Urgent - booking plane tickets after name change

[Badgerella 5]

I will be traveling back to Croatia mid September. I have been in the US for a year now, married and living happily with a new name.

In order to get from the US to Croatia and back, I need both my Croatian passport and my US green card.

** My Croatian passport is in my old, maiden name.

** My US green card is in my new, married last name.

** All Croatian documents, IDs and the like, are in my old, maiden name.

** I also have an US drivers licence, issued in my new, married name.

** I own a marriage certificate, of course, explaining what happened about a year ago.

Now the question is: Which name do I use when I am booking my plane tickets?

I need to register my marriage and name change with the Croatian authorities while there, so on my way back to the US, all my Croatian documents will have my new name on them, too.

Thank you all in advance.

[me&me 0]

The name that matcing the passport you are traveling with. As the airlines check your name in your ticket and your passport when you check in and they have to match.

[Badgerella 5]

I understand that, but what do I do in my particular case, which I assume is a case for many people in this similar situation?

I will be traveling to Croatia as Maiden Name, but on my way back to the US, I will be Married Name. So how do I sort that issue?

[TBoneTX 45,267]

I will be traveling to Croatia as Maiden Name, but on my way back to the US, I will be Married Name. So how do I sort that issue?

Presuming that your return ticket (half of a round-trip ticket?) is also in your maiden name, simply use your Croatian passport again to board the return flight. When you land in the U.S., present your green card to the Customs agents.

My wife has done the above without problem.

[Badgerella 5]

I will try to explain this one more time - on my way back to the US, from Croatia, I will have a NEW passport, in my NEW, MARRIED NAME. So the tickets, assuming I buy them in my maiden name, which is the name that I now have in my one and only valid passport, will NOT MATCH.

At that point, I will be able to have the maiden-name-passport in my possession, but it will be void/cancelled and there will also be another one, in my married name, as a good, valid one.

[TBoneTX 45,267]

Aha! Got it, now.

Perhaps all that you can do is to confirm the policy with your airline(s), and contact the airline personnel on both ends of your trip in order to make sure that your travel record is noted in the computer system. I would try to get something in writing. If it's feasible, it may be worth making a special trip to your departure airport (or to a ticket office of your departure airline) to meet with someone in person who can annotate the computer and give you written verification.

Regardless, I'd carry every piece of documentation that you mentioned -- marriage certificate included. I would NOT rely on this alone, without talking with suitable airline personnel ahead of time.

[Badgerella 5]

Okay, thank you! I am still waiting to her from my Embassy, as well as from someone who I know might have done it herself.

If anyone's done it before, I'd gladly appreciate some input, too.