We are going to be sailing from Rome to Villefranche on the Whisper in 4 weeks and have some questions about our connecting flight from Nice going through London Gatwick on British Airways and then on to Dallas on American.

Will we have to claim our luggage and go through customs in London and recheck our bags or will they go straight through to Dallas? I know we will have to clear customs in Dallas, but wasn't sure if we have to do it in the UK also.

Also, as far as claiming the refund on the EU VAT tax for stuff that we buy in Italy and France, do we have to do the refund at the airport in Nice before we leave or can we wait and do it in London? We have a 3 hour layover in London, which would give us ample time to get it done. At least I think. My wife just discovered that there is a Harrod's at the airport!!!

Thanks for the help.

You definitely do not need to go through customs.

In a similar situation a couple of years ago, we did our VAT at CDG, our last airport before leaving the EU. I think it would be the same for you. However, I think you can do it sooner; at least others have reported being able to do where they bought the merchandise.

Bags you check all the way through. Not sure about the VAT however getting through London can take THREE HOURS. I never allow myself any less time than 2 1/2 hours that is the minimum. It may be easier to do the Vat in Nice in my opinion.

You have to get in a bus then transfer to the terminal. Then you have to find another bus to transfer to another terminal. This is all very confusing by the way. Then you have to go through security again and the lines can be longer than you can even imagine. Just depends on how you hit it. Sometimes your gate can be a 20 minute walk from the main area of the aiport alone. Then you have to find the Vat refund area and deal with the inevitable crowd in London.

Nice is so much smaller and less confusing I would suggest you do it there.

Harrods is a very small shop but has some nice things of course. Mostly coffee mugs that type of thing. There is a huge shopping area though in a big circle, she can be busy for a LONG time IF you have the time.

I dont mind the flying it is the getting through the airports that I dislike. Nothing we can do about it just have to grin and bear it - worth it for the trip.

I am going to write up the VAT refund process for South Africa for the roarers. What a mess that was. Not sure it is worth it unless you spend a lot of money. We did it primarily to learn the ropes. It took us about an hour total to get back around $10.00.

Our major purchase was a painted Ostrich egg. We saw this egg at Cape Point but thought we could get it for less elsewhere these eggs are everywhere. Well we never saw it again. Walked our tootsies off in the Waterfront looking for it, finally gave up. Lo and behold at the airport in the domestic terminal we found it and it was cheaper. I have always thought the airport was the most expensive place to purchase items however, this is about the third time I have discovered better prices at an aiport.

Marc and Ngaire, thanks for the information. Good to hear that we don't have to clear customs in London. Ngaire, I also know what you mean about airports. DFW is a breeze compared to most. A couple of years ago we almost missed our connecting flight in Madrid to Barcelona. We deplaned, we put in a bus to take us to the terminal, pointed in the wrong directions to another bus that took as to the wrong end of the terminal, had to come back through customs, found an Iberia rep (not our favorite airline btw) to try and help us, who then chastised us for getting on the wrong bus, had to hurry to the gate to catch the bus, to load us onto the sardine can they called a plane. Whew!!! BTW our friends did miss the plane on the return in Madrid and had to spend the night there and catch a plane out the next day.

On the VAT tax, maybe the key is for Diana not to buy anything. Like that is really going to happen. LOL She is actually a very wise shopper. She is checking prices here to determine whether with the Euro v. Dollar situation whether it will be worthwhile or not. She wants to buy some Frette linens in Italy, but I think they cost more than the cruise! :eek:

Hi Don,
The Nice airport is small, but do make sure you give yourself enough time to get through security. Last summer we had a ticket mix-up that took some time to clear up, then did some shopping. About 30 minutes before our flight, we tried to get to our gate, but found an extremely long line through security. It filed all around the shopping/gate area upstairs. We had to be bumped up in line so we wouldn't miss our flight. Not sure if it was an extraordinary day or what.

Ngaire, I couldn't agree more with you about hating airports. I especially detest LAX -- I swear, that is the most poorly-run airport I've ever been to, and it's the one I have to fly from any time I'm going anywhere substantial. (I try to fly out of Burbank whenever I can, as it's tiny and fast and EASY, not to mention closer!)

It seems that no matter how much time I give myself at LAX, I always end up standing in one of the multiple lines we have to wait in panicking because it's taking so long and I'm positive we're going to miss our flight. And it seems as soon as we get through one line, we see that there's another one we have to now go through that looks even longer and slower! AAACK! I have nightmares about this stuff.

