How lucky we are on BA!

Old Jan 15, 2012, 5:58 pm
  #31  
Suspended
 
Join Date: Jul 2011
Posts: 487
Originally Posted by meester69
That was your mistake. All of these mass transportation services *aim* to get you to the airport 3 hours early. In reality, it might be even earlier than that. But it's no surprise, you wouldn't want an entire coachful of tourists being late to check-in.


How it could have gone? You book your private taxi for 30 each way, never mind that the bus is included with your package, just because it's free doesn't mean it's worth using, you get to the hotel on arrival promptly in time for dinner, with someone waiting with your name on it, and you enjoy an extra 3 hours by the pool and eating lunch in the resort, instead of in a horrible bus/airport.
I agree entirely, I took a trip to the french alps a few weeks ago where the driver had us wait outside in the rain, while he brought the bus around. On the way back, I booked my own transport, ended up having an amazing meal home-cooked by the innkeeper in Moutiers(we ended up having a great conversation even though she didn't know any english and I didn't know any french) and then an easy early morning transfer.

For those who are interested, you can also book helicopter transfers for about double the price of a cab. Take a took at White Ski Helicopters - it may be a little pricey, but it's a great way to start and end a trip taking a look at the mountains you just skiied and then walking on the tarmac to your waiting plane(very private-jet like).
OxonCantab is offline  
Old Jan 15, 2012, 7:31 pm
  #32  
formerly known as lady1964
 
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: Yorkshire
Programs: BA Bronze
Posts: 1,181
I've done several package hols with my mum over the last few years, to Sharm, Hurghada & Taba Heights.

I hate the whole charter flight, the wait for the coach etc all so eloquently described by someone else on here. However, we did book the package equivalent of Silver (or Gold?) service. Seat in front row or 3, meal included, priority baggage & first or 2nd drop off after leaving the airport. Of course there is an extra charge for this service, about 25 pp I think, not an unreasable amount to pay for these few extras but this is the only way I would do a package hol again.

We've just booked a week in Bali, booked direct with the hotel and have today had an email from the resort asking for our flight details for the VIP airport pick up, how civilised
LadyB is offline  
Old Jan 15, 2012, 8:27 pm
  #33  
FlyerTalk Evangelist
 
Join Date: Jun 2004
Location: LON, ACK, BOS..... (Not necessarily in that order)
Programs: **Mucci Diamond Hairbrush** - compared to that nothing else matters (+BA Bronze)
Posts: 15,063
Originally Posted by meester69
The package coach is the cause of at least half of all package holiday unpleasantness.

What's wrong with it? First thing is you get off the flight at about 9pm, tear through immigration, get your bags, and then? You wait for all the other passengers to -very slowly- do the same. This takes over an hour from landin.

Then the bus, being gigantic, is limited to about 50mph, and actually goes much slower. Eventually you make it to your resort, but wait - it's not yours! It's the first of thirteen stops and yours, an hour later, is dead last.

By the time you make it to your hotel it's midnight, and that delicious dinner buffet included with your package is long since over. Oops. You make it to bed at 1am in a foul mood.

A week or two later, it's time to go home, and your tour rep informs you that your pickup time is 11am. What???? The return flight is not until 4pm, why are you being deprived of your delicious lunch and pool time? That's because you are first pickup, it will therefore take 2 hours to get to the airport, where you will arrive 3 hours early for the convenience of the tour operator - not your own. The airport is of course a charter hellhole, crowded with fractious children, limited, overpriced food, and the queue to check-in takes an hour and a half.
You have just summed up the package Skiing Holiday perfectly, and made me laugh out loud! Thanks. ^
Jimmie76 is offline  
Old Jan 15, 2012, 10:38 pm
  #34  
 
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Middle Earth, and often worse
Programs: BAEC Silver, A3 Gold
Posts: 2,177
Originally Posted by Fruitcake
Thanks for a timely reminder of how the other half sometimes lives.

Doesn't mean BA can't continue improving though!
Agreed, but we have to remember that we live in an imperfect world and cr*p happens regularly, regardless of the airline we fly on/with. AKA "Murphy was an optimist".
tmac100 is offline  
Old Jan 15, 2012, 11:32 pm
  #35  
FlyerTalk Evangelist
 
Join Date: Jan 2003
Location: somewhere north of London, UK
Programs: HH Gold, BA Silver, Accor Silver
Posts: 15,245
Originally Posted by OxonCantab
For those who are interested, you can also book helicopter transfers for about double the price of a cab. Take a took at White Ski Helicopters
Have you got a weblink for this? No sign of google but very interested as every time I've looked at helicopters it's been more like 10-20x the price of a cab.

Edit - do you mean Whitetracks? If so, seems more like a matching service so you're arguably going to need a fair degree of luck if you can get this to work at that sort of price. I see they have a single flight on the register leaving Courcheval on Saturday to meet a Jet 2 flight, and presumably if the flight isn't full you're given the 'option' of splitting the costs for the empty seats.

Last edited by Swiss Tony; Jan 15, 2012 at 11:39 pm
Swiss Tony is offline  
Old Jan 16, 2012, 12:28 am
  #36  
 
Join Date: May 2006
Location: GVA
Programs: BA Gold, LH FTL, KL/AF Ivory
Posts: 1,874
Living in GVA, I will do almost anything to avoid the airport on Saturdays during the ski season. There are about 10 times as many passengers as most of the rest of the time and it isn't pleasant even if you can use CE checkin and Fast-Track security and have lounge access.
catandmouse is offline  
Old Jan 16, 2012, 1:09 am
  #37  
 
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: MAN/BHX
Programs: ABBA
Posts: 6,027
Unfortunatly my parents live in a par of greence only served in summer, and only by package holidays, not even U2/FR

Olympic used to fly from ATH until the recent troubles. I think Air Berlin will have an occasional flight this summer, but spare seats on charters offer a direct flight. It's just a shame that a gold card doesn't buy you lounge access now, a double poke in the eye from BA, who don't run any (international) flights from Manchester at all.

The alternative is a 7 hour drive from Athens or Thesoloniki, having done MAN-LHR-ATH or MAN-LGW-SKG
paulwuk is offline  
Old Jan 16, 2012, 1:33 am
  #38  
BOH
 
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: UK
Programs: IC Hotels Spire, BA Gold
Posts: 8,654
Took a charter holiday last summer with my daughter to Minorca. I feared the worst having bitter memories of the previous one about 15 years ago.

But LGW was fine....no queues whatsoever at the Thomson check-in on the outbound. The plane was a 763 and even at 8-abreast there seemed plenty of room ^

Coach transfer from MAH to the resort took about 45 minutes with only 2 stops prior to ours...but we got to see a couple of the other resorts by doing this and liked the look of one so much we did a day trip there during our holiday.

Two negatives were the check-in queue on the return leg which was about 30-40 minutes wait. And the prices of a drink and meal at MAH - IIRC 2 small slices of pizza and one small bottle of water was about 14.
BOH is offline  

Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Manage Preferences - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service -

This site is owned, operated, and maintained by MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Designated trademarks are the property of their respective owners.