Globe Merchant Travel Blog

Here it was in February of 2000 and I was off to Vienna to visit an old friend. I was looking for to a relaxing flight and remember vividly the commercials American Airlines was airing to promote their new roominess in coach class. Hmmmm, I thought as I boarded the flight, I’m going to recline that seat and relax…

I found my seat 19a(I believe) and it seemed a little tight to get in…..and once in, my knees pushed up against the seat ahead of me, unless I spread my legs and then I had a little more room… but that was ok, I could still recline…. so I pushed the button under my arm rest and pushed….it move back about 2 inches…so I pushed more and more and more….but that was it… it would not recline any more.

I called the flight attendant and explained that there was a problem with my seat and that it wouldn’t recline. She told that it was not a problem with the seat, it was just… a problem…. to make more space, they put the seats closer together and wouldn’t let mine recline(I’m not sure whose else wouldn’t….) The plane was full so I was stuck in that cramped seat.

For the return flight I made sure not to get those same seats and when I got home I wrote a letter of complaint to the airline and they sent me a voucher for $100 to use on my next flight.

I believe that the plane was a Boeing 757 or 767, but you may want to be aware, that the seats on the side(there were no middle seats at this row so the kitchen or bathrooms were in the middle)may be cramped and not recline…so avoid them…. This could also be a problem with all the airlines(although I don’t recall it being a problem when I flew Delta a couple of years ago and sat in similar seats).

If you do have a problem with your seats… do hesitate to contact the customer service of an airline and let them know you were unhappy with their service. They will often offer a voucher to make you happy(and since it can only be used on their airline-keep you flying with them!)

I was looking for an inexpensive way to get to Greece from RDU in September and decided to check on the direct flight from Raleigh/Durham(NC) to London. I found a fare for about $600 including tax and then found flights from London to Athens for about $220. The $820 including tax is not a bad fare, so you may want to check out the fares from a city close to you and see if you can find a cheap one on American to London and then the connecting flight to Athens on another airline. Visit the GreeceFlights Strategy #3 page for ideas on how to get to Greece(although you can use this strategy to get to different countries in Europe also).

If you find flights, make sure that you have enough time between flights to ensure that you don’t miss one of them. That could be trouble as neither airline is responsible to get you anywhere at a certain time. They just have to get you there… what’s a safe amount of time? 4-5 hours at the least, but even that might not be enough if your flight is very delayed! An overnight stay isn’t a bad idea…but remember, that it will add to the cost getting over there, so the inexpensive ticket will be a little more expensive if you have to add hotel, food and other misc. expenses.

You might also want to look into Travel Insurance…..

Every year for the past 7 years Olympic Airways has offered a Spring sale to Greece, that covers the shoulder season(April, May and early June) and the peak season(early June to Aug 31). It has always come out by March 1(and then is followed by a series of other sales with the fares going up $50 or so with each successive sale. This year the sales have not arrived and although I’m being assured that they will be here(although it’s becoming less of an assured assurance and even the Olympic Airlines Agents can only assure me with an intonation that sounds more like a question than a statement).

I would still like to be optimistic that there will be a sale, but I’m also questioning whether it will come or not…(oh, by the way- I’m not just some one telling you about the trends of the market-I’m keeping my eyes on rates so I can head to Greece in early September).

Two things have happened that make me wonder whether the sales will come or not. 1) Olympic doesn’t want to be known as a “discount” airline(relayed to me via an Olympic Agent who spoke with her manager who spoke with the head of US operations)…..that’s about the most ridiculous statement I’ve ever heard an airline make!- especially since I wouldn’t classify Olympic as the top shelf airline in the first place. I think what they mean to say is that they want to squeeze every last dollar out of their passengers. With the fares the way they are, Olympic is quickly earning the reputation as an overpriced airline.

The second thing that happened allows the first to continue. The Greek Gevernment which has been illegally subsidizing the airline(which is deeply in debt) since Greece joined the European Community has announced it will protect Olympic from her creditors(preditors?) until Oct 2006.

Since Olympic is up for sale I think they’re trying to cook the books to make the airline look as profitable(or less unprofitable?) as possible….. will the sale come along? No one knows….so keep your eyes open and check back to GreeceFlights.com often as I’ll post the sale when I get wind of it.

