Suggestions for JFK-FCO at Christmas?
 

I realize it's a little late in the game, but I'm trying to put together a trip to Italy over Christmas this year. The plan is to leave 12/25 and come back 1/3, but the dates are somewhat flexible.

The cheapest fare I can find is on Alitalia, but if possible I'd like to stay on Oneworld. My first choice would be the nonstop on AA, but that's fairly full on my dates and is pricing out at around $920 all in. (The non-stop doesn't operate on the 3rd, so the return would be connecting in LHR).

BA has a fare (connecting in LHR) for $720, but I won't get any points/miles for the transatlantic leg :(

Buying a separate ticket on BA for LHR-FCO to nest with an AA ticket from JFK-LHR isn't any cheaper.

Are there any other possibilities I overlooked? I'll be traveling with my mom so I don't want to go too far out of the way, but considered flying to LHR or STN and then taking a LCC to/from Italy.

Thanks,

Alex

Pay the $920 and be done with it.

$920 all in is -not- bad at all, to get the flights you want, on the dates you want 'em, during a peak travel period. In general, the longer you wait, the more it's gonna end up costing.

It might be worthwhile to fly AA to LHR then fly a different carrier to FCO. That way, you can use various discount codes (Entertainment book, Travelperks, etc.) on the AA portion of the trip. Discount codes and such are not valid on tickets which include other carriers.

The nonstop runs the next day (coming back) but the one way fare for that segment is over $900 alone .. so I'd definately suggest the connection for a cheaper fare.

I guess it comes down to saving a couple hundred $$ on the airfare and not getting miles and perks .. that is a decision you will have to make. Eg taking Mom to the CX Business lounge (with you as PLT) on the LHR layover....

Me, I would definately do the AA and try for upgrades with Mom.. she would probably enjoy it!

If you are worried about the LHR connection .. will Mom use a wheel-chair assist? That will make the connection much simpler if she has any issues with walking distances.

Those travel dates would qualify you for Continental's Holiday BusinessFirst fare sale. Should be ~$1,500 r/t in Business, if the inventory is still available ("R" class). It doesn't get much better than that.
If you wanted to upgrade with miles on AA, you'd need a $600 copay on top of your $920 fare, plus the miles.

http://www.continental.com/web/en-US...nessfirst.aspx

I'm also seeing an AA connection via BRU. It leaves at 620am, but personally, I would still prefer it over connecting in LHR especially with a terminal change.

Cheers,

Not always. It is sometimes possible to get a fare that isn't that much higer and permits you to upgrade for less miles and no copay.

This fare you refer to, a "B" class fare, is $2,300 on this route at that time. So no, it is not possible.