Flying to Europe

[mumma to KMC]

Dh and I have a dear friend who lives in Italy. He is the Godfather of our ds but has never met him. As our friend is a Monk, he isn't able to come back to the states very often and when he does, he visits his family on the other side of the country. Alas, we are getting a pretty decent tax return and are thinking about using that to go to visit him. This is where I need help. I don't have a problem booking tickets over the internet when I fly somewhere in the US. I am even willing to buy tickets over the internet to fly to Europe, however, I haven't a clue where to start. I have heard that one can fly from one place in Europe to another for US$50. I am open to flying to the cheapest place in Europe then getting a $50 flight if possible (if it is the cheaper way to go.)

So my question is: does anyone have any suggestions for cheap flights to Europe/Italy. We will be flying with ds and dd and not going for a while. (If anyone can suggest a month to go in too, that would be great!) DS will is one and dd is a newborn. I plan on buying the extra seat for him and depending how old she is when we go, we will probably buy a seat for her too.

Thanks in advance for your help!

[Sophia]

I used to go 3 or 4 times a year.  It was for work, but then I would tack on some vacation days at the end. 

General advice:  Don't book a cheap flight to Europe, hoping to get a $50 flight to where you want to go.  Book both together.  It is like getting a cheap flight in the US. They are available, but the second you count on one, they aren't there.  Leave more time for being at the connecting airport than for inside America.  Think Chicago O'hare, only more spread out.  Also, you really don't want to be in a foreign country without your luggage. 
Also, consider a train.  No guarantees that it will work out cheaper, especially if you only plan on seeing your friend and not exploring also.  But if you do plan on exploring, a Eurorail pass is wonderful.  Also, train and plane stations are usually together. 
Ask your friend about when everyone will be on vacation.  I seem to remember Italy is one of the countries where everyone goes on vacation for the same week.  I know at one time they had to make a law that bakeries couldn't close during vacation week, because otherwise tourists would starve. 

Where you going?  The Naples Museum and the Vatican Museum are 2 of my 5 favorite museums.  But then, I like Ancient Rome. 

[Jaywalker]

once you decide on your timing then start looking on expedia and other sites for good deals -- you might want to try over a month or so and try booking at 2 am -- although rates are very high now compared to earlier years, I have often found in the past that they vary a lot -- and that sometimes cheap tickets are available briefly at odd hours

we have used the on line booking sites with no problem -- do check the cost on the airlines regular sites so you have some idea of the range

I would not use the cheapo flights within Europe -- for one thing they have VERY low luggage limits -- for another they are hit and miss -- and for yet another, if they leave your luggage for a week, tough for you -- or if they can't get you from A to B because they cancel, that is again your tough luck -- the super cheap carriers have NO customer commitment -- you going to miss your unrefundable overseas flight if you can't get there?  tough -- they are great for a lark -- let's go to Barcelona for the weekend from London -- but not for serious complicated travel where you are counting on things to work

good idea to buy a seat for a toddler -- and even a baby is probably better off in her car seat

exciting idea -- have a wonderful trip

[Rei-chan]

The last time I was overseas was in 2002, but I remember we got a great deal at USAirways Vacations, that included roundtrip airfare, hotel, and transport from the airport to the hotel and back. 

The website had pictures of the hotel choices, etc.  We even tried to cross-reference with other sites and this ended up being the best package deal we found at the time.  I don't know if things have changed much with USAIR, but it's worth checking out:

http://www.usairwaysvacations.com/

As far as when to go, I would look up the Zagat's Guide to the city you want to visit.  It will give you ideas on what goes on when.  Also, if you go during an "off season" the tickets could be cheaper as well.

[GotSquatch]

I work for an airline and have gone to Europe 3 times in the last 5 years.  Going in mid-March to the end of April, I was able to buy round trip tickets each time for around $500 or less from Seattle to Frankfurt Germany.  Definatley online is where you are going to find the best deals.  Check with Expedia, Orbitz or Travelocity and then compare what you can get on that airlines website.  The last time I went, buying directly with the airline was cheapest, also makes it easier for them on their systems.  Good luck and don't forget to pre-reserve seats! 