If you’re flying to Greece, Delta in some ways is a great option! They are one of two airlines that fly nonstop from the US.(Olympic from NY and Delta from NY and Atlanta). On top of that they fly from so many US cities that it’s easy to get a complete Delta itinerary. Olympic codeshares with most of the major US airlines so you have to fly one airline to NY and then Olympic to Greece. The other European airlines only fly to and from the major US cities so you’ll have to fly one airline to the major US city and then fly to a European city and then on to Athens, which is a minimum of 3 flights in each direction!). Their taxes are also low in a market that has seend taxes double and almost triple in some cases due to fuel surcharges and security increases. see airline taxes

The down side with Delta is that they are not very financially sound and although we’re hoping that they’ll be around for a long time….they may not be! They are also one of the more expensive airlines to fly(which may be why they are having such financial troubles). This isn’t scientific, but they also seem to change their schedules more than other airlines, so that great connection you had turns into a nightmare when they cancel the connection. To illustrate: I booked a friend’s flight from West Palm to Athens with a Delta/Olympic codeshare. The connections were great until the day we went to issue the tickets Delta cancelled the JFK-West Palm connection so we had 2 choices: 1) overnight in NY and catch a flight the next morning; or 2: fly to Fort Lauderdale and take an airport limo home(an extra hour plus expenses!). Luckily he has a few airports near him…if you don’t, your options are more limited!

British Air is a classic example of how NOT to run an airline. I’ll give you two examples of itineraries to and from NY, one of the largest markets flying to Greece. Going to Greece… Leave NY and have a layover of 8-12 hours in London. Depart London at 830pm and arrive in Athens at 230am….. Ok, good- so you survive that horrendous itinerary and are ready to head back. You leave Athens at 7pm and arrive in London that night…no flights… so just spend another $100-150 on a hotel and fly back to NY the next day…but don’t forget to add the almost $300 in taxes that BA tags on….

The only reason I can see to fly BA is if you want to fly on a Boening 747. They are one of the last transatlantic airlines to fly the 747 to Europe. I happen to think that they are one of the most incredible jets and almost(but not quite) make it worthwhile to pay those high taxes and fight their itinerary….

See Greeceflights.com for more airline info….

As time goes on, less and less airlines are “good airlines” to fly. They are all cutting back on costs as fuel skyrockets. Add to that the new security taxes and we’re talking about higher fares and lower service!

Olympic is no different…well sort of…. the have a different problem…. but probably the same results. The are being heavily subsidized by the Greek Government which is illegal under European Community law. Olympic Airlines has been ordered to return over 560 million euro to the Greek Government, but it probably won’t happen. As you can imagine, the other airlines and countries who play by the rules are not happy about this.

Greece is a hot destination and Olympic moves a lot of passengers to and from Greece. Their fares are sort of high and they get a government subsidy so it sounds like they should offer the best service…. unfortunately, there’s more to it than that…. Olympic has traditionally had a work force large enough to maintain an airline 3-4 times it size as well as government protection of the workforce(that translates to workers who can’t be fired no matter what they do!…get it?). A couple of years ago, a bunch were fired to make the airline more profitable so they could sell it(who would want to buy an airline that’s losing money and deep in debt), but the attitude is still the same(I’m not sure how they decided to pink slip people, but my guess is that it had nothing to do with who was the best worker).

Olympic has the advantage of being one of only two airlines(Delta is the other) that have nonstop flights from the US to Athens. That in itself is an advantage(to the airline and to you the passenger). I’ve flown them a few times in the last five years and I don’t have any major complaints. Their work slowdown strike in November of 2004 was a bit of an inconvenience(I didn’t enjoy being 2 hours late departing Athens) and some of the flight attendents are not the friendliest people I’ve ever met….(but some are), but when weighed against having an extra connection in a European city, I think I would take Olympic and the nonstop flight any time!

visit GreeceFlights.com and AGreatFare.com for more info

I’m more familiar with the charters to Greece, but they all work(or don’t work?) about the same. Actually, the charters are a good low cost alternative to the commercial airlines. You will save money(especially if you are trying to purchase flights on a commercial airline for the peak season). You will give up some comfort(the planes usually hold a lot more people which means the seats are closer together and staff is usually kept to a minimum). I’ve flown charters a few times(NY-Greece twice) and London-Athens. The NY-Greece flights were on Tower Air(out of business) and was tolerable, although having 2 people check in 400 passengers was a long wait. The flights from London reminded me of a high school bus trip, being a planeload of young Brits off on their holiday of fun in the sun.(The destination didn’t matter, as long as there was sun, beach, fish and chips and Beer). If you go to www.GreeceFlights.com there is an index on the side of the page with 3 articles on chartering flights that you may find helpful.(Charter Flights From the US, Charter Flights From Europe, Is a Charter Flight Right For You?)

I’m waiting for the schedule for the North American Charter Flights to Greece(from NY) for 2006 and will post them on the GreeceFlights.com site when I get them.