went to ask. The employee immediately started calling stand by names. I swear I was in a SNL skit. The luggage was nowhere to be located and we were given the run around on that. Needless to say, our luggage did not arrive in Rome until 2 days after we arrived. We drove from Tuscany to the Rome airport because the phone number they gave us was constantly busy and their website was useless. They also had a one day strike to further complicate things. The staff was never rude, they just have a whole itinerary of standard responses: Your luggage is not in the computer, see the man over there, call back tomorrow, we don't know, etc. The 2 ladies we met up with in Positano that posted for a GTG on this forum also did not have their luggage when they arrived in Rome also flying in on Alitalia. Flying from Rome to Toronto we thought would not be an issue but the headache continued when we were again given conflicting information and had Air Canada telling us Alitalia should have had a representitive meeting us when we landed with luggage instructions. We finally located it and made our flight with 20 minutes to spare. Oh, and this doesn't even count Virgin Atlantic cancelling our return flight home because we missed our connection in Heathrow. That took 6 hours to confirm the day before we were due to fly home. My future flight plans include avoiding Heathrow and make connections in the U.S. instead of Europe. As far as carry on luggage size, Heathrow is very very picky about it. We saw a man getting yelled at by a security employee and was told he was going to have to check his bag because it was too big. I'm not trying to be negative or alarming, I'm just letting you know my experience. I have traveled a lot and this was by far the most aggravating circumstances I have dealt with. I think there are just too many people flying through Heathrow and there has to be a better way to organize the security checkpoints.

How does Alitalia allow only 11lb for carry on? Don't people bring their overnight bags or other personal items? My laptop and magazines probably weigh that much! If I could bring water, I would really be screwed!

Seriously, do they even weigh carry on bags?

I called Alitalia myself yesterday and the agent says "all carry-on itmes cannot weigh over 11 pounds". It even says that on their website.

So, now I can't carry my roll-aboard, as it weighs 5 pounds empty! I will have to take a lightweight duffle and can only take 2 books, a change of clothes, my medications and a purse!
I think that STINKS!!!!!!! 11-pounds is a little absurd.

I don't know if they weigh the carry-ons, or not.

LindaL,
When you flew Alitalia from Rome, do you remember if they weighed the carry-on bags? What kind did you carry?

If it makes you feel any better about the 11 lb. limit, when DD flew (right at the time of the Heathrow incident) they wouldn't even let her carry ANYTHING on--NOTHING!!!

I know, that must have been terrible. They want you to put everything in your checked bags, then they lose your luggage!
Crazy!

Some day we will all have to fly naked.

"Some day we will all have to fly naked"

Didn't Seinfeld already have an episode about this? (not that there's anything wrong with that)

I think I am gonna pay the $50 change fee and try to switch my flight flights to Lufthansa. The more i read about Alitalia, the more it scares me.

I don't think I can be of much help on the weight issue. When you check your luggage, there are scales there that weigh your items. I couldn't tell if the employees cared how heavy the items were or not. I didn't see any oversized carry ons, but people had more than one carry on for the flight from Rome to Toronto and one lady had bottled water in her carry on. All I know is that Heathrow is super strict and every airport's security screening is different. I did hear on the radio this morning that the bomb detecting equipment for checked luggage was outdated and due to the increased checked baggage, they were taking longer to screen items causing luggage to not get on the planes in time. Ah, the joys of flying. I think the radio said they need $5B to update.

richard,
We wish we had done that!

I agree! The more I read about Alitalia, the more it scares me, too! But they go non-stop New York to Rome and I like that rather than making a connection.
Guess I'll cross my fingers and hope for the best.

I would rather spend an extra 2 hrs in travel then get treated like crap by a flight attendant.

I understand! Plus, the fear of AZ going on strike really bothers me. But, I also hate the thought of a connection somewhere and the probability of them losing or missplacing my luggage.
Let us know how your trip goes!

I just returned from Italy yesterday, and we flew Alitalia both flights with no problems at all. They did weigh the checked baggage, but no one gave my carry-on bag a second look, and I suspect it weighed more than 11 lbs. No one at Alitalia was rude to us, our flights were right on time (direct flights from Logan in Boston to Malpensa), they fed us two meals on each flight, plus gelato for dessert on the return flight yesterday! There was plenty of wine if you wanted and I have to say that when a passenger became violently ill two rows behind us, the flight attendants were right there for him immediately. It's true that we didn't see much of the flight attendant's between the two meals, but I appreciated being able to get up and go back to get my own cup of water. Nice reason to stretch on a long flight.

Goingtoitalia

Could you tell me what size your carryon was? My bag does meet size limits but when packed, it will be over 11lbs. I am so glad all went well for you on the flight ends of your trip. We are glad to hear GOOD things for a change. DId you have any problems with the airline trying to change you seat assignments? THis will be our first trip to Italy and we would like many more. WE can't wait.
MJ

I agree that you have much more to worry about than luggage weight. After having flown from L.A. to Milan via N.Y to transfer to my Alitalia flight...Delta/Alitalia... to West Africa, I arrived in Milan exhausted and was to fly on to West Africa that afternoon only to be told...in the Milan airport... that the flight had flown the day before and there was no flight...although I was holding a ticket for the non-existant flight....and had confirmed at least three times.
I ended up stranded in Italy...in the dead of freezing winter and then after hours of arguing with Delta...its partner....Alitalia wouldn't even deal with it...and told me they weren't responsible for trying to put me up in a hotel or anything...and that I could sleep in the airport until the next day....it was around 6:30AM then....then finally Delta put me in a hotel. And instead of just putting me in business class, the next day, for the inconvenience they caused, I was routed from Italy to Amsterdam and then hours in the airport there and put on KLM and then on to West Africa.Awful. Never again.Happy Travels!

mj,

my carry-on is 16" wide x 11" high x 5-1/2" deep. It has two outside pockets that I used for carrying books, I think I had three books in there on our return flight. It fit perfectly in the overhead compartment. I don't know how much it weighed, but I'd estimate it was at least close to the 11 lb restriction, if not over.

We didn't get our seat assignments until check-in and probably my only complaint with either flight was on the way to Italy we were in the very last row, so it was a little cramped, but not a very far trip to the bathroom! On the way back were were a few rows farther up, and there was no one in the third seat in the row so I was able to stretch out a little bit and get more comfortable.

This was my first trip to Italy and it was fabulous! You will have a great time...enjoy!

Returned from Italy last week and want everyone to know that ALITALIA was just great. They were on time going and coming, the seats were adequate, the food was okay, the service was just fine and NO luggage was lost. The airline deserves a compliment. GOod Luck to future fliers.

All these gripers on here sound like total amateurs when it comes to air travel. Get with it : you’re entering into a huge system that is subject to mechanical, natural and human failures. The best advice comes from the folks who say enjoy the free – and yes it is still free on Alitalia – wine on the trip. Here’s a tip when traveling, treat the people who are taking care of you with respect and generally you’ll get it back. That’s always worked for me regardless of where I’ve traveled. There are always those miserable people who start complaining in the check-in queue and don’t quit. More often than not, the treatment they get is a reflection of what they’re putting out there. I can tell from a lot of these negative posts that they were probably horrible with the people they encountered. Does anyone honestly think that the guy in Milan would have told that one poster to get lost because they didn’t speak Italian if he was approached with a humble request for assistance? It sounds to me like he or she was pissed off from their delays and less than civil with the man at the airport…their insurance providers or anyone else they dealt with. It’s annoying when things go wrong, but how you react - keeping your cool and being polite - will usually make a huge difference in the end.