Never flown - which airline & what to expect?

[anitract]

My fiancé and I will be going to Kauai for a destination wedding this February. I have never flown in an airplane before and am just a tad nervous about it. My fiancé has flown once when she was younger, so she''s also pretty inexperienced. I was hoping some of you frequent fliers could give me some pointers and help ease my mind. Specifically:

1. Who are the good airlines to fly with? Naturally, I''m looking for safety, quality, etc. America West and US Airlines both have 1-stop flights to Kauai from Omaha. Thoughts on them? Other airlines have multi-stops.
2. What''s the general process upon getting to the airport? Go straight to check in, wait in line, or what?
3. How early should I come?
4. How bad is the "ear pressure"? I have bad ears that have a terrible, sometimes painful time adjusting to changes in altitude (for example, going into the mountains).
5. Do you suggest taking Dramamine?

Anything else you could fill me in on would be greatly appreciated! Thanks.

Jason

 

[Lorelei]

Jason welcome

I am not a frequent flyer, but I do suffer from painful pressure in the ear which is agonizing. I found eating sweets helps, worst times I find are landing. I think as your ears do sound sensitive, have a word with your doctor in advance so he can check them out and offer you some advice or treatment for it. Actually it might be best to check with your doctor as there is a technique I use to help relieve the pressure when flying which involves holding your nose and blowing through it, but best to check with him first as ears can be funny things and you don't want to do something that might make it worse.

 

[coda72]

I would definitely take the least amount of stops possible to get to a destination, so I would go with America West. They are now merged with USAirways, so I believe the flight schedules would be the same. Kauai is a pretty far flight from Omaha. I''ve never been in Omaha, but I would guess it''s around 3 to 4 hours flight to the West Coast. Then the flight to Hawaii is another 5 hours. 9 hours is a long time for a first flight.

There are new rules for carryon baggage, so be sure to check those out before going on your trip. I believe there''s also new guidelines on how early to arrive at the airport, so also check that out. The airline''s website should have all that information.

I have sensitive ears, and sometimes they pop badly and sometimes they don''t. I don''t know why it varies, but you may have some problems on ascending and descending or you may have no problems at all.

If you''re a person who gets motion sickness, you might want to take Dramamine. I personally have never gotten sick on a plane, but I got very sick on a cruise. If long car trips make you ill, you might want to take the Dramamine just to be on the safe side.

 

[anitract]

Yeah, I was thinking of visiting my ear doctor prior to going...wouldn''t hurt that''s for sure. I don''t ever get car sick and my limited experience on boats has been fine, but my fiance does get car sick from time to time.

 

[Lorelei]

I think a check on the ears would be good, then take some Dramamine in your carry on, that way you are prepared in case. Also having the ears checked will save you much misery if they decide to flare up during the flight.

 

[anitract]

Man I was looking at airline reviews for American West and US Airways...they''re not that encouraging. Maybe it''s all airlines though. lol

 

[jcrow]

ears-
if you think you''ll have ear trouble, you definitely want the least amount of stops as possible!! i also recommend visiting an ear doctor.

we i went to san francisco, i had severe ear problems. i was in utter pain and tears! it didn''t help that we had 2 different planes, which meant extra ups and downs, which were the cause of my ear troubles. i ended up going to an ear dr. in san francisco. he cleaned out my ears and suggested i try affrin. this really helped.

before i flew to vegas, i saw a dr. once again. he cleaned them, suggested affrin and gave me a decongestant (i think?).

point is, definitely visit the dr. if you have problems in the mountains. you may or may not have problems in the air, but it''s better to be prepared than sorry you had. trust me- it''s no fun to be in pain and in an airplane!

oh- and they also make those "ear planes" they are ear plugs that are suppose to adjust the pressure in your ears. you can get them at your local walgreens or whatever.

airlines-
we''ve had great success with booking online and doing everything possible online. i think you can even print your boarding pass online? anyway, i would recommend going that route. it''ll save you lots of time since you won''t have to stand in those long lines.

good luck! you never know, you may really enjoy flying!

