Flying in/to Ukraine

[JayH]

DUBAI  to  ZHULYANY/KIEV
Looking at WIZZ AIR   site they are now flying this route at what I think has bargain price fares available.     As little as about $100 return is possible.  Flights in Dubai are from the Dubai World Central Airport which is about 1 hour across town from the better known Dubai International Airport --I will see what methods are available for transfer and cost between the airports for those that may need to arrive and depart from that airport.
Luggage has full normal 32kg allowance plus 10kg cabin bag included and you can make changes( no refunds). Aircraft are A320's -- Wizz Hungary has 70 of them being delivered. Company is owned by German finance consortium and being run be ex Malev Air ceo ( it went broke a few years ago-- it was quite a good airline -even if it did leave me holding a live ticket!!)
 This can be a very cheap and convenient way into Ukraine-- from time to time various airlines have bargain Dubai fares. If coming from Australia /NZ-- it can be cheap--  I am thinking I would book UK/EU destination ticket and break in Dubai .
These fares are available both ways-- so a very cheap flight from Ukraine to  a Dubai holiday!!

[JayH]

DONETSK - DORTMUND     WIZZ AIR 

Also showing return flights a low as  about $80 -- that is cheap.

For those going  to Lugansk /Zaporozhye/Dnepropetrovsk   that becomes and option  that should be looked at.

Also showing Luton UK as destination--but no flights listed yet.That may or may not be seasonal..

Arriving in EU in Ger  or Ned  or even UK it could be worth looking at  as a staging point.

For those who missed it-- my major suggestion is to get as close to Ukraine destination on port of arrival-- it being easier to do across town and inter city where more English is readily spoken  . 

[sleepycat]

About to undertake a Perth-->Dubai-->Moscow-->Kiev-->Kharkiv flights marathon.
Lets hope none of the flights are delayed so I don't miss the subsequent flight.
Is luggage going missing during a multi connecting flight trip a rare occurrence?

[JayH]

What airlines,airports ? Where are you breaking flight/s?  eg are you going thru to Kharkov in one hit?

[sleepycat]

I am going through to Kharkiv in one hit.

Emirates: Perth to Dubai (4.5 hrs layover) then to Moscow DME (3 hrs layover)
UIA:        Moscow DME to Kiev Borispol (3 hrs layover and pick up luggage) then from Borispol to Kharkiv

The Perth/Dubai/Moscow/Kiev leg on one plane ticket, with the Kiev/Kharkiv leg on a separate plane ticket.
At the time of booking the only direct flight (Perth/Dubai/Kharkiv) left were on business class tickets, no way I was shelling out 7-8k for a plane ticket so I have to get creative and stack my flights this way.

I am worried that with this many connecting flights the chances of losing the luggage may be higher...

[JayH]

OUCH !!!   You are right about the risks.  The best way would be to retrieve with each flight -- if not then certainly when changing airlines.
Easy to say now I know--but that is the sort of flight plan that would drive me crazy-- it actually highlights my point in this thread.
I would have headed for Istanbul and then direct to Kharkov--  it would have saved huge amount of time and probably cost no more.

Try and change UIA direct to Kiev--you never know. Call then on phone /maybe email and see what you can do.What are your dates--that could be why not much availability.  From now on into colder weather the potential for delays gets higher--  regardless -cross your fingers!! Incidentally-- a late arrival will see potential for lost bags increasing. See Calmissile comments in travel thread today about carrying immediate necessities with you in carry on bag.
Make sure you are carrying suitable outdoor clothing with you--for a Perth boy-- you aint ever seen cold like this !! That all adds to being a pia having to carry everywhere just in case your bags do not arrive with you. we all live and learn !!

[sleepycat]

Now I'm starting to feel paranoid about losing my luggage during transit!
What to do if my luggage doesn't arrive in Kiev but I have to get on another flight to Kharkiv?
What's the procedure with lost luggage in airports?

I'm flying out on 28th Nov. Hopefully no snow at that time and my flights won't be delayed.

