Air Travel

We flew on Alitalia flight No. 637 from Miami, Florida, to Milan, Italy, on Sept. 9, 2007.

During our “Discover Thailand” tour (including pre-trip to Cambodia) with Overseas Adventure Travel (Cambridge, MA: 800/221-0814, www.oattravel.com), Jan. 14-Feb. 2, 2008, I slipped and fractured my ankle within 24 hours of our arrival in Siem Reap, Cambodia.

Qantas economy ‘excellent’

I had not flown with Qantas since 1983, but for an October ’07 flight from Auckland, New Zealand, to Los Angeles, since they were the best buy, I bought a ticket.

At the suggestion of Kathy McIntosh of Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, ITN asked readers the following questions.

My husband and I departed for Overseas Adventure Travel’s “Hidden Gems: the Dalmatian Coast and Greece” on Oct. 6, 2007. Having traveled three times before with OAT and been satisfied with their flight arrangements, we were surprised to find when the final documents came that we had a more than 7-hour layover in the Frankfurt, Germany, airport.

My husband and I took the tour “From Mystical Tibet to Nomadic Mongolia,” May 29-June 13, 2007, with Nomadic Expeditions.

by Richard Berner, San Diego, CA

Martha and I, like many travelers, are drawn to Paris and seem to return there more often than to any other European city. On a recent 3-week trip to France, we spent our first week in Paris.

With difficulty, I tried to pull my backpack from the itsy-bitsy storage space under the seat in front of me. It was two hours into the flight and the passenger in front of me had reclined his seat. The rucksack just wouldn’t budge.

I got up, squatted in the aisle and gave the backpack another tug. Hurrah! Now I could get at the lunch I had so carefully prepared.

Those planning to visit Croatia should note that there are several ways to get there.

My domestic partner, Karen, in December ’06 found a delightful price for a flight from Miami to Guayaquil, Ecuador, on Feb. 9, 2007, through CheapOAir.com. The cost was $467 each plus a $50 agent fee for two round-trip tickets with Santa Bárbara Airlines (of Venezuela). We would overnight and the next day fly to San Cristobal, Galápagos Islands.

In January ’07 I e-mailed CheapOAir to obtain a telephone number for the airline. I received no response.