MORE INFO: FLORENCE 2010

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Airline Transportation

WHY? – Some of you may be wondering why the air transportation is not included. Here are a few reasons why it is to your advantage to book your own airline reservations:

• First of all there are no “deals” to be had for booking a group with the airlines today (any airlines). Even if I could get a decent airfare, I would still be forced to “gateway” the group out of one particular city. In this case, it would probably have to be JFK or Newark. This means that you would be forced to travel from your home city to one of these New York airports to rendezvous with the group for the international portion of your flight.  Bummer.
• There is no “rhyme or reason” to how airlines price their tickets today.  You as individuals, most of the time, can actually get a better airfare than someone (like me) who has a group.  Go figure!
  
  Here are the advantages of making your own airline reservations:

• You can choose which airline you want to use (not forced to fly on a particular airline)
• You can fly out of your home city and not out of a particular city that may actually be inconvenient for you
• You can choose a schedule that fits your travel plans
• You can use Frequent Flyer points/miles to purchase your tickets
• You can alter your itinerary to go a few days early or stay a few days later
• You can fly economy class (“coach”) or first/business class if you want, it’s up to you
• If you are traveling with friends, it’s easier to coordinate your schedules and seating assignments

When it comes to making your own reservations, I suggest booking with one of the online travel companies like Travelocity, Expedia, or Orbitz. The deals vary from day-to-day and company-to-company so it doesn’t hurt to shop and compare. Good sites that compare these different companies are www.bing.com (that even has a farecast that predicts if it’s a good time to buy or not for certain cities), www.kayak.com, and www.travelzoo.com. Due to the high volume of business they do with the airlines, they sometimes have special deals that can’t be found elsewhere.

There are definite advantages to booking your own flights.   BUT, if you would like some assistance or advice, or would like for me to schedule your air for you, just let me know and I will be happy to help you.

Booking your Flights to Italy

Here is the information you will need to book your flights to Italy for our trip. To make it more convenient for you we are flying in and out of the same city, so a simple roundtrip flight will suffice unless you have other plans:

FIRST SEGMENT – HOME CITY TO FLORENCE
Departure date from Home City, USA to Florence: Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Arrival date in Florence: Thursday, October 7, 2010 (usually in the morning or mid-afternoon at the latest)

NOTE:    With the time difference we will be departing the USA on Wednesday and arriving in Florence  the following day on Thursday. Thursday is the official first day of the tour, with the first activity beginning late-afternoon.

RETURN SEGMENT – FLORENCE TO HOME CITY
Departure date from Florence to Home City, USA: Wednesday, October 13, 2010 (anytime, whatever schedule works best for you to get home)

Basically your flight itinerary will look something like this (example itinerary from Denver):

Wednesday, October 6, 2010   
Departs: Denver, 11:22am (must change planes in Newark & Continental #629/50/5201   Frankfurt, Germany)
Arrives: Florence, 12:55pm (the next day, Thurs., Oct. 7, 2010)

Wednesday, October 13, 2010 
Depart: Florence, 6:35am (must change planes in Frankfurt & Houston) Continental #5174/5006/        
Arrives: Denver, 4:54pm (same day) 6422

Documentation

U.S. citizens are required to carry a valid passport for travel to Europe. For citizens of other countries, please call Live Out Loud Travel Services for more specific requirements. 



Homeland Security regulations require that all passengers travel in the same name as is shown on their passport. Passengers will be denied boarding if the name on the ticket and passport are not the same. If a name change has occurred (due to marriage, for instance), it is strongly suggested that you renew your passport to the correct and current name. Contact Live Out Loud Travel Services for further information.

DO NOT forget to check the expiration date on your passport. It is possible that it could expire before or during the trip, which would result in many more problems for you trying to leave or return to the US.
U.S. citizens are required to carry a valid passport for travel to Europe. For citizens of other countries, please call Live Out Loud Travel Services for more specific requirements. 



Homeland Security regulations require that all passengers travel in the same name as is shown on their passport. Passengers will be denied boarding if the name on the ticket and passport are not the same. If a name change has occurred (due to marriage, for instance), it is strongly suggested that you renew your passport to the correct and current name. Contact Live Out Loud Travel Services for further information.

DO NOT forget to check the expiration date on your passport. It is possible that it could expire before or during the trip, which would result in many more problems for you trying to leave or return to the US.

Insurance

You may want to consider purchasing travel medical, baggage and trip cancellation insurance. You just never know what may happen to you, a traveling companion or an immediate family member, and it’s usually better to be safe than sorry!! I use a company called TravelEx Insurance Services that offers two levels of coverage -- TravelLite and Travel Plus. Rates are dependent on the total cost of the trip (air and land) and the age of the traveler. 

Complete brochures are available either by hard copy or email - just let me know what you prefer and I can forward those onto you. In order to cover “pre-existing medical conditions”, coverage should be purchased within 21 days of your tour deposit. I highly recommend opting to purchase the travel insurance, but in the end it is your decision and is not required.

Responsibility

Live Out Loud Catholic Pilgrimages and Live Out Loud Travel, LLC (as agent) give notice that all tickets and travel documents issued by them, and all arrangements made in connection with this tour, are made by them as agents, under the express condition that they shall not be held responsible or liable for any injury, loss, delay or damage caused by a vehicle, and/or negligence of staff personnel involved in providing the required services, or by any cause beyond the operator’s control. The right is reserved to withdraw or make alteration to any feature if deemed necessary by the tour operator. Baggage is at owner’s risk at all times. Tickets, coupons and/or passage contract in use by carrier and transportation companies, when issued, constitute the sole contract between them and the traveler.