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Is travel grinding to a halt?
- Thread starter Pauline
- Start date
Sandrac
100+ Posts
I agree - I'm not sure what to make of that either. At the moment, Rome seems to have more visitors than ever but many are students on school trips, and I'm not sure what things will look like a month from now. Still, friends coming to visit say they can't find a vacant hotel room or Air BnB apartment in Rome for May-June-July.From BBC: Europe has "maybe six weeks of jet fuel left", the head of the International Energy Agency (IEA) has warned.
They are predicting cancelled flights.
Europe has 'maybe six weeks of jet fuel left', energy boss warns
Flights could soon be cancelled if supplies from the Gulf remain blocked, says the International Energy Agency.www.bbc.co.uk
Not sure what to make of this!
coleyfagiole
10+ Posts
I checked in with a friend in the travel industry who said her colleagues aren't hearing anything about it, even those in Europe.From BBC: Europe has "maybe six weeks of jet fuel left", the head of the International Energy Agency (IEA) has warned.
They are predicting cancelled flights.
Europe has 'maybe six weeks of jet fuel left', energy boss warns
Flights could soon be cancelled if supplies from the Gulf remain blocked, says the International Energy Agency.
Not sure what to make of this!
That said, I have Italy on my calendar for the first two weeks of September, but haven't booked anything yet. I am only concerned about flight cost.
Re: airports, the TSA situation is back to normal, but the EU's EES is already wreaking havoc. It took my kid three hours to get through in Amsterdam last week.
Pauline
Forums Admin
From today’s New York Times:
The German airline Lufthansa cut nearly 20,000 flights over the next six months to conserve jet fuel, which could begin to run low in Europe as soon as next month.
Jet Fuel Shortages Could Make Travel a ‘Total Mess’ This Summer
Facing sky-high fuel costs linked to the war in Iran, airlines are cutting routes and raising prices. European vacations are looking a lot less affordable.The German airline Lufthansa cut nearly 20,000 flights over the next six months to conserve jet fuel, which could begin to run low in Europe as soon as next month.
Andrew
500+ Posts
I get a paywall for the NYT article, but there's this from The Points Guy:
thepointsguy.com
Will a jet fuel shortage really snarl Europe flights this summer? - The Points Guy
Concerns over a growing shortage of jet fuel on the continent have raised fears about potential flight cancellations if things don’t improve.
Mom83
100+ Posts
We flew nonstop from IAD to FCO on ITA air on April 7/8. The flight was delayed 90 minutes departing IAD due to the crew not showing up. Other than that, I thought ITA Airways was very good…we had a newer plane and our business class seats were fine other than we thought the lie-fly seats were a bit hard.
We had no issues entering at FCO. The new EES machine were capturing passports and pictures, but not fingerprints. We were sent through manual passport control and were out to baggage claim within 20 minutes or so.
We drove on to the Val d’Orcia for a week and then returned to Rome for what was to be our last 5 nights.
Saturday afternoon before our morning flight home on Sunday (after having already received our boarding passes), we received an email that our ITA nonstop flight home to IAD was canceled! No other flights to IAD were available on Sunday.
It was a very stressful Saturday afternoon trying to secure lodging for the extra night, rebooking our scheduled shuttle to the airport, and then communicating with ITA Airways. ITA automatically rebooked us on flights on Lufthansa on Monday that did not work for us…through Munich with a 6 hour layover.
We finally decided to book one-way nonstop tickets on United on Monday that got us in midafternoon. We contacted ITA Airways that we were rejecting their rebooking offer, were told that the return portion of our fare would be refunded, and given a “Refund number”.
As of today…10 days later…no refund has been received. I called ITA 2 days ago to find out why the delay and was told that our “case” was being “managed” and we should call the ITA Italian phone number (long distance international call!) to find out any additional information. I will keep pursuing this with ITA, but just an alert to others.
The fuel shortage in Europe was all over the news while we were there, but we were hoping it would not affect us. In speaking with the ITA rep on that Saturday, we were told that our cancellation was part of a larger cancellation taking place with Lufthansa Air (Lufthansa is a part owner of ITA). Since the flights ITA rebooked us on through Munich home to DC were both on Lufthansa, we did not want to take a chance with that airline.
Other than the return flight cancelation and delay in receiving our refund, our trip was wonderful!
We had no issues entering at FCO. The new EES machine were capturing passports and pictures, but not fingerprints. We were sent through manual passport control and were out to baggage claim within 20 minutes or so.
We drove on to the Val d’Orcia for a week and then returned to Rome for what was to be our last 5 nights.
Saturday afternoon before our morning flight home on Sunday (after having already received our boarding passes), we received an email that our ITA nonstop flight home to IAD was canceled! No other flights to IAD were available on Sunday.
It was a very stressful Saturday afternoon trying to secure lodging for the extra night, rebooking our scheduled shuttle to the airport, and then communicating with ITA Airways. ITA automatically rebooked us on flights on Lufthansa on Monday that did not work for us…through Munich with a 6 hour layover.
We finally decided to book one-way nonstop tickets on United on Monday that got us in midafternoon. We contacted ITA Airways that we were rejecting their rebooking offer, were told that the return portion of our fare would be refunded, and given a “Refund number”.
As of today…10 days later…no refund has been received. I called ITA 2 days ago to find out why the delay and was told that our “case” was being “managed” and we should call the ITA Italian phone number (long distance international call!) to find out any additional information. I will keep pursuing this with ITA, but just an alert to others.
