Even with Priceline, BA is still responsible if a connection cannot be made, since BA made this itinerary available to Priceline to book.

no, advice, bride, just well wishes for a wonderful honeymoon from a Bostonian. :)

Hi Bride, Ohhhhhhhh, sorry - thats an unfortunate mistake for you. What I would do is call some of the airlines concerned, tell them what happened, and since its your honeymoon maybe one of them will be nice enough to change your flight for you if they fly in/out of both airports?

I would be on there begging them. They have to be nice about this. Good Luck.

What a mess. You sure you still want to marry this guy? Kidding. A little.

WillTravel is right. Since it's the same ticket on BA, they are responsible if you can't make the connection. Don't need to worry about it, and there's little you can do anyways. Just get off the plane, go through customs, pick up your bags, head for the National Express bus to Heathrow, and whatever happens happens. If you can't make it, then BA will put you on the later flight to Boston. If they can't, then the next day, though you probably have to pay for hotel unless the first flight was delayed due to a BA mechanical problem.

And I believe Gradyloo is correct. You are going from LGW to LHR, not the other way around.

Do some research and learn where the National Express bus ticket office is, where it departs from Gatwick; and which terminal your flight to BOS is leaving from LHR. I don't know if you can buy tickets on the bus, or if it takes anything but sterling pounds in cash. Maybe other people can help you with that.

For what it's worth, since online check-in (e-checkin) was suggested, I flew from Toronto to London and back on BA in March and used the service. It was fantastic and I'd recommend it to anyone who can use it. However - and I'm not sure about this - I think you can only check in this way if you have an e-ticket (and therefore a alphanumeric code). I don't know if you can do it with paper tickets. On the way out I checked in from my desk at work and on the way back from a Macdonalds in London which was the only place that I could find internet use at the time. Check in both times was about 4 hours before departure. Yes you have to put in your passport number and other information, but you can also do other things such as select your seat and meal. Once at the airport, there is a special line for BA e-checkins and luggage drop off (I was the only one) and in less than than 4 minutes from entering the terminal I was in the duty free area with Boarding pass in hand. The line up for paper ticket holders wound gloomily through the terminal. If this method will buy you more time surely use it. You will have to register at the BA web site in advance which only takes a few minutes.
However, I agree that your timing will be tight, and that you may have got the airports the wrong way 'round.

RKKWAN : Why would they have to pay for their overnight hotel if the airline is responsible ?

BA would not be responsible, per se...

A good analogy would be if your flight arrived on time in term1 and you took your sweet time to walk over to term3 and missed the connecting flight. BA will put them on the next available flight (whenever that is), but I'm afraid I have to agree with <b>rkkwan</b> as to overnighting at your own expense, unless you find a sympathetic BA employee (not bloody likely) :-)

Once the ticket was bought from Priceline, it could ONLY be changed by Priceline. BA will not touch it till you actually start flying. If the 3 hour connection is deemed legal, then there is not much anybody will be able to do.

I back <b>rkkwan's</b> suggestion. Just go through the motions and live with the consequences. Not much you can do, so don't worry too much.

I still predict that you will make the connection, but of course nobody here seems to agree with me. I do this connection about 5-6 times a year and it never takes me more than 2 hours from the time I leave the plane at one airport till the time I'm having a cocktail at the airline lounge at the other airport awaiting for the boarding call.

Have a wonderful trip! :-)

I tried to find out if PL had any liability on this issue, since they sold a ticket that obviously can't meet BA's connection guidelines. I posted the question on www.biddingfortravel.com, but unfortunately since I wasn't the bidder, the moderator therte is evidently disinclined to answer, but said she was unaware that BA participated with PL. For bride_2004, was BA named on your winning bid form, or was it American Airlines (which also flies LHR-BOS and is in the OneWorld Alliance with BA)? Usually when they're offering the same origin/destinations, they don't like to send business to their otherwise-partners.

BA and AF have discontinued their free bus passes between airports i understand.

tight (but obviously legal)connections.. but.. do not get stressed over it or guilty about the scheduling.
enjoy your trip, and there is only so much one can do.. so.. try to enjoy whatever happens.

AAFF-

There is a slight difference between you and some travelers here (like me :) ). You sit in the front of the aircraft flying FC, while I sit in the cattle class all the way back which takes me an extra 15-30 mins to deplane. Your luggage gets priority handling, while mine takes forever for it to show up on the carousel. You go thru fast track immigration, while I stand in line for 1 hr.

Then at LHR, you go to FC check-in line, while I wait forever for my turn in the economy line. You go through the much shorter security line, and I again stand in the long line. That's why you can enjoy your cocktail in the FC lounge before your flight, while I run to the gate and still miss the flight!

As to whether the original poster would get a hotel if forced to stay an extra night, I admit I'm a little uncertain. On the Air Canada flight I took on Sunday, which was delayed almost 3 hours leaving Heathrow, almost everyone on board who had connections lost them. There was an announcement on board that everyone in this situation would get a hotel voucher for an overnight stay and be rebooked for flights in the morning. I thought this was exceptional treatment on the part of AC, but I was told on Flyertalk that this is expected, since the plane from Heathrow took off in the first place, and AC is then responsible from then on once the plane takes off.

<b>touche', yk</b>,

I usually don't fly in F, business mostly, but you do make some good points. I also know exactly where to catch the bus, which may not be so quick and painless for a first timer, but......

the point I was trying to make was the fact that there is not much the OP can do at this point. The ticket was issued by a travel agency (Priceline) and it is a legal connection. Unless Priceline breaks down (not before hell freezes over) and reissues a new ticket with better connection time, then the fact is that the OP is stuck with the tiket at hand. So my advice is not to raise any expectations for the OP, and tell the OP to start calling, when it won't change anything.

You might want to read the BA policies.
http://www.britishairways.com/travel...w/public/en_us

BA neither provides nor pays for the service. Minimum connect time is three hours. Don't forget to retrieve your luggage, as that will not automatically connect.

I'd definitely try to do carry-ons only in that event. Waiting for luggage will add yet more delay and complication.

This is a good page too:

http://www.britishairways.com/travel...q/public/en_us

Particularly this:
What should I do if my flight to London is delayed?
A British Airways' staff monitor all flights and connecting passengers behind the scenes. We will do everything possible to help you make your connection in London.
If you think you may have missed your onward flight, please go to our British Airways Flight Connections desks in London where our staff will be able to assist you with arrangements for the next stage of your journey.

Whatever you do, be sure to take a taxi. Budget elsewhere in your vacation if needed, but spend the money to get there as quickly as possible.

WillTravel, I was getting anxious on her behalf but your post calmed me down. Thanks for the good advice as always.

We used BA's online check in when we flew to Cape Town via London -- worked like a charm.

Bride_2004, you said your tickets were purchased through Priceline, but this sounds like a routing that you were able to see the full itinerary before you purchased. Is that right?

British Airways does not participate in Priceline's Name Your Own Price bidding service. Priceline also sells conventional airfares and it sounds like that is what you purchased.

You might want to post this question at www.flyertalk.com in their Travel Bidding forum. There are many seasoned business travelers there that may have some things to add.

Hi all,
I just wanted to let you know that this worked out fine! For anyone who runs into this trouble (though I'll be sure to avoid it in the future just because of the stress it caused before hand!), don't worry about it too much. Once you're on your first flight, you don't have to re-check in at the airline for your second flight (just like you don't if you have a connection at the same airport). This means that you don't need to be there 2 hours before the second flight leaves, just as long as you're there in time to board! Thanks to everyone who helped me plan a wonderful honeymoon!