Original Euro cheapo Arthur Frommer has been flogging a super low fare on Eurofly for the past few weeks. And we have to say, $474 all-in is a damn good price for NYC to Rome in April. But do you really want to go transatlantic with this airline?
Probably not. Most of the reviews we can dig up online are negative, with late flights and diversions being the top complaints:
Our flight from JFK to Naples left at 4 am, nearly 6 hours late. There was no EuroFly staff at the gate to provide updates or explanations for the delay.
Another reviewer had a similar experience:
I've only flown on Eurofly twice, but on the first occasion our flight was delayed four-and-a-half hours...On the second flight, we had an initial delay of 2 hours only to be then taken from Naples by bus to Rome to board a plane back to JFK...I would never want to fly them again.
How much headache is a cheap ticket worth? Not this much.
Remember back in the summer of 2005 when we were stoked for the age of Eurofly? Well now it is time to check in on how things are going for the low-fare kid sister trying to emerge from the shadow of Alitalia.
The former subsidiary of Italy's largest airline broke away from its parent company in 2005 and started offering additional destinations earlier this year, including Pescara and Lamezia Terme.
Round trip flights start at $800, according to a recent profile in National Geographic Traveler of no-frills airlines crossing the Atlantic these days. We did a quick Expedia search and found a round trip ticket from JFK to Rome on Alitalia in mid-July for $798. In fact, a story in USA Today says a sample fare from JFK to Rome on Eurofly costs $1,159 (including taxes and fees) versus $1,283 on a major carrier. By foregoing the extra flight options and legroom, you save enough to cover cab fare to and from the airport.
So is Eurofly the Jan to Alitalia's Marcia? Not according to Gianfranco Zaccai at Business Week, who says Alitalia fails to offer travelers extra comfort and needs to take a tip from Ikea about customer service. We're not seeing a connection between our old dorm-room dresser and a trans-Atlantic flight, but apparently the two are linked.
Eurofly is solving your Italian air travel problems. The Italian airline just began direct, regular service from NYC to hard-to-reach cities Naples, Bologna and Palermo. (No more stopovers in London or Rome!)
They're doing three flights a week to Naples & Bologna and one a week to Palermo and the word is they are cheaper then most major competitors. Current prices for Naples and Bologna are $649 and Palermo's listed at $749.
Note: You have to book directly through them at their website, they haven't jumped on the Expedia/Travelocity/Hotwire etc. bandwagon just yet....
3 Comments - Add Yours
by pbb
