Hi Everyone,
So, we are planning our first visit to see my grandbabies who are moving to Vienna in the next few weeks.
We have never been to Europe, and I am completely a fish out of water with this planning business.
We plan to go over during our Thanksgiving break to see them, and for now we have about 10 days reserved
for this trip.
We live in Atlanta, but it looks like it might be more cost effective for us to fly out of Newark, so we'll use
Southwest points to get there, and then fly whatever we need to to get over to Europe.
I guess I'm looking for a little guidance.
The flights we found seem to be on AerLingus and stop in Dublin.
Question 1: Is AerLingus ok? I read reviews that sort of have me freaked out, but I don't need fancy, I just need reliable. And I like the price point
of those flights.
Question 2: We thought we might plan a couple days pre or post in Dublin to site see, since the plane goes through there anyway, we can just
book all the tickets separately. Is that a do-able idea?
Question 3: Is there a different and better option as far as flights and/or a different country we could spend a couple days in?
Again, my apologies for the abundance of ignorance I have about this all! Excited to start learning.
Thank you,
Tammy

Just a quick response for now . . . >>Question 1: Is AerLingus ok? I read reviews that sort of have me freaked out, but I don't need fancy, I just need reliable. And I like the price point <<

it is perfectly fine -- it is the 'National Airline' of Ireland - just like Air France for France, etc . . .

Thank you, thank you!

I flew aer lingus and it was fine, but that was many years ago. I don't know what reviews you've read that would freak you out about a national airline, I can't think of any national airline that is that bad. Maybe Aeroflot due to safety or something like that. I think Italia has had problems at times, those are the only ones that come to mind.

Having said that, I can't imagine it would be cost effective to fly out of Newark, though, but of course if you are not counting your time and points flying to/from EWR, maybe. I just wouldn't think that would save you very much to be worth it.

>>> We have never been to Europe
>>> We live in Atlanta, but it looks like it might be more cost effective for us to fly out of Newark, so we'll use
Southwest points to get there, and then fly whatever we need to to get over to Europe.
I guess I'm looking for a little guidance.

The first thing people traveling overseas don't realize is the relationship between price and risk. What you are thinking of doing is adding travel time AND incurring risk. Risk in this case if missed flight out of EWR. Risk is not deterministic. It might happen or it might not. If you miss the flight because you are late getting into EWR. Aer Lingus does not care. You are totally on your own to complete the trip by changing the flight with change fee plus difference between the advance fare you paid and the last minutes fare of the whatever the flight they can put you on. This is serious money. To minimize the missed flight, you have to add a lot of buffer between your flight into EWR and your flight to DUB. You are not traveling during a predictably fair weather season.

I think the dominant carrier at ATL is Delta. At airports with one dominant carrier, that carrier can dictate premium prices on routes without competitions. That is what you are finding out. However, the airport might also benefit from inventory clearance price drops if the carrier realizes there might be unsold inventory. This is not a predictable event and even if it happens, you would not know until close to your departure date and they really don't like to put you on codeshares. They only don't want get stuck with unsold inventories, which they are getting very good at avoiding.

International fares, at least from where I live in the U.S., seem to firm up earlier than the domestic fares. You might look also at layover at European airports instead of EWR. Prices you see now might be very different from prices you see a month from now. If you are thinking of breaking up the trip, you have many choices. During last two trips in November, for some reason any itinerary including German cities ended up much more expensive than to to other European airports even considering I had to buy additional uncoordinated air/train tickets into/out of Germany. Layover in Europe entering the Schengen zone requires shorter layover at an efficient airport like AMS compared to doing the layover at a U.S. airport exiting U.S. In the worst case, the penalty for missing an inter European flight is probably less than missing a trans-Atlantic flight.