[Linley]

For those living in Europe (or just traveling within Europe) the low cost carriers are great (I've never had a problem with one) but if you are coming from the States I wouldn't recommend it, there are just too many variables. It would be pretty hard to coordinate the times and often low cost airlines go from less used airports for that city (for instance, Rome has two airports, as one of my friends learned a couple years ago and Ryanair claims it flies to Vienna but really goes to Bratislava which is an hour away and in a different country) or from strange terminals (for instance, flying from Vienna to Paris puts me at Charles De Gaulle terminal C, which is normally only used for charters and is separate from the rest of the airport). The prices are also very variable and you book them only through their own sites, so you can't make both a reservation with them and one for overseas at the same time. That said, if you are going into Frankfurt, Air Berlin flies to both Milan and Rome and I have flown with them several times with good results. From London, Ryanair has lots of flights but I've never flown with them. I've also flown Easyjet with no problems. That's just what I can think of off-hand. If you want to attempt it, I'm always happy to help or to offer more suggestions, I'm quite an expert at this thanks to being a student and loving to travel.

[itiswhatitisn't]

My only advice.  Do not fly Air France and no matter what you do do not go through Charles de Gaulle.  If it is unavoidable allow several hours for a layover in Charles de Gaulle. 

My reasons: The french seem to go on strike in sympathy of others.  So the airlines and airport may be fine.  But in my case ferry workers in Corsica went on strike and I got stranded in Europe because the Air france workers decided they wanted the day off. 

CGD-It is a nightmare and when transferring from one terminal to another you still have to go through security.  Their security is slow and the people there don't seem to like anyone be it european or american.  We end up rerouted on KLM and they were wonderful.  As well they fly everywhere, but their hub is based in Amsterdam. 

[Chonsil]

My only advice.  Do not fly Air France and no matter what you do do not go through Charles de Gaulle.  If it is unavoidable allow several hours for a layover in Charles de Gaulle. 

My reasons: The french seem to go on strike in sympathy of others.  So the airlines and airport may be fine.  But in my case ferry workers in Corsica went on strike and I got stranded in Europe because the Air france workers decided they wanted the day off. 

CGD-It is a nightmare and when transferring from one terminal to another you still have to go through security.  Their security is slow and the people there don't seem to like anyone be it european or american.  We end up rerouted on KLM and they were wonderful.  As well they fly everywhere, but their hub is based in Amsterdam. 

Oh hear hear!
CDG is awful when changing gates. I had two hours to get from one gate to another and I still missed my flight. Nothing to do with strikes. Just extremely unhelpful staff. Despite Air France flight attendants saying there would be people available to help us out and speed us along. There was no one from Air France or in the airport that was the least bit helpful. It was a nightmare.

[Buffy2424]

Travelzoo.com compiles great-looking deals, though I have never ended up booking one of them.  I am on their mailing list.

In the past when I've booked to Europe it was through studentuniverse (for professors and students of all ages, but you must have a valid university email). 

Orbitz is a standby, of course, but it's been a long time since I saw anything good there. 

Getting a cheap flight to Italy from say, London, is not guaranteed, but it's a pretty good bet.  Even when they're not way, way cheap, they will not result in a loss.  I used to hop around the continent for like 6 pounds.   

Flights to Europe will be cheap when booked soon, especially for near-future trips.  They get a little higher around April and summer.  November is usually very cheap, but that's because most people find the weather distasteful (I went to Paris in November and didn't find it dreary in the least, but that's me).

[Linley]

Well, you'd have to worry about strikes in Italy, as well as France, indeed its even worse there, I had a friend nearly stranded in Italy by a strike. Also, one of my other friends had a major problem with Alitalia so I wouldn't recommend flying with them either.

[Sophia]

One nice thing about visiting Italy is that it is so nice and warm, you can be comfortable during the 'shoulder season', i.e. just before and after prime summer.  Keep in mind that I am from Texas, but I find anywhere north of Florence to be too cold until at least mid-June.  I don't think Italians have yearly scheduled strikes like the French do, but it seems that transportation strikes would be unlikely during non-peak vacation times. 

[Evalieutions]

For a flight that long, I would buy the seat for your daughter no matter her age.  All of you will be more comfortable. It will also ensure you have adequate carry on luggage allowance, which is critical with young ones.