jackiedada

The chauffeur drive, imo and ime, is a fairly good value add for the following:

1. Peace of Mind: When you are travelling to a new destination where you've never been before and don't speak the local language, you dont want to think about what kind of taxi you are going to get, how reliable is it going to be, whether the driver will fleece you or not or take you to the wrong destination. As an aside, we flew to Bangkok last month and used the local taxi service at the airport. They forced us to take a Toyota Qualis stating that our luggage would not fit into a Camry and made us pay 800 Baht for our hotel on Sukhumvit road. Normal fare is around 350-400 Baht. The extra 400 Baht didn't make as much difference to my wallet as much as the feeling of being fleeced did to my temper.

2. Consistent: Not sure what kind of car or taxi and in what condition (old, beaten up, or full of cigarette smoke) I might get hold up in. With EK, I know it will be a Merc C class (or something similar) in a fairly good condition at most places.

3. Hassle free: I don't want to call my driver at middle of the night (EK500 lands at 3:00 am and by the time you get out its close to 4) and then not have him show up for the rest of the day or drive erratically as he hadn't slept properly the whole night.

4. Where does your journey start? After you check in, or the moment you leave your home. With EK, your EK experience kicks in right from the moment you leave your home with the chauffeur drive service.

You probably find it mystifying why people like the chauffeur drive as much as I find it mystifying how so many of my B-School friends who run NGOs (they are now the in thing after dot-coms in India) or work for development organisations, choose to fly premium cabins on donations they've got in the name of alleviating poverty.