[Idyllchat] RE: JFK, Alitalia, Delta
Sue and Eric
milliron at mindspring.com
Thu Sep 27 11:40:08 EDT 2007
Thank you, Shelby, and all the others who took the time to reply to our inquiry about connecting flights to Venice. I am sorry you had such a frustrating time getting home. Your message confirmed what I had already learned about JFK-so we booked on Lufthansa out of Dulles-it does require a connection in Frankfurt on the outbound, and in Munich on the return-we paid a little more ( less than $50 more per ticket) to select flights with a leisurely connection time-2-3 hours in each location -and will hope for the best.
Thanks again, Sue Millirons
-----Original Message-----
>From: Shelby Ruch <samruch at hotmail.com>
>Sent: Sep 27, 2007 10:37 AM
>To: milliron at mindspring.com
>Cc: idyllchat at lists.untours.com
>Subject: [Idyllchat] RE: JFK, Alitalia, Delta
>
>In response to the query about connecting flights, our advice is: stay away
>from Delta and JFK. We usually drive to BWI or Dulles to get international
>flights, but we flew out of Pittsburgh last month to get flights at the
>times we wanted. Here's what happened to us on the return from a wonderful
>time on the Tuscany South Untour:
>
>
>Outbound, regional Continental Pittsburgh-Newark, Alitalia
>Newark-Milan/Malpensa, and Alitalia Milan-Florence were all satisfactory,
>and economy class seats/legroom on the Newark-Milan 767 was superior to any
>aircraft we've been on in years (and much better than BA's World Traveler
>Plus couple extra inches upgrade).
>
>Returning, Alitalia Florence-Rome and Alitalia Rome-New York JFK service was
>okay. Seat/legroom on the Rome-NY flight's 777, however, was way tighter
>than what we'd enjoyed on the 767 two weeks earlier.
>
>The trip's only horrors emerged at JFK and specifically with Delta. AZ got
>us into JFK about 5:20 p.m., nearly an hour and a half before our 7:05 Delta
>regional to PIT.
>
>However, while customs processing and luggage retrieval was quite efficient,
>nowhere in JFK's international arrivals Terminal 1 did we see monitors for
>connections with other airlines at other terminals. And only by accident did
>we find out that while our bags were checked through from Florence to PIT,
>we still had to recover them before finishing with JFK Customs, then give
>them to Delta when we got boarding passes for PIT (not issued by AZ even
>though Delta's one of its code-share partners). We might easily have left
>customs with our checked suitcases back there on te carrousel wearing PIT
>tags.
>
>We then learned, from a limo driver awaiting a passenger, that Delta uses
>Terminals 2 and 3 -- but after hiking next door to 2 discovered that its
>attractive lobby, nearly deserted and peaceful, is only for First and
>Business class check-ins, so it was off again, to Delta's Terminal 3 next
>door.
>
>When we entered this dingy and incredibly chaotic terminal we found several
>hundred harried, sweaty and anxious people in a single line before no more
>than 8 attendants checking bags and issuing boarding passes -- so many
>people that we could barely get in the door. On the plus side, a truly
>frazzled supervisor was trying to get those with tight connections -- and
>ours was suddenly looking impossible to make -- into a separate line. As
>several other hoping-to-be passengers for various flights noted, it seemed
>that each Delta staffer in this hell-hole offered different, confusing
>instructions.
>
>Our helpful supervisor did get us to another counter spot, where we were
>checked in quickly -- can you imagine what it was like to jump a line of
>hundreds of other very stressed people? -- and told to deposit our bags
>with "the nice gentlemen around the corner." This was a small semi-screened
>area where two attendants seemed as confused as we and first asked whether
>our two 21-inch suitcases were carry-ons before rather tentatively accepting
>them and sending them into an X-ray machine. At that point we assumed we
>wouldn't see those bags for days, if ever. We dashed around another corner
>to find another single line of perhaps 75-80 people, this one leading to
>Security.
>
>A couple hoping to make a 7 p.m. flight to Chicago let us jump into mid-line
>with them. Only two security stations were operating. After crawling through
>there, our next discovery was that our Gate 23 was yet another lengthy dash,
>through long corridors -- where not one but both of two moving walkways were
>out of commission -- into the adjacent Terminal 3, back there where Delta
>keeps Economy classsers out of the nice more convenient lobby.
>
>Nevertheless, we got to the gate at about 6:45, only to discover that an
>Indianapolis flight was still boarding there. Our own 7:05 flight began
>boarding at about 7:10 -- requiring yet another long walk, this one down
>stairs and across the tarmac -- and pulled away before 7:30.