Ok, rather than suggest this or that, I am going to be direct. You have 10 days. Regardless of how you do it, you will be spending money to get and from Europe. Do not waste any of that precious time trying to save a few bucks on separate tickets and wasting time making extra stops. Not always, but often, it is pennywise and dollar foolish. After you do this visit, and have a bit of experience, then plan differently, but for this trip, keep it as direct and simple as possible. You are going to have some jet lag, so expect to be tired your first day.

See what flights you can get out of Atlanta. I have done connections both ways, in the US and in Europe. Waiting for connecting flights anywhere is tiring, though sometimes it can't be avoided. My preference is as direct flight as possible, then train in Europe to destination. So, check other airports like Munich for your connection to Vienna. If you must make air connections in Europe, don't have one in the US too.

By all means, do not book separate tickets for a flight in the US before a flight to Europe, especially around Thanksgiving! With the holiday and unknown weather in the NE, you are just asking for anxiety. Can you leave a few days before Thanksgiving and return a couple of days after the holiday is over? This is really important if you do, unfortunately, end up with connecting flights in the US.

There is a lot to do and see around Vienna, then Salzburg and Germany. With Thanksgiving and time with family, you can still do plenty of sightseeing. For your next visit, pick another place, city or country to visit, perhaps even meet up with the family, and build the trip around that. Make it a real plan to see something you dream of, not just, the plane stops here, so we will (use up time) seeing it. You can also visit family a few days, then go off on your own for two in three days, etc.

You have plenty of time, so relax and enjoy the anticipation.

You guys are so smart! I hadn't even thought about all the risk, and I SO appreciate the honesty.

I will watch for great deals from Atlanta and Europe, and go from there.

You all are amazing.

Thank you.

Dublin is nice but I'd suggest instead booking flight to say Munich and then taking trains via Salzburg and its wonderful Lake District for a few days and then train to Vienna. Fly home from there. Trains are easy to use and can be very cheap - good orientation to European trains - www.seat61.com (great insights on cheap train tickets) and general info like where to go and what to expect - like first vs 2nd class also www.budgeteuropetravel.com and www.ricksteves.com. Vienna is great and a great day out perhaps with your grandbabies could go to the Wachau Valley and do the few-hour boat ride thru this pretty vineyard-laced Danube valley- see historic Melk Abbey on way - see above sites for lots on info on this very easy to do on your own excursion by train and boat.

"Vienna is great and a great day out perhaps with your grandbabies could go to the Wachau Valley and do the few-hour boat ride thru this pretty vineyard-laced Danube valley"

The OP is traveling in late November. The vineyards are sad and grey and not pretty at all. And the day cruises have stopped for the season.

tamtot, if you have not already discovered in your research, the timing of your trip will likely coincide with some of the Christmas markets being open. Vienna's largest, the Wiener Christkindlmarkt opens 17 November; and the Wolfgangseer Advent in the Salzkammergut opens 23 November.

On an aside, it has become increasingly easier to find turkeys for our Thanksgiving dinner. Initially I had to special order a bird from the butcher, but now the Merkur grocery markets in the popular expat districts will have them beginning in early November. They're small and cute (10-12 pounds), about the size that a standard European oven can manage.

Happy Planning!

Ok, you only have a limited time for the trip I guess
Dublin is a nice city and sufficiently foreign to have a Europe light but also they all speak English (though there will be a different tone to what you are used to), so if you want an easy entry to discovering Europe it is not a bad idea (see all of above with their wise advice)
Late July and August is when everyone goes on holiday in Europe. Lucily neither Dublin nor Vienna is a special target during that period unless there is a festival on in that period.
In both countries it is usual to greet staff in shops as you walk in or reception at any hotel you stay in, tipping is not common in Europe (yes I know some people will shout at me, but trust me it is not in the culture to do more than round up to the Euro even in bars)

If you wanted to include another destination like Munich you could also check airfares for so called "open jaw" connections.
For example:
Fly Atlanta - Vienna with one necessary stop en route when there are no non-stop connections.
Spend X days with family in Vienna.
Train Vienna - Munich
Spend Y days in Munich
Fly Munich - Atlanta (I think Delta still has one non-stop per day).

