2 different flights from US arriving in Rome: How easy to find each other?

Hi all ... a group of us will be flying to Rome in October for a brief pre-cruise stay. Because of the way our mileage redemption worked, some of us are arriving on American Airlines from Chicago and some are arriving on AA from Philadelphia on the same morning (scheduled arrival only a few minutes apart). Not having ever gone through FCO (though having heard horror stories) and realizing we will not have international texting plans to help out, how feasible would it be for us to find each other (assuming no major delays, etc)? Would baggage claim tend to be the same area for these international AA flights?

Pre Terminal 3 fire, it was very easy. Every one comes out the same door after bag claim to the public area, and it is signed as "Meeting Place".

 

Post fire, I am not sure this is still true.

 

By the way, ask this on the Italy board, as it really isn't about flying, its about on ground logistics. There are MANY very experienced Italy travelers over there, who may have more current knowledge about the FCO situation..

Edited April 2, 2016 by CruiserBruce

Hopefully someone will have an update for you. I was at FCO after the fire but that time on BA.

 

I would recommend though that you each get an international plan for the trip. Not sure who your carrier is but you can get one fairly cheap and many carriers include texting. FCO is a very crowded airport so it would help you find each other even if you figure out where to meet and should one flight get delayed quite a bit it would be good to have the capability in case the party getting there first decides not to wait or at least if one waits that you have a meeting place should it need to be revised.

 

Keith

You could also check out your flight numbers for the week before your flight (or now) to see if they are frequently at the same gate. I know that could change at any time, but would give you an idea if your gates are close together.

Once you have figured out your meeting place, just make sure you all have a plan B in case one flight is substantially delayed. Where will the on-time group hang out until the delayed flight arrives?

When was the fire? My most recent trip was in October, 2015 and it is very easy to meet up.

 

If you both have IPhones you can sign into the free internet at FCO and use I Messaging with no charge.

When was the fire? My most recent trip was in October, 2015 and it is very easy to meet up.

 

If you both have IPhones you can sign into the free internet at FCO and use I Messaging with no charge.

 

It was May 7, 2015. Did you come out of bag claim in Terminal 3 in a hall of sorts, where all the limos, buses and other groups stand with their signs? Would have said "Meeting Place" on the pillars?

Edited April 2, 2016 by CruiserBruce

I second the suggestion to have a Plan B just in case.

 

We found getting a text plan on our cell phones very inexpensive for the minimal plan.

 

And we ended up using it, not at the airport, but when we couldn't find our friends in Florence. We were all in the same square, as planned, but because of the crowd, we simply could not see each other.

 

Two texts later, we were all set to carry on with the rest of the day.

You could also check out your flight numbers for the week before your flight (or now) to see if they are frequently at the same gate. I know that could change at any time, but would give you an idea if your gates are close together.

Although I don't know FCO specifically, either before or after the fire, this is unlikely to work. Passengers will disembark into the arrivals stream where it's often very hard to find out the gate number. This is exacerbated at some European airports where the same physical infrastructure connecting terminal to aircraft can be served by two separate "gates" bearing two completely different gate numbers depending on whether the flight is departing to a Schengen or non-Schengen destination. That makes it even less likely that an arriving passenger will ever be told what gate number they've arrived at.

 

Any plan that does not involve real-time phone (incl text) communications is fraught with risk. What if one flight is delayed for three hours? I always think that the best plan in these situations is to meet at the hotel.

It was May 7, 2015. Did you come out of bag claim in Terminal 3 in a hall of sorts, where all the limos, buses and other groups stand with their signs? Would have said "Meeting Place" on the pillars?

 

Yes. And it is also easy to meet up before you exit with your luggage.

It was May 7, 2015. Did you come out of bag claim in Terminal 3 in a hall of sorts, where all the limos, buses and other groups stand with their signs? Would have said "Meeting Place" on the pillars?[/quote

Edited April 3, 2016 by jagoffee

Yes. And it is also easy to meet up before you exit with your luggage.

 

Then I would say that area was not damaged by the fire. So my original post stands. There is a meeting place immediately outside the doors where every one exits bag claim. The drivers for all the services are there with their signs, and the area is signed as "Meeting Place". We have met others there twice.

It was May 7, 2015. Did you come out of bag claim in Terminal 3 in a hall of sorts, where all the limos, buses and other groups stand with their signs? Would have said "Meeting Place" on the pillars?

 

Yes. And it is also easy to meet up before you exit with your luggage.

 

I'd go with a meeting place AFTER you exit with you luggage, per CruiserBruce.

 

If I'm remembering correctly, "before you exit with your luggage" might put you behind the area accessible to the public (the area still within customs/immigrations).

 

If you have a meeting place there, and one of the flights ends up at a different terminal for whatever reason - or there is any other glitch - then one part of your group will be behind the exit doors/barrier, and the other part will be outside in the public waiting area.

 

... and you won't be able to see each other or communicate *unless* you have texting or some other way of messaging.

 

If you all plan to meet where drivers/tour guides wait, none of you will have any trouble "getting back there" if you end up in an unexpected location within the airport.

 

And in case one plane has a longer delay, there will be access to more seating and some refreshments in the public terminal area.

 

However, if there is any big delay, it would probably be best to plan to meet up at the hotel.

 

You could even have a Plan C: "If we haven't met by <time>, then we won't even try to meet at the airport, and each group will head to the hotel on its own."

 

Also, the first group to land can check by mobile device the arrival status of the second flight. With Plan C in mind, if there is any lengthy delay, you'd know not to worry/wait, and just get to the hotel and relax.

Are you all booked with the same transportation service from the airport to the port or hotel? In other words, will you all be looking for the same driver, who would be aware of the two different flights and up to the minute arrival times of each flight?

Edited April 3, 2016 by buggins0402

Thanks everyone for responses. I think we are going to try to hire a driver, so the company may be able to help us out as well but I wanted to get an idea of what might be reasonable to ask for/expect.

 

I definitely understand that much could go wrong with regards to timing ... just checking out the flights for Friday, for example, showed that one was delayed 6+ hours.

 

I agree that an international text plan would clear a lot up, but I'm on a pre-paid US plan that would require me to essentially swap sims ... I might explore that, but may just rely on planning and procedure.

You could go to the website of FCO airport, or google for a map. Then you can all make an X on the map where to meet. There is talk of a tourist information office, a post office, an info desk in the arrivals hall, McDonalds, several coffee shops. All suitable meeting places. Pick one with seating as you might have to wait for the other party.

 

No need for a mobile phone plan. I just googled free WiFi and it seems this is available at FCO. You could send the other party a message via Facebook, WhatsApp, or mail as soon as you land "we are at the coffee shop in hall 3" or something like that.

You could go to the website of FCO airport, or google for a map. Then you can all make an X on the map where to meet. There is talk of a tourist information office, a post office, an info desk in the arrivals hall, McDonalds, several coffee shops. All suitable meeting places. Pick one with seating as you might have to wait for the other party.

 

No need for a mobile phone plan. I just googled free WiFi and it seems this is available at FCO. You could send the other party a message via Facebook, WhatsApp, or mail as soon as you land "we are at the coffee shop in hall 3" or something like that.

 

I have been through FCO a few times. On Alitalia, Air Canada and US Airways (now American). For a North American airline like American there operations in a place like Rome will be limited to a few flights per day. Nearly all North American carriers arrive in Terminal 5 now. Past passport control when you get into baggage claim just swing over to the other flights claim area. You will probably meet up fairly easily.

 

You do need a plan B in case one of you gets delays for an hour or two or longer.