>
>As we taxied, it was announced that because this was the hour when evening
>international flights depart, 30 aircraft were in front of us and we would
>not take off for 1 or 2 hours. The plane stopped, engines shut down, just
>turbine running for lights and AC, smell of burning kerosene fumes sucked in
>from other aircraft. A couple of passengers -- about half the seats were
>emply and now we knew why -- said this was early-evening routine at JFK,
>stimulating conversations about why Delta schedules departures then rather
>than an hour or two later -- and whether this practice might constitute
>consumer fraud on Delta's part.
>
>Fortunately, our wait out on the line was only about 45 minutes, the flight
>itself was fine, and we arrived at PIT at about 9:20 -- and our bags came
>with us!
>
>It was a heck of a way to conclude the final leg of a lovely trip. Lesson
>learned: Stay away from JFK, and stay away from Delta, an airline that at
>least at JFK demonstrates incredible on-purpose mistreatment of its
>customers.
>
>John & Shelby Ruch
>
>
>
>>From: Sue and Eric <milliron at mindspring.com>
>>Reply-To: Sue and Eric <milliron at mindspring.com>
>>To: Jay Cloidt <jayclimbs at gmail.com>,Joan Herriges
>><joanherriges at sbcglobal.net>
>>CC: Idyllchat new <idyllchat at lists.untours.com>
>>Subject: [Idyllchat] ?? connecting airport to Venice
>>Date: Mon, 10 Sep 2007 12:58:48 -0400 (EDT)
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>Hello everybody-we just booked our April 2008 Untour to Venice, and I am
>>already looking at flights-I found the recent thread about connections came
>>at just the right time, and hope I can get some feedback.
>>
>>We live in Richmond, Va. The flight options that we are considering, and
>>would book ourselves are :
>>
>>RT RIC to VCE via JFK on Delta. My concern is that we have always avoided
>>JFK, so are unfamiliar with the airport. Is it the zoo we have heard??
>>Our connection time would either be 1 1/2 hrs or 7hrs, depending on which
>>flight we took out of RIC. We would probably choose the longer time, just
>>to be on the safe side, but that sure does make for a long day.
>>
>>Our second option is to drive to Washington Dulles, which we have done
>>many times, and take United or Lufthansa to FRA, MUC, or ZUR, connecting
>>to VCE-however, in order to arrive in Venice at a reasonable time for the
>>escort to our apt, our connection time at either of these airports would be
>>minimal-from 50 minutes to 1 1/2 hrs. Would that be enough time to go
>>through customs and immigration and make our connecting flight?? Claiming
>>luggage is not a problem, as we always only travel with carry ons . We
>>have flown into and out of Zurich and Munich, but never connected at
>>either.
>>
>>would welcome responses from any of you familiar with these airports.
>>
>>Thanks in advance for what I know will be many helpful replies.
>>
>>Sue and Eric Millirons
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>-----Original Message-----
>>From: Jay Cloidt
>>Sent: Sep 9, 2007 10:04 PM
>>To: Joan Herriges
>>Cc: Idyllchat new
>>Subject: Re: [Idyllchat] It's Not Just the Destination, It's the
>>Connection-Munich
>>
>>Thanks for the article. Living in the NYC metro area, I can usually get a
>>direct flight to wherever I'm going. However, I've been looking into flying
>>into some smaller airports in Europe (especially, Italy) and this will be
>>great to keep in mind.
>>
>> - Jay
>>
>>
>>On 9/9/07, Joan Herriges <joanherriges at sbcglobal.net> wrote:
>>
>>
>>Good article--and confirms a recent string of Idyllchat posts regarding the
>>importance of connecting airports when traveling abroad. Munich has become
>>a favorite of our traveling friends departing from S.F. to all European
>>destinations. We chose to book our own travel with Idyl in 2006
>>(Castle/Austria), thus avoiding Heathrow and it was a good decision. On
>>the return trip we had to return our car rather early, but had a fabulous
>>time at the Munich airport. They have good restaurants--even a
>>Hofbrauhaus. Excellent shopping and comfortable lounges. Joan.
>>
>>----- Original Message -----
>>From: Barbara Roy
>>To: Idyllchat new
>>Cc: Idyll Untours Culture Chat
>>Sent: Sunday, September 09, 2007 8:52 AM
>>Subject: [Idyllchat] It's Not Just the Destination, It's the
>>Connection-Munich
>>
>>
>>Thought you might all like to see this article in today's travel section of
>>the NYTimes.
>>We recently returned to Switzerland, via Munich on a flight from Boston and
>>thought it
>>was great, as the article indicates. Happy travels.
>>
>>
>>Barbara Crowell Roy
>>Sachseln
>>Switzerlandhttp://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/09/travel/09headsup.html?8td&emc=td
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
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>
>
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