USA to Pisa, Rome to USA

Sam, what dates and what kind of fares are you seeing?

How about a round trip to Rome from IAD on AA and BA for $533 - and take the train to Pisa once you arrive in Rome?

https://www.google.com/flights/#flt=IAD.FCO.2019-07-25.IADCLT0AA5038~CLTFCO0AA720*/m/06c62.IAD.2019-08-08.FCOLHR0BA549~LHRIAD0BA293;c:USD;e:1;sd:1;t:f;tt:m;sp:.USD.50783*.USD.50783

Option: open jaw flight from IAD-LHR and FCO-IAD and book your own ticket to Pisa from London. Total would be about $903 per person. ($163+$740).

https://www.google.com/flights/#flt=IAD./m/04jpl.2019-07-25.IADLHR0BA216*/m/06c62.IAD.2019-08-08.FCOLHR0BA549~LHRIAD0BA293;c:USD;e:1;sd:1;t:f;tt:m;sp:.USD.73983*.USD.73983

July 26 BA direct LHR-PSA (layover from 6:55a to 12:55p - six hour layover isn't fun I guess but no worries about making the connection I think!)
https://www.google.com/flights/#flt=LHR.PSA.2019-07-26;c:USD;e:1;sd:1;t:f;tt:o

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Andrew,
We are departing Tue. 7/30 returning 8/9. (Wish we could stay longer)
The idea behind flying into Pisa is that we are spending 6 nights in Lucca and the train ride would conveniently closer and less tiresome after after an international flight than flying into Rome and then taking the train to Lucca.

How long and convenient is taking a train ride from Rome airport to Lucca? Maybe not as bad as we were thinking?

Another reason why were considering flying from JFK is that we have heard that the Lufthansa flight with stopover in Munich is one of the most reliable flights to Italy. This flight is significantly cheaper from JFK. Are there other reliable flights and airlines to Italy that you or anyone else recommends?

Thanks,
Sam

Hi Sam. When I consider whether I want to take a train from Rome to Lucca vs. flying to Pisa and train from there, I factor in the total travel time of every mode - plane or train. To me, the train from Rome to Lucca is just another part of the travel time. In other words, if it's quicker to fly to Pisa than flying to Rome and take the train to Lucca, I'd fly to Pisa...unless it was super expensive.

The train from Rome (train directly from FCO airport, probably connect in Rome) is probably 3-4 hours. Check here to see:

http://www.trenitalia.com/tcom-en

You're saying the flight from JFK is significantly cheaper than $538 flying via BWI on AA/BA? What is the total cost including the separate JFK flight?

JFK is one of those airports I loathe and would do my utmost to avoid, personally. I'd much rather not add that hassle to my list of travel complications when flying to Europe. The New York area as you surely know is heavy with air traffic with three big airports. One thunderstorm and you are delayed by hours, waiting for all of the other traffic to clear. The DC area is busy too so you have that one as well. I'd rather not fly to Charlotte to start, but that to me seems much less risky than flying via JFK - especially on a separate airline as you seem to be contemplating (if your inbound to JFK is late and you booked on a separate ticket, and you miss the flight out of JFK, you're screwed).

Also, I didn't see a direct flight to Pisa from JFK- so you're looking at DC to JFK, JFK to Munich(?), and then Munich to Pisa. Two connections, one of them via JFK on a separate ticket, is much too complicated for me, unless I am saving a ton of money.

I have never actually flown Lufthansa. I fly whatever is most convenient. AA isn't actually my favorite airline, but I have flown them to/from Europe a few times and seem reliable enough, so I would not add the extra complications of going through JFK just because Lufthansa is supposedly so much more reliable. Flights can always be canceled/delayed with any airline. Going through JFK raises the risk no doubt.

Looks like the train is a little over 4 hours from FCO to Lucca with a couple of connections. The train from Pisa to Lucca is not instant either but is of course a lot shorter (30 min?). Anyway, as I said above: compare flying DC to Rome (one connection in Charlotte or Philly) and a 4 hour train ride to flying on your own to JFK, separate flight from JFK to Munich, Munich to Pisa, and a short train to Lucca. I'd rather do the former myself. I can just get the next train from FCO to Lucca without worrying if I arrived late in Rome or not.

Your plan is risky, unless you fly to JFK the day before and fly home the day after. Pretty much only Delta will get you to JFK from the DC area, and Lufthansa partners with United. With separate tickets, you need to cover the bases of delayed connecting flights, where you are not protected if there is a delay that causes you to miss your transatlantic flights.

It looks like I should consider other airlines besides being stuck on Lufthansa. if that is the case, I don't need to put JFK into the mix.

We would prefer to fly out of Dulles to Pisa. My question now is are the prices accurate right now, or can I expect prices to drop if I wait to purchase tickets in February or March. Is there a best time to purchase for July/August trips to Italy?
The prices are still in the 2K range, if I want to stick to Dulles only with just one stop.

