Heathrow/Gatwick Priceline and Alitalia experts, I need all your help
 

Hi,

Long question, so let me ask a short one first:

If I get into Heathrow after 8pm and transfer to Gatwick to get a hotel for the night, will I be able to find anyplace open to eat dinner once I get to the Gatwick area?

Next short question:

If I decide to go into London instead of spending the night at the airport, can I use Priceline to book the Hilton Paddington specifically?

Last long question:

I have to get to Rome on the last weekend in November, and I have 3 choices of flights

a) overnight non stop from NYC to Rome

b) daytime flight to Heathrow, fly early the next morning to Rome on Gatwick on British Airways

c) daytime flight to Heathrow, fly the next afternoon to Rome from Heathrow on Alitalia

What I don't like about (a) is the overnight flight plus jet lag. (I'm not good with jet leg).

What I don't like about (b) is that the night I arrive I have to get to Gatwick and then get up at dawn to make the flight to Rome.

What I don't like about (c) is that I'm flying Alitalia, which gets strikes, etc, Plus Heathrow can have its own problems with departures.

My budget allows me to pick whichever leaves me in the best shape once I get to Rome. Which you would recommend?

Thanks to anybody who responds!

Why can't you fly BA LHR-FCO? They have plenty of flights a day on this route.

Take the nonstop. Connecting through Heathrow is not so much fun. Plus its another chance to lose your luggage.

Heathrow is not fun, nor is a strike by Alitalia.

Jet lag may get you with any of your options since European time is almost opposite US time (day vs night). Leave here and fly at night or day you still land in a way different time zone. Take the shortest (travel time) flight, which probably means the direct flight.

If you arrive at 8:00pm you'll be at Gatwick at 10:00pm at the earliest by which time most places will have stopped serviing - except McD's

So I'd eat at Heathrow.

as for flights to Rome, even if you ignore the full costs airlines you have the choice of Easyjet from Gatwick, Ryanair from Luton, Ryanair from Stansted & Air Berlin from Stansted so it's extremely unlikely that you HAVE to travel early or late in the day

As for using Priceline to book the Hilton at Paddington - why? If I was you I'd be booking a hotel near to where you catch the coach/train to whichever airport you decide to use. It can save you 30 minutes or so which on a morning flight is invaluable

Thanks for all the replies!

I was using Orbitz to check my flight options and for BA they only give me an early morning option out of Gatwick. (I didn't want to fly EasyJet or Ryan because of the weight restrictions.)

But thanks to rkkwan, I checked BA's website directly and found lots of BA flights to Rome from Heathrow and in the afternoon.

I had been thinking that a 15 minute ride into London for a late night dinner would be worth it, but now I think I'll take the tip of eating at Heathrow when I arrive. Any recommendations as to where to get a nice meal or a stiff drink after 9pm?

As for jet lag, my previous experience has been that if I fly during the day and sleep in a nice bed that night, even if only a few hours, I wake up the next morning feeling just fine. Overnight flights leave me feeling wiped out all the following day, and sometimes the next too.

Thanks again -- and any recommendations for Heathrow eateries -- and hotels! -- would be much appreciated. I was thinking of either Novotel or Marriott, or perhaps the Sheraton Skyline based on Tripadvisor reviews.

PS Weadles: I'm flying Virgin Atlantic to Heathrow and will personally retrieve my luggage and re-check it on my Rome flight, not have it transferred for me. I realize it could still get lost, but under those circumstances, it could get lost if I flew non-stop. I'll just have to do a dance to the Gods of Baggage to be on my side. I'd rather sleep! thanks

NOTE:
The priceline name your own feature can never be used to book any specific hotel...

fall06,

Have a wonderful time in Rome! If sleep is more important to you than taking the nonstop, I think it's a great idea to overnight at Heathrow and fly out the next morning. We've had major headaches trying to make connections to Rome and Nice after arriving from New York in the early morning.

Thanks, Weadles!

CarolA,

I suspected that. Someday I am going to invest the time to figure out how Priceline works. But I have to confess I don't like the idea of booking "blind" and then living with it.