 

[anitract]

Date: 8/16/2006 11:55:36 AM
Author: jcrow
we''ve had great success with booking online and doing everything possible online. i think you can even print your boarding pass online? anyway, i would recommend going that route. it''ll save you lots of time since you won''t have to stand in those long lines.

Any suggestions on websites? I''m looking at priceline.com as that''s one I remembered. Looks like you can "name your own price". How exactly does that work, and is it worth it?

 

[jcrow]

Date: 8/16/2006 11:58:26 AM
Author: anitract

Date: 8/16/2006 11:55:36 AM
Author: jcrow
we''ve had great success with booking online and doing everything possible online. i think you can even print your boarding pass online? anyway, i would recommend going that route. it''ll save you lots of time since you won''t have to stand in those long lines.

Any suggestions on websites? I''m looking at priceline.com as that''s one I remembered. Looks like you can ''name your own price''. How exactly does that work, and is it worth it?

well we didn''t use a website like priceline. we used the airline''s website. but, it wouldn''t be any harm to price compare using sites like these. priceline also gives you the option not to name your price. it just lists the options and you click on the one you want. you can also check out http://www.travelocity.com/, http://www.expedia.com/ and http://www.orbitz.com/

 

[Mara]

i don't have problems with the ear thing but you can chew gum during takeoff and landing to get around that.

we fly america west to hawaii...and i think AW also has direct flights to kauai but it depends on where you are flying from. sometimes you can get some great deals using their website (www.americawest.com) as they have specials depending on the time of year etc. my girlfriend was just saying she found a $350 flight for her and her fiance to maui in november (each person) which is pretty good from here in northern cali.

i haven't flown since the new restrictions were put into place, but i would allow yourself at least 2-3 hours before the flight, depending on your type of airport (small regional or large international) you are leaving out of and make sure to read up on the airlines websites and the airport's websites to see what their suggestions/restrictions are. good luck!!

people who i know who have had luck using priceline typically don't have a strict set day they want to arrive or depart (or a time) as it seems more hit or miss on if you can get what you really want. same with hotwire.

 

[mrssalvo]

I agree with those who said to visit an ear doctor before you fly if you have ear trouble. It''s no fun at all to be in pain during a flight..

 

[Eva17]

A decongest. and affrin will work to keep the earway clear. Chew gum also to allow them to pop. Popping is the good part, it relieves the pressure.

 

[Eva17]

Just thinking with the new restrictions, affrin is probably restricted. You could use it before the flight.

 

[codex57]

The holding your nose thing doesn''t work with everyone. My wife can''t seem to do it. It works great with me tho. I love it. I do it the minute I start to feel pressure. If I do it periodically over the descent/ascent, I don''t really experience any discomfort at all.

Flying in an airplane is not pleasant if you''re in coach. It''s cramped. Plus, no matter where you are, the air is stale and is usually quite cold. So, fly non-stop unless you absolutely can''t afford to. Particularly on the flight home. I think flying from Hawaii to the mainland takes longer than going there.

 

[bookworm21]

Date: 8/16/2006 10:35:53 AM
Author:anitract
My fiancé and I will be going to Kauai for a destination wedding this February. I have never flown in an airplane before and am just a tad nervous about it. My fiancé has flown once when she was younger, so she''s also pretty inexperienced. I was hoping some of you frequent fliers could give me some pointers and help ease my mind. Specifically:


1. Who are the good airlines to fly with? Naturally, I''m looking for safety, quality, etc. America West and US Airlines both have 1-stop flights to Kauai from Omaha. Thoughts on them? Other airlines have multi-stops.