Except... this one seems like the most economical option, similar to the flight Andrew posted originally via Virgin Atlantic / BA. But a 9 hr. layover on the way to Pisa and then just 1 hr. 40 min layover on the way back https://www.google.com/flights#flt=/m/0rh6k./m/064xp.2019-07-30.IADLHR0VS22~LHRPSA1BA606*FCO./m/0rh6k.2019-08-09.FCOLHR0BA551~LHRIAD0VS21;c:USD;e:1;s:1;sd:1;t:f;tt:m;sp:.USD.73863*.USD.73863

I see what you mean about a toss-up between taking a train trip from Rome to Lucca vs a long layover

Sam

[edit: yes, I see you were posting at the same time.]
If you want to save money, do the round trip from IAD to Rome for $739 (Virgin Atlantic) and take the train as suggested up to Lucca.

Or, book it for the same price on VA + BA directly from London to Pisa with a 9hr layover in London. That would save cost of the train ticket from Rome to Pisa if you don't mind the 9hr layover.

I never buy tickets this far in advance myself to fly to Europe (who knows if plans could change in the next few months?). Then again, I never travel in the summer, peak travel time for Americans flying to Europe. No one can predict what airfares will be in a few months from now. Oil prices have been falling like a rock recently. Will that lead to lower jet fuel prices and cheaper fares? Or are summer fares at their cheapest now anyway? Really hard to say - you're playing a guessing game either way.

Saminats.

If you live in the DC area and plan to fly from IAD, then United is your best friend because IAD is a United hub.

If you plan to spend your week in Italy just in Lucca, then your ideal flight is United/Lufthansa codeshare IAD to MUC (operated by United), then MUC to PSA (operated by Lufthansa Cityliner or Lufthansa AirDolomiti).

There are currently no non stop flights from IAD to Rome FCO, therefore I wouldn’t consider Rome, unless it were hundreds of dollars cheaper.

Alternatively, if the flight to PSA is too expensive, also check your options to Florence FLR, which is also only 35 miles from Lucca and connected to it by bus or train.

Lufthansa has 3 or 4 daily pairs from Munich (MUC) to FLR. Additionally Lufthansa also flies from Frankfurt (FRA) to FLR with 6 daily pairs. I believe United flies from IAD to FRA as well, therefore the FRA route with United/Lufthansa is another option if you choose Florence instead of Pisa.

However, for convenience purposes, the Pisa airport would be your best bet, since it’s so close to Lucca, and currently only Lufthansa Via Munich is an option for you coming from IAD, since Lufthansa only flies to Pisa from MUC (but not FRA).

I understand that there is no "best time" to buy tickets to Italy. But is there a deadline, such as do not purchase tickets any later than say, 3 months prior to trip?

How certain are you that you will go on this trip as planned? The closer you get to 100%, the more likely I would be to buy tickets especially if the fares go down. I'd add a Google Flights fare alert now and see if there's a fare sale. For summer flights, I probably wouldn't wait until 3 months out.

What I've observed, as a fellow DC-area resident, is that as you get closer to the departure date, the price gap between the desirable itineraries (non-stop or one stop, no crazy-short or crazy-long layovers, no Aeroflot, etc.) and the undesirable itineraries tends to widen. If I buy early I can often get the best routing for about the same price as the inferior ones. Whether buying just 3 months out is pushing it too late I cannot say, especially since I've never tried to fly into a secondary airport like Pisa. (Unless you count Nice; I bought IAD-Nice/London-IAD over 5 months out and got a really good fare.)

Balancing the fare risk against the possibility that something might come up that would require you to cancel or reschedule the trip is difficult. I'm a solo traveler with no dependents, so my cancellation risk is low. I watch fares daily in the fall, beginning as soon as I've decided on my European gateways and rough timeframe, and I pounce if I see a deal. Then I happily sit back and watch the fare yo-yo.

There's also the issue of flexibility or lack thereof. Are your travel dates fixed? That would tend to make me a bit more nervous about planning to buy the tickets late. And how do you feel about super-long layovers? About puddle-jumper flights on commuter airlines within the US to get to NYC?

There is no deadline my friend. And it’s impossible to predict the best time to book a ticket this year.

When you go is more important than how soon you buy the ticket.
If I had to leave immediately for Italy, a r/t ticket from San Francisco to Rome bought today with departure tomorrow would cost me less than $800 with American or British. If you bought today the same ticket with departure next July it would probably cost you $1,200.

I wish there were a magic date when to best book a plane ticket. All I can suggest is to look at the study of price trends by cheapair (read below)

https://www.cheapair.com/blog/when-is-the-best-time-to-buy-an-international-flight/