The best airfare we can find (through Orbitz or any other sight) for an open jaw ticket from Seattle to Rome and then Naples to Seattle is on Delta airlines. The only thing that scares me is that there is only 1hr 14 minutes between our flight that arrives from Seattle and then leaves for Rome. Is this enough??? I have never been to JFK airport.

topping

It might not be enough, depending on the time and day. JFK is HUGE. What time is the connection? What day of the week? How are you planning on getting from one airport to the other?

I have the same question about a Delta flight from Raleigh to JFK to Venice. There is only 1 hour between the RDU/JFK flights. The flights arrive and leave from the same terminal. It is so tempting at $553 per ticket.

When you get to JFK you are going to have to claim your luggage (even though it has been checked all the way through) go through US Immigration as well as US Custome and then place your luggage back on the "interline" transfer belt (this last only takes a second).

The you probably get to go through security AGAIN and then get to your departure gate.

All of this assumes your arriving flight will be on time at the gate (forget about touchdown) and that the lines through Immigration, Customs, and Security aren't slow, etc.

I honestly think 1 hr 14 minutes is really pushing it regardless of what the airlin tells you.

Intrepid, sounds like the tight connection is on the Seattle to Rome transfer. I don't think mvs has to go through customs when leaving the US.

On top of that, take note of this requirement off of the Delta web site:

"Travel outside the United States:
You must be checked in and at the gate at least 45 minutes before your scheduled departure time.

If you are checking bags, your baggage must be checked in at least 60 minutes before your scheduled departure time unless you're traveling from one of the following cities:
Bogota, Columbia
Istanbul, Turkey
Moscow, Russia
Nassau, Bahamas
Providenciales, Turks and Caicos
St. Lucia"

This will be enforced.

Ellenem, thanks for pointing that out. i should have read more carefully.

I would think if the luggage is checked all the way through which it will be and the fact that Delta has its own terminal (which is big but it isn't as if this person has to change terminals) I think if the flight from Seattle is on time they can make this.

And besides, Delta may very well hold the flight if the person does get in late.
I'd go for it unless there are other equally-priced options.

At JFK there is no way any airline would hold a flight for one passenger - it would take most of a planeful. (If you lose your place in take-off line you have to go to the end - seriously delaying the whole flight - and you're taking up a jetway scheduld for an incoming plane - holding up that flight as well.)

I would check on the on-time arrival record of your incoming flight (some are as low as 25%) - unless it is almost 100% I would never risk this. Also - what time of year are you doing this - since bad weather will create havoc at JFK - which is booked solid constantly.

Going out, it's just like a domestic connection. 74 min is plenty of time. You get off, you walk to your other gate, you get on. That's it.

mvs - I think you will be pushing it. Is your flight on Delta/Song? If so, you will be getting off at one end of thr terminal and your connecting flight will be on the other end. So, depending how long it takes you to get off the plane, you will be rushing to make it. Just MHO.

Tom

Assuming your inbound is on time or at worse few minutes late, you will have no problem making the connection.

Have a great trip!

Well, I had a bad experience myself with this scenario. Are you transferring from a Delta-operated flight to an Alitalia-operated flight there at JFK on the flight out? (It says on the Delta website whether the flight is operated by another carrier) I flew from Atlanta to Rome via JFK in May 2004, and had a 1 1/2 hr time to change. The flight from ATL was of course late, so I had a little less than an hour to change. Delta is in one terminal and Alitalia is in another, so if you are indeed switching from Delta to Alitalia, you will have to go to a completely different terminal, check in at the Alitalia desk, and go through security. I had no help at all from the Delta agents; I asked where I was supposed to go and they were completely clueless. I had even asked in Atlanta whether I was going to have to go to a different terminal to switch to Alitalia (so I could look up where I was supposed to go on the little map in the inflight magazine), and they had no idea. I literally ran to the other terminal. I was the last person checked in, and the last person on the plane to Rome. If there was an easier and faster way to do it, nobody at Delta could tell me what it was.

Oh yeah, and although I got to Rome ok...my checked-in bag did not. It missed the flight. The Alitalia people in Rome were great about helping, and I had my bag 2 days later. They even sent it to my hotel in Bologna for me. I blame the whole thing on Delta.

If you have Delta all the way there, that's a much much easier scenario than if you are switching to an Alitalia operated flight.

The way back from Rome to ATL, again via JFK, was a tight connection too, but I made that with more time to spare because the flight arriving from Rome was a little early, and both flights were Delta-operated. I hated cutting it that close though.

I won't take an itinerary like that again if I can avoid it.

