Hassle of Heathrow
Jul 29, 07, 10:04 pm
#1
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Hassle of Heathrow
The latest passenger figures show the airport is losing travellers to other leading European hubs. There was a 1.8 per cent year-on-year fall in passenger traffic at Heathrow in June and a 1.2 per cent fall in the first half of this year, according to BAA.
Jul 29, 07, 10:59 pm
#3
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Yes - BAA runs some or all aspects of a number of airports outside the UK, including BWI, Boston-Logan, Pittsburgh and Indianapolis.
http://www.baa.com/portal/page/Corpo...0357e120a____/
http://www.baa.com/portal/page/Corpo...0357e120a____/
Jul 30, 07, 9:38 am
#4
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Originally Posted by christep
Yes - BAA runs some or all aspects of a number of airports outside the UK, including BWI, Boston-Logan, Pittsburgh and Indianapolis.
http://www.baa.com/portal/page/Corpo...0357e120a____/
http://www.baa.com/portal/page/Corpo...0357e120a____/
Aug 12, 07, 7:16 pm
#5
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Now comes another article about the stress of Heathrow:
http://www.sundaymirror.co.uk/news/s...8487-19613204/
"Holidaymakers flying out of Heathrow Airport suffer more stress than fighter pilots in action or police in riots."
http://www.sundaymirror.co.uk/news/s...8487-19613204/
"Holidaymakers flying out of Heathrow Airport suffer more stress than fighter pilots in action or police in riots."
Aug 12, 07, 8:13 pm
#6
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Originally Posted by Global_Hi_Flyer
Now comes another article about the stress of Heathrow:
http://www.sundaymirror.co.uk/news/s...8487-19613204/
"Holidaymakers flying out of Heathrow Airport suffer more stress than fighter pilots in action or police in riots."
http://www.sundaymirror.co.uk/news/s...8487-19613204/
"Holidaymakers flying out of Heathrow Airport suffer more stress than fighter pilots in action or police in riots."
To be fair, four people is hardly a representative sample of the traveling public.
Aug 12, 07, 8:15 pm
#7
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Originally Posted by LessO2
To be fair, four people is hardly a representative sample of the traveling public.
Aug 13, 07, 8:41 am
#8
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This is where our *Gold membership pays us back (since we've been forced to fly AC to get the benefit.) Heathrow is cheap for us to fly to compared to other European airports, precisely because AC is trying to keep their numbers up on those flights. Our *Gold gets us upgrade certificates, which gets us Exec class seats, therefore the priority security queue.
We also use the concierges at Heathrow as much as we can and always stop in to say hi to them even if we have no need for their service. (We exchange Christmas cards with one as well.)
Once through security, we run through the 'shopping mall' and settle into the SAS London lounge. Free internet, good food, great atmosphere.
*Gold gets us the arrivals lounge at Heathrow as well, showers, free internet, breakfast and cheerful greetings after a long flight.
On the bright side, the 1 carry-on rule has really taught me to rethink 'wants' vs 'needs.' And makes it easy for me to not buy things when I'm traveling since I have no way of carrying them home. Therefore more money in my pocket and less dusting to do when I'm at home!
I use my Hilton points to stay on site when flying back to NA. Wel check into the hotel the night before so we can have an unrushed morning - we only have to go from T4 to T3, rather than struggle to get through the traffic (even the traffic on Bath Road can be stressful as opposed to taking the Heathrow Express between terminals.) Our membership gets us club floor with their free food and drinks and breakfast in the morning.
Finally our *Gold gets us extra checked luggage allowance for inter-European flights, cutting a bit of the inconvenience of having to check things.
As for checked luggage issues at Heathrow... in my experience T3 seems no worse than NA airports. While BA has managed to misplace 3% of passengers' bags (over 3x what US carriers lose), we've had no problems at all with AC, SAS and LH.
For the 'great unwashed' even T3 would be stressful but with our FF perks and building extra time into our schedules, we can insulate ourselves from the crowds and have a traveling experience that is no worse than any other airport. Of course, despite flying through and from Heathrow 10 times in the past year, we have been lucky to not be there during any of the big meltdowns.
We also use the concierges at Heathrow as much as we can and always stop in to say hi to them even if we have no need for their service. (We exchange Christmas cards with one as well.)
Once through security, we run through the 'shopping mall' and settle into the SAS London lounge. Free internet, good food, great atmosphere.
*Gold gets us the arrivals lounge at Heathrow as well, showers, free internet, breakfast and cheerful greetings after a long flight.
On the bright side, the 1 carry-on rule has really taught me to rethink 'wants' vs 'needs.' And makes it easy for me to not buy things when I'm traveling since I have no way of carrying them home. Therefore more money in my pocket and less dusting to do when I'm at home!
I use my Hilton points to stay on site when flying back to NA. Wel check into the hotel the night before so we can have an unrushed morning - we only have to go from T4 to T3, rather than struggle to get through the traffic (even the traffic on Bath Road can be stressful as opposed to taking the Heathrow Express between terminals.) Our membership gets us club floor with their free food and drinks and breakfast in the morning.
Finally our *Gold gets us extra checked luggage allowance for inter-European flights, cutting a bit of the inconvenience of having to check things.
As for checked luggage issues at Heathrow... in my experience T3 seems no worse than NA airports. While BA has managed to misplace 3% of passengers' bags (over 3x what US carriers lose), we've had no problems at all with AC, SAS and LH.
For the 'great unwashed' even T3 would be stressful but with our FF perks and building extra time into our schedules, we can insulate ourselves from the crowds and have a traveling experience that is no worse than any other airport. Of course, despite flying through and from Heathrow 10 times in the past year, we have been lucky to not be there during any of the big meltdowns.
Aug 13, 07, 8:52 am
#9
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Originally Posted by KathrynInCanada
For the 'great unwashed' even T3 would be stressful but with our FF perks and building extra time into our schedules, we can insulate ourselves from the crowds and have a traveling experience that is no worse than any other airport. Of course, despite flying through and from Heathrow 10 times in the past year, we have been lucky to not be there during any of the big meltdowns.
Good way to creatively use your points to your advantage at LHR.
Some might call me stodgy, but I don't think anyone should have to use points, perks, etc (things usually saved up for a vacation) in order to maintain some semblance of sanity on a simple connection through any airport.
