Isabella36

Hi,

I'm trying to book a flight to Lamezia Terme in Italy but find that there are SO MANY flights that have 2 stops on departure and 2 stops on arrival PLUS, a long layover in Rome and an overnight in Rome on the way back. I could fly to Australia for the length of time that it will require me to get to my grandmother's!

I live in Ontario, Canada and I was considering flying into New York and taking a flight from JFK. I would fly from Toronto to New York to Lamezia. I noticed that flights from New York to Lamezia use Lufthansa, which I have never flown but read the positive reviews on airequality.com. The flights from Toronto deal with Alitalia, Air Canada, Delta (alot of Delta), and KLM. I have never taken Air Canada to Europe so I personally don't have any experiences but after reading many reviews on the mentioned site above, I feel like it's best to avoid it if possible.

P.S. The reason that I chose the U.S. is because it seems like there are A LOT of good deals departing from the U.S. to Europe. However, is it worth it after the exchange? What do you think?

clarasong

When flying a very long distance, it's worth it to me to not have to change planes, deplane, run thru the terminal, etc, and it diminishes the possibility of lost luggage. That being said, if you can get a short interval, same terminal, etc., then it might be worth it. Our experience with international travel is that there is a world of difference in airlines...some seats are cheaper for a reason. Look at the seat configuration on seatguru.com and judge for yourself.

Isabella36

"Our experience with international travel is that there is a world of difference in airlines...some seats are cheaper for a reason."
So are you saying that the cheaper seats are on sale for average airlines and that seats for 4-5 star airlines like Lufthansa and British Airways will cost more but worth it? I would love to get a flight with Lufthansa but the seats are over $6000 and this is in economy!! The schedule is so much smoother, meaning that there are no long layovers or overnight stays in Rome or Paris on the way home. However, for that amount of money, I would think that one would at least get Business Class.

Isabella36

I went on the site that you sugggested and looked at seat configuration but I'm not sure what it means. Is it the way that seats are organized on the plane? ie. AB-DEF meaning 2 seats side by side (aisle) 3 seats side by side?
ABC-DEF meaning 3 seats side by side (aisle) 3 seats side by side?
AB-CEG-HJ (2/3/2)?

Forgive me, but how does seat configuration help in deciding a flight especially if certain airlines fly to certain destinations like in my case? I guess you would check to see which airline has a better seating plan so that you are not stuck in a 2/5/2 seating arrangement?

Thanks.

clarasong

BA has the tightest seat configuration that exists, in our opinion...business and first are superlative...some planes offer a 'coach plus' configuration that is tolerable. Ask we how I know?? so you must know what kind of an airplane (747, 747stretch, etc.) will do that particular flight. They do show you which seats are desirable, which are blocked, which cost more, etc.

DO not, I say DO NOT choose the seats in front of the exit row...they do not recline. I learned this the hard way. If you are going absolutely bare bones economy, using 'travelocity' or whatever, you get what you get...not much choice...we flew back from Chicago coach and we sat in different seats, the middle, in different ends of the plane.

Pays to plan ahead.

J62

Here's a list of flights to/from Lamezia Terme. Pricewise you may be best off booking round trip Toronto-ABC (from the list below), then another round-trip ABC to Lamezia-Termia.


Air Berlin Basel/Mulhouse, Berlin-Tegel, Cologne/Bonn, Dresden, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Friedrichshafen, Hamburg, Hanover, Karlsruhe/Baden Baden, Leipzig/Halle, Munich, Nuremberg, Stuttgart, Zürich [all seasonal]

Air One Bologna, Milan-Linate, Rome-Fiumicino, Turin

Alitalia Milan-Linate, Rome-Fiumicino

Blu-express Rome-Fiumicino

EasyJet Milan-Malpensa, Rome-Fiumicino

Germanwings Cologne/Bonn, Stuttgart

Ryanair Bologna, London-Stansted, Milan-Bergamo, Pisa, Weeze

Volare Airlines Milan-Malpensa

Isabella36

Thanks for the tips clarasong & J62.

Here is a flight that I found on vayama. It would be great if I can get this flight but the total cost is $7013.40!!!!!

Flight: 1 Round-Trip Ticket
Mon, Aug 10, 2009
Toronto Lester B Pearson International Airport (YYZ) to Lamezia Terme (SUF)
Depart: 06:05pm
Arrive: 07:45am

Toronto, ON (YYZ) to
Frankfurt, Germany (FRA)

Lufthansa
Flight 471 (on Airbus A340-600)

1 Stop – change planes in Frankfurt, Germany (FRA)
Connection Time: 1 hr

Depart: 08:45am

Arrive: 09:55am

Frankfurt, Germany (FRA) to
Milan Linate, Italy (LIN)

Lufthansa
Flight 3952 (on Boeing 737-300)

1 Stop – change planes in Milan Linate, Italy (LIN)
Connection Time: 2 hrs 35 mins

Depart: 12:30pm

Arrive: 02:05pm
Next day

Milan Linate, Italy (LIN) to
Lametia Terme, Italy (SUF)

Alitalia
Flight 7901 operated by Alitalia Express (on Airbus A320-100/200)