This time, my mother and I are giving ourselves almost FOUR HOURS at LAX to board our flight to Paris. I'm sure we won't need it...in fact, now that I'm giving myself this much time, it will be just my luck that it'll take less than an hour to get through everything, right? :rolleyes: That's okay, we've resigned ourselves to spending all that time there, just to avoid that horrendous sinking stomach feeling of fear that you're going to miss your flight. We're bringing plenty of magazines to while away the time, whether we're standing in lines or waiting at the gate. It's all part of the process, I guess.

Don, Tell Diana she can get the Frette Linens here. There is a store in Beverly Hills and another one in South Coast Plaza. When they have a sale, the items are 1/2 price.

Also, at Christmas time, Costco had Frette terrycloth bathrobes for $34.00. They were everyone's favorite gift from us last year.

I would recommend that you do the VAT refund stuff as you leave France. The UK is sorta in the EU and sorta not...at least for tax purposes.

Doug

Beth, thanks for the advice. We did plan on extra time before we leave Nice, but that was because the Cannes Film Festival is just finishing up and the Monaco Grand Prix is that weekend, so I figured the airport to be a little busier than normal, hence why I was wondering whether we could do that VAT tax refund in London. I guess we will try to get it done in Nice and then have London as a backup, just in case.

LeeAnne, I know what you mean about LAX. What a pain. I think that is why it is called LAX!!! LOL

Kathy, I know Diana has already called the one at SCP and they did tell her about some that were on sale. Of course the ones she liked weren't. Now she has a good idea though of what they run, so she can compare.

ngaire

We've found that "Out of Africa" in the J'burg Intl. area at the airport is a good place for ostrich eggs and other African craft items - may be a bit more expensive, but very convenient to do shopping just before you go home and not have to carry items around. Huge selection of ostrich eggs. Really enjoyed your photos - wonderful leopard sighting - the bull Kudu is my favorite antelope - beautiful! Seeing the bull elephant with ears spread in a mock charge can be heart stopping!

Don,

I totally empathize with your experience in the Madrid airport. I HATE IT!!!! :mad: Eventhough I speak spanish, they are not very helpful and the airport is one of the most confusing that I've ever been in. We had a similar situation as yours several years ago also transfering to an Iberia flight to Barcelona.

This year after NINJA I'm flying from Copenhagen to Madrid to visit my son who will be studying in the north of Spain. I'm so paranoid about changing planes in Madrid that I'm spending the night in Madrid ( Which I don't consider a hardship :) )and taking a plane the next day to the city where he is.

Don,

I am so glad you brought up this question about the Nice and London Gatwick airports as we will be flying home from Nice at the end of April from a land trip. We leave Nice on a 10:30 pm British Airways flight into Heathrow. We will stay at one of the airport hotels (can't remember right now) and then we fly home around noon the next day from Gatwick. I am so glad I know to do the Vat in Nice AND to get there extra early for the lines. Thanks to all who replied above!

These kinds of little details drive me nuts..... :ohmy: I much prefer the fun easy stuff like where to eat and stay and shop!!! :hyper: (Who doesn't, right?)

Maria, that is one airport that I hope not to fly into and make a connection again. I would much rather connect in London or Paris given a choice.

Ginny, you are flying into Heathrow, but back out of Gatwick? I am assuming that you are taking the nonstop on American into DFW, but there is a 10:35pm flight into Gatwick on BA, which would be much more convenient than having to travel from Heathrow to Gatwick in the morning. Just trying to help.

Don,

"NEVERMIND" as Gilda Radner used to say. I checked my tickets and we ARE flying into Gatwick the night before our flight back to Dallas!. For some reason, I was thinking we were flying into Heathrow. Well, I am glad I double checked that. But I may have us booked overnight at a Heathrow hotel!! Thanks for mentioning that BA flight into Gatwick, Don. I am sure I would have checked it this week, but ya never know.

I have been planning too many trips at the same time and getting confused! HELP!!

Now I feel much better about the whole thing!

I know what you mean about the trip planning. We have this cruise in 4 weeks, a cruise from Barbados to FLL in November, the MUSH cruise in August of 2006, and today I was looking at a Seabourn Transatlantic for April of 2006, and now they are all starting to run together. My head is spinning!!! :ohmy:

Don,

There is a Frette linen outlet store about a half hour outside of Florence.
Contact Frette for exact location, hours, etc.

However, be aware that sheets are VERY heavy and add alot of weight to your luggage.

If you ever get to the NY area, we have a Frette outlet store up in Woodbury Commons which is an outlet mall about an hour north of NYC. They carry all the high end brands.

CJ

CJ, thanks for the info. I know exactly where Woodbury Commons is. We used to shop there when I worked in Cornwall-on-Hudson. I didn't realize there was a Frette store there. Considering our limited time in Florence, I don't think we can make the one there.

That is a good q Don,

Do your VAt in Nice ..
That customs clearing probably would happen in Dallas .. but that is a good Q and please fill us in on your return.