Aug 7, 2015, 5:53 am
Last edit by: NWIFlyer
Hand Baggage Only fares (HBO) are available on domestic and EuroTraveller routes. They are offered at a lower price to those able to travel without checked baggage on point to point journeys only - they are not offered with connections, stopovers or with Club Europe. There isn't a special fare bucket for HBO, it's just a discount to all domestic/ET fare buckets, so even expensive flexible tickets offer HBO. The discount varies depending on route. For example, going HBO on LHR-DUB gives a Ł10 discount; Ł15 on LHR-PRG; and Ł20 on LHR-ATH. Online Travel Agents often book into these fares (including building stopovers) and are sometimes less than transparent about the baggage restrictions during the booking process. HBO fares do not earn OnBusiness credits.
BAEC status passengers from Bronze upwards get advance seat choice with these tickets.
How to get seat allocation if HBO and without status:
- Pay up. You can pay up at OLCI if you don't like the seat. Costs vary from Ł7 to Ł21 per sector as a minimum, with differential pricing employed for better seats (e.g. an exit row on LHR-DUB was Ł23 in June 2017). Usually, but not always, this invalidates the cost saving of HBO. You can also pay up in Manage My Booking (MMB) before OLCI.
- Cancel OLCI at the "confirm contact details" stage. Go in again and/or later and you may be offered another seat.
- Corporate travel bookings still offer seating to HBO in some cases. Sometimes this ability is temporary and doesn't stick.
- Ask check-in or the lounge agent for a better seat, so far this seems to be possible. Lounge agents won't be able to assist where they aren't part of the ground handling for BA (e.g. LBA).
- If your airport has a Self Service Check In (SSCI) machine AND you do not print your boarding pass (see below) then you can select another seat there provided check-in is still open, typically up to 46 minutes before take off. So if you are being allocated a rotten seat and you can see better seats available, you can take a risk and complete/commence check-in later.
SSCI machines are available at: LHR, LGW, LCY, MAN, EDI (on the general purpose airport machines, but only those by the BA check-in area), NCE, BRU, OSL, BLL, AAR, MUC, AMS.
They are NOT available at: ABZ, BHD, GLA, LBA, NCL, DUB, CDG, ORY, SVG, DUS, TXL, MAH, CFU, OLB, CTA, CAG, FDH, ANE, UIP, BIO, HER, SVQ, PMI, BRI.
You can also do this operation the night before at LGW and LHR, details here.
By "printing boarding pass" we mean not selecting that option at OLCI, or saving, emailing, faxing and/or downloading the boarding pass on the App.
HBO fares - Have to pay to select seat in advance [free for GCH/SCH/BCHs @ 14 Jun 17]
Mar 2, 2015, 5:47 am
#31
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: London-etc
Posts: 3,893
And also
Your main piece of hand baggage can be up to 56cm x 45cm x 25cm (22in x 18in x 10in), including the handle, pockets or wheels at a maximum weight of 23kgs (51lbs)
Never seen that on BA, anybody been asked to weigh their hand luggage?
Your main piece of hand baggage can be up to 56cm x 45cm x 25cm (22in x 18in x 10in), including the handle, pockets or wheels at a maximum weight of 23kgs (51lbs)
Never seen that on BA, anybody been asked to weigh their hand luggage?
Mar 2, 2015, 5:47 am
#33
Join Date: Jun 2014
Location: London
Programs: BA GGL
Posts: 1,405
Oh dear, another valuable perk gone. I am hand luggage 99% of the time and this is one I particularly like. I can't help but feel that the simpler answer to all the recent changes would have been to raise fares a bit, and still offer all the features that distinguish them from the low cost airlines. The next one will be removal of lounge access for the lowest economy fare classes.
Mar 2, 2015, 5:50 am
#35
Join Date: Aug 2013
Location: SW London
Programs: BAEC Gold
Posts: 246
Not a big deal but just another small thing BA do to annoy loyal customers
Mar 2, 2015, 5:50 am
#36
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: London
Programs: Sir Ratechaser Seigneur de la Patience d'un Saint (Mucci), BA Silver, Starbucks Gold
Posts: 2,550
So, does this mean officially Iberia has a better product across the board when compare with BA as an elite member? So far no mentioning of Iberia charge for seat selection for oneworld elite travelling HBO fares? Or maybe it will be implemented across IAG?
After the launch of HBO fares, we are to have TP reduced in lowest fares and seat selection gone. Are we to expect next quarter:
1>, Free food removed?
2>, Free snacks available for a charge?
3>, Alcoholic drinks to incur a charge?
Come on BA. I challenge you to do it at once for all and make HBO fares a truly Ryanair fare! Then I will have no regret to fly Ryanair since Ryanair will always be cheaper than you when paying by credit card!
After the launch of HBO fares, we are to have TP reduced in lowest fares and seat selection gone. Are we to expect next quarter:
1>, Free food removed?
