Check out SAS..they sent an email today with really economical fares but the dates avaiable might not fit your needs.

If you don't thave passports you should get them now - since the closer to the summer the more peopl are applying and the longer it will take to get them.

I don't know what the timing is now - but I have seen summers when getting a passport can take 7 or 8 weeks. Everyone going needs to get a passport now - you will need them to buy some tickets.

Also make sure that the tickets are issued in exactly the same name as is on the passport - any discrepancies (using nicknames - Kathy instead of Katherine etc) can cause problems. Pick one name and use it for all your official documents.

As for tickets - definitely watch the websites - and also keep in mind multi-destination flights to avoid wasting time back tracking.

Name has to match the birth certificate, no? If you don't have a passport, don't you still have to provide a birth certificate?

Check Travelzoo. Last night there were a few flights (extremely limited dates) from NY to London and a few other places in the $700-$900 range RT, and some great deals from Houston. Can't make them work for me, but good deals if you can make them work without adding on too much cost to get to NY (or Houston) or to where you want to be in Europe.

>"Name has to match the birth certificate, no? If you don't have a passport, don't you still have to provide a birth certificate?"<

Your passport name may not match your birth certificate if you use a married name, etc. You provide a birth certificate (and marriage info) to get the passport. After that, you just carry your passport. You don't carry your birth certificate around.

Name on airline tickets must match that on your passport.

There is no such thing as not having a passport. You are not going anywhere without a passport. You need to provide your birth certificate - an official copy, not just any xerox - (and other necessary documents related to name change, such as marriage license) to GET the passport.

Suggest you download the necessary forms and get started on applying for the passports today - so you don't miss good flight prices that may turn up.

Once you have the passport it is all you need. Never even consider traveling with a birth certificate. Much too valuable to carry around with you and completely unnecessary.

you are all so helpful, I am getting excited already, I checked most of the airline web sites and there are no reduced flights yet from Orlando. I will just keep looking. do you all agree that the best place to fly out of is NY? maybe I should fly to NY and out from there, I will just keep looking.

No - flying in and out of NY is not necessarily the best option.

Orlando has many flights directly to europe and unless those are more exepnsive why not just use one of them? Have you compared all of the options both ways?

Also be flexible with your travel dates. Monday-Thursday flights will probably be cheaper than weekends. October flights will probably be cheaper than September. If you search for September flights, try for dates after September 15, which is sometimes considered the beginning of shoulder season. Also look for flights for your trip two different ways (home-London, Rome-home AND home-Rome, London-home).

Delta's hub is Atlanta, which is a lot closer to FLorida, you could certainly look for flights out of there, at least they have some nonstop from Atlanta to various European cities. Personally, I find it unlikely you'd get such a good deal out of NYC that you will still save money considering what it will cost you to get to/from there. And, if it is a different airline, you'd have to book a lot of layover time just to make absolutely sure you don't miss the flight.