[ML]

Is luggage going missing during a multi connecting flight trip a rare occurrence?

Does the bear NOT sheeeeet in the woods?

[ML]

Now I'm starting to feel paranoid about losing my luggage during transit!
What to do if my luggage doesn't arrive in Kiev but I have to get on another flight to Kharkiv?
What's the procedure with lost luggage in airports?

I'm flying out on 28th Nov. Hopefully no snow at that time and my flights won't be delayed.

Some things are better left UNDONE.  This trip with those connections is one of them.

[JayH]

"One thing I would like to work around is flight cancelations or changes and the terrible problems with our luggage. Once with my wife and last year with me our flights out of Chicago were changed after we had already checked our bags.
She was promised that her bags would follow her to her home in a small city 350 miles from Moscow. Once in Chicago and again in Moscow. They arrived 3 weeks later. There is modern airport where she lives or an overnight direct train so it should not have been a problem. You must go back to the airport once they do arrive. They do not deliver like in U.S. I was calling for help for he from U.S. and she was calling from Fathers flat.
Last Spring it was my turn. At the gate in Chicago they said not to worry, they were being transferred as we spoke. Lie. In Moscow three different people promised [ lied ] that my bags would arrive in her city the next day. 7 days and 15 phone calls later they did arrive. Only one thing stolen. I had small lock on bag but I think this only attracts more attention.
Of course my toilet kit and meds + more were always with me in separate carryon bag.
Anybody have any ideas on this?"

Quote is from  Chicagoguy in another thread --but relevant here.

[JayH]

http://www.flyuia.com/eng/company/ukraine-international-airlines/press/news/1658.html?news=1568&category=1

News
UIA opened ticket sales for Kiev – New York non-stop scheduled service
Ukraine International Airlines opened ticket sales for the carrier`s new non-stop Kiev – New York – Kiev flights. Tickets are available in Ukraine International Airlines` ticket offices, on UIA official website, as well as in the offices of authorised travel agencies.

The first non-stop flight en route Kiev (Boryspil International airport) – New York (John Kennedy International Airport) – Kiev (Boryspil International airport) will be operated April 25, 2014. Starting June 23, 2014, Kiev – New York non-stop scheduled flights will be operated daily.

Flight schedule :

Flight   
Destination

Days

Departure *

Arrival*

PS231

Kiev – New York

1234567

11:00

14:20

PS232

New York – Kiev

1234567

00:30

17:20

*Local time

Flights en route Kiev – New York – Kiev will be operated on modern Boeing 767 aircraft with three-class cabin layout – Business, Premium Economy, and Economy.

At Kiev Boryspil International airport flights from/to New York are optimally connected with other UIA destinations in Ukraine, South-East Asia, and the CIS countries.

A Kiev – New York round trip economy class ticket fare (all taxes and surcharges included) starts from UAH 7532. Passengers from the cities of Ukraine will be able to travel to New York at the price starting from UAH 7436. The fares are valid for traveling through to June 15, 2014.

Tickets for UIA flights to New York are available on UIA official website www.flyuia.com, the leading Ukraine`s carrier`s call center +380445815050 or 566 (portables), UIA ticket offices, and authorized travel agencies.

Detailed information on UIA is available on the company’s official website, www.flyuia.com.

[JayH]

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Re: Hello and Question about best place to buy Airfare
« Reply #11 on: Yesterday at 11:40:15 PM »
Quote
make sure to book all flights thru a travel agent or through the international carrier airline.

that way if a late-arriving flight breaks the connections, the international carrier will be responsible for fixing the problem. (new tickets, hotel if necessary, etc).

[JayH]

The post above I quoted from another thread-- it warrants some discussion.