2>, Free snacks available for a charge?
3>, Alcoholic drinks to incur a charge?
Come on BA. I challenge you to do it at once for all and make HBO fares a truly Ryanair fare! Then I will have no regret to fly Ryanair since Ryanair will always be cheaper than you when paying by credit card!
4>, No Lounge access to anyone on HBO
5>, No Fast Track to anyone on HBO
6>, HBO fares must use online check in, there will be a Ł50 'administrative' charge for using desks at the airport
etc etc... utter nonsense from BA yet again. Never used one of these fares and now absolutely never will.
Mar 2, 2015, 5:50 am
#38
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: London UK
Programs: All Expired... :-(
Posts: 410
There is another thread on here where security at LHR called BA to check if a passenger could have 40-something kg in his carry on. The official rule was that any weight as long as the passenger can put it into the overhead lockers themselves. It was a US marine had packed spare parts for his car into his carry-on to take them to Germany.
Mar 2, 2015, 5:51 am
#39
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Thatcham, UK
Programs: BA Gold, HHonors Gold, Marriott Silver
Posts: 470
For me it's a big deal.
We book corp travel with an agent, that automatically selects cheapest fare which is often HBO. Flying SH, for business I only need HB thus it fits fine.
But I don't want to end up with a middle seat when I prefer Window personally.
We book corp travel with an agent, that automatically selects cheapest fare which is often HBO. Flying SH, for business I only need HB thus it fits fine.
But I don't want to end up with a middle seat when I prefer Window personally.
Mar 2, 2015, 5:51 am
#40
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: East Anglia, England
Programs: BA Gold
Posts: 2,056
I had to read the e-mail twice because I thought I misread it. The only possible reason I can think for BA to do this is that if two more people are travelling together that they might purchase a non-HBO in order that they can seat together. It remains to be seen how much it will cost. But to remove seat selection for SCH+ absolutely puzzles me. It's just a slap in the face to frequent flyers.
My wife and I routinely book HBO fares even when we travel with our three-year old. I cannot wait to see how much they want to squeeze out of us
It's the slow drip, drip of 'enhancements' that BA has been doing that I find annoying and/or puzzling. It's almost gotten to the point of when I wait for the beginning of the month and wonder 'what will they do now'. Gobsmacked!
H
My wife and I routinely book HBO fares even when we travel with our three-year old. I cannot wait to see how much they want to squeeze out of us
It's the slow drip, drip of 'enhancements' that BA has been doing that I find annoying and/or puzzling. It's almost gotten to the point of when I wait for the beginning of the month and wonder 'what will they do now'. Gobsmacked!
H
Mar 2, 2015, 5:51 am
#41
Join Date: Nov 2012
Location: Cambridgeshire
Programs: Varies
Posts: 1,296
Thanks BA. Just as I was about to leap from bronze to gold, the ability to select my seat for free has been reduced. I wonder if there'll be any perks left by the time I reach the dizzy heights.....
Mar 2, 2015, 5:52 am
#42
Join Date: Dec 2006
Posts: 217
That approach is probably exactly why they have made this rule change. They are gambling that business travellers will change up to a full fare - more than other travellers will change airlines.
I am going to take a different airline. The fares are often very similar - but I continued to take BA because of the benefits like seat allocation. Take those benefits (which we have had for decades) away and BA's loyalty value is eroded. They increasingly need to win business on price alone ... which is no way to run a premium airline.
Mar 2, 2015, 5:53 am
#43
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Thames Valley
Programs: BAEC, LHM&M, and even a dusty KLFB!
Posts: 893
This is hilarious (in kind of a pathetic way). Just seems a odd thing to do in the first place, since it basically translates into "we want to try to fleece our most frequent customers more than anyone else booking the same ticket" (since it's often frequent flyers who are more particular about seating, and who had the benefit before).
But it's also pretty poorly and confusingly worded, the ba.com link makes no mention of the new policy at all (and still suggests that everything is free for staus-holders), and to add a little bit more insult to injury, the Hillier-gram that informs us of this launches straight into the brusque enhancement message, and then throws in the "by the way, here's your statement" message at the end. Surely a more elegant approach might have been to switch the order of presentation of the two around - or is that just me...
But it's also pretty poorly and confusingly worded, the ba.com link makes no mention of the new policy at all (and still suggests that everything is free for staus-holders), and to add a little bit more insult to injury, the Hillier-gram that informs us of this launches straight into the brusque enhancement message, and then throws in the "by the way, here's your statement" message at the end. Surely a more elegant approach might have been to switch the order of presentation of the two around - or is that just me...
Mar 2, 2015, 5:54 am
#44
Suspended
Join Date: Apr 2011
Location: London
Programs: BA Gold, UA Silver, CC Gold, SPG Gold
Posts: 2,000
90% of my flying is LON => AMS or LON => TXL - please suggest alternative carriers