The fuel shortage in Europe was all over the news while we were there, but we were hoping it would not affect us. In speaking with the ITA rep on that Saturday, we were told that our cancellation was part of a larger cancellation taking place with Lufthansa Air (Lufthansa is a part owner of ITA). Since the flights ITA rebooked us on through Munich home to DC were both on Lufthansa, we did not want to take a chance with that airline.
Other than the return flight cancelation and delay in receiving our refund, our trip was wonderful!
Pauline
Forums Admin
I bet it was stressful!
BryanS
100+ Posts
In the last half of April we flew FCO - AMS, AMS - ATL, ATL - DAY and I flew the same return on a combination of KLM & Delta booked via Air France (only site that had connections we needed). Only flight issue was my return DAY - ATL where plane mechanical issues caused me to miss my original direct ATL - FCO flight on Delta and Delta automatically re-booked me on the ATL-AMS-FCO route on KLM to get me home 6 hours later than planned.
Could be confusing as had to deal with Apps for each carrier while traveling. All three airports were busy and ATL had a really long line at TSA for the international arrivals to get to their connecting flights after re-checking bags. Planes were full except the delayed flight out of DAY as some passengers had re-booked for the next day.
Air travel is no fun but necessary.
edited
Could be confusing as had to deal with Apps for each carrier while traveling. All three airports were busy and ATL had a really long line at TSA for the international arrivals to get to their connecting flights after re-checking bags. Planes were full except the delayed flight out of DAY as some passengers had re-booked for the next day.
Air travel is no fun but necessary.
edited
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BryanS
100+ Posts
We have EU residency and I have to use wheelchair assist so the process is more streamlined than if you are not. Coming back to the EU, when I said I was a resident in Italy they asked for my carta d'identita and then waived me through.
NoSpin
100+ Posts
I was wondering the same thing Gail. In July we are flying from Boston to Cagliari via AMS. I noticed when we made the reservation that there was an almost 5 hour layover (fortunately we have club access). I wondered if it was because they were allowing time for the EES process.
I just saw a news report that Italy is suspending it if the lines get too long. I guess some other countries have done so as well or are thinking about it.
GailS
100+ Posts
I'm wondering if my connection time will be enough. The flights I have frequently taken BOS-AMS-VCE had an hour and 20 minute layover which was always enough. Knowing that EES was going to be enforced, I went with a 3 hour 30 minute connection time. My flight gets into AMS at the start of their heavy period with many flights from the US arriving early in the morning. I'm now wondering if this will be enough, and if not, will so many others miss their connection that the following flight later in the day will fill up and I'll be routed with another stop and arrive very late. Any reports of EES wait times and experiences would be appreciated.
Hi. My sister and arrived in Catania today and headed (via bus and train) to Riposto. Travel was a breeze.In the last half of April we flew FCO - AMS, AMS - ATL, ATL - DAY and I flew the same return on a combination of KLM & Delta booked via Air France (only site that had connections we needed). Only flight issue was my return DAY - ATL where plane mechanical issues caused me to miss my original direct ATL - FCO flight on Delta and Delta automatically re-booked me on the ATL-AMS-FCO route on KLM to get me home 6 hours later than planned.
Could be confusing as had to deal with Apps for each carrier while traveling. All three airports were busy and ATL had a really long line at TSA for the international arrivals to get to their connecting flights after re-checking bags. Planes were full except the delayed flight out of DAY as some passengers had re-booked for the next day.
Air travel is no fun but necessary.
edited
Marie
wco81
100+ Posts
I went to Spain from April 7th to the 24th, flew from SFO to MUC to ALC and I flew out of BCN via FCO back to the US.
No delays, went without a hitch. I rented a car for about a week, gas prices were okay. Diesel price is elevated.
I had two other trips books later this year, Italy and Switzerland in July and August/Sept.
I was also tracking flights for end of May to early June and for some reason, the fares were higher than they were for the other periods. So I waited and with the war, the fares almost doubled!
So I wasn't thinking of going but then I found a good deal using miles and now I'm going to London for two weeks, but the plan is to get on the train and go up to Yorkshire and then Edinburgh for about a week before returning to London and back to the US.
Never been to York/Yorkshire or Scotland,
If travel is slowing down, there's little evidence of it yet. People say there's a K shaped economy, with people of more modest means struggling with bills and the more well off still spending quite a bit.
No delays, went without a hitch. I rented a car for about a week, gas prices were okay. Diesel price is elevated.
I had two other trips books later this year, Italy and Switzerland in July and August/Sept.
I was also tracking flights for end of May to early June and for some reason, the fares were higher than they were for the other periods. So I waited and with the war, the fares almost doubled!
So I wasn't thinking of going but then I found a good deal using miles and now I'm going to London for two weeks, but the plan is to get on the train and go up to Yorkshire and then Edinburgh for about a week before returning to London and back to the US.
Never been to York/Yorkshire or Scotland,
If travel is slowing down, there's little evidence of it yet. People say there's a K shaped economy, with people of more modest means struggling with bills and the more well off still spending quite a bit.
NoSpin
100+ Posts
Rick Steves has posted a very informative narrative explaining all about EES and the current state of affairs.
EES FAQ: Will you wait in line?
Traveling through immigration in Europe has changed. The European Union has implemented its Entry-Exit System (EES), a fully electronic way to check your passport when crossing borders. While most countries are handling this process smoothly, some are struggling a bit — and this has led to some alar
blog.ricksteves.com