We are trying to book our flights for a September trip. We'll be flying from San Diego to Barcelona but our return flight will be from Paris. I think Economy is our only option and I saw here recently some recommendations about which airplanes were most comfortable but I can't find it now. I would really appreciate anyone's input re: our best options for a fairly comfortable overnight flight.

Also we'll have to stop at least, and hopefully only, one time. If there's any opinions on where to have our layover (choices seem to be JFK, Atlanta, Montreal, DFW, O'Hare) we are open to all input. And if anyone knows where/how/when to get the best deal, please let me know. Thanks!

gallery_girl, with the itinerary you show you'll probably not have a lot of options in picking airlines because all have have cut back so dramatically in the number of flights offered. For example, one can no longer get a nonstop flight on United to Paris from San Francisco. Instead, although we keep the same flight number, we have to change planes at Dulles.

That said, there is one website that provides seat dimensions based on carriers and their specific aircraft. Go to www.seatguru.com and you'll find the best source of such information I've ever seen.

As to the best deal possible, over the years I've tried Travelocity, Orbitz, and a bunch of others and, when push comes to shove, in most cases the best deals have come directly from an individual carrier's website. So, I shop the general websites to find out who flies where and at what price, then go to the carriers themselves to do the actual fine tuning and purchasing. There are some exceptions so, although it can be a long and tedious process, stick with it.

Good luck and bon voyage!

BigBlue, I see what you mean. Plenty of options appear on the list, but each time I try to select a flight with only one stop it tells me it doesn't exist. Psych. Thanks for the seatguru site - that should help.

From what I've read I should wait until Monday to shop again for the best fares, so any and all ideas are still welcome.

Steerage class always sucks -- even on "luxury" airlines like Emirates the peasants are in narrow and uncomfortable seats. You're talking about degrees of discomfort here.

But the worst possible plane is probably the American 757s and 767s they fly to Europe because the seats suck (very narrow and cramped) AND there is no personal video/entertainment. I had personal video on Olympus in 2001 and Olympus is an armpit of an airline. But nine years later AA still has only intermittent monitors mounted above the aisles on its 757s and 767s that fly international routes so you can't even play Tetris or watch House reruns to take your mind off the fat guy in the seat in front of you who has to lean back on top of your knees to get enough room to exhale.

</rant>

Have you considered flying from LAX to CDG then on the Barcelona (Air France)? Personally I like the long (approx 11 hours) flights that leave in the afternoon from LAX and arrive in Paris mid-morning. I'm in Madrid (or Barcleona) by 2:30 pm the next day after a short connection in CDG. I prefer the long flight so I can relax from the initial "excitement" of boarding, have a meal with a couple glasses of wine and enjoy the movie. Usually I can get 6 hours of sleep or so, even if it's in coach.

Whereas, if you're going from the West coast via an East coast airport your flight is broken up and you don't get as big a block of sleep.

Returning I'm not as particular.

Others may not like such a long flight, but it's my preference.

I'd also avoid JFK if possible. It's notorius for delays due to runway traffic.

I despise Atlanta and O'Hare. Can't you fly or drive to LA for a better selection?

BigRuss, good rant! I appreciate the insight on AA. Yuck.

Cathy & Avalon, yes we could fly to LA but I've been looking and most of the flights get us to Barcelona after 6pm, and then I lose a whole day there. I was hoping to arrive in the morning, although since we won't have a room at that time maybe an evening arrival from LA the night before would be better. hmmm...

I do prefer the idea of getting off the plane on the east coast and having a little dinner and a stretch before the overseas portion - 11 hrs is a long time on a plane, esp. in "steerage." Moo. Why can't Virgin fly to Barcelona? Talk about cushy economy comfort!

Anyone have info re: Air Canada or Lufthansa?

Thanks everyone

Hey GG,

Gattle class is cattle class.

IME, the food on Air France is better than most airlines.

Enjoy your visit.

You could go United Economy Plus. Basically you pay for an economy fare and then buy the Economy Plus seats (an extra 5 inches of leg room) as an addition - it's an additional $100 (each way) for international flights on top of what the regular fare would be. So... if the fare for your dates was $1200 all in, you could request Economy Plus seats both going and returning for a total of $1400.

Only you know if it's worth it to you.

I do it all time, but I'm 6'4" and really NEED it.

Oh, you would need to buy Economy Plus seats through the United AIRLINE website - not Orbitz, Travelocity, etc.

Use this website to find best fares (click "month long search")
http://matrix.itasoftware.com/cvg/dispatch/

I live in San Diego and usually have flown Iberia -- AA to Chicago, then Iberia to Madrid, then Iberia to wherever. Honestly, it isn't great but it isn't too horrible. You do have to get up at an ungodly hour which sucks. Iberia doesn't have great food and their entertainment system is beyond lame, but believe it or not it sometimes seems roomier than other airlines. I flew Air Lingus from DC to Madrid for my last visit, and I have never been so uncomfortable. Maybe I was just always excited so never noticed too much discomfort on Iberia.

Coming back - if you can fly Delta/Air France back, and go through Atlanta (allow plenty of time), there are a couple of Delta flights from Atlanta to SD that are 767-300 planes with entertainment systems in the seat back. Pretty nice for that last leg, which is the most horrible of all.

Hehe.. let me rephrase the "great food" thing - the food is inedible. Eat at the airport.

Economy and comfy?

Regarding food: I was very pleasantly surprised on my last 2 flights (Delta) from Madrid to Atlanta. The food was actually good (not exactly 3* but like a high quality frozen prepared entree). It was far better than the Air France food flying from LAX to CDG the last 2 flights. It was exactly the opposite prior to last year.

It's so funny, I hadn't really thought about entertainment, which is WAY more important to me than leg room as I'm only 5' tall I don't sleep well on planes so entertainment is crucial, even if it's practically in my lap. Food, well, I can eat pretty much anything and have a particular fondness for creepy airplane food, so that works in my favor.

So I guess I didn't ask the right question, but I got a lot of great answers nevertheless. Thank you all for so many details. Off to run it through the system yet again and see what pop up...