Help our son fly home from Vienna?
 

Our son is studying abroad, but we can't go a whole semester without seeing him. Anybody have advice on cheap fares to NYC? Expedia, etc., don't seem to work for Europe to US.

Do your son a favor; don't fly him home! He's immersed in his experience. A trip home will be such an interruption of his experience. If you need to see him, go there. You'll be amazed to see him flourishing so well in a whole new environment. I've had the experience several times with mine and it's a real treat.

I agree completely with Catbert.

However, if you are such a controlling mommy or daddy that you have to bring him home, try

www.opodo.co.uk

I'm with Catbert - go visit him! I'm sure your son would love to show you his surroundings. Take advantage of this opportunity.

Eloise just because mudcat would like to see her son doesn't make her controlling.

It really is delicious torture watching your offspring experience the independence and adventures that come with a study abroad program. I can understand where Mudcat is coming from. And obviously you're talking about twice as much to send two parents to Europe (and put them up somewhere). But you've invested this much in the program.... go ahead and make the plunge. I have to say, there was nothing so eye opening as watching my daughter showing me "her" Paris.

how old is this son?
if he is high school age, i am shocked the program would ALLOW him to leave his immersion.

did you send him on a study program or a european trip? if he is studying.. let him get on with it.

if you need to see him, go past the half way mark of his stay and give him the joy, as here mentioned, of being your tour guide in such a gorgeous country.

my goodness. it would be such a waste to let him interrupt this experience, but such a gift to share it with you.

take out a loan if necessary and go see what is so wonderful about it all.

oh, for heaven's sake, this kid isn't in some religious cult, he's just studying in Vienna. No one on here even knows what he's studying. Kids studying abroad do lots of things other than speak foreign languages, and often speak in English to other students. I don't think it makes the slightest bit of difference whether he visits home or not, at least in terms of his "experience". Even students studying languages abroad for one semester (which probably indicates this is just a minor semester abroad jaunt, not intending to prepare him for a PhD in a foreign language) don't learn that much and it's usually just for fun. They also may spend that time traveling to other countries for fun and that breaks up any "immersion" process, also (which may not even be what he's doing). A lot of the time foreign study doesn't have anything to do with being a language major.

I don't think he should be pressured to return home if he doesn't want to, though. I know most kids probably don't fly home if they are only going to be gone for one semester. Lots of kids don't go home in that frame even when they are in school, anyway.

So, just to answer the question instead of giving life advice --

Expedia doesn't usually do anything other than show you standard fares you could get yourself directly from an airline. Vienna isn't usually a super-cheap place, but Austrian Airlines has been having some good sales recently. Lufthansa and United also often have very good fares NY/Vienna. You can get quotes and book a VIE-JFK and return RT ticket on www.aua.com, for example, regardless of where you live, and starting in VIE.

Does he want to come home for a visit?

Some answers: He's a college sophomore studying philosphy. It's unclear as yet whether or not he wants to come home for a visit. You're right, we should find that out first. And yes, we should visit him, instead of the other way around, and may do so. Thanks for the input, and we'll check the recommended sites.

Hi M,

www.kayak.com has RT VIE/NYC for $515 in April, but it's $724 for NYC/VIE on the same dates.

Also see www.mobissimo.com

((I))

Sign up with fare watchers on Orbitz, Travelocity.

Also sign-up as a frequent flier with all carriers to Vienna and sign-up for fare change e-mails with each one.

Also I remember reading somewhere on Fodor's there is a student website with special fares... anybody?

Faina,

The website you might be thinking of is student universe.

www.studentuniverse.com

Jennifer

STA Travel is the big dog in the student travel biz. The Austrian website is http://www.statravel.at

Than you both, I hope this will help MudCat more then the discussion whether or not a child should come home for a visit!

I have a friend who's 25 year old son is teaching in Prague. She and her husband (who had never even been on a plane) flew there to visit him and had the time of their lives. These people rarely leave the county never mind the country and now they talk about all other countries they want to visit. It has really opened up their world. Go!

STATravel.com (800-777-0112) is very helpful for students, and offers reasonable fares and flexible change policies. It was started, I believe, by a student who realized a need for its services. We recently used them and are impressed with their knowledge and their follow-up.
I would also try to visit him there, instead, and encourage him to get 'lost' in the Austrian experience. He'll have a blast!

My daughter studied in Siena for 6 months last year and I've never missed anyone so much in my life but wouldn't have dreamed of having her fly back home for a visit. I agree with the posters who are saying you should go visit him. We went to see her in May and it was one of the best trips of my life. She just loved showing us around and cooking for us (she took Tuscan cooking classes) and showing off her Italian. GO VISIT HIM!!!

I do know what you're going through though, and don't know how people did this before e-mail and cheap phone cards. One suggestion that I did that she really loved is I kept all our e-mail correspondence and then printed it out and put it in a folder and gave it to her as a present at Xmas. She loved it.

Let us know what you end up doing, but really, I think you should do whatever you have to do to fly there to see him.

Thanks again for all the help. Inquiries are under way. As for the question of who goes where, it turns out he DOES want to come home, probably to show off his new continental chic. We did go to visit our daughter in London when she was studying abroad, and you're right, it was a great experience. She was living in a dodgy area, south of Elephant and Castle, but within weeks seemed to have total, fearless command of that wonderful city. Thanks again.

Mudcat, thank you for your gracious responses to some intrusive and gratuitous advice/comments. You're a class act.