Hi Andy,

Just an update .... managed to get onto MMB early this morning and have just been on at T72 and managed to change seats from 14A/B to 12A/B .... happy days:-))

Thanks for all your help:-)

Regards,
Pat

Hi , as I said just stick to the -72 plan , and usually the early bird gets the worm !!! Lol
Pleased you got your seats you wanted , and getting the first row in that cabin , with a tad more legroom and no seats reclining into " your space " makes paying to reserve your seats worth it . ( if you don't pay or don't have status then it's a free choice at OLCI at -24 )

I'm sure you will have a great flight and enjoy lunch and a few drinks !! You have a nice and reasonable time of the day for your travel , nicely set up to arrive at a decent time at your resort . It really gets the holiday off to a nice relaxed start .

I'm happy the advice came up trumps for you
Now just to recheck your packing list !!!

Remember to do T72 on your return flight too . Have a great holiday

Hi Andy,

<< now just to recheck packing list>> ... what packing list lol!!! Haven't even got the cases out of the loft yet. Am normally very organised, but not this time. Will open the cases, pack clothes and essentials and hope that I haven't forgotten anything:-)

Can I just check something else with you .... when doing online check in and printing boarding cards, do I also need to enter the amount of cases and hand luggage that we will be taking, or, given that we will be doing Day Before Check in (4pm-10pm) can/or do we just check the luggage in then?

Thanks again,
Pat

Hi when you do OLCI you can put in how many cases each person is checking in , no need to declare hand luggage , but say you select 1 case each and then turn up with 3 cases to checkin between you it doesn't matter that you selected 1 each .

You have a personal allowance of 2 cases each up to 23kg when a WTP passenger , so you can afford just to chuck everything in so you don't forget anything

If you're doing the day before checkin , you can do the same and get a card boarding pass and save your printed ones as spares .

I assume you're stopping at a hotel overnight before travel on Sunday , nice to have a lie in and feel relaxed before your flight , even though we live reasonably close ( 36 miles away ) we often book an overnight hotel for a long haul flight rather than worry about that wretched M25 !!

Have a great flight

Hi Andy,

So it is advisable to declare our luggage at OLCI, or can we just check our luggage in when doing the day before check in ... would it make any difference?

There is no limit on weight of hand luggage (ours is normally between around 7kgs ... 2 back packs)?

Yes, have booked the Premier Inn (opposite the terminal) ... 4th time staying there and gets the holiday off to a nice start. We are about 50 min from Gatwick (Romford) and as you say, no telling how the M25 will be on the day, hence always book hotel night before departure:-)

Regards,
Pat

Hi , yes you can just put 1 each and it doesn't matter if you turn up with more , when you physically check in they will just ask you how many bags .
They have just re emphasised the hand baggage rules , but in reality they are still the same , biggest piece of hand luggage can be up to 23kg !! Good luck trying to pop that into the overhead locker !! But the size limit is 55x45x25 (cm) so you would have to fill it with lead to weigh 23kg !! , you can also take a smaller bag like a handbag or camera bag too .
They do now patrol around at the gate checking bags and tagging the smaller ones as being guaranteed to stay in the cabin , but I think on the long haul flights you need not worry , this new baggage policing seems to concentrated on the short haul European flights where overhead locker space is more limited and people travelling on hand baggage only fares and taking on big heavy cases instead of checking in luggage .

Should be easy staying at Premier inn , not too far to walk across ! Not any places to eat now in the NT for evening meal they are still currently building a pub there , but quite a few choices over the South , Wetherspoons , Beehive pub and Giraffe by way of the transit train thing ! I know the hotel restaurants can be very busy and fairly expensive .

Morning Andy,

Thanks for clarifying the hand luggage, not that I intend using the 23kgs allowance lol!

Wow, <<not any places to eat now in the NT for evening meal>> ... crickey, pleased that we ve opted for the meal deal at PI again:-) Re ST .. we flew from there in June when we went to Mexico ... wasn't impressed with the new layout at all (prefer North) ... it felt that everything was on top of each other and very confined!

Oh well, now really must get those cases out and make a start on the packing lol!