2. What''s the general process upon getting to the airport? Go straight to check in, wait in line, or what?

3. How early should I come?

4. How bad is the ''ear pressure''? I have bad ears that have a terrible, sometimes painful time adjusting to changes in altitude (for example, going into the mountains).

5. Do you suggest taking Dramamine?


Anything else you could fill me in on would be greatly appreciated! Thanks.


Jason

I don''t know if Hawaiin Airlines flies out of Omaha, but I flew on them once, and I loved their service and the roominess of the coach cabin. But I would definitely take a non-stop flight if possible; if it''s not possible, then choose one with fewer stops, if you can afford it.

When you get to the airport, you''re going to have to check in. With the new security features in place right now, I would not bring anything other than a music player, some reading material, and some snacks. No liquids of any kind, and that includes lip gloss. Chapstick is okay. Prescribed medications are okay, but I think you need a doctor''s note for those.

They recommend that you show up 2 hours before your domestic flight, so to play it safe, I would show up 2.5 hours early because if you''re unlucky, there will be a HUGE line of people waiting to check in their luggage. I believe that most airports also check carry ons right before you get on the plane (they did before my flight 2 days ago from San Diego).

Ear pressure isn''t that bad for me. Try chewing gum. Works for my parents.

If you get motion sickness, then yes, take Dramamine. Nothing''s worse than motion sickness in a cabin with little windows and cramped space.

As for other advice, nothing except be patient and bring reading material. Also dress in layers, as the airplane''s air condiitioning may feel really chilly if you decide to take a nap and there aren''t enough blankets to go around. If you can still choose, the window seat is the best seat for taking a nap; you actually have something to lean on. I would definitely recommend packing some snacks (fruit, granola bars, whatever), especially since you have such a long flight ahead of you. Airplane food is beyond gross. HTH and have fun in Hawaii!!

 

[jcrow]

Date: 8/16/2006 2:40:02 PM
Author: Eva17
Just thinking with the new restrictions, affrin is probably restricted. You could use it before the flight.

i thought of this already. didn''t they say prescribed meds were ok as long as there''s proof? i plan on getting my dr. to prescribe affrin. i have a honeymoon comming up and really, i don''t know if i can fly without it.

 

[FireGoddess]

Date: 8/16/2006 3:48:48 PM
Author: jcrow

Date: 8/16/2006 2:40:02 PM
Author: Eva17
Just thinking with the new restrictions, affrin is probably restricted. You could use it before the flight.

i thought of this already. didn''t they say prescribed meds were ok as long as there''s proof? i plan on getting my dr. to prescribe affrin. i have a honeymoon comming up and really, i don''t know if i can fly without it.

Yes, I believe prescribed meds are okay IF the name on the bottle matches the name on the plane ticket, and I don''t think you can have a large amount. Maybe 10 mls or so?

 

[jcrow]

Date: 8/16/2006 4:06:41 PM
Author: FireGoddess

Date: 8/16/2006 3:48:48 PM
Author: jcrow

Date: 8/16/2006 2:40:02 PM
Author: Eva17
Just thinking with the new restrictions, affrin is probably restricted. You could use it before the flight.

i thought of this already. didn''t they say prescribed meds were ok as long as there''s proof? i plan on getting my dr. to prescribe affrin. i have a honeymoon comming up and really, i don''t know if i can fly without it.

Yes, I believe prescribed meds are okay IF the name on the bottle matches the name on the plane ticket, and I don''t think you can have a large amount. Maybe 10 mls or so?

whew!

sorry this got off track... back on now...

 

[TravelingGal]

Since you''re flying from Omaha, I would say you are safe with two hours. I flew from DC on sat and it only took me 15 minutes to get through everything. If you are leaving on a Monday morning, do give yourself some extra time...monday mornings are crazy here at LAX.

Definitely bring some chapstick with you...planes are extremely drying. But yes, no lipgloss, etc. Although they don''t seem to really be checking.

