monitor
Nov 25, 04, 7:38 am
Just a quick report for anybody doing a search of alpieagles (and since Volare apparently has ceased flying) looking for a LCC in the Mediterranean basin.
I bought the tickets on the website which was in Italian since the English language one did not work, and had a choice of three flights (early morning, mid morning and early evening). We chose the 1045 and the fare that I bought was at E19 per person with approximately E45 in taxes, fees, and other charges added in. However, a day or so after I had bought and (I thought) paid for our tickets, the airline had a one day promozione (sale) and sent me another e-mail noting the reduced price and stating that we would now be charged a total of E118 for the two tickets.
How nice.
I did note (in Italian) that we would be allowed to carry on only one bag of 5Kg and could check one up to 15Kg, with an extra E6 per Kilo overweight charge. This was not a problem, and would not have been so because the contractor handling the bags never even seemed to glance at the scale, because as we hung out with KathyWdrf waiting for the desk to open, I had reduced my carry-on to 4.9Kg, which should have gotten a second look had there been any intent to charge for overweight. The contractor was by coincidence called eagles services, and they were handling a bunch of LCC check ins down at the far end of the terminal.
The bus ride was not good. It was called at 1020 but we sat there with the doors open in about 40 degree windy weather for about 15 minutes and then sat another five minutes after the bus had pulled up to the steps of the plane. The aircraft was an F-100 of the type that Empire used to fly between LGA and ROC and which PI took over in the early 80s, but this one was configured with rows 1-3 as typical domestic FC seats and about 17-18 rows of 3x2 coach behind, all in bright green leather. We had the first row of coach (4) and as we were putting our stuff in the overhead, the FA walked by and I asked him if we could move up one row. He said sure, and therefore we had on our own produced a battlefield promotion to FC.
How nice.
The plane was wheels up at 1058 and the trip over was smooth and uneventful with the pilot coming on and announcing (in English) that he was at 39000. To that point it had not looked like that to me, but I am not familiar with the range of mountains up the boot of Italy, and he probably did have had his English numbers correct. After sufficient negotiation, the taxi driver that I finally made a deal with us took us on a helter-skelter journey through some of the most clogged streets you will ever see over to our hotel near the harbor, the Mediterraneo Renaissance which gives us free nights for Marriott points. Tomorrow to Pompeii.
I bought the tickets on the website which was in Italian since the English language one did not work, and had a choice of three flights (early morning, mid morning and early evening). We chose the 1045 and the fare that I bought was at E19 per person with approximately E45 in taxes, fees, and other charges added in. However, a day or so after I had bought and (I thought) paid for our tickets, the airline had a one day promozione (sale) and sent me another e-mail noting the reduced price and stating that we would now be charged a total of E118 for the two tickets.
How nice.
I did note (in Italian) that we would be allowed to carry on only one bag of 5Kg and could check one up to 15Kg, with an extra E6 per Kilo overweight charge. This was not a problem, and would not have been so because the contractor handling the bags never even seemed to glance at the scale, because as we hung out with KathyWdrf waiting for the desk to open, I had reduced my carry-on to 4.9Kg, which should have gotten a second look had there been any intent to charge for overweight. The contractor was by coincidence called eagles services, and they were handling a bunch of LCC check ins down at the far end of the terminal.
The bus ride was not good. It was called at 1020 but we sat there with the doors open in about 40 degree windy weather for about 15 minutes and then sat another five minutes after the bus had pulled up to the steps of the plane. The aircraft was an F-100 of the type that Empire used to fly between LGA and ROC and which PI took over in the early 80s, but this one was configured with rows 1-3 as typical domestic FC seats and about 17-18 rows of 3x2 coach behind, all in bright green leather. We had the first row of coach (4) and as we were putting our stuff in the overhead, the FA walked by and I asked him if we could move up one row. He said sure, and therefore we had on our own produced a battlefield promotion to FC.
How nice.
The plane was wheels up at 1058 and the trip over was smooth and uneventful with the pilot coming on and announcing (in English) that he was at 39000. To that point it had not looked like that to me, but I am not familiar with the range of mountains up the boot of Italy, and he probably did have had his English numbers correct. After sufficient negotiation, the taxi driver that I finally made a deal with us took us on a helter-skelter journey through some of the most clogged streets you will ever see over to our hotel near the harbor, the Mediterraneo Renaissance which gives us free nights for Marriott points. Tomorrow to Pompeii.