Regards,
Pat

Hi , best idea to book a meal deal booking , we stayed at the Prem Inn, by the roundabout a few years ago and the restaurant was fully booked , usually we've stayed at the sofitel and the restaurants are quite expensive and we've ended up in one of the pubs in the south terminal .
Over the years they have cut down on the eating outlets that are airside at the terminals , just the token pub and costa coffee !!
I haven't been in the south for years I know they've expanded the security zone , but looking at the maps on the Gatwick website it does look confined , will have to get used to it though as BA move there next year , but hopefully the lounges will newly refreshed and more spacious after the traipse through world duty free !!
The North has always been my preferred terminal even before I flew with BA .

Hope all goes well and you enjoy your flight and holiday .

Hi Andy,

Yes, the meal deals at the PI are really good value too. Friends of ours always stay at the Sofitel (actually they stayed their last night before their flight to Mexico this morning), but as you stay it isn't cheap to eat in there!

Yes, of course, BA is moving to the ST next year, but we will be flying with Thomson to Jamaica in June, so it will be NT for us:-)

Must get back up stairs to continue packing ... only came down for a glass of wine to get into the holiday mood;-)

Thanks again for your help Andy, and will report back on my thoughts regarding BA on our return.

Regards,
Pat

http://www.thebasource.com/british-airways-b777-200er-g-ymme-positions-to-gatwick-base-2/

Sorry I missed this news , ironic really as it was the actual plane for your outbound flight !!

Hope you had a good flight though , it appears almost on time ( 20 mins late ?? ) and have settled in the warm sunshine !

Hi Andy,

Returned from the Dom Rep yesterday and thought I would update you regarding our flights given all the helpful info you gave me.

As said we had seats 12A & B in WT+ outbound. Seats were ok, although imo cabin in need of an upgrade, food ... as far as airline food goes, it is what it is! IFE ... fair choice of films to watch although screen very scratched. Service .... cabin crew came round twice with bar service, thereafter requested further service by pressing the button. Comparing BA WT+ with PE in VA and Thomson, for me VA come out on top with Thomson 2nd followed by BA ... but that is just my opinion.

Did enquire at check in about upgrading to Club World .... £840 which given that we had already paid to upgrade to WT+ couldn't justify the extra cost.

Return flight .... missed out on changing seats from 14A & B to 12A & B (seats already taken) Once again enquired at PC airport of upgrade cost to Club World .... $940, so once again declined. However, 2hr prior to departure announcement made for us to contact check in where we were told we were being upgraded FOC .... happy days:-))) Wow, what a difference from WT+ .... had seats 11H & J. I would normally have the window seat but hubby took that seat as I would have felt claustrophobic coupled with the fact that I would have been facing the wall and facing backwards, but hubby was more than happy lol! Very impressed with seating, service and food ... no complaints whatsoever. Only problem now is that if we fly with BA again if would HAVE to be Club World ... could not go back to WT+ now after experiencing Club World lol!

Would also add, that after speaking to cabin crew it seems that there were quite a few people were upgraded from Economy to WT+ and from WT+ to Club World ... so there were many happy people on that flight lol!

Kind regards,
Pat

Hi Pat , nice to hear your views , and hope you had a relaxing holiday .
Bit of a bonus getting a free upgrade to CW on the way back , sounds like WT was overbooked and they moved people up the chain , it probably helped you were in the BAEC !!

I would think you are right in saying that a cabin update is needed and I imagine if you were in a WTP updated product like some at LHR it would be more satisfactory for the money paid . I think the problem with WTP or premium economy is that it attracts a higher level of APD which is a fair %age of the extra fare between economy and premium economy , in a sense you are only getting a bit more room and a dedicated smaller cabin , and as you found in CW it's a totally different level of service and comfort .

I would agree with you that PE on virgin is very good , have flown it once from LGW to Cuba in the 747 bubble and it cost £500 approx one way U/G for 2 , I tried to get it on the way back , but had to fly back in economy which was a such a poor experience in terms of comfort , food and service . In fact SRB did me a favour in making me realise that premium travel was the way to go , I've only ever flown Club and First since then , I identified that BA could accommodate all my needs in its frequent flyer program and offer long and short haul routes I used at different times of the year .
I only buy CW fares when a sale is on and First tickets with reward vouchers and AVIOS . I do buy short haul in CE at low prices , I could save a bit by choosing EJ but Thomsons always works out costing more ! With eggs all in one basket I maintain status and earn more rewards and only travel in premium cabins , the others wouldn't reward my loyalty .