Total Travel Time: 14 hrs


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Wed, Nov 11, 2009
Lamezia Terme (SUF) to Toronto Lester B Pearson International Airport (YYZ)
Depart: 11:15am

Arrive: 12:25pm

Lametia Terme, Italy (SUF) to
Rome, Italy (FCO)

Alitalia
Flight 1166 (on Airbus A321-100/200)

1 Stop – change planes in Rome, Italy (FCO)
Connection Time: 1 hr

Depart: 01:25pm

Arrive: 03:25pm

Rome, Italy (FCO) to
Frankfurt, Germany (FRA)

Lufthansa
Flight 3843 (on Airbus A321-100/200)

1 Stop – change planes in Frankfurt, Germany (FRA)
Connection Time: 1 hr 35 mins

Depart: 05:00pm

Arrive: 07:55pm

Frankfurt, Germany (FRA) to
Toronto, ON (YYZ)

Lufthansa
Flight 9626 operated by Air Canada (on Boeing 767-300)

Total Travel Time: 14 hrs 40 mins

"Pricewise you may be best off booking round trip Toronto-ABC (from the list below), then another round-trip ABC to Lamezia-Termia."
Do you mean flying from Toronto to one destination (Rome, Milan, or Paris) and then from that destination to Lamezia?

Can I set this up on an airline's website? I guess I can and then the airlines will show up? How do I do this with the airlines that you mentioned above?

By the way, the flight that I mentioned above, do you think it will go down or are there people out there who will pay that much for an economy seat?

I also spoke with an agent from Air Canada and she told me that airlines block rows 12-20 for premium customers. I'm wondering if there is any way that I will be able to get a window seat if there are some available when I check in.

divineMissM

Sounds like you're creating a lot of difficulty for yourself just to avoid a "possibly" bad flight with Air canada. I'm sure that most people have a good experience when flying Air Canada so it would seem that Toronto to Lamezia with one stop in Rome would be the way to go.
If you book some other roundabout transport...be sure it's all on the same airlines or with airlines that have an agreement...in other words make sure that your full intinerary is all on one ticket. Otherwise you'll be in trouble should your first leg be delayed, etc. If you are on two separate tickets/airlines from say Toronto to Jfk and then JFK to Rome, they'll do little or nothing to help you if you have a delay, you'll have to buy a whole new ticket for the rest of the way.

Isabella36

I'm driving myself crazy actually and probably making it difficult for myself. I don't mind if it's on Air Canada. I haven't been looking for flights only on specific airlines but I wanting the smooth ride like Air Canada has (one stop to Rome) and in return from Lamezia on one of the 11:15a.m. or 1:10p.m. flights. These are the flights that are over $3000. I know that there are seats available but I checked. Actually, one of the AC flights returning on Nov. 11 is practically empty. I think there were only about 16 seats that were filled (or that we can see). I know that some seats are reserved by the airline.

I want to book something soon. I'm searching quite a bit and finding flights but don't want to pay over $2000 for a flight. I'm beginning to feel married to my laptop. I just want to find something within a good price range ($800-1100). I have found them but like I mentioned before, there are long layovers, stops and overnight at the airport.

divineMissM

Sorry, i didn't notice your dates of travel. Looks like Air Canada no longer has the one-stops offered in November.

Alitalia is currently at $1500US. Looks like it is costing you about $300 not to have to deal with an extra stop and any handling-between-airlines.

AZ 651
Economy class

Sunday, 09 August
Toronto, Pearson Itl
17:10

Rome, Fiumicino
07:45 *


AP 3402
Economy class



Monday, 10 August
Rome, Fiumicino
09:20


Lamezia Terme, S.Eufemia
10:30


AZ 1172
Economy class


Tuesday, 10 November
Lamezia Terme, S.Eufemia
07:45


Rome, Fiumicino
08:55

AZ 650
Economy class


Tuesday, 10 November
Rome, Fiumicino
10:15

Toronto, Pearson Itl
14:15

divineMissM

As far as trying to get that noontime return, I wouldn't spend too much time dwelling on it, because when you book that far in advance, there are usually schedule changes to deal with, and you might easily get a call from the airline in late October saying that your return flight is now three hours earlier, or three hours later.

J62

I'm seeing $815 US from Toronto - JFK - Rome - Lamezia Termia, round trip. Delta + Alitalia

Long layover in Rome on the way, no overnight on the way back.

Isabella36

Thanks everyone for your help. I appreciate it!

doug_stallings

Have you ever considered simply taking a train? It might be cheaper to fly into Naples and take a 3-hour train ride. Just a thought.

Isabella36

Hi,

I contacted a travel agent that specializes in trips to Italy and I just spoke to him a few minutes ago. I'm going to let him take care of my flight. Hopefully he will find something good for me.

Also, a friend of mine called me this morning. She decided that she wants to travel to Italy as well but to Catania, Sicily. She wants to travel for 2 months. I mentioned this to the agent as well so we may be able to travel together and get a discount! I'm guessing that if you travel as a pair the fare is cheaper?

I feel good that somebody else is taking care of this for me. The agent at Air Canada mentioned that travel agents who specialize in Italy trips by tickets in bulk so he must be able to get something.

Cross your fingers!