Flying To Barcelona 10/19-10/28

[ktpc2005]

Hi everyone,

 

I am flying to Barcelona from either Providence (PVD) or Boston (BOS) on Friday Oct 19 and returning Oct 28. I am taking to 7 day Med Sea Cruise on the new Norwegian Gem (10/21-10/28). The cheapest I have found is taking Swiss Air for 604.14 a person. The issue I have is that the flight going out of Barcelona leaves at 9:50 am. Our ship gets into port according to the intinerary at 5am and the website says we can leave the ship about 2hrs after. The flights after that are much more money and also require 2 stops.

 

I was wondering if this a good idea to book and also if people know if there would be any sales for that time of year later in the year.

 

Thanks,

[vivian02]

That price is a decent price for flying from the East coast to Barcelona. Would the price remain the same if you flew out the following day? The reason I ask is because sometimes it is better to do that one extra night touring Barcelona rather than stressing because you might not make your flight. There is alot to see and do in Barcelona and although you would have to make arrangements for staying an extra night it sure beats stressing out. Tim

[ktpc2005]

We would like to but we need to get back.

[traveler/]

Hi everyone,

 

I am flying to Barcelona from either Providence (PVD) or Boston (BOS) on Friday Oct 19 and returning Oct 28. I am taking to 7 day Med Sea Cruise on the new Norwegian Gem (10/21-10/28). The cheapest I have found is taking Swiss Air for 604.14 a person. The issue I have is that the flight going out of Barcelona leaves at 9:50 am. Our ship gets into port according to the intinerary at 5am and the website says we can leave the ship about 2hrs after. The flights after that are much more money and also require 2 stops.

 

I was wondering if this a good idea to book and also if people know if there would be any sales for that time of year later in the year.

 

Thanks,

1. Having a flight less than 4 hours from your "leaving the ship" is taking a risk. Check with other posts about this. How long to get to flight, etc.

2. Most posts say book now prices have been very high because of dollar value.

3. Non-stop is always better.

4. I would find a way to get back 1 day later.

5. Do you want to be worried about this on your entire cruise?

6. Murphy's law.

7. If in doubt about 1-5 comments, refer to # 6.

[Keith1010]

I do not recommend this flight. While it might be OK you just never know if you will encounter any delays getting off the ship and/or with transporation to the airport.

 

Keep in mind that for an International Flight that you need to check in two hours before your flight so that says you need to get to the airport by 7:50 yet you say you might not be able to get off the ship until around 7:00 AM and who is to say you will be the first off. And, that means you have to get up very early and have a very early breakfast. Anyway, I would see if you can find a more optimal flight.

 

I would book your airline reservations and not wait. I don't see much opportunity for a lower fare plus you can get a better choice of seats by booking sooner rather than later.

 

Keith

[Globaliser]

The flights after that are much more money ...

Sorry to bear bad news, but one likely reason is that those flights are too early for ship's passengers; there is therefore lower demand for them, therefore they are cheaper. The law of supply and demand, which is one of the biggest drivers of air fares.

[dudemahn]

I am on the Brilliance this summer and had a similar issue. I called RCCL and they said they didn't recommend anything before 10:00 am when using their transfers, but indicated I could probably do something a little earlier if I had pre-arranged my own transfer. Considering it's only only 5 minutes early for what RCCL recommends, you'd probably be OK. I can't speak from experience, but it sounds like if you can arrange your own transfer and beat the rush you'd have plenty of time. Granted, something unexpected could happen but this is a potential for flights even later in the day. You'll just have to factor the slight risk against the savings. The Brilliance docks at 5:00 as well and we're on a 10:30 am flight. We were considering a 9:30, but decided against staying an extra day in London so we opted for a flight with shorter travel time.

[ktpc2005]

Thanks for the info. After a little more searching I was able to find a a god deal out of Providence which is about 75bucks more and is much closer to where I live (and Logan is a pain). The flights connect through Newark instead of in Europe and the return flight is at 11am which is better.