jpopp24

I had booked our return home flight from Europe to Seattle through my Delta Skymiles. At that time our itinerary had included the Cinque Terre, so I booked the Seattle bound flight out of Milan, Italy (MXP). Since then our itinerary has changed and we will no longer be visiting Italy, and instead ending our trip in Nice, France.

Our last night in Nice is Wed 8/1, and our MXP flight is Fri 8/3.

We would spend the the day 8/2 traveling by train from Nice to Milan (approx. 5h30m) and just checking in to a hotel (Hotel First) near the airport. This is pretty much a waste of a day, since we will only have maybe 4-6 hours of exploring Milan. To make the situation worse the flight the next day is pretty brutal, because it stops in JFK for a 3 hour layover/plane change (16 hours of flying time + 3 hour layover).

If this was you, which would you consider for your return flight?


OPTION 1 (our current situation): Train to Milan (5h30m), spend the night near the MXP airport and try to make the best of 19 hours of travel on 8/3.

OPTION 2: Train to Paris (5-7h) on 8/2 and spend the night, and fly NON-STOP from Paris to Seattle on 8/3. Would have to incur a total of $380 in change fees ($180 x 2 person).

OPTION 3: Stay put in Nice and leave from the Nice Airport on 8/3. Would still have to layover/change planes at JFK , so still fairly brutal travel day (20 hours of traveling). Would also have to incur a total of $350 in change fees.

Would appreciate any advice. Thank you.

Christina

I am not sure I understand your options as option 3 doesn't seem very attractive (costs plus changeover). Only advantage is not having to move around on the last day, so that is something, I guess, you get one more vacation day and less hassle.

Personal preference, I do nonstop if at all possible, unless obscenely more expensive. So I'd pick option 2 or even plan how to get a nonstop. Otherwise, I guess I'd choose option 1 as it has no change fee and you end up spending the same time as in option 3, but that's your call as to how you value $350 versus having one more day in Nice, as that's basically what it costs you.

greg

You have to decide what is key decision factor. If the flight time is the determining factor, the option 2 is the only one that addresses that issue.

However, I would identify additional factors and compare options side by side.

Option 1: Cost of trip to Milan (negative). Cost of one nigh stay in Milan (negative.) Anything you care to do in Milan since you are there anyway since the cost and time to get there has already been underwritten (positive)? You can also look into budget airlines to connect Nice-Milan.

Option 2: Cost of train to Paris (negative). Cost of additional overnight stay in Paris (negative). What you can do on last night in Paris (positive -- for me that is priceless...)

Option 3: What you can do with an additional day in Nice (positive). Cost of such stay (negative.)

denisea

Option 2...you'll dread the return the whole time. Travel is hard enough, spend the money and save your sanity!

Dukey1

The fastest (right now) schedule Nice-Paris is 5H 40 minutes so that's about the same as the trip Nice-Milan. I would leave Nice as early as I possibly could and spend as much time in/around Paris as possible and fly N/S from there.

suec1

Both 2 and 3 are available? I think I'd go for option 3 tho - much less airport hassle out of Nice than CDG and you get an extra day in Nice - actually cheaper than option 2 since no train cost. And more time to chill since you are not eating up that last day with the train and Paris transits - that is a decent trade off to a layover at JFK IMO.

Dukey1

Yeah, but can you fly from Nice N/S to the final destination????

Mimar

And think about switching your FF loyalty. You can do this return flight on British Air in less than 14 hours: Nice to Heathrow, Heathrow non-stop to Seattle.

Cathinjoetown

Have you asked Delta to book you a valid connecting flight, Nice-Paris, the morning of your NS to Seattle? This might be a good option if not too costly and remember, key is a valid connection.

If not, option 2.

jpopp24

Well I hope I don't regret it, but I just got off the phone w/ Delta and switched to the N/S Paris-Seattle flight. I don't know if the additional $380 in fees will be worth the non-stop flight, but I guess it's a done deal.

It's our first trip to Europe and I really didn't want to end it being completely miserable and frustrated w/ the travel. Granted a 5 hour train ride followed by 10 hour flight the next day isn't neccessarily enjoyable either, but hopefully like denisea said - 'we'll keep our sanity'.

Thanks for the advice. The next question will be: w/ a 1030 am flight out of CDG do we stay in Paris near the RER B route, or do we stay at a boring airport hotel? (Should mention that we will be renting an apartment in Marais for a week earlier in this trip). Perhaps I should follow protocol and post this question separately in the Fodor's forum...

Christina

I'm sure you cannot fly nonstop, the OP said there was a layover in JFK. I'm surprised there isn't one in Paris, also (when I've flown out of Nice, you had to change in Paris). But probably because it's going to JFK you can get a nonstop from Nice on Delta/AF. They don't do that flight in winter AFAIK.

The BA program partners with American and I thought they charged high fees just for using your points, unlike other airlines' FF programs. Not a little, like hundreds of dollars just to redeem your points (for European flights). I think it costs around $500 to get a "free" ticket. Comments? (I would never choose those airlines anyway as I dislike both, but the fee issue is a big problem)

Judy

You might also want to look at cheap flights between Nice and Paris......may give you more time in Paris, though you'd have to get from either airport into the city which could add more time and expense.

denisea

Stay in Paris near the RER B...with the train you will not have to worry about traffic and make your last night more enjoyable than a Roissy/CDG location! Plus you would lose time the day before heading out to the hotel. Paris is too great to stay at the airport...milk what you can out of your trip!

We have all made some travel mistakes that have cost us time or money, but you live and learn. Don't look back, move on and enjoy your trip!

Mimar

There's a non-stop Air France flight Paris to Seattle and vice versa.

And, yes, BA adds a lot of fees to its fares, whether FF flights or not. Plus the UK charges a departure tax. So you do pay for its convenience.

susanna

We travel every year from san francisco to nice, almost the same distance as Seattle.

I think you have done the best thing by going to Paris and flying non stop from there, that's what I would have done...second choice would be to leave out of nice and have the 3 hour layover in NYC, which we have done many times, it's not all that bad. By the time you land, get off the plane, get your luggage and go through customs, recheck your bags, you only have about an hour + to kill...still I like to fly to SF and go through customs there and be done with it.