Travel Update preparing a family vacation

CEBU, Philippines - I spent a couple of hours at Cathay Pacific office to prepare – rather I did a major change – my family’s annual vacation to the U.S.  It started as a spontaneous idea from one of my sons, Allen, to go with me on my scheduled trip in March. He was supposed to go in June and was thinking of bringing his family by then.  However, classes would be a problem and that’s peak season – summertime in the U.S. I hesitated to go with them in that month as I hate to be in America in summer. Worse heat than in the Philippines!

So, when the families of my two sons decided to have our vacation this year according to my itinerary, this posed a big problem to me! I took on the responsibility to check the best times to connect at Hong Kong for the long-haul flight to the US; which destination to disembark – LAX or SFO; the ideal seats as the babies sleep snug with their mommies; departure and arrival dates that best suit all people in the group.

I earlier reserved for PEY seats for all eight of them (Ian Irving and wife Tess with 6 yr-old Meg and 2 & a half yr-old Liz; Allen Arvin and wife Dr. Jennifer Rose with 4 yr-old Noah and 3 yr-old Sabrina).  Since PEY (the new Premium Economy Class on CX B777-300 ER planes) is right next to Business Class, I booked a business class seat for me. I could have been the odd one out in the PEY seat configuration of  2 – 4 – 2.  As I did not want to seat with a stranger, I opted for the privacy of a business class seat.

Horrors! Good thing my son Irvie observed when he surfed the cabin interiors on the net that the arm rests of the PEY seats are wide and set in place. I did not take one of the 4 middle seats on my flight from the Boeing factory in Seattle to pick up the B777-300ER last year.  I remember though that my arm rest on my PEY window seat was rigid.

Hence, I did a complete change in our reservations – the two families of 8 pax in Economy as the arm rests can be put up so the babies can lie prone with their heads on their mommy’s lap.  However, Economy seat configuration is 3 – 3 – 3.  The fathers will have to sit on the aisle seat across.  And since Meg, at 6, is a tall girl, I got her a seat beside me in PEY. I paid for an extra seat in Economy so baby Liz has more room with her mom in their row.  Can’t do anything more with Noah and Sabrina who sleep only beside their mommy.

So, for those who have small children who can’t sleep on their own, PEY seat arrangement can be a problem.  It will still be best to book in Economy.  However, for those with children 6 years old and above, traveling in Premium Economy is most convenient as there are fewer seats with wider berth for more personal space, an amenity kit and better onboard meals. And the cost is about 50% lower than a Business Class ticket. Isn’t that a cinch?

It is also a good time to go to the US as the dollar-peso exchange is at an all time low at about P40.60 (yesterday’s rate) but it may change as dollar demands go up when Filipinos will start going to the US for the summer break.  In fact, by second half of April – or right after the Holy Week peak season – cost of airline ticket will be increasing as demand surge.  By May, it will be considered peak season until August (based on western summer) and even hotel rates will be higher.

As of this writing, we are all set to go, except for the packing -- which is a major undertaking with 4 little ones in tow.  We however survived with flying colors the month-long (I followed them over a week later, joining them in Orlando at our Disney World hotel) family vacation last year in late April until most of May. I suppose it will be easier this time, with the babies a year older and more savvy in their travel experiences.

So, it is best to book and buy your tickets as early as possible to get the seats and itinerary you want.  Be sure to ask if they have some offers – like the Travel Bundle of CX: if you buy two to six tickets in the same category (subsequent travels until end of the year), the other tickets are proportionately discounted according to the number of tickets purchased.  This is ideal for regular travelers with set schedules as there will be a penalty if you change flight dates.

A little bird told me that CX will put up a booth in one of the malls during any of the summer months, offering very attractive packages to Europe or any of the Asian countries.  Sorry, folks, US will not be included in the offers.  US flights are always fully booked.  It could be because CX flies direct to Cebu daily and Hong Kong is a shopping haven if one opts to stopover.  Most convenient!

 Travel safely now! (FREEMAN)