The majority of U.S. airlines are the same, IMO. Pick whichever one is cheapest and flies out at convenient hours. Personally, I''d also pick the ones with more daily flights for your itinerary...it''s a real pain if your flights get cancelled and they are scrambling to find flights to put people on. Also, I would not take the last flight out of the day, as if something happens with the flight, you are stranded.

I would not do priceline (the name your own price part). Time is money, IMO and they may put you on a later flight than you want, or one with more stop overs. Please take my word for it...stop overs are a PAIN. The more you stop over, the higher your chance of delays, or missing a flight altogether. Since you have ear issues, you want to minimize as the take offs and landings to as few as possible.

As for general airline procedures, it will go something like this:

Go to the ticketing area and stand in line. Produce ID and get boarding pass. Check in your luggage. Wait in security line, where they will check your ID and your boarding pass. Go through security, but keep your boarding pass in hand (they''ve been checking it again these days). You shouldn''t need your ID for that part. You will need to take off your shoes, any jacket you have on, and take stuff out of your pockets. Collect everything (and take the time to make sure you have everything...especially your laptop if you are going to carry one, although doesn''t seem like you will.) Go to the loo, grab a snack (but liquids will have to stay on the ground) and head to the gate and proceed when your row is called. You no longer need ID at the gate.

Hope that helps!

 

[Gypsy]

Don''t know if this would work for you... but Air New Zealand is actually a pretty good carrier. I personally have flown America West and never again. United is well.. hit or miss-- I used to be a member of their frequent flyer service (flew to Hawaii with them actually and Australia a few times) but well... not recently. American is a little better. Japan Air might be worth looking into.

 

[pearcrazy]

We flew America West when we went to Kauai. Actually Raleigh to Phoenix on America West and then on to partner airline Hawaiian Airlines. I can''t say enough good things about Hawaiian Airlines-- great flight especially since it was 6 hours from Phoenix. We didn''t fly directly into Kauai but connected in Honolulu. It was only a short 30 min. hop from Oahu to Kauai and the flights left every 45 min. or so. If you can find a way to fly Hawaiian for the longest leg of your flight it would be so worth it.

 

[anitract]

Everyone,

Thank you for the excellent advice!! I truly appreciate it. I am going to show this to my fiance tonight and see what she thinks. Looks like it will be quite the little adventure with all the new restrictions and waiting time. That's ok though, the reward comes later.

From what I've seen thus far, the only airlines that have both 1 stop and fly directly to Kauai are American West and US Airlines, which have merged. So that's that. I think I agree that having to make one stop is the best, especially with my ears.

The thing that I noticed was that the 1 stop is in AZ and something like a 5 hour wait until the next plane leaves for Kauai. Is this normal? I suppose you need to take into account possible layovers. But what do you do with all that time??

Jason

 

[codex57]

Date: 8/17/2006 12:56:08 PM
Author: anitract

The thing that I noticed was that the 1 stop is in AZ and something like a 5 hour wait until the next plane leaves for Kauai. Is this normal? I suppose you need to take into account possible layovers. But what do you do with all that time??

Sit around and be bored. Sleep if you can. That''s what I do. Read a magazine or book, listen to iPod, watch a DVD on a laptop/portable DVD player, etc. Usually I try and sleep.

It''s been years since I''ve attempted to leave the airport and check out the city I''m stopped in. It was pre-9/11. Dunno if they even let you do that anymore. Since you''re going to stop in Phoenix, I dunno if there''s anything worth checking out if you only have 5 hours to leave, check PHX out, and be back. I''d just hang around the airport.

 

[anitract]

Here''s a question: is it better to book my tickets now, or wait until closer to the wedding date? Prices for round trip tickets from omaha to kauai are around $709 per person right now. Is there an advantage price-wise in waiting to book? Are there disadvantages?

 

[TravelingGal]

709 doesn''t sound that bad to me...especially from Omaha. We normally can get fares of about $500 here from LAX (although it can be cheaper), and that''s pretty darn good. LA is quite a bit closer to Hawaii than Omaha...

