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Plane reservations from Brussels to Bordeaux

Posted by (Seminole) on

We want to get to Bordeaux from Brussels on October 4th. I found a Brussels Airlines direct flight. I wanted to book today but couldn't. When I looked at my passport, I realized it had expired. I will request a new one right away, of course, but the web site says it will take four to six weeks. If I pay an extra $60 I can get it in less than that, but it doesn't say how much sooner it would come.

Does anyone know if these flights fill up this far in advance? If the passport doesn't come until the 2nd week in July, will I still be able to get on a flight like this? Looks like there is only one flight a day, and some days none. I don't want to spend the extra money for the expedited passport if it's not necessary. If they are booked, I suppose there are other options like taking a train to Amsterdam and flying from there or taking trains as a last resort.

Thanks so much to anyone who can advise me!
Barbara

Posted by
8159 posts

You have more than enough time. It is not going to fill up this early. But Book it now so to get a cheaper price.

(By the way I flew that route last July in the opposite direction same airline).

Posted by
6788 posts

I wanted to book today but couldn't...

Why not? You should be able to book a flight even with an expired passport (or no passport at all).

As a general rule, airline tickets typically just get more expensive with the passage of time. I'd book the flight now, and not worry about the expired passport for that.

FWIW I renewed my passport around the end of last year, about 2 months ahead of an international trip. I did pay extra for the expedited service, but I suspect I didn't need to and probably would have been OK just with the standard service. My new passport arrived in about 2 weeks.

Go book your flight. You can update the passport details after you have your new one. You need a valid passport to fly, not to buy the ticket.

Posted by
11841 posts

I just did a dummy booking for you trip and got through seat selection all the way to the payment page and nowhere did it ask for passport info.

Book you flight, get your passport renewed and by the time you are at the gate with your new passport all will be well.

All you have to do is to be sure your passport and how you show your name when booking the ticket match.

Posted by
82 posts

Thanks everyone! Flight is booked. When I was trying to book the flight before and got to the question where it asked for the passport number, I assumed it wouldn't let me go any further unless I entered it. I should not have assumed. This time I just left it blank and was able to finish the reservation with no problem. This forum is the best! Rick Steves readers are the smartest, most helpful travelers in the world! THANK YOU!

Posted by
12313 posts

Passport turnaround has been really good. US added some new rules about 8 years ago and it created a big backlog but that's long gone now. Spring is probably the worst time for passports but they still seem to be getting done much faster than advertised.

Posted by
82 posts

That's good to hear. Thank you. Since I did get the flight booked, I opted not to do expedited, but I did send it in right away.

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