Italy Plane Reservations Made - Almost

OK, now this is feeling more real. As I have been doing for the last month, I went to the AirFrance website to put in different dates and check fares. Last week, the fares for the date range I had been looking at increased $200! I was about to kick myself (not easy for an older woman to do that, I must say) when I checked another website for the best days to purchase airline tickets. They said Friday was the worst day and midweek was the best. Just for the heck of it, I checked airfare today and found the price went back down to the original fare so I booked it - sort of.

As I mentioned previously, you have to book your flight before you can call to book your pet. You can delay payment for a flight for up to 24 hours but unfortunately AirFrance has up to 72 hours to let you know if there is room for your pet on board. So, luckily they have another option where you can pay $20 to hold your reservation for 1 week. I paid the $20 to hold my reservation and am now waiting to hear from AirFrance. Delta has already stated that there is room for Seymour on their flights that I will be taking to and from Atlanta. They agreed with a previous Delta person I talked with, that I can bring another carry-on so I should be able to travel without checking luggage. That will make our travel so much easier and quicker.

Now it's a waiting game. Once I receive an answer from AirFrance I will make my reservations at the Language school in the Tuscany area.

I'm getting nervous and excited! Seymour is sleeping.

Seymours' Sling

The new sling I bought came yesterday and I've been carrying Seymour around in it. It feels like a lined sweatshirt material, thicker than I expected, but the layers make it more comfortable. The strap is pretty comfy across my shoulder. It is basic; no pockets, but it does come with a strap to hold him in. He seems to like it. Mostly he sat it in, which is why he looks big in the picture, but when he would lay down, you couldn't see him at all. I won't be able to sneak him in anywhere in this sling, but I think it will work great to take him in places where pets are allowed and have both hands free. It is smaller than the previous one I purchased, so I think it fits him better. I bought it on eBay and it says it was made by Outward Hound but I couldn't find it at other places. It cost $16.50 with free shipping, so I was pleased with the price.

Next I want to see how this sling works when I ride a bike because I expect to do that in Italy.

Traveling from the USA to Europe with Seymour

I have been researching how I can take my dog Seymour to Europe with me. Many of the sites I've found have inaccurate information as to which airlines allow pets in the cabin. For example, sites have stated that American Airlines and Continental allow small pets onboard. I called both and looked at their pet policies and it isn't true. I got excited with Continental and found a pretty good deal on a flight to either Spain or France and then called the airline - and it was a no go for pets in the cabin.

So far, the only airline I've found that allows pets in the cabin is AirFrance but the cost of their flights were over twice as expensive and they say it is an additional $200 to have a pet in a carrier under the seat. They also limit the number of pets onboard so you have to make a reservation for your pet separately and check in frequently to remind them of your pet reservation.

An example of the difference in flight costs: I could fly round-trip on Continental to Paris at the beginning of Sept. for about $1000; the same trip on AirFrance was over $2500 - and neither of those prices included the cost for Seymour. I'm not giving up because my goal is to go to Europe for 3 months this year with him. And I do not want him to fly with the checked luggage. I don't think my little chihuahua-mix would survive.

The alternative travel plans would be to drive to Canada or fly to Costa Rica. Although I want to visit Canada again, I don't want to deal with the cold weather. And I have been to Costa Rica but I would need to figure out the bus system - because I would never drive there - and figure out where I would want to stay.

For those of us who feel that our dogs are part of our family, it's one thing to find a place that is considered "pet-friendly" but another thing to try to get there!

I'm still working on it and will write updates as I get more information.