It is certainly the simplest way to book airfares--but unlikely to be the cheapest.
Eg--  there are many flights and potential specials going to get to big destinations like Moscow and Kiev. So it is possible to access significant discounts on those routes.
Looking at local airline sites for in country flights can also get some incredible prices.As an example of  a fare I got at one time-- Kiev-Odessa for $18 while it is possible to pay 10 times that.It was cheaper than bus fare.
In the post above-- the guy is looking at fares from Los Angeles to Novosibirsk--- looking at possibilities  thru flights about $1300-- doing separate flights about $1050 at this stage -- so a reasonable $ saving.  The difference should cover any potential cost that could arise.Of course-- considering who is travelling and how well they can cope is important to consider

[southernX]

Now I'm starting to feel paranoid about losing my luggage during transit!
What to do if my luggage doesn't arrive in Kiev but I have to get on another flight to Kharkiv?
What's the procedure with lost luggage in airports?

I'm flying out on 28th Nov. Hopefully no snow at that time and my flights won't be delayed.

so sleepycat ,

just read this or i would have suggested to you to in nov to try & book with emirates .perth -dubai , then use fly dubai direct to kharkiv , total 19-21 hour flight for about $2300-$2700 depending on time of year , one two hour stopover at dubai , easy as ,

or from dubai direct to kiev  with fly dubai , then onto kharkiv
even that would seem easier than what you booked

SX

[Daz0187]

Hi JayH

Great thread mate,

What would you recommend for my girl and I.
We are planning for her to come here on tourist visa between May and July this year for 3 weeks.
What and where would you look for flights?
I am currently checking out Expidia.com but it seems that it will cost more to bring my girl here then for me to go there around this time.
The flights would either be between Moscow and Cairns
or Moscow and Brisbane

Cheers

Daz

[Anotherkiwi]

The flights would either be between Moscow and Cairns or Moscow and Brisbane

Whatever website or travel agent you use, I would just get her to Brisbane and stop over before thinking about carrying on north.  Brisbane is plenty big enough to spend a few days sightseeing, and doing this will also give her time get acclimatised to the heat and to the fact that she must ALWAYS use high factor sunscreen if she's going outside for more than a few minutes.  I haven't been as far north as Cairns, but Townsville was certainly enough of a change in temperature from Brisbane for me to notice.

Just out of interest, I tried Skyscanner for a trip in May, and was quite surprised to see that a return trip from Moscow to Cairns is about $250 cheaper than from Moscow to Brisbane ($1,550 v $1,800)!  Weird! 

[sleepycat]

so sleepycat ,

just read this or i would have suggested to you to in nov to try & book with emirates .perth -dubai , then use fly dubai direct to kharkiv , total 19-21 hour flight for about $2300-$2700 depending on time of year , one two hour stopover at dubai , easy as ,

For my upcoming May 2014 trip I have already booked the Perth-Dubai (Emirates) & Dubai-Kharkov (Flydubai) schedule. Costed me $2052 about a month ago. On Expedia.com the price for this trip tends to go up & down within a matter of days, sometimes by hundreds of dollars. If I am to buy the same trip now it will be about $2,800. I really don't know why the price for this trip fluctuates so much. Maybe not many seats for the Dubai-Kharkov section so they can charge whatever price they like? It seems flying Perth-Dubai-Kiev is a lot cheaper than flying Perth-Dubai-Kharkov generally.

[The Natural]

I have done a little initial Research on Our trip to Kerch in the summer. The best I've found so far is a Direct flight from Our airport to Gardermoen (Oslo) where we will check into a hotel for the night. Next day at 12:20 Turkish Airlines from Oslo, via Istanbul and then to Simferopol at 20:30. We'll check into a hotel there before taking a taxi or Train to Kerch.

This route as it fits With the dates and is as little demanding as possible for Our little Erik.

[JayH]

I have done a little initial Research on Our trip to Kerch in the summer. The best I've found so far is a Direct flight from Our airport to Gardermoen (Oslo) where we will check into a hotel for the night. Next day at 12:20 Turkish Airlines from Oslo, via Istanbul and then to Simferopol at 20:30. We'll check into a hotel there before taking a taxi or Train to Kerch.

This route as it fits With the dates and is as little demanding as possible for Our little Erik.