Hey MVS...I am a Delta flight attendant who works the international flights. What the previous person stated (going on Alitalia) could be an issue but here is a helpful hint as to whether you are booking a Delta flight or on a codeshare flight. A Delta flight number for international flights will be 2 or 3 numbers long...for example...our flight to Rome that we operate directly is normally flight #147 and the return is #148...if you are booking through one of our code share partners the flight number will have four digits...they normally begin with 8 and are four digits long. The code share flight numbers on Alitalia to and from Italy are 8150 and 8151 (those can change) but the secret is flight numbers with 3 or 4 digits. I will also say that your return flight from Naples I am guessing stops somewhere prior to getting to JFK. I have looked in the reservation system and cannot see a direct Naples to JFK even on our codeshare. This may be simply because it will change before your flight and I don't know when you are planning on going. If you would like me to check into flight numbers for you quickly prior to booking just let me know. I will send you all the details.

Also...if it is a Delta flight the 1hr and 14 mins is plenty of time to make your connection. You do not need to claim your luggage and recheck prior to going on to Rome. That only happens when you re-enter the states from an international location.

Hope this helps. Let me know if you want me to look something up for you.

Wow!! Thank you all so much for your help!! The flight I'm looking into is Flight 2029 (Song-Delta) from Seattle to JFK and then Flight 148 from JFK to Rome. Delta reservations tells me that that the Rome flight will be in the same terminal-I'm just worried about the Seattle JFK flight being late-I can't afford to miss the Rome flight or have bags miss the flight-we are only in Rome for 2 days and then head to the Amalfi Coast. (By the way, my flight would leave Seattle on Saturday, 4/1).

Hey...well, as you probably know SONG is in the same terminal as Delta. There is always the chance that the flight could be late, but even if it was 30-40 minutes late you could still make it to your gate. JFK is comprised of two areas that connect by a moving walkway. You can get from one side of the terminal down the walkway and to the complete opposite side within 10 minutes .

Just be sure to get to the airport 90 minutes prior to your flight from Seattle. That will ensure you can check in for your International flight as well and they will activate you all the way through which means you don't have to re-check-in when you get to JFK. That will be important and even if you are late it will reduce the risk of you missing your flight. All in all, there really is no way of determining whether your flight will be on time or not.

Also...you are going on a Delta plan, but if for any reason your flight is late, be aware that the codeshare flight on Alitalia actually leaves about 2 hours after your scheduled departure that day. The codeshare flight # is 8151 and departs at 8:10 so if you are late to JFK and it is SONG's fault and not yours, they can rebook you on the later flight.

DL2029 is scheduled for 8:00am-4:16pm.

This flight numbers has been assigned for this flight since 1/22. Over this last 10 days, it has not taken off at SEA later than 8:22 and touched down at JFK later than 4:05. It has arrived at JFK as early as 3:35 - which is today. (However, right now the tailwind is stronger than it would have been in April).

Since this plane most likely has overnighted at SEA, the chance of it being delayed due to traffic or late arrival is extremely slim. If you want to count mechanical problem, then it can happen on any flight, and you may miss a connection even with 4-5 hours for transit.

Finally, since this is the earlier of the two DL/AZ non-stops, if something happened at SEA (like they announced the plane will be 2 hours late departing), then immediately call DL (forget the check-in agents) to have them rebook you on the later AZ flight; or other methods to get to FCO - via ATL perhaps.

Having said all that, delays, mechanicals, snow storms do happen. So, if you have a million-dollar contract to sign in Rome in the morning of 4/2, or your sister's getting married, or whatever; then please go a day or two early. But otherwise, one might as well not travel if they worry about a 74-minute connection from DL to DL at JFK.

I guess the only thing I'd add to all this great advice is, are you sure you can't get the same price directly from Delta? In your shoes, I'd feel a lot more comfortable with a ticket for all the legs purchased on one ticket directly from Delta, rather than a 3rd party. If there's a problem, my experience has been they can always blame problems on the fact that you have an orbitz ticket rather than a Delta ticket. If Delta will sell you the ticket, there shouldn't be a problem.

I have done this same flight two times now with absolutely no problem. The first time my departing gate was right beside my arrival gate - time to have a glass of vino in fact. Second time also no problem even though I had to walk a ways. Unless we have fog or a late snow, or something else in Seattle which causes a big delay, you should have no problem at all. They announce the various gates while you are waiting to deboard, so you will know which gate to go to hopefully before you leave the plane.

Of the 3 NY metro area airports, JFK is the least susceptible to delays, unlike LGA and EWR. If there is a weather problem, non-stop flights from the west coast, which are airborne and enroute, will have landing priority over flights from closer airports which haven't taken off yet.

I see 74min as no problem. You won't be claiming your bags and rechecking them (since this is for the Europe bound flight).