Originally Posted by FortyFive
Related question -
My parents booked a trip from Boston to Italy (I believe BOS-LHR-FCO). I know they are definitely scheduled to connect in London at Heathrow, and that their connection time is only approx 90 minutes. They are flying BA from BOS-LHR and Alitalia from LHR to FCO. Their trip is scheduled for October.
My questions, for you, the experienced travelers:
1. They should be able to rebook this to avoid LHR, since the tickets were purchased in January and BA is offering that service - but can they also change their Alitalia flight? Or change both and try to fly direct into Italy (Milan) from Boston on Alitalia, then fly to Rome from there?
2. What airport/country would you recommend they rebook to connect into? I'm not familiar with European countries/airports, never having been there, but with all this stuff that has happened, I'd imagine they want to avoid the UK (and having to pick up luggage, re-check it, and then wait in security lines again) at all costs.
Any advice would be much appreciated, as always!
Thanks!
It depends...
If they booked through a travel agent, use them. This is where they earn their fee and can really make your parents life easier.
Did they book two separate tickets (BOS-LHR, LHR-MXP) or it one reservation?
If they can get a refund on BA, why don't they buy a non-stop into MXP? it is probably under $800, not a deal I know, but easy and presumably safe
The other option is reroute yourself through scandinavian or eastern european markets. Not sure how important getting AA miles is to your parents, but if that is not a concern, they might want to consider this...