I like this sort of route plan-it gets you close to where you plan on going-- and minimises airport waiting times.
Turkish Airlines has world wide net-- and Istanbul is not far in flying time into various central and southern Ukrainian destinations. Often very competatively priced also!!

[JayH]

Hi JayH

Great thread mate,

What would you recommend for my girl and I.
We are planning for her to come here on tourist visa between May and July this year for 3 weeks.
What and where would you look for flights?
I am currently checking out Expidia.com but it seems that it will cost more to bring my girl here then for me to go there around this time.
The flights would either be between Moscow and Cairns
or Moscow and Brisbane

Cheers

Daz

Good to see you are still in the process !!  Having a quick look-- I got about $1400 approx to either destination.
To get best price-- decide on destination and approximate dates as soon  as possible.You will be best booking soon-- 2 reasons--price and also visa application !
One of the issues with price is this-- at my quick look--best price was on BA-- MOW-LON-Singapore-Brisbane.  That is quite a few hours in the wrong direction and back again-- one of my dreads in planning!!
It should be easy enough to find flights from Moscow to China at reasonable price-- and Chinese airlines now serve both prospective destinations and offer competative prices-- and it is most direct route.

[JayH]

For my upcoming May 2014 trip I have already booked the Perth-Dubai (Emirates) & Dubai-Kharkov (Flydubai) schedule. Costed me $2052 about a month ago. On Expedia.com the price for this trip tends to go up & down within a matter of days, sometimes by hundreds of dollars. If I am to buy the same trip now it will be about $2,800. I really don't know why the price for this trip fluctuates so much. Maybe not many seats for the Dubai-Kharkov section so they can charge whatever price they like? It seems flying Perth-Dubai-Kiev is a lot cheaper than flying Perth-Dubai-Kharkov generally.

At least this time your route plan is good !! LOL
I will explain what I would  do-- use frequent flyer points to get to Dubai on one way ticket. Cost about $300.I can get Dubai -Ukraine flight at about $200 return -- or half that one way. Buying Istanbul-Aus ticket return price is possible most times around  $1000 . In effect you can have 2 trips for what you just paid--or not much more.

[ML]

For those of you who don't already  know  about it; check out 

http://matrix.itasoftware.com/

I think it is one of most complete search engines around with a lot of options that try  to find you cheapest flights on various dates, etc.

[JayH]

For those of you who don't already  know  about it; check out 

http://matrix.itasoftware.com/

I think it is one of most complete search engines around with a lot of options that try  to find you cheapest flights on various dates, etc.

ML--it was posted upthread--- it may be better for internal US flights- I have not checked that out. I am researching how it checks flights-- but it is nowhere near as cheap on the samples I have checked.
My guess is that site looks at airline availability and price-- to a degree that can often lock airlines into a higher price because of all sorts of national landing rights agreements.
The very best fares( particularly on international)  are often offered thru re-sellers where the airline is not seen to be discounting fares.
As an example of exactly that-- a typical fare offered by Qantas and Emirates from Australia to London is say $2020. Buying the same flights in reverse direction I have bought out of London for $1200 approx.It seems crazy-- but it is how the system works.

[Faux Pas]

ML--it was posted upthread--- it may be better for internal US flights- I have not checked that out. I am researching how it checks flights-- but it is nowhere near as cheap on the samples I have checked.
My guess is that site looks at airline availability and price-- to a degree that can often lock airlines into a higher price because of all sorts of national landing rights agreements.
The very best fares( particularly on international)  are often offered thru re-sellers where the airline is not seen to be discounting fares.
As an example of exactly that-- a typical fare offered by Qantas and Emirates from Australia to London is say $2020. Buying the same flights in reverse direction I have bought out of London for $1200 approx.It seems crazy-- but it is how the system works.

Matrix is the most comprehensive information of all flights world wide. It's not a search engine and you can't purchase your flights there but you can see all flight options to a destination. It takes more work for the most part and that turns some folks off