Let the Flyer Beware

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I think we can all agree that cruises on our preferred ships are fantastic.

Air travel, on the other hand, can be hit and miss, even when we choose our favorite airline.

For a couple of years, there have been more misses than usual.

Long before airlines have delayed your flight because of weather or lack of personnel, they may have re-scheduled it from what had been carefully selected as ideal only to replace it with flights at odd times, departing earlier than you'd prefer, arriving later than desired and adding longer layovers to boot.

And that's if you picked your flights.

Some great air promotions with Viking, NCL and a few others, have us flying blind, in that we don't know what our flight schedule will be until the cruise departure has almost arrived.  When assigned, the flights may be nothing like we imagined.

It's not unusual to find yourself with no time to spend in the embarkation city, unless there is an overnight in port on the first night.  That can be the case with many Viking River Cruises, such as when Julie and I cruised through Provence this summer.  While we were disappointed when our initial flight itinerary arriving mid-day was nixed by Viking (who blamed the airline), arriving just before dinner turned out to be easy and probably allowed us to adjust to the time change more quickly.

Getting Custom Air deviations will allow you to fly in a day or two early, which I usually recommended up until Covid-19 regulations complicated that process.  Julie and I have normally flown in at least a day early, especially after long flights to Europe, but for our recent returns to the continent, we have been keeping it simple by flying with the cruise line arranged air and going directly to the cruise ship from the airport.  It sure makes things simpler.

Along those lines, getting a hotel extension or pre-cruise tour with transfers through the cruise line keeps the trip seamless and allows you to truly experience the city where your cruise begins.  AmaWaterways is offering free land packages on a select number of sailings, if your dates, stateroom category and itinerary selections are flexible, though keep in mind you will find your choices quite limited.

If you will only be flying to this city once, why not make it count?

As always, the primary focus of your vacation will be the cruise or land stay itself, so remember that when those airlines frustrate you, it is still much easier than going across country on a mule or sailing across the sea on a leaky sailboat filled with scurvy-ravaged pirates.

On your flight, watch some movies.  Maybe have a glass of wine.  Make the most of your time in the air.

Don't count on the airline having any food, much less fine dining in the air.  Arrive at the airport early enough to enjoy a snack or a meal before boarding, with the added bonus that it takes some stress out of being on time for your flight.  Bring a bag of Chex Mix or some granola bars to munch on while watching your in-flight movies or reading a good novel that you brought along.

And just expect everything to go wrong, so that if it happens to go mostly right, you can appreciate the unanticipated competence and comfort of the experience.

Always remember, air transportation is a miracle that your great-grandparents could never have imagined anyone would ever take for granted, much less complain about while traveling several hundred miles an hour toward a dream cruise.