 

[belle]

keep an eye on ticket prices...i.e. sign up for some kind of fare watcher on a travel booking site. or just keep looking during the historically low months for pricing. if you see a reasonable price, don''t wait to buy. the seats sell out fast.

this may help http://www.andhawaii.com/airlineprices.html

 

[tdiddy]

I travel very frequently and far for my job in pharmaceutical research and have had numerous ear issues since I was little. My advice when traveling any amount of distance like a trip to hawaii or to europe is to have your ears checked out by your doctor a week or so before you leave to make sure you don''t have fluid built up in them (esp. if it''s around a season that you have more problems) and get a prescription for a good decongestant to use before you leave. I often have minor ear infections that clear up without major incident any other time but when I fly they are completely exacerbated. Going to the doctor ahead of time allows for a diagnosis and course of antibotics before you leave. For the trip itself, it''s best to use a decongestant nasal spray right before you board the plane (which I hate but it really does work) - but due to the recent restrictions, I would advise getting a prescription for that as well (your doctor should be able to do this for you if you explain the situation).

I can say that the one trip I made without seeing a doctor first to Lisbon, Portugal last year was miserable. I couldn''t hear the whole trip (I had tunnel hearing) and I ended up with a raging ear infection by the time I got back. All through dinner with my colleagues, I was like ''huh?''

Terrible.

Carrier-wise, I like United and Virgin (for overseas travel - don''t think Virgin does US only flights though) but typically fly Delta. Continental has the worse economy cabin IMO. I''ve never flown AW so I can''t speak to that airline. 777 and 747 cabins offer the most leg room - so if that equipment is available, I would take one of those flights.

At the airport, go with an e-ticket (pretty much all online purchases are e-tix now adays unless you pay more for a paper ticket) and do self check-in with a kiosk. You just need a credit card or passport to do it. Your tix will print out and the clerk at the desk will call your name to check your baggage. Someone is there to help you out if you have questions, too. Definitely the fastest way to go and avoids the lines for the most part.

Regarding the restrictions, I was in London last week when everything happened, flew back through Chicago on Friday, and took a connection to Cincinnati. My experience from that trip and one this week was that every airport had different rules and they changed as you went through the stages of check-in and security. So check as much as possible. And this is coming from someone who normally carries everything on. From London to Chicago, we were only allowed a plastic bag with a passport, a credit card or some cash, and our boarding pass. Prescription meds were allowed if they matched your passport name. No exceptions were made. In Chicago we were allowed standard carry on with laptops, cell phones, etc. but no liquids or gels (no makeup, chapstick, deodorant, or beverages). This week we weren''t allowed to have key chains with keyless entry fobs on them out of Cincinnati. So the less you carry on the better b/c if the rules change you will be told to throw it out. They even took our books purchased in the terminal after I made it through security away in London! It seems to be getting less restrictive and they didn''t really checked too much in the US airports but better to be conservative about it and avoid the stress of throwing things out that you need.

Ticket prices to Hawaii for anything less than $1000 seem like a good deal to me.

Enjoy your trip. Hawaii is a place I haven''t been but am dying to see - I heard it is absolutely amazing.

 

[tdiddy]

Just read a few of your other questions....

If you can avoid the layover, then I would take a direct flight. If you have to layover then you will take off and land again. The descent is hardest on your ears and you''d be putting yourself through it twice each way if you have a layover. Once you are in the air - your ears won''t get worse. They typically get worse for me on the way down.

Regarding a 5 hour layover....if you can''t get a direct flight and have a layover for5 hours this is definitely not enough time to see anything outside the airport. For a layover greater than 2 hours, you can eat at a sit down restaurant in the airport. For anything less than 2 hours, find your gate and get something quick nearby. By the time you find your gate and allow for a 30 minute boarding period for your flight, you lose an hour anyway. And odds are your flight will be delayed coming in. Last week I had a 6 hour layover in Chicago but missed the flight b/c security in London took 6 hours (!). So flights are coming in late in a lot of places and I would expect at least a slight delay.

