... in response to Questions about Air fare and flights., posted by capt david on May 6, 2003Just because she has never flown, I wouldn’t assume that she will have any major problems. This is probably a fun adventure that she is looking forward to. She will probably surprise you.
If she is scared to death of traveling alone, then I think Northwest has a program where they will have someone meet her and walk her through the airport mess. I think someone mentioned $100 before(?). I don’t know...to me it sounds more like a baby-sitting program for younger children. I wouldn’t sign her up for that unless she really wants it.
If she won’t be changing airlines, then it should be a simple matter to go through customs and immigration and get back on the correct flight. They will probably check her bags right back in immediately after clearing customs so she won’t have to drag them across the airport or anything like that. All she has to do is ask someone from Northwest or any airport security person if she gets lost or confused.
I’m not sure about Northwest, but with most airlines she may be able to get a much better ticket price through a good travel agent in the Phils. If you purchase her ticket here, I believe that it must be printed over there, so she would have to pick it up. Make sure they include the travel tax in the ticket price or she will have to pay it in cash before she departs the Philippines. The travel tax for economy class is P1,620 (about $31) I believe.
Ray