I’m thinking of finally booking a ticket on an airline that has been on my radar for years. It sure won’t be straightforward, but I’m tempted, so I’m curious to hear what the OMAAT community thinks…
The routing I’m considering from Miami to Marseille
I need to get from Miami (MIA) to Marseille (MRS) soon. Most normal people would try to book a one-stop routing as a single ticket. As a matter of fact, I even see a good one-stop option in business class using miles at the saver level… a rare treat nowadays!
However, I’m not a normal person. As y’all know, I always try to experience new products, no matter how far out of the way that takes me.
That brings me to an interesting routing that I’m considering. Instead of one connection on one ticket, the routing I’m considering involves at least four flights across three tickets. But hey, nobody said that trying to constantly try different airlines would be easy, right? 😉
Anyway, Air Algerie is an airline that has long intrigued me:
- I’ve heard almost nothing but bad things about the carrier, which is of course an incredibly appealing reason for me to want to fly the airline
- However, the airline is finally modernizing its long haul fleet with new Airbus A330-900neos, and at least the hard product looks quite good
The thing is, Air Algerie fares are typically very high, despite the low quality product. The airline doesn’t seem to lean that much into being a connecting carrier, and instead, is focused largely on the Algeria market (getting a visa for Algeria is kind of a pain).
But, I am seeing a decent Air Algerie fare from Montreal (YUL) to Tunis (TUN) via Algiers (ALG). Admittedly Montreal isn’t my origin, and Tunis isn’t my destination, but those are minor details in the scheme of things!
My only regret with that Air Algerie itinerary is that the connecting flight isn’t on the rare Boeing 737-600, which Air Algerie flies. Instead, it’s on an Airbus A320… which isn’t even part of Air Algerie’s fleet. Instead, it appears this is a wet leased plane, belonging to Bulgaria’s Fly2Sky. “Lucky, you only care about luxury.” Psssh, please! Who wouldn’t want a little Bulgarian culture when flying between Algeria and Tunisia?
I then have two options. The first option is to throw a fit in the gate area, and claim I’m confused, and thought my flight was actually “to Nice” (which isn’t too far from Marseille). 😉 The second option is to just book Tunisair on the Airbus A320neo, an aircraft type on the airline that I haven’t yet flown.
Getting to Montreal also isn’t that complicated, so this actually doesn’t strike me as a terribly roundabout routing. I promise to behave, as I’m not looking to get banned from any other North African countries!
Do I spend a night or two in Tunis, while I’m at it?
I could fly this itinerary the whole way through from Miami to Marseille with the three stops, with some decent buffers along the way. However, I’m also tempted to spend a night or two in Tunis. I last visited Tunisia nearly a decade ago, as I flew Tunisair’s A330 from Tunis to Montreal.
I have fond memories of my brief visit, and am generally tempted to return. Any thoughts on where to stay? The Four Seasons Tunis is located in Gammarth, a nice coastal area, and is one of the more reasonably priced properties belonging to the brand (while still being insanely priced by local standards).
Is there any other charming hotel I should consider? The Tunis Marriott Hotel only opened in 2022, and looks quite good for a standard Marriott. However, it seems to be more of a generic city hotel, while the Four Seasons is more of a resort.
If there are any options I’m missing (even if not affiliated with a major hotel group), I’d love to hear them!
Bottom line
Air Algerie has been on my radar for years, and now the airline seems to actually have a pretty decent long haul hard product. I can’t decide if that makes it more or less appealing for me to fly with the airline… but either way, I’m down!
While an itinerary from Montreal to Tunis doesn’t necessarily seem practical when trying to fly from Miami to Marseille, I’m always interested in an adventure like that. So please let me know if y’all are curious about the Air Algerie experience, or if it’s just me…
Should I fly Air Algerie’s A330neo business class? If so, should I spend a night or two in Tunis?
There's certainly enough to see and do in Tunis to make it worthwhile to stay 2 nights. My late wife and I spent 8 days in Tunisia (pre-revolution) and loved. We never got bored and the food was fantastic.
Looking at flightradar, LZ-FSA will be operating the flight to Tunis. This Aircraft has a proper Business Class seat and the LOPA is on the fly2sky website.
Interesting to see that AH4002 has a two hour delay every other day…
I very much like this Four Seasons Tunis idea... "good luck, we're all counting on you."
I flew them domestic a couple years ago and they were good. Well organized boarding and polite employees.
Whatever you do don't go landside in Algiers unless you have more than two hours to get back in. Great city though!
In my best Emperor impersonation, "DEW IT"
"Power! Unlimited power!!"
Do it! Do it all!
Not crazy at all, Lucky. Hope you do this. And I say 2 nights in Tunis.