Airfare to Italy?

" Is the way to go Economy?" It is for us- maybe not for you. How do you like to spend your money? " Is it comfortable for that long on a plane?" No it isn't , but when you get off the plane, you are in Italy! " If we could save money, it would be nice." Fly coach and use the saved money to see more.
Have a great trip!

THanks Bob! How uncomfortable is it in Economy? Don't get me wrong, we always fly economy in the US. But, I'm claustrophobic and when we went to ITaly 2 years ago, it was nice not being so cramped by going BS. I'd love to save the money but afraid that I would be too constricted. :-(

I get a seat on the aisle and that helps in several ways. I feel free to get up whenever I want, I can stretch my leg and relieve knee pain, and I can get off the plane sooner. I've gotten used to it, but I used to feel most claustrophobic when standing and waiting for the plane to empty after a flight.

"How uncomfortable is it in Economy?" If you're 6'1" like me, it's real uncomfortable. If you're 5'3" like my wife, it's not that bad. Be sure to avoid the center seat sections if at all possible. We always try to get the A-B seats in whatever row.

"THanks Bob! How uncomfortable is it in Economy?" Worse then a headache & not as bad as root canal! It's only nine hours , usually an overnight flight & you can (and should ) get up and move around.

When are you going? Open Skies is an all-business class airline that flies between JFK or Washington, DC (Dulles) and Paris. RT tickets for next May are $2100 pp from Dulles. I didn't check other months; during the winter they are only flying from JFK but service from Dulles resumes in the spring. You would still have to get from Paris to Milan (an dback from Rome) but that can be a fun part of the trip if you have the time. Otherwise just fly; those are short flights.

Of course, cheapest way is to use ff miles but that is getting harder to do. Last year I tried to find "reasonable" business class tickets and think I got down to about $3500. The big problem is that the business tickets are few, and airlines use a lot of them for their reward programs, so you seldom see really cheap tickets. I would suggest the Economy Plus, Coach plus, World traveler plus or whatever the airlines call their upgraded economy seats. Last year we paid an extra $100/person/per leg for the Economy plus with United. While an extra five inches doesn't sound like much, it made a big difference. If it is available, we will never use standard economy class again. I know Delta has the same thing under a different name.

Thanks everyone for the advice and suggestions! We may just decide to go Econ and save the money and we will check into Econo Plus, etc. Many thanks to you all!

I buy a coach seat and immediately ask the airline for an upgrade. On USair, it costs 30K miles and $300 each way. Since you are talking to a live agent it is easy for him/her to find alternate travel dates where upgrades are available. (seats are released for upgrades every few days or so) It is SOOOOO worth it! I'm a singer and spend 2 months every summer performing - the last thing I want is to land in Italy squished to the size of my carry-on or land in the States with my last memory being the awful flight home. That reminds me, it's time to make my plane reservations! Robert

Jan, If flying Delta, you can book your reservation under economy then op to upgrade to Economy Comfort. It is very much like sitting in an exit row with the extra leg room and a bit more recline. I used it coming to and from Hong Kong and it was nice. You are able to board in zone 2 (just after first class) so you are able to get situated and put up your carry on luggage so you aren't fighting for an open overhead compartment.