We made it successfully to Stockholm, Sweden where we are staying overnight. The Aeromexico flight from Guadalajara to Los Angeles went without any fuss. I wish I could say the same about the Norwegian Air Shuttle from LAX to Stockholm.
When we arrived at LAX, we changed terminals and got into a Catch-22. Norwegian does not check your bags until three hours before take off, so we could not check our bags or proceed to enter the terminal, beyond security. The Tom Bradley International terminal is very nice, but before security it is a service wasteland with few seats or restaurants. The bargain airlines it serves all have similar policies, so we found ourselves stuck in an old fashioned airport hub dump with several hundred of our closest friends for three hours.
When we finally checked bags and passed through security, our plane was three hours late for takeoff due to poor ground coordination. Luckily, we had premium seats which gave us access to the OneWorld lounge, so we waited and waited in relative comfort.
The buffet,
and Judy (rolling her eyes) fresh back from the showers.
The open bar.
The indoor fire pit.
Travel tip #1: if you book Norwegian, do not try to make close connections. They have very cheap fares (some on our flight flew to Europe one way for under $200 USD), but they are notorious for delays.
Travel tip #2: if you book with Norwegian, know that the low cost fare means everything will be extra. No water, no checked bags, weight limited carry-ons. If you want better services, upgrade to their Premium, which is something closer to Business class at other airlines.
Travel tip#3: if you can, fly the new 787 Dreamliner for long haul trips. It uses more modern technology to fly faster, with a darker cabin, better humidity and air pressure, leading to a significantly better experience in whatever class you fly.
Our biggest worry was losing our backpacks. So far we are two-for-two.
Final Travel tip: if you ever need to travel with a backpack, many airlines won’t let you take them as carry-ons. Just buy an Ikea Cary sack for a few bucks! They are large enough to hold even a very large backpack, and they are easy to spot coming off the luggage-go-round.
More from our first official stop tomorrow.
Go team Neary !!!!
You are on your way! We flew Brussels Airlines back from Venice a couple years ago when Lufthansa struck and left hundreds stranded. Chaotic and basic service was problematic, but we got home. Hope you can keep up your posts on The Way! Take care.
Good to hear you made it safely to part 1!
Stockholm is beautiful. I hope you have a chance to enjoy the city for a few days.
Those rolling eyes gave us a chuckle! Soooooo Judy!