Lastminute.com and e-tickets

thor

I called Air India yesterday and they emailed an itinerary which had the e-ticket number and going by your responses it looks like this will be more than enough if I need to show them anything other than my passport.

Now if it hasn't been obvious already, I'm a bit inexperienced when it comes to flying overseas and when I have done it has always been direct. This time round my flight has two connecting stops meaning I will be changing planes twice. Each time this happens how will I get from one plane to the next. I seem to remember there being 'Transit' gateways. Should I head this way to catch the next plane and what if any documentation do they need to see(apart from the boarding pass for the next flight)?

eskbanker

thor said:

I called Air India yesterday and they emailed an itinerary which had the e-ticket number and going by your responses it looks like this will be more than enough if I need to show them anything other than my passport.

Now if it hasn't been obvious already, I'm a bit inexperienced when it comes to flying overseas and when I have done it has always been direct. This time round my flight has two connecting stops meaning I will be changing planes twice. Each time this happens how will I get from one plane to the next. I seem to remember there being 'Transit' gateways. Should I head this way to catch the next plane and what if any documentation do they need to see(apart from the boarding pass for the next flight)?

Where are the two stops?  The vast majority of airports where you're likely to change from one flight to another will have adequate signage to differentiate between where transit passengers should go versus those heading for arrivals, and the websites of the relevant airports should give you plenty of information....

thor

1st stop is Mumbai while the second is Kolkata. So I should head for transit when changing from one plane to the next?

eDicky

So from Kolkata you have another onward flight to your destination? What's the full itinerary that LastMinute have sold you? You will of course need a visa for India, with the domestic flight Mumbai-Kolkata you won't remain in international transit.

CKhalvashi

DullGreyGuy said:

thor said:

On the return flight I won't be able to check in online and print boarding passes which is why I was hoping I could do so at the airport with just my passport and e-ticket number.

At the end of the day, always check with your airline. 

Even going to small airports in not the most advanced countries and they all were happy using the QR code on the digital boarding card on my phone after checking in online.  I am sure there are exceptions but in those cases the airline's site should notify you and prevent online checking in etc. 

Not necessarily. Kutaisi and Yerevan (both experienced with Wizz) are examples of that, there are others.

In any event;

Passengers travelling on international sectors are issued with a confirmation slip instead of a boarding card. At the airport, they will need to contact the dedicated Baggage Drop counter to get their baggage, if any, registered and to get the document verification done.

https://www.airindia.in/web-check-in.htm

thor

eDicky said:

So from Kolkata you have another onward flight to your destination? What's the full itinerary that LastMinute have sold you? You will of course need a visa for India, with the domestic flight Mumbai-Kolkata you won't remain in international transit.

From Kolkata I will land in Tripura which is my final destination. I am aware that the last two flights will be domestic but all are with Air India so all the baggage will hopefully get there when I arrive without me having to transfer it all myself. I just hope changing from international to domestic is a smooth process.

eDicky

Ok thanks for clarifying that your destination is within India and not elsewhere with some wierd double transit concocted by LastMinute.

So disembarking at Mumbai head for Arrivals to enter the country, passing through immigration and customs, presumably retrieving your luggage for the latter then checking it back in for the domestic sectors. Hopefully Air India can confirm for you how the facilities for this function, or someone here who has recent experience, in case there's a more streamlined system of bag-tagging and drop-off etc. On the way back there will be the reverse process. At Kolkata you should be able change flights without having to handle your checked-in bag(s), this will become clear at Mumbai if not before.

You need to keep an eye on your flights in case there are cancellations or schedule changes, which an outfit like LastMinute are unlikely to inform you of, and which could affect your transit timings and possibilities. As long as you have the single booking and PNR with Air India they will need to get you to your destination regardless, but having the agent in between is not helpful.

CKhalvashi

thor said:

eDicky said:

So from Kolkata you have another onward flight to your destination? What's the full itinerary that LastMinute have sold you? You will of course need a visa for India, with the domestic flight Mumbai-Kolkata you won't remain in international transit.

From Kolkata I will land in Tripura which is my final destination. I am aware that the last two flights will be domestic but all are with Air India so all the baggage will hopefully get there when I arrive without me having to transfer it all myself. I just hope changing from international to domestic is a smooth process.

I can't speak for this particular airport, but from experience transit airports (I've got a lot of experience with Minsk, Kyiv KBP, Warsaw, Vienna, Paris CDG on occasion etc) are very easy to navigate.

Generally smaller transit hubs are a smoother experience than larger ones IMO, but that will largely be to experience and not necessarily down to fact.

thor

eDicky said:

Ok thanks for clarifying that your destination is within India and not elsewhere with some wierd double transit concocted by LastMinute.

So disembarking at Mumbai head for Arrivals to enter the country, passing through immigration and customs, presumably retrieving your luggage for the latter then checking it back in for the domestic sectors. Hopefully Air India can confirm for you how the facilities for this function, or someone here who has recent experience, in case there's a more streamlined system of bag-tagging and drop-off etc. On the way back there will be the reverse process. At Kolkata you should be able change flights without having to handle your checked-in bag(s), this will become clear at Mumbai if not before.

You need to keep an eye on your flights in case there are cancellations or schedule changes, which an outfit like LastMinute are unlikely to inform you of, and which could affect your transit timings and possibilities. As long as you have the single booking and PNR with Air India they will need to get you to your destination regardless, but having the agent in between is not helpful.

I managed to call Lastminute and according to them the luggage will be transferred automatically from plane to plane as all the flights are the same airline(Air India). I reckon that all the international checks will be done while still in transit when changing planes at Mumbai where the flight goes from international to domestic.

eDicky

Passengers entering any country have to present themselves together with their luggage for customs check and examination of their luggage if required by officials. This usually takes place after immigration at the point of entry.

It's possible that India has instituted a system whereby the luggage of arriving international passengers with connecting domestic flights is transferred onward for customs check at the final destination, somehow segregated from the domestic traffic, but I doubt it.

All will become clear, I wouldn't worry, but I think it's better to rely on information direct from Air India or their staff at departure, airport websites, other posters here who may have recent experience or your fellow Indian National passengers, rather than LastMinute CS.