Thread: Traveling non-rev to Poland

Many nonrevs fly with small children. My advice would be to check the flight loads carefully. Pick something with LOTS of open seats so there is no issue with your daughter being unable to sit beside you. Have a Plan B/C/D ready to go just in case and be prepared to be in the airport for many hours (it does occasionally happen). Only you know how well your daughter (and yourself, actually) reacts to last minute reroutes and unexpected changes in plans (i.e. got to London and couldn't get to Poland - what do I feel like doing now - maybe Rome? maybe stay in London?). Bring toys and coloring books and enjoy the wide open world of nonrevving. Embrace the insanity!

I look at it this way - my children have had the opportunity to go places none of their friends could possibly have gone, all on a budget. Yes, we have to plan carefully and be prepared with back up plans and sometimes we have to scrap the trip altogether and go somewhere else but it has been worth it every time.

Donna’s right on target. I’d only add that traveling to Europe in the summer can be difficult - you’ll have to do your research, plan meticulously, be flexible and be ready to improvise.


Research - ZED fares. Read the “What is a ZED Fare” article on the Forum’s home page -http://nonrev.net/content/119-what-zed-fare.html
You can also do a Forum search and drop “aazed” a line through her Non-rev Correspondent-ZED Travel thread -http://nonrev.net/general-discussion...ed-travel.html

Planning - alternate flights, airports, routes & ZED‘s. As Donna said you’ll want to have a plan A,B,C and D.
Trust me, it’s easier coming up with plan D on your couch than at gate 42A.


Flexibility - Give yourself enough time. Allow yourself a couple days leeway for the unexpected.- flight cancellations, load fluctuations, equipment changes, weather delays, labor unrest - volcano eruptions, whatever comes your way you want to be able to roll with the punches.
Remember the non-rev gods do like to tease and you’ll be traveling during summer vacation/high tourist season.


Improvise - Routing, don’t be afraid to be creative. Sometimes you have to travel a roundabout route, sometimes you just have to buy a cheap plane/train/bus ticket for that final leg.


Don’t be discouraged, we’ll here to help.


Lastly, remember armrests have no owners, establish dominance at the earliest opportunity.


Mig

Originally Posted by koniucha

Hi, I am new to this forum. I have only traveled once so far non-rev, on US Airways, PHX-CLT-BDL. I would like to fly non-rev to Poland on June 26th with my five year old daughter. This would be on US Airways to London then British Airways to Warsaw.

Am I crazy? I'm starting to feel like maybe I am...

Why is that crazy?
Our 12 year old daughter has nonreved since age 8 months without any issues and now has flown about 250,000 miles.
You may want to see about getting the nonstop on LOT from ORD. That is how I went to WAW. Great city btw....
June could be tough to EU though....

Even JFK or YYZ could be good connection points with LO. That, or know of hotels and attractions at your possible layover points. When the wife were going to MAD but our IAD-MAD cancelled, we ended up in IAD for a few nights instead of trying for MAD. MAD would have been great, but we still had a good time in DC!

You should ask the Purser if it's possible to change seats to sit with your daughter if you are separated. Most gate agents will do their best when dealing with such a young child, tho. Technically, we are not permitted to ask another passenger to switch. Best of luck to you!

Is there a reason you have to travel in June?
Nonrev is easier in the offseason.
My wife and daughter get two weeks off for spring break and two weeks off for fall break and that is when we do our travels...