Steven Avery

Hi,

Flying to Tel Aviv, probably Sept. 23 .. returning two weeks later. Best fares are on the Ukranian, Russian, and Turkish, Jordanian and Polish. Passenger would rather go on Polish.

LOT now seems to have a solid booking online, any particular advantage or disadvantage to booking direct versus Travelocity, BestTravelStore, Vayama, etc.?

Plus, any experience with the "Semi-Flexible" economy fare ? I am especially considering paying a bit more on the return, if experiences with that are good, say you might want to return earlier or later.

Thanks.

Steven

rafi2k6

If you go with LOT you'll have a very long layover in WAW. I suggest you go via ZRH or FRA. If possible non stop on either DL, LY or UA if you can swing it (EWR)

And if not, then go with Turkish, they offer a great product.

vicarious_MR'er

Only one question: Why?? LOL

I don't know about the flexible fare issue you raised, though.

Steven Avery

Hi,

The layover can be a plus to see Warsaw during the day. I've done similar on trips to Copenhagen, Bucharest and Athens, with 8-10 hour layovers, (Warsaw is 13 one way, the other is short) with a lot of fun. Bucharest was a little dour, but all three experiences were great.

Flying through Switzerland, France, etc. right now can be an extra $300 and more. Turkey is fine in some ways, but the passenger prefers Poland. Sometimes issues like where your family is from is a factor. And cultural / political / spiritual issues come to play as well.

Overall, I thought what I shared on the first post was pretty straightforward, and I was mostly wondering about the difference in booking from Expedia type websites and LOT directly. Any thoughts on that ? The same can apply to any international airline that surprisingly has competitive prices right on their website. (Often they do not, understandably.)

Thanks.

Steven

Steven Avery

Hi,

One more point about going LOT. My understanding is that they are pretty decent, one friend has used them a few times from Israel to Poland and I think from Israel to the US as well, with fine results.

And they are one of the most inexpensive airlines now from Israel to the USA, basically the same price as Turkish (more flights on Turkish, though). On my checking, only the Ukrainian or Ruski might at times be cheaper. One website showed an inexpensive Jordanian flight, which was a surprise, actually going NYC-->Amman-->Tel Aviv.

So I welcome informed notes about airlines comparison as well . So far, LOT has seemed to be ok from what I have heard.

This is not to begrudge all the Swiss Air, Air Canada, Air France, SAS, Olympia, Malev Hungarian, Tarom Romanian, Iberia, Delta, British Air, various charter, and Virgin with El Al, et al connections.

My friends and myself have used those, at times they come in as economy, and each one has its place in the sun (at least if they are still functioning).

Steven

rafi2k6

Yup, I used that routing once when I was in yeshiva just for pure excitement. This was back in the day when I had no status an didn't care about the miles so I'd try a new carrier every time I flew home which was about twice a year.

Anyways, LOT is a decent airline, being part of Star Alliance they have to live up to a certain basic standard.

And as for what the "semi flexible" ticket is it may just be a fare bucket that earns 100% mileage on Miles & Less and allows for changes to the ticket (for an exorbitant fee of course)

Reifel

However on long haul with their old 767 they seem to be really "basic"... Intraeuropean is another story, as they often use rather new Embraer jets, not sure about TLV though. And if price is right I would rather use LOT than let's say Aerosvit. I would go for it, but I wouldn't expect too much, especially for the long haul flight.
Agree with the long transfer. Would use the time to visit Warsaw.

dand99

I fly LOT from time to time - mostly OK.

- the WAW-TLV route seems to have become more crowded recently (perhaps it's just the summertime effect) and yes, old 767's (I think) and fairly grumpy stewardesses. Not an amazing flight (hope you like a red cream cheese roll as breakfast).

- booking on LOT - I have always found the LOT online fares to be a little bit more expensive (bar the "first minute" fares). Cannot think of any advantage to booking with LOT as opposed to a consolidator.

- I like Warsaw. Long stopover means time to get into town, go shopping, have a good meal, etc etc. If can access the lounge, LOT's is reasonable. Showers.

D.

keisari

Some consolidator fares do not accrue miles which are important to some of us. If you are looking to upgrade to Business, some consolidator fares do not allow that option. Also some consolidator fares may be non-refundable at all and non-changeable even with a fee.

Reifel

Generally correct. That said, this can happen when you book directly with the airlines as well. Obviously it makes always sense to look at the fare rules, no matter which fare is booked. Concerning miles, it is important that a booking class which allows mile accrual or upgrades is booked, which again can or can't be the case with flights booked with the airline directly as well.

dand99

Booking with a consolidator makes no difference. As stated below - fare class is all that matters and I find it's often easier to find when booking on a consolidator site than Lot's....

keisari

In UA's case all bookable fares on their website earn miles while some booked via consolidators do not; many times consolidators will not give you the fare up front and you need to ask.
But I agree that it is all about the fare and not where it was purchased. I have to admit I am not familiar with LOT's website