SPS Posted March 1, 2022 Report Share Posted March 1, 2022 We have our eye on a Brilliance itinerary that goes from Venice (Ravenna) to Barcelona in May/June 2023 that is VERY appealing to us. The one big concern we have is airfare for the one-way fares that would be needed to get to Italy and back from Spain. I'm finding through mock bookings (using rates for this year since the 2023 dates are not currently available) that these costs will, most likely, far outweigh the cost of the cruise. Would using Air2Sea be a more viable option than booking on my own? Does anyone have any other ideas to consider? I don't have any experience in booking international travel. Especially with traveling to one country and returning from another. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAAAYTOOO Posted March 1, 2022 Report Share Posted March 1, 2022 How 'bout using TransAtlantic sea ? I'm kidding of course....I'm sure the timing isn't going to work for a TA home, but that would be super awesome ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SPS Posted March 1, 2022 Author Report Share Posted March 1, 2022 My company has a pretty generous PTO policy, but I don't have THAT MUCH vacation time! But also, I just found the option to return from/to another city/airport feature on some other travel sites. This changes the mock booking prices that I'm finding by a great deal. I just might have to pull the trigger on booking this Italy heavy itinerary and surprise my wife. She wants to see Italy so much! WAAAYTOOO 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruisellama Posted March 1, 2022 Report Share Posted March 1, 2022 Footnotes to your search - Depending upon the airline, flights (whether A2S or on your own) open about 9 months ahead of your desired departure date. I've seen some European airlines open earlier (11 months), and you can see those that show up in A2S. You can play with the "multi-city" selection on A2S and adjust your entry cities for cost. It can make sense to enter in a less expensive gateway city then take a regional carrier or train to the port city. (Example - we can get less expensive direct flight from DFW-Madrid, then take a train or regional carrier from Madrid to Barcelona (port), came can work for Italian entry points) We like using the A2S option for overseas vacations because they work back-ups if you experience delays/interruptions. Also, if you're looking at premium seats, they go first and as the supply diminishes the price goes up quickly. So I book at the earliest practical opportunity. SPS 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SPS Posted March 2, 2022 Author Report Share Posted March 2, 2022 Good info @cruisellama. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FionaMG Posted March 2, 2022 Report Share Posted March 2, 2022 Just to add to @cruisellama's very helpful post, Europe has an extensive network of intra-European flights that are largely sold as one-ways, so it would definitely be worthwhile looking at a one-way flight from Barcelona back to your original arrival airport in Italy. That would let you book your transatlantic flight as a round-trip from the US to Italy and back. cruisellama, SPS and WAAAYTOOO 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruisellama Posted March 2, 2022 Report Share Posted March 2, 2022 One other thing to watch on regional carriers - "baggage costs". Far cheaper to pay prior to getting to airport than paying at airline counter. So do some research if you take that path. FionaMG 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FionaMG Posted March 2, 2022 Report Share Posted March 2, 2022 11 minutes ago, cruisellama said: One other thing to watch on regional carriers - "baggage costs". Far cheaper to pay prior to getting to airport than paying at airline counter. So do some research if you take that path. Yes, this is actually really, really important, as hilariously summed up in this performance by the comedy band Fascinating Aida: cruisellama and teddy 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riley Posted April 14, 2022 Report Share Posted April 14, 2022 I booked a multicity option but agree with the inter-European option mentioned above. There are good low-cost carriers. Train systems are also great if you have the time - with Ravenna being in the north of Italy you might look at flying roundtrip into, say, Milan and taking the train to Ravenna and back from Barcelona. cruisellama 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Censored Posted April 19, 2022 Report Share Posted April 19, 2022 On 3/1/2022 at 8:37 AM, SPS said: We have our eye on a Brilliance itinerary that goes from Venice (Ravenna) to Barcelona in May/June 2023 that is VERY appealing to us. The one big concern we have is airfare for the one-way fares that would be needed to get to Italy and back from Spain. I'm finding through mock bookings (using rates for this year since the 2023 dates are not currently available) that these costs will, most likely, far outweigh the cost of the cruise. Would using Air2Sea be a more viable option than booking on my own? Does anyone have any other ideas to consider? I don't have any experience in booking international travel. Especially with traveling to one country and returning from another. Air2Sea 100% You don't have to pay until you figure things out. cruisellama 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruisellama Posted April 19, 2022 Report Share Posted April 19, 2022 58 minutes ago, Eddy said: Air2Sea 100% You don't have to pay until you figure things out. If you have extra time on either end of the cruise, you can also look for lower cost gateway cities. For example if it were cheaper to fly to Rome, you could do so and arrange ground transportation (train) to Ravenna. Of course you have consider those costs too, but it provides a way to look at options. Working through major gateways can lead to less connections too, saving valuable vacation time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TJ_Shopper Posted June 24, 2022 Report Share Posted June 24, 2022 On 3/1/2022 at 11:26 AM, SPS said: My company has a pretty generous PTO policy, but I don't have THAT MUCH vacation time! But also, I just found the option to return from/to another city/airport feature on some other travel sites. This changes the mock booking prices that I'm finding by a great deal. I just might have to pull the trigger on booking this Italy heavy itinerary and surprise my wife. She wants to see Italy so much! We will be on Brilliance of the Seas May 15, 2023 leaving from Rome and arriving in Athens. We are having the same problem with airfare; however, I've been checking and it looks like it will open up next week for booking. Currently doing one way tickets are crazy expensive. I'm hoping that booking Multi-City will be cheaper. Crossing my fingers but it looks like it will be at least $1,300 round trip, probably more. This is Chicago to Rome, Athens to Chicago. In 2019, we flew multi-city (Chicago to Milan, Barcelona to Chicago) and our airfare was about $800. So, yea, prices have definitely gone up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FSUFAN Posted June 27, 2022 Report Share Posted June 27, 2022 On 3/2/2022 at 3:26 PM, cruisellama said: One other thing to watch on regional carriers - "baggage costs". Far cheaper to pay prior to getting to airport than paying at airline counter. So do some research if you take that path. Also understand that carry-on bag size in the US (21-22 inches) is NOT the same in Europe. The carry-on size is smaller (20 inches). It sounds minor, but they will look over your bag before boarding and then hit you up for a baggage fee if it is a larger US sized carry-on. Google the "man in seat 61" website for how to get around Europe via train, ferry and even plane. cruisellama 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray Posted September 5, 2022 Report Share Posted September 5, 2022 Europen carry on size chart European Airlines are on a par with most other airlines. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teddy Posted September 6, 2022 Report Share Posted September 6, 2022 Thank you everyone for sharing your info and experience. All this is good info as we start to plan our flights to get to Italy for our October ’23 cruise….Ravenna to Rome. WAAAYTOOO and FionaMG 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.