There are three appealing options for flights to Costa Rica. At this time we are only planning on purchasing one way tickets and worry about the trip back after. This will help us feel that we are indeed 'living' down there if we don't own flights home, and it may also save us interest if we purchase them at the end of our trip versus the beginning!
We think it's best to leave from Manitoba as appose to Montreal for a variety of reasons, but most of all because of family and potentially being able to see a friend's fresh baby.
Here are our options at the moment:
1) Leave from Winnipeg on a Sunday, October 11th in the evening.
Pros:
Get to have a fair-well get together with everyone (both families! plus friends).
Get to see Guatemala's airport (may be important for flight options on the trip back)
Feel supported by those who will (hopefully!) see us off at the airport.
We will use the least 'insurance days' traveling to our destination.
Cons:
Most expensive option.
Odd flights: Travel all night via Chicago and Guatemala airports. Leave at 5:30 in the evening and arrive at 9:00 in the morning.
2) Leave from Minneapolis on Thursday, October 8th.
Pros:
(A bit) cheaper flights
Arrive on a Friday; have the weekend to settle in, share in their church service on Sunday, and then start school on Monday.
Cons:
Gas, hotel room, and time from 'drivers' are additional costs.
3) Leave from Washington on Friday, October 9th
Pros:
-Cheapest flights!
- Same pros as the Minneapolis option in regards to getting there a few days before everything gets started.
-Get to take the bus to Washington from Fargo; it would be interesting to see the geography and cities from there to Washington, D. C.
Cons:
- We are limited (due to insurance policies and government restriction) in the number of days we are allowed to be away from Quebec. This ride down to Washington and then to C.R. will potentially take 5 days (compared to the Winnipeg option, or 3 more compared to Minneapolis option) away from our time in Tuis
- Travel risks associated with busing it across the states with all of our belongings we will need for 6 months!
Thoughts???
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6 comments:
Hey C,
My friend flew to CR from winnipeg via chigao then guatemala. you were right as it was the quickest option with flying overnight, arriving earlyish. but he was extremely tired for the rest of the day. it also probably depends how much stuff you are bringing with you since there are a couple of connection with different companies involved.
I flew from toronto through Charlotte North Carolina to CR which was great, left at 6am and arrived at 3pm. and the cheapest option (since it was from TO). and all on one airline (united).
Another friend flew toronto/phoenix and lost his bags even though it was the same airline.
going from minneapolis is a nice option too, better than a 5 days travelling (suuuper long on a bus, been there!)
IMHO, direct is best. you want to get there and get settled in as soon as possible. the more waiting and transferring you do, the more frusterated and potential for setbacks to arise.
(have you checked travelcuts instead of just online, since they tend to have pretty good deals from wpg. )
just my 0.02$... :o)
Thanks J.A.T.! This is so great that you have experience with this run!
When we went last summer it was really simple because we left from Montreal. We did: AirCanada from Montreal-->Toronto; then another direct AC flight from Toronto-->San Jose. Not that expensive either (relatively speaking, at least). I would love that AC flight again, just because it's one airline the whole way, and like you said that's always best for bags... Also, AC doesn't charge for bags and, because the company is shaky but Canadian owned none the less, I would love to give them the business. However, we would have to leave Winnipeg the day before and stay the night in Toronto, which just adds to the cost of travel.
As for booking with a travel agent...It *is* a good idea, considering they can find deals, but I talked to one and they told me they can only get those deals on round trips, and we are interested in one way only at the moment. Also, if you book through and Agent and the airline folds, you're out of luck. But if you book online and they fold MasterCard will cover you. So it's a tough choice in these troubled times.
Thanks so much for your input, it's really nice to hear of others doing the same trip.
Also, thanks for listening to me rant! All of these options, it's hard to keep them straight.
I'm sure some of us Winnipegers will be biased and say - Book thru Winnipeg!
jokes :)
From my experience as a travel agent...a lot of our clients used their MC through us to pay for flights b/c MC offered insurance...unless times have changed since I was there...I'm sure you've looked into it.
I think RBC Insurance covers an airline bankruptcy with Trip Cancellation insurance. Altho I would double check with a travel agent or RBC directly before purchasing.
http://www.rbcinsurance.com/files/00153/file-153058.pdf
If you can save enough on flights thru the agent and also purchase trip cancellation insurance, might be worth it...??
As above...just my 2cents :)
Thanks Lyla-bee! We are hoping the Winnipeg flight works out too, it would be best from the family and friends aspect (but I'm doubting you'll be around anyways!) Getting more people involved is always best, I really hope it works out.
As far as I have found, only some agencies will offer insurance against airline bankruptcy...and MC only insures you for the goods or services you purchased, which, if purchasing through a travel agent, is the service of the travel agent not the flight.
We are hoping to only purchase medical insurance for our trip, which is already nearly a grand (but RBC won't let you book more than 90 days before departure), instead of full coverage insurance, which would obviously be the better choice. But it all comes down to stretching the dollar... We are concerned we will be spending all our funds before we even leave the ground if we don't make the right decisions.
Decisions, decisions...enough to drive you mad!
Thanks for you input!!
Hey C,
i would still try and check with travel agencies that specialize with student based travel since alot of students do GAP-year travelling and need open-jaw tickets. Also, their all-inclusive insurance covering all things including bereavement/death of family of the person you are travelling with, exam rewrites etc...(VERY ALL INCLUSIVE) is actually very reasonable.
JAT
Wow, I didn't know they were *that* good, and could handle the open ended ticket thing. I'll talk to travelcuts and see what they can offer.
Thanks again!
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