It's worth checking in future the cost of a Club World holiday when sales are on , as its just a deposit and pay off when it suits with final payment due 10 weeks before travel , if you get enough AVIOS you can book WTP and accommodation and use AVIOS to upgrade to CW if available by checking availability through the executive club to lessen the cost and avoid upgrade costs of £840 ish .

I haven't ever flown thomson premium , but I do find some of their costs quite high and their 90 day seat choosing lottery puts me off a bit , I could easily spend as much with them as I do with BA , but wouldn't receive the recognition or rewards that BA offers .

I guess the test is checking the best options and costs with flying BA in CW or using Virgin or Thomson in PE when choosing a long haul destination

Pleased you had a pleasant experience in CW and thought it was good .

Only 5 weeks for me now at the very pointy end of a 747 at a cost of £463 pp return to Dubai

Hi Andy,

I will bear all your information in mind for when we (hopefully) look for our Sept/Oct holiday next year. At the moment we have Jamaica booked with Thomson (PE) for June, and cost was around £600 for both of us which was substantially cheaper than what we paid for WT+ with BA.

Kind regards,
Pat

Hi Pat , I assuming that the £600 is the upgrade fee from economy to premium ? Which is 150 per person per leg ?? And for that length of flight is quite reasonable .
I think that both Thomson and VS do premium economy very well in comparison to BA , and I just view WTP as a fare to purchase at and use AVIOS to upgrade to CW , which then offers great value for the amount of cash spent .

The BA flights to Jamaica are only to Kingston , they pulled out of Montego Bay in 2011 after restarting there in 2009 after a 7 year absence before that , so obviously that route doesn't work for them , and VS pulled out of Kingston in 2012 to concentrate on Montego Bay instead !! And most leisure travellers probably use Mo Bay .

I think it's useful to compare all 3 carriers for pricing and service level and total package cost to find the best to suit you . And I guess all 3 will be having " sales " at some point , I know BA do have a sale around Xmax or NY usually , at least by sampling all 3 carriers " premium " and CW you can compare prices

Only been to Jamaica for a day trip ! Off a cruise boat when we called into port for a day ! Went to Dunns River Falls and really enjoyed it .

Pippy wrote:

I'm looking at possibly going to Menorca next year, in July. BA list it as one of their destinations but don't appear to fly there from any London airport....am I right?

Just seen that they have now changed flights to Menorca from LCY to LHR

http://www.thebasource.com/british-airways-annouce-london-heathrow-mahon-service/

Flight times are not great , but ok , and on checking prices , they are from £100 return .

Hi Andy,

Calling on your help again ......

Having booked PE with Thomson to Negril, Jamaica for next June, I've just been checking out BA Club World sale, and have a great price for a Secrets Resort in Montego Bay travelling end of Sept ... yes, I know Jamaica again!!

Can you tell me, if you book a complete holiday with Club World seating, do you have access to book your seat numbers straight away?

Kind regards,
Pat

Hi Pat , see once you've tasted Club World , any less wont do !! good to see you've got a good deal , they are out there especially in the " sales "
Just checking one thing is the flight to Kingston though ?? And is that a long way still to Mo Bay ??

Anyway if you book a Club World holiday , you create a a package , it's dealt with by British Airways Holidays , you can select seats at time of the booking , and depending on status in the BAEC whether you have to pay for seat choice , none of this faffing around 90 days from your inbound flight stuff , matchsticks in eyes at 1.00am fighting over seat 1A !!
You have to pay a deposit for the flights and hotel ( around 10%) and then you can go into MMB and pay off a bit at a time or the full balance on the due date ( 10 weeks from departure )

You can also add transfers or car hire now or later too . And as well as earning AVIOS on your flight you get 2 AVIOS for every £1 of the total cost of the package , so more points to get more CW flights !! or to purchase a cheaper reward flight saver flight on a short haul euro flight .

Pat,

Kingston to Montego Bay is a bit of a trek. It's about 109 miles which doesn't sound too far, but on Jamaican roads is a good 3 hours.

Darren

Hi Andy and Darren,

Yes, you are correct ... just checked and it is showing 3.5hr transfer!! Damn ... may have to have a rethink:-( It threw me as it does state on the BA site as hotel being 15min from Montego Bay Airport .. why mention Mob Airport when they no longer fly there??

Regards,
Pat