On the other hand, there is lots to explore in and around Vienna. And with your grandkids having lived there for half a year already I guess they want to show you this and that and whatever they discovered already. So you may want to focus on spending time with them instead of adding another destination.

You'll find the like of ryanair will offer very little walk on luggage space and charge a shed load for hold stuff, they are not forgiving if you break the rules.

Ryan Air boss even floated idea of pay toilets on planes - did not fly- no pun intended. But yes check all the charges and get a bottom line price.

I suggest you follow the advice of Sassafrass!

Hi, I am from Athens, your neighbor city. Been to Europe many many times. Vienna is a great city, you will love it. Check out Delta, as it would be easy to deal with as hub in Atlanta, check out flights separate for going over and the return. Might not be direct flights, but call and talk to a Delta Rep in the evening, advice above to avoid prime travel times for cost savings. Check out, google it, getting advance tickets for the Spanish Riding school right in Vienna, next to Hapsburg Palace., gorgeous Lippizaner horse s, try to see one of their shows, get seating, if none left go to a training session, Also check out the great coffee shops all over Vienna, If you are into music, check out the Vienna Opera schedule, can get tickets over Internet, saw Wagners Ring there last time, awesome. Also if into Art be sure to go by the Bellvedere Palace, lovely paintings, G. Klimpt (movie Woman in Goid,now in NYC I think), lovely museum. Be sure to see the tile roof church just down from the Spanish Riding School, maybe attend service on Sunday, see the cobblestone street nearby where the poor people with the plague werre buried under the street, in the middle ages,. Lots of history, you will love the city, but get those ticket ahead for Riding school, soldiers in WW II rode the horses out of Vienna prior to the bombing, U.S, soldiers from out West, see the video in the little museum at the Spanish Rididng school. Great City. Sometime plane tickets are less expensive if you buy separate coming and going for some reason. Sue

Personally on your first trip to Europe, I would try to fly direct, Newark can be a nightmare. Do Atlanta to the closest city to Vienna, not sure if you can get into Vienna direct flight. Make life easier and see how Delta compares, night flight, leaves about 6 PM, gets in the AM, easy to connect if needed. You might want to get comfort seating if you can, as the little bit of extra leg room really helps. Most airports have train right into the airport, be it Munich or whatever. Anyway, I am into comfort and you sound like you might not be youngsters, right? Avoid plane changes, lost luggate, missed flights and general more hassles. Weather might be bad in November too.

There are no direct flights. How flexible are your dates? Go to skyscanner and play around with your dates. It looks like Air France may be the cheapest, but you have to connect in CDG (Paris). Note that Aer Lingus has an agreement with JetBlue, so you could do the trip on Aer Lingus on one ticket out of Atlanta, but it requires two changes and is more expensive than some other options. And around Thanksgiving I would want to connect in Europe.

Vienna is a great city, with some excellent smaller museums as well as the biggies. Lots of good guidebooks available. Depending on how long you want to spend with family you could do side trips to Bratislava or Graz, both of which are close.

One thing you will notice is that while there are strict no smoking laws in Austria they are seldom adheared to so stay calm and go somewhere else if you don't like the poison.

Do you have to go in November? Like someone else pointed out, it will be cold and grey many days. I was in Vienna last October. We wore a lot layers. We even managed to do a bicycle tour in the Wachau Valley. But I had already been to Vienna in the summer when the music fills the streets and flowers are everywhere. I did not feel like I was missing much by revisiting in October. However my mother had a harder time with the weather.

If if you cannot change the timing and if you feel comfortable with sharing your dates, we can take a quick look on skyscanner, momondo, google flight to see what is currently your best option.

And please let us know what you want to do in Austria (only Vienna? How old are the grandchildren? We can help with that also.

Well you get what you pay for, that's why it's a low cost company. They are more or less all the same in Europe.