If you do have a layover, I would use the spray decongestant again before you take off (and land if possible).

 

[anitract]

Great replies. Thanks everyone. tdiddy, you and I have similar ears it sounds like. I''ve been in and out of the doctors office since I was a child with ear infections and problems. I''ve had tubes a couple of times and surgery on one ear. No fun at all. The past couple of years have been better, but, not anywhere near normal. Have you tried those ear plugs that are supposed to help? I saw them at walmart last night for like $5 and it looks like you put them in an hour before take off and then take them out once you are at final altitude, then put them back in an hour before descent.

Otherwise, on all of the flight searching sites I''ve gone too none have any direct flights listed, so it looks like I am stuck with one stop at least.

 

[phoenixgirl]

My mom used those earplugs on our most recent trip. She said they didn't cure her, but they helped enough to be worthwhile.

I do the blow the air out your ears trick when pressure builds up in my ears.

Also, check out Seatguru.com if you can pick seats for yourselves. We prefer to be on the side rather than in the middle, and not to be blocked in by another person so we can get up easily.

If any of your flights are overbooked, I wouldn't voluntarily give up your seats (unless you've watched them up the offer a couple of times and want the cash -- they'll start low so as to pay out as little as possible). We got bumped coming back from France three weeks ago. First they asked us to voluntarily agree to take the next flight for 150 Euros each. We refused, and were on standby. Once standby fell through and we had to take the next flight anyway, they gave us 300 Euros each ($764 total). According to this article, "If the airline fails to provide a flight within two hours on a domestic trip, federal law requires that the airline pay the passenger up to $400." Then they tried to convince us to remove ourselves from the flight 4 hours later and take a flight the next day for no reason. So make sure you don't let them push you around.

The problem is that all of the airlines overbook these days. Don't ask me why this came up, but my neighbor asked me and my husband the other night if there was sufficient darkness on overnight flights for some funny business to go on. When I was young I remember sleeping in an entire center row of seats by myself, but today they almost always overbook the flights and then bump extra passengers, so there wouldn't be anywhere (except the bathroom, as is made famous in movies) for funny business anyway (not that I would EVER do that even if there was -- it was a weird question).

One time my parents and I were bumped from our connection in Denver, I believe (so we were without our luggage). The airline gave us a meal voucher (how much can that be worth to them? $15 per person?) and I'm sure my parents got some sort of compensation, and then drove us a waaay long way out to this hotel. We had a phone call charge to pay ourselves, so we got the bill. The airline paid $30 to put us up there. So those expenses are negligible. It was nice to get the money from Air France, but it was only about 1/3 of our ticket price, so they gained more than they lost by overbooking.

Also, they make it difficult to get your money. You can choose either credit for an airline ticket, cash, or a credit. We had to exit through customs, go to the Air France ticket customer service desk, get the money credited to our card, and then go through security again. They're hoping that you'll forget to cash in your voucher and they wouldn't even have to compensate you for your trouble.

To avoid being bumped, see if you can check in to your flight online ahead of time. You'll still have to wait to check your baggage when you arrive, but at least you'll be in the system. The Air France lady told us that even though we had seat assignments, since we hadn't checked in, people with connections to make took priority (which was another point of irritation because we chose to drive 2 hours to a larger airport rather than have a connection).

Here are some more general flying tips.

Also, even though you can't have toothpaste with you onboard anymore, I'd still pack a few things in your carryon in the unlikely event that your luggage is delayed: a pair of underwear or two, an undershirt, a bathing suit, etc. My luggage has never been totally lost but it has been delayed a few times. The airline will drop it off for you at your hotel/home in that case, but you might be without it for a day or so.